Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Reign of the Righteous King.
A Psalm of Solomon.
72 Give the king (A)Your judgments, O God,
And (B)Your righteousness to the king’s son.
2 [a]May [b]he (C)judge Your people with righteousness
And [c](D)Your afflicted with justice.
3 [d]Let the mountains bring [e](E)peace to the people,
And the hills, in righteousness.
4 [f]May he (F)vindicate the [g]afflicted of the people,
Save the children of the needy
And crush the oppressor.
5 [h]Let them fear You (G)while the sun endures,
And [i]as long as the moon, throughout all generations.
6 [j]May he come down (H)like rain upon the mown grass,
Like (I)showers that water the earth.
7 In his days [k]may the (J)righteous flourish,
And (K)abundance of peace till the moon is no more.
8 May he also rule (L)from sea to sea
And from the River to the ends of the earth.
9 [l]Let (M)the nomads of the desert (N)bow before him,
And his enemies (O)lick the dust.
10 [m]Let the kings of (P)Tarshish and of the [n](Q)islands bring presents;
The kings of (R)Sheba and (S)Seba (T)offer [o]gifts.
11 [p]And let all (U)kings bow down before him,
All (V)nations serve him.
12 For he will (W)deliver the needy when he cries for help,
The [q]afflicted also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will have (X)compassion on the poor and needy,
And the [r]lives of the needy he will save.
14 He will [s](Y)rescue their [t]life from oppression and violence,
And their blood will be (Z)precious in his sight;
15 So may he live, and may the (AA)gold of Sheba be given to him;
And let [u]them pray for him continually;
Let [v]them bless him all day long.
16 May there be abundance of grain in the earth on top of the mountains;
Its fruit will wave like the cedars of (AB)Lebanon;
And may those from the city flourish like (AC)vegetation of the earth.
17 May his (AD)name endure forever;
May his name [w]increase [x](AE)as long as the sun shines;
And let men (AF)bless themselves by him;
(AG)Let all nations call him blessed.
18 (AH)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone (AI)works wonders.
19 And blessed be His (AJ)glorious name forever;
And may the whole (AK)earth be filled with His glory.
(AL)Amen, and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
15 He took up his discourse and said,
“(A)The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor,
And the oracle of the man whose eye is opened,
16 The oracle of him who hears the [a]words of God,
And knows the knowledge of the [b]Most High,
Who sees the vision of [c]the Almighty,
Falling down, yet having his eyes uncovered.
17 “I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near;
A star shall come forth from Jacob,
(B)A scepter shall rise from Israel,
(C)And shall crush through the [d]forehead of Moab,
And [e]tear down all the sons of [f]Sheth.
18 “(D)Edom shall be a possession,
(E)Seir, its enemies, also will be a possession,
While Israel performs valiantly.
19 “One from Jacob shall have dominion,
And will destroy the remnant from the city.”
Zacharias’s Prophecy
67 And his father Zacharias (A)was filled with the Holy Spirit, and (B)prophesied, saying:
68 “(C)Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited us and accomplished (D)redemption for His people,
69 And has raised up a (E)horn of salvation for us
In the house of David (F)His servant—
70 (G)As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets (H)from of old—
71 [a](I)Salvation (J)from our enemies,
And from the hand of all who hate us;
72 (K)To show mercy toward our fathers,
(L)And to remember His holy covenant,
73 (M)The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
74 To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
75 (N)In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.
76 “And you, child, will be called the (O)prophet of (P)the Most High;
For you will go on (Q)before the Lord to (R)prepare His ways;
77 To give to His people the knowledge of salvation
[b]By (S)the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which (T)the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
79 (U)To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the (V)way of peace.”
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.