Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Prayer Not to Be Killed
A psalm of David.
143 Lord, hear my prayer;
·listen [L give ear] to my ·cry for mercy [prayer of supplication].
Answer me
because you are ·loyal [faithful] and ·good [righteous].
2 Don’t ·judge me [L bring me into judgment], your servant,
because no one alive is ·right [righteous] before you [Rom. 3:22; Gal. 2:16].
3 My enemies are ·chasing [pursuing; persecuting] me;
they crushed me to the ground.
They made me ·live [sit] in darkness
like those long dead [Lam. 3:6].
4 ·I am afraid [I am depressed; L my spirit is faint; 142:3];
my ·courage is gone [L heart within me is desolated].
5 I remember ·what happened long ago [L the former days];
I ·consider [meditated on] everything you have done.
I ·think [considered] ·about all you have made [L the work of your hands].
6 I ·lift my hands to you in prayer [L spread out my hands to you].
·As a dry land needs rain, I thirst [L My life/soul is like a thirsty/parched land] for you. ·
7 Lord, answer me quickly,
because ·I am getting weak [L my spirit languishes].
Don’t ·turn away [L hide your face] from me,
or I will be like those who ·are dead [L go down to the pit].
8 ·Tell me [Make me hear] in the morning about your ·love [loyalty],
because I ·trust [have confidence in] you.
·Show me what I should do [L Make me know the way I should walk],
because ·my prayers go up [L I lift up my soul] to you.
9 Lord, ·save [protect] me from my enemies;
I hide in you.
10 Teach me to do ·what you want [your will],
because you are my God.
Let your good Spirit [or spirit]
·lead [guide] me on level ground.
11 Lord, let me live
·so people will praise you [L for the sake of your name].
In your ·goodness [righteousness]
·save me [L bring me out] from my ·troubles [distress].
12 In your ·love [loyalty] ·defeat [destroy] my enemies.
·Destroy [L Make perish] all those who ·trouble [distress] me,
because I am your servant.
18 The boy grew up and one day went out to his father, who was with the ·grain harvesters [reapers]. 19 The boy said to his father, “My head! My head!”
The father said to his servant, “·Take [Carry] him to his mother!” 20 The servant ·took [carried] him to his mother, and he lay on his mother’s lap until noon. Then he died. 21 So she took him up and laid him on ·Elisha’s bed [L the bed of the man of God]. Then she shut the door and left.
22 She called to her husband, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys. Then I can go quickly to the man of God and return.”
23 The husband said, “Why do you want to go to him today? It isn’t the New Moon or the Sabbath day.”
She said, “It will be all right.”
24 Then she saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Lead on. Don’t slow down for me unless I tell you.” 25 So she went to Elisha, the man of God, at Mount Carmel.
When he saw her coming ·from far away [in the distance], he said to his servant Gehazi, “Look, there’s the Shunammite woman! 26 Run to meet her and ask, ‘Are you ·all right [well]? Is your husband ·all right [well]? Is the boy ·all right [well]?’”
She answered, “Everything is ·all right [well].”
27 Then she came to Elisha at the hill and grabbed his feet. Gehazi came near to pull her away, but Elisha said to him, “Leave her alone. She’s ·very upset [L in bitter distress in her soul], and the Lord has not told me about it. He has hidden it from me.”
28 She said, “·Master [My lord], did I ask you for a son? Didn’t I tell you not to ·lie to [deceive; mislead] me?”
29 Then Elisha said to Gehazi, “·Get ready [Tuck in your cloak; L Gird up your loins; C pulling up the back of the cloak between the legs and tucking it in the belt allowed freer movement]. Take my ·walking stick [staff] in your hand and go quickly. If you meet anyone, don’t ·say hello [greet him]. If anyone greets you, don’t ·respond [answer]. Lay my ·walking stick [staff] on the boy’s face.”
30 The boy’s mother said, “As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I won’t leave you [C to return home]!” So Elisha got up and followed her.
31 Gehazi went on ahead and laid the ·walking stick [staff] on the boy’s face, but the boy did not talk or ·move [respond]. Then Gehazi went back to meet Elisha. “The boy has not awakened,” he said.
32 When Elisha came into the house, the boy was lying dead on ·his [Elisha’s] bed. 33 Elisha entered the room and shut the door on the two of them. Then he prayed to the Lord. 34 He went to the bed and lay on the boy, putting his mouth on the boy’s mouth, his eyes on the boy’s eyes, and his hands on the boy’s hands. He stretched himself out on top of the boy. Soon the boy’s ·skin [body; L flesh] became warm. 35 Elisha ·turned away [got up] and walked ·around [back and forth once across] the room. Then he went back and ·put himself [stretched out] on the boy again. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.
36 Elisha called Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite!” So he did. When she came, Elisha said, “·Pick up [Take] your son.” 37 She came in and fell at Elisha’s feet, bowing facedown to the floor. Then she ·picked up [took] her son and went out.
We Now Have Life
2 In the past you were ·spiritually dead [L dead] ·because of [or in] your sins and ·the things you did against God [transgressions]. 2 Yes, in the past you ·lived [walked] ·the way the world lives [L according to the course/ways/age of this world], following the ruler [C Satan] of the ·evil powers that are above the earth [L dominion/authority of the air; C probably demonic forces]. That same spirit is now working in ·those who refuse to obey God [L the children/sons of disobedience]. 3 In the past all of us lived ·like [or among] them, ·trying to please [or giving in to the cravings of] our ·sinful selves [sinful nature; flesh] and doing all the things our ·bodies [flesh] and minds wanted. We ·should have suffered God’s anger because we were sinful by nature [L were by nature children/sons of wrath]. ·We were the same as all other people [L …just like the rest; C of mankind].
4 But ·God’s mercy is great [L God is rich in mercy], and he loved us very much. 5 Though we were spiritually dead because of ·the things we did against God [our transgressions], he ·gave us new life [brought us to life] with Christ. You have been saved by God’s grace. 6 And he raised us up with Christ and gave us a seat with him in the ·heavens [heavenly places/realms]. He did this for those in Christ Jesus 7 so that ·for all future time [L in the ages to come] he could show the ·very great [exceeding; overwhelming] riches of his grace by being kind to us in Christ Jesus. 8 ·I mean that [or For; Because] you have been saved by grace through ·believing [faith]. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. 9 It was not the result of ·your own efforts [works], so ·you cannot [no one can] ·brag about it [boast]. 10 ·God has made us what we are [L For we are his handiwork/workmanship/work of art]. In Christ Jesus, God ·made [created] us to do good works, which God planned in advance for us to live our lives doing.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.