Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 140
Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies
To the leader. A Psalm of David.
1 Deliver me, O Lord, from evildoers;
protect me from those who are violent,(A)
2 who plan evil things in their minds
and stir up wars continually.(B)
3 They make their tongue sharp as a snake’s,
and under their lips is the venom of vipers. Selah(C)
4 Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
protect me from the violent
who have planned my downfall.(D)
5 The arrogant have hidden a trap for me,
and with cords they have spread a net,[a]
along the road they have set snares for me. Selah(E)
6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God;
give ear, O Lord, to the voice of my supplications.”(F)
7 O Lord, my Lord, my strong deliverer,
you have covered my head in the day of battle.(G)
8 Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
do not further their evil plot.[b] Selah(H)
34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord has greatly blessed my master, and he has become wealthy; he has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female slaves, camels and donkeys.(A) 36 And Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old, and he has given him all that he has.(B) 37 My master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I live, 38 but you shall go to my father’s house, to my kindred, and get a wife for my son.’(C) 39 I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’(D) 40 But he said to me, ‘The Lord, before whom I walk, will send his angel with you and make your way successful. You shall get a wife for my son from my kindred, from my father’s house.(E) 41 Then you will be free from my oath, when you come to my kindred; even if they will not give her to you, you will be free from my oath.’(F)
50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered, “The thing comes from the Lord; we cannot speak to you anything bad or good.(A) 51 Look, Rebekah is before you, take her and go, and let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has spoken.”
52 When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the ground before the Lord.(B) 53 And the servant brought out jewelry of silver and of gold and garments and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave to her brother and to her mother costly ornaments.(C) 54 Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. When they rose in the morning, he said, “Send me back to my master.”(D) 55 Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman remain with us a while, at least ten days; after that she may go.” 56 But he said to them, “Do not delay me, since the Lord has made my journey successful; let me go that I may go to my master.” 57 They said, “We will call the young woman and ask her.” 58 And they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will.” 59 So they sent away their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his men.(E) 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,
“May you, our sister, become
thousands of myriads;
may your offspring gain possession
of the gates of their foes.”(F)
61 Then Rebekah and her maids rose up, mounted the camels, and followed the man, and the servant took Rebekah and went his way.
62 Now Isaac had come from[a] Beer-lahai-roi and was settled in the Negeb.(G) 63 Isaac went out in the evening to walk[b] in the field, and, looking up, he saw camels coming.(H) 64 And Rebekah looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she slipped quickly from the camel 65 and said to the servant, “Who is the man over there, walking in the field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself. 66 And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent. He took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.(I)
A New Commandment
7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 Yet I am writing you a new commandment that is true in him and in you, because[a] the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.(A) 9 Whoever says, “I am in the light,” while hating a brother or sister, is still in the darkness.(B) 10 Whoever loves a brother or sister abides in the light, and in such a person[b] there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates a brother or sister is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness.(C)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.