Redeemer Church

Jonah 4

English Standard Version

But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?”

Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” And the Lord said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?”

Jonah 3

English Standard Version

3 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breadth. 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.

6 The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”

10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.

Jonah 2

English Standard Version

2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, 2 saying,

“I called out to the Lord, out of my distress,

    and he answered me;

out of the belly of Sheol I cried,

    and you heard my voice.

3 

For you cast me into the deep,

    into the heart of the seas,

    and the flood surrounded me;

all your breakers and your waves

    passed over me.

4 

Then I said, ‘I am driven away

    from your sight;

yet I shall again look

    upon your holy temple.’

5 

The waters closed in over me to take my life;

    the deep surrounded me;

weeds were wrapped about my head.

6 

To the roots of the mountains I went down,

    to the land whose bars closed upon me forever.

Yet you brought up my life from the pit,

    O Lord my God.

7 

When my life was fainting away,

    I remembered the Lord,

and my prayer came to you,

    into your holy temple.

8 

Those who pay regard to vain idols

    forsake their hope of steadfast love.

9 

But I with the voice of thanksgiving

    will sacrifice to you;

what I have vowed I will pay.

    Salvation belongs to the Lord!”

10 And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.

Jonah 1

English Standard Version

1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.

4 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish.”

7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them.

11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12 He said to them, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” 13 Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they called out to the Lord, “O Lord, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows.

17  And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

Psalm 36

English Standard Version

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

36 

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.

Psalm 35

English Standard Version

Of David.

35 

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.

Ephesians 2:1-10

English Standard Version

2 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Psalm 34

English Standard Version

Of David, when he changed his behavior before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away.

34 

I will bless the Lord at all times;

    his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

2 

My soul makes its boast in the Lord;

    let the humble hear and be glad.

3 

Oh, magnify the Lord with me,

    and let us exalt his name together!

4 

I sought the Lord, and he answered me

    and delivered me from all my fears.

5 

Those who look to him are radiant,

    and their faces shall never be ashamed.

6 

This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him

    and saved him out of all his troubles.

7 

The angel of the Lord encamps

    around those who fear him, and delivers them.

8 

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!

    Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

9 

Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints,

    for those who fear him have no lack!

10 

The young lions suffer want and hunger;

    but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

11 

Come, O children, listen to me;

    I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12 

What man is there who desires life

    and loves many days, that he may see good?

13 

Keep your tongue from evil

    and your lips from speaking deceit.

14 

Turn away from evil and do good;

    seek peace and pursue it.

15 

The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous

    and his ears toward their cry.

16 

The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,

    to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

17 

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears

    and delivers them out of all their troubles.

18 

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted

    and saves the crushed in spirit.

19 

Many are the afflictions of the righteous,

    but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

20 

He keeps all his bones;

    not one of them is broken.

21 

Affliction will slay the wicked,

    and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

22 

The Lord redeems the life of his servants;

    none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Psalm 33

English Standard Version

33 

Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous!

    Praise befits the upright.

2 

Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre;

    make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

3 

Sing to him a new song;

    play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

4 

For the word of the Lord is upright,

    and all his work is done in faithfulness.

5 

He loves righteousness and justice;

    the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.

6 

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,

    and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

7 

He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;

    he puts the deeps in storehouses.

8 

Let all the earth fear the Lord;

    let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

9 

For he spoke, and it came to be;

    he commanded, and it stood firm.

10 

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;

    he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

11 

The counsel of the Lord stands forever,

    the plans of his heart to all generations.

12 

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,

    the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

13 

The Lord looks down from heaven;

    he sees all the children of man;

14 

from where he sits enthroned he looks out

    on all the inhabitants of the earth,

15 

he who fashions the hearts of them all

    and observes all their deeds.

16 

The king is not saved by his great army;

    a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.

17 

The war horse is a false hope for salvation,

    and by its great might it cannot rescue.

18 

Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,

    on those who hope in his steadfast love,

19 

that he may deliver their soul from death

    and keep them alive in famine.

20 

Our soul waits for the Lord;

    he is our help and our shield.

21 

For our heart is glad in him,

    because we trust in his holy name.

22 

Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,

    even as we hope in you.

Psalm 32

English Standard Version

A Maskil of David.

32 

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,

    whose sin is covered.

2 

Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,

    and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

3 

For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away

    through my groaning all day long.

4 

For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;

    my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

5 

I acknowledged my sin to you,

    and I did not cover my iniquity;

I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”

    and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

6 

Therefore let everyone who is godly

    offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;

surely in the rush of great waters,

    they shall not reach him.

7 

You are a hiding place for me;

    you preserve me from trouble;

    you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah

8 

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;

    I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

9 

Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,

    which must be curbed with bit and bridle,

    or it will not stay near you.

10 

Many are the sorrows of the wicked,

    but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.

11 

Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous,

    and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!