Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 57
For the music leader. Do not destroy. A miktam[a] of David, when he fled from Saul into the cave.
57 Have mercy on me, God;
have mercy on me
because I[b] have taken refuge in you.
I take refuge
in the shadow of your wings
until destruction passes by.
2 I call out to God Most High—
to God, who comes through for me.
3 He sends orders from heaven and saves me,
rebukes the one who tramples me. Selah
God sends his loyal love and faithfulness.
4 My life is in the middle of a pack of lions.
I lie down among those who devour humans.
Their teeth are spears and arrows;
their tongues are sharpened swords.
5 Exalt yourself, God, higher than heaven!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
6 They laid a net for my feet to bring me down;
they dug a pit for me,
but they fell into it instead! Selah
7 My heart is unwavering, God—
my heart is unwavering.
I will sing and make music.
8 Wake up, my glory!
Wake up, harp and lyre!
I will wake the dawn itself!
9 I will give thanks to you,
my Lord,
among all the peoples;
I will make music to you among the nations
10 because your faithful love
is as high as heaven;
your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
11 Exalt yourself, God, higher than heaven!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
David mourns for Absalom
19 Then Zadok’s son Ahimaaz said, “Please let me run and take the news to the king that the Lord has vindicated him against his enemies’ power.”
20 Joab said to him, “You aren’t the one to bring the news today. You can bring news on another day, but not today, because the king’s son is dead.” 21 Then Joab said to a Cushite, “Go tell the king what you have seen.” The Cushite bowed low before Joab, then ran off.
22 But Zadok’s son Ahimaaz again said to Joab, “I don’t care what happens, just let me run after the Cushite too.”
“Why do you want to go, son?” Joab asked. “You’ll get no reward for going.”[a]
23 “I don’t care what happens, I want to go,” Ahimaaz said.[b]
So Joab said to him, “Run off then!”
Ahimaaz ran off, going by way of the plain, and passed the Cushite.
24 Now David was sitting between the two gates. The watchman on duty went up on the roof of the gate by the wall. He looked out and saw a man running alone. 25 The watchman called out and reported this to the king. The king said, “If he’s alone, it’s good news.”
The man got nearer and nearer, 26 and the watchman saw another man running and called down to the gatekeeper, “There’s another man running alone.”
The king said, “That one must be bringing good news too.”
27 The watchman said, “I can see that the first one runs like Zadok’s son Ahimaaz.”
“He’s a good man,” the king said, “and is coming with good news.”
28 Ahimaaz called out to the king, “Peace!” then bowed low before the king, his nose to the ground. He said, “Bless the Lord your God, who has delivered up the men who raised their hands against my master the king.”
29 The king said, “Is my boy Absalom okay?”
Ahimaaz said, “I saw a large crowd right when Joab, the king’s servant, sent your servant off, but I don’t know what it was about.”
30 “Step aside and stand right here,” the king said. So Ahimaaz stepped aside and waited.
31 Then the Cushite arrived and said, “My master the king: Listen to this good news! The Lord has vindicated you this day against the power of all who rose up against you.”
32 The king said to the Cushite, “Is my boy Absalom okay?”
The Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my master the king and all who rise up against you to hurt you end up like that young man.”
33 [c] The king trembled. He went up to the room over the gate and cried. As he went, he said, “Oh, my son Absalom! Oh, my son! My son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you! Oh, Absalom, my son! My son!”
Preparing for Christ’s coming in judgment
14 Therefore, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found by him in peace—pure and faultless. 15 Consider the patience of our Lord to be salvation, just as our dear friend and brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given to him, 16 speaking of these things in all his letters. Some of his remarks are hard to understand, and people who are ignorant and whose faith is weak twist them to their own destruction, just as they do the other scriptures.
Final instruction
17 Therefore, dear friends, since you have been warned in advance, be on guard so that you aren’t led off course into the error of sinful people, and lose your own safe position. 18 Instead, grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. To him belongs glory now and forever. Amen.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible