Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 121
Help From the Lord
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A song for the ascents.
Help From the Lord, Israel’s Watchman
1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains.
Where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot stumble.
He who watches over you will not slumber.
4 Yes, he who watches over Israel will not slumber.
He will not sleep.
5 The Lord watches over you.
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.
6 The sun will not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will watch to keep you from all harm.[a]
He will watch over your life.[b]
8 The Lord will watch over your going and your coming
from now to eternity.
18 Who is a God like you, who forgives guilt,
and who passes over the rebellion of the survivors from his inheritance?
He does not hold onto his anger forever.
He delights in showing mercy.
19 He will have compassion on us again.
He will overcome our guilty deeds.
You will throw all their sins into the depths of the sea.
20 You will give truth to Jacob and mercy to Abraham,
as you swore to our fathers from days of old.
A Righteousness Apart From the Law by Faith
21 But now, completely apart from the law, a righteousness from God has been made known. The Law and the Prophets testify to it. 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all and over all[a] who believe.
In fact, there is no difference, 23 because all have sinned and fall short of the glory[b] of God 24 and are justified[c] freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God publicly displayed as the atonement seat[d] through faith in his blood. God did this to demonstrate his justice, since, in his divine restraint, he had left the sins that were committed earlier unpunished. 26 He did this to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so that he would be both just and the one who justifies the person who has faith in Jesus.
27 What happens to boasting then? It has been eliminated. By what principle[e]—by the principle of works? No, but by the principle of faith. 28 For we conclude that a person is justified by faith without the works of the law. 29 Or is he only the God of the Jews? Is he not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, also of the Gentiles, 30 since there is one God who will justify the circumcised person by faith and the uncircumcised person through the very same faith. 31 So are we doing away with the law by this faith? Absolutely not! Instead, we are upholding the law.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.