Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 27
My Stronghold
Of David.
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
whom should I fear?(A)
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
whom should I dread?(B)
2 When evildoers came against me to devour my flesh,(C)
my foes and my enemies stumbled and fell.(D)
3 Though an army deploys against me,
my heart will not be afraid;
though a war breaks out against me,
I will still be confident.(E)
4 I have asked one thing from the Lord;
it is what I desire:
to dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,(F)
gazing on the beauty of the Lord(G)
and seeking him in his temple.(H)
5 For he will conceal me in his shelter
in the day of adversity;
he will hide me under the cover of his tent;
he will set me high on a rock.(I)
6 Then my head will be high
above my enemies around me;(J)
I will offer sacrifices in his tent with shouts of joy.(K)
I will sing and make music to the Lord.(L)
7 Lord, hear my voice when I call;
be gracious to me and answer me.(M)
8 My heart says this about you:
“Seek[a] his face.”
Lord, I will seek your face.(N)
9 Do not hide your face from me;(O)
do not turn your servant away in anger.(P)
You have been my helper;(Q)
do not leave me or abandon me,
God of my salvation.
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord cares for me.(R)
Abram and Lot Separate
13 Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev(A)—he, his wife, and all he had, and Lot with him. 2 Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold. 3 He went by stages from the Negev to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been, 4 to the site where he had built the altar. And Abram called on the name of the Lord there.(B)
5 Now Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had flocks, herds, and tents. 6 But the land was unable to support them as long as they stayed together, for they had so many possessions that they could not stay together,(C) 7 and there was quarreling between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock.(D) (At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.)(E)
14 After Lot had separated from him, the Lord said to Abram, “Look from the place where you are. Look north and south, east and west,(A) 15 for I will give you and your offspring[a] forever all the land that you see.(B) 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth,(C) so that if anyone could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Get up and walk around the land, through its length and width, for I will give it to you.”
18 So Abram moved his tent and went to live near the oaks of Mamre at Hebron,(D) where he built an altar to the Lord.
2 Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the evil(A) workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh. 3 For we are the circumcision,(B) the ones who worship by the Spirit(C) of God, boast in Christ Jesus,(D) and do not put confidence in the flesh— 4 although I have reasons for confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised the eighth day;(E) of the nation of Israel,(F) of the tribe of Benjamin,(G) a Hebrew born of Hebrews; regarding the law,(H) a Pharisee; 6 regarding zeal,(I) persecuting(J) the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law,(K) blameless.(L)
7 But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value(M) of knowing Christ(N) Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ(O) 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law,(P) but one that is through faith in Christ[a]—the righteousness from God based on faith.(Q) 10 My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings,(R) being conformed to his death,(S) 11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead.
Reaching Forward to God’s Goal
12 Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold(T) of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus.
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