Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66
Praise for God’s Mighty Acts
For the choir director. A song. A psalm.
1 Shout joyfully to God, all the earth!(A)
2 Sing about the glory of His name;
make His praise glorious.(B)
3 Say to God, “How awe-inspiring are Your works!
Your enemies will cringe before You
because of Your great strength.(C)
4 All the earth will worship You
and sing praise to You.
They will sing praise to Your name.”(D)
5 Come and see the wonders of God;(E)
His acts for humanity are awe-inspiring.
6 He turned the sea into dry land,
and they crossed the river on foot.(F)
There we rejoiced in Him.(G)
7 He rules forever by His might;
He keeps His eye on the nations.(H)
The rebellious should not exalt themselves.(I)
8 Praise our God, you peoples;
let the sound of His praise be heard.(J)
9 He keeps us alive[a]
and does not allow our feet to slip.(K)
10 For You, God, tested us;
You refined us as silver is refined.(L)
11 You lured us into a trap;
You placed burdens on our backs.(M)
12 You let men ride over our heads;
we went through fire and water,
but You brought us out to abundance.[b](N)
13 I will enter Your house with burnt offerings;
I will pay You my vows(O)
14 that my lips promised
and my mouth spoke during my distress.(P)
15 I will offer You fattened sheep as burnt offerings,
with the fragrant smoke of rams;
I will sacrifice oxen with goats.(Q)
16 Come and listen, all who fear God,
and I will tell what He has done for me.(R)
17 I cried out to Him with my mouth,
and praise was on my tongue.(S)
18 If I had been aware of malice in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.(T)
19 However, God has listened;
He has paid attention to the sound of my prayer.(U)
20 May God be praised!
He has not turned away my prayer
or turned His faithful love from me.(V)
Psalm 67
All Will Praise God
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us;
look on us with favor(W)
2 so that Your way may be known on earth,
Your salvation among all nations.(X)
Psalm 116
Thanks to God for Deliverance
1 I love the Lord because He has heard
my appeal for mercy.(A)
2 Because He has turned His ear to me,
I will call out to Him as long as I live.(B)
3 The ropes of death were wrapped around me,
and the torments of Sheol overcame me;
I encountered trouble and sorrow.(C)
4 Then I called on the name of Yahweh:
“Yahweh, save me!”(D)
5 The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is compassionate.(E)
6 The Lord guards the inexperienced;
I was helpless, and He saved me.(F)
7 Return to your rest, my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.(G)
8 For You, Lord, rescued me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.(H)
9 I will walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.(I)
10 I believed, even when I said,
“I am severely afflicted.”(J)
11 In my alarm I said,
“Everyone is a liar.”(K)
12 How can I repay the Lord
for all the good He has done for me?(L)
13 I will take the cup of salvation
and call on the name of Yahweh.(M)
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all His people.(N)
15 The death of His faithful ones
is valuable in the Lord’s sight.(O)
16 Lord, I am indeed Your servant;
I am Your servant, the son of Your female servant.
You have loosened my bonds.(P)
17 I will offer You a sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on the name of Yahweh.(Q)
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all His people,(R)
19 in the courts of the Lord’s house—
within you, Jerusalem.(S)
Hallelujah!
Psalm 117
Universal Call to Praise
Hannah’s Triumphant Prayer
2 Hannah prayed:(A)
My heart rejoices in the Lord;(B)
my horn is lifted up by the Lord.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
because I rejoice in Your salvation.(C)
2 There is no one holy like the Lord.(D)
There is no one besides You!(E)
And there is no rock like our God.(F)
3 Do not boast so proudly,
or let arrogant words come out of your mouth,
for the Lord is a God of knowledge,
and actions are weighed by Him.(G)
4 The bows of the warriors are broken,(H)
but the feeble are clothed with strength.(I)
5 Those who are full hire themselves out for food,
but those who are starving hunger no more.
The woman who is childless gives birth to seven,(J)
but the woman with many sons pines away.(K)
6 The Lord brings death and gives life;(L)
He sends some to Sheol, and He raises others up.(M)
7 The Lord brings poverty and gives wealth;(N)
He humbles and He exalts.(O)
8 He raises the poor from the dust(P)
and lifts the needy from the garbage pile.(Q)
He seats them with noblemen(R)
and gives them a throne of honor.[a]
For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;(S)
He has set the world on them.(T)
9 He guards the steps[b] of His faithful ones,(U)
but the wicked perish in darkness,(V)
for a man does not prevail by his own strength.(W)
10 Those who oppose the Lord will be shattered;[c](X)
He will thunder in the heavens against them.(Y)
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth.(Z)
He will give power to His king;
He will lift up the horn of His anointed.(AA)
Sound Teaching and Christian Living
2 But you must say the things that are consistent with sound teaching.(A) 2 Older men(B) are to be level headed, worthy of respect, sensible, and sound in faith, love,(C) and endurance. 3 In the same way, older women(D) are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not addicted to much wine. They are to teach what is good, 4 so they may encourage the young women to love their husbands and to love their children, 5 to be self-controlled, pure, homemakers, kind, and submissive(E) to their husbands, so that God’s message(F) will not be slandered.
6 In the same way, encourage the young men(G) to be self-controlled 7 in everything. Make yourself an example of good works with integrity and dignity[a] in your teaching. 8 Your message is to be sound beyond reproach,(H) so that the opponent will be ashamed, having nothing bad to say about us.
9 Slaves are to be submissive to their masters(I) in everything, and to be well-pleasing,(J) not talking back 10 or stealing, but demonstrating utter faithfulness, so that they may adorn the teaching of God our Savior(K) in everything.
Gabriel Predicts Jesus’ Birth
26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel(A) was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,(B) 27 to a virgin engaged(C) to a man named Joseph, of the house of David.(D) The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And the angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, favored woman! The Lord is with you.”[a] 29 But she was deeply troubled(E) by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be. 30 Then the angel told her:
Do not be afraid, Mary,(F)
for you have found favor with God.
31 Now listen:
You will conceive and give birth to a son,
and you will call His name Jesus.(G)
32 He will be great
and will be called the Son of the Most High,(H)
and the Lord God will give Him
the throne of His father David.(I)
33 He will reign over the house of Jacob(J) forever,
and His kingdom will have no end.(K)
34 Mary asked the angel, “How can this be, since I have not been intimate with a man?”[b]
35 The angel replied to her:
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,(L)
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore, the holy One to be born
will be called the Son of God.(M)
36 And consider your relative Elizabeth—even she has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called childless. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”(N)
38 “I am the Lord’s slave,”[c] said Mary. “May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel left her.
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