Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Folly of the Godless, and God’s Final Triumph(A)
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
14 The (B)fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt,
They have done abominable works,
There is none who does good.
2 (C)The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.
3 (D)They have all turned aside,
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good,
No, not one.
The Ammonites and Syrians Defeated(A)
10 It happened after this that the (B)king of the people of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place. 2 Then David said, “I will show (C)kindness to Hanun the son of (D)Nahash, as his father showed kindness to me.”
So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the people of Ammon. 3 And the princes of the people of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforters to you? Has David not rather sent his servants to you to search the city, to spy it out, and to overthrow it?”
4 Therefore Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, (E)at their buttocks, and sent them away. 5 When they told David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly [a]ashamed. And the king said, “Wait at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.”
Preeminence of Christ
9 (A)For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask (B)that you may be filled with (C)the knowledge of His will (D)in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 (E)that you may walk worthy of the Lord, (F)fully pleasing Him, (G)being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the (H)knowledge of God; 11 (I)strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, (J)for all patience and longsuffering (K)with joy; 12 (L)giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of (M)the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from (N)the power of darkness (O)and [a]conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 (P)in whom we have redemption [b]through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.