Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
20
“I have found David My servant;
With My holy oil I have anointed him,(A)
21
With whom My hand shall be established and steadfast;
My arm also shall strengthen him.
22
“The enemy will not outwit him,
Nor will the wicked man afflict or humiliate him.
23
“I will crush his adversaries before him,
And strike those who hate him.
24
“My faithfulness and My steadfast lovingkindness shall be with him,
And in My name shall his horn be exalted [great power and prosperity shall be conferred upon him].
25
“I will also [a]set his hand on the [Mediterranean] sea,
And his right hand on the rivers [the tributaries of the Euphrates].
26
“He will cry to Me, ‘You are my Father,
My God, and the rock of my salvation.’
27
“I will also make him My firstborn (preeminent),
The highest of the kings of the earth.(B)
28
“My lovingkindness I will keep for him forevermore,
And My covenant will be confirmed to him.
29
“His descendants I will establish forever,
And his throne [will endure] as the days of heaven.(C)
30
“If his children [b]turn away from My law
And do not walk in My ordinances,
31
If they break My statutes
And do not keep My commandments,
32
Then I will punish their transgression with the rod [of discipline],
And [correct] their wickedness with stripes.(D)
33
“Nevertheless, I will not break off My lovingkindness from him,
Nor allow My faithfulness to fail.
34
“My covenant I will not violate,
Nor will I alter the utterance of My lips.
35
“Once [for all] I have sworn by My holiness, [My vow which cannot be violated];
I will not lie to David.
36
“His [c]descendants shall endure forever
And his throne [will continue] as the sun before Me.(E)
37
“It shall be established forever like the moon,
And the witness in the heavens is ever faithful.”(F) Selah.
Plans to Move the Ark to Jerusalem
15 David built houses for himself in the City of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched a tent for it. 2 Then David said, “No one is to carry the ark of God except the Levites; for the Lord chose them to carry the ark of God and to minister to Him forever.”
4 He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord and to profess [God’s name] and to [a]thank and praise the Lord, the God of Israel: 5 Asaph the chief, and second to him Zechariah, then Jeiel (Jaaziel), Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel with musical instruments, harps and lyres; also Asaph played loud-sounding cymbals; 6 and Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests blew trumpets continually before the ark of the covenant of God.
7 Then on that day David first entrusted to Asaph and his relatives to give thanks to the Lord [as their chief task].
Psalm of Thanksgiving
8
O give thanks to the Lord, call on His name;
Make His deeds known among the peoples.
9
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;
Speak of all His wonders.
10
Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
11
Seek the Lord and His strength;
Seek His face continually [longing to be in His presence].
12
Remember [with gratitude] His marvelous deeds which He has done,
His miracles and the judgments from His mouth,
13
O seed of Israel His servant,
[b]Children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
Bartimaeus Receives Sight
35 As He was approaching Jericho [on His way to Jerusalem], it happened that a blind man was sitting beside the road begging.(A) 36 Now when he heard a crowd going by, he began to ask what this was [about]. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 So he shouted out, saying, “Jesus, [a]Son of David (Messiah), have mercy on me!” 39 Those who were leading the way were sternly telling him to keep quiet; but he screamed all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 Then Jesus stopped and ordered that the blind man be led to Him; and when he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want Me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me regain my sight!” 42 Jesus said to him, “Regain your sight; your [personal trust and confident] faith [in Me] has made you well.” 43 Immediately he regained his sight and began following Jesus, glorifying and praising and honoring God. And all the people, when they saw it, praised God.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.