Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Michtam of David.
16 Preserve me, O God: for I trust in thee.
2 Thou [my soul] hast said to Jehovah, Thou art the Lord: my goodness [extendeth] not to thee;—
3 To the saints that are on the earth, and to the excellent [thou hast said], In them is all my delight.
4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another: their drink-offerings of blood will I not offer, and I will not take up their names into my lips.
5 Jehovah is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.
6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.
7 I will bless Jehovah, who giveth me counsel; even in the nights my reins instruct me.
8 I have set Jehovah continually before me; because [he is] at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart rejoiceth, and my glory exulteth; my flesh moreover shall dwell in hope.
10 For thou wilt not leave my soul to Sheol, neither wilt thou allow thy Holy One to see corruption.
11 Thou wilt make known to me the path of life: thy countenance is fulness of joy; at thy right hand are pleasures for evermore.
1 And Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab.
2 And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and was sick; and he sent messengers and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this disease.
3 And the angel of Jehovah said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron?
4 Now therefore thus saith Jehovah: Thou shalt not come down from the bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt certainly die. And Elijah departed.
5 And the messengers returned to him; and he said to them, Why have ye returned?
6 And they said unto him, A man came up to meet us, and said to us, Go, return to the king that sent you and say to him, Thus saith Jehovah: Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt certainly die.
7 And he said to them, What manner of man was he that came up to meet you, and told you these words?
8 And they said to him, He was a man in a hairy [garment], and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
9 And he sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him, and behold, he sat on the top of the mount. And he spoke to him: Man of God, the king says, Come down!
10 And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, And if I be a man of God, let fire come down from the heavens and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from the heavens, and consumed him and his fifty.
11 And again he sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he spoke and said to him, Man of God, thus says the king: Come down quickly!
12 And Elijah answered and said to them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from the heavens and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from the heavens, and consumed him and his fifty.
13 And again he sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him and said to him, Man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight.
14 Behold, there came down fire from the heavens, and consumed the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties; but now, let my life be precious in thy sight.
15 And the angel of Jehovah said to Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him to the king.
16 And he said to him, Thus saith Jehovah: Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt certainly die.
8 But then indeed, not knowing God, ye were in bondage to those who by nature are not gods;
9 but now, knowing God, but rather being known by God, how do ye turn again to the weak and beggarly principles to which ye desire to be again anew in bondage?
10 Ye observe days and months and times and years.
11 I am afraid of you, lest indeed I have laboured in vain as to you.
12 Be as *I* [am], for *I* also [am] as *ye*, brethren, I beseech you: ye have not at all wronged me.
13 But ye know that in weakness of the flesh I announced the glad tidings to you at the first;
14 and my temptation, which [was] in my flesh, ye did not slight nor reject with contempt; but ye received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus.
15 What then [was] your blessedness? for I bear you witness that, if possible, plucking out your own eyes ye would have given [them] to me.
16 So I have become your enemy in speaking the truth to you?
17 They are not rightly zealous after you, but desire to shut you out [from us], that ye may be zealous after them.
18 But [it is] right to be zealous at all times in what is right, and not only when I am present with you—
19 my children, of whom I again travail in birth until Christ shall have been formed in you:
20 and I should wish to be present with you now, and change my voice, for I am perplexed as to you.
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