Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 21
The King’s Victory
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.
1 Lord, the king finds joy in Your strength.
How greatly he rejoices in Your victory!(A)
2 You have given him his heart’s desire(B)
and have not denied the request of his lips.(C)
3 For You meet him with rich blessings;
You place a crown of pure gold on his head.(D)
4 He asked You for life, and You gave it to him—
length of days forever and ever.(E)
5 His glory is great through Your victory;
You confer majesty and splendor on him.(F)
6 You give him blessings forever;(G)
You cheer him with joy in Your presence.(H)
7 For the king relies on the Lord;
through the faithful love of the Most High
he is not shaken.(I)
8 Your hand will capture all your enemies;
your right hand will seize those who hate you.(J)
9 You will make them burn
like a fiery furnace when you appear;
the Lord will engulf them in His wrath,
and fire will devour them.(K)
10 You will wipe their descendants from the earth
and their offspring from the human race.(L)
11 Though they intend to harm[a] you
and devise a wicked plan, they will not prevail.(M)
12 Instead, you will put them to flight
when you aim your bow[b] at their faces.(N)
13 Be exalted, Lord, in Your strength;
we will sing and praise Your might.(O)
17 When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel,(A) they all went in search of David, but he heard about it and went down to the stronghold.(B) 18 So the Philistines came and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim.
19 Then David inquired of the Lord:(C) “Should I go to war against the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?”
The Lord replied to David, “Go, for I will certainly hand the Philistines over to you.”
20 So David went to Baal-perazim and defeated them there and said, “Like a bursting flood, the Lord has burst out against my enemies before me.”(D) Therefore, he named that place the Lord Bursts Out.[a] 21 The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them off.
22 The Philistines came up again and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim. 23 So David inquired of the Lord, and He answered, “Do not make a frontal assault. Circle around behind them and attack them opposite the balsam trees. 24 When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, act decisively, for then the Lord will have marched out ahead of you to attack the camp of the Philistines.”(E) 25 So David did exactly as the Lord commanded him, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Geba to Gezer.
The Unbelief of Jesus’ Brothers
7 After this, Jesus traveled in Galilee,(A) since He did not want to travel in Judea(B) because the Jews(C) were trying to kill Him.(D) 2 The Jewish Festival of Tabernacles[a][b](E) was near, 3 so His brothers(F) said to Him, “Leave here and go to Judea so Your disciples can see Your works(G) that You are doing. 4 For no one does anything in secret while he’s seeking public recognition. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” 5 (For not even His brothers believed in Him.)
6 Jesus told them, “My time(H) has not yet arrived, but your time is always at hand. 7 The world cannot hate(I) you, but it does hate Me because I testify about it—that its deeds are evil. 8 Go up to the festival yourselves. I’m not going up to the festival yet,[c] because My time has not yet fully come.” 9 After He had said these things, He stayed in Galilee.
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