Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Psalm 3

Confidence in Troubled Times

A psalm of David when he fled from his son Absalom.^(A)

¹⁹ Samuel grew.^(A) The Lord was with him,^(B) and he fulfilled everything Samuel prophesied.^{[a](C) 20} All Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was a confirmed prophet of the Lord.^{(D) 21} The Lord continued to appear in Shiloh, because there he revealed himself to Samuel by his word.^(E)

4 And Samuel’s words came to all Israel.

The Ark Captured by the Philistines

Israel went out to meet the Philistines in battle and^[b] camped at Ebenezer^(F) while the Philistines camped at Aphek.^{(G) 2} The Philistines lined up in battle formation against Israel, and as the battle intensified, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who struck down about four thousand men on the battlefield.

Warning against Deliberate Sin

²⁶ For if we deliberately go on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,^{(A) 27} but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire about to consume the adversaries.^{(B) 28} Anyone who disregarded the law of Moses died without mercy, based on the testimony of two or three witnesses.^{(C) 29} How much worse punishment do you think one will deserve who has trampled on the Son of God, who has regarded as profane^[a] the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?^{(D) 30} For we know the one who has said,

and again,

³¹ It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.^(F)