Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
BOOK IV (Psalms 90-106)
A prayer by Moses, the godly man
Life is Short
90 Lord, you’ve been our refuge[a]
from generation to generation.
2 Before the mountains were formed
or the earth and the world were brought forth,
you are God from eternity to eternity.
3 You return people to dust
merely by[b] saying, “Return, you mortals!”
4 One thousand years in your sight are but a single day
that passes by, just like a night watch.
5 You will sweep them away while they are asleep—
by morning they are like growing grass.
6 In the morning it blossoms and is renewed,
but toward evening, it fades and withers.
13 Please return, Lord! When will it be?
Comfort your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your gracious love
so we may sing for joy
and rejoice every day.
15 Cause us to rejoice throughout the time when you have afflicted us,
the years when we have known[a] trouble.
16 May your awesome deeds be revealed to your servants,
as well as your splendor to their children.
17 May your favor be on us, Lord our God;
make our endeavors successful;
yes, make our endeavors secure!
The Song of Moses
32 Hear, heavens, and I will speak!
Listen, earth, to the words of my mouth!
2 May my instructions descend like rain
and may my words flow like dew,
as light rain upon the grass,
and as showers upon new plants.
3 For I’ll proclaim the name of our Lord.
Ascribe greatness to our God!
4 Flawless is the work of the Rock,
because all his ways are just.
A faithful God—never unjust—
righteous and upright is he.
5 But those who are not his children
acted corruptly against him;
they are a defective and perverted generation.
6 This is not the way to repay the Lord, is it,
you foolish and witless people?
Is he not your father,
who bought you, formed you, and established you?
An Exhortation to Remember God’s Work
7 Remember the days of old,
reflect on the years of previous generations.
Ask your father,
and he’ll tell you;
your elders will inform you.
8 When the Most High gave nations as their inheritance,
when he separated the human race,
he set boundaries for the people
according to the number of the children of God.[a]
9 For the Lord’s portion is his people;
Jacob is his allotted portion.
The Lord’s Work on Behalf of Israel
10 The Lord[b] found him[c] in a desert land,
in a barren, eerie[d] wilderness.
He surrounded, cared for, and guarded him
as the pupil of his eye.
11 Like an eagle stirs its nest,
hovering near its young,
spreading out his wings to take him
and carry him on his pinions,
12 the Lord alone guided him.
There was no foreign god with him.
13 He mounted him on a high place above the earth,
feeding him from the produce of the field.
He nourished[e] him with honey from the rock
and with oil from the flint rock,
14 with curds from cattle and with milk from sheep,
with the fat of lambs, with rams from Bashan,
with the fat of goats, with the finest[f] of wheat—
and from the juice of grapes you drank wine.
7 Always set an example for others by doing good actions. Teach with integrity and dignity. 8 Use wholesome speech that cannot be condemned. Then any opponent will be ashamed because he cannot say anything bad about us.
11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. 12 It trains us to renounce ungodly living and worldly passions so that we might live sensible, honest, and godly lives in the present age 13 as we wait for the blessed hope and glorious appearance of our great God and Savior, Jesus the Messiah.[a] 14 He gave himself for us to set us free from every wrong and to cleanse us so that we could be his special people who are enthusiastic about doing good deeds.
15 These are the things you should teach. Encourage and refute with full authority. Do not let anyone look down on you.
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