Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Reign of the Righteous King.
A Psalm of Solomon.
72 Give the king (A)Your judgments, God,
And (B)Your righteousness to the king’s son.
2 [a]May [b]he (C)judge Your people with righteousness
And [c](D)Your afflicted with justice.
3 [d]May the mountains bring [e](E)peace to the people,
And the hills, in righteousness.
4 [f]May he (F)vindicate the [g]afflicted of the people,
Save the children of the needy,
And crush the oppressor.
5 [h]May they fear You (G)while the sun shines,
And [i]as long as the moon shines, throughout all generations.
6 [j]May he come down (H)like rain upon the mown grass,
Like (I)showers that water the earth.
7 [k]May the (J)righteous flourish in his days,
As well as an (K)abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.
8 May he also rule (L)from sea to sea,
And from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9 [l]May (M)the nomads of the desert (N)bow before him,
And his enemies (O)lick the dust.
10 [m]May the kings of (P)Tarshish and of the [n](Q)islands bring gifts;
May the kings of (R)Sheba and (S)Seba (T)offer tributes.
11 [o]And may all (U)kings bow down before him,
All (V)nations serve him.
12 For he will (W)save the needy when he cries for help,
The [p]afflicted also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will have (X)compassion on the poor and needy,
And he will save the [q]lives of the needy.
14 He will [r](Y)rescue their [s]life from oppression and violence,
And their blood will be (Z)precious in his sight;
15 So may he live, and may the (AA)gold of Sheba be given to him;
And [t]they are to pray for him continually;
[u]They are to bless him all day long.
16 May there be abundance of grain on the earth on top of the mountains;
Its fruit will wave like the cedars of (AB)Lebanon;
And may those from the city flourish like the (AC)vegetation of the earth.
17 May his (AD)name endure forever;
May his name produce descendants [v](AE)as long as the sun shines;
And may people (AF)wish blessings on themselves by him;
(AG)May all nations call him blessed.
18 (AH)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone (AI)works wonders.
19 And blessed be His (AJ)glorious name forever;
And may the whole (AK)earth be filled with His glory.
(AL)Amen and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
15 Then he took up his discourse and said,
“(A)The declaration of Balaam the son of Beor,
And the declaration of the man whose eye is opened,
16 The declaration of him who hears the [a]words of God,
And knows the knowledge of the [b]Most High,
Who sees the vision of [c]the Almighty,
Falling down, yet having his eyes uncovered:
17 I see him, but not now;
I look at him, but not near;
A star shall appear from Jacob,
(B)A scepter shall rise from Israel,
(C)And shall smash the [d]forehead of Moab,
And overcome all the sons of Sheth.
18 (D)And Edom shall be a possession,
(E)Seir, its enemies, also will be a possession,
While Israel performs valiantly.
19 One from Jacob shall rule,
And will eliminate the survivors from the city.”
Zechariah’s Prophecy
67 And his father Zechariah (A)was filled with the Holy Spirit and (B)prophesied, saying:
68 “(C)Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited us and accomplished (D)redemption for His people,
69 And has raised up a (E)horn of salvation for us
In the house of (F)His servant David—
70 (G)Just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets (H)from ancient times—
71 [a](I)Salvation (J)from our enemies,
And from the hand of all who hate us;
72 (K)To show mercy to our fathers,
(L)And to remember His holy covenant,
73 (M)The oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
74 To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Would serve Him without fear,
75 (N)In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.
76 And you, child, also will be called the (O)prophet of (P)the Most High;
For you will go on (Q)before the Lord to (R)prepare His ways;
77 To give His people the knowledge of salvation
[b]By (S)the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which (T)the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
79 (U)To shine on those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the (V)way of peace.”
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