Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 50
A Psalm of [a]Asaph.
1 The Mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks and calls the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.
2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth.
3 Our God comes and does not keep silence; a fire devours before Him, and round about Him a mighty tempest rages.
4 He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that He may judge His people:
5 Gather together to Me My saints [those who have found grace in My sight], those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.
6 And the heavens declare His righteousness (rightness and justice), for God, He is judge. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
7 Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify to you and against you: I am God, your God.
8 I do not reprove you for your sacrifices; your burnt offerings are continually before Me.
9 I will accept no bull from your house nor he-goat out of your folds.
10 For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills or upon the mountains where thousands are.
11 I know and am acquainted with all the birds of the mountains, and the wild animals of the field are Mine and are with Me, in My mind.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are Mine.(A)
13 Shall I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14 Offer to God the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High,
15 And call on Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall honor and glorify Me.
16 But to the wicked, God says: What right have you to recite My statutes or take My covenant or pledge on your lips,
17 Seeing that you hate instruction and correction and cast My words behind you [discarding them]?
18 When you see a thief, you associate with him, and you have taken part with adulterers.
19 You give your mouth to evil, and your tongue frames deceit.
20 You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother’s son.
21 These things you have done and I kept silent; you thought I was once entirely like you. But [now] I will reprove you and put [the charge] in order before your eyes.
22 Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.
23 He who brings an offering of praise and thanksgiving honors and glorifies Me; and he who orders his way aright [who prepares the way that I may show him], to him I will demonstrate the salvation of God.
Psalm 59
To the Chief Musician; [set to the tune of] “Do Not Destroy.” Of David, a record of memorable thoughts when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.
1 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; defend and protect me from those who rise up against me.
2 Deliver me from and lift me above those who work evil and save me from bloodthirsty men.
3 For, behold, they lie in wait for my life; fierce and mighty men are banding together against me, not for my transgression nor for any sin of mine, O Lord.
4 They run and prepare themselves, though there is no fault in me; rouse Yourself [O Lord] to meet and help me, and see!
5 You, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, arise to visit all the nations; spare none and be not merciful to any who treacherously plot evil. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
6 They return at evening, they howl and snarl like dogs, and go [prowling] about the city.
7 Behold, they belch out [insults] with their mouths; swords [of sarcasm, ridicule, slander, and lies] are in their lips, for who, they think, hears us?
8 But You, O Lord, will laugh at them [in scorn]; You will hold all the nations in derision.
9 O my Strength, I will watch and give heed to You and sing praises; for God is my Defense (my Protector and High Tower).
10 My God in His mercy and steadfast love will meet me; God will let me look [triumphantly] on my enemies (those who lie in wait for me).
11 Slay them not, lest my people forget; scatter them by Your power and make them wander to and fro, and bring them down, O Lord our Shield!
12 For the sin of their mouths and the words of their lips, let them even be trapped and taken in their pride, and for the cursing and lying which they utter.
13 Consume them in wrath, consume them so that they shall be no more; and let them know unto the ends of the earth that God rules over Jacob (Israel). Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
14 And at evening let them return; let them howl and snarl like dogs, and go prowling about the city.
15 Let them wander up and down for food and tarry all night if they are not satisfied (not getting their fill).
16 But I will sing of Your mighty strength and power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy and loving-kindness in the morning; for You have been to me a defense (a fortress and a high tower) and a refuge in the day of my distress.
17 Unto You, O my Strength, I will sing praises; for God is my Defense, my Fortress, and High Tower, the God Who shows me mercy and steadfast love.
Psalm 60
To the Chief Musician; [set to the tune of] “The Lily of the Testimony.” A poem of David intended to record memorable thoughts and to teach; when he had striven with the Arameans of Mesopotamia and the Arameans of Zobah, and when Joab returned and smote twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
1 O God, You have rejected us and cast us off, broken down [our defenses], and scattered us; You have been angry—O restore us and turn Yourself to us again!
2 You have made the land to quake and tremble, You have rent it [open]; repair its breaches, for it shakes and totters.
3 You have made Your people suffer hard things; You have given us to drink wine that makes us reel and be dazed.
4 [But now] You have set up a banner for those who fear and worshipfully revere You [to which they may flee from the bow], a standard displayed because of the truth. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
5 That Your beloved ones may be delivered, save with Your right hand and answer us [or me].
6 God has spoken in His holiness [in His promises]: I will rejoice, I will divide and portion out [the land] Shechem and the Valley of Succoth [west to east].
7 Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim also is My helmet (the defense of My head); Judah is My scepter and My lawgiver.
8 Moab is My washpot [reduced to vilest servitude]; upon Edom I cast My shoe in triumph; over Philistia I raise the shout of victory.
9 Who will bring me [David] into the strong city [of Petra]? Who will lead me into Edom?
10 Have You not rejected us, O God? And will You not go forth, O God, with our armies?
11 O give us help against the adversary, for vain (ineffectual and to no purpose) is the help or salvation of man.
12 Through God we shall do valiantly, for He it is Who shall tread down our adversaries.
Psalm 33
1 Rejoice in the Lord, O you [uncompromisingly] righteous [you upright in right standing with God]; for praise is becoming and appropriate for those who are upright [in heart].
2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; sing praises to Him with the harp of ten strings.
3 Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully [on the strings] with a loud and joyful sound.
4 For the word of the Lord is right; and all His work is done in faithfulness.
5 He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the loving-kindness of the Lord.
6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all their host by the breath of His mouth.(A)
7 He gathers the waters of the sea as in a bottle; He puts the deeps in storage places.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord [revere and worship Him]; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
9 For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.
10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nought; He makes the thoughts and plans of the peoples of no effect.
11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the thoughts of His heart through all generations.
12 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His heritage.
13 The Lord looks from heaven, He beholds all the sons of men;
14 From His dwelling place He looks [intently] upon all the inhabitants of the earth—
15 He Who fashions the hearts of them all, Who considers all their doings.
16 No king is saved by the great size and power of his army; a mighty man is not delivered by [his] much strength.
17 A horse is devoid of value for victory; neither does he deliver any by his great power.
18 Behold, the Lord’s eye is upon those who fear Him [who revere and worship Him with awe], who wait for Him and hope in His mercy and loving-kindness,
19 To deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
20 Our inner selves wait [earnestly] for the Lord; He is our Help and our Shield.
21 For in Him does our heart rejoice, because we have trusted (relied on and been confident) in His holy name.
22 Let Your mercy and loving-kindness, O Lord, be upon us, in proportion to our waiting and hoping for You.
4 And the angel who talked with me came again and awakened me, like a man who is wakened out of his sleep.
2 And said to me, What do you see? I said, I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with its bowl [for oil] on the top of it and its seven lamps on it, and [there are] seven pipes to each of the seven lamps which are upon the top of it.(A)
3 And there are two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl and the other upon the left side of it [feeding it continuously with oil].(B)
4 So I asked the angel who talked with me, What are these, my lord?
5 Then the angel who talked with me answered me, Do you not know what these are? And I said, No, my lord.
6 Then he said to me, This [addition of the bowl to the candlestick, causing it to yield a ceaseless supply of oil from the olive trees] is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit [of Whom the oil is a symbol], says the Lord of hosts.
7 For who are you, O great mountain [of human obstacles]? Before Zerubbabel [who with Joshua had led the return of the exiles from Babylon and was undertaking the rebuilding of the temple, before him] you shall become a plain [a mere [a]molehill]! And he shall bring forth the finishing gable stone [of the new temple] with loud shoutings of the people, crying, Grace, grace to it!(C)
8 Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this house; his hands shall also finish it. Then you shall know (recognize and understand) that the Lord of hosts has sent me [His messenger] to you.
10 Who [with reason] despises the day of small things? For these seven shall rejoice when they see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel. [These seven] are the eyes of the Lord which run to and fro throughout the whole earth.(D)
11 Then I said to him [the angel who talked with me], What are these two olive trees on the right side of the lampstand and on the left side of it?
12 And a second time I said to him, What are these two olive branches which are beside the two golden tubes or spouts by which the golden oil is emptied out?
13 And he answered me, Do you not know what these are? And I said, No, my lord.
14 Then said he, These are the two [b]sons of oil [Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the prince of Judah, the two anointed ones] who stand before the Lord of the whole earth [as His anointed instruments].(E)
9 And whenever the living creatures offer glory and honor and thanksgiving to Him Who sits on the throne, Who lives forever and ever (through the eternities of the eternities),(A)
10 The twenty-four elders ([a]the members of the heavenly Sanhedrin) fall prostrate before Him Who is sitting on the throne, and they worship Him Who lives forever and ever; and they throw down their crowns before the throne, crying out,
11 Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive the glory and the honor and dominion, for You created all things; by Your will they were [brought into being] and were created.(B)
5 And I saw lying on the [b]open hand of Him Who was seated on the throne a scroll (book) written within and on the back, closed and sealed with seven seals;(C)
2 And I saw a strong angel announcing in a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the scroll? And [who is entitled and deserves and is morally fit] to break its seals?
3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth [in the realm of the dead, Hades] was able to open the scroll or to take a [single] look at its contents.
4 And I wept audibly and bitterly because no one was found fit to open the scroll or to inspect it.
5 Then one of the elders [[c]of the heavenly Sanhedrin] said to me, Stop weeping! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root (Source) of David, has won (has overcome and conquered)! He can open the scroll and break its seven seals!(D)
25 Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
2 Five of them were foolish (thoughtless, without forethought) and five were wise (sensible, intelligent, and prudent).
3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they did not take any [extra] oil with them;
4 But the wise took flasks of oil along with them [also] with their lamps.
5 While the bridegroom lingered and was slow in coming, they all began nodding their heads, and they fell asleep.
6 But at midnight there was a shout, Behold, the bridegroom! Go out to meet him!
7 Then all those virgins got up and put their own lamps in order.
8 And the foolish said to the wise, Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.
9 But the wise replied, There will not be enough for us and for you; go instead to the dealers and buy for yourselves.
10 But while they were going away to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were prepared went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut.
11 Later the other virgins also came and said, Lord, Lord, open [the door] to us!
12 But He replied, I solemnly declare to you, I do not know you [I am not acquainted with you].
13 Watch therefore [give strict attention and be cautious and active], for you know neither the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will come.
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