Tuesday 30 June 2009<!--StartFragment-->
<p class="MsoNormal">DAILY LECTIONARY</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Email Evangelism, forward to a friend: http://www.dailylectionary.org</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">1 Samuel 11:1-15<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">About a month later,* Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, ‘Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.’ But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, ‘On this condition I will make a treaty with you, namely that I gouge out everyone’s right eye, and thus put disgrace upon all Israel.’ The elders of Jabesh said to him, ‘Give us seven days’ respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.’ When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the hearing of the people; and all the people wept aloud.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Now Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen; and Saul said, ‘What is the matter with the people, that they are weeping?’ So they told him the message from the inhabitants of Jabesh. And the spirit of God came upon Saul in power when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled. He took a yoke of oxen, and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by messengers, saying, ‘Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!’ Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out as one. When he mustered them at Bezek, those from Israel were three hundred thousand, and those from Judah seventy* thousand. They said to the messengers who had come, ‘Thus shall you say to the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead: “Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have deliverance.” ’ When the messengers came and told the inhabitants of Jabesh, they rejoiced. So the inhabitants of Jabesh said, ‘Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.’ The next day Saul put the people in three companies. At the morning watch they came into the camp and cut down the Ammonites until the heat of the day; and those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>The people said to Samuel, ‘Who is it that said, “Shall Saul reign over us?” Give them to us so that we may put them to death.’ But Saul said, ‘No one shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has brought deliverance to Israel.’</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Samuel said to the people, ‘Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingship.’ So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed offerings of well-being before the Lord, and there Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Acts 8:1-13</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">And Saul approved of their killing him.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">That day a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church by entering house after house; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Now those who were scattered went from place to place, proclaiming the word. Philip went down to the city* of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah* to them. The crowds with one accord listened eagerly to what was said by Philip, hearing and seeing the signs that he did, for unclean spirits, crying with loud shrieks, came out of many who were possessed; and many others who were paralysed or lame were cured. So there was great joy in that city.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Now a certain man named Simon had previously practised magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he was someone great. All of them, from the least to the greatest, listened to him eagerly, saying, ‘This man is the power of God that is called Great.’ And they listened eagerly to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. But when they believed Philip, who was proclaiming the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed. After being baptized, he stayed constantly with Philip and was amazed when he saw the signs and great miracles that took place.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Luke 22:63-71</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Now the men who were holding Jesus began to mock him and beat him; they also blindfolded him and kept asking him, ‘Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?’ They kept heaping many other insults on him.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, gathered together, and they brought him to their council. They said, ‘If you are the Messiah,* tell us.’ He replied, ‘If I tell you, you will not believe; and if I question you, you will not answer. But from now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.’ All of them asked, ‘Are you, then, the Son of God?’ He said to them, ‘You say that I am.’ Then they said, ‘What further testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips!’</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Morning Psalms: Psalm 121, 122, 123</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 121</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I lift up my eyes to the hills—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>from where will my help come?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My help comes from the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>who made heaven and earth.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">He will not let your foot be moved;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he who keeps you will not slumber.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He who keeps Israel</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>will neither slumber nor sleep.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord is your keeper;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the Lord is your shade at your right hand.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The sun shall not strike you by day,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>nor the moon by night.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord will keep you from all evil;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he will keep your life.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord will keep</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>your going out and your coming in</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>from this time on and for evermore.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 122</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I was glad when they said to me,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>‘Let us go to the house of the Lord!’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our feet are standing</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>within your gates, O Jerusalem.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Jerusalem—built as a city</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>that is bound firmly together.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To it the tribes go up,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the tribes of the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">as was decreed for Israel,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to give thanks to the name of the Lord.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For there the thrones for judgement were set up,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the thrones of the house of David.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>‘May they prosper who love you.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Peace be within your walls,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and security within your towers.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the sake of my relatives and friends</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I will say, ‘Peace be within you.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I will seek your good.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 123</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">To you I lift up my eyes,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>O you who are enthroned in the heavens!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As the eyes of servants</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>look to the hand of their master,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">as the eyes of a maid</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to the hand of her mistress,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">so our eyes look to the Lord our God,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>until he has mercy upon us.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for we have had more than enough of contempt.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our soul has had more than its fill</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>of the scorn of those who are at ease,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>of the contempt of the proud.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Evening Psalms: Psalm 124, 125, 126</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 124</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">If it had not been the Lord who was on our side</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>—let Israel now say—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>when our enemies attacked us,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then they would have swallowed us up alive,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>when their anger was kindled against us;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then the flood would have swept us away,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the torrent would have gone over us;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then over us would have gone</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the raging waters.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Blessed be the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>who has not given us</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>as prey to their teeth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We have escaped like a bird</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>from the snare of the fowlers;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">the snare is broken,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and we have escaped.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Our help is in the name of the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>who made heaven and earth.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 125</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>which cannot be moved, but abides for ever.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As the mountains surround Jerusalem,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>so the Lord surrounds his people,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>from this time on and for evermore.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the sceptre of wickedness shall not rest</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>on the land allotted to the righteous,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">so that the righteous may not stretch out</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>their hands to do wrong.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and to those who are upright in their hearts.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the Lord will lead away with evildoers.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Peace be upon Israel!</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 126</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>we were like those who dream.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Then our mouth was filled with laughter,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and our tongue with shouts of joy;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then it was said among the nations,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>‘The Lord has done great things for them.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord has done great things for us,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and we rejoiced.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Restore our fortunes, O Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>like the watercourses in the Negeb.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">May those who sow in tears</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>reap with shouts of joy.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Those who go out weeping,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>bearing the seed for sowing,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">shall come home with shouts of joy,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>carrying their sheaves.</p>
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