Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 16
Confidence in the Lord
A Davidic Miktam.(A)
1 Protect me, God, for I take refuge in You.(B)
2 I[a] said to Yahweh, “You are my Lord;
I have nothing good besides You.”[b](C)
3 As for the holy people who are in the land,(D)
they are the noble ones.
All my delight is in them.
4 The sorrows of those who take another god
for themselves will multiply;
I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood,
and I will not speak their names with my lips.(E)
5 Lord, You are my portion[c]
and my cup of blessing;
You hold my future.(F)
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me
in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.(G)
7 I will praise the Lord who counsels me(H)—
even at night my conscience instructs me.(I)
8 I keep the Lord in mind[d] always.
Because He is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.(J)
9 Therefore my heart is glad
and my spirit rejoices;
my body also rests securely.(K)
10 For You will not abandon me to Sheol;(L)
You will not allow Your Faithful One to see decay.(M)
11 You reveal the path of life to me;
in Your presence is abundant joy;(N)
in Your right hand are eternal pleasures.(O)
Psalm 17
A Prayer for Protection
A Davidic prayer.
1 Lord, hear a just cause;(P)
pay attention to my cry;
listen to my prayer—
from lips free of deceit.(Q)
2 Let my vindication come from You,
for You see what is right.(R)
3 You have tested my heart;(S)
You have examined me at night.
You have tried me and found nothing evil;(T)
I have determined that my mouth will not sin.[e]
4 Concerning what people do:
by the word of Your lips[f]
I have avoided the ways of the violent.(U)
5 My steps are on Your paths;
my feet have not slipped.(V)
6 I call on You, God,
because You will answer me;(W)
listen closely to me; hear what I say.
7 Display the wonders of Your faithful love,(X)
Savior of all who seek refuge(Y)
from those who rebel against Your right hand.[g]
8 Protect me as the pupil of Your eye;(Z)
hide me in the shadow of Your wings(AA)
9 from[h] the wicked who treat me violently,[i]
my deadly enemies who surround me.(AB)
10 They have become hardened;[j](AC)
their mouths speak arrogantly.(AD)
11 They advance against me;[k] now they surround me.(AE)
They are determined[l]
to throw me to the ground.(AF)
12 They are[m] like a lion eager to tear,
like a young lion lurking in ambush.(AG)
13 Rise up, Lord!
Confront him; bring him down.(AH)
With Your sword, save me from the wicked.(AI)
14 With Your hand, Lord, save me from men,
from men of the world
whose portion is in this life:
You fill their bellies with what You have in store;
their sons are satisfied,
and they leave their surplus to their children.(AJ)
Psalm 22
From Suffering to Praise
For the choir director: according to “The Deer of the Dawn.”[a] A Davidic psalm.
1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?(A)
Why are You so far from my deliverance(B)
and from my words of groaning?[b](C)
2 My God, I cry by day, but You do not answer,
by night, yet I have no rest.(D)
3 But You are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.(E)
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
they trusted, and You rescued them.(F)
5 They cried to You and were set free;
they trusted in You and were not disgraced.(G)
6 But I am a worm and not a man,(H)
scorned by men and despised by people.(I)
7 Everyone who sees me mocks me;
they sneer[c] and shake their heads:(J)
8 “He relies on[d] the Lord;
let Him rescue him;
let the Lord[e] deliver him,
since He takes pleasure in him.”(K)
9 You took me from the womb,
making me secure while at my mother’s breast.(L)
10 I was given over to You at birth;[f]
You have been my God from my mother’s womb.(M)
11 Do not be far from me, because distress is near
and there is no one to help.(N)
12 Many bulls surround me;
strong ones of Bashan encircle me.(O)
13 They open their mouths against me—
lions, mauling and roaring.(P)
14 I am poured out like water,(Q)
and all my bones are disjointed;(R)
my heart is like wax,
melting within me.(S)
15 My strength is dried up like baked clay;(T)
my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.(U)
You put me into the dust of death.(V)
16 For dogs have surrounded me;(W)
a gang of evildoers has closed in on me;
they pierced[g] my hands and my feet.(X)
17 I can count all my bones;
people[h] look and stare at me.(Y)
18 They divided my garments among themselves,
and they cast lots for my clothing.(Z)
19 But You, Lord, don’t be far away.(AA)
My strength, come quickly to help me.(AB)
20 Deliver my life from the sword,(AC)
my only life[i] from the power of these dogs.
21 Save me from the mouth of the lion!(AD)
You have rescued[j] me
from the horns of the wild oxen.
22 I will proclaim Your name to my brothers;
I will praise You in the congregation.(AE)
23 You who fear Yahweh, praise Him!(AF)
All you descendants of Jacob, honor Him!
All you descendants of Israel, revere Him!(AG)
24 For He has not despised or detested
the torment of the afflicted.(AH)
He did not hide His face from him(AI)
but listened when he cried to Him for help.(AJ)
25 I will give praise[k] in the great congregation
because of You;(AK)
I will fulfill my vows
before those who fear You.[l](AL)
26 The humble[m] will eat and be satisfied;(AM)
those who seek the Lord will praise Him.
May your hearts live forever!(AN)
27 All the ends of the earth will remember
and turn to the Lord.
All the families of the nations
will bow down before You,(AO)
28 for kingship belongs to the Lord;
He rules over the nations.(AP)
29 All who prosper on earth will eat and bow down;
all those who go down to the dust
will kneel before Him—
even the one who cannot preserve his life.(AQ)
30 Their descendants will serve Him;
the next generation will be told about the Lord.(AR)
31 They will come and tell a people yet to be born
about His righteousness—
what He has done.(AS)
The Servant’s Mission
42 “This(A) is My Servant;(B) I strengthen Him,
this is My Chosen One;(C) I delight in Him.(D)
I have put My Spirit on Him;(E)
He will bring justice[a] to the nations.(F)
2 He will not cry out or shout
or make His voice heard in the streets.
3 He will not break a bruised reed,
and He will not put out a smoldering wick;
He will faithfully bring justice.
4 He will not grow weak or be discouraged
until He has established justice on earth.
The islands will wait for His instruction.”(G)
5 This is what God, Yahweh, says—
who created the heavens and stretched them out,(H)
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,(I)
who gives breath to the people on it
and life[b] to those who walk on it(J)—
6 “I, Yahweh, have called You
for a righteous purpose,[c](K)
and I will hold You by Your hand.(L)
I will keep You and appoint You
to be a covenant for the people(M)
and a light to the nations,(N)
7 in order to open blind eyes,(O)
to bring out prisoners from the dungeon,(P)
and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.
8 I am Yahweh, that is My name;
I will not give My glory to another(Q)
or My praise to idols.
9 The past events have indeed happened.
Now I declare new events;(R)
I announce them to you before they occur.”
A Song of Praise
10 Sing a new song to the Lord;(S)
sing His praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea with all that fills it,(T)
you islands with your[d] inhabitants.
11 Let the desert and its cities shout,
the settlements where Kedar dwells cry aloud.(U)
Let the inhabitants of Sela sing for joy;(V)
let them cry out from the mountaintops.
12 Let them give glory to the Lord
and declare His praise in the islands.
13 The Lord advances like a warrior;
He stirs up His zeal like a soldier.(W)
He shouts, He roars aloud,
He prevails over His enemies.
14 “I have kept silent from ages past;
I have been quiet and restrained Myself.(X)
But now, I will groan like a woman in labor,(Y)
gasping breathlessly.
15 I will lay waste mountains and hills
and dry up all their vegetation.
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up marshes.(Z)
16 I will lead the blind by a way they did not know;(AA)
I will guide them on paths they have not known.
I will turn darkness to light in front of them(AB)
and rough places into level ground.(AC)
This is what I will do for them,
and I will not forsake them.(AD)
17 They will be turned back and utterly ashamed—
those who trust in idols
and say to metal-plated images:
You are our gods!(AE)
Paul’s Ministry to the Gentiles
3 For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner(A) of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— 2 you have heard, haven’t you, about the administration of God’s grace that He gave to me for you? 3 The mystery was made known to me by revelation,(B) as I have briefly written above. 4 By reading this you are able to understand my insight about the mystery of the Messiah.(C) 5 This was not made known to people[a] in other generations as it is now revealed to His holy apostles and prophets(D) by the Spirit: 6 The Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and partners of the promise(E) in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 7 I was made a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the working of His power.(F)
8 This grace was given to me—the least of all the saints—to proclaim to the Gentiles the incalculable riches(G) of the Messiah, 9 and to shed light for all about the administration of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created(H) all things. 10 This is so God’s multi-faceted wisdom(I) may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens.(J) 11 This is according to His eternal purpose(K) accomplished in the Messiah, Jesus our Lord. 12 In Him we have boldness and confident access(L) through faith in Him.[b] 13 So then I ask you not to be discouraged(M) over my afflictions on your behalf, for they are your glory.(N)
The Call of Matthew
13 Then(A) Jesus went out again beside the sea. The whole crowd was coming to Him, and He taught(B) them. 14 Then, moving on, He saw Levi(C) the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office,(D) and He said to him, “Follow Me!”(E) So he got up and followed(F) Him.
Dining with Sinners
15 While He was reclining at the table in Levi’s house, many tax collectors(G) and sinners(H) were also guests[a](I) with Jesus and His disciples, because there were many who were following Him. 16 When the scribes(J) of the Pharisees[b](K) saw that He was eating(L) with sinners(M) and tax collectors,(N) they asked His disciples, “Why does He eat[c] with tax collectors and sinners?”
17 When Jesus heard this, He told them, “Those who are well don’t need(O) a doctor,(P) but the sick(Q) do need one. I didn’t come to call the righteous,(R) but sinners.”(S)
A Question about Fasting
18 Now(T) John’s(U) disciples(V) and the Pharisees[d](W) were fasting.(X) People came and asked Him, “Why do John’s disciples and the Pharisees’ disciples fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”
19 Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests[e] cannot fast while the groom(Y) is with them, can they? As long as they have the groom with them, they cannot fast. 20 But the time[f] will come(Z) when the groom is taken away from them,(AA) and then they will fast(AB) in that day. 21 No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new patch pulls away from the old cloth,(AC) and a worse tear is made. 22 And no one puts new wine(AD) into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst(AE) the skins, and the wine is lost as well as the skins.[g] But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”
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