Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 55[a]
A Lament over Betrayal
1 For the leader. On stringed instruments. A maskil of David.
I
2 Listen, God, to my prayer;(A)
do not hide from my pleading;
3 hear me and give answer.
I rock with grief; I groan
4 at the uproar of the enemy,
the clamor of the wicked.
They heap trouble upon me,
savagely accuse me.
5 My heart pounds within me;
death’s terrors fall upon me.
6 Fear and trembling overwhelm me;
shuddering sweeps over me.
7 I say, “If only I had wings like a dove
that I might fly away and find rest.(B)
8 Far away I would flee;
I would stay in the desert.(C)
Selah
9 “I would soon find a shelter
from the raging wind and storm.”
II
10 Lord, check and confuse their tongues.
For I see violence and strife in the city
11 making rounds on its walls day and night.
Within are mischief and trouble;
12 treachery is in its midst;
oppression and fraud never leave its streets.(D)
13 For it is not an enemy that reviled me—
that I could bear—
Not a foe who viewed me with contempt,
from that I could hide.
14 But it was you, my other self,
my comrade and friend,(E)
15 You, whose company I enjoyed,
at whose side I walked
in the house of God.
Chapter 11
Zophar’s First Speech. 1 And Zophar the Naamathite answered and said:
2 Should not many words be answered,
or must the garrulous man necessarily be right?
3 Shall your babblings keep others silent,
and shall you deride and no one give rebuke?
4 Shall you say: “My teaching is pure,
and I am clean in your sight”?
5 But oh, that God would speak,[a]
and open his lips against you,
6 And tell you the secrets of wisdom,
for good sense has two sides;
So you might learn that God
overlooks some of your sinfulness.
7 Can you find out the depths of God?(A)
or find out the perfection of the Almighty?
8 It is higher than the heavens; what can you do?
It is deeper than Sheol; what can you know?
9 It is longer than the earth in measure,
and broader than the sea.
10 If he should seize and imprison
or call to judgment, who then could turn him back?
11 For he knows the worthless
and sees iniquity; will he then ignore it?
12 An empty head will gain understanding,
when a colt of a wild jackass(B) is born human.[b]
13 If you set your heart aright
and stretch out your hands toward him,
14 If iniquity is in your hand, remove it,
and do not let injustice dwell in your tent,
15 Surely then you may lift up your face in innocence;
you may stand firm and unafraid.
16 For then you shall forget your misery,
like water that has ebbed away you shall regard it.
17 Then your life shall be brighter than the noonday;
its gloom shall become like the morning,
18 And you shall be secure, because there is hope;
you shall look round you and lie down in safety;(C)
19 you shall lie down and no one will disturb you.
Many shall entreat your favor,
20 but the wicked, looking on, shall be consumed with envy.
Escape shall be cut off from them,
their only hope their last breath.
10 (A)To the married, however, I give this instruction (not I, but the Lord):[a] A wife should not separate from her husband 11 —and if she does separate she must either remain single or become reconciled to her husband—and a husband should not divorce his wife.
12 To the rest[b] I say (not the Lord): if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she is willing to go on living with him, he should not divorce her; 13 and if any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he is willing to go on living with her, she should not divorce her husband. 14 For the unbelieving husband is made holy through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy through the brother. Otherwise your children would be unclean, whereas in fact they are holy.(B)
15 If the unbeliever separates,[c] however, let him separate. The brother or sister is not bound in such cases; God has called you to peace. 16 For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband; or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?
The Life That the Lord Has Assigned.[d]
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.