Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 21
For the worship leader. A song of David.
1 The king is glad because You, O Eternal, are strong.
In light of Your salvation, he is singing Your name.
2 You have given him all he could wish for.
After hearing his prayer, You withheld nothing.
[pause][a]
3 True blessings You lavished upon the king;
a crown of precious gold You placed upon his head.
4 His prayer was to live fully. You responded with even more—
a never-ending life to enjoy.
5 With Your help, his fame and glory have grown;
You raise him high and cover him in majesty.
6 You shower him with blessings that last forever;
he finds joy in knowing Your presence and loving You.
7 For the king puts his trust in the Eternal,
so he will not be shaken
because of the persistent love of the Most High God.
8 King, your hand will reach for all your enemies;
your right hand will seize all who hate you.
9 When you arrive at the battle’s edge,
you will seem to them a furnace.
For the fire of the Eternal’s anger, the heat of His wrath
will burn and consume them.
10 You will cut off their children,
lop off the branches of their family tree.
The earth will never know them,
nor will they ever be numbered among Adam’s kin.
11 When they scheme against you,
when they conspire their mischief, such efforts will be in vain.
12 At the sight of you, they will sound the retreat;
your bows, drawn back, will aim directly at their faces.
13 Put Your strength, Eternal One, on display for all to see;
we will sing and make music of Your mighty power.
15 Some time passed. One day, the word of the Eternal One came to Abram through a vision—a kind of waking dream.
Eternal One: Do not be afraid, Abram. I am always your shield and protector. Your reward for loyalty and trust will be immense.
Abram: 2 Eternal Lord, what could You possibly give to me that would make that much of a difference in my life? After all, I am still childless, and Eliezer of Damascus stands to inherit all I own.[a] 3 Since You have not given me the gift of children, my only heir will be one of the servants born in my household.
4 Immediately the word of the Eternal One came to him.
Eternal One: No, Abram, this man will not be your heir. No one but your very own child will be an heir for you.
5 God took him outside to show him something.
Eternal One: Look up at the stars, and try to count them all if you can. There are too many to count! Your descendants will be as many as the stars.[b]
6 Abram believed God and trusted in His promises, so God counted it to his favor as righteousness.[c]
Eternal One (to Abram): 7 I am the Eternal One. Remember, I am the One who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans in order to give you this land to possess and to pass on to your descendants.
Abram: 8 But Eternal Lord, how am I supposed to know I really will possess it?
Eternal One: 9 Bring to Me the following: a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.
10 Abram brought God all of these animals and cut them in two, laying each half next to the other, making two rows. Only the birds were not cut in two. 11 And when any birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, Abram swatted them away.
12 As the sun was setting in the west, Abram fell into a deep sleep. A terrifying darkness descended upon him.
Eternal One (to Abram): 13 I will tell you this on which you can stake your life: Your descendants will first be foreigners in a land that is not theirs. They will be made slaves there and will be oppressed for 400 years. 14 But then I will judge the nation that enslaves them.[d] When that time comes, your descendants will emerge from that land with many possessions. 15 As for you, you will rest with your fathers in peace and be buried at a ripe old age. 16 Not until the fourth generation will your descendants return here to possess the land, because the sin of the Amorite people has not yet reached its full measure.
17 When the sun had gone down and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between the halves of the animal carcasses. 18 With this ritual and on this day, the Eternal One made a covenant with Abram.
This ritual may sound strange, but it is a common way of making agreements between parties in Abram’s day. The exact meaning is unclear, but the various elements and actions point to one undeniable fact: Abram and the Lord are entering into a relationship that has serious and long-lasting consequences. God’s covenant with Abram changes not only Abram’s future but the future of the world itself.
Eternal One: I make a solemn promise to give this land to your descendants—from the river of Egypt to the great Euphrates River,
33 Good trees produce good fruits; bad trees produce bad fruits. You can always tell a tree by its fruits. 34 You children of snakes, you who are evil—how could you possibly say anything good? For the mouth simply shapes the heart’s impulses into words. 35 And so the good man (who is filled with goodness) speaks good words, while the evil man (who is filled with evil) speaks evil words. 36 I tell you this: on the day of judgment, people will be called to account for every careless word they have ever said. 37 The righteous will be acquitted by their own words, and you evildoers will be condemned by your own words.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.