Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 123[a]
Reliance on the Lord
1 A song of ascents.
To you I raise my eyes,
to you enthroned in heaven.(A)
2 Yes, like the eyes of servants
on the hand of their masters,
Like the eyes of a maid
on the hand of her mistress,
So our eyes are on the Lord our God,
till we are shown favor.
3 Show us favor, Lord, show us favor,
for we have our fill of contempt.(B)
4 Our souls are more than sated
with mockery from the insolent,
with contempt from the arrogant.
Chapter 5
Song of Deborah. 1 (A)On that day Deborah sang this song—and Barak, son of Abinoam:
2 [a]When uprising broke out in Israel,
when the people rallied for duty—bless the Lord!
3 Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes!
I will sing, I will sing to the Lord,
I will make music to the Lord, the God of Israel.
4 [b](B)Lord, when you went out from Seir,
when you marched from the plains of Edom,
The earth shook, the heavens poured,
the clouds poured rain,
5 The mountains streamed,
before the Lord, the One of Sinai,
before the Lord, the God of Israel.
6 In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath,(C)
in the days of Jael, caravans ceased:
Those who traveled the roads
now traveled by roundabout paths.(D)
7 Gone was freedom beyond the walls,
gone indeed from Israel.
When I, Deborah, arose,
when I arose, a mother in Israel.[c]
8 New gods were their choice;
then war was at the gates.
No shield was to be found, no spear,
among forty thousand in Israel!
9 My heart is with the leaders of Israel,
with the dedicated ones of the people—bless the Lord;
10 Those who ride on white donkeys,
seated on saddle rugs,
and those who travel the road,
Sing of them
11 to the sounds of musicians at the wells.
There they recount the just deeds of the Lord,
his just deeds bringing freedom to Israel.
12 Awake, awake, Deborah!
Awake, awake, strike up a song!
Arise, Barak!
Take captive your captors, son of Abinoam!
43 (A)“When an unclean spirit goes out of a person it roams through arid regions searching for rest but finds none. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my home from which I came.’ But upon returning, it finds it empty, swept clean, and put in order. 45 Then it goes and brings back with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they move in and dwell there; and the last condition of that person is worse than the first. Thus it will be with this evil generation.”
The True Family of Jesus.[a]
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.