Book of Common Prayer

31 To David himself, understanding. Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.

² Blessed is the man to whom the Lord hath not imputed sin, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

³ Because I was silent my bones grew old; whilst I cried out all the day long.

⁴ For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: I am turned in my anguish, whilst the thorn is fastened.

⁵ I have acknowledged my sin to thee, and my injustice I have not concealed. I said I will confess against myself my injustice to the Lord: and thou hast forgiven the wickedness of my sin.

⁶ For this shall every one that is holy pray to thee in a seasonable time. And yet in a flood of many waters, they shall not come nigh unto him.

⁷ Thou art my refuge from the trouble which hath encompassed me: my joy, deliver me from them that surround me.

⁸ I will give thee understanding, and I will instruct thee in this way, in which thou shalt go: I will fix my eyes upon thee.

⁹ Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding. With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto thee.

¹⁰ Many are the scourges of the sinner, but mercy shall encompass him that hopeth in the Lord.

¹¹ Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye just, and glory, all ye right of heart.

35 Unto the end, for the servant of God, David himself.

² The unjust hath said within himself, that he would sin: there is no fear of God before his eyes.

³ For in his sight he hath done deceitfully, that his iniquity may be found unto hatred.

⁴ The words of his mouth are iniquity and guile: he would not understand that he might do well.

⁵ He hath devised iniquity on his bed, he hath set himself on every way that is not good: but evil he hath not hated.

⁶ O Lord, thy mercy is in heaven, and thy truth reacheth, even to the clouds.

⁷ Thy justice is as the mountains of God, thy judgments are a great deep. Men and beasts thou wilt preserve, O Lord:

⁸ O how hast thou multiplied thy mercy, O God! But the children of men shall put their trust under the covert of thy wings.

⁹ They shall be inebriated with the plenty of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the torrent of thy pleasure.

¹⁰ For with thee is the fountain of life; and in thy light we shall see light.

¹¹ Extend thy mercy to them that know thee, and thy justice to them that are right in heart.

¹² Let not the foot of pride come to me, and let not the hand of the sinner move me.

¹³ There the workers of iniquity are fallen, they are cast out, and could not stand.

3 And now the seventh month was come, and the children of Israel were in their cities: and the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem.

² And Josue the son of Josedec rose up, and his brethren the priests, and Zorobabel the son of Salathiel, and his brethren, and they built the altar of the God of Israel that they might offer holocausts upon it, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.

³ And they set the altar of God upon its bases, while the people of the lands round about put them in fear, and they offered upon it a holocaust to the Lord morning and evening.

⁴ And they kept the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the holocaust every day orderly according to the commandment, the duty of the day in its day.

⁵ And afterwards the continual holocaust, both on the new moons, and on all the solemnities of the Lord, that were consecrated, and on all in which a free-will offering was made to the Lord.

⁶ From the first day of the seventh month they began to offer holocausts to the Lord: but the temple of God was not yet founded.

⁷ And they gave money to hewers of stones and to masons: and meat and drink, and oil to the Sidonians and Tyrians, to bring cedar trees from Libanus to the sea of Joppe, according to the orders which Cyrus king of the Persians had given them.

⁸ And in the second year of their coming to the temple of God in Jerusalem, the second month, Zorobabel the son of Salathiel, and Josue the son of Josedec, and the rest of their brethren the priests, and the Levites, and all that were come from the captivity to Jerusalem began, and they appointed Levites from twenty years old and upward, to hasten forward the work of the Lord.

⁹ Then Josue and his sons and his brethren, Cedmihel, and his sons, and the children of Juda, as one man, stood to hasten them that did the work in the temple of God: the sons of Henadad, and their sons, and their brethren the Levites.

¹⁰ And when the masons laid the foundations of the temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their ornaments with trumpets: and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise God by the hands of David king of Israel.

¹¹ And they sung together hymns, and praise to the Lord: because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever towards Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, praising the Lord, because the foundations of the temple of the Lord were laid.

¹² But many of the priests and the Levites, and the chief of the fathers and the ancients that had seen the former temple; when they had the foundation of this temple before their eyes, wept with a loud voice: and many shouting for joy, lifted up their voice.

¹³ So that one could not distinguish the voice of the shout of joy, from the noise of the weeping of the people: for one with another the people shouted with a loud shout, and the voice was heard afar off.

¹⁰ Now if Timothy come, see that he be with you without fear, for he worketh the work of the Lord, as I also do.

¹¹ Let no man therefore despise him, but conduct ye him on his way in peace: that he may come to me. For I look for him with the brethren.

¹² And touching our brother Apollo, I give you to understand, that I much entreated him to come unto you with the brethren: and indeed it was not his will at all to come at this time. But he will come when he shall have leisure.

¹³ Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, do manfully, and be strengthened.

¹⁴ Let all your things be done in charity.

¹⁵ And I beseech you, brethren, you know the house of Stephanas, and of Fortunatus, and of Achaicus, that they are the firstfruits of Achaia, and have dedicated themselves to the ministry of the saints:

¹⁶ That you also be subject to such, and to every one that worketh with us, and laboureth.

¹⁷ And I rejoice in the presence of Stephanas, and Fortunatus, and Achaicus, because that which was wanting on your part, they have supplied.

¹⁸ For they have refreshed both my spirit and yours. Know them, therefore, that are such.

¹⁹ The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house, with whom I also lodge.

²⁰ All the brethren salute you. Salute one another with a holy kiss.

²¹ The salutation of me Paul, with my own hand.

²² If any man love not our Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema, maranatha.

²³ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

²⁴ My charity be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.

²² Then was offered to him one possessed with a devil, blind and dumb: and he healed him, so that he spoke and saw.

²³ And all the multitudes were amazed, and said: Is not this the son of David?

²⁴ But the Pharisees hearing it, said: This man casteth not out the devils but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.

²⁵ And Jesus knowing their thoughts, said to them: Every kingdom divided against itself shall be made desolate: and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.

²⁶ And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself: how then shall his kingdom stand?

²⁷ And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.

²⁸ But if I by the Spirit of God cast out devils, then is the kingdom of God come upon you.

²⁹ Or how can any one enter into the house of the strong, and rifle his goods, unless he first bind the strong? and then he will rifle his house.

³⁰ He that is not with me, is against me: and he that gathereth not with me, scattereth.

³¹ Therefore I say to you: Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but the blasphemy of the Spirit shall not be forgiven.

³² And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but he that shall speak against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in the world to come.