Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Unjust judgments rebuked.
A Psalm of Asaph.
82 God standeth in the congregation of God;
He judgeth among the gods.
2 How long will ye judge unjustly,
And respect the persons of the wicked? Selah
3 Judge the [a]poor and fatherless:
Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.
4 Rescue the [b]poor and needy:
Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither do they understand;
They walk to and fro in darkness:
All the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6 I said, Ye are gods,
And all of you sons of the Most High.
7 Nevertheless ye shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth;
For thou shalt inherit all the nations.
5 Now the Philistines had taken the ark of God, and they brought it from Eben-ezer unto Ashdod. 2 And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. 3 And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen [a]upon his face to the ground before the ark of Jehovah. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again. 4 And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen [b]upon his face to the ground before the ark of Jehovah; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands lay cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him. 5 Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon’s house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod, unto this day.
6 But the hand of Jehovah was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with [c]tumors, even Ashdod and the borders thereof. 7 And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us; for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god. 8 They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel thither. 9 And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of Jehovah was against the city with a very great discomfiture: and he smote the men of the city, both small and great; and tumors brake out upon them. 10 So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people. 11 They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and they said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to its own place, that it slay us not, and our people. For there was a deadly discomfiture throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there. 12 And the men that died not were smitten with the tumors; and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
32 But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were enlightened, ye endured a great conflict of sufferings; 33 partly, being made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, becoming partakers with them that were so used. 34 For ye both had compassion on them that were in bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your possessions, knowing that [a]ye have for yourselves a better possession and an abiding one. 35 Cast not away therefore your boldness, which hath great recompense of reward. 36 For ye have need of [b]patience, that, having done the will of God, ye may receive the promise.
37 [c]For yet a very little while,
He that cometh shall come, and shall not tarry.
38 But [d]my righteous one shall live by faith:
And if he shrink back, my soul hath no pleasure in him.
39 But we are not [e]of them that shrink back unto perdition; but of them that have faith unto the [f]saving of the soul.
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