Friday 6 August 2021 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Friday 6 August 2021 
DAILY LECTIONARY

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2 Samuel 12:1-14

But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord, and the Lord
sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, ‘There were
two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. The rich man
had very many flocks and herds; but the poor man had nothing but one
little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up
with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meagre fare, and
drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter
to him. Now there came a traveller to the rich man, and he was loath
to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who
had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that
for the guest who had come to him.’ Then David’s anger was greatly
kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, ‘As the Lord lives, the
man who has done this deserves to die; he shall restore the lamb
fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.’

 Nathan said to David, ‘You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the
God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from
the hand of Saul; I gave you your master’s house, and your
master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and
of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added as much
more. Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil
in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword,
and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the
sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart
from your house, for you have despised me, and have taken the wife of
Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. Thus says the Lord: I will raise up
trouble against you from within your own house; and I will take your
wives before your eyes, and give them to your neighbour, and he shall
lie with your wives in the sight of this very sun. For you did it
secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the
sun.’ David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’
Nathan said to David, ‘Now the Lord has put away your sin; you shall
not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned
the Lord, the child that is born to you shall die.’
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Acts 19:21-41

Now after these things had been accomplished, Paul resolved in the
Spirit to go through Macedonia and Achaia, and then to go on to
Jerusalem. He said, ‘After I have gone there, I must also see
Rome.’ So he sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to
Macedonia, while he himself stayed for some time longer in Asia.

 About that time no little disturbance broke out concerning the Way.
A man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of
Artemis, brought no little business to the artisans. These he gathered
together, with the workers of the same trade, and said, ‘Men, you
know that we get our wealth from this business. You also see and hear
that not only in Ephesus but in almost the whole of Asia this Paul has
persuaded and drawn away a considerable number of people by saying
that gods made with hands are not gods. And there is danger not only
that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the
temple of the great goddess Artemis will be scorned, and she will be
deprived of her majesty that brought all Asia and the world to worship
her.’

 When they heard this, they were enraged and shouted, ‘Great is
Artemis of the Ephesians!’ The city was filled with the confusion;
and people rushed together to the theatre, dragging with them Gaius
and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s travelling-companions.
Paul wished to go into the crowd, but the disciples would not let him;
even some officials of the province of Asia, who were friendly to him,
sent him a message urging him not to venture into the theatre.
Meanwhile, some were shouting one thing, some another; for the
assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had
come together. Some of the crowd gave instructions to Alexander, whom
the Jews had pushed forward. And Alexander motioned for silence and
tried to make a defence before the people. But when they recognized
that he was a Jew, for about two hours all of them shouted in unison,
‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!’ But when the town clerk had
quietened the crowd, he said, ‘Citizens of Ephesus, who is there
that does not know that the city of the Ephesians is the temple-keeper
of the great Artemis and of the statue that fell from heaven? Since
these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing
rash. You have brought these men here who are neither temple-robbers
nor blasphemers of our goddess. If therefore Demetrius and the
artisans with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are
open, and there are proconsuls; let them bring charges there against
one another. If there is anything further you want to know, it must be
settled in the regular assembly. For we are in danger of being charged
with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to
justify this commotion.’ When he had said this, he dismissed the
assembly.
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Mark 9:14-29

When they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them,
and some scribes arguing with them. When the whole crowd saw him, they
were immediately overcome with awe, and they ran forward to greet him.
He asked them, ‘What are you arguing about with them?’ Someone
from the crowd answered him, ‘Teacher, I brought you my son; he has
a spirit that makes him unable to speak; and whenever it seizes him,
it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes
rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, but they could not
do so.’ He answered them, ‘You faithless generation, how much
longer must I be among you? How much longer must I put up with you?
Bring him to me.’ And they brought the boy to him. When the spirit
saw him, immediately it threw the boy into convulsions, and he fell on
the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the
father, ‘How long has this been happening to him?’ And he said,
‘From childhood. It has often cast him into the fire and into the
water, to destroy him; but if you are able to do anything, have pity
on us and help us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘If you are able!—All
things can be done for the one who believes.’ Immediately the father
of the child cried out, ‘I believe; help my unbelief!’ When Jesus
saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit,
saying to it, ‘You spirit that keep this boy from speaking and
hearing, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again!’
After crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy
was like a corpse, so that most of them said, ‘He is dead.’ But
Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he was able to
stand. When he had entered the house, his disciples asked him
privately, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ He said to them,
‘This kind can come out only through prayer.’
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Morning Psalms:  Psalm 88

Psalm 88

O Lord, God of my salvation,
   when, at night, I cry out in your presence, 
let my prayer come before you;
   incline your ear to my cry. 

For my soul is full of troubles,
   and my life draws near to Sheol. 
I am counted among those who go down to the Pit;
   I am like those who have no help, 
like those forsaken among the dead,
   like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom you remember no more,
   for they are cut off from your hand. 
You have put me in the depths of the Pit,
   in the regions dark and deep. 
Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
   and you overwhelm me with all your waves.
          Selah 

You have caused my companions to shun me;
   you have made me a thing of horror to them.
I am shut in so that I cannot escape; 
   my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call on you, O Lord;
   I spread out my hands to you. 
Do you work wonders for the dead?
   Do the shades rise up to praise you?
          Selah 
Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
   or your faithfulness in Abaddon? 
Are your wonders known in the darkness,
   or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness? 

But I, O Lord, cry out to you;
   in the morning my prayer comes before you. 
O Lord, why do you cast me off?
   Why do you hide your face from me? 
Wretched and close to death from my youth up,
   I suffer your terrors; I am desperate. 
Your wrath has swept over me;
   your dread assaults destroy me. 
They surround me like a flood all day long;
   from all sides they close in on me. 
You have caused friend and neighbour to shun me;
   my companions are in darkness.
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Evening Psalms: Psalm 91, 92

Psalm 91

You who live in the shelter of the Most High,
   who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, 
will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress;
   my God, in whom I trust.’ 
For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
   and from the deadly pestilence; 
he will cover you with his pinions,
   and under his wings you will find refuge;
   his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. 
You will not fear the terror of the night,
   or the arrow that flies by day, 
or the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
   or the destruction that wastes at noonday. 

A thousand may fall at your side,
   ten thousand at your right hand,
   but it will not come near you. 
You will only look with your eyes
   and see the punishment of the wicked. 

Because you have made the Lord your refuge,
   the Most High your dwelling-place, 
no evil shall befall you,
   no scourge come near your tent. 

For he will command his angels concerning you
   to guard you in all your ways. 
On their hands they will bear you up,
   so that you will not dash your foot against a stone. 
You will tread on the lion and the adder,
   the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot. 

Those who love me, I will deliver;
   I will protect those who know my name. 
When they call to me, I will answer them;
   I will be with them in trouble,
   I will rescue them and honour them. 
With long life I will satisfy them,
   and show them my salvation.

Psalm 92

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
   to sing praises to your name, O Most High; 
to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
   and your faithfulness by night, 
to the music of the lute and the harp,
   to the melody of the lyre. 
For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
   at the works of your hands I sing for joy. 

How great are your works, O Lord!
   Your thoughts are very deep! 
The dullard cannot know,
   the stupid cannot understand this: 
though the wicked sprout like grass
   and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction for ever, 
   but you, O Lord, are on high for ever. 
For your enemies, O Lord,
   for your enemies shall perish;
   all evildoers shall be scattered. 

But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
   you have poured over me fresh oil. 
My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
   my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants. 

The righteous flourish like the palm tree,
   and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 
They are planted in the house of the Lord;
   they flourish in the courts of our God. 
In old age they still produce fruit;
   they are always green and full of sap, 
showing that the Lord is upright;
   he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
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