October 21: Psalm 37:1–18; Psalm 37:19–40; Ezra 1; 1 Corinthians 16:1–9; Matthew 12:15–21

Proper 24

First Psalm:

Psalm 37:1–18

Psalm 37:1–18 (Listen)
He Will Not Forsake His Saints
1 Of David.

37   Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
    be not envious of wrongdoers!
2   For they will soon fade like the grass
    and wither like the green herb.

3   Trust in the LORD, and do good;
    dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.2
4   Delight yourself in the LORD,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5   Commit your way to the LORD;
    trust in him, and he will act.
6   He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
    and your justice as the noonday.

7   Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
    fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
    over the man who carries out evil devices!

8   Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
    Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
9   For the evildoers shall be cut off,
    but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.

10   In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
    though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
11   But the meek shall inherit the land
    and delight themselves in abundant peace.

12   The wicked plots against the righteous
    and gnashes his teeth at him,
13   but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he sees that his day is coming.

14   The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
    to bring down the poor and needy,
    to slay those whose way is upright;
15   their sword shall enter their own heart,
    and their bows shall be broken.

16   Better is the little that the righteous has
    than the abundance of many wicked.
17   For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
    but the LORD upholds the righteous.

18   The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
    and their heritage will remain forever;

Footnotes

[1] 37:1 This psalm is an acrostic poem, each stanza beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet


[2] 37:3 Or and feed on faithfulness, or and find safe pasture

(ESV)

Second Psalm:

Psalm 37:19–40

Psalm 37:19–40 (Listen)

19   they are not put to shame in evil times;
    in the days of famine they have abundance.

20   But the wicked will perish;
    the enemies of the LORD are like the glory of the pastures;
    they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

21   The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
    but the righteous is generous and gives;
22   for those blessed by the LORD1 shall inherit the land,
    but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

23   The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
    when he delights in his way;
24   though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
    for the LORD upholds his hand.

25   I have been young, and now am old,
    yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
    or his children begging for bread.
26   He is ever lending generously,
    and his children become a blessing.

27   Turn away from evil and do good;
    so shall you dwell forever.
28   For the LORD loves justice;
    he will not forsake his saints.
  They are preserved forever,
    but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
29   The righteous shall inherit the land
    and dwell upon it forever.

30   The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
    and his tongue speaks justice.
31   The law of his God is in his heart;
    his steps do not slip.

32   The wicked watches for the righteous
    and seeks to put him to death.
33   The LORD will not abandon him to his power
    or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

34   Wait for the LORD and keep his way,
    and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
    you will look on when the wicked are cut off.

35   I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
    spreading himself like a green laurel tree.2
36   But he passed away,3 and behold, he was no more;
    though I sought him, he could not be found.

37   Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
    for there is a future for the man of peace.
38   But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
    the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

39   The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
    he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
40   The LORD helps them and delivers them;
    he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
    because they take refuge in him.

Footnotes

[1] 37:22 Hebrew by him


[2] 37:35 The identity of this tree is uncertain


[3] 37:36 Or But one passed by

(ESV)

Old Testament:

Ezra 1

Ezra 1 (Listen)
The Proclamation of Cyrus

1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

2 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Whoever is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and rebuild the house of the LORD, the God of Israel—he is the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 And let each survivor, in whatever place he sojourns, be assisted by the men of his place with silver and gold, with goods and with beasts, besides freewill offerings for the house of God that is in Jerusalem.”

5 Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem. 6 And all who were about them aided them with vessels of silver, with gold, with goods, with beasts, and with costly wares, besides all that was freely offered. 7 Cyrus the king also brought out the vessels of the house of the LORD that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed in the house of his gods. 8 Cyrus king of Persia brought these out in the charge of Mithredath the treasurer, who counted them out to Sheshbazzar the prince of Judah. 9 And this was the number of them: 30 basins of gold, 1,000 basins of silver, 29 censers, 10 30 bowls of gold, 410 bowls of silver, and 1,000 other vessels; 11 all the vessels of gold and of silver were 5,400. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up, when the exiles were brought up from Babylonia to Jerusalem.

(ESV)

New Testament:

1 Corinthians 16:1–9

1 Corinthians 16:1–9 (Listen)
The Collection for the Saints

16 Now concerning1 the collection for the saints: as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come. 3 And when I arrive, I will send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable that I should go also, they will accompany me.

Plans for Travel

5 I will visit you after passing through Macedonia, for I intend to pass through Macedonia, 6 and perhaps I will stay with you or even spend the winter, so that you may help me on my journey, wherever I go. 7 For I do not want to see you now just in passing. I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits. 8 But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, 9 for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.

Footnotes

[1] 16:1 The expression Now concerning introduces a reply to a question in the Corinthians’ letter; see 7:1; also verse 12

(ESV)

Gospel:

Matthew 12:15–21

Matthew 12:15–21 (Listen)
God’s Chosen Servant

15 Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he healed them all 16 and ordered them not to make him known. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:

18   “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
    my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.
  I will put my Spirit upon him,
    and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19   He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
    nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
20   a bruised reed he will not break,
    and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
  until he brings justice to victory;
21     and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”

(ESV)