Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

142 The learning of David; his prayer, when he was in the den. With my voice I cried to the Lord; with my voice I prayed heartily to the Lord. (The teaching of David; his prayer, when he was in the cave. With my voice I cried to the Lord; with my voice I heartily prayed to the Lord.)

² I shedded out my prayer in his sight; and I pronounce(d) my tribulation before him. (I poured out my complaints before him; and I told him about all my troubles.)

³ While my spirit faileth of me; and thou hast known my paths. In this way in which I went; proud men hid a snare to me. (Yea, when my spirit failed within me; thou knewest which path I should take. For on the way in which I went; proud people hid a snare for me.)

⁴ I beheld to the right side, and I saw; and none there was that knew me. Flight perished from me; and none there is that seeketh (to help) my soul. (I looked to the right; and I saw, that there was no one there who knew me. I had no way to escape; there was no one to rescue me.)

⁵ Lord, I cried to thee; I said, Thou art mine hope; my part in the land of livers. (Lord, I cried to thee; I said, Thou art my only hope, my portion in the land of the living.)

⁶ Give thou attention to my beseeching; for I am made low full greatly. Deliver thou me from them that pursue me; for they be comforted on me. (Give thou attention to my plea; for I am brought down so very low. Save thou me from those who pursue me; for they be stronger than me.)

⁷ Lead my soul out of keeping to acknowledge to thy name; just men abide me, till thou yield to me. (Lead me out of this prison, so that I can praise thy name; the righteous shall gather around me, when thou shalt reward me.)

3 The prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet, for unknowing men. (The prayer of the prophet Habakkuk, for those without knowledge.)

² Lord, I heard thy praising, and I dreaded; Lord, it is thy work, in the middle of years, quicken thou it. In the middle of years, thou shalt make (thyself) known; when thou shalt be wroth, thou shalt have mind of mercy. (Lord, I have heard of thy deeds, and I am filled with reverence for thee; Lord, it is thy work, in the midst of the years, quicken thou it/do thou it again. In the midst of the years, thou shalt make thyself known; even when thou shalt be angry, thou shalt remember to be merciful.)

³ God shall come from the south, and the holy from the mount of Paran. The glory of him covered heavens, and the earth is full of his praising. (God shall come from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His glory shall cover the heavens, and the earth shall be full of his praising.)

⁴ The shining of him shall be as light; (with) horns in the hands of him. There the strength of him was hid, (His shining shall be like the light; with rays coming from his hands. That is where his strength, or his power, is hidden,)

⁵ death shall go before his face; the devil shall go out before his feet. (death shall go out before him; and the devil shall follow his feet/and the devil shall follow him.)

⁶ He stood, and meted the earth; he beheld, and unbound folks, and hills of the world were all-broken; the little hills of the world were bowed down, of the ways of his everlastingness. (He shall stand, and shall measure the earth; he shall look, and the nations shall tremble, or shall shake; the mountains of the world shall be altogether broken, and the little hills of the world shall be bowed down, unto his everlasting ways.)

⁷ For wickedness I saw the tents of Ethiopia, the skins of the land of Midian shall be troubled. (I saw that the tents of Cushan were under wickedness, and that the tent curtains of the lands of Midian were troubled, or trembled.)

⁸ Lord, whether in floods thou art wroth, either in floods is thy strong vengeance, either in the sea is thine indignation? Which shalt ascend on thine horses; and on thy four-horsed carts is salvation. (Lord, art thou angry with the rivers, or is thy indignation against the sea? Thou shalt go upon thy horses; and salvation, or deliverance, is in thy four-horsed carts/and victory is in thy chariots.)

⁹ Thou raising shalt raise thy bow, (according to the) oaths to lineages which thou hast spoken; thou shalt part the floods of earth. (Thou shalt raise thy bow, in accordance with the oaths to the tribes which thou hast spoken; thou shalt divide the earth with thy rivers.)

¹⁰ Waters saw thee, and hills sorrowed, the gutter of waters passed; deepness gave his voice, highness raised his hands. (The mountains saw thee, and they trembled; the waters from the gutters of the heavens passed by; the depths gave their voices, and raised up their hands into the highness, or on high.)

¹¹ The sun and moon stood in their dwelling place; in the light of thine arrows they shall go, in the shining of thy spear glistening. (The sun and the moon stood in their dwelling places; they shall go in the light of thy arrows, and in the shining of thy glistening spear.)

¹² In gnashing thou shalt defoul earth, and in strong vengeance thou shalt astonish folks. (Thou shalt defile the earth with thy gnashing, and thou shalt greatly astonish the nations with thy vengeance.)

¹³ Thou art gone out into health of thy people, into health with thy christ; thou hast smitten the head of the house of the unpious man, thou hast made naked the foundament till to the neck. (Thou hast gone forth for the salvation of thy people, and for the salvation of thy anointed king; thou hast struck the head of the house of the unrighteous, or of the wicked, and thou hast made naked its foundations unto the neck, or unto the rock.)

¹⁴ Thou cursedest the sceptre, either power, of him, (that is,) the head of his fighters, to men coming as whirlwind for to scatter me; (thou heardest) the joying withoutforth of them, as of him that devoureth a poor man in huddles. (Thou hast cursed his sceptre, or his power, that is, thou hast pierced the leaders of his fighting men, who came like a whirlwind to destroy me; thou hast heard their rejoicing, like those who devour the poor in secret.)

¹⁵ Thou madest a way in the sea to thine horses, in clay of many waters. (Thou hast made a way in the sea with thy horses, through the clay of many waters.)

¹⁶ I heard, and my womb is troubled together; my lips trembled together of the voice. Rot entered in[to] my bones, and sprang under me; that I rest again in the day of tribulation, and I shall go up to our people girded together. (I heard, and my belly altogether shook; my lips altogether trembled at the sound. Rot entered into my bones, and sprang up under me. O! that I might rest again after the day of tribulation, when thou shalt go up against those who assail us.)

⁵ But I will admonish you once, that know all things, that Jesus saved his people from the land of Egypt, and the second time destroyed them that believed not. [Forsooth I will together admonish you, witting once all things, for Jesus saving his people of the land of Egypt, the second time lost them that believed not.]

⁶ And he reserved under darkness angels, that kept not their princehood, but forsook their house, into the doom of the great God, into everlasting bonds. [Soothly angels that kept not his princehood, but forsook his house, he reserved into the doom of great God, in everlasting bonds under darkness.]

⁷ As Sodom, and Gomorrha, and the nigh coasted cities, that in like manner did fornication, and went away after other flesh, and be made ensample, suffering pain of everlasting fire.^[a]

⁸ In like manner also these that defoul the flesh, and despise lordship, and blaspheme majesty.

⁹ When Michael, archangel, disputed with the devil, and strove of Moses' body [When Michael, the archangel, disputing with the devil, strove of Moses' body], he was not hardy to bring in doom of blasphemy, but said, The Lord command to thee.

¹⁰ But these men blaspheme [Forsooth these blaspheme], whatever things they know not. For whatever things they know naturally as dumb beasts [Forsooth whatever things they know by kind as dumb beasts], in these they be corrupt.

¹¹ Woe to them that went the way of Cain, and that be shed out by error of Balaam for meed, and perished in the gainsaying of Core [and perished in the again-saying of Core].

¹² These be in their meats, feasting together to filth [These be in their meats filths, or defoulings, feasting together], without dread feeding themselves. These be clouds without water, that be borne about of winds; harvest trees without fruit, twice dead, drawn up by the root;

¹³ waves of the mad sea, foaming out their confusions; erring stars, to which the tempest of darknesses is kept without end. [waves of the wild, or mad, sea, frothing out their confusions; erring stars, to whom the tempest of darknesses is kept into without end.]

¹⁴ But Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, and said [saying], Lo! the Lord cometh with his holy thousands,

¹⁵ to do doom against all men, and to reprove all unfaithful men of all the works of the wickedness of them, by which they did wickedly, and of all the hard words, that wicked sinners have spoken against God.^[b]

¹⁶ These be grumblers full of plaints [These be grutchers plaining, or full of plaints], wandering after their desires; and the mouth of them speaketh pride, worshipping persons, because of winning [by cause of winning].

¹⁷ And ye, most dear brethren, be mindful of the words [Forsooth, ye most dear, be ye mindful of the words], which be before-said of [the] apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;

¹⁸ which said to you, that in the last times there shall come beguilers [there shall come scorners], wandering after their own desires, not in piety.

¹⁹ These be, which separate themselves, beastly men, not having Spirit. [These be, the which separate themselves, beastly, not having Spirit.]

²⁰ But ye, most dear brethren, above build yourselves on your most holy faith, and pray ye in the Holy Ghost,^[c]

²¹ and keep yourselves in the love of God, and abide ye the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ into life everlasting. [keep yourselves in the love of God, abiding the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ into life everlasting.]