Book of Common Prayer
Remembering Jerusalem
137 There we sat down and cried—
by the rivers of Babylon—
as we remembered Zion.
2 On the willows there
we hung our harps,
3 for it was there that our captors
asked us for songs
and our torturers demanded joy from us,
“Sing us one of the songs about Zion!”
4 How are we to sing the song of the Lord
on foreign soil?
5 If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand cease to function.[a]
6 May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
if I don’t remember you,
if I don’t consider Jerusalem
to be more important than my highest joy.
7 Remember the day of Jerusalem’s fall,[b] Lord,
because of[c] the Edomites,
who kept saying, “Tear it down!
Tear it right down to its foundations!”
8 Daughter of Babylon! You devastator!
How blessed will be the one who pays you back
for what you have done to us.
9 How blessed will be the one who seizes your young children
and pulverizes them against the cliff!
Davidic
A Song for God’s Provision
144 Blessed be the Lord, my rock,
who trains my hands for battle
and my fingers for warfare,
2 he is my gracious love and my fortress,
my strong tower and my deliverer,
my shield and the one in whom I find refuge,
who subdues[a] peoples[b] under me.
3 Lord, what are human beings,
that you should care about them,
or mortal man,
that you should think about him?
4 The human person is a mere empty breath;
his days are like a fading shadow.
5 Bow your heavens, Lord, and descend;[c]
touch the mountains, and they will smolder.
6 Send forth lightning and scatter the enemy,[d]
shoot your arrows and confuse them.
7 Reach down your hand from your high place;
rescue me and deliver me from mighty waters,
from the control of foreigners.[e]
8 Their mouths speak lies,
and their right hand deceives,[f]
9 God, I will sing a new song to you.
On a harp of ten strings I will play to you—
10 to you who gives victory to kings,
rescuing his servant David from cruel swords.
11 Rescue me and deliver me
from the control of foreigners,[g]
whose mouths speak lies,
and whose right hand deceives.[h]
12 May our sons in their youth be like full-grown plants,
and our daughters like pillars
destined to decorate a palace.
13 May our granaries be filled,
storing produce in abundance;
may our sheep bring forth thousands,
even tens of thousands in our fields.
14 May our cattle grow heavy with young,
with no damage or loss.
May there be no cry of anguish in our streets!
15 Happy are the people to whom these things come;
happy are the people whose God is the Lord.
Davidic[a]
Praise God, who Creates
104 Bless the Lord, my soul;
Lord, my God, you are very great.
You are clothed in splendor and majesty;
2 you are wrapped in light like a garment,
stretching out the sky like a curtain.
3 He lays the beams of his roof loft on the water above,[b]
making clouds his chariot,
walking on the wings of the wind.
4 He makes the winds his messengers,
blazing fires his servants.
5 He established the earth on its foundations,
so that it never falters.
6 You covered the primeval ocean like a garment;
the water stood above the mountains.
7 They flee at your rebuke;
they rush away at the sound of your thunders.
8 Mountains rise up and valleys sink
to the place you have ordained for them.
9 You have set a boundary they cannot cross;
they will never again cover the earth.
10 He causes springs to gush forth into rivers
that flow between the[c] mountains.
11 They give water[d] for animals of the field to drink;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Birds of the sky live beside them
and chirp a song[e] among the foliage.
13 He waters the mountains from his heavenly rooms;
the earth is satisfied from the fruit of your work.
14 He causes grass to sprout for the cattle
and plants for people to cultivate,
to produce food from the land,
15 like wine that makes the heart of people[f] happy,
oil that makes the face glow,
and food[g] that sustains people.[h]
16 The loftiest trees[i] are satisfied,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted,
17 the birds build their nests there,
and the heron builds[j] its nest among the evergreen.
18 The high mountains are for wild goats;
the cliffs are a refuge for the rock badger.
19 He made the moon to mark time;[k]
the sun knows its setting time.
20 You bring darkness and it becomes night;
when every beast of the forest prowls.
21 Young lions roar for prey,
seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they[l] gather
and lie down in their dens.
23 People go out to their work
and labor until evening.
24 How numerous are your works, Lord!
You have made them all wisely;
the earth is filled with your creations.[m]
25 There is the deep and wide sea,
teeming with numberless creatures,
living things small and great.
26 There, the ships pass through;
Leviathan, which you created, frolics in it.
27 All of them look to you
to provide them[n] their food at the proper time.
28 They receive what you give them;
when you open your hand,
they are filled with good things.
29 When you withdraw your favor,[o]
they are disappointed;
Take away their breath,
and[p] they die[q] and return to dust.
30 When you send your spirit,[r] they are[s] created,
and you replenish the surface of the earth.
31 May the glory of the Lord last forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works!
32 He looks at the earth and it shakes;
he touches the mountains and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord with my whole being;[t]
I will sing to my God continually!
34 May my thoughts be pleasing to him;
indeed, I will rejoice in the Lord!
35 May sinners disappear from the land
and the wicked live no longer.
Bless the Lord, my soul! Hallelujah!
16 Saul’s sentries in Gibeah of Benjamin watched as the camp[a] was in disarray,[b] going this way and that.[c] 17 Saul told the people who were with him, “Do a roll call[d] and see who has left us.” They did a roll call,[e] and Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.
18 Saul told Ahijah, “Bring the Ark of God here.” For at that time the Ark of God was with[f] the Israelis.
19 While Saul was still speaking to the priest, the commotion in the Philistine camp increased more and more, and Saul told the priest, “Remove your hand.”[g]
20 Then Saul and all the people who were with him assembled and went into battle. Now the swords of all the Philistines were against each other,[h] and there was very great confusion. 21 The Hebrews who had previously been with the Philistines, who had gone up with them from the surrounding areas to the camp, even they joined Israel and those who were with Saul and Jonathan. 22 All the Israelis who had been hiding in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, and even they pursued the Philistines[i] in the battle. 23 On that day the Lord delivered Israel, and the battle moved past Beth-aven.
Saul Issues a Rash Edict
24 The men of Israel were hard pressed on that day, and Saul required the army to take an oath: “Cursed is the person who eats food before evening and before I’ve been avenged of my enemies.” So no one tasted food.
25 Later on, all the soldiers[j] entered the woods, and there was honey on the ground. 26 The people came into the woods and there was flowing honey, but no one put his hand to his mouth to eat it because the people were afraid due to the oath. 27 But Jonathan had not heard that his father had required the army to swear an oath, so he stretched out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it in the honeycomb. He brought it back to his mouth and his eyes brightened. 28 Then one of the people responded: “Your father strictly ordered the army to take an oath. That’s why he said, ‘Cursed is the person who eats food today,’ and so the army is exhausted.”
29 Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land. See how my eyes have brightened because I tasted a little of this honey. 30 How much better if the army had eaten freely today of their enemy’s spoil that they found, because the slaughter among the Philistines has not been great.”
10 Now in Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called out to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
He answered, “Here I am, Lord.”
11 The Lord told him, “Get up, go to the street called Straight, and in the home of Judas look for a man from Tarsus named Saul. At this very moment he’s praying. 12 He has seen in a vision[a] a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so he would see again.”
13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard many people tell how much evil this man has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 14 He is here with authority from the high priests to put in chains all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord told him, “Go, because he’s my chosen instrument to carry my name to unbelievers,[b] to their kings, and to the descendants of Israel. 16 since I’m going to show him how much he must suffer for my name’s sake.”
Saul’s Sight is Restored
17 So Ananias left and went to that house. He laid his hands on Saul[c] and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were traveling, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 All at once something like scales fell from Saul’s[d] eyes, and he could see again.
He got up and was baptized, 19 and after eating some food, he felt strong again. For several days he stayed with the disciples in Damascus.
32 Two others, who were criminals, were also led away to be executed with Jesus.[a] 33 When they reached the place called The Skull, they crucified him there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34 Jesus kept saying, “Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what they’re doing.”[b] Then they divided his clothes among them by throwing dice.
35 Meanwhile, the people stood looking on. The leaders were mocking him by saying, “He saved others. Let him save himself, if he is the Messiah[c] of God, the chosen one!”
36 The soldiers also made fun of Jesus[d] by coming up and offering him sour wine, 37 saying, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself!” 38 There was also an inscription over him written in Greek, Latin, and Hebrew:[e] “This is the King of the Jews.”
39 Now one of the criminals hanging there kept insulting[f] him, “You are the Messiah,[g] aren’t you? Save yourself…and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked him, “Aren’t you afraid of God, since you are suffering the same penalty? 41 We have been condemned justly, because we are getting what we deserve for what we have done, but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he went on to plead, “Jesus, remember me when you come into[h] your kingdom!”
43 Jesus[i] told him, “I tell you[j] with certainty, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
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