Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

To the Overcomer, Maschil, A Psalm of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, and said unto him, David is come to the house of Ahimelech.

¹ ¶ Why dost thou boast of evil, O strong man? The mercy of God is day by day.

² Thy tongue devises wickedness like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

³ Thou dost love evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.

⁴ Thou dost love all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

⁵ God shall likewise cast thee down for ever; he shall cut thee off and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.

⁶ ¶ The righteous also shall see and fear and shall laugh at him, saying:

⁷ Behold, this is the man that did not make God his strength, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and strengthened himself in his wickedness.

⁸ But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the eternal mercy of God for ever.

⁹ I will praise thee for ever because thou hast done it, and I will wait on thy name, for it is good before thy merciful ones.

6 ¶ Woe unto those that are at ease in Zion and to those that trust in the mountain of Samaria, who are named principals among the same nations which shall come upon them, O house of Israel!

² Pass unto Calneh and see, and from there go to Hamath the great; then go down to Gath of the Palestinians. Are they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?

³ Ye that put far away the evil day and cause the seat of violence to come near;

⁴ that lie upon beds of ivory and stretch themselves upon their couches and eat the lambs out of the flock and the calves out of the midst of the stall;

⁵ that chant to the sound of the flute and invent to themselves instruments of music, like David;

⁶ that drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments, but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.

⁷ Therefore now they shall go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of those that stretched themselves upon their couches shall be removed.

⁸ ¶ The Lord GOD has sworn by himself, the LORD God of the hosts said, I abhor the grandeur of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore I will give the city with all that is therein over to the enemy.

⁹ And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.

¹⁰ And their uncle shall take each one and burn them to bring out the bones out of the house and shall say unto him that is by the sides of the house, Is there yet any with thee? and he shall say, No. Then he shall say, Hold thy tongue, for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD.

¹¹ For, behold, the LORD shall command, and he will smite the great house with breaches and the little house with clefts.

¹² Shall horses run upon the rocks? will one plow there with oxen? why have ye turned judgment into hemlock, and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood?

¹³ Ye who rejoice in a thing of nought, who say, Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?

¹⁴ But, behold, I will raise up against you Gentiles, O house of Israel, said the LORD God of the hosts, and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hemath unto the river of the wilderness.

⁴ ¶ And when many people were gathered together and were come to him out of every city, he spoke by a parable:

⁵ A sower went out to sow his seed, and as he sowed, some fell along the way, and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.

⁶ And some fell upon the rock, and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.

⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.

⁸ And some fell on good ground and sprang up and bore fruit a hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that has ears to hear, let him hear.

⁹ And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?

¹⁰ And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the others in parables that seeing they might not see and hearing they might not understand.