Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Lord Guards His People
A song ·for going up to worship [of ascents; C perhaps sung while traveling to Jerusalem to celebrate an annual religious festival like Passover].
121 I ·look up [L raise my eyes] to the hills [C the hills surrounding Zion, the location of the Temple],
but where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth [Gen. 1].
3 He will not let ·you be defeated [L your feet be moved/slip].
He who ·guards [watches] you never sleeps.
4 He who ·guards [watches] Israel
never ·rests [sleeps] or ·sleeps [slumbers].
5 The Lord ·guards [watches] you.
The Lord is the shade ·that protects you from the sun [L at your hand, your right hand; 91:1].
6 The sun cannot ·hurt [L strike] you during the day,
and the moon cannot ·hurt [L strike] you at night.
7 The Lord will ·protect [guard; watch] you from all ·dangers [trouble; evil];
he will ·guard [watch] your life.
8 The Lord will ·guard [watch] you as you come and go,
both now and forever.
18 There is no God like you.
You forgive those who are guilty of sin;
you ·don’t look at the sins [pass over the transgressions] of ·your people
who are left alive [L the remnant of your inheritance].
You will not stay angry forever,
because you ·enjoy [delight in] ·being kind [mercy; lovingkindness].
19 You will have ·mercy [compassion] on us again;
you will conquer our sins.
You will ·throw away [hurl; cast] all our sins
into the ·deepest part [depths] of the sea.
20 You will be ·true [faithful] to ·the people of Jacob [L Jacob],
and you will ·be kind [show mercy/lovingkindness] to ·the people of Abraham [L Abraham]
as you promised to our ·ancestors [fathers] long ago.
How God Makes People Right
21 But now ·God’s way to make people right with him [L the righteousness of God] ·without [apart from] the law has been ·shown to us [revealed; made known], a way ·told to us [testified to; attested] by the law and the prophets. 22 ·God makes people right with himself [L This righteousness comes] through ·their faith in [or the faithfulness of] Jesus Christ. This is true for all who believe in Christ, because ·all people are the same [there is no distinction/difference; C between Jews and Gentiles]: 23 [L For; Because] Everyone has sinned and ·fallen short [or is not worthy] of God’s ·glorious standard [or glorious presence; L glory], 24 and all need to be ·made right with God [justfied; declared righteous] as a free gift by his grace, ·by being set free from sin [L through the redemption that is] ·through [or in] Jesus Christ. 25 God ·sent [or appointed; or presented] him ·to die in our place to take away our sins [as a sacrifice of atonement; or as the mercy seat; T as a propitiation; C the Greek term could mean the place where sacrificial blood was dripped (the mercy seat) or the sacrifice itself; it implies an atoning sacrifice that turns away divine wrath]. We receive forgiveness through faith in ·the blood of Jesus’ death [L his blood]. This showed ·that God always does what is right and fair [L his righteousness], as in the past when he was patient and ·did not punish people for their sins [L passed over/delayed punishment for previously committed sins]. 26 And God gave Jesus to show ·today [or at this present time (of salvation)] ·that he does what is right [L his righteousness/justice]. God did this so he could ·judge rightly [or be shown to be just/righteous] and so he could ·make right [declare righteous; justify] any person ·who has faith in Jesus [or on the basis of Jesus’ faithfulness; see v. 22]. [C Christ’s sacrificial death shows that God is both just (sin is justly punished) and merciful (God saves undeserving sinners).]
27 ·So do we have a reason to brag about ourselves? No! [L Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded.] ·And why not [L By what law/principle]? It is the ·way [law; principle] of faith that stops all ·bragging [boasting], not the ·way [law; principle] of ·trying to obey the law [L works]. 28 For we ·conclude [maintain; assert] a person is ·made right with God [justified; declared righteous] through faith, not through ·obeying [L the works of] the law. 29 [L Or] Is God only the God of the Jews? Is he not also the God of the Gentiles? 30 Of course he is, because ·there is only one God [or God is one; Deut. 6:4]. He will ·make Jews right with him [L justify/make righteous the circumcised] by their faith, and he will also ·make Gentiles right with him [L justify/declare righteous the uncircumcised] through their faith. 31 So do we ·destroy [nullify; annul] the law by ·following the way of faith [L faith]? ·No [Absolutely not; May it never be; v. 6]! ·Faith causes us to be what the law truly wants [L We uphold/establish/support the law; C living by faith captures the true spirit and purpose of the law; the law pointed out sin and the need for grace, thereby pointing to Christ].
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