Book of Common Prayer
The Word of God
119 Happy are the people who live pure lives.
They follow the Lord’s teachings.
2 Happy are the people who keep his rules.
They ask him for help with their whole heart.
3 They don’t do what is wrong.
They follow his ways.
4 Lord, you gave your orders
to be followed completely.
5 I wish I were more loyal
in meeting your demands.
6 Then I would not be ashamed
when I think of your commands.
7 When I learned that your laws are fair,
I praised you with an honest heart.
8 I will meet your demands.
So please don’t ever leave me.
9 How can a young person live a pure life?
He can do it by obeying your word.
10 With all my heart I try to obey you, God.
Don’t let me break your commands.
11 I have taken your words to heart
so I would not sin against you.
12 Lord, you should be praised.
Teach me your demands.
13 My lips will tell about
all the laws you have spoken.
14 I enjoy living by your rules
as people enjoy great riches.
15 I think about your orders
and study your ways.
16 I enjoy obeying your demands.
And I will not forget your word.
17 Do good to me, your servant, so I can live,
so I can obey your word.
18 Open my eyes to see the wonderful things
in your teachings.
19 I am a stranger on earth.
Do not hide your commands from me.
20 I want to study
your laws all the time.
21 You scold proud people.
Those who ignore your commands are cursed.
22 Don’t let me be insulted and hated
because I obey your rules.
23 Even if princes speak against me,
I, your servant, will think about your demands.
24 Your rules give me pleasure.
They give me good advice.
A Prayer Against Liars
For the director of music. By the sheminith. A song of David.
12 Save me, Lord, because the good people are all gone.
No true believers are left on earth.
2 Everyone lies to his neighbors.
They say one thing and mean another.
3 The Lord will stop those lying lips.
He will cut off those bragging tongues.
4 They say, “Our tongues will help us win.
We can say what we wish. No one is our master.”
5 But the Lord says,
“I will now rise up
because the poor are being hurt.
Because of the moans of the helpless,
I will give them the help they want.”
6 The Lord’s words are pure.
They are like silver purified by fire,
like silver purified seven times over.
7 Lord, keep us safe.
Always protect us from such people.
8 The wicked are all around us.
Everyone loves what is wrong.
A Prayer for God to Be Near
For the director of music. A song of David.
13 How long will you forget me, Lord?
How long will you hide from me? Forever?
2 How long must I worry?
How long must I feel sad in my heart?
How long will my enemy win over me?
3 Lord, look at me.
Answer me, my God.
Tell me, or I will die.
4 Otherwise my enemy will say, “I have won!”
Those against me will rejoice that I’ve been defeated.
5 I trust in your love.
My heart is happy because you saved me.
6 I sing to the Lord
because he has taken care of me.
The Unbelieving Fool
For the director of music. Of David.
14 A wicked fool says to himself,
“There is no God.”
Fools are evil. They do terrible things.
None of them does anything good.
2 The Lord looked down from heaven at all the people.
He looked to see if anyone was wise,
if anyone was looking to God for help.
3 But all have turned away.
Together, everyone has become evil.
None of them does anything good.
4 Don’t the wicked understand?
They destroy my people as if they were eating bread.
They do not ask the Lord for help.
5 But the wicked are filled with terror
because God is with those who do what is right.
6 The wicked upset the plans of the poor.
But the Lord will protect the poor.
7 I pray that victory will come to Israel from Mount Zion!
May the Lord give them back their riches.
Then the people of Jacob will rejoice.
And the people of Israel will be glad.
17 It is better to eat a dry crust of bread in peace
than to have a feast where there is quarreling.
2 A wise servant will rule over his master’s disgraceful son.
And he will even inherit a share of what the master leaves his sons.
3 A hot furnace tests silver and gold.
In the same way, the Lord tests a person’s heart.
4 An evil person listens to evil words.
A liar pays attention to cruel words.
5 If you make fun of the poor,
you insult God, who made them.
If you laugh at someone’s trouble,
you will be punished.
6 Grandchildren are the reward of old people.
And children are proud of their parents.
7 Foolish people should not be proud.
And rulers should not be liars!
8 A person might think he can pay people and they will do anything he asks.
He thinks it will succeed every time.
9 Whoever forgives someone’s sin makes a friend.
But the one who tells about the sin breaks up friendships.
10 A wise man will learn more from a warning
than a foolish person will learn from 100 lashings.
11 A disobedient person is only looking for trouble.
So a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
12 It is better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
than to meet a foolish person doing foolish things.
13 If a person gives evil in return for good,
his house will always be full of trouble.
14 Starting a quarrel is like a leak in a dam.
So stop the quarrel before a fight breaks out.
15 The Lord hates both these things:
letting guilty people go free and punishing those who are not guilty.
16 It won’t do a fool any good to try to buy wisdom.
He doesn’t really want to be wise.
17 A friend loves you all the time.
A brother is always there to help you.
18 It is not wise to promise
to pay what your neighbor owes.
19 Whoever loves to quarrel loves to sin.
Whoever is proud is asking for trouble.
20 A person with an evil heart will find no success.
And the person whose words are evil will get into trouble.
The Last Days
3 Remember this! There will be many troubles in the last days. 2 In those times people will love only themselves and money. They will brag and be proud. They will say evil things against others. They will not obey their parents. People will not be thankful or be the kind of people God wants. 3 They will not have love for others. They will refuse to forgive others and will speak bad things. They will not control themselves. They will be cruel and will hate what is good. 4 In the last days, people will turn against their friends. They will do foolish things without thinking. They will be conceited and proud. They will love pleasure. They will not love God. 5 They will continue to act as if they serve God, but they will not really serve God. Stay away from those people. 6 Some of them go into homes and get control of weak women who are full of sin. They are led to sin by the many evil desires they have. 7 Those women always try to learn new teachings, but they are never able to understand the truth fully. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres were against Moses, these people are against the truth. They are people whose thinking has been confused. They have failed in trying to follow the faith. 9 But they will not be successful in what they do. Everyone will see that they are foolish. That is what happened to Jannes and Jambres.
Obey the Teachings
10 But you know all about me. You know what I teach and the way I live. You know my goal in life. You know my faith, my patience, and my love. You know that I never stop trying. 11 You know how I have been hurt and have suffered. You know all that happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. You know the hurts I suffered in those places. But the Lord saved me from all those troubles. 12 Everyone who wants to live the way God wants, in Christ Jesus, will be persecuted. 13 People who are evil and cheat other people will go from bad to worse. They will fool others, but they will also be fooling themselves.
14 But you should continue following the teachings that you learned. You know that these teachings are true. And you know you can trust those who taught you. 15 You have known the Holy Scriptures since you were a child. The Scriptures are able to make you wise. And that wisdom leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching and for showing people what is wrong in their lives. It is useful for correcting faults and teaching how to live right. 17 Using the Scriptures, the person who serves God will be ready and will have everything he needs to do every good work.
Jesus Washes His Followers’ Feet
13 It was almost time for the Jewish Passover Feast. Jesus knew that it was time for him to leave this world and go back to the Father. He had always loved those who were his own in the world, and he loved them all the way to the end.
2 Jesus and his followers were at the evening meal. The devil had already persuaded Judas Iscariot to turn against Jesus. (Judas was the son of Simon.) 3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him power over everything. He also knew that he had come from God and was going back to God. 4 So during the meal Jesus stood up and took off his outer clothing. Taking a towel, he wrapped it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a bowl and began to wash the followers’ feet. He dried them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
6 Jesus came to Simon Peter. But Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus answered, “You don’t understand what I am doing now. But you will understand later.”
8 Peter said, “No! You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered, “If I don’t wash your feet, then you are not one of my people.”
9 Simon Peter answered, “Lord, after you wash my feet, wash my hands and my head, too!”
10 Jesus said, “After a person has had a bath, his whole body is clean. He needs only to wash his feet. And you men are clean, but not all of you.” 11 Jesus knew who would turn against him. That is why Jesus said, “Not all of you are clean.”
12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and sat down again. Jesus asked, “Do you understand what I have just done for you? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord.’ And this is right, because that is what I am. 14 I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet. So you also should wash each other’s feet. 15 I did this as an example for you. So you should do as I have done for you. 16 I tell you the truth. A servant is not greater than his master. A messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. 17 If you know these things, you will be happy if you do them.
18 “I am not talking about all of you. I know those I have chosen. But what the Scripture said must happen: ‘The man who ate at my table has now turned against me.’[a] 19 I am telling you this now before it happens. Then when it happens you will believe that I am he. 20 I tell you the truth. Whoever accepts anyone I send also accepts me. And whoever accepts me also accepts the One who sent me.”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.