Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 51
A Prayer for Restoration
For the choir director. A psalm of David, when the prophet Nathan came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba.(A)
1 Be gracious to me, God,
according to your faithful love;
according to your abundant compassion,
blot out my rebellion.(B)
2 Completely wash away my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.(C)
3 For I am conscious of my rebellion,
and my sin is always before me.(D)
4 Against you—you alone—I have sinned
and done this evil in your sight.(E)
So you are right when you pass sentence;
you are blameless when you judge.(F)
5 Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;
I was sinful when my mother conceived me.(G)
6 Surely you desire integrity in the inner self,
and you teach me wisdom deep within.(H)
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.(I)
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.(J)
9 Turn your face away[a] from my sins
and blot out all my guilt.(K)
15 For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said:
“You will be delivered by returning and resting;
your strength will lie in quiet confidence.
But you are not willing.”
16 You say, “No!
We will escape on horses”—
therefore you will escape!—
and, “We will ride on fast horses”—
but those who pursue you will be faster.(A)
17 One thousand will flee at the threat of one,(B)
at the threat of five you will flee,
until you remain
like a solitary pole on a mountaintop
or a banner on a hill.
The Lord’s Mercy to Israel
18 Therefore the Lord is waiting to show you mercy,
and is rising up to show you compassion,(C)
for the Lord is a just God.
All who wait patiently for him are happy.
The Promised Rest
4 Therefore, since the promise to enter his rest remains, let us beware[a] that none of you be found to have fallen short.[b] 2 For we also have received the good news just as they did. But the message they heard did not benefit them, since they were not united with those who heard it in faith.[c](A) 3 For we who have believed enter the rest, in keeping with what[d] he has said,
even though his works have been finished since the foundation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in this way: And on the seventh day God rested from all his works.[f](C) 5 Again, in that passage he says, They will never enter my rest.[g] 6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news did not enter because of disobedience,(D) 7 he again specifies a certain day—today. He specified this speaking through David after such a long time:
8 For if Joshua(F) had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 Therefore, a Sabbath rest remains for God’s people. 10 For the person who has entered his rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from his.(G) 11 Let us, then, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience.
12 For the word of God is living and effective(H) and sharper than any double-edged sword,(I) penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.(J) 13 No creature is hidden from him, but all things are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom(K) we must give an account.
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