Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
A Prayer in Troubled Times
Of David.
28 Lord, my Rock [C providing protection], I ·call out to you for help [pray].
Do not be ·deaf [silent] to me.
If you are silent,
I will be like those ·in the grave [L who go down to the Pit; 16:10].
2 Hear the sound of my ·prayer [supplication],
when I cry out to you for help.
I raise my hands
toward your Most Holy Place [C the place where God made his presence known, the sanctuary].
3 Don’t drag me away with the wicked,
with those who do evil.
They say “Peace” to their neighbors,
but evil is in their hearts.
4 Pay them back for what they have done,
for their evil deeds.
Pay them back for ·what they have done [L the work of their hands];
give them their reward.
5 They don’t understand what the Lord has done
or ·what he has made [L the work of his hands].
So he will ·knock [tear] them down
and not ·lift [L build] them up.
6 ·Praise [L Blessed be] the Lord,
because he heard ·my prayer for help [L the sound of my supplication].
7 The Lord is my strength [Ex. 15:2] and shield.
·I trust [My heart has confidence in] him, and he helps me.
·I am [L My heart is] very happy,
and I ·praise [give thanks to] him with my song.
8 The Lord is powerful;
he ·gives victory [is a saving refuge] to his ·chosen one [anointed].
9 ·Save [L Give victory to] your people
and bless ·those who are your own [L your inheritance].
Be their shepherd and carry them forever.
Israel’s Sin Brings Trouble
9 ·Fairness [Justice] has gone far away;
·goodness [righteousness] ·is nowhere to be found [L does not reach/overtake us].
We ·wait [hope] for the light, but ·there is only darkness now [L look/T behold, darkness].
We ·hope [wait] for a bright light, but ·all we have is darkness [L we walk in gloom/shadows/darkness].
10 We are like the blind ·feeling our way [groping] along a wall.
We ·feel our way [grope] as if we had no eyes.
·In the brightness of day [At midday/noon] we ·trip [stumble] as if it were ·night [evening; twilight].
We are like dead men ·among the strong [or in desolate places].
11 All of us growl like the bears.
We ·call out sadly [moan/coo mournfully] like the doves.
We ·look [hope; wait] for justice, but there isn’t any.
We ·want to be saved [hope/wait for salvation], but salvation is far away.
12 ·We have done many wrong things [L For our sins/transgressions are many] ·against our God [L before you];
our sins ·show we are wrong [L testify against us].
·We know we have turned against God [L Our transgressions are with us];
we know the ·evil things [iniquities] we have done:
13 ·sinning [transgressing; rebelling] and ·rejecting [L lying against] the Lord,
turning ·away from [our backs to] our God,
·planning to hurt others and to disobey God [L speaking oppression and revolt],
·planning [conceiving] and speaking lies.
14 So we have driven away justice,
and ·we have kept away from what is right [L righteousness stands far off].
Truth ·is not spoken [stumbles] in the ·streets [public squares];
what is honest ·is not allowed to enter the city [L cannot enter].
15 Truth ·cannot be found anywhere [is lost/gone; or fails],
and people who refuse to do evil ·are attacked [become prey].
The Lord looked and could not find any justice,
and he was displeased.
16 He ·could not find anyone to help the people [L saw there was no one],
and he was ·surprised [shocked; appalled] that there was no one to ·help [intervene].
So ·he used his own power to save the people [L his own arm brought him salvation];
his own ·goodness [righteousness] gave him strength.
17 He ·covered himself with goodness [put on righteousness] like ·armor [a breastplate].
He put the helmet of salvation on his head [1 Thess. 5:8; Eph. 6:13–17].
He put on ·his clothes for punishing [garments of vengeance]
and wrapped himself in ·the coat of his strong love [zeal/jealousy as a cloak].
18 The Lord will ·pay back his enemies [L repay] ·for what they have done [according to their deeds].
He will show his ·anger [wrath] to ·those who were against him [his adversaries]
and will ·punish [repay] his ·enemies [foes];
he will ·punish [repay] the ·people in faraway places [or islands; or coastlands] as they deserve.
19 Then people from the west will fear the [L name of the] Lord,
and people from the ·east [rising of the sun] will fear his glory.
·The Lord [L For he] will come quickly like a ·fast-flowing [or pent up] river,
driven by the ·breath [or wind; or Spirit] of the Lord.
Jesus Is the Living Stone
2 So then, rid yourselves of all evil, all ·lying [deceit], hypocrisy, ·jealousy [envy], and ·evil speech [slander; C all traits that destroy relationships; Rom. 13:13; Eph. 4:25–32; Col. 3:8]. 2 As newborn babies want milk, you should want the ·pure [sincere; unadulterated] and ·simple [or spiritual] ·teaching [L milk; C probably referring to the word of God; see 1:23–25]. By it you can ·mature [grow; reach maturity] in your salvation, 3 because you have already ·examined and seen [L tasted] how good the Lord is [Ps. 34:8].
4 Come to the Lord Jesus, the ·“stone” that lives [L a living stone; C Jesus is the most important stone in the spiritual temple described in v. 5]. ·The people of the world did not want this stone, but he was the stone God chose, and he was precious [L …rejected by people, but chosen and precious/valuable to God]. 5 You also are like living stones, so let yourselves be used to build a spiritual ·temple [house]—to be holy priests who offer spiritual sacrifices that are ·acceptable [pleasing] to God ·through [or because they are mediated by] Jesus Christ. 6 The Scripture ·says [L contains]:
“[L See; Look,] I will ·put a stone in the ground in Jerusalem [L lay a stone in Zion; C Zion is a poetic term for Jerusalem].
·Everything will be built on this important and precious rock [L a chosen and precious cornerstone; C the stone that supports the others].
Anyone who ·trusts [believes; has faith] in him
will never be ·disappointed [L put to shame; Is. 28:16].”
7 ·This stone is worth much to you who believe [or You who believe see the honor/value/preciousness of the stone; L The honor is to you who believe]. But to the people who do not believe,
“the stone that the builders rejected
has become ·the cornerstone [L head of the corner; C the precise meaning is uncertain, but clearly refers to the most important stone in a building; Ps. 118:22; compare Mark 12:10–11; Acts 4:11; Eph. 2:20–22].”
8 ·Also, he is [L And]
“a stone that causes people to stumble,
a rock that ·makes them fall [trips them; snares them; causes them to sin; offends them; Is. 8:14; Rom. 9:32–33].”
They stumble because they do not obey ·what God says [the message/word], which is what God ·planned to happen to [destined/appointed for] them.
9 But you are a chosen ·people [or generation; Is. 43:21], royal ·priests [L priesthood], a holy nation, a people ·for God’s own possession [who belong to God; Ex. 19:5–6]. You were chosen to ·tell about the wonderful acts of God, who [proclaim the praises/virtues of him who] called you out of darkness into his ·wonderful [marvelous] light. 10 At one time you were not a people, but now you are God’s people. In the past you had ·never [L not] received mercy, but now you have received God’s mercy [Hos. 2:23].
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