Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

32 Learning to David. [The understanding of David.] Blessed be they, whose wickedness be forgiven; and whose sins be covered. (The teaching of David. Happy be they, whose wickedness be forgiven; and whose sins be covered.)

² Blessed is the man, to whom the Lord areckoned not sin; neither guile is in his spirit. (Happy is the person, to whom the Lord did not reckon any sin; and there is no deceit in his spirit.)

³ For I was still, my bones waxed eld; while I cried all day. (For when I kept silent/For when I did not confess my sins, my bones grew old; while I cried all day long.)

⁴ For by day and night thine hand was made grievous on me (And day and night thy hand was heavy upon me); I am turned in my wretchedness, while the thorn is set in.

⁵ (Then) I made my sin known to thee; and I hid not my unrightfulness. I said, I shall acknowledge against me mine unrightfulness to the Lord; and thou hast forgiven the wickedness of my sin.

⁶ For this thing each holy man shall pray to thee; in covenable time. Nevertheless in the great flood of many waters; they shall not (come) nigh to thee. (For this thing, each holy man shall pray to thee; in his time of need. And then, in the great flood of many troubles, none shall come near him.)

⁷ Thou art my refuge from tribulation, that (en)compassed me; thou, my fully joying, deliver me from them that (en)compass me. (Thou art my refuge, from the troubles that surround me; thou, my full out joy, deliver me from those who surround me.)

⁸ I shall give understanding to thee, and I shall teach thee; in this way in which thou shalt go, I shall make steadfast mine eyes on thee. (And the Lord said, I shall give understanding to thee, and I shall teach thee the way in which thou should go; and I shall put my eyes steadfastly upon thee.)

⁹ Do not ye be made as an horse and mule; to which is none understanding. Lord, constrain thou the cheeks of them with a barnacle and bridle; that (they) nigh not to thee. (Do not ye be made like a horse or a mule; which have no understanding, or reasoning ability. Their mouths must be constrained with a bit and a bridle; so that they finally submit to where they should go.)

¹⁰ Many beatings be of the sinner; but mercy shall (en)compass him that hopeth in the Lord. (Many beatings be to the sinner; but the love of the Lord shall surround those who trust in him.)

¹¹ Ye just men, be glad, and make fully joy in the Lord; and all ye rightful of heart, have glory. (Ye who be righteous be glad, and make full out joy, or rejoice, in the Lord; and all ye with an upright heart, have glory, or shout for joy!)

4 Forsooth Adam knew Eve his wife, which conceived, and childed Cain, and said, I have gotten a man by God. (And Adam knew his wife Eve, who conceived, and bare Cain, and she said, Now, with the Lord’s help, I have begotten a man.)

² And again she childed his brother Abel. Forsooth Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain was an earth-tiller. (And then she bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a shepherd, and Cain was a farmer, who worked the soil.)

³ Soothly it was done after many days, that Cain offered gifts to the Lord of the fruits of the earth^[a];

⁴ and Abel offered of the first engendered of his flock, and of the fatness of those. And the Lord beheld to Abel and to the gifts of him;

⁵ soothly he beheld not to Cain and to his gifts. And Cain was wroth greatly, and his cheer felled down (And Cain was greatly angered, and his face fell).

⁶ And the Lord said to him, Why art thou wroth, and why felled down thy face?

⁷ Whether not if thou shalt do well, thou shalt receive well; but if thou doest evil, thy sin shall be present anon in the gates? but the desire thereof, that is, of sin, shall be under thee, and thou shalt be lord thereof. (If thou shalt do well, then thou shalt be accepted; but if thou doest evil, then at once thy sin shall be present at the gates, and the desire of sin shall take thee under, and so thou must be lord of it, or rule over it.)

⁸ And Cain said to Abel, his brother, Go we out (But then Cain said to his brother Abel, Walk with me). And when they were in the field, Cain rose (up) against his brother Abel, and killed him.

⁹ And the Lord said to Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? Which answered, I know not; whether I am the keeper of my brother? (And the Lord said to Cain, Where is thy brother Abel? And he answered, How do I know; am I my brother’s keeper?)

¹⁰ And God said to Cain, What hast thou done? the voice of the blood of thy brother crieth to me from [the] earth (the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth out to me from the earth).

¹¹ Now therefore thou shalt be cursed on [the] earth, that opened his mouth, and received of thine hand the blood of thy brother. (And so now thou shalt be cursed on the earth, that hath opened its mouth, and received thy brother’s blood from thy hand.)

¹² When thou shalt work the earth, it shall not give his fruits to thee; thou shalt be unstable of dwelling, and fleeing about on [the] earth, in all the days of thy life. (When thou shalt work the earth, it shall not give its fruits to thee; thou shalt be of unstable dwelling, and fleeing about on the earth, all the days of thy life.)

¹³ And Cain said to the Lord, My wickedness is more than that I deserve forgiveness (for); (And Cain said to the Lord, My punishment is more than that I can bear;)

¹⁴ lo! today thou castest me out from the face of the earth; and I shall be hid from thy face, and I shall be unstable of dwelling, and fleeing about in (the) earth; therefore each man that shall find me shall slay me. (lo! today thou castest me out from the face of the earth; and I shall be hid from thy face, and I shall be of unstable dwelling, and fleeing about on the earth; and any man who findeth me shall slay me.)

¹⁵ And the Lord said to him, It shall not be done so, but each man that shall slay Cain shall be punished sevenfold. And the Lord set a sign in Cain, that each man that should find him should not slay him. (And the Lord said to him, It shall not be done so, but any man who shall kill Cain shall be punished seven times. And the Lord put a mark on Cain, so that any man who would find him would not kill him.)

¹⁶ And Cain went out from the face of the Lord, and dwelled fleeing about in [the] earth, at the east coast of Eden, that is, of (the) earthly paradise. (And so Cain went out from the face of the Lord, and lived in the land of Nod, to the east of the Garden of Eden, that is, to the east of Paradise on earth.)

¹⁴ Therefore we that have a great bishop, that pierced heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, hold we the acknowledging of our hope [hold we the confession, or acknowledging, of our faith].

¹⁵ For we have not a bishop, that may not have compassion on our infirmities, but was tempted by all things by likeness, without sin.

¹⁶ Therefore go we with trust to the throne of his grace, that we get mercy, and find grace in opportune help [in covenable help].

5 For each bishop taken of men, is ordained for men in these things that be to God [in those things that be to God], that he offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.

² Which may together sorrow with them, that be unknowing and err [that know not and err]; for also he is environed with infirmity.

³ And therefore he oweth, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.

⁴ Neither any man taketh to him honour, but he that is called of God, as Aaron was.

⁵ So [and] Christ clarified not himself, that he were bishop, but he that spake to him, Thou art my Son, to day I engendered thee [to day I gendered thee].

⁶ As [and] in another place he saith, Thou art a priest without end [Thou art a priest into without end], after the order of Melchisedec.

⁷ Which in the days of his flesh offered, with great cry and tears, prayers and beseechings to him that might make him safe from death, and was heard for his reverence.

⁸ And when he was God's Son, he learned obedience of these things that he suffered;

⁹ and he brought to the end is made cause of everlasting health [and he led to perfection is made cause of everlasting health] to all that obey him,

¹⁰ and is called of God a bishop, by the order of Melchisedec. [called of God a bishop, by the order of Melchisedec.]