Book of Common Prayer
1 ¶ O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good because his mercy endures for ever.
2 Let Israel now say that his mercy endures for ever.
3 Let the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endures for ever.
4 Let those that fear the LORD say now, that his mercy is eternal.
5 From a tight place I called upon JAH; and JAH answered me and set me in a wide place.
6 The LORD is for me; I will not fear what man can do unto me.
7 The LORD takes my part with those that help me; therefore I shall see my desire upon those that hate me.
8 It is better to wait upon the LORD than to wait upon man.
9 It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.
10 All the nations compassed me about; but in the name of the LORD I will cut them off.
11 They compassed me about; yea, they laid hold of me; but in the name of the LORD I will cut them off.
12 They compassed me about like bees; they were quenched as the fire of thorns; for in the name of the LORD I will cut them off.
13 Thou hast thrust at me with violence that I might fall, but the LORD helped me.
14 JAH is my strength and song and is become my saving health.
15 The voice of singing and saving health is in the tents of the righteous; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly.
16 The right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly.
17 I shall not die, but live and declare the works of JAH.
18 JAH has chastened me sore, but he has not given me over unto death.
19 ¶ Open unto me the gates of righteousness; I will go in through them; I will praise JAH.
20 This gate is of the LORD; the righteous shall enter in.
21 I will praise thee; for thou hast heard me and art become my saving health.
22 The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner.
23 This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.
24 This is the day which the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, cause us now to prosper.
26 Blessed be he that comes in the name of the LORD; from the house of the LORD we bless you.
27 God is the LORD, who has shined on us; bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar.
28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee; thou art my God, I will exalt thee.
29 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good, for his mercy endures for ever.
David’s Psalm of praise.
Aleph
1 ¶ I will extol thee, my God, my king, and I will bless thy name for ever and ever.
Beth
2 Each day will I bless thee, and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.
Gimel
3 Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.
Daleth
4 One generation shall praise thy works to another and shall declare thy mighty acts.
He
5 I will speak of the beauty of the glory of thy majesty and of thy wondrous works.
Vau
6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts, and I will declare thy greatness.
Zain
7 They shall proclaim the memory of thy great goodness and shall sing of thy righteousness.
Cheth
8 The LORD is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and of great mercy.
Teth
9 The LORD is good to all; and his tender mercies shine over all his works.
Jod
10 ¶ Let all thy works praise thee, O LORD, and thy merciful ones bless thee.
Caph
11 They speak of the glory of thy kingdom and talk of thy power,
Lamed
12 to make known to the sons of Adam his mighty acts and the glory of the magnificence of his kingdom.
Mem
13 Thy kingdom is a kingdom of all ages, and thy dominion endures throughout all generations.
Samech
14 The LORD upholds all that fall and raises up all those that are oppressed.
Ain
15 The eyes of all wait upon thee, and thou givest them their food in due season.
Pe
16 Thou dost open thine hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
Tzaddi
17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways and merciful in all his works.
Koph
18 The LORD is near unto all those that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
Resh
19 He will fulfil the desire of those that fear him; he also will hear their cry and will save them.
Schin
20 The LORD preserves all those that love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.
Tau
21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD, and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.
20 ¶ In those days Hezekiah became sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, came to him and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thy house in order, for thou shalt die, and not live.
2 Then he turned his face to the wall and prayed unto the LORD, saying,
3 I beseech thee, O LORD, remember how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept with great weeping.
4 And before Isaiah had gone out into the middle of the court, the word of the LORD came to him, saying,
5 Turn again and tell Hezekiah, prince of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David, thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears; behold, I will heal thee; on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.
6 And I will add unto thy days fifteen years, and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my slave David’s sake.
7 And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
8 And Hezekiah had said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me and that I shall go up into the house of the LORD the third day?
9 And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go back ten degrees?
10 And Hezekiah answered, It is an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees, but not for the shadow to return backward ten degrees.
11 Then Isaiah, the prophet, cried unto the LORD, and he caused the shadow to return by the degrees by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.
12 ¶ At that time Berodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and presents unto Hezekiah, for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick.
13 And Hezekiah hearkened unto them and showed them all the house of his precious things, the silver and the gold and the spices and the precious ointment and all the house of his weapons and all that was found in his treasury; there was nothing in his house nor in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
14 Then Isaiah, the prophet, came unto King Hezekiah and said unto him, What did these men say, and where did they come from unto thee? And Hezekiah replied, They are come from a far country, even from Babylon.
15 And he said, What have they seen in thy house? And Hezekiah answered, All the things that are in my house they have seen; there is nothing among my treasury that I have not showed them.
16 Then Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD.
17 Behold, the days come that all that is in thy house and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day shall be carried into Babylon; nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.
18 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, they shall take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
19 Then Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, The word of the LORD which thou hast spoken is good. And he said, For shall there not be peace and truth in my days?
20 The rest of the acts of Hezekiah and all his might and how he made a pool and a conduit and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
21 And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and Manasseh, his son reigned in his stead.
12 ¶ Now at that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to mistreat certain of the congregation. {Gr. ekklesia – called out ones}
2 And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
3 And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)
4 And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him, intending after the Passover to bring him forth to the people.
5 ¶ Peter therefore was kept in the prison, and the congregation {Gr. ekklesia – called out ones} made prayer without unto God for him.
6 And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and the guards before the door that kept the prison.
7 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shone in the prison, and he smote Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, Arise quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.
8 And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he said unto him, Cast thy garment about thee and follow me.
9 And he went out and followed him and knew not that it was true which was done by the angel, but thought he saw a vision.
10 When they were past the first and the second guard, they came unto the iron gate that leads unto the city, which opened to them of its own accord, and they went out and passed on through one street, and then the angel departed from him.
11 And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety that the Lord has sent his angel and has delivered me out of the hand of Herod and from all the people of the Jews who waited for me.
12 And considering this, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.
13 And as Peter knocked at the door of the patio, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda.
14 And when she recognized Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in and told how Peter stood at the gate.
15 And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then they said, It is his angel.
16 But Peter continued knocking, and when they had opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.
17 But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to be silent, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go make these things known unto James and to the brethren. And he departed and went to another place.
11 ¶ And it came to pass the day after that he went into a city called Nain, and many of his disciples went with him, and many people.
12 Now when he came near to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and many people from the city were with her.
13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said unto her, Weep not.
14 And he came and touched the bier, and those that bore him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.
15 And he that was dead sat up and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.
16 And there came a fear on all, and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us, and, That God has visited his people.
17 And this word of him went forth throughout all Judaea and throughout all the region round about.
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