Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Peril in Moving the Ark
6 (A)Now David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David [a]departed from [b](B)Baale-judah, with all the people who were with him, to bring up from there the ark of God which is called by the (C)Name, the very name of the Lord of armies who (D)is [c]enthroned above the cherubim. 3 They had mounted the ark of God on (E)a new cart and moved it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were leading the new cart. 4 So (F)they brought it with the ark of God from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Ahio was walking ahead of the ark. 5 Meanwhile, David and all the house of Israel (G)were celebrating before the Lord (H)with all kinds of instruments made of juniper wood, and with [d]lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.
The Ark Is Brought to Jerusalem
12 Now it was reported to King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, on account of the ark of God.” (A)So David went and brought the ark of God up from the house of Obed-edom to (B)the city of David with joy. 13 And so it was, that [a]when (C)those carrying the ark of the Lord marched six paces, he sacrificed an (D)ox and a fattened steer. 14 And (E)David was dancing before the Lord with all his strength, and David was (F)wearing a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with joyful shouting and the sound of the trumpet.
16 Then it happened, as the ark of the Lord was coming into the city of David, that (G)Michal the daughter of Saul looked down through the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she was contemptuous of him in her heart.
17 Now they brought in the ark of the Lord and set it (H)in its place inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and (I)David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. 18 When David had finished offering the burnt offering and the peace offerings, (J)he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of armies. 19 Further, he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, both to men and women, a cake of bread, one of dates, and one of raisins to each one. Then all the people left, each to his house.
The King of Glory Entering Zion.
A Psalm of David.
24 The (A)earth is the Lord’s, and [a]all it contains,
The (B)world, and those who live in it.
2 For He has (C)founded it upon the seas
And established it upon the rivers.
3 Who may (D)ascend onto the (E)hill of the Lord?
And who may stand in His holy (F)place?
4 One who has (G)clean hands and a (H)pure heart,
Who has not (I)lifted up his soul to deceit
And has not (J)sworn deceitfully.
5 He will receive a (K)blessing from the Lord
And [b](L)righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 [c]This is the generation of those who (M)seek Him,
Who seek Your face—even Jacob. Selah
7 (N)Lift up your heads, you gates,
And be lifted up, you [d]ancient doors,
That the King of (O)glory may come in!
8 Who is the King of glory?
The Lord (P)strong and mighty,
The Lord (Q)mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, you gates,
And lift them up, you [e]ancient doors,
That the King of (R)glory may come in!
10 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of (S)armies,
He is the King of glory. Selah
3 (A)Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in (B)the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as (C)He chose us in Him before (D)the foundation of the world, that we would be (E)holy and blameless before [a]Him. (F)In love 5 [b]He (G)predestined us to (H)adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, (I)according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 (J)to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored us in (K)the Beloved. 7 (L)In [c]Him we have (M)redemption (N)through His blood, the (O)forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to (P)the riches of His grace 8 which He [d]lavished on [e]us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He [f](Q)made known to us the mystery of His will, (R)according to His good pleasure which He (S)set forth in Him, 10 regarding His plan of (T)the fullness of the times, (U)to bring all things together in Christ, things [g]in the heavens and things on the earth. 11 [h]In Him we also (V)have obtained an inheritance, having been (W)predestined (X)according to the purpose of Him who works all things (Y)in accordance with the plan of His will, 12 to the end that [i]we who were the first to hope in the [j]Christ would be (Z)to the praise of His glory. 13 In [k]Him, [l]you also, after listening to (AA)the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also [m]believed, you were (AB)sealed in [n]Him with (AC)the Holy Spirit of the promise, 14 who is a (AD)first installment of (AE)our inheritance, in regard to the (AF)redemption of (AG)God’s own possession, (AH)to the praise of His glory.
John’s Fate Recalled
14 (A)And King Herod heard about it, for His name had become well known; and people were saying, “(B)John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and that is why these miraculous powers are at work in Him.” 15 But others were saying, “He is (C)Elijah.” And others were saying, “He is (D)a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16 But when Herod heard about it, he kept saying, “John, whom I beheaded, has risen!”
17 For Herod himself had sent men and had John arrested and bound in prison on account of (E)Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, because he had married her. 18 For John had been saying to Herod, “(F)It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 And (G)Herodias held a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death, and could not do so; 20 for (H)Herod was afraid of John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he had been protecting him. And when he heard him, he was very perplexed; and yet he [a]used to enjoy listening to him. 21 An opportune day came when Herod, on his birthday, (I)held a banquet for his nobles and military commanders, and the leading people (J)of Galilee; 22 and when the daughter of (K)Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and [b]his dinner guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” 23 And he swore to her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give it to you, up to (L)half of my kingdom.” 24 And she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” 25 Immediately she came in a hurry to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26 And although the king was very sorry, because of his oaths and [c]his dinner guests, he was unwilling to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded him to bring back his head. And he went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard about this, they came and carried away his body, and laid it in a tomb.
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