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Book of Common Prayer

Daily Old and New Testament readings based on the Book of Common Prayer.
Duration: 861 days
American Standard Version (ASV)
Version
Psalm 119:49-72

ז Zayin.

49 Remember the word unto thy servant,
[a]Because thou hast made me to hope.
50 This is my comfort in my affliction;
[b]For thy word hath quickened me.
51 The proud have had me greatly in derision:
Yet have I not swerved from thy law.
52 I have remembered thine ordinances of old, O Jehovah,
And have comforted myself.
53 [c]Hot indignation hath taken hold upon me,
Because of the wicked that forsake thy law.
54 Thy statutes have been my songs
In the house of my pilgrimage.
55 I have remembered thy name, O Jehovah, in the night,
And have observed thy law.
56 This I have had,
[d]Because I have kept thy precepts.

ח Hheth.

57 [e]Jehovah is my portion:
I have said that I would observe thy words.
58 I entreated thy favor with my whole heart:
Be merciful unto me according to thy word.
59 I thought on my ways,
And turned my feet unto thy testimonies.
60 I made haste, and delayed not,
To observe thy commandments.
61 The cords of the wicked have wrapped me round;
But I have not forgotten thy law.
62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee
Because of thy righteous ordinances.
63 I am a companion of all them that fear thee,
And of them that observe thy precepts.
64 The earth, O Jehovah, is full of thy lovingkindness:
Teach me thy statutes.

ט Teth.

65 Thou hast dealt well with thy servant,
O Jehovah, according unto thy word.
66 Teach me good judgment and knowledge;
For I have believed in thy commandments.
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray;
But now I observe thy word.
68 Thou art good, and doest good;
Teach me thy statutes.
69 The proud have forged a lie against me:
With my whole heart will I keep thy precepts.
70 Their heart is as fat as grease;
But I delight in thy law.
71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted;
That I may learn thy statutes.
72 The law of thy mouth is better unto me
Than thousands of gold and silver.

Psalm 49

The folly of trusting in riches.

For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

49 Hear this, all ye peoples;
Give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world,
Both low and high,
Rich and poor together.
My mouth shall speak wisdom;
And the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
I will incline mine ear to a parable:
I will open my dark saying upon the harp.
Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil,
When [a]iniquity at my heels compasseth me about?
They that trust in their wealth,
And boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
None of them can by any means redeem his brother,
Nor give to God a ransom for him
(For the redemption of their life is costly,
And it faileth for ever),
That he should still live alway,
That he should not see [b]corruption.
10 For [c]he shall see it. Wise men die;
The fool and the brutish alike perish,
And leave their wealth to others.
11 Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever,
And their dwelling-places to all generations;
They call their lands after their own names.
12 But man being in honor abideth not:
He is like the beasts that perish.

13 This [d]their way is [e]their folly:
Yet after them men approve their sayings. Selah
14 They are appointed as a flock for Sheol;
Death shall be their shepherd:
And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;
And their [f]beauty shall be for Sheol to consume,
That there be no habitation for it.
15 But God will redeem my soul from the [g]power of Sheol;
For he will receive me. Selah
16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich,
When the [h]glory of his house is increased:
17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away;
His glory shall not descend after him.
18 Though while he lived he blessed his soul
(And men praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself),
19 [i]He shall go to the generation of his fathers;
[j]They shall never see the light.
20 Man that is in honor, and understandeth not,
Is like the beasts that perish.

Psalm 53

The folly and wickedness of men.

For the Chief Musician; set to Mahalath. Maschil of David.

53 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.
Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity;
There is none that doeth good.
God looked down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there were any that did [a]understand,
That did seek after God.
Every one of them is gone back; they are together become filthy;
There is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And call not upon God?
There were they in great fear, where no fear was;
For God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee:
Thou hast put them to shame, because God hath rejected them.
Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion!
When God [b]bringeth back the captivity of his people,
Then shall Jacob rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.

Genesis 37:25-36

25 And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing [a]spicery and [b]balm and [c]myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. 26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother, our flesh. And his brethren hearkened unto him. 28 And there passed by Midianites, merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they brought Joseph into Egypt.

29 And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. 30 And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go? 31 And they took Joseph’s coat, and killed a he-goat, and dipped the coat in the blood; 32 and they sent the coat of many colors, and they brought it to their father, and said, This have we found: know now whether it is thy son’s coat or not. 33 And he knew it, and said, It is my son’s coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces. 34 And Jacob rent his garments, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. 35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down to Sheol to my son mourning. And his father wept for him. 36 And the [d]Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, the [e]captain of the guard.

1 Corinthians 2:1-13

And I, brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of [a]speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the [b]testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my [c]speech and my [d]preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: that your faith should not [e]stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

We speak wisdom, however, among them that are fullgrown: yet a wisdom not of this [f]world, nor of the rulers of this [g]world, who are coming to nought: but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, even the wisdom that hath been hidden, which God foreordained before the [h]worlds unto our glory: which none of the rulers of this [i]world hath known: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory: but as it is written,

[j]Things which eye saw not, and ear heard not,
And which entered not into the heart of man,
Whatsoever things God prepared for them that love him.

10 [k]But unto us God revealed [l]them through the Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 11 For who among men knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of the man, which is in him? even so the things of God none knoweth, save the Spirit of God. 12 But we received, not the spirit of the [m]world, but the spirit which is from God; that we might know the things that were freely given to us of God. 13 Which things also we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Spirit teacheth; [n]combining spiritual things with spiritual words.

Mark 1:29-45

29 And straightway, [a]when they were come out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with [b]James and John. 30 Now Simon’s wife’s mother lay sick of a fever; and straightway they tell him of her: 31 and he came and took her by the hand, and raised her up; and the fever left her, and she ministered unto them.

32 And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were sick, and them that were [c]possessed with demons. 33 And all the city was gathered together at the door. 34 And he healed many that were sick with divers diseases, and cast out many demons; and he suffered not the demons to speak, because they knew him[d].

35 And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose up and went out, and departed into a desert place, and there prayed. 36 And Simon and they that were with him followed after him; 37 and they found him, and say unto him, All are seeking thee. 38 And he saith unto them, Let us go elsewhere into the next towns, that I may preach there also; for to this end came I forth. 39 And he went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out demons.

40 And there cometh to him a leper, beseeching him, [e]and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 41 And being moved with compassion, he stretched forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou made clean. 42 And straightway the leprosy departed from him, and he was made clean. 43 And he [f]strictly charged him, and straightway sent him out, 44 and saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man: but go show thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing the things which Moses [g]commanded, for a testimony unto them. 45 But he went out, and began to publish it much, and to spread abroad the [h]matter, insomuch that [i]Jesus could no more openly enter into [j]a city, but was without in desert places: and they came to him from every quarter.