Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

A Davidic Psalm.

Praise to the Majestic Lord

A Testimony to Self-Indulgence

2 I told myself, “I will test you with pleasure, so enjoy yourself.” But this was pointless. ² “Senseless,” said I concerning laughter and pleasure, “How practical is this?” ³ I decided to indulge in wine, while still remaining committed to wisdom. I also tried to indulge in foolishness, just enough to determine whether it was good for human beings under heaven given the short time of their lives.

A Testimony to Extravagant Works

⁴ With respect to my extravagant works, I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself. ⁵ I constructed gardens and orchards for myself, and within them I planted all kinds of fruit trees. ⁶ I built for myself water reservoirs to irrigate forests that produce trees.

A Testimony to Extravagant Possessions

⁷ I acquired male and female slaves, and had other slaves born in my house. I also acquired for myself increasing numbers of herds and flocks—more than anyone who had lived before me in Jerusalem. ⁸ I also accumulated silver, gold, and the wealth of kings and their kingdoms. I gathered around me both male and female singers, along with what delights a man—all sorts of mistresses.

A Testimony to Extravagant Position

⁹ So I became great, greater than anyone who had lived before me in Jerusalem. Throughout all of this, I remained wise. ¹⁰ Whenever I wanted something I had seen, I never refused that desire. Instead, I enjoyed everything I did, and this became the reward in what I had undertaken. ¹¹ Then I examined all of my accomplishments that I had brought about by my own efforts, including the work that I had labored so hard to complete—and it was all pointless, like chasing after the wind, and there was nothing to be gained on earth.

Preaching in the Power of God

2 When I came to you, brothers, I didn’t come and tell you about God’s secret^[a] with rhetorical language or wisdom. ² For while I was with you I resolved to know nothing except Jesus the Messiah,^[b] and him crucified. ³ It was in weakness, fear, and great trembling that I came to you. ⁴ My message and my preaching were not accompanied by clever, wise words, but by a display of the Spirit’s power, ⁵ so that your faith would not be based on human wisdom but on God’s power.

God’s Spirit Reveals Everything

⁶ However, when we are among mature people, we do speak a message of^[c] wisdom, but not the wisdom of this world or of the rulers of this world, who are passing off the scene. ⁷ Instead, we speak about God’s wisdom in a hidden secret, which God destined before the world began^[d] for our glory. ⁸ None of the rulers of this world understood it, because if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹ But as it is written,

¹⁰ But^[f] God has revealed those things to us by his Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the deep things of God.