Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 108[a]
A song, a psalm of David.
108 I am determined,[b] O God.
I will sing and praise you with my whole heart.[c]
2 Awake, O stringed instrument and harp.
I will wake up at dawn.[d]
3 I will give you thanks before the nations, O Lord.
I will sing praises to you before foreigners.[e]
4 For your loyal love extends beyond the sky,[f]
and your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
5 Rise up[g] above the sky, O God.
May your splendor cover the whole earth.[h]
6 Deliver by your power[i] and answer me,
so that the ones you love may be safe.[j]
7 God has spoken in his sanctuary:[k]
“I will triumph! I will parcel out Shechem;
the Valley of Sukkoth I will measure off.[l]
8 Gilead belongs to me,
as does Manasseh.[m]
Ephraim is my helmet,[n]
Judah my royal scepter.[o]
9 Moab is my washbasin.[p]
I will make Edom serve me.[q]
I will shout in triumph over Philistia.”
10 Who will lead me into the fortified city?
Who will bring me to Edom?[r]
11 Have you not rejected us, O God?
O God, you do not go into battle with our armies.
12 Give us help against the enemy,
for any help men might offer is futile.[s]
13 By God’s power we will conquer;[t]
he will trample down[u] our enemies.
3 Samuel said to all the people of Israel, “If you are really turning to the Lord with all your hearts, remove from among you the foreign gods and the images of Ashtoreth.[a] Give your hearts to the Lord and serve only him. Then he will deliver you[b] from the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So the Israelites[c] removed the Baals and images of Ashtoreth. They served only the Lord.
5 Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord on your behalf.” 6 After they had assembled at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the Lord. They fasted on that day, and they confessed[d] there, “We have sinned against the Lord.” So Samuel led[e] the people of Israel at Mizpah.
7 When the Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered at Mizpah, the leaders of the Philistines went up against Israel. When the Israelites heard about this, they were afraid of the Philistines. 8 The Israelites said to Samuel, “Keep[f] crying out to the Lord our[g] God so that he may save us[h] from the hand of the Philistines!” 9 So Samuel took a nursing lamb[i] and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. Samuel cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him.
10 As Samuel was offering burnt offerings, the Philistines approached to do battle with Israel.[j] But on that day the Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines. He caused them to panic, and they were defeated by[k] Israel. 11 Then the men of Israel left Mizpah and chased the Philistines, striking them down all the way to an area below Beth Car.
12 Samuel took a stone and placed it between Mizpah and Shen.[l] He named it Ebenezer,[m] saying, “Up to here the Lord has helped us.” 13 So the Philistines were defeated; they did not invade Israel again. The hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.
14 The cities that the Philistines had captured from Israel were returned to Israel, from Ekron to Gath. Israel also delivered their territory from the control[n] of the Philistines. There was also peace between Israel and the Amorites. 15 So Samuel led[o] Israel all the days of his life.
The Thousand Year Reign
20 Then[a] I saw an angel descending from heaven, holding[b] in his hand the key to the abyss and a huge chain. 2 He[c] seized the dragon—the ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan—and tied him up for a thousand years. 3 The angel[d] then[e] threw him into the abyss and locked[f] and sealed it so that he could not deceive the nations until the one thousand years were finished. (After these things he must be released for a brief period of time.)
4 Then[g] I saw thrones and seated on them were those who had been given authority to judge.[h] I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. These[i] had not worshiped the beast or his image and had refused to receive his mark on their forehead or hand. They[j] came to life[k] and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were finished.)[l] This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who takes part[m] in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them,[n] but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
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