Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Happiness of Those Who Trust in God
A Psalm of David (A)when he pretended madness before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed.
34 I will (B)bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;
The humble shall hear of it and be glad.
3 Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.
4 I (C)sought the Lord, and He heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.
5 They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces were not ashamed.
6 This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him,
And saved him out of all his troubles.
7 (D)The [a]angel of the Lord (E)encamps all around those who fear Him,
And delivers them.
8 Oh, (F)taste and see that the Lord is good;
(G)Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
9 Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints!
There is no [b]want to those who fear Him.
10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger;
(H)But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.
11 Come, you children, listen to me;
(I)I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 (J)Who is the man who desires life,
And loves many days, that he may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil,
And your lips from speaking (K)deceit.
14 (L)Depart from evil and do good;
(M)Seek peace and pursue it.
15 (N)The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
And His ears are open to their cry.
16 (O)The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
(P)To [c]cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry out, and (Q)the Lord hears,
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 (R)The Lord is near (S)to those who have a broken heart,
And saves such as [d]have a contrite spirit.
19 (T)Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
(U)But the Lord delivers him out of them all.
20 He guards all his bones;
(V)Not one of them is broken.
21 (W)Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous shall be [e]condemned.
22 The Lord (X)redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.
11 Come, my beloved,
Let us go forth to the field;
Let us lodge in the villages.
12 Let us get up early to the vineyards;
Let us (C)see if the vine has budded,
Whether the grape blossoms are open,
And the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
13 The (D)mandrakes give off a fragrance,
And at our gates (E)are pleasant fruits,
All manner, new and old,
Which I have laid up for you, my beloved.
Lovers Reunited at Their Country Home
8 Oh, that you were like my brother,
Who nursed at my mother’s breasts!
If I should find you outside,
I would kiss you;
I would not be despised.
2 I would lead you and bring you
Into the (F)house of my mother,
She who used to instruct me.
I would cause you to drink of (G)spiced wine,
Of the juice of my pomegranate.
(To the Daughters of Jerusalem)
25 And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You come here?”
26 Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 (A)Do not labor for the food which perishes, but (B)for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, (C)because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”
28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”
29 Jesus answered and said to them, (D)“This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
30 Therefore they said to Him, (E)“What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31 (F)Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, (G)‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
32 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but (H)My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 (I)Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”
35 And Jesus said to them, (J)“I am the bread of life. (K)He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never (L)thirst.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.