1Rescue me, O LORD, from evil men. Protect me from men of violence, 2who devise evil in their hearts and stir up war all day long. 3They sharpen their tongues like snakes; the venom of vipers is on their lips. Selah 4Guard me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked. Keep me safe from men of violence who scheme to make me stumble. 5The proud hide a snare for me; the cords of their net are spread along the path, and lures are set out for me. Selah 6I say to the LORD, “You are my God.” Hear, O LORD, my cry for help. 7O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, You shield my head in the day of battle.
New Testament·1 Corinthians 11:22–34
22Don’t you have your own homes in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What can I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? No, I will not! 23For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, 24and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. 27Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28Each one must examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. 29For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. 31Now if we judged ourselves properly, we would not come under judgment. 32But when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world. 33So, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you come together it will not result in judgment. And when I come, I will give instructions about the remaining matters.
Old Testament·Job 31–32
1“I have made a covenant with my eyes. How then could I gaze with desire at a virgin? 2For what is the allotment of God from above, or the heritage from the Almighty on high? 3Does not disaster come to the unjust and calamity to the workers of iniquity? 4Does He not see my ways and count my every step? 5If I have walked in falsehood or my foot has rushed to deceit, 6let God weigh me with honest scales, that He may know my integrity. 7If my steps have turned from the path, if my heart has followed my eyes, or if impurity has stuck to my hands, 8then may another eat what I have sown, and may my crops be uprooted. 9If my heart has been enticed by my neighbor’s wife, or I have lurked at his door, 10then may my own wife grind grain for another, and may other men sleep with her. 11For that would be a heinous crime, an iniquity to be judged. 12For it is a fire that burns down to Abaddon; it would root out my entire harvest. 13If I have rejected the cause of my manservant or maidservant when they made a complaint against me, 14what will I do when God rises to judge? How will I answer when called to account? 15Did not He who made me in the womb also make them? Did not the same One form us in the womb? 16If I have denied the desires of the poor or allowed the widow’s eyes to fail, 17if I have eaten my morsel alone, not sharing it with the fatherless— 18though from my youth I reared him as would a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow— 19if I have seen one perish for lack of clothing, or a needy man without a cloak, 20if his heart has not blessed me for warming him with the fleece of my sheep, 21if I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless because I saw that I had support in the gate, 22then may my arm fall from my shoulder and be torn from its socket. 23For calamity from God terrifies me, and His splendor I cannot overpower. 24If I have put my trust in gold or called pure gold my security, 25if I have rejoiced in my great wealth because my hand had gained so much, 26if I have beheld the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor, 27so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand threw a kiss from my mouth, 28this would also be an iniquity to be judged, for I would have denied God on high. 29If I have rejoiced in my enemy’s ruin, or exulted when evil befell him— 30I have not allowed my mouth to sin by asking for his life with a curse— 31if the men of my house have not said, ‘Who is there who has not had his fill?’— 32but no stranger had to lodge on the street, for my door has been open to the traveler— 33if I have covered my transgressions like Adam by hiding my guilt in my heart, 34because I greatly feared the crowds and the contempt of the clans terrified me, so that I kept silent and would not go outside— 35(Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my signature. Let the Almighty answer me; let my accuser compose an indictment. 36Surely I would carry it on my shoulder and wear it like a crown. 37I would give account of all my steps; I would approach Him like a prince.)— 38if my land cries out against me and its furrows weep together, 39if I have devoured its produce without payment or broken the spirit of its tenants, 40then let briers grow instead of wheat and stinkweed instead of barley.” Thus conclude the words of Job.
32So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2This kindled the anger of Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram. He burned with anger against Job for justifying himself rather than God, 3and he burned with anger against Job’s three friends because they had failed to refute Job, and yet had condemned him. 4Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job because the others were older than he. 5But when he saw that the three men had no further reply, his anger was kindled. 6So Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite declared: “I am young in years, while you are old; that is why I was timid and afraid to tell you what I know. 7I thought that age should speak, and many years should teach wisdom. 8But there is a spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding. 9It is not only the old who are wise, or the elderly who understand justice. 10Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me; I too will declare what I know.’ 11Indeed, I waited while you spoke; I listened to your reasoning; as you searched for words, 12I paid you full attention. But no one proved Job wrong; not one of you rebutted his arguments. 13So do not claim, ‘We have found wisdom; let God, not man, refute him.’ 14But Job has not directed his words against me, and I will not answer him with your arguments. 15Job’s friends are dismayed, with no more to say; words have escaped them. 16Must I wait, now that they are silent, now that they stand and no longer reply? 17I too will answer; yes, I will declare what I know. 18For I am full of words, and my spirit within me compels me. 19Behold, my belly is like unvented wine; it is about to burst like a new wineskin. 20I must speak and find relief; I must open my lips and respond. 21I will be partial to no one, nor will I flatter any man. 22For I do not know how to flatter, or my Maker would remove me in an instant.
Reflect
What would it look like to love your neighbor the way this passage describes?