One Year Bible.

God Presides in the Divine Assembly

¹A Psalm of Asaph.

God presides in the divine assembly;

He renders judgment among the gods:

²“How long will you judge unjustly

and show partiality to the wicked?

Selah

³Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless;

uphold the rights of the afflicted and oppressed.

⁴Rescue the weak and needy;

save them from the hand of the wicked.

⁵They do not know or understand;

they wander in the darkness;

all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

⁶I have said, ‘You are gods;

you are all sons of the Most High.’

⁷But like mortals you will die,

and like rulers you will fall.”

⁸Arise, O God, judge the earth,

for all the nations are Your inheritance.

Paul’s Greeting to Timothy

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,

²To Timothy, my true child in the faith:

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Correcting False Teachers

³As I urged you on my departure to Macedonia, you should stay on at Ephesus to instruct certain men not to teach false doctrines ⁴or devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculation rather than the stewardship of God’s work, which is by faith.

⁵The goal of our instruction is the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith. ⁶Some have strayed from these ways and turned aside to empty talk. ⁷They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand what they are saying or that which they so confidently assert.

⁸Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it legitimately. ⁹We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers, ¹⁰for the sexually immoral, for homosexuals, for slave traders and liars and perjurers, and for anyone else who is averse to sound teaching ¹¹that agrees with the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted.

God’s Grace to Paul

¹²I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, that He considered me faithful and appointed me to service. ¹³I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a violent man; yet because I had acted in ignorance and unbelief, I was shown mercy. ¹⁴And the grace of our Lord overflowed to me, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

¹⁵This is a trustworthy saying, worthy of full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst. ¹⁶But for this very reason I was shown mercy, so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His perfect patience as an example to those who would believe in Him for eternal life. ¹⁷Now to the King eternal, immortal, and invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

¹⁸Timothy, my child, I entrust you with this command in keeping with the previous prophecies about you, so that by them you may fight the good fight, ¹⁹holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and thereby shipwrecked their faith. ²⁰Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.

In My Distress I Cried to the LORD

¹A song of ascents.

In my distress I cried to the LORD,

and He answered me.

²Deliver my soul, O LORD,

from lying lips and a deceitful tongue.

³What will He do to you,

and what will be added to you,

O deceitful tongue?

⁴Sharp arrows will come from the warrior,

with burning coals of the broom tree!

⁵Woe to me that I dwell in Meshech,

that I live among the tents of Kedar!

⁶Too long have I dwelt

among those who hate peace.

⁷I am in favor of peace;

but when I speak, they want war.