Book of Common Prayer
131 A Song of the Ascents, by David. Jehovah, my heart hath not been haughty, Nor have mine eyes been high, Nor have I walked in great things, And in things too wonderful for me.
2 Have I not compared, and kept silent my soul, As a weaned one by its mother? As a weaned one by me [is] my soul.
3 Israel doth wait on Jehovah, From henceforth, and unto the age!
132 A Song of the Ascents. Remember, Jehovah, for David, all his afflictions.
2 Who hath sworn to Jehovah. He hath vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob:
3 `If I enter into the tent of my house, If I go up on the couch of my bed,
4 If I give sleep to mine eyes, To mine eyelids -- slumber,
5 Till I do find a place for Jehovah, Tabernacles for the Mighty One of Jacob.
6 `Lo, we have heard it in Ephratah, We have found it in the fields of the forest.
7 We come in to His tabernacles, We bow ourselves at His footstool.
8 Arise, O Jehovah, to Thy rest, Thou, and the ark of Thy strength,
9 Thy priests do put on righteousness, And Thy pious ones cry aloud.
10 For the sake of David Thy servant, Turn not back the face of Thine anointed.
11 Jehovah hath sworn truth to David, He turneth not back from it: Of the fruit of thy body, I set on the throne for thee.
12 If thy sons keep My covenant, And My testimonies that I teach them, Their sons also for ever and ever, Do sit on the throne for thee.
13 For Jehovah hath fixed on Zion, He hath desired [it] for a seat to Himself,
14 This [is] My rest for ever and ever, Here do I sit, for I have desired it.
15 Her provision I greatly bless, Her needy ones I satisfy [with] bread,
16 And her priests I clothe [with] salvation, And her pious ones do sing aloud.
17 There I cause to spring up a horn for David, I have arranged a lamp for Mine anointed.
18 His enemies I do clothe [with] shame, And upon him doth his crown flourish!
133 A Song of the Ascents, by David. Lo, how good and how pleasant The dwelling of brethren -- even together!
2 As the good oil on the head, Coming down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, That cometh down on the skirt of his robes,
3 As dew of Hermon -- That cometh down on hills of Zion, For there Jehovah commanded the blessing -- Life unto the age!
134 A Song of the Ascents. Lo, bless Jehovah, all servants of Jehovah, Who are standing in the house of Jehovah by night.
2 Lift up your hands [in] the sanctuary, And bless ye Jehovah.
3 Jehovah doth bless thee out of Zion, The maker of the heavens and earth!
135 Praise ye Jah! Praise ye the name of Jehovah, Praise, ye servants of Jehovah,
2 Who are standing in the house of Jehovah, In the courts of the house of our God.
3 Praise ye Jah! for Jehovah [is] good, Sing praise to His name, for [it is] pleasant.
4 For Jacob hath Jah chosen for Himself, Israel for His peculiar treasure.
5 For I have known that great [is] Jehovah, Yea, our Lord [is] above all gods.
6 All that Jehovah pleased He hath done, In the heavens and in earth, In the seas and all deep places,
7 Causing vapours to ascend from the end of the earth, Lightnings for the rain He hath made, Bringing forth wind from His treasures.
8 Who smote the first-born of Egypt, From man unto beast.
9 He sent tokens and wonders into thy midst, O Egypt, On Pharaoh and on all his servants.
10 Who smote many nations, and slew strong kings,
11 Even Sihon king of the Amorite, And Og king of Bashan, And all kingdoms of Canaan.
12 And He gave their land an inheritance, An inheritance to Israel His people,
13 O Jehovah, Thy name [is] to the age, O Jehovah, Thy memorial to all generations.
14 For Jehovah doth judge His people, And for His servants comforteth Himself.
15 The idols of the nations [are] silver and gold, Work of the hands of man.
16 A mouth they have, and they speak not, Eyes they have, and they see not,
17 Ears they have, and they give not ear, Nose -- there is no breath in their mouth!
18 Like them are their makers, Every one who is trusting in them.
19 O house of Israel, bless ye Jehovah, O house of Aaron, bless ye Jehovah,
20 O house of Levi, bless ye Jehovah, Those fearing Jehovah, bless ye Jehovah.
21 Blessed [is] Jehovah from Zion, Inhabiting Jerusalem -- praise ye Jah!
3 Wo [to] the rebellious and polluted, The oppressing city!
2 She hath not hearkened to the voice, She hath not accepted instruction, In Jehovah she hath not trusted, Unto her God she hath not drawn near.
3 Her heads in her midst [are] roaring lions, Her judges [are] evening wolves, They have not gnawn the bone in the morning.
4 Her prophets unstable -- men of treachery, Her priests have polluted the sanctuary, They have violated the law.
5 Jehovah [is] righteous in her midst, He doth not do perverseness, Morning by morning His judgment he giveth to the light, It hath not been lacking, And the perverse doth not know shame.
6 I have cut off nations, Desolated have been their chief ones, I have laid waste their out-places without any passing by, Destroyed have been their cities, Without man, without inhabitant.
7 I have said: Only, ye do fear Me, Ye do accept instruction, And her habitation is not cut off, All that I have appointed for her, But they have risen early, They have corrupted all their doings.
8 Therefore, wait for Me -- an affirmation of Jehovah, For the day of My rising for prey, For My judgment [is] to gather nations, To assemble kingdoms, To pour out on them Mine indignation, All the heat of Mine anger, For by the fire of My jealousy consumed is all the earth.
9 For then do I turn unto peoples a pure lip, To call all of them by the name of Jehovah, To serve Him [with] one shoulder.
10 From beyond the rivers of Cush, my supplicants, The daughter of My scattered ones, Do bring My present.
11 In that day thou art not ashamed because of any of thine actions, Wherewith thou hast transgressed against Me, For then do I turn aside from thy midst The exulting ones of thine excellency, And thou dost add no more to be haughty, In My holy mountain.
12 And I have left in thy midst a people humble and poor, And they have trusted in the name of Jehovah.
13 The remnant of Israel do no perversity, nor speak lies, Nor found in their mouth is a deceitful tongue, For they have delight, and have lain down, And there is none troubling.
11 Beloved, I call upon [you], as strangers and sojourners, to keep from the fleshly desires, that war against the soul,
12 having your behaviour among the nations right, that in that which they speak against you as evil-doers, of the good works having beheld, they may glorify God in a day of inspection.
13 Be subject, then, to every human creation, because of the Lord, whether to a king, as the highest,
14 whether to governors, as to those sent through him, for punishment, indeed, of evil-doers, and a praise of those doing good;
15 because, so is the will of God, doing good, to put to silence the ignorance of the foolish men;
16 as free, and not having the freedom as the cloak of the evil, but as servants of God;
17 to all give ye honour; the brotherhood love ye; God fear ye; the king honour ye.
18 The domestics! be subjecting yourselves in all fear to the masters, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the cross;
19 for this [is] gracious, if because of conscience toward God any one doth endure sorrows, suffering unrighteously;
20 for what renown [is it], if sinning and being buffeted, ye do endure [it]? but if, doing good and suffering [for it], ye do endure, this [is] gracious with God,
21 for to this ye were called, because Christ also did suffer for you, leaving to you an example, that ye may follow his steps,
22 who did not commit sin, nor was guile found in his mouth,
23 who being reviled -- was not reviling again, suffering -- was not threatening, and was committing himself to Him who is judging righteously,
24 who our sins himself did bear in his body, upon the tree, that to the sins having died, to the righteousness we may live; by whose stripes ye were healed,
25 for ye were as sheep going astray, but ye turned back now to the shepherd and overseer of your souls.
20 `For the reign of the heavens is like to a man, a householder, who went forth with the morning to hire workmen for his vineyard,
2 and having agreed with the workmen for a denary a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
3 `And having gone forth about the third hour, he saw others standing in the market-place idle,
4 and to these he said, Go ye -- also ye -- to the vineyard, and whatever may be righteous I will give you;
5 and they went away. `Again, having gone forth about the sixth and the ninth hour, he did in like manner.
6 And about the eleventh hour, having gone forth, he found others standing idle, and saith to them, Why here have ye stood all the day idle?
7 they say to him, Because no one did hire us; he saith to them, Go ye -- ye also -- to the vineyard, and whatever may be righteous ye shall receive.
8 `And evening having come, the lord of the vineyard saith to his steward, Call the workmen, and pay them the reward, having begun from the last -- unto the first.
9 And they of about the eleventh hour having come, did receive each a denary.
10 `And the first having come, did suppose that they shall receive more, and they received, they also, each a denary,
11 and having received [it], they were murmuring against the householder, saying,
12 that These, the last, wrought one hour, and thou didst make them equal to us, who were bearing the burden of the day -- and the heat.
13 `And he answering said to one of them, Comrade, I do no unrighteousness to thee; for a denary didst not thou agree with me?
14 take that which is thine, and go; and I will to give to this, the last, also as to thee;
15 is it not lawful to me to do what I will in mine own? is thine eye evil because I am good?
16 So the last shall be first, and the first last, for many are called, and few chosen.'