Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem.
A Song of Ascents, of David.
122 I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us (A)go to the house of the Lord.”
2 Our feet are standing
Within your (B)gates, O Jerusalem,
3 Jerusalem, that is (C)built
As a city that is (D)compact together;
4 To which the tribes (E)go up, even the tribes of [a]the Lord—
[b]An ordinance for Israel—
To give thanks to the name of the Lord.
5 For there (F)thrones were set for judgment,
The thrones of the house of David.
6 Pray for the (G)peace of Jerusalem:
“May they prosper who (H)love you.
7 “May peace be within your (I)walls,
And prosperity within your (J)palaces.”
8 For the sake of my (K)brothers and my friends,
I will now say, “(L)May peace be within you.”
9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will (M)seek your good.
The Corruption of Mankind
6 Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were [a]beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, “(A)My Spirit shall not [b]strive with man forever, [c](B)because he also is flesh; [d]nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” 4 The (C)Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that (D)every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 (E)The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was (F)grieved [e]in His heart. 7 The Lord said, “(G)I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the [f]sky; for (H)I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But (I)Noah (J)found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
9 These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a (K)righteous man, [g](L)blameless in his [h]time; Noah (M)walked with God. 10 Noah [i]became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
The Triumphs of Faith
11 Now faith is the [a](A)assurance of things [b](B)hoped for, the [c]conviction of (C)things not seen. 2 For by it the (D)men of old [d](E)gained approval.
3 By faith we understand that the [e](F)worlds were prepared (G)by the word of God, so that what is seen (H)was not made out of things which are visible. 4 By faith (I)Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he (J)obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying [f]about his (K)gifts, and through [g]faith, though (L)he is dead, he still speaks. 5 By faith (M)Enoch was taken up so that he would not (N)see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who (O)comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. 7 By faith (P)Noah, being (Q)warned by God about (R)things not yet seen, [h](S)in reverence (T)prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of (U)the righteousness which is according to faith.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.