Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
16 But to the wicked God says,
“What right do you have to tell of My statutes
And to take (A)My covenant in your mouth?
17 For you yourself (B)hate discipline,
And you (C)throw My words behind you.
18 When you see a thief, you (D)become friends with him,
And [a]you (E)associate with adulterers.
19 You [b](F)let your mouth loose in evil,
And your (G)tongue harnesses deceit.
20 You sit and (H)speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.
21 These things you have done and (I)I kept silent;
You thought that I was just like you;
I will (J)rebuke you and present the case before your eyes.
15 Then Nathan went to his house.
Loss of a Child
Later the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s [a]widow bore to David, so that he was very sick. 16 David therefore pleaded with God for the child; and David (A)fasted and went and (B)lay all night on the ground. 17 (C)The elders of his household stood beside him in order to help him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat food with them. 18 Then it happened on the seventh day that the child died. And David’s servants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Behold, while the child was still alive, we spoke to him and he did not listen to [b]us. How then can we tell him that the child is dead, since he might do himself harm?” 19 But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; so David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they said, “He is dead.” 20 So David got up from the ground, (D)washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and (E)worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and when he asked, they served him food, and he ate.
21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was [c]alive; but when the child died, you got up and ate food.” 22 And he said, “While the child was still alive, (F)I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘(G)Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, and the child may live.’ 23 But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? (H)I am going to him, but (I)he will not return to me.”
Solomon Born
24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and slept with her; and she gave birth to a son, and [d](J)he named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved him, 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him [e]Jedidiah for the Lord’s sake.
The Christian’s Walk
17 (A)So I say this, and affirm in the Lord, (B)that you are to no longer walk just as the [a]Gentiles also walk, in the (C)futility of their minds, 18 being (D)darkened in their understanding, [b](E)excluded from the life of God because of the (F)ignorance that is in them, because of the (G)hardness of their heart; 19 and they, having (H)become callous, (I)have given themselves up to (J)indecent behavior [c]for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 20 But you did not (K)learn Christ in this way, 21 if indeed you (L)have heard Him and have (M)been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 that, in reference to your former way of life, you are to (N)rid yourselves of the (O)old [d]self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the (P)lusts of deceit, 23 and that you are to be (Q)renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to (R)put on the (S)new [e]self, which [f](T)in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
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