Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 46[a]
God, Refuge of His People
1 For the director.[b] A song of the sons of Korah. According to alamoth.
2 [c]God is our refuge and our strength,
a well-proved help in times of trouble.[d]
3 Therefore, we will not be afraid, though the earth be shaken
and the mountains tumble into the depths of the sea,
4 though its waters rage and seethe
and the mountains tremble at the upheaval.
The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.[e] Selah
5 There is a river[f] whose streams bring joy to the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
6 God is in her midst; she will not be overcome;
God will help her at break of dawn.[g]
7 The nations are in tumult and kingdoms fall;
when he raises his voice,[h] the earth melts away.
8 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
9 Come and behold the works of the Lord,
the astonishing deeds he has wrought on the earth.
10 He puts an end to wars all over the earth;
he breaks the bow and snaps the spear,
and he burns the shields with flames.[i]
11 “Be still and acknowledge that I am God,
exalted among the nations,
exalted on the earth.”[j]
12 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
Psalm 87[a]
Zion, Home of All Nations
1 A psalm of the sons of Korah.[b] A song.
The Lord has founded a city[c]
on the holy mountains.
2 He loves the gates of Zion
more than[d] any dwelling in Jacob.
3 Glorious things are said of you,
O city of God. Selah
4 [e]“I number Rahab and Babylon
among those who acknowledge the Lord,
as well as Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia;
concerning them it can be said,
‘This one was born there.’ ”[f] Selah
5 However, of Zion it will be said,
“They were all born there,
for the Most High himself establishes her.”[g]
6 The Lord records in the register[h] of the peoples,
“This one was born there.” Selah
7 And as they play, they all sing,[i]
“In you are all my fountains.”
22 Solomon’s Prayer.[a] Solomon then stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire assembly of Israel, and he extended his hands to the heavens. 23 He said, “O Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in the heavens above or on the earth below, who keeps a covenant of mercy with your servants who walk before you with all their heart. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant, David, my father. You spoke it with your own mouth, and with your own hand, you have fulfilled it today.
25 “And so now, O Lord, God of Israel, take heed of what you said to your servant, David, my father, when you said, ‘You will not fail to have one who will sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your children walk before me as you have walked before me.’ 26 Now, O God of Israel, let what you have said to your servant David, my father, come true. 27 But will God truly dwell upon the earth? Behold, the heavens and the highest heavens could not contain you, how much less this temple that I have built?
28 “Give heed to the prayer of your servant and his supplication, O Lord, my God. Listen to the cry and the prayer that your servant makes before you today. 29 May your eyes be wide open upon this temple night and day, the place of which you said, ‘My name will be there.’ Heed the prayer that your servant makes for this place. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and your people Israel when they pray for this place. Hear from your dwelling place in heaven, and when you hear, forgive.
11 Jews and Gentiles Reconciled in the Church.[a] Therefore, do not forget that at one time you were Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcised by those who refer to themselves as the circumcised because of a physical rite. 12 Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, excluded from the community of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants[b] of promise. You were in the world without hope and without God.
13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
14 For he is our peace,
who has made the two into one,
by breaking down the barrier of hostility.
In his flesh
15 he has abolished the Law
with its commandments and ordinances,
so that he might create in himself
a single new person[c] out of the two,
thereby making peace,
16 and that he might reconcile both groups
to God in one body
through the cross,
thereby putting that enmity to death.
17 Therefore, Jesus came
and proclaimed peace
to you who were far away
and peace to those who were near.
18 For through him
we both have access to the Father
in the one Spirit.
19 As a result, you are no longer strangers and foreigners. Rather, you are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. 21 Through him the entire structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you are also being built together into a dwelling place for God in the Spirit.
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