Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Maschil of David; A Prayer when he was in the cave.

¹ ¶ I shall cry unto the LORD with my voice; with my voice shall I ask the LORD for mercy.

² I shall pour out my complaint before him; before him I shall tell of my trouble.

³ When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou didst know my path. In the way in which I walked have they secretly laid a snare for me.

⁴ ¶ I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no one that would know me; I had no refuge; no one cared for my soul.

⁵ I cried unto thee, O LORD; I said, Thou art my hope and my portion in the land of the living.

⁶ Attend unto my cry, for I am brought very low; deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.

⁷ Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name; the righteous shall feast with me; when thou shalt have weaned me.

⁷ ¶ Concerning Edom, thus hath the LORD of the hosts said: Is there no more wisdom in Teman? Has the counsel of the wise perished? Is their wisdom corrupted?

⁸ Flee, turn back, hide in the deeps to remain, O inhabitants of Dedan; for I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, at the time that I have to visit him.

⁹ If grapegatherers came against thee, would they not leave some gleaning grapes? If thieves by night, they will take what they have need of.

¹⁰ But I will make Esau bare, I will uncover his secret places, and he shall not be able to hide himself; his seed shall be destroyed, and his brethren and his neighbours and he shall no longer be.

¹¹ Leave thy fatherless children; I will raise them; and thy widows shall trust in me.

¹⁷ ¶ This I say, therefore, and require in the Lord that from now on ye not walk as the other Gentiles walk in the vanity of their own senses,

¹⁸ having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart,

¹⁹ who, after losing all sense of feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness to work all uncleanness with greediness.

²⁰ But ye have not so learned of the Christ,

²¹ if so be that ye have heard him and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus,

²² that ye put off everything concerning the old way of life, that is, the old man who corrupts himself according to deceitful desires,

²³ and be renewed in the spirit of your understanding

²⁴ and that ye put on the new man, which is created in conformity to God in righteousness and in the holiness of the truth.

²⁵ Therefore, leaving the lie, speak every man truth with his neighbour, for we are members one of another.

²⁶ Be ye angry and sin not; let not the sun go down upon your wrath,

²⁷ neither give place to the devil.

²⁸ Let him that stole steal no more, but rather let him labour, working with his hands that which is good, that he may have to give to him that is in need.

²⁹ Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good for edification, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with which ye are sealed for the day of redemption.

³¹ Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and evil speaking be taken away from you, with all malice,

³² and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another even as God has forgiven you in Christ.

5 ¶ Be ye therefore imitators of God, as dear children

² and walk in charity even as the Christ also has loved us and has given himself for us as an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour.