Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The End of the Wicked and the Peace of the Godly
To the Chief Musician. A [a]Contemplation of David (A)when Doeg the Edomite went and (B)told Saul, and said to him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.”
52 Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man?
The goodness of God endures continually.
2 Your tongue devises destruction,
Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
3 You love evil more than good,
Lying rather than speaking righteousness. Selah
4 You love all devouring words,
You deceitful tongue.
5 God shall likewise destroy you forever;
He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place,
And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
6 The righteous also shall see and fear,
And shall laugh at him, saying,
7 “Here is the man who did not make God his strength,
But trusted in the abundance of his riches,
And strengthened himself in his [b]wickedness.”
10 (A)They hate the one who rebukes in the gate,
And they (B)abhor the one who speaks uprightly.
11 (C)Therefore, because you [a]tread down the poor
And take grain [b]taxes from him,
Though (D)you have built houses of hewn stone,
Yet you shall not dwell in them;
You have planted [c]pleasant vineyards,
But you shall not drink wine from them.
12 For I (E)know your manifold transgressions
And your mighty sins:
(F)Afflicting the just and taking bribes;
(G)Diverting the poor from justice at the gate.
13 Therefore (H)the prudent keep silent at that time,
For it is an evil time.
14 Seek good and not evil,
That you may live;
So the Lord God of hosts will be with you,
(I)As you have spoken.
15 (J)Hate evil, love good;
Establish justice in the gate.
(K)It may be that the Lord God of hosts
Will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
The Day of the Lord
16 Therefore the Lord God of hosts, the Lord, says this:
Qualifications for High Priesthood
5 For every high priest taken from among men (A)is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can [a]have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to (B)weakness. 3 Because of this he is required as for the people, so also for (C)himself, to offer sacrifices for sins. 4 And no man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as (D)Aaron was.
A Priest Forever
5 (E)So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him:
(F)“You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.”
6 As He also says in another place:
(G)“You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek”;
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.