Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Folly of the Godless and Salvation for Israel
For the music director, according to Mahalath.
A maskil of David.[a]
53 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt and they have done abominable iniquity.
There is none who does good.
2 God looks down from heaven upon the children of humankind
to see whether there is one who has insight,
one who seeks God.
3 All of them[b] have turned back.
They are altogether corrupt.
There is none who does good;
there is not even one.
4 Do not evildoers know,
they who eat my people as though they were eating bread?
They do not call on God.
5 There they are very fearful[c]
where no fear had been,
because God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you.
You have put them to shame, because God has rejected them.
6 Oh, that from Zion[d] would come salvation for Israel!
When God returns the fortunes[e] of his people,
let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.
24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned because I have transgressed the commandment of Yahweh[a] and your words, for I feared the troops and I listened to their voice. 25 So then, please pardon my sin and return with me so that I can worship[b] Yahweh.” 26 But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of Yahweh, and he has rejected you from being king over Israel!”
27 As Samuel turned around to go, he[c] caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore. 28 Then Samuel said to him, “Yahweh has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor who is better than you.[d] 29 Moreover, the Glory of Israel will not break faith and will not regret, for he is not a human that he should regret.” 30 Then he[e] said, “I have sinned! Now please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me so that I can worship[f] Yahweh your God.” 31 So Samuel returned after Saul, and Saul worshiped[g] Yahweh.
The Sermon on the Plain: Trees and Their Fruit
43 “For there is no good tree that produces bad fruit, nor on the other hand a bad tree that produces good fruit, 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thorn plants, nor are grapes harvested from thorn bushes. 45 The good person out of the good treasury of his heart brings forth good, and the evil person out of his[a] evil treasury[b] brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
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