Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 20
For the worship leader. A song of David.
1 May the Eternal’s answer find you, come to rescue you,
when you desperately cling to the end of your rope.
May the name of the True God of Jacob be your shelter.
2 May He extend hope and help to you from His holy sanctuary
and support you from His sacred city of Zion.
3 May He remember all that you have offered Him;
may your burnt sacrifices serve as a prelude to His mercy.
[pause][a]
4 May He grant the dreams of your heart
and see your plans through to the end.
5 When you win, we will not be silent! We will shout
and raise high our banners in the great name of our God!
May the Eternal say yes to all your requests.
6 I don’t fear; I’m confident that help will come to the one anointed by the Eternal:
heaven will respond to his plea;
His mighty right hand will win the battle.
7 Many put their hope in chariots, others in horses,
but we place our trust in the name of the Eternal One, our True God.
8 Soon our enemies will collapse and fall, never to return home;
all the while, we will rise and stand firm.
9 Eternal One, grant victory to our king!
Answer our plea for help.
13 Saul was about 30[a] years old when he became king, and after he ruled for at least two years, 2 Saul chose 3,000 men of Israel: 2,000 stayed with him in the hill country of Bethel at a place called Michmash, and the other 1,000 joined Saul’s son Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. He sent all the rest home to their tents.
3 Jonathan crushed the Philistine regiment at Geba, and news of this slaughter reached the Philistines. Saul ordered that a trumpet be blown throughout Israel to announce Jonathan’s victory to the people.
Saul: Let the Hebrew people know about this!
4 When all Israel had heard the news of how Saul had defeated the Philistines, and when they learned that the Philistines were filled with hatred toward them, Saul called the people out to join him at Gilgal.
5 Now the Philistines had gathered their forces: 30,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and so many foot soldiers they were like grains of sand on the beach. They made camp at Michmash, east of Beth-aven. 6 When the people of Israel saw they were in danger, for their troops were seriously outnumbered, they hid in caves and in holes, among the rocks, tombs, and cisterns. 7 Some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan River into Gad and Gilead. But Saul remained at Gilgal; the people continued to follow him, but they were terrified.
8 Saul waited for Samuel for seven days, the amount of time he had been told by Samuel to wait. But the prophet did not come to Gilgal, and the people began to slip away. A few more days and Saul would have no army left, so he decided to take matters into his own hands.
Saul: 9 Bring me the animals for burnt offerings and the offerings of peace for the Lord.
10 Although Saul was not a priest, he offered the burnt offering himself without waiting for Samuel. Immediately after Saul finished the offering, when the aroma of the sacrifice lingered over the land, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him and to pay his respects. But Samuel knew Saul had overstepped his bounds.
Samuel: 11 What have you done?
Saul: The people were deserting me! You didn’t come when you promised, and the Philistines were gathering for war at Michmash. 12 I thought, “The Philistines are going to attack me here in Gilgal, and I haven’t even asked the Eternal One to favor us.” So I took matters into my own hands—I didn’t want to—but I offered the burnt offering myself.
Samuel: 13 That was a foolish thing, Saul. You have not kept the commandment that the Eternal, your True God, gave to you. He was willing to establish your kingdom over Israel for all time, 14 but now your kingdom, your dynasty, will not last. He has found a man who seeks His will and has appointed him king over all the people instead of you because you have not kept to what the Eternal One commanded.
15 Samuel left Gilgal then and went on his way to Gibeah in the land of Benjamin. When Saul counted his forces, they numbered about 600 men.
4 1-2 Jesus went out again to teach by the Sea of Galilee. When the crowd became unmanageable, He climbed aboard a boat and sat down to teach the people listening on the shore by telling them parables. One of His teachings went like this:
Jesus: 3 Listen! A farmer went out and sowed his seed. 4 As he scattered it, one seed fell along the hardened path, and a bird flapped down and snapped it up. 5 One seed fell onto rocky places where the soil was thin, so it sprang up quickly. 6 But when the hot sun scorched the fragile stems and leaves, the seedling withered because its roots didn’t go deep in the soil. 7 One of the seeds fell among the weeds and thorns, which crowded the seedling out of producing a crop. 8 And the rest of the seeds fell in good, rich soil. When they sprouted, the plants grew and produced a crop 30, 60, even 100 times larger than expected for every seed that the farmer had sown.
9 All who have ears to hear, let them listen.
10 When they were alone, the twelve and others close to Him asked why He always taught in parables instead of explaining His teachings clearly.
Jesus: 11 God has let you in on the inside story regarding the workings of the Kingdom—the hidden meanings. But the crowds—I teach them in parables 12 as the prophet Isaiah predicted,
So that when they look, they see and yet do not understand.
When they hear, they listen and yet do not comprehend.
Otherwise, they might really turn and be forgiven.[a]
This makes the disciples scratch their heads. Why would He want to hide the truth from some people? His teachings are hard enough without putting them into parables.
13 Do you mean to say that you didn’t understand My parable of the sower? That was the key parable. If you don’t see what I was trying to teach there, how will you be able to understand any of the others?
14 The seed the farmer is sowing is the good news, God’s word. 15 Some people are the seed thrown onto the path, and the tempter snaps up the word before it can even take root. 16 Others are the seed thrown among the rocks. Those people hear the word and receive it immediately with joy and enthusiasm; 17 but without deep roots, doubt, trouble, or persecution instantly withers their faith. 18 Still others are the seed tossed among weeds and brambles. The word has reached them, 19 but the things of this life—the worries, the drive for more and more, the desire for other things—those things cluster around close and choke the life of God out of them until they cannot produce. 20 But those last seeds—those sown into good soil? Those people hear the word, accept it, meditate on it, act on it, and bear fruit—a crop 30, 60, or 100 times larger than the farmer dropped to earth.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.