Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 140
Rescue Me From Evil Men
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For the choir director. A psalm by David.
Plea for Deliverance
1 Keep me safe, Lord, from the evil man.
Protect me from the violent man,
2 who plans evil in his heart.
Every day they gather for battle.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a snake. Interlude
The poison of vipers is under their lips.
4 Keep me safe, Lord, from the hands of the wicked.
Protect me from the violent man, who plans to trip my feet.
5 The proud have hidden a snare for me, and ropes.[a]
They have spread out a net along my route. Interlude
They have set traps for me.
Confidence
6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
Hear, O Lord, the sound of my cry for mercy.
7 O Lord, my Lord, the strength of my salvation,
you cover my head on the day for weapons.
8 Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked.
Do not let their scheme succeed when they rise up.[b] Interlude
Plea for Justice
9 May the trouble caused by their lips
fall on the heads of those who surround me.
10 Let burning coals fall on them.
Cause them to fall into the fire,
or into pits from which they will never rise.
11 Do not let the slanderer[c] be established in the land.
As for the man of violence—
may evil hunt him and beat him down.
Confidence
12 I know that the Lord will provide justice for the oppressed,
judgment for the poor.
13 Surely the righteous will give thanks to your name.
The upright will live in your presence.
34 He said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord has blessed my master greatly. He has become great. The Lord has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, camels and donkeys. 36 Sarah, my master’s wife, bore a son for my master when she was old. My master has given him everything that he owns. 37 My master made me take an oath. He said, ‘You must not acquire a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I am living. 38 Instead, you shall go to my father’s house and to my relatives and acquire a wife for my son.’ 39 I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not follow me?’ 40 He said to me, ‘The Lord, in whose presence I walk, will send his angel with you and give your journey success, and you will acquire a wife for my son from my relatives and from my father’s house. 41 But you will be released from my oath, if, when you have come to my relatives, they do not give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’
50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered, “This matter has been determined by the Lord. We cannot say anything to you either bad or good. 51 Look, Rebekah is right here in front of you. Take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has spoken.”
52 So, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed down to the ground before the Lord. 53 The servant brought out silver and gold jewelry and clothing and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave valuable gifts to her brother and her mother. 54 He and the men who were with him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. They got up in the morning, and he said, “Send me on my way to my master.”
55 Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young lady stay with us a few days, at least ten. After that she can go.”
56 He said to them, “Do not hold me back, since the Lord has granted my journey success. Send me on my way so that I can go to my master.”
57 They said, “We will call the young lady and ask her.” 58 They called Rebekah and asked her, “Do you want to go with this man?”
She said, “I do.”
59 So they sent all of them on their way—their sister Rebekah with her nurse, Abraham’s servant, and his men. 60 They blessed Rebekah and said to her, “May you, our sister, be the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let your offspring take possession of the gates of those who hate them.”
61 Rebekah set out with her female attendants. They rode on the camels and followed the man. Abraham’s servant took Rebekah and set out on his journey.
62 Isaac had come from the direction of Be’er Lahai Roi, for he was living in the Negev. 63 In the evening Isaac had gone out into the field to meditate.[a] He looked up and saw that there were camels coming. 64 Rebekah also looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she jumped down from the camel. 65 She said to the servant, “Who is that man who is walking through the field to meet us?”
The servant said, “It is my master.”
She took her veil and covered herself. 66 The servant told Isaac everything that he had done. 67 Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent, and he took her as his wife. He loved her, and Isaac stopped mourning his mother’s death.
7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one that you have had since the beginning. The old command is the message you heard. 8 At the same time, the command I am writing is new—it is true in Jesus[a] and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. 9 The one who says he is in the light and yet hates his brother is still in the darkness. 10 The one who loves his brother remains in the light, and nothing causes him to stumble. 11 The one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.