Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

A Prayer for the Nation's Restoration^[a]

David's Prayer of Thanksgiving^(A)

¹⁸ Then King David went into the Tent of the Lord's presence, sat down and prayed, “Sovereign Lord, I am not worthy of what you have already done for me, nor is my family. ¹⁹ Yet now you are doing even more, Sovereign Lord; you have made promises about my descendants in the years to come. And you let a man see this,^[a] Sovereign Lord! ²⁰ What more can I say to you! You know me, your servant. ²¹ It was your will and purpose to do this; you have done all these great things in order to instruct me. ²² How great you are, Sovereign Lord! There is none like you; we have always known that you alone are God.

4 But now to continue—the son who will receive his father's property is treated just like a slave while he is young, even though he really owns everything. ² While he is young, there are men who take care of him and manage his affairs until the time set by his father. ³ In the same way, we too were slaves of the ruling spirits of the universe before we reached spiritual maturity. ⁴ But when the right time finally came, God sent his own Son. He came as the son of a human mother and lived under the Jewish Law, ^5 (A)to redeem those who were under the Law, so that we might become God's children.

^6 (B)To show that you are^[a] his children, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who cries out, “Father, my Father.” ⁷ So then, you are no longer a slave but a child. And since you are his child, God will give you all that he has for his children.