Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 148
Praise for God’s Universal Glory
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
praise him in the heights!
2 Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his host!(A)
3 Praise him, sun and moon;
praise him, all you shining stars!
4 Praise him, you highest heavens
and you waters above the heavens!(B)
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he commanded and they were created.(C)
6 He established them forever and ever;
he fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed.[a](D)
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea monsters and all deeps,(E)
8 fire and hail, snow and frost,
stormy wind fulfilling his command!(F)
9 Mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars!(G)
10 Wild animals and all cattle,
creeping things and flying birds!
11 Kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth!
12 Young men and women alike,
old and young together!
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his glory is above earth and heaven.(H)
14 He has raised up a horn for his people,
praise for all his faithful,
for the people of Israel who are close to him.
Praise the Lord!(I)
Psalm 149
Praise for God’s Goodness to Israel
1 Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song,
his praise in the assembly of the faithful.(J)
2 Let Israel be glad in its Maker;
let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.(K)
3 Let them praise his name with dancing,
making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.(L)
4 For the Lord takes pleasure in his people;
he adorns the humble with victory.(M)
5 Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy on their couches.(N)
6 Let the high praises of God be in their throats
and two-edged swords in their hands,(O)
7 to execute vengeance on the nations
and punishment on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with fetters
and their nobles with chains of iron,
9 to execute on them the judgment decreed.
This is glory for all his faithful ones.
Praise the Lord!(P)
Psalm 150
Praise for God’s Surpassing Greatness
Psalm 114
God’s Wonders at the Exodus
1 [a]When Israel went out from Egypt,
the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,(A)
2 Judah became God’s[b] sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.(B)
3 The sea looked and fled;
Jordan turned back.(C)
4 The mountains skipped like rams,
the hills like lambs.(D)
5 Why is it, O sea, that you flee?
O Jordan, that you turn back?
6 O mountains, that you skip like rams?
O hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,(E)
8 who turns the rock into a pool of water,
the flint into a spring of water.(F)
Psalm 115
The Impotence of Idols and the Greatness of God
1 [c]Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,
for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness.(G)
2 Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”(H)
3 Our God is in the heavens;
he does whatever he pleases.(I)
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
the work of human hands.(J)
5 They have mouths, but they do not speak;
they have eyes, but they do not see.
6 They have ears, but they do not hear;
they have noses, but they do not smell.
7 They have hands, but they do not feel;
they have feet, but they do not walk;
they make no sound in their throats.
8 Those who make them are like them;
so are all who trust in them.(K)
9 O Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.(L)
10 O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.(M)
12 The Lord has been mindful of us; he will bless us;
he will bless the house of Israel;
he will bless the house of Aaron;
13 he will bless those who fear the Lord,
both small and great.
Wisdom’s Feast
9 Wisdom has built her house;
she has hewn her seven pillars.(A)
2 She has slaughtered her animals; she has mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.(B)
3 She has sent out her female servants; she calls
from the highest places in the town,(C)
4 “You who are simple, turn in here!”
To those without sense she says,(D)
5 “Come, eat of my bread
and drink of the wine I have mixed.(E)
6 Lay aside immaturity and live,
and walk in the way of insight.”(F)
General Maxims
7 Whoever corrects a scoffer wins abuse;
whoever rebukes the wicked gets hurt.(G)
8 Do not rebuke a scoffer, lest he hate you;
rebuke the wise, and he will love you.(H)
9 Give instruction[a] to the wise, and they will become wiser still;
teach the righteous, and they will gain in learning.(I)
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.(J)
11 For by me your days will be multiplied,
and years will be added to your life.(K)
12 If you are wise, you are wise for yourself;
if you scoff, you alone will bear it.(L)
14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them.(A) 15 The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit(B) 16 (for as yet the Spirit had not come[a] upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus).(C) 17 Then Peter and John[b] laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.(D) 18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me also this power so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain God’s gift with money!(E) 21 You have no part or share in this, for your heart is not right before God.(F) 22 Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and the chains of wickedness.”(G) 24 Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you[c] have said may happen to me.”
25 Now after Peter and John[d] had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, proclaiming the good news to many villages of the Samaritans.(H)
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
25 An expert in the law stood up to test Jesus.[a] “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”(A) 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27 He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.”(B) 28 And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”(C)
Jesus Visits Martha and Mary
38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him.[a](A) 39 She had a sister named Mary, who sat at Jesus’s[b] feet and listened to what he was saying.(B) 40 But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her, then, to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things, 42 but few things are needed—indeed only one.[c] Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”(C)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.