Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Cry of Anguish and a Song of Praise.
For the choir director; upon [a]Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.
22 (A)My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
[b](B)Far from my deliverance are the words of my [c](C)groaning.
2 O my God, I (D)cry by day, but You do not answer;
And by night, but [d]I have no rest.
3 Yet (E)You are holy,
O You who [e]are enthroned upon (F)the praises of Israel.
4 In You our fathers (G)trusted;
They trusted and You (H)delivered them.
5 To You they cried out and were delivered;
(I)In You they trusted and were not [f]disappointed.
6 But I am a (J)worm and not a man,
A (K)reproach of men and (L)despised by the people.
7 All who see me [g](M)sneer at me;
They [h]separate with the lip, they (N)wag the head, saying,
8 “[i]Commit yourself to the Lord; (O)let Him deliver him;
Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him.”
9 Yet You are He who (P)brought me forth from the womb;
You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts.
10 Upon You I was cast (Q)from [j]birth;
You have been my God from my mother’s womb.
11 (R)Be not far from me, for [k]trouble is near;
For there is (S)none to help.
12 Many (T)bulls have surrounded me;
Strong bulls of (U)Bashan have encircled me.
13 They (V)open wide their mouth at me,
As a ravening and a roaring (W)lion.
14 I am (X)poured out like water,
And all my (Y)bones are out of joint;
My (Z)heart is like wax;
It is melted within [l]me.
15 My (AA)strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And (AB)my tongue cleaves to my jaws;
And You (AC)lay me [m]in the dust of death.
Bildad Speaks of the Wicked
18 Then Bildad the Shuhite [a]responded,
2 “How long will you hunt for words?
Show understanding and then we can talk.
3 “Why are we (A)regarded as beasts,
As stupid in your eyes?
4 “O [b]you who tear yourself in your anger—
For your sake is the earth to be abandoned,
Or the rock to be moved from its place?
5 “Indeed, the (B)light of the wicked goes out,
And the [c]flame of his fire gives no light.
6 “The light in his tent is (C)darkened,
And his lamp goes out above him.
7 “His [d]vigorous stride is shortened,
And his (D)own scheme brings him down.
8 “For he is (E)thrown into the net by his own feet,
And he steps on the webbing.
9 “A snare seizes him by the heel,
And a trap snaps shut on him.
10 “A noose for him is hidden in the ground,
And a trap for him on the path.
11 “All around (F)terrors frighten him,
And (G)harry him at every step.
12 “His strength is (H)famished,
And calamity is ready at his side.
13 “[e]His skin is devoured by disease,
The firstborn of death (I)devours his [f]limbs.
14 “He is (J)torn from [g]the security of his tent,
And [h]they march him before the king of (K)terrors.
15 “[i]There dwells in his tent nothing of his;
(L)Brimstone is scattered on his habitation.
16 “His (M)roots are dried below,
And his (N)branch is cut off above.
17 “(O)Memory of him perishes from the earth,
And he has no name abroad.
18 “[j]He is driven from light (P)into darkness,
And (Q)chased from the inhabited world.
19 “He has no (R)offspring or posterity among his people,
Nor any survivor where he sojourned.
20 “Those [k]in the west are appalled at (S)his [l]fate,
And those [m]in the east are seized with horror.
21 “Surely such are the (T)dwellings of the wicked,
And this is the place of him who does not know God.”
The Believer’s Rest
4 Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have (A)come short of it. 2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but (B)the word [a]they heard did not profit them, because [b]it was not united by faith in those who heard. 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said,
“(C)As I swore in My wrath,
They shall not enter My rest,”
although His works were finished (D)from the foundation of the world. 4 For He has said (E)somewhere concerning the seventh day: “(F)And God (G)rested on the seventh day from all His works”; 5 and again in this passage, “(H)They shall not enter My rest.” 6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of (I)disobedience, 7 He again fixes a certain day, “Today,” saying [c]through David after so long a time just (J)as has been said before,
“(K)Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”
8 For (L)if [d]Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. 10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also (M)rested from his works, as (N)God did from His. 11 Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same (O)example of (P)disobedience.
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