Book of Common Prayer
BOOK 1
The Way of the Righteous and Wicked
1 How blessed is the man who (A)does not walk in the (B)counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the (C)way of sinners,
Nor (D)sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his (E)delight is (F)in the law of [a]Yahweh,
And in His law he meditates (G)day and (H)night.
3 And he will be like (I)a tree firmly planted by [b]streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its [c]leaf does not wither;
And [d]in whatever he does, (J)he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like (K)chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore (L)the wicked will not rise in the (M)judgment,
Nor sinners in (N)the congregation of the righteous.
6 For Yahweh [e](O)knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of (P)the wicked will perish.
The Reign of Yahweh’s Anointed
2 Why do (Q)the [f]nations rage
And the peoples (R)meditate on a vain thing?
2 The (S)kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers take counsel together
(T)Against Yahweh and against His [g](U)Anointed, saying,
3 “Let us (V)tear their fetters apart
And cast away their cords from us!”
4 He who [h]sits in the heavens (W)laughs,
The Lord (X)mocks them.
5 Then He speaks to them in His (Y)anger
And (Z)terrifies them in His fury, saying,
6 “But as for Me, I have [i]installed (AA)My King
Upon Zion, (AB)My holy mountain.”
7 “I will surely tell of the [j]decree of Yahweh:
He said to Me, ‘You are (AC)My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 Ask of Me, and (AD)I will surely give (AE)the [k]nations as Your inheritance,
And the (AF)ends of the earth as Your possession.
9 You shall [l](AG)break them with a [m]rod of iron,
You shall (AH)shatter them like a potter’s vessel.’”
10 So now, O kings, (AI)show insight;
Take warning, O [n]judges of the earth.
11 Serve Yahweh with (AJ)fear
And rejoice with (AK)trembling.
12 [o]Kiss (AL)the Son, lest He become angry, and you perish in the way,
For (AM)His [p]wrath may [q]soon be kindled.
How blessed are all who (AN)take refuge in Him!
Yahweh, Save Me
A Psalm of David. When [r]he fled from Absalom his son.
3 O Yahweh, how (AO)my adversaries have become many!
Many are rising up against me.
2 Many are saying [s]of my soul,
“There is no (AP)salvation for him in God.” [t]Selah.
3 But You, O Yahweh, are (AQ)a shield about me,
My (AR)glory, and the One who (AS)lifts my head.
4 I was calling to Yahweh with my voice,
And He (AT)answered me from (AU)His holy [u]mountain. Selah.
5 [v]I (AV)lay down and slept;
I awoke, for Yahweh sustains me.
6 I will (AW)not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who all around (AX)have set themselves against me.
7 (AY)Arise, O Yahweh; (AZ)save me, O my God!
For You have (BA)struck all my enemies on the [w]cheek;
You [x]have (BB)shattered the teeth of the wicked.
8 [y](BC)Salvation belongs to Yahweh;
Your (BD)blessing [z]be upon Your people! Selah.
Yahweh Makes Me Abide in Safety
[aa]For the choir director. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.
4 (BE)Answer me when (BF)I call, O God [ab]of my righteousness!
You have [ac](BG)relieved me in my distress;
Be (BH)gracious to me and (BI)hear my prayer.
2 O sons of men, how long will (BJ)my glory become (BK)a reproach?
How long will you love (BL)what is worthless and seek (BM)falsehood? [ad]Selah.
3 But know that Yahweh has [ae](BN)set apart the (BO)holy one for Himself;
Yahweh (BP)hears when I call to Him.
In You I Have Taken Refuge
A [a]Shiggaion of David, which he sang to Yahweh concerning the words of Cush, a Benjamite.
7 O Yahweh my God, (A)in You I have taken refuge;
Save me from all those who pursue me, and (B)deliver me,
2 Lest he tear [b]my soul (C)like a lion,
Rending me in pieces, while there is none to deliver.
3 O Yahweh my God, if I have done this,
If there is (D)injustice in my hands,
4 If I have (E)rewarded evil to him who [c]is at peace with me,
Or have (F)plundered my adversary without cause,
5 Let the enemy pursue [d]my soul and overtake [e]it;
And let him trample my life down to the ground
And cause my glory to dwell in the dust. [f]Selah.
6 (G)Arise, O Yahweh, in Your anger;
(H)Lift up Yourself against (I)the fury of my adversaries,
And (J)arouse Yourself [g]for me; You have appointed judgment.
7 Let the congregation of the (K)peoples encompass You,
And over [h]them return on high.
8 Yahweh (L)judges the peoples;
[i](M)Give justice to me, O Yahweh, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me.
9 O let (N)the evil of the wicked come to an end, but (O)establish the righteous;
For the righteous God (P)tests the hearts and [j]minds.
10 My (Q)shield is [k]with God,
Who (R)saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a (S)righteous judge,
And a God who has (T)indignation every day.
12 If [l]a man (U)does not repent, He will (V)sharpen His sword;
He has (W)bent His bow and prepared it.
13 He has also prepared [m]for Himself deadly weapons;
He makes His (X)arrows fiery shafts.
14 Behold, he travails with wickedness,
And he (Y)conceives mischief and gives birth to falsehood.
15 He has dug a pit and hollowed it out,
And has (Z)fallen into the hole which he made.
16 His (AA)mischief will return upon his own head,
And his (AB)violence will descend upon [n]his own skull.
9 “Only (A)keep yourself and keep your soul very carefully, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen and lest they depart from your heart (B)all the days of your life. But (C)make them known to your sons and to your grandsons. 10 Remember the day you stood before Yahweh your God at Horeb, when Yahweh said to me, ‘Assemble the people to Me, that I may cause them to hear My words (D)so they may learn to [a]fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may (E)teach their children.’ 11 And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, (F)and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens: darkness, cloud, and dense gloom. 12 Then Yahweh spoke to you from the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but you saw no form—only a voice. 13 So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to do, that is, (G)the Ten [b]Commandments; and (H)He wrote them on two tablets of stone. 14 And Yahweh commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might do them in the land where you are going over to possess it.
Paul Defends His Authority
10 Now (A)I, Paul, myself (B)plead with you by the (C)gentleness and forbearance of Christ—I who (D)am humble when face-to-face with you, but courageous toward you when absent! 2 But I beg that (E)when I am present I need not act so courageously with the confidence that I consider to daringly use against (F)some, who consider us as if we walked (G)according to the flesh. 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war (H)according to the flesh, 4 for the (I)weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but [a]divinely powerful (J)for the tearing down of strongholds, 5 as we tear down speculations and every (K)lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to the (L)obedience of Christ, 6 and are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever (M)your obedience is fulfilled.
7 [b](N)You are looking at [c]things as they are outwardly. (O)If anyone is confident in himself that he is Christ’s, let him consider this again within himself, that just as he is Christ’s, (P)so also are we. 8 For even if (Q)I boast somewhat [d]further about our (R)authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be put to shame, 9 [e]for I do not wish to seem as if I would terrify you by my letters. 10 For they say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but his [f]personal presence is (S)weak and (T)his [g]words contemptible.” 11 Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when absent, such persons we are also in deed when present.
12 For we do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with [h]some of those who (U)commend themselves, but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding. 13 But we will not boast (V)beyond our measure, but [i](W)within the measure of the area of influence which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach even as far as you. 14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we did not reach you, (for (X)we were the first to come even as far as you in the (Y)gospel of Christ), 15 not boasting (Z)beyond our measure in (AA)other men’s labors, but having the hope—that as (AB)your faith grows—to be (AC)enlarged even more by you [j]within our area of influence, 16 so as to (AD)proclaim the gospel even to (AE)the regions beyond you, and not to boast [k](AF)in what has been accomplished in the area of influence of another. 17 But (AG)he who boasts is to boast in the Lord. 18 For it is not the one who (AH)commends himself that is approved, but the one (AI)whom the Lord commends.
7 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their (A)many words. 8 Therefore, do not be like them; for (B)your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
9 “(C)Pray, then, in this way:
‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 (D)Your kingdom come.
(E)Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 (F)Give us this day [a]our daily bread.
12 And (G)forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation, but (H)deliver us from [b](I)the evil one. [c][For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’]
14 (J)For if you forgive [d]others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But (K)if you do not forgive [e]others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.