Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 32
How Blessed Is the Person Whose Rebellion Is Forgiven
Heading
By David. A maskil.[a]
The Joy of Forgiveness
1 How blessed is the person
whose rebellion is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
2 How blessed is the person
whose guilt the Lord does not charge against him,
in whose spirit there is no deceit.
Obtaining the Joy of Forgiveness
3 When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away as I groaned all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me. Interlude
My moisture was dried up by the droughts of summer.
5 I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not cover up my guilt.
I said, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord,” Interlude
and you forgave the guilt of my sin.
6 Because of this, let everyone who receives favor pray to you
at a time when you may be found.
Surely when the mighty waters overflow,
they will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place.
You will protect me from distress. Interlude
You will surround me with shouts of deliverance.
21 Be reconciled with God.
Be at peace with him.
Then good will come to you.
22 Accept teaching from his mouth,
and set his words in your heart.
23 If you turn to the Almighty, you will be built up.
If you want to put injustice far from your tent,
24 throw your purest gold[a] into the dust
and your gold from Ophir upon the rocks in the ravines.
25 Then the Almighty will be your purest gold
and your most precious silver.
26 Then you will find pleasure in the Almighty,
and you will lift up your face to God.
27 You will pray to God, and he will hear you,
and you will fulfill your vows.
28 You will decide on a matter, and it will be done for you,
and light will shine on your ways.
29 When people are brought low,
and you say, “Lift them up,”
God will save the downcast.
30 He will deliver even the person who is not innocent,
who will escape by the purity of your hands.
Round Three: Job’s First Speech
23 Then Job responded:
2 Even today my complaint is bitter.[b]
His[c] hand weighs heavily on me despite my groaning.[d]
3 I wish I knew where I could find him,
so that I could come to his place for judgment.
4 Then I would lay out my case before him,
and I would fill my mouth with arguments.
5 I would know what words he would use to respond to me,
and I would consider what he would say to me.
6 Would he use his great power to press charges against me?
No, he will certainly give me a hearing.
7 There, an upright man could argue with him,
and I would be delivered from my judge forever.
8 But if I walk to the east, he is not there.
If I go back to the west, I find no sign of him.
9 When he is at work in the north, I do not detect him.
When he turns to the south, I do not see him.
10 But I am sure he knows the way I take.
When he has tested me, I will come out like gold.
11 My feet have followed his footsteps closely.
I have kept to his way, and I have not turned aside.
12 I have not departed from the command from his lips.
I have treasured the sayings from his mouth in my heart.[e]
13 He stands alone.
Who can make him change?
Whatever his soul desires, he will do.
14 He carries out his decrees against me,
and he has so many of them!
15 That is why I am in a panic in his presence.
When I think about this, I dread him.
16 God has made me lose heart.
The Almighty has terrified me.
17 Nevertheless, I am not silenced by the darkness,
by the dark cloud that covers my face.
Greeting
1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have obtained the same kind of faith as ours in the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus[a] our Lord.
Keep on Growing
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own[b] glory and excellence. 4 Through these he has given us his precious and great promises so that through them you may share in the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that sinful lust causes in the world.
5 And, for this very reason, after applying every effort, add moral excellence to your faith. To moral excellence, add knowledge. 6 To knowledge, add self-control. To self-control, add patient endurance. To patient endurance, add godliness. 7 To godliness, add brotherly affection. And to brotherly affection, add love. 8 For if you have these qualities and they are increasing, they are going to keep you from being idle or unfruitful in regard to your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 Indeed, the person who lacks these qualities is shortsighted and, in fact, blind, because he has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
Make Your Calling and Election Sure
10 Therefore, brothers,[c] be more eager to make your calling and election sure for yourselves.[d] For if you do these things, you will never stumble. 11 In fact, in this way you will be richly supplied with an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.