Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Lord Praised for His Goodness.
111 Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)
I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart,
In the company of the upright and in the congregation.
2
Great are the works of the Lord,
Studied by all those who delight in them.
3
Splendid and majestic is His work,
And His righteousness endures forever.
4
He has made His wonderful acts to be remembered;
The Lord is gracious and merciful and full of loving compassion.
5
He has given food to those who fear Him [with awe-inspired reverence];
He will remember His covenant forever.(A)
6
He has declared and made known to His people the power of His works,
In giving them the heritage of the nations.
7
The works of His hands are truth and [absolute] justice;
All His precepts are sure (established, reliable, trustworthy).
8
They are upheld forever and ever;
They are done in [absolute] truth and uprightness.
9
He has sent redemption to His people;
He has ordained His covenant forever;
Holy and awesome is His name—[inspiring reverence and godly fear].
10
The [reverent] fear of the Lord is the beginning (the prerequisite, the absolute essential, the alphabet) of wisdom;
A good understanding and a teachable heart are possessed by all those who do the will of the Lord;
His praise endures forever.(B)
23 “Then I pleaded with the Lord at that time [for His favor], saying, 24 ‘O Lord God, You have only begun to show Your servant Your greatness and Your mighty hand; for what god is there in heaven or on earth that can do such works and mighty acts (miracles) as Yours? 25 I pray, let me go over and see the good land that is beyond the Jordan, that good hill country [with Hermon] and Lebanon.’ 26 But the Lord was angry with me because of you [and your rebellion at Meribah], and would not listen to me; and the Lord said to me, ‘Enough! Speak to Me no longer about this matter.(A) 27 Go up to the top of [Mount] Pisgah and raise your eyes toward the west and north and south and east, and see it with your eyes, for you shall not cross this Jordan. 28 But command Joshua and encourage and strengthen him, for he shall go across and lead this people, and he will give them the land which you see as an inheritance.’ 29 So we stayed in the Valley opposite Beth-peor.
6 However, it is not as though God’s word has failed [coming to nothing]. For not all who are descended from Israel (Jacob) are [the true] Israel; 7 and they are not all the children of Abraham because they are his descendants [by blood], but [the promise was]: “Your descendants will be named through Isaac” [though Abraham had other sons].(A) 8 That is, it is not the children of the body [Abraham’s natural descendants] who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are counted as [Abraham’s true] descendants. 9 For this is what the promise said: “About this time [next year] I will come, and Sarah shall have a son.”(B) 10 And not only that, but this too: Rebekah conceived twin sons by one man [under the same circumstances], by our father Isaac; 11 and though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything either good or bad, so that God’s purpose [His choice, His election] would stand, not because of works [done by either child], but because of [the plan of] Him who calls them, 12 it was said to her, “The [a]older (Esau) will serve the [b]younger (Jacob).”(C) 13 As it is written and forever remains written, “[c]Jacob I loved (chose, protected, blessed), but [d]Esau I hated (held in disregard compared to Jacob).”(D)
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I have compassion.”(E) 16 So then God’s choice is not dependent on human will, nor on human effort [the totality of human striving], but on God who shows mercy [to whomever He chooses—it is His sovereign gift]. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “I raised you up for this very purpose, to display My power in [dealing with] you, and so that My name would be proclaimed in all the earth.”(F) 18 So then, He has mercy on whom He wills (chooses), and He hardens [the heart of] whom He wills.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.