Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Samekh
113 I despise those who waver back and forth,
but I love Your teachings.
114 You are my hiding place and my shield of protection;
I hope in Your word.
115 Away from me, reprobates!
I am committed to observing the commands of my God.
116 Support me in keeping with Your promise, O God, so that I may live;
do not let my hope turn into shame.
117 Help me so that I will be safe,
and I will respect Your laws continually.
118 You have rejected all those who stray from Your commands
because their fraudulent lifestyles are cunning and empty.
119 You have discarded all the wicked from the land, skimmed them off like dross;
that’s why I love Your testimonies.
120 My body shakes because of my fear of You,
and I am in awe of Your wise rulings.
Ayin
121 I have lived with fairness and integrity;
do not leave me at the mercy of my tormenters.
122 Provide security and protection for Your servant’s welfare;
do not let the proud oppress me.
123 My eyes are strained as I look for Your salvation
and for Your righteous promise to be fulfilled.
124 Treat Your servant in a manner that shows Your unfailing love,
and help me to learn Your decrees.
125 I am Your servant; impart to me understanding
so that I may fully grasp the depths of Your statutes.
126 It is time for the Eternal to step in and do something
because some have broken Your law.
127 Indeed, I love Your commands
more than gold, even more than the highest quality gold.
128 It’s true that I regard all Your guidance to be correct and good;
I despise every deceptive path.
19 Saul ordered his son Jonathan and all his servants to figure out a way to kill David, but Jonathan was very fond of David.
In the friendship between Jonathan and David, Jonathan stands to lose everything he has if David becomes king, yet he betrays family and ambition by befriending him. These two young men make a pact to protect and love each other in life; and if something should happen to Jonathan, David agrees to honor Jonathan’s descendants out of the love he bears for Jonathan. Later that promise results in David elevating one of Jonathan’s sons to the king’s table. In a time when any reminders of the previous regime would have been distracting and even dangerous, David shows he can do more than just be strategic and political.
Love knocks down barriers and makes us set aside our selfish concerns. This friendship has long been counted as a model for how two people might love and serve each other.
Jonathan (warning David): 2 My father wants you dead. Watch out tomorrow morning. Think of a safe place to hide that nobody knows about. 3 I will go into the field near where you are hiding, and I will speak on your behalf to my father. If I learn anything, I will tell you.
4 Jonathan spoke generously on behalf of his friend to his father, Saul.
Jonathan: The king should not sin against his servant David, who has never sinned against you. Indeed his achievements have been of real service to you and your kingdom. 5 He faced death when he fought against the Philistine, and the Eternal One gave David a great victory for all of Israel. When you saw it then, you were filled with joy. Why would you now sin against an innocent person like David by killing him without a proper cause?
Saul (considering this counsel): 6 As the Eternal One lives, David should not be murdered.
7 Jonathan found David and told him everything that had happened, and then Jonathan brought David back into the service of Saul the king.
39 Day finally breaks. They survey the coastline and don’t recognize it, but they do notice a bay with a beach—the best place to try to run ashore.
40 So they cut the anchor ropes, untie the steering oars, hoist the foresail to the wind, and make for the beach. 41 But then there’s a horrible sound, and we realize we’ve struck a reef; the bow is jammed solid, and the waves are smashing the stern to pieces. 42 The soldiers start talking about killing the prisoners so they won’t swim away and escape; 43 but the officer wants to save Paul, so he stops them. He tells those who can swim to jump overboard and swim to the shore, 44 and those who can’t, he tells to hold on to planks and other pieces of the ship when it breaks apart. Some hours later, we reassemble on the beach, each one safe and sound.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.