Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
3 A psalm of David when he fled from his son Absalom
O Lord, so many are against me. So many seek to harm me. I have so many enemies. 2 So many say that God will never help me. 3 But Lord, you are my shield, my glory, and my only hope. You alone can lift my head, now bowed in shame.[a]
4 I cried out to the Lord, and he heard me from his Temple in Jerusalem.[b] 5 Then I lay down and slept in peace and woke up safely, for the Lord was watching over me. 6 And now, although ten thousand enemies surround me on every side, I am not afraid. 7 I will cry to him, “Arise, O Lord! Save me, O my God!” And he will slap them in the face, insulting them and breaking off their teeth.[c]
8 For salvation comes from God. What joys he gives to all his people.
5 You shall then say before the Lord your God, ‘My ancestors were migrant Arameans who went to Egypt for refuge. They were few in number, but in Egypt they became a mighty nation. 6-7 The Egyptians mistreated us and we cried to the Lord God. He heard us and saw our hardship, toil, and oppression, 8 and brought us out of Egypt with mighty miracles and a powerful hand. He did great and awesome miracles before the Egyptians 9 and has brought us to this place and given us this land “flowing with milk and honey”! 10 And now, O Lord, see, I have brought you a token of the first of the crops from the ground you have given me.’ Then place the samples before the Lord your God, and worship him.
32 Don’t ever forget those wonderful days when you first learned about Christ. Remember how you kept right on with the Lord even though it meant terrible suffering. 33 Sometimes you were laughed at and beaten, and sometimes you watched and sympathized with others suffering the same things. 34 You suffered with those thrown into jail, and you were actually joyful when all you owned was taken from you, knowing that better things were awaiting you in heaven, things that would be yours forever.
35 Do not let this happy trust in the Lord die away, no matter what happens. Remember your reward! 36 You need to keep on patiently doing God’s will if you want him to do for you all that he has promised. 37 His coming will not be delayed much longer. 38 And those whose faith has made them good in God’s sight must live by faith, trusting him in everything. Otherwise, if they shrink back, God will have no pleasure in them.
39 But we have never turned our backs on God and sealed our fate. No, our faith in him assures our souls’ salvation.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.