Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Protestation of Integrity and Prayer for Protection.
A Psalm of David.
26 [a](A)Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have (B)walked in my integrity,
And I have (C)trusted in the Lord [b](D)without wavering.
2 (E)Examine me, O Lord, and try me;
(F)Test my [c]mind and my heart.
3 For Your (G)lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And I have (H)walked in Your [d]truth.
4 I do not (I)sit with [e]deceitful men,
Nor will I go with [f](J)pretenders.
5 I (K)hate the assembly of evildoers,
And I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I shall (L)wash my hands in innocence,
And I will go about (M)Your altar, O Lord,
7 That I may proclaim with the voice of (N)thanksgiving
And declare all Your [g]wonders.
8 O Lord, I (O)love the habitation of Your house
And the place [h]where Your (P)glory dwells.
9 (Q)Do not [i]take my soul away along with sinners,
Nor my life with (R)men of bloodshed,
10 In whose hands is a (S)wicked scheme,
And whose right hand is full of (T)bribes.
11 But as for me, I shall (U)walk in my integrity;
(V)Redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12 (W)My foot stands on a (X)level place;
In the (Y)congregations I shall bless the Lord.
11 Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place, Eliphaz the (A)Temanite, Bildad the (B)Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to (C)sympathize with him and comfort him. 12 When they lifted up their eyes at a distance and did not recognize him, they raised their voices and wept. And each of them (D)tore his robe and they (E)threw dust over their heads toward the sky. 13 (F)Then they sat down on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights with no one speaking a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great.
Job’s Lament
3 Afterward Job opened his mouth and cursed [a]the day of his birth. 2 And Job [b]said,
3 “(G)Let the day perish on which I was to be born,
And the night which said, ‘A [c]boy is conceived.’
4 “May that day be darkness;
Let not God above care for it,
Nor light shine on it.
5 “Let (H)darkness and black gloom claim it;
Let a cloud settle on it;
Let the blackness of the day terrify it.
6 “As for that night, let darkness seize it;
Let it not rejoice among the days of the year;
Let it not come into the number of the months.
7 “Behold, let that night be barren;
Let no joyful shout enter it.
8 “Let those curse it who curse the day,
Who are [d]prepared to (I)rouse Leviathan.
9 “Let the stars of its twilight be darkened;
Let it wait for light but have none,
And let it not see the [e]breaking dawn;
10 Because it did not shut the opening of my mother’s womb,
Or hide trouble from my eyes.
11 “(J)Why did I not die [f]at birth,
Come forth from the womb and expire?
12 “Why did the knees receive me,
And why the breasts, that I should suck?
13 “For now I (K)would have lain down and been quiet;
I would have slept then, I would have been at rest,
14 With (L)kings and with (M)counselors of the earth,
Who rebuilt (N)ruins for themselves;
15 Or with (O)princes (P)who had gold,
Who were filling their houses with silver.
16 “Or like a miscarriage which is [g]discarded, I would not be,
As infants that never saw light.
17 “There the wicked cease from raging,
And there the [h]weary are at (Q)rest.
18 “The prisoners are at ease together;
They do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.
19 “The small and the great are there,
And the slave is free from his master.
20 “Why is (R)light given to him who suffers,
And life to the bitter of soul,
21 Who [i](S)long for death, but there is none,
And dig for it more than for (T)hidden treasures,
22 Who rejoice greatly,
And exult when they find the grave?
23 “Why is light given to a man (U)whose way is hidden,
And whom (V)God has hedged in?
24 “For (W)my groaning comes at the sight of my food,
And (X)my cries pour out like water.
25 “For [j](Y)what I fear comes upon me,
And what I dread befalls me.
26 “I (Z)am not at ease, nor am I quiet,
And I am not at rest, but turmoil comes.”
23 But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, (A)being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. 24 Therefore the Law has become our (B)tutor to lead us to Christ, so that (C)we may be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a [a](D)tutor. 26 For you are all (E)sons of God through faith in (F)Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were (G)baptized into Christ have (H)clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 (I)There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is [b]neither male nor female; for (J)you are all one in (K)Christ Jesus. 29 And if (L)you [c]belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s [d]descendants, heirs according to (M)promise.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.