November 19, 2026

Psalms35

Great Is the ndLord

Of David.

1 Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;

fight against those who fight against me!

2 Take hold of shield and buckler

and rise for my help!

3 Draw the spear and javelin

against my pursuers!

Say to my soul,

“I am your salvation!”

4 Let them be put to shame and dishonor

who seek after my life!

Let them be turned back and disappointed

who devise evil against me!

5 Let them be like chaff before the wind,

with the angel of the Lord driving them away!

6 Let their way be dark and slippery,

with the angel of the Lord pursuing them!

7 For without cause they hid their net for me;

without cause they dug a pit for my life.

8 Let destruction come upon him when he does not know it!

And let the net that he hid ensnare him;

let him fall into it—to his destruction!

9 Then my soul will rejoice in the Lord,

exulting in his salvation.

10 All my bones shall say,

“O Lord, who is like you,

delivering the poor

from him who is too strong for him,

the poor and needy from him who robs him?”

11 Malicious witnesses rise up;

they ask me of things that I do not know.

12 They repay me evil for good;

my soul is bereft.

13 But I, when they were sick—

I wore sackcloth;

I afflicted myself with fasting;

I prayed with head bowed on my chest.

14 I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother;

as one who laments his mother,

I bowed down in mourning.

15 But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered;

they gathered together against me;

wretches whom I did not know

tore at me without ceasing;

16 like profane mockers at a feast,

they gnash at me with their teeth.

17 How long, O Lord, will you look on?

Rescue me from their destruction,

my precious life from the lions!

18 I will thank you in the great congregation;

in the mighty throng I will praise you.

19 Let not those rejoice over me

who are wrongfully my foes,

and let not those wink the eye

who hate me without cause.

20 For they do not speak peace,

but against those who are quiet in the land

they devise words of deceit.

21 They open wide their mouths against me;

they say, “Aha, Aha!

Our eyes have seen it!”

22 You have seen, O Lord; be not silent!

O Lord, be not far from me!

23 Awake and rouse yourself for my vindication,

for my cause, my God and my Lord!

24 Vindicate me, O Lord, my God,

according to your righteousness,

and let them not rejoice over me!

25 Let them not say in their hearts,

“Aha, our heart’s desire!”

Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up.”

26 Let them be put to shame and disappointed altogether

who rejoice at my calamity!

Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor

who magnify themselves against me!

27 Let those who delight in my righteousness

shout for joy and be glad

and say evermore,

“Great is the Lord,

who delights in the welfare of his servant!”

28 Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness

and of your praise all the day long.

Psalms36

How Precious Is Your Steadfast Love

To the choirmaster. Of David, the servant of the Lord.

1 Transgression speaks to the wicked

deep in his heart;

there is no fear of God

before his eyes.

2 For he flatters himself in his own eyes

that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.

3 The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit;

he has ceased to act wisely and do good.

4 He plots trouble while on his bed;

he sets himself in a way that is not good;

he does not reject evil.

5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,

your faithfulness to the clouds.

6 Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;

your judgments are like the great deep;

man and beast you save, O Lord.

7 How precious is your steadfast love, O God!

The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

8 They feast on the abundance of your house,

and you give them drink from the river of your delights.

9 For with you is the fountain of life;

in your light do we see light.

10 Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you,

and your righteousness to the upright of heart!

11 Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,

nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

12 There the evildoers lie fallen;

they are thrust down, unable to rise.

Psalms37

He Will Not Forsake His Saints

Of David.

1 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.

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;

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 Lord 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.

36 But he passed away, 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.

James2

The Sin of Partiality

1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” 4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?

8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. 11 For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. 13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Faith Without Works Is Dead

14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.