Book of Common Prayer
Deliver Me, O Lord
A Song of (A)Ascents.
120 In my distress I called to the Lord,
and he answered me.
2 Deliver me, O Lord,
from lying lips,
from a deceitful tongue.
3 What shall be given to you,
(B)and what more shall be done to you,
you deceitful tongue?
4 (C)A warrior's (D)sharp arrows,
with glowing (E)coals of the broom tree!
5 Woe to me, that I sojourn in (F)Meshech,
that I dwell among (G)the tents of (H)Kedar!
6 Too long have I had my dwelling
among those who hate peace.
7 (I)I am for peace,
but when I speak, they are for war!
My Help Comes from the Lord
A Song of (J)Ascents.
121 I (K)lift up my eyes to (L)the hills.
From where does my help come?
2 (M)My help comes from the Lord,
who (N)made heaven and earth.
3 He will not (O)let your foot be moved;
he who (P)keeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your (Q)shade on your (R)right hand.
6 (S)The sun shall not (T)strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will (U)keep you from all evil;
he will (V)keep your life.
8 The Lord will keep
your (W)going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.
Let Us Go to the House of the Lord
A Song of (X)Ascents. Of David.
122 I was glad when they said to me,
(Y)“Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
2 Our feet have been standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem!
3 Jerusalem—(Z)built as a city
that is (AA)bound firmly together,
4 to which the tribes (AB)go up,
the tribes of the Lord,
as was (AC)decreed for[a] Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.
5 There (AD)thrones for judgment were set,
the thrones of the house of David.
6 (AE)Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
“May they be secure who love you!
7 Peace be within your (AF)walls
and security within your (AG)towers!”
8 For my brothers and companions' sake
I will say, (AH)“Peace be within you!”
9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will (AI)seek your good.
Our Eyes Look to the Lord Our God
A Song of (AJ)Ascents.
123 To you I (AK)lift up my eyes,
O you who are (AL)enthroned in the heavens!
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants
look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
till he has mercy upon us.
3 (AM)Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
for we have had more than enough of (AN)contempt.
4 Our soul has had more than enough
of (AO)the scorn of (AP)those who are at ease,
of the contempt of (AQ)the proud.
Our Help Is in the Name of the Lord
A Song of (AR)Ascents. Of David.
124 (AS)If it had not been the Lord who was on our side—
(AT)let Israel now say—
2 if it had not been the Lord who was on our side
when people rose up against us,
3 then they would have (AU)swallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us;
4 then (AV)the flood would have (AW)swept us away,
the torrent would have gone (AX)over us;
5 then over us would have gone
the raging waters.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
who has not given us
as prey to their teeth!
7 We have escaped like a bird
from (AY)the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
and we have escaped!
8 (AZ)Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
The Lord Surrounds His People
A Song of (BA)Ascents.
125 Those who (BB)trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which (BC)cannot be moved, but abides forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so (BD)the Lord surrounds his people,
from this time forth and forevermore.
3 For (BE)the scepter of wickedness shall not (BF)rest
on (BG)the land allotted to the righteous,
lest the righteous (BH)stretch out
their hands to do wrong.
4 (BI)Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
and to those who are (BJ)upright in their hearts!
5 But those who (BK)turn aside to their (BL)crooked ways
the Lord will lead away with (BM)evildoers!
(BN)Peace be upon Israel!
Restore Our Fortunes, O Lord
A Song of (BO)Ascents.
126 When the Lord (BP)restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who (BQ)dream.
2 Then our (BR)mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
(BS)“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us;
we are glad.
4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like streams in the Negeb!
5 (BT)Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy!
6 He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.
Unless the Lord Builds the House
A Song of (BU)Ascents. Of Solomon.
Josiah Reigns in Judah
22 (A)Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of (B)Bozkath. 2 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the way of David his father, (C)and he did not turn aside to the right or to the left.
Josiah Repairs the Temple
3 In the eighteenth year of King Josiah, the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, son of Meshullam, the secretary, to the house of the Lord, saying, 4 “Go up to (D)Hilkiah the high priest, that he may count the money (E)that has been brought into the house of the Lord, which (F)the keepers of the threshold have collected from the people. 5 (G)And let it be given into the hand of the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the Lord, and let them give it to the workmen who are at the house of the Lord, repairing the house 6 (that is, to the carpenters, and to the builders, and to the masons), and let them use it for buying timber and quarried stone to repair the house. 7 But (H)no accounting shall be asked from them for the money that is delivered into their hand, for they deal honestly.”
Hilkiah Finds the Book of the Law
8 And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found (I)the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 9 And Shaphan the secretary came to the king, and reported to the king, “Your servants have emptied out the money that was found in the house and have delivered it into the hand of the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the Lord.” 10 Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it before the king.
11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, (J)he tore his clothes. 12 And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and (K)Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and (L)Achbor the son of (M)Micaiah, and Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king's servant, saying, 13 “Go, inquire of the Lord for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found. For great is (N)the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.”
The Lord's Supper
17 But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. 18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, (A)I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part,[a] 19 for (B)there must be factions among you in order (C)that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. 20 When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. 21 For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, (D)another gets drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise (E)the church of God and (F)humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
9 And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to (A)his own city. 2 (B)And behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And when Jesus (C)saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, (D)“Take heart, my son; (E)your sins are forgiven.” 3 And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, (F)“This man is blaspheming.” 4 But Jesus, (G)knowing[a] their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5 For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic—“Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” 7 And he rose and went home. 8 When the crowds saw it, (H)they were afraid, and (I)they glorified God, who had (J)given such authority to men.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.