Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 61
Security in God
For the choir director: on stringed instruments. Davidic.
1 God, hear my cry;
pay attention to my prayer.(A)
2 I call to You from the ends of the earth
when my heart is without strength.(B)
Lead me to a rock that is high above me,(C)
3 for You have been a refuge for me,
a strong tower(D) in the face of the enemy.
4 I will live in Your tent forever
and take refuge under the shelter of Your wings.(E)
5 God, You have heard my vows;(F)
You have given a heritage
to those who fear Your name.(G)
6 Add days to the king’s life;
may his years span many generations.(H)
7 May he sit enthroned before God forever;(I)
appoint faithful love and truth to guard him.(J)
8 Then I will continually sing of Your name,(K)
fulfilling my vows day by day.(L)
Psalm 62
Trust in God Alone
For the choir director: according to Jeduthun.(M) A Davidic psalm.
1 I am at rest in God alone;
my salvation comes from Him.(N)
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,(O)
my stronghold; I will never be shaken.(P)
3 How long will you threaten a man?
Will all of you attack[a]
as if he were a leaning wall
or a tottering stone fence?(Q)
4 They only plan to bring him down
from his high position.
They take pleasure in lying;
they bless with their mouths,
but they curse inwardly.(R)
5 Rest in God alone, my soul,
for my hope comes from Him.(S)
6 He alone is my rock and my salvation,(T)
my stronghold; I will not be shaken.(U)
7 My salvation and glory depend on God, my strong rock.
My refuge is in God.(V)
8 Trust in Him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts before Him.
God is our refuge.(W)
Psalm 112
The Traits of the Righteous
2 His descendants will be powerful in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.(B)
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,(C)
and his righteousness endures forever.(D)
4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright.(E)
He is gracious, compassionate, and righteous.(F)
5 Good will come to a man who lends generously
and conducts his business fairly.(G)
6 He will never be shaken.(H)
The righteous man will be remembered forever.(I)
7 He will not fear bad news;
his heart is confident, trusting in the Lord.(J)
8 His heart is assured; he will not fear.(K)
In the end he will look in triumph on his foes.(L)
9 He distributes freely to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.(M)
His horn will be exalted in honor.(N)
Psalm 115
Glory to God Alone
1 Not to us, Yahweh, not to us,
but to Your name give glory
because of Your faithful love, because of Your truth.(A)
2 Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”(B)
3 Our God is in heaven
and does whatever He pleases.(C)
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
made by human hands.(D)
5 They have mouths but cannot speak,
eyes, but cannot see.
6 They have ears but cannot hear,
noses, but cannot smell.(E)
7 They have hands but cannot feel,
feet, but cannot walk.(F)
They cannot make a sound with their throats.(G)
8 Those who make them are[a] just like them,
as are all who trust in them.(H)
9 Israel,[b] trust in the Lord!(I)
He is their help and shield.(J)
10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord!(K)
He is their help and shield.(L)
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!(M)
He is their help and shield.
12 The Lord remembers us and will bless us.
He will bless the house of Israel;
He will bless the house of Aaron;(N)
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord—
small and great alike.(O)
14 May the Lord add to your numbers,
both yours and your children’s.(P)
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.(Q)
16 The heavens are the Lord’s,[c]
but the earth He has given to the human race.(R)
17 It is not the dead who praise the Lord,
nor any of those descending into the silence of death.(S)
18 But we will praise the Lord,
both now and forever.(T)
Hallelujah!
14 Sing for joy, Daughter Zion;
shout loudly, Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
Daughter Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has removed your punishment;
He has turned back your enemy.
The King of Israel, Yahweh, is among you;
you need no longer fear harm.
16 On that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
“Do not fear;
Zion, do not let your hands grow weak.(A)
17 Yahweh your God is among you,
a warrior(B) who saves.
He will rejoice over you(C) with gladness.
He will bring you quietness[a] with His love.
He will delight in you with shouts of joy.”(D)
18 I will gather those who have been driven(E)
from the appointed festivals;
they will be a tribute from you[b]
and a reproach on her.[c]
19 Yes, at that time
I will deal with all who afflict you.
I will save the lame(F) and gather the scattered;(G)
I will make those who were disgraced
throughout the earth
receive praise and fame.
20 At that time I will bring you[d] back,
yes, at the time I will gather you.
I will give you fame and praise
among all the peoples of the earth,
when I restore your fortunes(H) before your eyes.
Yahweh has spoken.
Greeting
1 Paul,(A) a slave of God(B) and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to build up[a] the faith of God’s elect(C) and their knowledge of the truth(D) that leads[b] to godliness,(E) 2 in the hope of eternal life(F) that God, who cannot lie,(G) promised before time began.(H) 3 In His own time He has revealed(I) His message(J) in the proclamation that I was entrusted(K) with by the command(L) of God our Savior:(M)
4 To Titus,(N) my true son(O) in our common faith.
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.(P)
Titus’s Ministry in Crete
5 The reason I left you in Crete(Q) was to set right what was left undone and, as I directed you, to appoint elders(R) in every town: 6 one(S) who is blameless,(T) the husband of one wife, having faithful[c] children not accused of wildness or rebellion. 7 For an overseer,(U) as God’s administrator, must be blameless, not arrogant, not hot-tempered, not addicted to wine, not a bully, not greedy for money, 8 but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, righteous, holy, self-controlled, 9 holding to the faithful message as taught,(V) so that he will be able both to encourage with sound teaching(W) and to refute those who contradict it.
10 For there are also many rebellious people, full of empty talk and deception, especially those from Judaism.[d] 11 It is necessary to silence them; they overthrow whole households by teaching what they shouldn’t in order to get money dishonestly. 12 One of their very own prophets said,
Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.[e]
13 This testimony is true.(X) So, rebuke them sharply,(Y) that they may be sound in the faith 14 and may not pay attention to Jewish myths(Z) and the commands of men who reject the truth.(AA)
15 To the pure, everything is pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; in fact, both their mind and conscience(AB) are defiled. 16 They profess to know God,(AC) but they deny Him by their works.(AD) They are detestable, disobedient, and disqualified for any good work.(AE)
The Dedication to Theophilus
1 Many have undertaken to compile a narrative about the events that have been fulfilled[a] among us,(A) 2 just as the original eyewitnesses(B) and servants of the word(C) handed them down to us. 3 It also seemed good to me, since I have carefully investigated everything from the very first, to write to you in an orderly sequence, most honorable(D) Theophilus,(E) 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things about which you have been instructed.[b](F)
Gabriel Predicts John’s Birth
5 In the days of King Herod(G) of Judea, there was a priest of Abijah’s division[c](H) named Zechariah. His wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 Both were righteous in God’s sight,(I) living without blame(J) according to all the commands and requirements of the Lord. 7 But they had no children[d] because Elizabeth could not conceive,[e] and both of them were well along in years.[f]
8 When his division was on duty(K) and he was serving as priest before God, 9 it happened that he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense.(L) 10 At the hour of incense the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. 11 An angel of the Lord(M) appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and overcome with fear.[g] 13 But the angel said to him:
Do not be afraid,(N) Zechariah,
because your prayer has been heard.
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you will name him John.(O)
14 There will be joy and delight for you,
and many will rejoice at his birth.
15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord
and will never drink wine or beer.(P)
He will be filled with the Holy Spirit
while still in his mother’s womb.(Q)
16 He will turn many of the sons of Israel
to the Lord their God.
17 And he will go before Him
in the spirit and power of Elijah,
to turn the hearts of fathers
to their children,(R)
and the disobedient
to the understanding of the righteous,
to make ready for the Lord a prepared people.(S)
18 “How can I know this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “For I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years.”[h]
19 The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel,(T) who stands in the presence of God,(U) and I was sent to speak to you and tell you this good news. 20 Now listen! You will become silent and unable to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah, amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary. 22 When he did come out, he could not speak to them. Then they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept making signs to them(V) and remained speechless. 23 When the days of his ministry were completed, he went back home.
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived and kept herself in seclusion for five months. She said, 25 “The Lord has done this for me. He has looked with favor in these days to take away my disgrace(W) among the people.”
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.