Lead Me to the Rock
To the choirmaster: with lstringed instruments. Of David.
1 Hear my cry, O God,
mlisten to my prayer;
2 from the end of the earth I call to you
when my heart is nfaint.
Lead me to othe rock
that is higher than I,
3 for you have been pmy refuge,
a strong qtower against the enemy.
4 Let me rdwell in your tent forever!
Let me take refuge under sthe shelter of your wings! Selah
5 For you, O God, have heard my vows;
you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6 tProlong uthe life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!
7 May he be enthroned forever before God;
appoint vsteadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!
8 So will I ever sing praises to your name,
as I wperform my vows day after day.
My Soul Waits for God Alone
To the choirmaster: according to xJeduthun. A Psalm of David.
1 For God alone ymy soul zwaits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 aHe alone is my rock and my salvation,
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like da leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his ehigh position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
fThey bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah
5 For God alone, O ymy soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 aHe only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my gsalvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, hmy refuge is God.
8 iTrust in him at all times, O people;
jpour out your heart before him;
God is ha refuge for us. Selah
9 kThose of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate lare a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
kthey are together lighter than a breath.
10 Put no trust in extortion;
mset no vain hopes on robbery;
nif riches increase, set not your heart on them.
11 oOnce God has spoken;
otwice have I heard this:
that ppower belongs to God,
12 and that to you, O Lord, qbelongs steadfast love.
For you will rrender to a man
according to his work.
My Soul Thirsts for You
A Psalm of David, swhen he was in the wilderness of Judah.
1 O God, you are my God; tearnestly I seek you;
umy soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in va dry and weary land where there is no water.
2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding wyour power and glory.
3 Because your xsteadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
4 So I will bless you yas long as I live;
5 My soul will be bsatisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
6 when I remember you cupon my bed,
and meditate on you in cthe watches of the night;
7 for you have been my help,
and in dthe shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
8 My soul eclings to you;
your right hand fupholds me.
9 But those who seek to destroy my life
gshall go down into hthe depths of the earth;
10 they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
they shall be a portion for jackals.
11 But ithe king shall rejoice in God;
all who jswear by him shall exult,
1 For I made up my mind unot to make another painful visit to you. 2 For vif I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? 3 And I wrote as I did, so that when I came I might not suffer pain from those who should have made me rejoice, wfor I felt sure of all of you, that my joy would be the joy of you all. 4 For xI wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.
Forgive the Sinner
5 Now yif anyone has caused pain, zhe has caused it not to me, but ain some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you. 6 For such a one, bthis punishment by the majority is enough, 7 so cyou should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For this is why I wrote, that I might dtest you and know ewhether you are obedient in everything. 10 Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11 so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for fwe are not ignorant of his designs.
Triumph in Christ
12 When gI came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though ha door was opened for me in the Lord, 13 my spirit iwas not at rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia.
14 But jthanks be to God, who in Christ always kleads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads lthe fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. 15 For we are the aroma of Christ to God among mthose who are being saved and among nthose who are perishing, 16 oto one a fragrance from death to death, oto the other a fragrance from life to life. pWho is sufficient for these things? 17 For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.