Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 77[a]
For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of Asaph.
77 I will cry out to God[b] and call for help.
I will cry out to God and he will pay attention[c] to me.
2 In my time of trouble I sought[d] the Lord.
I kept my hand raised in prayer throughout the night.[e]
I[f] refused to be comforted.
3 I said, “I will remember God while I groan;
I will think about him while my strength leaves me.”[g] (Selah)
4 You held my eyelids open;[h]
I was troubled and could not speak.[i]
5 I thought about the days of old,
about ancient times.[j]
6 I said, “During the night I will remember the song I once sang;
I will think very carefully.”
I tried to make sense of what was happening.[k]
7 I asked,[l] “Will the Lord reject me forever?
Will he never again show me his favor?
8 Has his loyal love disappeared forever?
Has his promise[m] failed forever?
9 Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has his anger stifled his compassion?” (Selah)
10 Then I said, “I am sickened by the thought
that the Most High[n] might become inactive.[o]
11 I will remember the works of the Lord.
Yes, I will remember the amazing things you did long ago.[p]
12 I will think about all you have done;
I will reflect upon your deeds.”
13 [q] O God, your deeds are extraordinary.[r]
What god can compare to our great God?[s]
14 You are the God who does amazing things;
you have revealed your strength among the nations.
15 You delivered[t] your people by your strength[u]—
the children of Jacob and Joseph. (Selah)
16 The waters[v] saw you, O God,
the waters saw you and trembled.[w]
Yes, the depths of the sea[x] shook with fear.[y]
17 The clouds poured down rain;[z]
the skies thundered.[aa]
Yes, your arrows[ab] flashed about.
18 Your thunderous voice was heard in the wind;
the lightning bolts lit up the world.
The earth trembled and shook.[ac]
19 You walked through the sea;[ad]
you passed through the surging waters,[ae]
but left no footprints.[af]
20 You led your people like a flock of sheep,
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
Eliphaz Begins to Speak[a]
4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:[b]
2 “If someone[c] should attempt[d] a word with you,
will you be impatient?[e]
But who can refrain from speaking?[f]
3 Look,[g] you have instructed[h] many;
you have strengthened[i] feeble hands.[j]
4 Your words have supported[k] those
who stumbled,[l]
and you have strengthened the knees
that gave way.[m]
5 But now the same thing[n] comes to you,
and you are discouraged;[o]
it strikes you,
and you are terrified.[p]
6 Is not your piety[q] your confidence,[r]
and your blameless ways your hope?[s]
7 Call to mind now:[t]
Who,[u] being innocent, ever perished?[v]
And where were upright people[w] ever destroyed?[x]
8 Even as I have seen,[y] those who plow[z] iniquity[aa]
and those who sow trouble reap the same.[ab]
9 By the breath[ac] of God they perish,[ad]
and by the blast[ae] of his anger they are consumed.
10 There is[af] the roaring of the lion[ag]
and the growling[ah] of the young lion,
but the teeth of the young lions are broken.[ai]
11 The mighty lion[aj] perishes[ak] for lack of prey,
and the cubs of the lioness[al] are scattered.
Ungodly Complainers Provoke God’s Wrath
12 “Now a word[am] was stealthily brought[an] to me,
and my ear caught[ao] a whisper[ap] of it.
13 In the troubling thoughts[aq] of the dreams[ar] in the night
when a deep sleep[as] falls on men,
14 dread[at] gripped me and trembling,
which made all my bones shake.[au]
15 Then a breath of air[av] passes[aw] by my face;
it makes[ax] the hair of my flesh stand up.
16 It stands still,[ay]
but I cannot recognize[az] its appearance;
an image is before my eyes,
and I hear a murmuring voice:[ba]
17 ‘Is[bb] a mortal man[bc] righteous[bd] before[be] God?
Or a man pure[bf] before his Creator?[bg]
18 If[bh] God[bi] puts no trust in[bj] his servants[bk]
and attributes[bl] folly[bm] to his angels,
19 how much more to those who live in houses of clay,[bn]
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed[bo] like[bp] a moth?
20 They are destroyed[bq] between morning and evening;[br]
they perish forever[bs] without anyone regarding it.[bt]
21 Is not their excess wealth[bu] taken away from them?[bv]
They die,[bw] yet without attaining wisdom.’[bx]
New Life Individually
2 And although you were[a] dead[b] in your offenses and sins, 2 in which[c] you formerly lived[d] according to this world’s present path,[e] according to the ruler of the domain[f] of the air, the ruler of[g] the spirit[h] that is now energizing[i] the sons of disobedience,[j] 3 among whom[k] all of us[l] also[m] formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath[n] even as the rest…[o]
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 5 even though we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you are saved![p]— 6 and he raised us up together with him and seated us together with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 to demonstrate in the coming ages[q] the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward[r] us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you are saved[s] through faith,[t] and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 it is not from[u] works, so that no one can boast.[v] 10 For we are his creative work, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we can do them.[w]
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