Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

To the Overcomer upon Nehiloth, A Psalm of David.

¹ ¶ Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my meditation.

² Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God, for unto thee will I pray.

³ My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; early will I present myself unto thee and wait.

⁴ For thou art not a God that loves wickedness; neither shall one who is evil dwell with thee.

⁵ The foolish (those who are governed by carnal thoughts or desires) shall not stand in thy sight; thou dost hate all workers of iniquity.

⁶ Thou shalt destroy those that speak lies: the LORD will abominate the bloody and deceitful man.

⁷ ¶ But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear I will worship toward thy holy temple.

⁸ Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face.

²³ And the slaves of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the mountains; therefore, they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.

²⁴ Therefore, do this: Remove the kings from their positions and put captains in their place.

²⁵ And prepare another army like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse and chariot for chariot; then we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so.

²⁶ And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Benhadad numbered the Syrians and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel.

²⁷ And the sons of Israel were numbered and took provisions and went against them; and the sons of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids; but the Syrians filled the land.

²⁸ Then the man of God came and spoke unto the king of Israel and said, Thus hath the LORD said, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the mountains, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore, I will deliver all this great multitude into thy hand that ye may know that I am the LORD.

²⁹ And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was that in the seventh day the battle was joined; and the sons of Israel slew of the Syrians one hundred thousand footmen in one day.

³⁰ But the rest fled to Aphek into the city, and the wall fell upon twenty-seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad also fled and came into the city, into an inner chamber.

³¹ ¶ Then his slaves said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings; let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins and ropes upon our heads and go out to the king of Israel; peradventure he will give thee thy life.

³² So they girded sackcloth on their loins and put ropes on their heads and came to the king of Israel and said, Thy slave Benhadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he replied, If he is yet alive, he is my brother.

³³ Now these men took this as a good omen and quickly took this word from his mouth, and they said, Thy brother Benhadad! And he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Benhadad came forth to him, and he caused him to come up into the chariot.

³⁴ And Benhadad said unto him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore; and thou shalt make plazas for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria, and I will leave here confederated with thee. So he made a covenant with him and sent him away.

11 ¶ I say then, Has God cast away his people? No, in no wise. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

² God has not cast away his people whom he knew beforehand. Know ye not what the scripture says of Elijah? how speaking to God against Israel, he said,

³ Lord, they have killed thy prophets and ruined thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.

⁴ But what did the answer of God say unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee before Baal.

⁵ Even so then at this present time also, there is a remnant by the gracious election of God.

⁶ And if by grace, then is it not by works; otherwise, the grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, then it is no longer grace; otherwise, the work is no longer work.

⁷ What then? Israel has not obtained that which he seeks after; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded

⁸ (according as it is written, God has given them the spirit of anguish, eyes with which they do not see and ears with which they do not hear) unto this day.

⁹ And David says, Let their table be turned into a snare and a net and a stumblingblock and a recompense unto them;

¹⁰ Let their eyes be darkened that they may not see, and bow down their back always.