Book of Common Prayer
131 The song of degrees to David. Lord, mine heart is not enhanced; neither mine eyes be raised. Neither I went in great things; neither in marvels above me. (The song of degrees for David. Lord, my heart is not exalted, or puffed up; nor be my eyes raised up. And I do not concern myself with great things; nor with marvellous things that be so high above me.)
2 If I feeled not meekly; but [I] enhanced my soul. As a child weaned on his mother; so yielding be in my soul. (I went forth humbly; and I did not exalt my soul. Like a weaned child upon his mother; so is the yielding in my soul.)
3 Israel, hope in the Lord; from this time now and into the world. (Israel, trust in the Lord; from this time now and forever.)
132 The song of degrees. Lord, have thou mind on David; and of all his mildness. (Lord, remember David; and all his troubles and tribulations.)
2 As he swore to the Lord; he made a vow to [the] God of Jacob.
3 I shall not enter into the tabernacle of mine house; I shall not ascend into the bed of my resting.
4 I shall not give sleep to mine eyes; and napping to mine eyelids. (I shall not give sleep to my eyes; or napping to my eyelids.)
5 And rest to my temples, till I find a place to the Lord; a tabernacle to [the] God of Jacob. (Until I find a place for the Lord; yea, a dwelling place for the Mighty God of Jacob.)
6 Lo! we heard that (the) ark of (the) testament (is) in Ephratah [Lo! we have heard (of) it in Ephratah]; we found it in the fields of the wood. (Lo! we have heard that the Covenant Box is in Ephratah; we found it in the fields of Jaar, or of Jearim.)
7 We shall enter into the tabernacle of him (We shall go into his Tabernacle, or his dwelling place); we shall worship in the place, where his feet stood.
8 Lord, rise thou into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thine hallowing. (Arise, O Lord, and come back to thy resting place; thou, and the Ark of thy power.)
9 Thy priests be clothed with rightfulness; and thy saints make full out joy. (Let thy priests be clothed in righteousness; and thy saints rejoice.)
10 For David, thy servant; turn thou not away the face of thy christ. (For the sake of thy servant David; turn thou not away thy face from thy anointed king.)
11 The Lord swore (in) truth to David, and he shall not make him [in] vain; Of the fruit of thy womb I shall set on thy seat. (The Lord swore truthfully to David, and he did not say in vain, I shall put the fruit of thy womb upon thy throne.)
12 If thy sons shall keep my testament; and my witnessings, these which I shall teach them. And the sons of them till into the world; they shall set on thy seat. (And if thy sons shall keep my covenant, and obey my teachings, which I shall teach them; then their sons shall sit on thy throne forever.)
13 For the Lord chose Zion; he chose it into (a) dwelling to himself (he chose it for his dwelling place).
14 This is my rest into the world of world (This shall be my resting place forever and ever); I shall dwell here, for I chose it.
15 I blessing shall bless the widow of it; I shall [ful]fill with loaves the poor men of it. (I blessing shall bless Zion’s widows; and I shall fulfill her poor with bread.)
16 I shall clothe with health the priests thereof; and the holy men thereof shall make full out joy in full out joying/in full out rejoicing. (I shall clothe her priests with salvation, or with deliverance; and her holy men shall make great joy rejoicing.)
17 Thither I shall bring forth the horn of David; I [have] made ready a lantern to my christ (I have prepared a lantern for my anointed king).
18 I shall clothe his enemies with shame; but mine hallowing shall flower out on him (but a shining crown shall be upon his head).
133 The song of degrees. Lo! how good and how merry it is; that brethren dwell together. (Lo! how good and how pleasant it is; for brothers, or God’s people, to live together in unity, or in harmony.)
2 As ointment in the head; that goeth down into the beard, into the beard of Aaron. That goeth down into the collar of his cloth; (Like ointment on the head, that goeth down onto the beard, onto Aaron’s beard; yea, that goeth down onto the collar of his cloak.)
3 as the dew of Hermon, that goeth down into the hill of Zion. For there the Lord sent blessing; and life till into the world, that is, without end. (Like the dew of Mount Hermon, that goeth down onto the hills of Zion. For there the Lord sent blessing; and life forevermore.)
134 The song of degrees. Lo! now bless ye the Lord; all the servants of the Lord. Ye that stand in the house of the Lord; in the halls/in the foreyards of the house of our God (Ye who stand in the House of the Lord; night after night).
2 In nights raise your hands into holy things; and bless ye the Lord. (Raise up your hands in the holy place; and bless ye the Lord.)
3 The Lord bless thee from Zion; the which Lord made heaven and earth. (May the Lord bless thee from Zion; the Lord who made heaven and earth.)
135 Alleluia. Praise ye the name of the Lord; ye servants of the Lord, praise ye (him).
2 Ye that stand in the house of the Lord; in the halls/in the foreyards of the house of our God. (Ye who stand in the House of the Lord; in the courtyards of the House of our God.)
3 Praise ye the Lord, for the Lord is good; sing ye to his name, for it is sweet (for it is pleasant to do so).
4 For the Lord chose Jacob to himself; [and] Israel into possession to himself. (For the Lord chose Jacob for himself; yea, he chose Israel as his special possession.)
5 For I have known, that the Lord is great; and our God (is) before all gods. (For I know that the Lord is great; and that our God is above all gods.)
6 The Lord made all things, whatever things he would, in heaven and in earth; in the sea, and in all depths of waters. (The Lord made everything, whatever he desired, in heaven and on earth; in the sea, and in all the depths of the waters.)
7 He led out clouds from the farthest part of earth; and made lightnings into rain. Which bringeth forth winds from his treasures; (He leadeth out the clouds from the farthest parts of the earth; and maketh lightning for the rains. He bringeth forth the wind out of his treasuries, or out of his storehouses.)
8 which killed the first begotten things of Egypt, from man unto beast. (He killed all the first-born in Egypt, both man and beast.)
9 He sent out signs and great wonders, in the middle of thee, thou Egypt; into Pharaoh, and into all his servants. (He sent out signs and great wonders, into the midst of thee, O Egypt; against Pharaoh, and all his servants.)
10 Which smote many folks; and killed strong kings. (Who struck down many nations; and killed strong kings.)
11 Sihon, the king of Amorites, and Og, the king of Bashan; and all the realms of Canaan (and all the kings in Canaan).
12 And he gave the land of them heritage; to be heritage to Israel, his people. (And he gave their land for an inheritance; yea, to be an inheritance for his people Israel.)
13 Lord, thy name is [into] without end; Lord, thy memorial be in generation and into generation. (Lord, thy name shall endure forever; Lord, thou shalt be remembered by all generations.)
14 For the Lord shall deem his people; and he shall be prayed in his servants. (For the Lord shall judge his people; and he shall take pity upon his servants.)
15 The simulacra of heathen men be silver and gold; the works of the hands of men. (The idols of the heathen be but silver and gold; yea, the works of men’s hands.)
16 Those images have a mouth, and shall not speak; those have eyes, and shall not see. (Those idols have mouths, but they cannot speak; they have eyes, but they cannot see.)
17 Those have ears, and shall not hear; for there is no spirit in the mouth of them. (They have ears, but they cannot hear; for there is no breath in their mouths.)
18 They that make those [things], be made like them; and all that trust in them. (Let they who make those things, be made like them; and all who trust in them as well.)
19 The house of Israel, bless ye the Lord; the house of Aaron, bless ye the Lord.
20 The house of Levi, bless ye the Lord; ye that dread the Lord, bless ye the Lord (ye who fear the Lord/ye who revere the Lord, bless ye the Lord).
21 Blessed be the Lord (out) of Zion; that dwelleth in Jerusalem. (Blessed be the Lord in Zion; yea, he who dwelleth in Jerusalem.)
5 And the Philistines were gathered together to fight against Israel; thirty thousand of chariots, and six thousand of knights, and the tother common people, as gravel which is full much in the brink of the sea (and the common people, as innumerable as the sand which is on the seashore); and they went up, and setted their tents in Michmash, at the east coast of Bethaven.
6 And when [the] men of Israel had seen, that they were set in straitness, for (this) the people was tormented, (and) they hid themselves in dens (and they hid themselves in caves), and in privy places, and in stones, and in ditches, and in cisterns.
7 Soothly (some of the) Hebrews passed (over) Jordan, into the land of Gad and of Gilead. And when Saul was yet in Gilgal, all the people was afeared that followed him (And when Saul was still in Gilgal, all the people who followed him were afraid).
8 And seven days he abode Samuel by [the] covenant, and Samuel came not into Gilgal; and the people went away from Saul. (And for seven days he waited for Samuel, as by their pact, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and then the people began to go away from Saul.)
9 Therefore Saul said, Bring ye to me (a) burnt sacrifice, and peaceable offerings (and peace offerings); and he offered (the) burnt sacrifice.
10 And when he had ended offering the burnt sacrifice, lo! Samuel came; and Saul went out against him, to greet him (and Saul went out to greet him).
11 And Samuel said to Saul, What hast thou done? Saul answered, Lo! for I saw that the people went away from me, and thou camest not by the days of (our) covenant; and the Philistines were gathered together in Michmash;
12 I said, Now (the) Philistines shall come down to me in(to) Gilgal, and I have not pleased the face of the Lord; (and so) I was compelled by need, and I offered (a) burnt sacrifice to the Lord.
13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done follily, and thou hast not kept the behests of thy Lord God, which he commanded to thee (Thou hast done foolishly, and thou hast not obeyed the command of the Lord thy God, which he commanded to thee); and if thou haddest not done this thing, right now the Lord had made ready thy realm upon Israel [into] without end;
14 but thy realm shall not rise further. The Lord hath sought a man to himself after his heart; and the Lord hath commanded to him, that he should be duke on his people, for thou keptest not those things which the Lord commanded. (but now thy kingdom shall not endure. And the Lord shall seek another man for himself after his own heart; and the Lord shall command him, that he should be the ruler over his people, for thou hast not kept, or obeyed, what the Lord commanded to thee.)
15 And Samuel rose, and went up from Gilgal into Gibeah of Benjamin; and the people that (were) left went up after Saul against the people that fought against them; and they came from Gilgal into Gibeah, in the hill of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people, that were found with him, as six hundred men. (And Samuel rose up, and went away from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin; and the people who were left went up with Saul to fight against their enemies; and they came from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul counted the people who were found with him, and there were about six hundred men.)
16 And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that was found with them, was in Gibeah of Benjamin; and the Philistines sat together in Michmash. (And Saul, and his son Jonathan, and the people who were found with them, were in Gibeah of Benjamin; and the Philistines sat together in Michmash.)
17 And three companies went out of the Philistines’ tents to take prey; one company went against the way of Ophrah, to the land of Shual (one group went toward Ophrah, in the land of Shual);
18 and another company entered by the way of Bethhoron; and the third company turned itself to the way of the term in the land of Diba; and that term nigheth to the valley of Zeboim against the desert. (and the second group went by the way of Bethhoron; and the third group turned toward the way of the border at Wadi Abu Diba; and that border overlooketh the Zeboim Valley and the wilderness.)
26 And an angel of the Lord spake to Philip, and said, Rise thou, and go to meet the south [saying, Rise thou, and go against the south], to the way that goeth down from Jerusalem into Gaza; this is desert.
27 And he rose, and went forth. And lo! a man of Ethiopia, a mighty manservant, a gelding of Candace, the queen of Ethiopians [And lo! a man of Ethiopia, a mighty gelding of the queen Candace of Ethiopians], which was on all her riches, came to worship in Jerusalem.
28 And he turned again, sitting on his chariot, and reading Esaias, the prophet.
29 And the Spirit said to Philip, Approach thou[a], and join thee to this chariot.
30 And Philip ran to, and heard him reading Esaias, the prophet. And he said, Guessest thou, whether thou understandest, what things thou readest?
31 And he said, How may I, if no man show to me [Which said, And how may I, if some man shall not show to me]? And he prayed Philip, that he should come up, and sit with him.
32 And the place of the scripture that he read, was this, As a sheep he was led to slaying, and as a lamb before a man that sheareth him is dumb without voice, so he opened not his mouth. [Forsooth the place of scripture that he read was this, As a sheep to slaying he was led, and as a lamb before a man shearing him is dumb without voice, so he opened not his mouth.]
33 In meekness his doom was taken up; who shall tell out the generation of him? For his life shall be taken away from the earth.
34 And the gelding answered to Philip, and said, I beseech thee, of what prophet saith he this thing? of himself, or of any other?
35 And Philip opened his mouth, and began at this scripture, and preached to him Jesus.
36 And while they went by the way, they came to a water [they came to some water]. And the gelding said, Lo! water; who forbiddeth me to be baptized?
37 And Philip said, If thou believest of all thine heart, it is leaveful. And he answered, and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still. And they went down both into the water, Philip and the gelding, and Philip baptized him [and he baptized him].
39 And when they were come up of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched (up) Philip, and the gelding saw him no more; and he went in his way joying.
40 And Philip was found in Azotus; and he passed forth, and preached to all cities [and he passing forth, evangelized to all cities], till he came to Caesarea.
13 And Pilate called together the princes of priests and the magistrates of the people,
14 and said to them, Ye have brought to me this man, as turning away the people, and lo! I asking before you find no cause in this man of these things, in which ye accuse him;
15 neither Herod, for he hath sent him again to us [but neither Herod, for I again sent you to him], and lo! nothing worthy of death is done to him.
16 And therefore I shall amend him, and deliver him.[a]
17 But he must needs deliver to them one by the feast day. [Forsooth he had need to dismiss, or deliver, to them one by the feast day.]
18 And all the people cried together, and said, Do him away, and deliver to us Barabbas; [Soothly all the company cried, saying, Do him away, and deliver to us Barabbas;]
19 which was sent into prison for disturbing made in the city, and for manslaying. [the which was sent into prison for some sedition, or disturbing, made in the city, and for manslaying.]
20 And again Pilate spake to them, and would deliver Jesus. [Forsooth again Pilate spake to them, willing to deliver Jesus.]
21 And they cried out, and said [And they under-cried, saying], Crucify, crucify him.
22 And the third time he said to them, For what evil hath he done [Soothly what of evil hath he done]? I find no cause of death in him; therefore I shall chastise him, and shall deliver him [and I shall deliver].
23 And they continued with great voices asking [And they continued asking with great voices], that he should be crucified; and the voices of them waxed strong.
24 And Pilate deemed their asking to be done.
25 And he delivered to them him, that for manslaying and sedition was sent into prison, whom they asked; but he betook Jesus to their will.
2001 by Terence P. Noble