Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 32
How Blessed Is the Person Whose Rebellion Is Forgiven
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By David. A maskil.[a]
The Joy of Forgiveness
1 How blessed is the person
whose rebellion is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
2 How blessed is the person
whose guilt the Lord does not charge against him,
in whose spirit there is no deceit.
Obtaining the Joy of Forgiveness
3 When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away as I groaned all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me. Interlude
My moisture was dried up by the droughts of summer.
5 I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not cover up my guilt.
I said, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord,” Interlude
and you forgave the guilt of my sin.
6 Because of this, let everyone who receives favor pray to you
at a time when you may be found.
Surely when the mighty waters overflow,
they will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place.
You will protect me from distress. Interlude
You will surround me with shouts of deliverance.
Sharing the Joy of Forgiveness
8 I will make you wise.
I will instruct you in the way that you should go.
I will guide you, keeping my eye on you.
9 Do not be like a horse or a mule, which has no understanding.
Its mouth must be controlled by a bit and bridle,
or else it will not come to you.
10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but mercy will surround those who trust in the Lord.
11 Rejoice in the Lord and celebrate, all you righteous,
and shout joyfully, all you upright in heart.
28 Ahima’az called out to the king, “Peace.” Then he bowed down to the king with his face to the ground and said, “Blessed is the Lord your God, who delivered up the men who raised their hand against my lord the king.”
29 The king asked, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”
Ahima’az said, “I saw a great uproar at the time when Joab sent the other servant of the king and me, your servant. I do not know what it was about.”
30 The king said, “Step aside. Stay here.” So he stepped aside and just stood there.
31 The Cushite arrived and said, “There is good news for my lord the king, because the Lord has delivered you this day from the power of all who rose up against you.”
32 The king asked the Cushite, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”
The Cushite said, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you with evil intentions be like that young man.”
33 The king was shocked. He went up to the room over the gatehouse. As he was going, he wept and said, “My son Absalom, my son, my son! O Absalom, I wish I had died instead of you. O Absalom, my son, my son.”
The Aftermath of the Battle
19 Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.”[a] 2 The victory that day became an occasion for mourning for all the people, because that day the people heard that the king was mourning for his son. 3 That day the people were sneaking into the city quietly, the way people who are ashamed of fleeing from the battle would sneak in quietly. 4 The king covered his face and cried with a loud voice, “My son Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son.”
5 Joab came to the king at the house and said, “Today you have put to shame all your followers, who today have saved your life, the lives of your sons and daughters, and the lives of your wives and concubines. 6 You love those who hate you and hate those who love you. You have demonstrated clearly today that your officers and followers are nothing to you. Today I have no doubt that if Absalom were alive and all of us were dead, you would be pleased. 7 Now get up. Go out. Speak to the hearts of your followers. For by the Lord, I swear that if you do not go out, not a man will remain with you tonight, and this disaster will be greater for you than all the disasters that have come upon you from your youth until now.”
8 So the king got up and took his seat by the gate. All the people were told, “Look! The king is sitting in the gate.” So all the people came into the presence of the king.
Israel had fled, every man to his own home.
Jesus Forgives Sins
17 On one of the days while Jesus was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. The power of the Lord was with him to heal. 18 Just then, men who were carrying a paralyzed man on a stretcher tried to bring him in and lay him in front of Jesus. 19 Since they did not find a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him down through the tiles on his stretcher into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. 20 When he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins have been forgiven.”
21 The experts in the law and the Pharisees began to think to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins except God alone?”
22 But Jesus knew their thoughts and answered them, “Why are you thinking this in your hearts? 23 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins have been forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. . .” He said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your stretcher, and go home.”
25 Immediately, he stood up in front of them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. 26 They were all astonished and glorified God. They were also filled with reverence and said, “We have seen wonderful things today.”
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.