Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
23 (A)The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He (B)delights in his way.
24 When (C)he falls, he will not be hurled down,
Because (D)the Lord is the One [a]who holds his hand.
25 I have been young and now I am old,
Yet (E)I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or (F)his [b]descendants begging for bread.
26 All day long (G)he is gracious and lends,
And (H)his [c]descendants are a blessing.
27 (I)Turn from evil and do good,
So that you will dwell (J)forever.
28 For the Lord (K)loves [d]justice
And (L)does not abandon His godly ones;
They are (M)protected forever,
But the [e](N)descendants of the wicked will be eliminated.
29 The righteous will (O)inherit the land
And (P)dwell in it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous (Q)utters wisdom,
And his tongue (R)speaks justice.
31 The (S)Law of his God is in his heart;
His (T)steps do not slip.
32 The (U)wicked spies upon the righteous
And (V)seeks to kill him.
33 The Lord will (W)not leave him in his hand
Or (X)let him be condemned when he is judged.
34 (Y)Wait for the Lord and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the (Z)wicked are eliminated, you will see it.
35 I have (AA)seen a wicked, violent person
Spreading himself like a (AB)luxuriant [f]tree in its native soil.
36 Then he passed away, and behold, he (AC)was no more;
I searched for him, but he could not be found.
37 Observe the [g](AD)blameless person, and look at the (AE)upright;
For the person of peace will have (AF)a future.
38 But wrongdoers will altogether be (AG)destroyed;
The future of the wicked will be (AH)eliminated.
39 But the (AI)salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength (AJ)in time of trouble.
40 (AK)The Lord helps them and rescues them;
He (AL)rescues them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they (AM)take refuge in Him.
Israel Demands a King
8 Now it came about, when Samuel was old, that (A)he appointed his sons as judges over Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judging in (B)Beersheba. 3 His sons, however, did not walk in his ways but turned aside after dishonest gain, and they (C)took bribes and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at (D)Ramah; 5 and they said to him, “Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now (E)appoint us a king to judge us like all the nations.” 6 But the matter was [a](F)displeasing in the sight of Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And (G)Samuel prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people regarding all that they say to you, because (H)they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them. 8 Like all the deeds which they have done since the day that I brought them up from Egypt even to this day—in that they have abandoned Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you as well. 9 Now then, listen to their voice; (I)however, you shall warn them strongly and tell them of (J)the [b]practice of the king who will reign over them.”
Warning concerning a King
10 So Samuel spoke all the words of the Lord to (K)the people who had asked him for a king. 11 And he said, “(L)This will be the [c]practice of the king who will reign over you: (M)he will take your sons and put them in his chariots for himself and among his horsemen, and (N)they will run before his chariots. 12 (O)He will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to [d]do his plowing and to gather in his harvest, and to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13 He will also take your daughters and use them as perfumers, cooks, and bakers. 14 (P)He will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves, and give them to his servants. 15 And he will take a tenth of your seed and your vineyards and give it to his high officials and his servants. 16 He will also take your male servants and your female servants, and your best young men, and your donkeys, and [e]use them for his work. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his servants. 18 Then (Q)you will cry out on that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but (R)the Lord will not answer you on that day.”
The Danger of Falling Away
6 Therefore (A)leaving (B)the [a]elementary teaching about the [b]Christ, let us press on to [c](C)maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from (D)dead works and of faith toward God, 2 of (E)instruction about [d]washings and (F)laying on of hands, and about the (G)resurrection of the dead and (H)eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do, (I)if God permits. 4 For it is (J)impossible, in the case of those who have once been (K)enlightened and have tasted of (L)the heavenly gift and have been made (M)partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and (N)have tasted the good (O)word of God and the powers of (P)the age to come, 6 and then have [e]fallen away, to (Q)restore them again to repentance, [f](R)since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. 7 For ground that drinks the rain which often [g]falls on it and produces vegetation useful to those (S)for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; 8 but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and [h](T)close to being cursed, and [i]it ends up being burned.
Better Things for You
9 But, (U)beloved, we are convinced of better things regarding you, and things that [j]accompany salvation, even though we are speaking in this way. 10 For (V)God is not unjust so as to forget (W)your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, by having (X)served and by still serving the [k]saints. 11 And we desire that each one of you demonstrate the same diligence [l]so as to realize the (Y)full assurance of (Z)hope until the end, 12 so that you will not be sluggish, but (AA)imitators of those who through (AB)faith and endurance (AC)inherit the promises.
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