Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 16
A prayer[a] of David.
1 Protect me, God, for the only safety I know is found in the moments I seek You.
2 I told You, Eternal One, “You are my Lord,
for the only good I know in this world is found in You alone.”
3 The beauty of faith-filled people encompasses me.
They are true, and my heart is thrilled beyond measure.
4 All the while the despair of many,
who abandoned Your goodness for the empty promises of false gods, increases day by day.
I refuse to pour out blood offerings,
to utter their names from my lips.
5 You, Eternal One, are my sustenance and my life-giving cup.
In that cup, You hold my future and my eternal riches.
6 My home is surrounded in beauty;
You have gifted me with abundance and a rich legacy.
7 I will bless the Eternal, whose wise teaching orchestrates my days
and centers my mind at night.
8 He is ever present with me;
at all times He goes before me.
I will not live in fear or abandon my calling
because He stands at my right hand.
9 This is a good life—my heart is glad, my soul is full of joy,
and my body is at rest.
Who could want for more?
10 You will not abandon me to experience death and the grave
or leave me to rot alone.
11 Instead, You direct me on the path that leads to a beautiful life.
As I walk with You, the pleasures are never-ending,
and I know true joy and contentment.
9 Young Women of Jerusalem: How is your beloved better than all the other lovers,
most beautiful of women?
How is your beloved worth more than all the rest,
that you would make us promise this?
10 Her: Because my love is radiant and ruddy,
he stands out above 10,000 other men.
11 His head is pure gold;
his hair is thick and wavy and black as a raven.
12 His eyes are like doves at the edge of a stream,
mounted like jewels and bathed in pools of milk.
13 His bearded cheeks are like a spice garden, with towers of spice:
His lips are lilies dripping and flowing with myrrh,
14 His hands are like strong rods of gold, each set with jewels.
His body displays his manhood like an ivory tusk inlaid with sapphires.
15 His legs are like pillars of white marble,
both set on bases of gold.
He stands tall and strong like the mountains of Lebanon,
with all its majestic cedars.
16 His mouth tastes sweet, so sweet;
he is altogether desirable.
This is my love. This is my dear one, as I am his,
O young women of Jerusalem.
6 Young Women of Jerusalem (to her): Where has your love gone,
most beautiful of women?
Do you know which direction he went
so we can help you find him?
They pass through many obstacles as they celebrate their union in different venues. Love is found in a garden or a parental home. Ecstasy comes in a dream or reality.
2 Her: Women of Jerusalem, I know where my love is.
My love has gone into his garden
Among the beds of aromatic spices,
like a gazelle grazing among his gardens
and a gardener gathering the lilies.
3 I belong to my love, and my love to me.
He feeds his flock among the lilies.
15 Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I preached to you when we first met. It’s the essential message that you have taken to heart, the central story you now base your life on; 2 and through this gospel, you are liberated—unless, of course, your faith has come to nothing. 3-4 For I passed down to you the crux of it all which I had also received from others, that the Anointed One, the Liberating King, died for our sins and was buried and raised from the dead on the third day. All this happened to fulfill the Scriptures; it was the perfect climax to God’s covenant story. 5 Afterward He appeared alive to Cephas[a] (you may know him as Simon Peter), then to the rest of the twelve. 6 If that were not amazing enough, on one occasion, He appeared to more than 500 believers at one time. Many of those brothers and sisters are still around to tell the story, though some have fallen asleep[b] in Jesus. 7 Soon He appeared to James, His brother and the leader of the Jerusalem church, and then to all the rest of the emissaries[c] He Himself commissioned.[d] 8 Last of all, He appeared to me;[e] I was like a child snatched from his mother’s womb. 9 You see, I am the least of all His emissaries, not fit to be called His emissary because I hunted down and persecuted God’s church. 10 Today I am who I am because of God’s grace, and I have made sure that the grace He offered me has not been wasted. I have worked harder, longer, and smarter than all the rest; but I realize it is not me—it is God’s grace with me that has made the difference. 11 In the end, it doesn’t matter whether it was I or the other witnesses who brought you the message. What matters is that we keep preaching and that you have faith in this message.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.