Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
BOOK TWO
Psalms 42–72
Yearning for God in the Midst of Distresses
To the Chief Musician. A [a]Contemplation of the sons of Korah.
42 As the deer [b]pants for the water brooks,
So pants my soul for You, O God.
2 (A)My soul thirsts for God, for the (B)living God.
When shall I come and [c]appear before God?
3 (C)My tears have been my food day and night,
While they continually say to me,
(D)“Where is your God?”
4 When I remember these things,
(E)I pour out my soul within me.
For I used to go with the multitude;
(F)I went with them to the house of God,
With the voice of joy and praise,
With a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast.
5 (G)Why are you [d]cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
(H)Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him
[e]For the help of His countenance.
6 [f]O my God, my soul is cast down within me;
Therefore I will remember You from the land of the Jordan,
And from the heights of Hermon,
From [g]the Hill Mizar.
7 Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls;
(I)All Your waves and billows have gone over me.
8 The Lord will (J)command His lovingkindness in the daytime,
And (K)in the night His song shall be with me—
A prayer to the God of my life.
Prayer to God in Time of Trouble
43 Vindicate (A)me, O God,
And (B)plead my cause against an ungodly nation;
Oh, deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!
2 For You are the God of my strength;
Why do You cast me off?
(C)Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
3 The integrity of the upright will guide (A)them,
But the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.
4 (B)Riches do not profit in the day of wrath,
But (C)righteousness delivers from death.
5 The righteousness of the blameless will [a]direct his way aright,
But the wicked will fall by his own (D)wickedness.
6 The righteousness of the upright will deliver them,
But the unfaithful will be caught by their lust.
7 When a wicked man dies, his expectation will (E)perish,
And the hope of the unjust perishes.
8 (F)The righteous is delivered from trouble,
And it comes to the wicked instead.
9 The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor,
But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.
10 (G)When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices;
And when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.
11 By the blessing of the upright the city is (H)exalted,
But it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.
12 He who [b]is devoid of wisdom despises his neighbor,
But a man of understanding holds his peace.
Two Blind Men Healed
27 When Jesus departed from there, (A)two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, (B)“Son of David, have mercy on us!”
28 And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”
They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.”
29 Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, (C)“See that no one knows it.” 31 (D)But when they had departed, they [a]spread the news about Him in all that [b]country.
A Mute Man Speaks
32 (E)As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed. 33 And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke. And the multitudes marveled, saying, “It was never seen like this in Israel!”
34 But the Pharisees said, (F)“He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.