Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 20
For the choir director; a psalm by David.
1 Yahweh will answer you in times of trouble.
The name of the Elohim of Jacob will protect you.
2 He will send you help from his holy place
and support you from Zion.
3 He will remember all your grain offerings
and look with favor on your burnt offerings. Selah
4 He will give you your heart’s desire
and carry out all your plans.
5 We will joyfully sing about your victory.
We will wave our flags in the name of our Elohim.
Yahweh will fulfill all your requests.
6 Now I know that Yahweh will give victory to his anointed king.
He will answer him from his holy heaven
with mighty deeds of his powerful hand.
7 Some rely on chariots and others on horses,
but we will boast in the name of Yahweh our Elohim.
8 They will sink to their knees and fall,
but we will rise and stand firm.
9 Give victory to the king, O Yahweh.
Answer us when we call.
15 This is what Yahweh says:
A sound is heard in Ramah,
the sound of crying in bitter grief.
Rachel is crying for her children.
She refuses to be comforted,
because they are dead.
16 This is what Yahweh says:
Stop your crying, and wipe away your tears.
You will be rewarded for your work, declares Yahweh.
You will return from the land of the enemy.
17 Your future is filled with hope, declares Yahweh.
Your children will return to their own territory.
18 “I have certainly heard Ephraim mourn and say,
‘You disciplined me, and I was disciplined.
I was like a young, untrained calf.
Turn me, and I will be turned,
because you are Yahweh my Elohim.
19 After I was turned around, I changed the way I thought and acted.
After I was taught a lesson, I hung my head in shame.
I was so ashamed and humiliated,
because of all the stupid things I have done
ever since I was young.’
20 Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he a pleasant child?
Even though I have often spoken against him, I still think fondly of him.
That is why my heart longs for him,
and I will certainly have compassion on him,” declares Yahweh.
21 Set up landmarks!
Put up road signs!
Remember the highway, the road on which you traveled.
Come back, my dear people Israel, come back to your cities.
22 How long will you wander around, you unfaithful people?
Yahweh will create something new on earth:
A woman will protect a man.
41 When he came closer and saw the city, he began to cry. 42 He said, “If you had only known today what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden, so you cannot see it. 43 The time will come when enemy armies will build a wall to surround you and close you in on every side. 44 They will level you to the ground and kill your people. One stone will not be left on top of another, because you didn’t recognize the time when God came to help you.”
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.