Book of Common Prayer
BOOK I
(Psalms 1–41)
The Way to Happiness
1 God blesses those people
who refuse evil advice
and won't follow sinners
or join in sneering at God.
2 Instead, they find happiness
in the Teaching of the Lord,
and they think about it
day and night.
3 (A) They are like trees
growing beside a stream,
trees that produce
fruit in season
and always have leaves.
Those people succeed
in everything they do.
4 That isn't true of those
who are evil—
they are like straw
blown by the wind.
5 Sinners won't have an excuse
on the day of judgment,
and they won't have a place
with the people of God.
6 The Lord protects everyone
who follows him,
but the wicked follow a road
that leads to ruin.
The Lord's Chosen King
1 (B) Why do the nations plot,[a]
and why do their people
make useless plans?[b]
2 The kings of this earth
have all joined together
to turn against the Lord
and his chosen king.
3 They say, “Let's cut the ropes
and set ourselves free!”
4 In heaven the Lord laughs
as he sits on his throne,
making fun of the nations.
5 The Lord becomes furious
and threatens them.
His anger terrifies them
as he says,
6 “I've put my king on Zion,
my sacred hill.”
7 (C) I will tell the promise
that the Lord made to me:
“You are my son, because today
I have become your father.
8 Ask me for the nations,
and every nation on earth
will belong to you.
9 (D) You will smash them
with an iron rod
and shatter them
like dishes of clay.”
10 Be smart, all you rulers,
and pay close attention.
11 Serve and honor the Lord;
be glad and tremble.
12 Show respect to his son
because if you don't,
the Lord might become furious
and suddenly destroy you.[c]
But he blesses and protects
everyone who runs to him.
(Written by David when he was running from his son Absalom.)
An Early Morning Prayer
1 (E) I have a lot of enemies, Lord.
Many fight against 2 me and say,
“God won't rescue you!”
3 But you are my shield,
and you give me victory
and great honor.
4 I pray to you, and you answer
from your sacred hill.
5 I sleep and wake up refreshed
because you, Lord,
protect me.
6 Ten thousand enemies attack
from every side,
but I am not afraid.
7 Come and save me, Lord God!
Break my enemies' jaws
and shatter their teeth,
8 because you protect
and bless your people.
(A psalm by David for the music leader. Use stringed instruments.)
An Evening Prayer
1 You are my God and protector.
Please answer my prayer.
I was in terrible distress,
but you set me free.
Now have pity and listen
as I pray.
2 How long will you people
refuse to respect me?[d]
You love foolish things,
and you run after
what is worthless.[e]
3 The Lord has chosen
everyone who is faithful
to be his very own,[f]
and he answers my prayers.
4 (F) But each of you
had better tremble
and turn from your sins.
Silently search your heart
as you lie in bed.
5 Offer the proper sacrifices
and trust the Lord.
6 There are some who ask,
“Who will be good to us?”
Let your kindness, Lord,
shine brightly on us.
7 You brought me more happiness
than a rich harvest
of grain and grapes.
8 I can lie down
and sleep soundly
because you, Lord,
will keep me safe.
(Written by David.[a] He sang this to the Lord because of Cush from the tribe of Benjamin.)
The Lord Always Does Right
1 You, Lord God,
are my protector.
Rescue me and keep me safe
from all who chase me.
2 Or else they will rip me apart
like lions attacking a victim,
and no one will save me.
3 I am innocent, Lord God!
4 I have not betrayed a friend
or had pity on an enemy[b]
who attacks for no reason.
5 If I have done any of this,
then let my enemies
chase and capture me.
Let them trample me to death
and leave me in the dirt.
6 Get angry, Lord God!
Do something!
Attack my furious enemies.
See that justice is done.
7 Make the nations come to you,
as you sit on your throne[c]
above them all.
8 Our Lord, judge the nations!
Judge me and show that I
am honest and innocent.
9 (A) You know every heart and mind,
and you always do right.
Now make violent people stop,
but protect all of us
who obey you.
10 You, God, are my shield,
the protector of everyone
whose heart is right.
11 You see that justice is done,
and each day
you take revenge.
12 Whenever your enemies refuse
to change their ways,
you sharpen your sword
and string your bow.
13 Your deadly arrows are ready
with flaming tips.
14 An evil person is like a woman
about to give birth
to a hateful, deceitful,
and rebellious child.
15 (B) Such people dig a deep hole,
then fall in it themselves.
16 The trouble they cause
comes back on them,
and their heads are crushed
by their own evil deeds.
17 I will praise you, Lord!
You always do right.
I will sing about you,
the Lord Most High.
4 That's how God created the heavens and the earth.
The Garden of Eden
When the Lord God made the heavens and the earth, 5 no grass or plants were growing anywhere. God had not yet sent any rain, and there was no one to work the land. 6 But streams[a] came up from the ground and watered the earth.
7 (A) The Lord God took some soil from the ground and made a man.[b] God breathed life into the man, and the man started breathing. 8 The Lord made a garden in a place called Eden, which was in the east, and he put the man there.
9 (B) The Lord God filled the garden with all kinds of beautiful trees and fruit trees. Two other trees were in the middle of the garden. One of these gave life—the other gave the wisdom to know the difference between right and wrong.
10 From Eden a river flowed out to water the garden, then it divided into four rivers. 11 The first one is the Pishon River that flows through the land of Havilah, 12 where pure gold, rare perfumes, and precious stones are found. 13 The second is the Gihon River that winds through Ethiopia.[c] 14 The Tigris River that flows east of Assyria is the third, and the fourth is the Euphrates River.
15 The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden to take care of it and to look after it. 16 But the Lord told him, “You may eat fruit from any tree in the garden, 17 except the one that has the power to let you know the difference between right and wrong. If you eat any fruit from that tree, you will die before the day is over!”
18 The Lord God said, “It isn't good for the man to live alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” 19-20 So the Lord took some soil and made animals and birds. He brought them to the man to see what names he would give each of them. Then the man named the tame animals and the birds and the wild animals. That's how they got their names.
None of these was the right kind of partner for the man. 21 So the Lord God made him fall into a deep sleep, and he took out one of the man's ribs. Then after closing the man's side, 22 the Lord made a woman out of the rib.
The Lord God brought her to the man, 23 and the man exclaimed,
“Here is someone like me!
She is part of my body,
my own flesh and bones.
She came from me, a man.
So I will name her Woman!”[d]
24 (C) That's why a man will leave his own father and mother. He marries a woman, and the two of them become like one person.
25 Although the man and his wife were both naked, they were not ashamed.
1 Long ago in many ways and at many times God's prophets spoke his message to our ancestors. 2 (A) But now at last, God sent his Son to bring his message to us. God created the universe by his Son, and everything will someday belong to the Son. 3 (B) God's Son has all the brightness of God's own glory and is like him in every way. By his own mighty word, he holds the universe together.
After the Son had washed away our sins, he sat down at the right side[a] of the glorious God in heaven. 4 He had become much greater than the angels, and the name he was given is far greater than any of theirs.
God's Son Is Greater than Angels
5 (C) God has never said
to any of the angels,
“You are my Son, because today
I have become your Father!”
Neither has God said
to any of them,
“I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son!”
6 (D) When God brings his first-born Son[b] into the world, he commands all of his angels to worship him.
7 (E) And when God speaks about the angels, he says,
“I change my angels into wind
and my servants
into flaming fire.”
8 (F) But God says about his Son,
“You are God,
and you will rule
as King forever!
Your[c] royal power
brings about justice.
9 You loved justice
and hated evil,
and so I, your God,
have chosen you.
I appointed you
and made you happier
than any of your friends.”
10 (G) The Scriptures also say,
“In the beginning, Lord,
you were the one
who laid the foundation
of the earth
and created the heavens.
11 They will all disappear
and wear out like clothes,
but you will last forever.
12 You will roll them up
like a robe
and change them
like a garment.
But you are always the same,
and you will live forever.”
13 (H) God never said to any
of the angels,
“Sit at my right side
until I make your enemies
into a footstool for you!”
14 (I) Angels are merely spirits sent to serve people who are going to be saved.
The Word of Life
1 In the beginning was the one
who is called the Word.
The Word was with God
and was truly God.
2 From the very beginning
the Word was with God.
3 And with this Word,
God created all things.
Nothing was made
without the Word.
Everything that was created
4 received its life from him,
and his life gave light
to everyone.
5 The light keeps shining
in the dark,
and darkness has never
put it out.[a]
6 (A) God sent a man named John,
7 who came to tell
about the light
and to lead all people
to have faith.
8 John wasn't this light.
He came only to tell
about the light.
9 The true light that shines
on everyone
was coming into the world.
10 The Word was in the world,
but no one knew him,
though God had made the world
with his Word.
11 He came into his own world,
but his own nation
did not welcome him.
12 Yet some people accepted him
and put their faith in him.
So he gave them the right
to be the children of God.
13 They were not God's children
by nature or because
of any human desires.
God himself was the one
who made them his children.
14 The Word became
a human being
and lived here with us.
We saw his true glory,
the glory of the only Son
of the Father.
From him the complete gifts
of undeserved grace and truth
have come down to us.
15 John spoke about him and shouted, “This is the one I told you would come! He is greater than I am, because he was alive before I was born.”
16 Because of all that the Son is, we have been given one blessing after another.[b] 17 The Law was given by Moses, but Jesus Christ brought us undeserved kindness and truth. 18 No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is truly God and is closest to the Father, has shown us what God is like.
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