Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 37[a]
By David.
37 Do not fret[b] when wicked men seem to succeed.[c]
Do not envy evildoers.
2 For they will quickly dry up like grass,
and wither away like plants.[d]
3 Trust in the Lord and do what is right.
Settle in the land and maintain your integrity.[e]
4 Then you will take delight in the Lord,[f]
and he will answer your prayers.[g]
5 Commit your future to the Lord.[h]
Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.[i]
6 He will vindicate you in broad daylight,
and publicly defend your just cause.[j]
7 Wait patiently for the Lord![k]
Wait confidently[l] for him!
Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner,[m]
a man who carries out wicked schemes.
8 Do not be angry and frustrated.[n]
Do not fret. That only leads to trouble.
9 Wicked men[o] will be wiped out,[p]
but those who rely on the Lord are the ones who will possess the land.[q]
10 Evil men will soon disappear;[r]
you will stare at the spot where they once were, but they will be gone.[s]
11 But the oppressed will possess the land
and enjoy great prosperity.[t]
18 Then Judah approached him and said, “My lord, please allow your servant to speak a word with you.[a] Please do not get angry with your servant,[b] for you are just like Pharaoh.[c] 19 My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’ 20 We said to my lord, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young boy who was born when our father was old.[d] The boy’s[e] brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother’s sons left,[f] and his father loves him.’
21 “Then you told your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so I can see[g] him.’[h] 22 We said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father. If he leaves his father, his father[i] will die.’[j] 23 But you said to your servants, ‘If your youngest brother does not come down with you, you will not see my face again.’ 24 When we returned to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord.
25 “Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy us a little food.’ 26 But we replied, ‘We cannot go down there.[k] If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go,[l] for we won’t be permitted to see the man’s face if our youngest brother is not with us.’
27 “Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife gave me two sons.[m] 28 The first disappeared[n] and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.” I have not seen him since. 29 If you take[o] this one from me too and an accident happens to him, then you will bring down my gray hair[p] in tragedy[q] to the grave.’[r]
30 “So now, when I return to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us—his very life is bound up in his son’s life.[s] 31 When he sees the boy is not with us,[t] he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hair of your servant our father in sorrow to the grave. 32 Indeed,[u] your servant pledged security for the boy with my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then I will bear the blame before my father all my life.’
33 “So now, please let your servant remain as my lord’s slave instead of the boy. As for the boy, let him go back with his brothers. 34 For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I couldn’t bear to see[v] my father’s pain.”[w]
Clear the Debts
57 “And[a] why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right? 58 As you are going with your accuser before the magistrate,[b] make an effort to settle with him on the way, so that he will not drag you before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer,[c] and the officer throw you into prison. 59 I tell you, you will never get out of there until you have paid the very last cent!”[d]
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