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Book of Common Prayer

Daily Old and New Testament readings based on the Book of Common Prayer.
Duration: 861 days
New International Version (NIV)
Version
Psalm 107:33-108:13

33 He turned rivers into a desert,(A)
    flowing springs(B) into thirsty ground,
34 and fruitful land into a salt waste,(C)
    because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
35 He turned the desert into pools of water(D)
    and the parched ground into flowing springs;(E)
36 there he brought the hungry to live,
    and they founded a city where they could settle.
37 They sowed fields and planted vineyards(F)
    that yielded a fruitful harvest;
38 he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased,(G)
    and he did not let their herds diminish.(H)

39 Then their numbers decreased,(I) and they were humbled(J)
    by oppression, calamity and sorrow;
40 he who pours contempt on nobles(K)
    made them wander in a trackless waste.(L)
41 But he lifted the needy(M) out of their affliction
    and increased their families like flocks.(N)
42 The upright see and rejoice,(O)
    but all the wicked shut their mouths.(P)

43 Let the one who is wise(Q) heed these things
    and ponder the loving deeds(R) of the Lord.

Psalm 108[a](S)(T)

A song. A psalm of David.

My heart, O God, is steadfast;(U)
    I will sing(V) and make music with all my soul.
Awake, harp and lyre!(W)
    I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
    I will sing of you among the peoples.
For great is your love,(X) higher than the heavens;
    your faithfulness(Y) reaches to the skies.(Z)
Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;(AA)
    let your glory be over all the earth.(AB)

Save us and help us with your right hand,(AC)
    that those you love may be delivered.
God has spoken(AD) from his sanctuary:(AE)
    “In triumph I will parcel out Shechem(AF)
    and measure off the Valley of Sukkoth.(AG)
Gilead is mine, Manasseh is mine;
    Ephraim is my helmet,
    Judah(AH) is my scepter.
Moab(AI) is my washbasin,
    on Edom(AJ) I toss my sandal;
    over Philistia(AK) I shout in triumph.”

10 Who will bring me to the fortified city?
    Who will lead me to Edom?
11 Is it not you, God, you who have rejected us
    and no longer go out with our armies?(AL)
12 Give us aid against the enemy,
    for human help is worthless.(AM)
13 With God we will gain the victory,
    and he will trample down(AN) our enemies.

Psalm 33

Psalm 33

Sing joyfully(A) to the Lord, you righteous;
    it is fitting(B) for the upright(C) to praise him.
Praise the Lord with the harp;(D)
    make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.(E)
Sing to him a new song;(F)
    play skillfully, and shout for joy.(G)

For the word of the Lord is right(H) and true;(I)
    he is faithful(J) in all he does.
The Lord loves righteousness and justice;(K)
    the earth is full of his unfailing love.(L)

By the word(M) of the Lord the heavens were made,(N)
    their starry host(O) by the breath of his mouth.
He gathers the waters(P) of the sea into jars[a];(Q)
    he puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;(R)
    let all the people of the world(S) revere him.(T)
For he spoke, and it came to be;
    he commanded,(U) and it stood firm.

10 The Lord foils(V) the plans(W) of the nations;(X)
    he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm(Y) forever,
    the purposes(Z) of his heart through all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,(AA)
    the people he chose(AB) for his inheritance.(AC)
13 From heaven the Lord looks down(AD)
    and sees all mankind;(AE)
14 from his dwelling place(AF) he watches
    all who live on earth—
15 he who forms(AG) the hearts of all,
    who considers everything they do.(AH)

16 No king is saved by the size of his army;(AI)
    no warrior escapes by his great strength.
17 A horse(AJ) is a vain hope for deliverance;
    despite all its great strength it cannot save.
18 But the eyes(AK) of the Lord are on those who fear him,
    on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,(AL)
19 to deliver them from death(AM)
    and keep them alive in famine.(AN)

20 We wait(AO) in hope for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield.
21 In him our hearts rejoice,(AP)
    for we trust in his holy name.(AQ)
22 May your unfailing love(AR) be with us, Lord,
    even as we put our hope in you.

2 Kings 19:21-36

21 This is the word that the Lord has spoken against(A) him:

“‘Virgin Daughter(B) Zion
    despises(C) you and mocks(D) you.
Daughter Jerusalem
    tosses her head(E) as you flee.
22 Who is it you have ridiculed and blasphemed?(F)
    Against whom have you raised your voice
and lifted your eyes in pride?
    Against the Holy One(G) of Israel!
23 By your messengers
    you have ridiculed the Lord.
And you have said,(H)
    “With my many chariots(I)
I have ascended the heights of the mountains,
    the utmost heights of Lebanon.
I have cut down(J) its tallest cedars,
    the choicest of its junipers.
I have reached its remotest parts,
    the finest of its forests.
24 I have dug wells in foreign lands
    and drunk the water there.
With the soles of my feet
    I have dried up all the streams of Egypt.”

25 “‘Have you not heard?(K)
    Long ago I ordained it.
In days of old I planned(L) it;
    now I have brought it to pass,
that you have turned fortified cities
    into piles of stone.(M)
26 Their people, drained of power,(N)
    are dismayed(O) and put to shame.
They are like plants in the field,
    like tender green shoots,(P)
like grass sprouting on the roof,
    scorched(Q) before it grows up.

27 “‘But I know(R) where you are
    and when you come and go
    and how you rage against me.
28 Because you rage against me
    and because your insolence has reached my ears,
I will put my hook(S) in your nose
    and my bit(T) in your mouth,
and I will make you return(U)
    by the way you came.’

29 “This will be the sign(V) for you, Hezekiah:

“This year you will eat what grows by itself,(W)
    and the second year what springs from that.
But in the third year sow and reap,
    plant vineyards(X) and eat their fruit.
30 Once more a remnant(Y) of the kingdom of Judah
    will take root(Z) below and bear fruit above.
31 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant,(AA)
    and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.(AB)

“The zeal(AC) of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

32 “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:

“‘He will not enter this city
    or shoot an arrow here.
He will not come before it with shield
    or build a siege ramp against it.
33 By the way that he came he will return;(AD)
    he will not enter this city,
declares the Lord.
34 I will defend(AE) this city and save it,
    for my sake and for the sake of David(AF) my servant.’”

35 That night the angel of the Lord(AG) went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!(AH) 36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew.(AI) He returned to Nineveh(AJ) and stayed there.

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

Warnings From Israel’s History

10 For I do not want you to be ignorant(A) of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud(B) and that they all passed through the sea.(C) They were all baptized into(D) Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food(E) and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock(F) that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.(G)

Now these things occurred as examples(H) to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Do not be idolaters,(I) as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.”[a](J) We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died.(K) We should not test Christ,[b](L) as some of them did—and were killed by snakes.(M) 10 And do not grumble, as some of them did(N)—and were killed(O) by the destroying angel.(P)

11 These things happened to them as examples(Q) and were written down as warnings for us,(R) on whom the culmination of the ages has come.(S) 12 So, if you think you are standing firm,(T) be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation[c] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful;(U) he will not let you be tempted[d] beyond what you can bear.(V) But when you are tempted,[e] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Matthew 8:18-27

The Cost of Following Jesus(A)

18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake.(B) 19 Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”

20 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man(C) has no place to lay his head.”

21 Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me,(D) and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Jesus Calms the Storm(E)(F)

23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”

26 He replied, “You of little faith,(G) why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.(H)

27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

New International Version (NIV)

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