Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
21 When my (A)heart was embittered
And I was (B)pierced [a]within,
22 Then I was (C)stupid and ignorant;
I was like an (D)animal [b]before You.
23 Nevertheless (E)I am continually with You;
You have taken hold of my right hand.
24 You will (F)guide me with Your plan,
And afterward (G)receive me [c]to glory.
25 (H)Whom do I have in heaven but You?
And with You, I desire nothing on earth.
26 My (I)flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the [d]strength of my heart and my (J)portion forever.
27 For, behold, (K)those who are far from You will (L)perish;
You have destroyed all those who [e](M)are unfaithful to You.
28 But as for me, (N)the nearness of God is good for me;
I have made the Lord [f]God my (O)refuge,
So that I may (P)tell of all Your works.
On Life and Conduct
22 A (A)good name is to be more desired than great wealth;
Favor is better than silver and gold.
2 The rich and the poor [a]have a common bond,
The Lord is the (B)Maker of them all.
3 A (C)prudent person sees evil and hides himself,
But the naive proceed, and pay the penalty.
4 The reward of humility and [b]the fear of the Lord
Are riches, honor, and life.
5 (D)Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;
One who guards himself will be far from them.
6 (E)Train up a child [c]in the way he should go,
Even when he grows older he will not abandon it.
7 The (F)rich rules over the poor,
And the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.
8 One who (G)sows injustice will reap disaster,
And the (H)rod of his fury will perish.
9 One who [d]is (I)generous will be blessed,
Because he (J)gives some of his food to the poor.
10 (K)Drive out the scoffer, and strife will leave,
Even quarreling and dishonor will cease.
11 One who loves (L)purity of heart
And [e]whose speech is (M)gracious, the king is his friend.
12 The eyes of the Lord protect knowledge,
But He overthrows the words of the treacherous person.
13 The [f](N)lazy one says, “There is a lion outside;
I will be killed in the streets!”
14 The mouth of [g](O)an adulteress is a deep pit;
He who is (P)cursed of the Lord will fall [h]into it.
15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child;
The (Q)rod of discipline will remove it far from him.
16 One (R)who oppresses the poor to make [i]more for himself,
Or gives to the rich, (S)will only come to poverty.
17 (T)Extend your ear and hear the words of the wise,
And apply your mind to my knowledge;
18 For it will be (U)pleasant if you keep them within you,
[j]So that they may be ready on your lips.
19 So that your (V)trust may be in the Lord,
I have [k]taught you today, you indeed.
20 Have I not written to you [l](W)excellent things
Of counsels and knowledge,
21 To make you (X)know the [m]certainty of the words of truth,
So that you may [n](Y)correctly answer him who sent you?
9 What then? [a](A)Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both (B)Jews and (C)Greeks are (D)all under sin; 10 as it is written:
“(E)There is no righteous person, not even one;
11 There is no one who understands,
There is no one who seeks out God;
12 They have all turned aside, together they have become [b]corrupt;
There is no one who does good,
There is not even one.”
13 “(F)Their throat is an open grave,
With their tongues they keep deceiving,”
“(G)The venom of [c]asps is under their lips”;
14 “(H)Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”;
15 “(I)Their feet are swift to shed blood,
16 Destruction and misery are in their paths,
17 And they have not known the way of peace.”
18 “(J)There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
19 Now we know that whatever the (K)Law says, it speaks to (L)those who are [d]under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and (M)all the world may become accountable to God; 20 because (N)by the works [e]of the Law [f]none of mankind will be justified in His sight; for [g](O)through the Law comes [h]knowledge of sin.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.