Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

21 How the king rejoices in your strength, O Lord! How he exults in your salvation. ² For you have given him his heart’s desire, everything he asks you for!

³ You welcomed him to the throne with success and prosperity. You set a royal crown of solid gold upon his head. ⁴ He asked for a long, good life, and you have granted his request; the days of his life stretch on and on forever. ⁵ You have given him fame and honor. You have clothed him with splendor and majesty. ⁶ You have endowed him with eternal happiness. You have given him the unquenchable joy of your presence. ⁷ And because the king trusts in the Lord, he will never stumble, never fall; for he depends upon the steadfast love of the God who is above all gods.

⁸ Your hand, O Lord, will find your enemies, all who hate you. ^9-10 When you appear, they will be destroyed in the fierce fire of your presence. The Lord will destroy them and their children. ¹¹ For these men plot against you, Lord, but they cannot possibly succeed. ¹² They will turn and flee when they see your arrows aimed straight at them.

¹³ Accept our praise, O Lord, for all your glorious power. We will write songs to celebrate your mighty acts!

¹¹ Then King Hiram of Tyre sent cedar lumber, carpenters, and masons to build a palace for David. ¹² David now realized why the Lord had made him the king and blessed his kingdom so greatly—it was because God wanted to pour out his kindness on Israel, his chosen people.

¹³ After moving from Hebron to Jerusalem, David married additional wives and concubines, and had many sons and daughters. ^14-16 These are his children who were born at Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, Eliphelet.

⁷ Now as for you, dear brothers who are waiting for the Lord’s return, be patient, like a farmer who waits until the autumn for his precious harvest to ripen. ⁸ Yes, be patient. And take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near.

⁹ Don’t grumble about each other, brothers. Are you yourselves above criticism? For see! The great Judge is coming. He is almost here. Let him do whatever criticizing must be done.^[a]

¹⁰ For examples of patience in suffering, look at the Lord’s prophets. ¹¹ We know how happy they are now because they stayed true to him then, even though they suffered greatly for it. Job is an example of a man who continued to trust the Lord in sorrow; from his experiences we can see how the Lord’s plan finally ended in good, for he is full of tenderness and mercy.

¹² But most of all, dear brothers, do not swear either by heaven or earth or anything else; just say a simple yes or no so that you will not sin and be condemned for it.