Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 77
To the Chief Musician; after the manner of Jeduthun [one of David’s three chief musicians, founder of an official musical family]. A Psalm of Asaph.
1 I will cry to God with my voice, even to God with my voice, and He will give ear and hearken to me.
2 In the day of my trouble I seek (inquire of and desperately require) the Lord; in the night my hand is stretched out [in prayer] without slacking up; I refuse to be comforted.
3 I [earnestly] remember God; I am disquieted and I groan; I muse in prayer, and my spirit faints [overwhelmed]. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
4 You hold my eyes from closing; I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
5 I consider the days of old, the years of bygone times [of prosperity].
6 I call to remembrance my song in the night; with my heart I meditate and my spirit searches diligently:
7 Will the Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more?
8 Have His mercy and loving-kindness ceased forever? Have His promises ended for all time?
9 Has God [deliberately] abandoned or forgotten His graciousness? Has He in anger shut up His compassion? Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
10 And I say, This [apparent desertion of Israel by God] is my appointed lot and trial, but I will recall the years of the right hand of the Most High [in loving-kindness extended toward us], for this is my grief, that the right hand of the Most High changes.
11 I will [earnestly] recall the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will [earnestly] remember the wonders [You performed for our fathers] of old.
12 I will meditate also upon all Your works and consider all Your [mighty] deeds.
13 Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary [in holiness, away from sin and guilt]. Who is a great God like our God?
14 You are the God Who does wonders; You have demonstrated Your power among the peoples.
15 You have with Your [mighty] arm redeemed Your people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
16 When the waters [at the Red Sea and the Jordan] saw You, O God, they were afraid; the deep shuddered also, for [all] the waters saw You.
17 The clouds poured down water, the skies sent out a sound [of rumbling thunder]; Your arrows went forth [in forked lightning].
18 The voice of Your thunder was in the whirlwind, the lightnings illumined the world; the earth trembled and shook.
19 Your way [in delivering Your people] was through the sea, and Your paths through the great waters, yet Your footsteps were not traceable, but were obliterated.
20 You led Your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
8 As for me, I would seek God and inquire of and require Him, and to God would I commit my cause—
9 Who does great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number,
10 Who gives rain upon the earth and sends waters upon the fields,
11 So that He sets on high those who are lowly, and those who mourn He lifts to safety.
12 He frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise or anything of [lasting] worth.
13 He catches the [so-called] wise in their own trickiness, and the counsel of the schemers is brought to a quick end.(A)
14 In the daytime they meet in darkness, and at noon they grope as in the night.
15 But [God] saves [the fatherless] from the sword of their mouth, and the needy from the hand of the mighty.
16 So the poor have hope, and iniquity shuts her mouth.
17 Happy and fortunate is the man whom God reproves; so do not despise or reject the correction of the Almighty [subjecting you to trial and suffering].
18 For He wounds, but He binds up; He smites, but His hands heal.
19 He will rescue you in six troubles; in seven nothing that is evil [for you] will touch you.
20 In famine He will redeem you from death, and in war from the power of the sword.
21 You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, neither shall you be afraid of destruction when it comes.
22 At destruction and famine you shall laugh, neither shall you be afraid of the living creatures of the earth.
23 For you shall be in league with the stones of the field, and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you.
24 And you shall know that your tent shall be in peace, and you shall visit your fold and your dwelling and miss nothing [from them].
25 You shall know also that your children shall be many, and your offspring as the grass of the earth.
26 You shall come to your grave in ripe old age, and as a shock of grain goes up [to the threshing floor] in its season.
27 This is what we have searched out; it is true. Hear and heed it and know for yourself [for your good].
8 Finally, all [of you] should be of one and the same mind (united in spirit), sympathizing [with one another], loving [each other] as brethren [of one household], compassionate and courteous (tenderhearted and humble).
9 Never return evil for evil or insult for insult (scolding, tongue-lashing, berating), but on the contrary blessing [praying for their welfare, happiness, and protection, and truly pitying and loving them]. For know that to this you have been called, that you may yourselves inherit a blessing [from God—that you may obtain a blessing as heirs, bringing welfare and happiness and protection].
10 For let him who wants to enjoy life and see good days [good—whether apparent or not] keep his tongue free from evil and his lips from guile (treachery, deceit).
11 Let him turn away from wickedness and shun it, and let him do right. Let him search for peace (harmony; undisturbedness from fears, agitating passions, and moral conflicts) and seek it eagerly. [Do not merely desire peaceful relations with God, with your fellowmen, and with yourself, but pursue, go after them!]
12 For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with God), and His ears are attentive to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who practice evil [to oppose them, to frustrate, and defeat them].(A)
13 Now who is there to hurt you if you are [a]zealous followers of that which is good?
14 But even in case you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, [you are] blessed (happy, to be envied). Do not dread or be afraid of their threats, nor be disturbed [by their opposition].
15 But in your hearts set Christ apart as holy [and acknowledge Him] as Lord. Always be ready to give a logical defense to anyone who asks you to account for the hope that is in you, but do it courteously and respectfully.(B)
16 [And see to it that] your conscience is entirely clear ([b]unimpaired), so that, when you are falsely accused as evildoers, those who threaten you abusively and revile your right behavior in Christ may come to be ashamed [of slandering your good lives].
17 For [it is] better to suffer [unjustly] for doing right, if that should be God’s will, than to suffer [justly] for doing wrong.
18 For Christ [the Messiah Himself] died for sins once [c]for all, the Righteous for the unrighteous (the Just for the unjust, the Innocent for the guilty), that He might bring us to God. In His human body He was put to death, but He was made alive in the spirit,
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