Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 5
The Refuge of the Righteous
For the choir director: with the flutes. A psalm of David.
1 Listen to my words, Lord;
consider my sighing.(A)
2 Pay attention to the sound of my cry,(B)
my King and my God,(C)
for I pray to you.
3 In the morning,(D) Lord, you hear my voice;
in the morning I plead my case to you(E) and watch expectantly.
4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil cannot dwell with you.(F)
5 The boastful cannot stand in your sight;(G)
you hate all evildoers.(H)
6 You destroy those who tell lies;(I)
the Lord abhors violent and treacherous people.(J)
7 But I enter your house
by the abundance of your faithful love;(K)
I bow down toward your holy temple
in reverential awe of you.(L)
8 Lord, lead me in your righteousness(M)
because of my adversaries;
make your way straight before me.(N)
9 For there is nothing reliable in what they say;(O)
destruction is within them;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongues.(P)
10 Punish them, God;
let them fall by their own schemes.(Q)
Drive them out(R) because of their many crimes,
for they rebel against you.(S)
11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;(T)
let them shout for joy forever.
May you shelter them,(U)
and may those who love your name boast about you.(V)
12 For you, Lord, bless the righteous one;
you surround him with favor like a shield.(W)
Psalm 6
A Prayer for Mercy
For the choir director: with stringed instruments, according to Sheminith.(X) A psalm of David.
1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger;
do not discipline me in your wrath.(Y)
2 Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am weak;[a](Z)
heal me,(AA) Lord, for my bones are shaking;(AB)
3 my whole being is shaken with terror.(AC)
And you, Lord—how long?(AD)
4 Turn, Lord! Rescue me;
save me because of your faithful love.(AE)
5 For there is no remembrance of you in death;
who can thank you in Sheol?(AF)
Psalm 10
Need for God’s Justice
1 Lord,[a][b] why do you stand so far away?(A)
Why do you hide in times of trouble?(B)
2 In arrogance the wicked relentlessly pursue their victims;
let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.(C)
3 For the wicked one boasts about his own cravings;(D)
the one who is greedy curses[c] and despises the Lord.(E)
4 In all his scheming,
the wicked person arrogantly thinks,[d]
“There’s no accountability,
since there’s no God.”(F)
5 His ways are always secure;[e]
your lofty judgments have no effect on him;[f]
he scoffs at all his adversaries.(G)
6 He says to himself, “I will never be moved—
from generation to generation I will be without calamity.”(H)
7 Cursing, deceit, and violence fill his mouth;
trouble and malice are under his tongue.(I)
8 He waits in ambush near settlements;(J)
he kills the innocent in secret places.
His eyes are on the lookout for the helpless;(K)
9 he lurks in secret like a lion in a thicket.
He lurks in order to seize a victim;
he seizes a victim and drags him in his net.
10 So he is oppressed and beaten down;
helpless people fall because of the wicked one’s strength.(L)
11 He says to himself, “God has forgotten;
he hides his face and will never see.”(M)
12 Rise up, Lord God! Lift up your hand.(N)
Do not forget the oppressed.(O)
13 Why has the wicked person despised God?
He says to himself, “You will not demand an account.”(P)
14 But you yourself have seen trouble and grief,
observing it in order to take the matter into your hands.(Q)
The helpless one entrusts himself to you;
you are a helper of the fatherless.(R)
15 Break the arm of the wicked, evil person,(S)
until you look for his wickedness,
but it can’t be found.(T)
16 The Lord is King forever and ever;(U)
the nations will perish from his land.(V)
17 Lord, you have heard the desire of the humble;
you will strengthen their hearts.
You will listen carefully,(W)
18 doing justice for the fatherless and the oppressed
so that mere humans from the earth may terrify them no more.(X)
Psalm 11
Refuge in the Lord
For the choir director. Of David.
1 I have taken refuge in the Lord.(Y)
How can you say to me,
“Escape to the mountains[g] like a bird!(Z)
2 For look, the wicked string bows;
they put their arrows on bowstrings
to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart.(AA)
3 When the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?” (AB)
4 The Lord is in his holy temple;(AC)
the Lord—his throne is in heaven.(AD)
His eyes watch;
his gaze[h] examines everyone.[i]
5 The Lord examines the righteous,
but he hates the wicked
and[j] those who love violence.(AE)
6 Let him rain burning coals[k] and sulfur on the wicked;
let a scorching wind be the portion in their cup.(AF)
7 For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds.
The upright will see his face.(AG)
16 Better a little with the fear of the Lord
than great treasure with turmoil.(A)
19 A slacker’s way is like a thorny hedge,
but the path of the upright is a highway.(F)
20 A wise son brings joy to his father,
but a foolish man despises his mother.(G)
21 Foolishness brings joy to one without sense,
but a person with understanding walks a straight path.(H)
22 Plans fail when there is no counsel,
but with many advisers they succeed.(I)
24 For the prudent the path of life leads upward,
so that he may avoid going down to Sheol.
25 The Lord tears apart the house of the proud,
but he protects the widow’s territory.(K)
26 The Lord detests the plans of the one who is evil,
but pleasant words are pure.(L)
27 The one who profits dishonestly(M) troubles his household,
but the one who hates bribes will live.(N)
28 The mind of the righteous person thinks before answering,(O)
but the mouth of the wicked blurts out evil things.(P)
32 Anyone who ignores discipline despises himself,(U)
but whoever listens to correction acquires good sense.[d](V)
33 The fear of the Lord is what wisdom teaches,
and humility comes before honor.(W)
An Approved Worker
14 Remind them of these things, and charge them before God[a] not to fight about words.(A) This is useless and leads to the ruin of those who listen. 15 Be diligent to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.(B) 16 Avoid irreverent and empty speech, since those who engage in it will produce even more godlessness,(C) 17 and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus(D) and Philetus are among them. 18 They have departed from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already taken place,(E) and are ruining the faith of some.(F) 19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, bearing this inscription:(G) The Lord knows those who are his,[b](H) and let everyone who calls on the name(I) of[c] the Lord turn away from wickedness.(J)
20 Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels,(K) but also those of wood and clay; some for honorable[d] use and some for dishonorable.[e](L) 21 So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable,[f] he will be a special[g] instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.(M)
22 Flee(N) from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace,(O) along with those who call on the Lord(P) from a pure heart. 23 But reject foolish and ignorant disputes, because you know that they breed quarrels. 24 The Lord’s(Q) servant must not quarrel,(R) but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach,[h] and patient, 25 instructing his opponents with gentleness.(S) Perhaps God will grant them repentance(T) leading them to the knowledge of the truth. 26 Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil,(U) who has taken them captive to do his will.(V)
36 While you have the light,(A) believe in the light so that you may become children of light.” Jesus said this, then went away and hid from them.(B)
Isaiah’s Prophecies Fulfilled
37 Even though he had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in him. 38 This was to fulfill(C) the word of Isaiah(D) the prophet, who said:[a]
39 This is why they were unable to believe, because Isaiah also said:
40 He has blinded(G) their eyes
and hardened their hearts,(H)
so that they would not see with their eyes
or understand with their hearts,
and turn,(I)
and I would heal them.[c](J)
41 Isaiah said these things because[d] he saw his glory(K) and spoke about him.
42 Nevertheless, many did believe in him even among the rulers,(L) but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, so that they would not be banned from the synagogue. 43 For they loved human praise(M) more than praise from God.(N)
A Summary of Jesus’s Mission
44 Jesus cried out, “The one who believes in me(O) believes not in me, but in him who sent me. 45 And the one who sees me sees him(P) who sent me. 46 I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me would not remain in darkness. 47 If anyone hears my words and doesn’t keep(Q) them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world(R) but to save the world.(S) 48 The one who rejects me(T) and doesn’t receive my sayings has this as his judge: [e] The word I have spoken will judge him on the last day.(U) 49 For I have not spoken on my own, but the Father(V) himself who sent me has given me a command to say everything I have said. 50 I know that his command is eternal life.(W) So the things that I speak, I speak just as the Father has told me.”(X)
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