Psalm 63

Comfort and Assurance in God’s Presence

A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.

Psalm 64

Prayer for Protection from Enemies

To the leader. A Psalm of David.

Psalm 65

Thanksgiving for Earth’s Bounty

To the leader. A Psalm of David. A Song.

Dying and Rising with Christ

6 What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may increase?^{(A) 2} By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?^{(B) 3} Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?^{(C) 4} Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.^(D)

⁵ For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶ We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, so we might no longer be enslaved to sin.^{(E) 7} For whoever has died is freed^[a] from sin. ⁸ But if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹ We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.^{(F) 10} The death he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life he lives, he lives to God.^{(G) 11} So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.^(H)

¹² Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal bodies, so that you obey their desires.^{(I) 13} No longer present your members to sin as instruments^[b] of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments^[c] of righteousness.^{(J) 14} For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.^(K)

Slaves of Righteousness

¹⁵ What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! ¹⁶ Do you not know that, if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?^{(L) 17} But thanks be to God that you who were slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted^{(M) 18} and that you, having been set free from sin, have become enslaved to righteousness.^{(N) 19} I am speaking in human terms because of your limitations.^[d] For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness, leading to even more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, leading to sanctification.^(O)

²⁰ When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.^{(P) 21} So what fruit did you then gain from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death.^{(Q) 22} But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the fruit you have leads to sanctification, and the end is eternal life.^{(R) 23} For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.^(S)