Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 33
1 Release your heart’s joy in sweet music to the Eternal.
When the upright passionately sing glory-filled songs to Him, everything is in its right place.
2 Worship the Eternal with your instruments, strings offering their praise;
write awe-filled songs to Him on the 10-stringed harp.
3 Sing to Him a new song;
play each the best way you can,
and don’t be afraid to be bold with your joyful feelings.
4 For the word of the Eternal is perfect and true;
His actions are always faithful and right.
5 He loves virtue and equity;
the Eternal’s love fills the whole earth.
6 The unfathomable cosmos came into being at the word of the Eternal’s imagination, a solitary voice in endless darkness.
The breath of His mouth whispered the sea of stars into existence.
7 He gathers every drop of every ocean as in a jar,
securing the ocean depths as His watery treasure.
8 Let all people stand in awe of the Eternal;
let every man, woman, and child live in wonder of Him.
9 For He spoke, and all things came into being.
A single command from His lips, and all creation obeyed and stood its ground.
10 The Eternal cripples the schemes of the other nations;
He impedes the plans of rival peoples.
11 The Eternal’s purposes will last to the end of time;
the thoughts of His heart will awaken and stir all generations.
12 The nation whose True God is the Eternal is truly blessed;
fortunate are all whom He chooses to inherit His legacy.
17 After Abram and his men defeated Chedorlaomer and the other kings allied with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him on his return at the valley of Shaveh (an area also known as the King’s Valley). 18 The priest-king of Jerusalem,[a] Melchizedek, came out to meet him as well and brought out bread and wine for them. Melchizedek was a priest of the One whom he called the “the Most High God.”[b] 19 Priest-king Melchizedek offered a special blessing to Abram.
King Melchizedek: May Abram be blessed by the Most High God,
Creator of the heavens and earth.
20 Blessing and honor to the Most High God,
who has clearly delivered your enemies into your hands!
Abram gave the priest-king a tenth of all of the captured goods he was bringing back with him.
This unusual encounter has sparked much interest over the centuries. Melchizedek, it seems, appears out of nowhere. There is no genealogical record for him; he is described simply as the priest-king of Salem, likely a reference to the city that will one day be known as Jerusalem. The Hebrew root of the name Salem means “peace” (shalom). Melchizedek comes in peace, offering the victors a meal to sustain them on their journey home. Abram, in return, gives Melchizedek ten percent of the spoils claimed in battle. There are two other scriptural references to Melchizedek in Psalm 110 and Hebrews 7. The writer of Hebrews compares the priestly role of Jesus to the ancient priestly order of Melchizedek showing that Jesus’ role, like that of Melchizedek, is superior in every way to the later Levitical priests.
King of Sodom (to Abram): 21 Give me the people, and you can take all of the spoils for yourself.
Abram: 22 I have pledged a solemn oath to the Eternal One—the Most High God, Creator of the heavens and earth. 23 I promised that I would not keep any shred of what belongs to you—not a thread of a garment or a strap of a sandal. That way you could never take credit for any wealth of mine. 24 I will take nothing except the food my men have eaten. As for the men who fought with me—Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre—let them take their shares, but I will take nothing more.
28 We quickly learned that we were on the island of Malta. 2 The Maltese people found us and were extraordinarily kind to us. They kindled a bonfire and welcomed us around it, which we greatly appreciated because it was raining and cold. 3 Paul was gathering firewood and helping build the fire. A viper had been hiding in some of the wood, and as it tried to escape the heat, it bit Paul on the hand. It sank its fangs in and wouldn’t let go. 4 The natives saw it dangling from his hand.
Natives: This man must be a murderer. He escaped the sea, but now justice has caught up with him.
5 Paul simply shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no harm. 6 The natives knew what to expect—rapid swelling followed by death—but when they waited a long time and saw that Paul suffered no ill effects of the bite, they changed their minds and concluded that he was a god.
7 The leading man of the island, Publius, owned large amounts of land near this beach. Publius received us and hosted us for three days. 8 Publius’s father was sick, bedridden with fever and dysentery. Paul visited the invalid and prayed for him, placing his hands on Publius’s father. The man was cured. 9 Soon people from all over the island who had diseases came, and they were cured as well.
10-11 We stayed on Malta for the next three months and were treated with great honor. When spring arrived, we prepared to continue our journey on a ship that had wintered there—an Alexandrian vessel with the Twin Brothers as its figurehead. The Maltese people showed us a final kindness as we departed: they came with all the provisions we needed for our journey and put them on board.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.