Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 72
A Prayer for the King
Solomonic.(A)
1 God, give Your justice to the king
and Your righteousness to the king’s son.(B)
2 He will judge Your people with righteousness
and Your afflicted ones with justice.(C)
3 May the mountains bring prosperity[a] to the people
and the hills, righteousness.(D)
4 May he vindicate the afflicted among the people,
help the poor,
and crush the oppressor.(E)
5 May he continue[b] while the sun endures
and as long as the moon, throughout all generations.(F)
6 May he be like rain that falls on the cut grass,
like spring showers that water the earth.(G)
7 May the righteous[c] flourish in his days
and prosperity[d] abound
until the moon is no more.(H)
8 May he rule from sea to sea
and from the Euphrates
to the ends of the earth.(I)
9 May desert tribes kneel before him
and his enemies lick the dust.(J)
10 May the kings of Tarshish
and the coasts and islands bring tribute,
the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.(K)
11 Let all kings bow down to him,
all nations serve him.(L)
12 For he will rescue the poor who cry out
and the afflicted who have no helper.(M)
13 He will have pity on the poor and helpless
and save the lives of the poor.(N)
14 He will redeem them from oppression and violence,
for their lives are[e] precious[f] in his sight.(O)
15 May he live long!
May gold from Sheba be given to him.
May prayer be offered for him continually,
and may he be blessed all day long.(P)
16 May there be plenty of grain in the land;
may it wave on the tops of the mountains.
May its crops be like Lebanon.
May people flourish in the cities
like the grass of the field.(Q)
17 May his name endure forever;
as long as the sun shines,
may his fame increase.
May all nations be blessed by him
and call him blessed.(R)
Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
2 In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams(A) that troubled him, and sleep deserted him.(B) 2 So the king gave orders to summon the diviner-priests, mediums, sorcerers, and Chaldeans[a](C) to tell the king his dreams. When they came and stood before the king, 3 he said to them, “I have had a dream and am anxious to understand it.”
4 The Chaldeans spoke to the king (Aramaic[b](D) begins here): “May the king live forever.(E) Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”
5 The king replied to the Chaldeans, “My word is final: If you don’t tell me the dream and its interpretation, you will be torn limb from limb,[c] and your houses will be made a garbage dump.(F) 6 But if you make the dream and its interpretation known to me, you’ll receive gifts, a reward, and great honor from me.(G) So make the dream and its interpretation known to me.”
7 They answered a second time, “May the king tell the dream to his servants, and we will give the interpretation.”
8 The king replied, “I know for certain you are trying to gain some time, because you see that my word is final. 9 If you don’t tell me the dream, there is one decree for you.(H) You have conspired to tell me something false or fraudulent until the situation changes. So tell me the dream and I will know you can give me its interpretation.”
10 The Chaldeans answered the king, “No one on earth can make known what the king requests.(I) Consequently, no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked anything like this of any diviner-priest, medium, or Chaldean. 11 What the king is asking is so difficult that no one can make it known to him except the gods, whose dwelling is not with mortals.”(J) 12 Because of this, the king became violently angry(K) and gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. 13 The decree was issued that the wise men were to be executed, and they searched for Daniel and his friends, to execute them.
14 Then Daniel responded with tact and discretion to Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard,[d](L) who had gone out to execute the wise men of Babylon. 15 He asked Arioch, the king’s officer, “Why is the decree from the king so harsh?”[e](M) Then Arioch explained the situation to Daniel. 16 So Daniel went and asked the king to give him some time, so that he could give the king the interpretation.
17 Then Daniel went to his house and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah about the matter, 18 urging them to ask the God of heaven(N) for mercy(O) concerning this mystery, so Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the rest of Babylon’s wise men.(P) 19 The mystery was then revealed to Daniel in a vision(Q) at night, and Daniel praised the God of heaven
Living the New Life
17 Therefore, I say this and testify in the Lord: You should no longer walk as the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their thoughts. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them and because of the hardness of their hearts. 19 They became callous and gave themselves over to promiscuity for the practice of every kind of impurity(A) with a desire for more and more.[a]
20 But that is not how you learned about the Messiah, 21 assuming you heard about Him and were taught by Him, because the truth(B) is in Jesus. 22 You took off[b](C) your former way of life,(D) the old self[c](E) that is corrupted by deceitful desires; 23 you are being renewed[d] in the spirit(F) of your minds; 24 you put on[e](G) the new self, the one created(H) according to God’s likeness(I) in righteousness and purity of the truth.
25 Since you put away(J) lying, Speak the truth, each one to his neighbor,(K)[f] because we are members of one another. 26 Be angry and do not sin.(L)[g] Don’t let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and don’t give the Devil an opportunity. 28 The thief must no longer steal. Instead, he must do honest work with his own hands, so that he has something to share(M) with anyone in need. 29 No foul language is to come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need,[h] so that it gives grace to those who hear. 30 And don’t grieve God’s Holy Spirit.(N) You were sealed by Him[i] for the day of redemption.(O) 31 All bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander must be removed from you, along with all malice. 32 And be kind(P) and compassionate(Q) to one another, forgiving(R) one another, just as God also forgave you[j] in Christ.
5 Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children.
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