Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 116
116 I love the Lord because he hears
my requests for mercy.
2 I’ll call out to him as long as I live,
because he listens closely to me.
3 Death’s ropes bound me;
the distress of the grave[a] found me—
I came face-to-face with trouble and grief.
4 So I called on the Lord’s name:
“Lord, please save me!”[b]
12 What can I give back to the Lord
for all the good things he has done for me?
13 I’ll lift up the cup of salvation.
I’ll call on the Lord’s name.
14 I’ll keep the promises I made to the Lord
in the presence of all God’s people.
15 The death of the Lord’s faithful
is a costly loss in his eyes.
16 Oh yes, Lord, I am definitely your servant!
I am your servant and the son of your female servant—
you’ve freed me from my chains.
17 So I’ll offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to you,
and I’ll call on the Lord’s name.
18 I’ll keep the promises I made to the Lord
in the presence of all God’s people,
19 in the courtyards of the Lord’s house,
which is in the center of Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Rejoicing in God’s salvation
25 Lord, you are my God.
I will exalt you; I will praise your name,
for you have done wonderful things,
planned long ago, faithful and sure.
2 You have turned the city into rubble,
the fortified town into a ruin,
the fortress of foreigners into a city no more,
never to be rebuilt.
3 Therefore, strong people will glorify you;
the towns of tyrant nations will fear you.
4 You have been a refuge for the poor,
a refuge for the needy in distress,
a hiding place from the storm,
a shade from the heat.
When the breath of tyrants is like a winter[a] storm
5 or like heat in the desert,
you subdue the roar of foreigners.
Like heat shaded by a cloud,
the tyrants’ song falls silent.
8 Although you’ve never seen him, you love him. Even though you don’t see him now, you trust him and so rejoice with a glorious joy that is too much for words. 9 You are receiving the goal of your faith: your salvation.
10 The prophets, who long ago foretold the grace that you’ve received, searched and explored, inquiring carefully about this salvation. 11 They wondered what the Spirit of Christ within them was saying when he bore witness beforehand about the suffering that would happen to Christ and the glory that would follow. They wondered what sort of person or what sort of time they were speaking about. 12 It was revealed to them that in their search they were not serving themselves but you. These things, which even angels long to examine, have now been proclaimed to you by those who brought you the good news. They did this in the power of the Holy Spirit, who was sent from heaven.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible