Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Prayer of an Innocent Believer
Of David.
26 Lord, ·defend [vindicate] me because I have ·lived an innocent life [L walked in innocence; Job 1:1].
I have ·trusted [confidence in] the Lord and never ·doubted [wavered; faltered].
2 Lord, try me and test me;
look closely into my ·heart and mind [L kidneys and heart; C the seat of emotions and mind in Hebrew thought].
3 ·I see your love [L Your loyalty/covenant love is before my eyes],
and I ·live by your truth [walk in your truth/faithfulness].
4 I do not ·spend time [L sit] with ·liars [or worthless people],
nor do I ·make friends [L go] with ·those who hide their sin [hypocrites].
5 I hate the ·company [assembly] of evil people,
and I won’t sit with the wicked.
6 I wash my hands ·to show I am innocent [L in innocence],
and I ·come to [L go around] your altar, Lord.
7 I raise my voice in ·praise [or thanks]
and tell of all the ·miracles [wonderful things] you have done.
8 Lord, I love the ·Temple [L house] where you live,
where your glory [C manifest presence] ·is [dwells].
9 Do not ·kill me [take me away] with those sinners
or take my life with ·those murderers [the bloodthirsty; L men of blood].
10 ·Evil is [Schemes are] in their hands,
and ·they do wrong for money [L their right hand is full of bribes].
11 But I have ·lived an innocent life [L walked in innocence; v. 1],
so ·save [redeem; ransom] me and have mercy on me.
12 ·I stand in a safe place [L My feet stand on level ground].
Lord, I ·praise [bless] you in the great ·meeting [assembly].
Eliphaz Speaks
4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:
2 “If someone tried to speak with you, would you be ·upset [or discouraged]?
I cannot keep from speaking.
3 Think about the many people you have taught
and the weak hands you have made strong.
4 Your words have ·comforted [L lifted up] those who ·fell [stumbled],
and you have strengthened those ·who could not stand [L with weak knees].
5 But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged;
·trouble hits [L it touches] you, and you are ·terrified [disturbed].
6 ·You should have [Shouldn’t you have…?] confidence because you ·respect [fear; have awe for] God;
·you should [should you not…?] have hope because ·you are innocent [L of your innocent ways].
7 “Remember ·that the innocent will not die [L who being innocent/blameless has perished…?];
·honest people will never be [L when were the honest/virtuous…? ] destroyed.
8 I have ·noticed [seen] that people who plow ·evil [wickedness]
and plant trouble, harvest it.
9 God’s breath destroys them,
and a blast of his anger ·kills [finishes] them.
10 Lions may roar and lion cubs growl,
but when the teeth of a strong lion are broken,
11 that lion dies ·of hunger [L without prey].
The cubs of the mother lion are scattered [C the wicked may briefly prosper but will ultimately perish].
12 “A word ·was brought to me in secret [L stole over me],
and my ears heard a whisper of it [C Eliphaz claims a supernatural revelation that supports his teaching].
13 It was during ·a nightmare [L anxious thoughts of a night vision]
when people are in deep sleep.
14 I was trembling with fear;
all my bones were shaking.
15 A spirit glided past my face,
and the hair on my ·body [L skin] stood on end.
16 The spirit stopped,
but I could not see what it was.
A shape stood before my eyes,
and I heard a quiet voice.
17 It said, ‘Can a human be more right than God?
Can a person be pure before his maker? [C the implied answer is no]
18 God does not trust his ·angels [L servants];
he blames ·them [L angels] for mistakes.
19 So ·he puts even more blame on [L what about…?] people who live in clay houses [C physical bodies],
whose foundations are made of dust [Gen. 2:7],
who can be crushed like a moth.
20 Between ·dawn and sunset [L morning and evening] many people are broken to pieces;
without being noticed, they die and are gone forever.
21 The ropes of their tents are pulled up,
and they die without wisdom.’
Be Ruled by the Spirit
8 So now, those who are in Christ Jesus are not ·judged guilty[a] [condemned; punished for their sins]. 2 [L For] ·Through [or In] Christ Jesus the ·law [principle; or power] of the Spirit that brings life set you[b] free from the ·law [principle; or power] that brings sin and death. 3 The law [C of Moses] was without power, because the law was made weak by our ·sinful selves [sinful nature; T flesh]. But God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son to earth ·with the same human life that others use for sin [or in a body like ours, prone to sin; L in the likeness of sinful flesh]. By sending his Son ·to be an offering for sin [L concerning sin], God ·used a human life to destroy sin [L condemned sin in the flesh]. 4 He did this so that ·we could be the kind of people that the law demands that we be [L the law’s righteous/just requirements would be fulfilled in us]. Now we do not ·live [walk; C life’s journey] following our ·sinful selves [sinful nature; T flesh], but following the Spirit.
5 Those who live following their ·sinful selves [sinful nature; T flesh] ·think only about [have their minds set on; or have their outlook shaped by] things that their ·sinful selves [sinful nature; T flesh] want. But those who live following the Spirit ·are thinking about [have their minds set on; or have their outlook shaped by] the things ·the Spirit wants them to do [L of the Spirit]. 6 If people’s ·thinking is controlled by [or outlook/mind is set on] the ·sinful self [sinful nature; T flesh], ·there is [the result is] death. But if their ·thinking is controlled by [or outlook/mind is set on] the Spirit, ·there is [the result is] life and peace. 7 When people’s ·thinking is controlled by [or outlook/mind is set on] the ·sinful self [sinful nature; T flesh], they are ·against [hostile to] God, because they refuse to ·obey [submit to] God’s law and really are not even able to ·obey [submit to] God’s law. 8 Those people who are ·ruled by [or under the control of; L in] ·their sinful selves [their sinful nature; T the flesh] cannot please God.
9 But you are not ·ruled by [controlled by; or in] ·your sinful selves [your sinful nature; T the flesh], but ·by [or in] the Spirit, if that Spirit of God really lives in you. But the person who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Christ. 10 Your body ·will always be [L is] dead because of sin. But if Christ is in you, then the Spirit ·gives you [L is] life, because ·Christ made you right with God [L of righteousness]. 11 God raised Jesus from the dead, and if God’s Spirit is living in you, the One who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies that die, through[c] his Spirit who lives in you.
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