Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 30
A psalm. A song for the temple dedication. Of David.
30 I exalt you, Lord, because you pulled me up;
you didn’t let my enemies celebrate over me.
2 Lord, my God, I cried out to you for help,
and you healed me.
3 Lord, you brought me[a] up from the grave,[b]
brought me back to life from among those going down to the pit.
4 You who are faithful to the Lord,
sing praises to him;
give thanks to his holy name!
5 His anger lasts for only a second,
but his favor lasts a lifetime.
Weeping may stay all night,
but by morning, joy!
6 When I was comfortable, I said,
“I will never stumble.”
7 Because it pleased you, Lord,
you made me a strong mountain.
But then you hid your presence.
I was terrified.
8 I cried out to you, Lord.
I begged my Lord for mercy:
9 “What is to be gained by my spilled blood,
by my going down into the pit?
Does dust thank you?
Does it proclaim your faithfulness?
10 Lord, listen and have mercy on me!
Lord, be my helper!”
11 You changed my mourning into dancing.
You took off my funeral clothes
and dressed me up in joy
12 so that my whole being
might sing praises to you and never stop.
Lord, my God, I will give thanks to you forever.
Psalm 32
A maskil[a] of David.
32 The one whose wrongdoing is forgiven,
whose sin is covered over, is truly happy!
2 The one the Lord doesn’t consider guilty—
in whose spirit there is no dishonesty—
that one is truly happy!
3 When I kept quiet, my bones wore out;
I was groaning all day long—
every day, every night!—
4 because your hand was heavy upon me.
My energy was sapped as if in a summer drought. Selah
5 So I admitted my sin to you;
I didn’t conceal my guilt.
“I’ll confess my sins to the Lord, ” is what I said.
Then you removed the guilt of my sin. Selah
6 That’s why all the faithful should pray to you during troubled times,[b]
so that a great flood of water won’t reach them.
7 You are my secret hideout!
You protect me from trouble.
You surround me with songs of rescue! Selah
8 I will instruct you and teach you
about the direction you should go.
I’ll advise you and keep my eye on you.
9 Don’t be like some senseless horse or mule,
whose movement must be controlled
with a bit and a bridle.[c]
Don’t be anything like that![d]
10 The pain of the wicked is severe,
but faithful love surrounds the one who trusts the Lord.
11 You who are righteous, rejoice in the Lord and be glad!
All you whose hearts are right, sing out in joy!
BOOK II
(Psalms 42–72)
Psalm 42[a]
For the music leader. A maskil[b] of the Korahites.
42 Just like a deer that craves streams of water,
my whole being[c] craves you, God.
2 My whole being thirsts for God, for the living God.
When will I come and see God’s face?[d]
3 My tears have been my food both day and night,
as people constantly questioned me,
“Where’s your God now?”
4 But I remember these things as I bare my soul:
how I made my way to the mighty one’s abode,[e]
to God’s own house,
with joyous shouts and thanksgiving songs—
a huge crowd celebrating the festival!
5 Why, I ask myself, are you so depressed?
Why are you so upset inside?
Hope in God!
Because I will again give him thanks,
my saving presence and my God.
6 My whole being is depressed.
That’s why I remember you
from the land of Jordan and Hermon,
from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep called to deep at the noise of your waterfalls;
all your massive waves surged over me.
8 By day the Lord commands his faithful love;
by night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.
9 I will say to God, my solid rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why do I have to walk around,
sad, oppressed by enemies?”
10 With my bones crushed, my foes make fun of me,
constantly questioning me: “Where’s your God now?”
11 Why, I ask myself, are you so depressed?
Why are you so upset inside?
Hope in God!
Because I will again give him thanks,
my saving presence and my God.
Psalm 43
43 Establish justice for me, God!
Argue my case against ungodly people!
Rescue me from the dishonest and unjust!
2 Because you are my God, my protective fortress!
Why have you rejected me?
Why do I have to walk around,
sad, oppressed by enemies?
3 Send your light and truth—those will guide me!
Let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to your dwelling place.
4 Let me come to God’s altar—
let me come to God, my joy, my delight—
then I will give you thanks with the lyre,
God, my God!
5 Why, I ask myself, are you so depressed?
Why are you so upset inside?
Hope in God!
Because I will again give him thanks,
my saving presence and my God.
Daniel in the lions’ pit
16 So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and hurled him into the pit of lions.
The king said to Daniel: “Your God—the one you serve so consistently—will rescue you.”[a]
17 A single stone was brought and placed over the entrance to the pit. The king sealed it with his own ring and with those of his princes so that Daniel’s situation couldn’t be changed. 18 The king then went home to his palace and fasted through the night. No pleasures[b] were brought to him, and he couldn’t sleep. 19 At dawn, at the first sign of light, the king rose and rushed to the lions’ pit.
20 As he approached it, he called out to Daniel, worried: “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God—the one you serve so consistently—able to rescue you from the lions?”
21 Then Daniel answered the king: “Long live the king! 22 My God sent his messenger, who shut the lions’ mouths. They haven’t touched me because I was judged innocent before my God. I haven’t done anything wrong to you either, Your Majesty.”
23 The king was thrilled. He commanded that Daniel be brought up out of the pit, and Daniel was lifted out. Not a scratch was found on him, because he trusted in his God. 24 The king then ordered that the men who had accused Daniel be brought and thrown into the lions’ pit—including their wives and children. They hadn’t even reached the bottom of the pit before the lions overpowered them, crushing all their bones.
New decree
25 Then King Darius wrote the following decree:
To all the peoples, nations, and languages inhabiting the entire earth: I wish you much peace. 26 I now issue this command: In every region of my kingdom, all people must fear and revere Daniel’s God because:
He is the living God.
God stands firm forever.
His kingship is indestructible.
God’s rule will last until the end of time.
27 He is rescuer and savior;
God performs signs and miracles in heaven and on earth.
Here’s the proof:
He rescued Daniel from the lions’ power.
28 And so Daniel was made prosperous during the rule of Darius and during the rule of Cyrus the Persian.
Greeting
1 From the elder.
To my dear friend Gaius, whom I truly love.
2 Dear friend, I’m praying that all is well with you and that you enjoy good health in the same way that you prosper spiritually.
Encouragement for Gaius
3 I was overjoyed when the brothers and sisters arrived and spoke highly of your faithfulness to the truth, shown by how you live according to the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than this: to hear that my children are living according to the truth. 5 Dear friend, you act faithfully in whatever you do for our brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers. 6 They spoke highly of your love in front of the church. You all would do well to provide for their journey in a way that honors God, 7 because they left on their journey for the sake of Jesus Christ without accepting any support from the Gentiles. 8 Therefore, we ought to help people like this so that we can be coworkers with the truth.
Criticism of Diotrephes
9 I wrote something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, doesn’t welcome us. 10 Because of this, if I come, I will bring up what he has done—making unjustified and wicked accusations against us. And as if that were not enough, he not only refuses to welcome the brothers and sisters but stops those who want to do so and even throws them out of the church! 11 Dear friend, don’t imitate what is bad but what is good. Whoever practices what is good belongs to God. Whoever practices what is bad has not seen God.
Approval of Demetrius
12 Everyone speaks highly of Demetrius, even the truth itself. We also speak highly of him, and you know that what we say is true.
Final greeting
13 I have a lot to say to you, but I don’t want to use pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will speak face-to-face.
15 Peace be with you. Your friends here greet you. Greet our friends there by name.
Jesus calls a tax collector
27 Afterward, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at a kiosk for collecting taxes. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”
28 Levi got up, left everything behind, and followed him. 29 Then Levi threw a great banquet for Jesus in his home. A large number of tax collectors and others sat down to eat with them. 30 The Pharisees and their legal experts grumbled against his disciples. They said, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
31 Jesus answered, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, but sick people do. 32 I didn’t come to call righteous people but sinners to change their hearts and lives.”
The old and the new
33 Some people said to Jesus, “The disciples of John fast often and pray frequently. The disciples of the Pharisees do the same, but your disciples are always eating and drinking.”
34 Jesus replied, “You can’t make the wedding guests fast while the groom is with them, can you? 35 The days will come when the groom will be taken from them, and then they will fast.”
36 Then he told them a parable. “No one tears a patch from a new garment to patch an old garment. Otherwise, the new garment would be ruined, and the new patch wouldn’t match the old garment. 37 Nobody pours new wine into old wineskins. If they did, the new wine would burst the wineskins, the wine would spill, and the wineskins would be ruined. 38 Instead, new wine must be put into new wineskins. 39 No one who drinks a well-aged wine wants new wine, but says, ‘The well-aged wine is better.’”
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible