Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Prayer for Deliverance from Evil Men
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
140 Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;
Preserve me from violent men,
2 Who plan evil things in their hearts;
(A)They continually gather together for war.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a serpent;
The (B)poison of asps is under their lips. Selah
4 (C)Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from violent men,
Who have purposed to make my steps stumble.
5 The proud have hidden a (D)snare for me, and cords;
They have spread a net by the wayside;
They have set traps for me. Selah
6 I said to the Lord: “You are my God;
Hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.
7 O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation,
You have [a]covered my head in the day of battle.
8 Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
Do not further his wicked scheme,
(E)Lest they be exalted. Selah
9 “As for the head of those who surround me,
Let the evil of their lips cover them;
10 (F)Let burning coals fall upon them;
Let them be cast into the fire,
Into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
11 Let not a slanderer be established in the earth;
Let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him.”
12 I know that the Lord will (G)maintain
The cause of the afflicted,
And justice for the poor.
13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name;
The upright shall dwell in Your presence.
Esther’s Banquet
5 Now it happened (A)on the third day that Esther put on her royal robes and stood in (B)the inner court of the king’s palace, across from the king’s house, while the king sat on his royal throne in the royal house, facing the entrance of the [a]house. 2 So it was, when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, that (C)she found favor in his sight, and (D)the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther went near and touched the top of the scepter.
3 And the king said to her, “What do you wish, Queen Esther? What is your request? (E)It shall be given to you—up to half the kingdom!”
4 So Esther answered, “If it pleases the king, let the king and Haman come today to the banquet that I have prepared for him.”
5 Then the king said, “Bring Haman quickly, that he may do as Esther has said.” So the king and Haman went to the banquet that Esther had prepared.
6 At the banquet of wine (F)the king said to Esther, (G)“What is your petition? It shall be granted you. What is your request, up to half the kingdom? It shall be done!”
7 Then Esther answered and said, “My petition and request is this: 8 If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and [b]fulfill my request, then let the king and Haman come to the (H)banquet which I will prepare for them, and tomorrow I will do as the king has said.”
Haman’s Plot Against Mordecai
9 So Haman went out that day (I)joyful and with a glad heart; but when Haman saw Mordecai in the king’s gate, and (J)that he did not stand or tremble before him, he was filled with indignation against Mordecai. 10 Nevertheless Haman (K)restrained himself and went home, and he sent and called for his friends and his wife Zeresh. 11 Then Haman told them of his great riches, (L)the multitude of his children, everything in which the king had promoted him, and how he had (M)advanced him above the officials and servants of the king.
12 Moreover Haman said, “Besides, Queen Esther invited no one but me to come in with the king to the banquet that she prepared; and tomorrow I am again invited by her, along with the king. 13 Yet all this avails me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.”
14 Then his wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Let a (N)gallows[c] be made, [d]fifty cubits high, and in the morning (O)suggest to the king that Mordecai be hanged on it; then go merrily with the king to the banquet.”
And the thing pleased Haman; so he had (P)the gallows made.
Deceptions of the Last Hour
18 (A)Little children, (B)it is the last hour; and as you have heard that (C)the[a] Antichrist is coming, (D)even now many antichrists have come, by which we know (E)that it is the last hour. 19 (F)They went out from us, but they were not of us; for (G)if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out (H)that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.
20 But (I)you have an anointing (J)from the Holy One, and (K)you[b] know all things. 21 I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.
22 (L)Who is a liar but he who denies that (M)Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. 23 (N)Whoever denies the Son does not have the (O)Father either; (P)he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
Let Truth Abide in You
24 Therefore let that abide in you (Q)which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, (R)you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. 25 (S)And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.