Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 5[a]
For the music director, to be accompanied by wind instruments;[b] a psalm of David.
5 Listen to what I say,[c] Lord!
Carefully consider my complaint![d]
2 Pay attention to my cry for help,
my King and my God,
for I am praying to you!
3 Lord, in the morning[e] you will hear[f] me;[g]
in the morning I will present my case to you[h] and then wait expectantly for an answer.[i]
4 Certainly[j] you are not a God who approves of evil;[k]
evil people[l] cannot dwell with you.[m]
5 Arrogant people cannot stand in your presence;[n]
you hate[o] all who behave wickedly.[p]
6 You destroy[q] liars;[r]
the Lord despises[s] violent and deceitful people.[t]
7 But as for me,[u] because of your great faithfulness I will enter your house;[v]
I will bow down toward your holy temple as I worship you.[w]
8 Lord, lead me in your righteousness[x]
because of those who wait to ambush me,[y]
remove the obstacles in the way in which you are guiding me.[z]
9 For[aa] they do not speak the truth;[ab]
their stomachs are like the place of destruction,[ac]
their throats like an open grave,[ad]
their tongues like a steep slope leading into it.[ae]
10 Condemn them,[af] O God!
May their own schemes be their downfall.[ag]
Drive them away[ah] because of their many acts of insurrection,[ai]
for they have rebelled against you.
11 But may all who take shelter[aj] in you be happy.[ak]
May they continually[al] shout for joy.[am]
Shelter them[an] so that those who are loyal to you[ao] may rejoice.[ap]
12 Certainly[aq] you reward[ar] the godly,[as] Lord.
Like a shield you protect[at] them[au] in your good favor.[av]
Psalm 6[aw]
For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments, according to the sheminith style;[ax] a psalm of David.
6 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger.
Do not discipline me in your raging fury.[ay]
2 Have mercy on me,[az] Lord, for I am frail.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are shaking.[ba]
3 I am absolutely terrified,[bb]
and you, Lord—how long will this continue?[bc]
4 Relent, Lord, rescue me![bd]
Deliver me because of your faithfulness.[be]
5 For no one remembers you in the realm of death.[bf]
In Sheol who gives you thanks?[bg]
6 I am exhausted as I groan.
All night long I drench my bed in tears;[bh]
my tears saturate the cushion beneath me.[bi]
7 My eyes[bj] grow dim[bk] from suffering;
they grow weak[bl] because of all my enemies.[bm]
8 Turn back from me, all you who behave wickedly,[bn]
for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.[bo]
9 The Lord has heard my appeal for mercy;
the Lord has accepted[bp] my prayer.
10 They will be humiliated[bq] and absolutely terrified.[br]
All my enemies will turn back and be suddenly humiliated.
Psalm 10[a]
10 Why, Lord, do you stand far off?
Why do you pay no attention during times of trouble?[b]
2 The wicked arrogantly chase the oppressed;[c]
the oppressed are trapped[d] by the schemes the wicked have dreamed up.[e]
3 Yes,[f] the wicked man[g] boasts because he gets what he wants;[h]
the one who robs others[i] curses[j] and[k] rejects the Lord.[l]
4 The wicked man is so arrogant he always thinks,
“God won’t hold me accountable; he doesn’t care.”[m]
5 He is secure at all times.[n]
He has no regard for your commands;[o]
he disdains all his enemies.[p]
6 He says to himself,[q]
“I will never[r] be shaken,
because I experience no calamity.”[s]
7 His mouth is full of curses and deceptive, harmful words;[t]
his tongue injures and destroys.[u]
8 He waits in ambush near the villages;[v]
in hidden places he kills the innocent.
His eyes look for some unfortunate victim.[w]
9 He lies in ambush in a hidden place, like a lion in a thicket.[x]
He lies in ambush, waiting to catch[y] the oppressed;
he catches the oppressed[z] by pulling in his net.[aa]
10 His victims are crushed and beaten down;
they are trapped in his sturdy nets.[ab]
11 He says to himself,[ac]
“God overlooks it;
he does not pay attention;
he never notices.”[ad]
12 Rise up, Lord![ae]
O God, strike him down.[af]
Do not forget the oppressed.
13 Why does the wicked man reject God?[ag]
He says to himself,[ah] “You[ai] will not hold me accountable.”[aj]
14 You have taken notice,[ak]
for[al] you always see[am] one who inflicts pain and suffering.[an]
The unfortunate victim entrusts his cause to you;[ao]
you deliver[ap] the fatherless.[aq]
15 Break the arm[ar] of the wicked and evil man.
Hold him accountable for his wicked deeds,[as]
which he thought you would not discover.[at]
16 The Lord rules forever![au]
The nations are driven out of his land.[av]
17 Lord, you have heard[aw] the request[ax] of the oppressed;
you make them feel secure because you listen to their prayer.[ay]
18 You defend[az] the fatherless and oppressed,[ba]
so that mere mortals may no longer terrorize them.[bb]
Psalm 11[bc]
For the music director, by David.
11 In the Lord I have taken shelter.[bd]
How can you say to me,[be]
“Flee to a mountain like a bird.[bf]
2 For look, the wicked[bg] prepare[bh] their bows,[bi]
they put their arrows on the strings,
to shoot in the darkness[bj] at the morally upright.[bk]
3 When the foundations[bl] are destroyed,
what can the godly[bm] accomplish?”[bn]
4 The Lord is in his holy temple;[bo]
the Lord’s throne is in heaven.[bp]
His eyes[bq] watch;[br]
his eyes[bs] examine[bt] all people.[bu]
5 The Lord approves of[bv] the godly,[bw]
but he[bx] hates[by] the wicked and those who love to do violence.[bz]
6 May he rain down[ca] burning coals[cb] and brimstone[cc] on the wicked!
A whirlwind is what they deserve.[cd]
7 Certainly[ce] the Lord is just;[cf]
he rewards godly deeds.[cg]
The upright will experience his favor.[ch]
16 Better[a] is little with the fear of the Lord
than great wealth and turmoil[b] with it.[c]
17 Better a meal of vegetables where there is love[d]
than a fattened ox where there is hatred.[e]
18 A quick-tempered person[f] stirs up dissension,
but one who is slow to anger[g] calms[h] a quarrel.[i]
19 The way of the sluggard is like a hedge of thorns,[j]
but the path of the upright is like[k] a highway.[l]
20 A wise child[m] brings joy to his father,
but a foolish person[n] despises[o] his mother.
21 Folly is a joy to one who lacks sense,[p]
but one who has understanding[q] follows an upright course.[r]
22 Plans fail[s] when there is no counsel,
but with abundant advisers they are established.[t]
23 A person has joy[u] in giving an appropriate answer,[v]
and a word at the right time[w]—how good it is!
24 The path of life is upward[x] for the wise person,[y]
to[z] keep him from going downward to Sheol.[aa]
25 The Lord tears down the house of the proud,[ab]
but he maintains the boundaries of the widow.[ac]
26 The Lord abhors[ad] the plans[ae] of the wicked,[af]
but pleasant words[ag] are pure.[ah]
27 The one who is greedy for gain[ai] troubles[aj] his household,[ak]
but whoever hates bribes[al] will live.
28 The heart[am] of the righteous considers[an] how[ao] to answer,[ap]
but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.[aq]
29 The Lord is far[ar] from the wicked,
but he hears[as] the prayer of the righteous.[at]
30 A bright look[au] brings joy to the heart,
and good news gives health to the body.[av]
31 The person[aw] who hears the reproof that leads to life[ax]
is at home[ay] among the wise.[az]
32 The one who refuses correction despises himself,[ba]
but whoever listens to[bb] reproof acquires understanding.[bc]
33 The fear of the Lord provides wise instruction,[bd]
and before honor comes humility.[be]
Dealing with False Teachers
14 Remind people[a] of these things and solemnly charge them[b] before the Lord[c] not to wrangle over words. This is of no benefit; it just brings ruin on those who listen.[d] 15 Make every effort to present yourself before God as a proven worker who does not need to be ashamed, teaching the message of truth accurately.[e] 16 But avoid profane chatter,[f] because those occupied with it will stray further and further into ungodliness,[g] 17 and their message will spread its infection[h] like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are in this group.[i] 18 They have strayed from the truth[j] by saying that the resurrection has already occurred, and they are undermining some people’s faith. 19 However, God’s solid foundation remains standing, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,”[k] and “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord[l] must turn away from evil.”
20 Now in a wealthy home[m] there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also ones made of wood and of clay, and some are for honorable use, but others for ignoble use.[n] 21 So if someone cleanses himself of such behavior,[o] he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart, useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. 22 But keep away from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faithfulness, love, and peace, in company with others[p] who call on the Lord from a pure heart.[q] 23 But reject foolish and ignorant[r] controversies, because you know they breed infighting.[s] 24 And the Lord’s slave[t] must not engage in heated disputes[u] but be kind toward all, an apt teacher, patient, 25 correcting[v] opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance and then knowledge of the truth[w] 26 and they will come to their senses and escape the devil’s trap where they are held captive[x] to do his will.[y]
36 While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become sons of light.”[a] When Jesus had said these things, he went away and hid himself from them.
The Outcome of Jesus’ Public Ministry Foretold
37 Although Jesus[b] had performed[c] so many miraculous signs before them, they still refused to believe in him, 38 so that the word[d] of the prophet Isaiah would be fulfilled. He said,[e] “Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the Lord[f] been revealed?”[g] 39 For this reason they could not believe,[h] because again Isaiah said,
40 “He has blinded their eyes
and hardened their heart,[i]
so that they would not see with their eyes
and understand with their heart,[j]
and turn to me,[k] and I would heal them.”[l]
41 Isaiah said these things because he saw Christ’s[m] glory, and spoke about him.
42 Nevertheless, even among the rulers[n] many believed in him, but because of the Pharisees[o] they would not confess Jesus to be the Christ,[p] so that they would not be put out of[q] the synagogue.[r] 43 For they loved praise[s] from men more than praise[t] from God.
Jesus’ Final Public Words
44 But Jesus shouted out,[u] “The one who believes in me does not believe in me, but in the one who sent me,[v] 45 and the one who sees me sees the one who sent me.[w] 46 I have come as a light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in darkness. 47 If anyone[x] hears my words and does not obey them,[y] I do not judge him. For I have not come to judge the world, but to save the world.[z] 48 The one who rejects me and does not accept[aa] my words has a judge;[ab] the word[ac] I have spoken will judge him at the last day. 49 For I have not spoken from my own authority,[ad] but the Father himself who sent me has commanded me[ae] what I should say and what I should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is eternal life.[af] Thus the things I say, I say just as the Father has told me.”[ag]
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