Book of Common Prayer

140 Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;

² Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.

³ They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Selah.

⁴ Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.

⁵ The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah.

⁶ I said unto the Lord, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.

⁷ O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.

⁸ Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked: further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah.

⁹ As for the head of those that compass me about, let the mischief of their own lips cover them.

¹⁰ Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again.

¹¹ Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.

¹² I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and the right of the poor.

¹³ Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.

142 I cried unto the Lord with my voice; with my voice unto the Lord did I make my supplication.

² I poured out my complaint before him; I shewed before him my trouble.

³ When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.

⁴ I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.

⁵ I cried unto thee, O Lord: I said, Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living.

⁶ Attend unto my cry; for I am brought very low: deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.

⁷ Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me.

141 Lord, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me; give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee.

² Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

³ Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.

⁴ Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties.

⁵ Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head: for yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities.

⁶ When their judges are overthrown in stony places, they shall hear my words; for they are sweet.

⁷ Our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth, as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth.

⁸ But mine eyes are unto thee, O God the Lord: in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute.

⁹ Keep me from the snares which they have laid for me, and the gins of the workers of iniquity.

¹⁰ Let the wicked fall into their own nets, whilst that I withal escape.

143 Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.

² And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.

³ For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.

⁴ Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.

⁵ I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.

⁶ I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.

⁷ Hear me speedily, O Lord: my spirit faileth: hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit.

⁸ Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.

⁹ Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.

¹⁰ Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.

¹¹ Quicken me, O Lord, for thy name's sake: for thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble.

¹² And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.

¹⁹ Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears:

²⁰ But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his share, and his coulter, and his axe, and his mattock.

²¹ Yet they had a file for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and for the forks, and for the axes, and to sharpen the goads.

²² So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found.

²³ And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the passage of Michmash.

14 Now it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said unto the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that is on the other side. But he told not his father.

² And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about six hundred men;

³ And Ahiah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord's priest in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.

⁴ And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines' garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

⁵ The forefront of the one was situate northward over against Michmash, and the other southward over against Gibeah.

⁶ And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few.

⁷ And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart.

⁸ Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto these men, and we will discover ourselves unto them.

⁹ If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them.

¹⁰ But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the Lord hath delivered them into our hand: and this shall be a sign unto us.

¹¹ And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves.

¹² And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armourbearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said unto his armourbearer, Come up after me: for the Lord hath delivered them into the hand of Israel.

¹³ And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armourbearer after him: and they fell before Jonathan; and his armourbearer slew after him.

¹⁴ And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armourbearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were an half acre of land, which a yoke of oxen might plow.

¹⁵ And there was trembling in the host, in the field, and among all the people: the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled, and the earth quaked: so it was a very great trembling.

9 And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest,

² And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.

³ And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:

⁴ And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

⁵ And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

⁶ And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.

⁷ And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man.

⁸ And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.

⁹ And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.

²⁶ And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus.

²⁷ And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him.

²⁸ But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children.

²⁹ For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck.

³⁰ Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us.

³¹ For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?