1 Samuel 24, 1 Corinthians 5, Ezekiel 3, Psalm 39

1 Samuel 24,

1 After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, "David is in the Desert of En Gedi."
 
2 So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats.
 
3 He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave.
 
4 The men said, "This is the day the LORD spoke of when he said to you, 'I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.' " Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul's robe.
 
5 Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe.
 
6 He said to his men, "The LORD forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the LORD's anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the LORD."
 
7 With these words David rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.
 
8 Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, "My lord the king!" When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.
 
9 He said to Saul, "Why do you listen when men say, 'David is bent on harming you'?
 
10 This day you have seen with your own eyes how the LORD delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, 'I will not lift my hand against my master, because he is the LORD's anointed.'
 
11 See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. Now understand and recognize that I am not guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life.
 
12 May the LORD judge between you and me. And may the LORD avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you.
 
13 As the old saying goes, 'From evildoers come evil deeds,' so my hand will not touch you.
 
14 "Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea?
 
15 May the LORD be our judge and decide between us. May he consider my cause and uphold it; may he vindicate me by delivering me from your hand."
 
16 When David finished saying this, Saul asked, "Is that your voice, David my son?" And he wept aloud.
 
17 "You are more righteous than I," he said. "You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly.
 
18 You have just now told me of the good you did to me; the LORD delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me.
 
19 When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the LORD reward you well for the way you treated me today.
 
20 I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands.
 
21 Now swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father's family."
 
22 So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.
 

1 Corinthians 5,

1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man has his father's wife.
 
2 And you are proud! Shouldn't you rather have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship the man who did this?
 
3 Even though I am not physically present, I am with you in spirit. And I have already passed judgment on the one who did this, just as if I were present.
 
4 When you are assembled in the name of our Lord Jesus and I am with you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present,
 
5 hand this man over to Satan, so that the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord.
 
6 Your boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?
 
7 Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast-as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
 
8 Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and truth.
 
9 I have written you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people-
 
10 not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world.
 
11 But now I am writing you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.
 
12 What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?
 
13 God will judge those outside. "Expel the wicked man from among you."
 

Ezekiel 3,

1 And he said to me, "Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel."
 
2 So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.
 
3 Then he said to me, "Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it." So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.
 
4 He then said to me: "Son of man, go now to the house of Israel and speak my words to them.
 
5 You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and difficult language, but to the house of Israel-
 
6 not to many peoples of obscure speech and difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you.
 
7 But the house of Israel is not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for the whole house of Israel is hardened and obstinate.
 
8 But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are.
 
9 I will make your forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint. Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house."
 
10 And he said to me, "Son of man, listen carefully and take to heart all the words I speak to you.
 
11 Go now to your countrymen in exile and speak to them. Say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says,' whether they listen or fail to listen."
 
12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound-May the glory of the LORD be praised in his dwelling place!-
 
13 the sound of the wings of the living creatures brushing against each other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound.
 
14 The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the LORD upon me.
 
15 I came to the exiles who lived at Tel Abib near the Kebar River. And there, where they were living, I sat among them for seven days-overwhelmed.
 
16 At the end of seven days the word of the LORD came to me:
 
17 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.
 
18 When I say to a wicked man, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood.
 
19 But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself.
 
20 "Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. The righteous things he did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for his blood.
 
21 But if you do warn the righteous man not to sin and he does not sin, he will surely live because he took warning, and you will have saved yourself."
 
22 The hand of the LORD was upon me there, and he said to me, "Get up and go out to the plain, and there I will speak to you."
 
23 So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown.
 
24 Then the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet. He spoke to me and said: "Go, shut yourself inside your house.
 
25 And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes; you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people.
 
26 I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, though they are a rebellious house.
 
27 But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says.' Whoever will listen let him listen, and whoever will refuse let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.
 

Psalm 39

1 I said, "I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin; I will put a muzzle on my mouth as long as the wicked are in my presence."
 
2 But when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good, my anguish increased.
 
3 My heart grew hot within me, and as I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue:
 
4 "Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life.
 
5 You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath. Selah
 
6 Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: He bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it.
 
7 "But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you.
 
8 Save me from all my transgressions; do not make me the scorn of fools.
 
9 I was silent; I would not open my mouth, for you are the one who has done this.
 
10 Remove your scourge from me; I am overcome by the blow of your hand.
 
11 You rebuke and discipline men for their sin; you consume their wealth like a moth-each man is but a breath. Selah
 
12 "Hear my prayer, O LORD, listen to my cry for help; be not deaf to my weeping. For I dwell with you as an alien, a stranger, as all my fathers were.
 
13 Look away from me, that I may rejoice again before I depart and am no more."