Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
BOOK 2
Thirsting for God in Trouble and Exile.
For the choir director. A [a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.
42 As the deer [b]pants for the water brooks,
So my soul [c](A)pants for You, O God.
2 My soul (B)thirsts for God, for the (C)living God;
When shall I come and [d](D)appear before God?
3 My (E)tears have been my food day and night,
While they (F)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember and I (G)pour out my soul within me.
For I (H)used to go along with the throng and [e]lead them in procession to the house of God,
With the voice of (I)joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.
5 (J)Why are you [f](K)in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become (L)disturbed within me?
[g](M)Hope in God, for I shall [h]again praise [i]Him
For the [j](N)help of His presence.
6 O my God, my soul is [k]in despair within me;
Therefore I (O)remember You from (P)the land of the Jordan
And the [l]peaks of (Q)Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your (R)breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.
8 The Lord will (S)command His lovingkindness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me (T)in the night,
A prayer to (U)the God of my life.
9 I will say to God (V)my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go (W)mourning [m]because of the (X)oppression of the enemy?”
10 As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries revile me,
While they (Y)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
11 (Z)Why are you [n]in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
[o]Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him,
The [p]help of my countenance and my God.
13 It came about the next day that Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood about Moses from the morning until the evening. 14 Now when Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge and all the people stand about you from morning until evening?” 15 Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me (A)to inquire of God. 16 When they have a [a](B)dispute, it comes to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor and make known the statutes of God and His laws.”
Jethro Counsels Moses
17 Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “The thing that you are doing is not good. 18 (C)You will surely wear out, both yourself and [b]these people who are with you, for the [c]task is too heavy for you; (D)you cannot do it alone. 19 Now listen to [d]me: I will give you counsel, and God be with you. [e]You be the people’s representative before God, and you (E)bring the [f]disputes to God, 20 (F)then teach them the statutes and the laws, and make known to them (G)the way in which they are to walk and the work they are to do. 21 Furthermore, you shall [g]select out of all the people (H)able men (I)who fear God, men of truth, those who (J)hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, [h]of hundreds, [i]of fifties and [j]of tens. 22 Let them judge the people at all times; and let it be (K)that every major [k]dispute they will bring to you, but every minor [l]dispute they themselves will judge. So it will be easier for you, and (L)they will bear the burden with you. 23 If you do this thing and God so commands you, then you will be able to [m]endure, and all [n]these people also will go to [o]their place in peace.”
24 So Moses listened [p]to his father-in-law and did all that he had said. 25 Moses chose (M)able men out of all Israel and made them heads over the people, leaders of thousands, [q]of hundreds, [r]of fifties and [s]of tens. 26 They judged the people at all times; (N)the difficult [t]dispute they would bring to Moses, but every minor [u]dispute they themselves would judge. 27 Then Moses [v](O)bade his father-in-law farewell, and he went his way into his own land.
15 (A)Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even [a]from envy and strife, but some also [b]from good will; 16 the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the (B)gospel; 17 the former proclaim Christ (C)out of selfish ambition [c]rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my [d](D)imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice.
Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that this will turn out for my [e]deliverance (E)through your [f]prayers and the provision of (F)the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my (G)earnest expectation and (H)hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with (I)all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be (J)exalted in my body, (K)whether by life or by death.
To Live Is Christ
21 For to me, (L)to live is Christ and to die is gain.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.