Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
This is a song that David wrote for the music leader.
We thank God for his help[a]
21 Lord, the king is happy,
because you help him with your great strength.
You have helped him to win against his enemies,
so he is very happy.[b]
2 You have given to him all the things
that he really wanted.
When he asked for them,
you have not refused to give them to him.
Selah.
3 You came to him,
and you blessed him with many good things:
You put a crown on his head.
It was made from the best gold.
4 He asked you to keep his life safe,
and you gave to him a long life.
His descendants will continue for ever.
5 People praise him,
because you have helped him to win against his enemies.
You have caused him to rule as a great king.
6 You will continue to bless him for ever.
Because you are very near to him,
he is very happy.
7 The king trusts in the Lord.
Because of the Most High God's faithful love,
the king will never fail.
8 You will use your strong power
to take hold of your enemies.[c]
You will catch everybody that hates you.
9 When you come out to fight against them,
you will destroy them like a hot fire.
The Lord destroys them,
because you are angry with them.
10 You will remove your enemies' children from the earth.
They will no longer have any descendants.
11 They decided to hurt you.
They thought how they would do that.
But they could not do anything bad against you.
12 No! You shoot your arrows at them,
so that they turn round and they run away!
13 Get up, Lord, and show your strength!
We will sing to praise you
because you have great power.
David fights against the Philistines
17 The Philistines heard the news that David had now become king over Israel. So their whole army went to look for him to catch him. When David heard about this, he went out of the city to a strong, safe place.
18 The Philistine soldiers arrived at Rephaim valley. They covered all the ground there. 19 So David asked the Lord, ‘Should I go and attack the Philistines? Will you put them under my power?’
The Lord answered him, ‘Yes, go and attack the Philistines. I will certainly help you to win against them.’
20 So David went to Baal Perazim. He won the fight against the Philistines in that place. He said, ‘The Lord has swept away my enemy like a flood of water.’ So they called that place ‘Baal Perazim’.[a]
21 When the Philistines ran away from there, they did not take their idols with them. So David and his men took them away.
22 Once again, the Philistine soldiers came and they covered the ground in Rephaim valley. 23 So David again asked the Lord what he should do. This time the Lord said, ‘Do not march straight towards them. Instead, go round behind them. Then attack them from the other side, where the poplar trees are. 24 When you hear a noise in the tops of the trees like marching men, go quickly to attack them. Then you will know that the Lord has gone in front of you. He will knock down the Philistine army for you.’
25 So David did as the Lord had commanded him to do. His men chased the Philistines all the way from Gibeon to Gezer.
Jesus and his brothers
7 After this, Jesus visited many places in Galilee. He did not want to visit Judea because the Jewish leaders there wanted to kill him. 2 It was almost time for the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles.[a] 3 So Jesus' brothers said to him, ‘You should leave this place and you should go to Judea. Then your disciples will see the great things that you do. 4 Nobody does things secretly if he wants everyone to know him. You are doing these things, so you should show yourself to everybody.’ 5 Even his own brothers did not believe in him.
6 So Jesus said to them, ‘It is not the right time for me yet. For you, any time is right. 7 People who belong to this world cannot hate you. But they hate me. The things that they do are very bad. And I tell them that those things are wrong. That is why they hate me. 8 You should go to the festival. I will not go to it now, because it is not the right time for me yet.’ 9 After Jesus said that, he stayed in Galilee.
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