Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

20 To victory, the psalm of David. The Lord hear thee in the day of tribulation; the name of God of Jacob defend thee. (To victory, the song of David. May the Lord answer thee in the day of trouble; may the name of the God of Jacob defend thee.)

² Send he help to thee from the holy place; and from Zion defend he thee.

³ Be he mindful of all thy sacrifice; and thy burnt sacrifice be made fat. (May he remember all thy offerings; yea, may he be pleased with thy rich offerings/with thy burnt sacrifices.)

⁴ Give he to thee after thine heart; and confirm he all thy counsel. (May he give he thee thy heart’s desire; yea, may he grant success to all thy plans.)

⁵ We shall be glad in thine health; and we shall be magnified in the name of our God. The Lord [ful]fill all thine askings; (We shall be glad for thy victory/We shall be glad for thy salvation, or thy deliverance; and we shall magnify the name of our God. May the Lord grant all thy requests;)

⁶ now I have known, that the Lord hath made safe his christ. He shall hear him from his holy heaven; the health of his right hand is in powers. (now I know that the Lord hath saved his anointed king. He shall answer him from his holy heaven; with the saving power of his right hand.)

⁷ These, that is, adversaries, trust in chariots, and these in horses; but we shall inwardly call in the name of our Lord God. (Some, that is, our adversaries, trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we shall call on the name of the Lord our God.)

⁸ They be bound, and felled down; but we have risen, and be raised. (They stumbled, and fell; but we have risen, and stand upright.)

⁹ Lord, make thou safe the king; and hear thou us in the day in which we inwardly call thee. (Lord, save thou the king; yea, answer thou us on the day in which we call to thee.)

⁷ And when this thing was told to Jotham, he went, and stood in the top of the hill Gerizim (and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim), and cried (out) with (a) voice raised [up], and said, Ye men of Shechem, hear me, so that God (may) hear you.

⁸ Trees went to anoint a king on them (The trees went to anoint a king over themselves); and they said to the olive tree, Command thou to us.

⁹ Which answered, Whether I may forsake my fatness, which both Gods and men use, and come, that I be advanced among trees? (Which answered, Can I forsake my rich oil, which is used to honour both gods and men, and go that I be advanced over the other trees?)

¹⁰ And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and take the realm on us (Come thou, and take the kingdom, and reign over us). Which answered to them,

¹¹ Whether I may forsake my sweetness, and my full sweet fruits, and go that I be advanced among other trees? (Can I forsake my sweetness, and my full sweet fruits, and go that I be advanced over the other trees?)

¹² Also the trees spake to the vine, (and said,) Come thou, and command to us.

¹³ Which answered, Whether I may forsake my wine, that gladdeth God and men, and be advanced among other trees? (Which answered, Can I forsake my wine, that gladdeneth both the gods and people, and go that I be advanced over the other trees?)

¹⁴ And all the trees said to the rhamn, or the thieve-thorn, Come thou, and be lord on us (Come thou, and be lord over us).

¹⁵ Which answered to them, If ye make me verily king to you, come, and rest ye under my shadow; and, if ye will not, fire go out of the rhamn, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. (Which answered to them, If ye truly shall make me king over you, come, and rest ye under my shadow; but if ye will not, then let fire go out of the rhamn, and devour Lebanon’s cedars.)

¹⁸ My little sons, the last hour is; and as ye have heard, that antichrist cometh, now many antichrists be made; wherefore we know [whereof we know], that it is the last hour.

¹⁹ They went forth from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they had dwelt with us; but that they be known, that they be not all of us [but that they be known, that they be not of us].

²⁰ But ye have anointing of the Holy Ghost, and know all things. [But ye have unction of the Holy Ghost, and know all things.]

²¹ I wrote not to you, as to men that know not the truth, but as to men that know it, and for each lying is not of truth.

²² Who is a liar, but this that denieth that Jesus is not Christ? This is antichrist, that denieth the Father, and the Son.

²³ For each that denieth the Son, hath not the Father; but he that acknowledgeth the Son, hath also the Father.

²⁴ That thing that ye heard at the beginning, dwell it in you [That thing that ye heard from the beginning, dwell in you]; for if that thing dwelleth in you [for if it shall dwell in you], which ye heard at the beginning, [and] ye shall dwell in the Son and in the Father.

²⁵ And this is the promise, that he promised to us everlasting life.

²⁶ I wrote these things to you, of them that deceive you,

²⁷ and that the anointing which ye received of him, dwell in you. And ye have not need, that any man teach you, but as his anointing teacheth you of all things, and it is true, and it is not lying; and as he taught you, dwell ye in him.

²⁸ And now, ye little sons, dwell ye in him, that when he shall appear, we have trust, and be not confounded of him in his coming.