Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Calm Trust in Yahweh
A song of ascents. Of David.[a]
The Egyptians are No Help
31 Ah! Those who go down to Egypt for help!
They rely on horses
and trust in chariots because they are many,
and in horsemen because they are very numerous,
and they do not look to the holy one of Israel,
and they do not consult Yahweh.
2 And indeed, he is wise, and he brings disaster,
and he does not remove his words,
and he will rise against the house of evildoers
and against the help of workers of iniquity.
3 And the Egyptians are human and not God,
and their horses are flesh and not spirit.
And Yahweh stretches out his hand,
and the helper will stumble,
and the one being helped will fall,
and together all of them will come to an end.[a]
4 For Yahweh said this to me:
“As which a lion growls
and a young lion over its prey
when a full group[b] of shepherds is called against him,
it is not terrified by their voice,
and to their noise it does not respond,
so Yahweh of hosts will come down to fight upon Mount Zion
and upon its hill.
5 Like birds flying overhead, so Yahweh of hosts will protect Jerusalem;
he will protect and deliver it;
he will pass over and rescue it.
6 Turn back to the one against whom the sons of Israel have made deep rebellion.
7 For on that day, each one will reject his idols of silver
and his idols of gold which your hands have made in sin for you.
8 And Assyria shall fall by a sword not of a man,
and a sword not of a human shall devour him;
and he shall flee from the sword,
and his young men shall be put to forced labor.
9 And his rock will pass over because of terror,
and his officers will be terrified because of the flag,”
declares[c] Yahweh,
who has a fire in Zion
and has a furnace in Jerusalem.
A House Divided Cannot Stand
14 And he was expelling a mute demon.[a] Now it happened that when[b] the demon came out, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were astonished. 15 But some of them said, “By Beelzebul the ruler of demons he expels demons!” 16 And others, in order to[c] test him,[d] were demanding from him a sign from heaven. 17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household[e] falls. 18 So if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I expel demons by Beelzebul. 19 But if I expel demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons expel them?[f] For this reason they will be your judges! 20 But if I expel demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you! 21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his possessions are safe.[g] 22 But when a stronger man attacks him and[h] conquers him, he takes away his full armor in which he trusted and distributes his plunder. 23 The one who is not with me is against me, and the one who does not gather with me scatters.
2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software