Book of Common Prayer
Book One
The Righteous and the Wicked Contrasted.
1 [a]Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked [following their advice and example],
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit [down to rest] in the seat of [b]scoffers (ridiculers).
2
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And on His law [His precepts and teachings] he [habitually] meditates day and night.(A)
3
And he will be like a tree firmly planted [and fed] by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season;
Its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers [and comes to maturity].(B)
4
The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so,
But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.
5
Therefore the wicked will not stand [unpunished] in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6
For the Lord knows and fully approves the way of the righteous,
But the way of the wicked shall perish.
The Reign of the Lord’s Anointed.
2 Why are the [c]nations in an [d]uproar [in turmoil against God],
And why do the people devise a vain and hopeless plot?
2
The kings of the earth take their stand;
And the rulers take counsel together
Against the Lord and His Anointed (the Davidic King, the Messiah, the Christ), saying,(C)
3
“Let us break apart their [divine] bands [of restraint]
And cast away their cords [of control] from us.”
4
He who sits [enthroned] in the heavens laughs [at their rebellion];
The [Sovereign] [e]Lord scoffs at them [and in supreme contempt He mocks them].
5
Then He will speak to them in His [profound] anger
And terrify them with His displeasure, saying,
6
“Yet as for Me, I have anointed and firmly installed My King
Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”
7
“I will declare the decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are My Son;
This day [I proclaim] I have begotten You.(D)
8
‘Ask of Me, and I will assuredly give [You] the nations as Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth as Your possession.
9
‘You shall break them with a rod of iron;
You shall shatter them [in pieces] like earthenware.’”(E)
10
Now therefore, O kings, act wisely;
Be instructed and take warning, O leaders (judges, rulers) of the earth.
11
Worship the Lord and serve Him with reverence [with awe-inspired fear and submissive wonder];
Rejoice [yet do so] with trembling.
12
Kiss (pay respect to) the [f]Son, so that He does not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For His wrath may soon be kindled and set aflame.
How blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] are all those who take refuge in Him!
Morning Prayer of Trust in God.
A Psalm of David. When he fled from Absalom his son.
3 O Lord, how my enemies have increased!
Many are rising up against me.
2
Many are saying of me,
“There is no help [no salvation] for him in God.” [g]Selah.
3
But You, O Lord, are a shield for me,
My glory [and my honor], and the One who lifts my head.
4
With my voice I was crying to the Lord,
And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.
5
I lay down and slept [safely];
I awakened, for the Lord sustains me.
6
I will not be intimidated or afraid of the ten thousands
Who have set themselves against me all around.
7
Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God!
For You have struck all my enemies on the cheek;
You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.
8
Salvation belongs to the Lord;
May Your blessing be upon Your people. Selah.
Evening Prayer of Trust in God.
To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.
4 Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!
You have freed me when I was hemmed in and relieved me when I was in distress;
Be gracious to me and hear [and respond to] my prayer.
2
O sons of men, how long will my honor and glory be [turned into] shame?
How long will you [my enemies] love worthless (vain, futile) things and seek deception and lies? Selah.
3
But know that the Lord has set apart for Himself [and dealt wonderfully with] the godly man [the one of honorable character and moral courage—the one who does right].
The Lord hears and responds when I call to Him.
4
Tremble [with anger or fear], and do not sin;
Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still [reflect on your sin and repent of your rebellion].(F) Selah.
5
Offer righteous sacrifices;
Trust [confidently] in the Lord.
6
Many are saying, “Oh, that we might see some good!”
Lift up the light of Your face upon us, O Lord.
7
You have put joy in my heart,
More than [others know] when their wheat and new wine have yielded abundantly.
8
In peace [and with a tranquil heart] I will both lie down and sleep,
For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety and confident trust.
The Lord Implored to Defend the Psalmist against the Wicked.
An [a]Ode of David, [perhaps in a wild, irregular, enthusiastic strain,] which he sang to the Lord concerning the words of Cush, a Benjamite.
7 O Lord my God, in You I take refuge;
Save me and rescue me from all those who pursue me,
2
So that my enemy will not tear me like a lion,
Dragging me away while there is no one to rescue [me].
3
O Lord my God, if I have done this,
If there is injustice in my hands,
4
If I have done evil to him who was at peace with me,
Or without cause robbed him who was my enemy,
5
Let the enemy pursue me and overtake me;
And let him trample my life to the ground
And lay my honor in the dust. Selah.
6
Arise, O Lord, in Your anger;
Lift up Yourself against the rage of my enemies;
Rise up for me; You have commanded judgment and vindication.
7
Let the assembly of the nations be gathered around You,
And return on high over them.
8
The Lord judges the peoples;
Judge me, O Lord, and grant me justice according to my righteousness and according to the integrity within me.
9
Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous [those in right standing with You];
For the righteous God tries the hearts and minds.(A)
10
My shield and my defense depend on God,
Who saves the upright in heart.
11
God is a righteous judge,
And a God who is indignant every day.
12
If a man does not repent, God will sharpen His sword;
He has strung and bent His [mighty] bow and made it ready.
13
He has also prepared [other] deadly weapons for Himself;
He makes His arrows fiery shafts [aimed at the unrepentant].
14
Behold, the [wicked and irreverent] man is pregnant with sin,
And he conceives mischief and gives birth to lies.
15
He has dug a pit and hollowed it out,
And has fallen into the [very] pit which he made [as a trap].
16
His mischief will return on his own head,
And his violence will come down on the top of his head [like loose dirt].
17
I will give thanks to the Lord according to His righteousness and justice,
And I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.
9 “Only pay attention and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen and they do not depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your grandchildren [impressing these things on their mind and penetrating their heart with these truths]— 10 especially the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb (Mount Sinai), when the Lord said to me, ‘Assemble the people to Me and I will let them hear My words, so that they may learn to fear Me [with awe-filled reverence and profound respect] all the days they live on the land, and so that they may teach their children.’ 11 You approached and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the [very] heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud and thick gloom. 12 Then the Lord spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of the words, but you saw no form—there was only a voice. 13 So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to follow, [a]the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. 14 The Lord commanded me at that time to teach you the statutes and judgments, so that you might do them in the land which you are going over to possess.
Paul Describes Himself
10 Now I, Paul, urge you by the gentleness and graciousness of Christ—I who am meek [so they say] when with you face to face, but bold [outspoken and fearless] toward you when absent! 2 I ask that when I do come I will not be driven to the boldness that I intend to show toward those few who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh [like men without the Spirit]. 3 For though we walk in the flesh [as mortal men], we are not carrying on our [spiritual] warfare according to the flesh and using the weapons of man. 4 The weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood]. Our weapons are divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying sophisticated arguments and every exalted and proud thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought and purpose captive to the obedience of Christ, 6 being ready to punish every act of disobedience, when your own obedience [as a church] is complete.
7 You are looking [only] at the outward appearance of things. If anyone is confident that he is Christ’s, he should reflect and consider this, that just as he is Christ’s, so too are we. 8 For even though I boast rather freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed [of the truth], 9 nor do I want to seem to be trying to frighten you with my letters; 10 for they say, “His letters are weighty and forceful and impressive, but his [a]personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible [of no account].” 11 Let such people realize that what we say by word in letters when we are absent, is the same as what we are in action when present.
12 We do not have the audacity to put ourselves in the same class or compare ourselves with some who [supply testimonials to] commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they lack wisdom and behave like fools. 13 We, on the other hand, will not boast beyond our proper limit, but [will keep] within the [b]limits of our commission (territory, authority) which God has granted to us as a measure, which reaches and includes even you. 14 We are not overstepping the limits of our province, as if we did not [legitimately] reach to you, for we were the [very] first to come even as far as you with the good news of Christ. 15 We do not go beyond our proper limit, boasting in the work of other men, but we have the hope that as your faith [in Christ and His divine power] continues to grow, our field among you may be greatly expanded [but still within the limits of our commission], 16 so that we may preach the gospel even in the lands beyond you, but not to boast in work already accomplished in another one’s field of activity. 17 However, “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”(A) 18 For it is not he who commends and praises himself who is approved [by God], but it is the one whom the Lord commends and praises.
7 “And when you pray, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.(A) 8 So do not be like them [praying as they do]; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
9 “Pray, then, [a]in this way:
‘Our Father, who is in heaven,
[b]Hallowed be Your name.(B)
10
‘[c]Your kingdom come,
Your [d]will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11
‘Give us this day our [e]daily bread.
12
‘And forgive us our [f]debts, as we have forgiven our debtors [letting go of both the wrong and the resentment].
13
‘And do not [g]lead us into temptation, but deliver us from [h]evil. [i][For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]’(C)
14 For if you forgive [j]others their trespasses [their reckless and willful sins], your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others [nurturing your hurt and anger with the result that it interferes with your relationship with God], then your Father will not forgive your trespasses.
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