Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 37[a]
Fate of the Wicked and Reward of the Righteous
1 Of David.
Do not fume because of evildoers
or envy those who do wrong.
2 They will wither quickly like the grass
and fade away like the green herb.[b]
3 Put your trust in the Lord and do good,
that you may dwell in the land[c] and be secure.
4 Take delight in the Lord,
and he will grant you what your heart[d] desires.
5 Commit your way to the Lord;
place your trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
and the justice of your cause, like the noonday.[e]
7 Wait quietly for the Lord
and be patient until he comes.
Do not fret over the man who prospers
because of his evil schemes.
8 Refrain from anger and turn away from wrath;
do not fret—it does nothing but harm.
9 For evildoers will be destroyed,
but those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land.[f]
10 In a short while, the wicked will be no more;
no matter how diligently you search, you will not be able to find him.
11 But the meek[g] will possess the land
and enjoy an abundance of peace.
12 The wicked man plots against the righteous
and grinds his teeth at the sight of them.
13 But the Lord laughs at them,
knowing that their day[h] is approaching.
14 The wicked draw their swords
and string their bows
to bring down the poor[i] and the needy
and to slaughter those who are upright.
15 Their swords will enter their own hearts,[j]
and their bows will be shattered.
16 Preferable is the little that the righteous possess
than the great wealth of the wicked.
17 For the power of the wicked will be overcome,
but the Lord protects the righteous.
18 The Lord looks after the lives of the upright,[k]
and their heritage will last forever.
19 They will not be confounded in times of evil,
and in days of famine they eat their fill.
20 But the wicked will perish,
all those who are enemies of the Lord.
Like the beauty of the meadows[l] they will wither away;
like smoke they will disappear.
21 The wicked man borrows but neglects to repay,
whereas the righteous man is generous in giving.
22 For those blessed by the Lord will possess the land,
but those who are cursed will perish.
23 The Lord makes a man’s steps secure
when he approves of his conduct.
24 Even if he stumbles, he will never fall headlong,
for the Lord holds him by the hand.[m]
25 From my youth until my present old age,
I have never seen the righteous man abandoned
or his children reduced to begging for bread.
26 He is always compassionate and generous in lending,
and his children will be blessed.[n]
27 If you shun evil and do good,
you will dwell in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves the just,[o]
and he will not forsake his faithful ones.
Those who follow evil paths will be destroyed,
and the children of the wicked will be cut off,
29 whereas the righteous will inherit the land
and dwell in it forever.[p]
30 [q]The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks what is right.
31 The law of his God is in his heart,
and his steps do not waver.
32 [r]The wicked man keeps close watch on the righteous
and seeks an opportunity to kill him.
33 But the Lord will not abandon the righteous
to the power of the wicked,
nor will he allow him to be condemned
when he is brought to trial.
34 Wait for the Lord
and follow the path he has laid out;
then he will exalt you to inherit the land,
and you will see the destruction of the wicked.
35 [s]I have seen a wicked man inflicting terror
and towering like a verdant tree.
36 I passed by again, and he was gone;
I searched for him, but he was not to be found.
37 [t]Pay attention to the innocent and behold the upright,
for the man of peace will have a future.
38 But the wicked will be completely destroyed,
and their children will be cut off.
39 [u]The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
he is their refuge in times of trouble.
40 The Lord will help them and deliver them;
he will rescue them from the wicked and save them
because they flee to him for refuge.
The Return from the Exile
Chapter 1
The Decree of Cyrus. 1 In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, in order that the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord inspired King Cyrus of Persia to issue the following proclamation throughout his kingdom and also have it put in writing:
2 “King Cyrus of Persia says this: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given to me all the kingdoms of the earth, and in addition he has designated me to build him a house at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 May God be with all those among you who belong to his people.[a] They are to go up to Jerusalem in Judah and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 And let everyone who has survived, and who has settled down to reside in that locale, be assisted by the people of that place with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, in addition to the voluntary offerings for the house of God in Jerusalem.”
5 Then the heads of the families of Judah and Benjamin, as well as the priests and Levites—all those whose spirit has been aroused by God—prepared to go forth and rebuild the house of God in Jerusalem. 6 All of their neighbors assisted them with gifts of every kind—silver and gold, goods and livestock, and many valuable gifts, in addition to all of their free-will offerings.
7 Furthermore, King Cyrus himself handed over the vessels of the house of the Lord that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away from Jerusalem and placed them in the temple of his gods. 8 Cyrus, the king of Persia, ordered them to be released into the charge of Mithredath, the treasurer, who made a complete inventory of them before turning them over to Sheshbazzar, the prince of Judah.[b]
9 [c]This was the final inventory: thirty gold dishes; one thousand silver dishes, in addition to twenty-nine others that had been repaired; 10 thirty gold bowls; four hundred and ten silver bowls; one thousand other articles. 11 The final total of all the gold and silver vessels was five thousand four hundred. All these Sheshbazzar took with him when he led the exiles back from Babylon to Jerusalem.
VIII: Final Recommendations and Greetings[a]
Chapter 16
The Collection. 1 Now in regard to the collection for the saints,[b] you should follow the instructions I gave to the churches of Galatia. 2 On the first day of every week,[c] each of you should set aside and save whatever you can spare, so that when I come to you, no collections will have to be taken. 3 And when I arrive, I shall send those who have been approved by you with letters of recommendation to deliver your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable that I should also go, they will accompany me.
Paul’s Plans. 5 I shall come to visit you after passing through Macedonia—for I am going to pass through Macedonia. 6 I may stay for some time with you, perhaps even for the entire winter, and then you can send me forth on my journey, wherever I may be going. 7 I do not want to see you now in passing. If the Lord permits, I hope to spend some time with you. 8 However, I will remain in Ephesus until Pentecost, 9 because a wide door for productive work has been opened for me, although there are also many adversaries to face.
15 The Servant of the Lord.[a] When Jesus became aware of this, he departed from that place. Many people followed him, and he healed all who were ill, 16 but he warned them not to make him known. 17 This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
18 “Behold, my servant, whom I have chosen,
my beloved in whom I delight.
I will place my spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not cry out or shout,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.
20 A bruised reed he will not break,
nor will he snuff out a smoldering wick,
until he establishes justice as victorious;
21 and in his name the Gentiles will place their hope.”
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