Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 26
By David.
1 Judge me favorably, O Yahweh,
because I have walked with integrity
and I have trusted you without wavering.
2 Examine me, O Yahweh, and test me.
Look closely into my heart and mind.
3 I see your mercy in front of me.
I walk in the light of your truth.
4 I did not sit with liars,
and I will not be found among hypocrites.
5 I have hated the mob of evildoers
and will not sit with wicked people.
6 I will wash my hands in innocence.
I will walk around your altar, O Yahweh,
7 so that I may loudly sing a hymn of thanksgiving
and tell about all your miracles.
8 O Yahweh, I love the house where you live,
the place where your glory dwells.
9 Do not sweep away my soul along with hardened sinners
or my life along with bloodthirsty people.
10 Evil schemes are in their hands.
Their right hands are full of bribes.
11 But I walk with integrity.
Rescue me, and have pity on me.
12 My feet stand on level ground.
I will praise Yahweh with the choirs in worship.
Job Speaks about the Futility of Human Existence
7 “Isn’t a mortal’s stay on earth difficult
like a hired hand’s daily work?
2 Like a slave, he longs for shade.
Like a hired hand, he eagerly looks for his pay.
3 Likewise, I have been given months that are of no use,
and I have inherited nights filled with misery.
4 When I lie down, I ask,
‘When will I get up?’
But the evening is long,
and I’m exhausted from tossing about until dawn.
5 My body is covered with maggots and scabs.
My skin is crusted over with sores; then they ooze.
6 My days go swifter than a weaver’s shuttle.
They are spent without hope.
7 Remember, my life is only a breath,
and never again will my eyes see anything good.
8 The eye that watches over me will no longer see me.
Your eye will look for me, but I’ll be gone.
9 As a cloud fades away and disappears,
so a person goes into the grave and doesn’t come back again.
10 He doesn’t come back home again,
and his household doesn’t recognize him anymore.
11 So I won’t keep my mouth shut,
but I will speak from the distress that is in my spirit
and complain about the bitterness in my soul.
Job Says to God: Leave Me Alone
12 “Am I the sea or a sea monster
that you have set a guard over me?
13 When I say,
‘My couch may give me comfort.
My bed may help me bear my pain,’
14 then you frighten me with dreams
and terrify me with visions.
15 My throat would rather be choked.
My body[a] would prefer death to these dreams.
16 I hate my life; I do not want to live forever.
Leave me alone because my days are so brief.
17 “What is a mortal that you should make so much of him,
that you should be concerned about him?
18 What is he that you should inspect him every morning
and examine him every moment?
19 Why don’t you stop looking at me
long enough to let me swallow my spit?[b]
20 If I sin, what can I possibly do to you
since you insist on spying on people?
Why do you make me your target?
I’ve become a burden even to myself.
21 Why don’t you forgive my disobedience
and take away my sin?
Soon I’ll lie down in the dust.
Then you will search for me, but I’ll be gone!”
14 The Pharisees, who love money, heard all this and were making sarcastic remarks about him. 15 So Yeshua said to them, “You try to justify your actions in front of people. But God knows what’s in your hearts. What is important to humans is disgusting to God.
16 “Moses’ Teachings and the Prophets were in force until the time of John. Since that time, people have been telling the Good News about the kingdom of God, and everyone is trying to force their way into it. 17 It is easier for the earth and the heavens to disappear than to drop a comma from the Scriptures.
18 “Any man who divorces his wife to marry another woman is committing adultery. The man who marries a woman divorced in this way is committing adultery.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.