Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

61 To the Overseer, on stringed instruments. -- By David. Hear, O God, my loud cry, attend to my prayer.

² From the end of the land unto Thee I call, In the feebleness of my heart, Into a rock higher than I Thou dost lead me.

³ For Thou hast been a refuge for me, A tower of strength because of the enemy.

⁴ I sojourn in Thy tent to the ages, I trust in the secret place of Thy wings. Selah.

⁵ For Thou, O God, hast hearkened to my vows, Thou hast appointed the inheritance Of those fearing Thy name.

⁶ Days to the days of the king Thou addest, His years as generation and generation.

⁷ He dwelleth to the age before God, Kindness and truth appoint -- they keep him.

⁸ So do I praise Thy name for ever, When I pay my vows day by day!

9 And David saith, `Is there yet any left to the house of Saul, and I do with him kindness because of Jonathan?'

² And the house of Saul hath a servant, and his name [is] Ziba, and they call for him unto David; and the king saith unto him, `Art thou Ziba?' and he saith, `Thy servant.'

³ And the king saith, `Is there not yet a man to the house of Saul, and I do with him the kindness of God?' And Ziba saith unto the king, `Jonathan hath yet a son -- lame.'

⁴ And the king saith to him, `Where [is] he?' and Ziba saith unto the king, `Lo, he [is] in the house of Machir, son of Ammiel, in Lo-Debar.'

⁵ And king David sendeth, and taketh him out of the house of Machir son of Ammiel, of Lo-Debar,

⁶ and Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, son of Saul, cometh unto David, and falleth on his face, and doth obeisance, and David saith, `Mephibosheth;' and he saith, `Lo, thy servant.'

⁷ And David saith to him, `Be not afraid; for I certainly do with thee kindness because of Jonathan thy father, and have given back to thee all the field of Saul thy father, and thou dost eat bread at my table continually.'

⁸ And he boweth himself, and saith, `What [is] thy servant, that thou hast turned unto the dead dog -- such as I?'

⁹ And the king calleth unto Ziba servant of Saul, and saith unto him, `All that was to Saul and to all his house, I have given to the son of thy lord,

¹⁰ and thou hast served for him the land, thou and thy sons, and thy servants, and hast brought in, and there hath been to the son of thy lord bread, and he hath eaten it; and Mephibosheth son of thy lord doth eat continually bread at my table;' and Ziba hath fifteen sons and twenty servants.

¹¹ And Ziba saith unto the king, `According to all that my lord the king commandeth his servant, so doth thy servant;' as to Mephibosheth, `he is eating at my table ([saith the king]) as one of the sons of the king.'

¹² And Mephibosheth hath a young son, and his name [is] Micha, and every one dwelling in the house of Ziba [are] servants to Mephibosheth.

¹³ And Mephibosheth is dwelling in Jerusalem, for at the table of the king he is eating continually, and he [is] lame of his two feet.

15 And all the tax-gatherers and the sinners were coming nigh to him, to hear him,

² and the Pharisees and the scribes were murmuring, saying -- This one doth receive sinners, and doth eat with them.'

³ And he spake unto them this simile, saying,

⁴ `What man of you having a hundred sheep, and having lost one out of them, doth not leave behind the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go on after the lost one, till he may find it?

⁵ and having found, he doth lay [it] on his shoulders rejoicing,

⁶ and having come to the house, he doth call together the friends and the neighbours, saying to them, Rejoice with me, because I found my sheep -- the lost one.

⁷ `I say to you, that so joy shall be in the heaven over one sinner reforming, rather than over ninety-nine righteous men, who have no need of reformation.