Old/New Testament
Psalm 97[a]
The Divine Ruler of All
I
1 The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many islands be glad.(A)
2 Cloud and darkness surround him;
justice and right are the foundation of his throne.(B)
3 Fire goes before him,
consuming his foes on every side.
4 His lightening illumines the world;
the earth sees and trembles.(C)
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.(D)
6 The heavens proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.(E)
II
7 All who serve idols are put to shame,
who glory in worthless things;
all gods[b] bow down before him.(F)
8 Zion hears and is glad,
and the daughters of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments, O Lord.(G)
9 For you, Lord, are the Most High over all the earth,(H)
exalted far above all gods.
10 You who love the Lord, hate evil,
he protects the souls of the faithful,(I)
rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light dawns for the just,
and gladness for the honest of heart.(J)
12 Rejoice in the Lord, you just,
and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.(K)
Psalm 98[c]
The Coming of God
1 A psalm.
I
Sing a new song to the Lord,
for he has done marvelous deeds.(L)
His right hand and holy arm
have won the victory.[d](M)
2 The Lord has made his victory known;
has revealed his triumph in the sight of the nations,
3 He has remembered his mercy and faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
II
4 Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth;
break into song; sing praise.
5 Sing praise to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and melodious song.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
shout with joy to the King, the Lord.(N)
III
7 Let the sea and what fills it resound,(O)
the world and those who dwell there.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands,
the mountains shout with them for joy,(P)
9 (Q)Before the Lord who comes,
who comes to govern the earth,(R)
To govern the world with justice
and the peoples with fairness.
Psalm 99[e]
The Holy King
I
1 The Lord is king, the peoples tremble;
he is enthroned on the cherubim,[f] the earth quakes.(S)
2 Great is the Lord in Zion,
exalted above all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name:
Holy is he!(T)
II
4 O mighty king, lover of justice,
you have established fairness;
you have created just rule in Jacob.(U)
5 Exalt the Lord, our God;
bow down before his footstool;[g](V)
holy is he!
III
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel among those who called on his name;
they called on the Lord, and he answered them.(W)
7 From the pillar of cloud he spoke to them;
they kept his decrees, the law he had given them.(X)
8 O Lord, our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them,
though you punished their offenses.(Y)
9 Exalt the Lord, our God;
bow down before his holy mountain;
holy is the Lord, our God.
Chapter 16
Phoebe Commended. 1 [a]I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is [also] a minister[b] of the church at Cenchreae,(A) 2 that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the holy ones, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a benefactor to many and to me as well.
Paul’s Greetings. 3 Greet Prisca and Aquila,[c] my co-workers in Christ Jesus,(B) 4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I am grateful but also all the churches of the Gentiles; 5 greet also the church at their house.[d] Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the firstfruits in Asia for Christ.(C) 6 Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. 7 Greet Andronicus and Junia,[e] my relatives and my fellow prisoners; they are prominent among the apostles and they were in Christ before me. 8 Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. 10 Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. 11 Greet my relative Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. 12 Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus,[f] chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.(D) 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the holy ones who are with them. 16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.(E)
Against Factions. 17 [g]I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who create dissensions and obstacles, in opposition to the teaching that you learned; avoid them.(F) 18 For such people do not serve our Lord Christ but their own appetites, and by fair and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the innocent.(G) 19 For while your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, I want you to be wise as to what is good, and simple as to what is evil;(H) 20 then the God of peace will quickly crush Satan[h] under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.(I)
Greetings from Corinth. 21 Timothy, my co-worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my relatives.(J) 22 I, Tertius, the writer of this letter, greet you in the Lord. 23 (K)Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus,[i] the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus greet you. [24 ][j]
Doxology.[k] [25 Now to him who can strengthen you, according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ,(L) according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret for long ages[l] 26 but now manifested through the prophetic writings and, according to the command of the eternal God, made known to all nations to bring about the obedience of faith,(M) 27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ be glory forever and ever. Amen.](N)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.