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!

¹⁷ When the Philistines heard that David had been crowned king of Israel, they tried to capture him; but David was told that they were coming and went into the stronghold. ¹⁸ The Philistines arrived and spread out across the valley of Rephaim.

¹⁹ Then David asked the Lord, “Shall I go out and fight against them? Will you defeat them for me?”

And the Lord replied, “Yes, go ahead, for I will give them to you.”

²⁰ So David went out and fought with them at Baal-perazim and defeated them. “The Lord did it!” he exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood.” So he named the place “Bursting.” ²¹ At that time David and his troops confiscated many idols that had been abandoned by the Philistines. ²² But the Philistines returned and again spread out across the valley of Rephaim.

²³ When David asked the Lord what to do, he replied, “Don’t make a frontal attack. Go behind them and come out by the balsam trees. ²⁴ When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the balsam trees, attack! For it will signify that the Lord has prepared the way for you and will destroy them.”

²⁵ So David did as the Lord had instructed him and destroyed the Philistines all the way from Geba to Gezer.

7 After this, Jesus went to Galilee, going from village to village, for he wanted to stay out of Judea where the Jewish leaders were plotting his death. ² But soon it was time for the Tabernacle Ceremonies, one of the annual Jewish holidays, ³ and Jesus’ brothers urged him to go to Judea for the celebration.

“Go where more people can see your miracles!” they scoffed. ⁴ “You can’t be famous when you hide like this! If you’re so great, prove it to the world!” ⁵ For even his brothers didn’t believe in him.

⁶ Jesus replied, “It is not the right time for me to go now. But you can go anytime and it will make no difference, ⁷ for the world can’t hate you; but it does hate me, because I accuse it of sin and evil. ⁸ You go on, and I’ll come later^[a] when it is the right time.” ⁹ So he remained in Galilee.