Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 24
A Psalm of David.
1 The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness of it, the world and they who dwell in it.(A)
2 For He has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the currents and the rivers.
3 Who shall go up into the mountain of the Lord? Or who shall stand in His Holy Place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted himself up to falsehood or to what is false, nor sworn deceitfully.(B)
5 He shall receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is the generation [description] of those who seek Him [who inquire of and for Him and of necessity require Him], who seek Your face, [O God of] Jacob. Selah [pause, and think of that]!(C)
7 Lift up your heads, O you gates; and be lifted up, you age-abiding doors, that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates; yes, lift them up, you age-abiding doors, that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is [He then] this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah [pause, and think of that]!
Psalm 29[a]
A Psalm of David.
1 Ascribe to the Lord, O sons of the mighty, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2 Give to the Lord the glory due to His name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness or in holy array.
3 The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of glory thunders; the Lord is upon many (great) waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.
5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; yes, the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion (Mount Hermon) like a young, wild ox.
7 The voice of the Lord splits and flashes forth forked lightning.
8 The voice of the Lord makes the wilderness tremble; the Lord shakes the Wilderness of Kadesh.
9 The voice of the Lord makes the hinds bring forth their young, and His voice strips bare the forests, while in His temple everyone is saying, Glory!
10 The Lord sat as King over the deluge; the Lord [still] sits as King [and] forever!
11 The Lord will give [unyielding and impenetrable] strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace.
Psalm 8
To the Chief Musician; set to a Philistine lute, or [possibly] to a particular Hittite tune. A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent (majestic and glorious) is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory on [or above] the heavens.
2 Out of the mouths of babes and unweaned infants You have established strength because of Your foes, that You might silence the enemy and the avenger.(A)
3 When I view and consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained and established,
4 What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?
5 Yet You have made him but a little lower than God [or heavenly beings], and You have crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet:(B)
7 All sheep and oxen, yes, and the beasts of the field,
8 The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
9 O Lord, our Lord, how excellent (majestic and glorious) is Your name in all the earth!
Psalm 84
To the Chief Musician; set to a Philistine lute, or [possibly] a particular Gittite tune. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
1 How lovely are Your tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!
2 My soul yearns, yes, even pines and is homesick for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out and sing for joy to the living God.
3 Yes, the sparrow has found a house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young—even Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.
4 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are those who dwell in Your house and Your presence; they will be singing Your praises all the day long. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
5 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
6 Passing through the Valley of Weeping (Baca), they make it a place of springs; the early rain also fills [the pools] with blessings.
7 They go from strength to strength [increasing in victorious power]; each of them appears before God in Zion.
8 O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer; give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
9 Behold our shield [the king as Your agent], O God, and look upon the face of Your anointed!
10 For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand [anywhere else]; I would rather be a doorkeeper and stand at the threshold in the house of my God than to dwell [at ease] in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the Lord God is a Sun and Shield; the Lord bestows [present] grace and favor and [future] glory (honor, splendor, and heavenly bliss)! No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
12 O Lord of hosts, blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man who trusts in You [leaning and believing on You, committing all and confidently looking to You, and that without fear or misgiving]!
16 The men rose up from there and faced toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.
17 And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham [My friend and servant] what I am going to do,(A)
18 Since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed through him and shall bless themselves by him?(B)
19 For I have known (chosen, acknowledged) him [as My own], so that he may teach and command his children and the sons of his house after him to keep the way of the Lord and to do what is just and righteous, so that the Lord may bring Abraham what He has promised him.
20 And the Lord said, Because the shriek [of the sins] of Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is exceedingly grievous,
21 I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether [as vilely and wickedly] as is the cry of it which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.
22 Now the [two] men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord.
23 And Abraham came close and said, Will You destroy the righteous (those upright and in right standing with God) together with the wicked?
24 Suppose there are in the city fifty righteous; will You destroy the place and not spare it for [the sake of] the fifty righteous in it?
25 Far be it from You to do such a thing—to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as do the wicked! Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth execute judgment and do righteously?
26 And the Lord said, If I find in the city of Sodom fifty righteous (upright and in right standing with God), I will spare the whole place for their sake.
27 Abraham answered, Behold now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken upon myself to speak to the Lord.
28 If five of the fifty righteous should be lacking—will You destroy the whole city for lack of five? He said, If I find forty-five, I will not destroy it.
29 And [Abraham] spoke to Him yet again, and said, Suppose [only] forty shall be found there. And He said, I will not do it for forty’s sake.
30 Then [Abraham] said to Him, Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak [again]. Suppose [only] thirty shall be found there. And He answered, I will not do it if I find thirty there.
31 And [Abraham] said, Behold now, I have taken upon myself to speak [again] to the Lord. Suppose [only] twenty shall be found there. And [the Lord] replied, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake.
32 And he said, Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again only this once. Suppose ten [righteous people] shall be found there. And [the Lord] said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.
33 And the Lord went His way when He had finished speaking with Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.
13 For you, brethren, were [indeed] called to freedom; only [do not let your] freedom be an incentive to your flesh and an opportunity or excuse [for [a]selfishness], but through love you should serve one another.
14 For the whole Law [concerning human relationships] is [b]complied with in the one precept, You shall love your neighbor as [you do] yourself.(A)
15 But if you bite and devour one another [in partisan strife], be careful that you [and your whole fellowship] are not consumed by one another.
16 But I say, walk and live [habitually] in the [Holy] Spirit [responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit]; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh (of human nature without God).
17 For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the [Holy] Spirit, and the [desires of the] Spirit are opposed to the flesh (godless human nature); for these are antagonistic to each other [continually withstanding and in conflict with each other], so that you are not free but are prevented from doing what you desire to do.
18 But if you are guided (led) by the [Holy] Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.
19 Now the doings (practices) of the flesh are clear (obvious): they are immorality, impurity, indecency,
20 Idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger (ill temper), selfishness, divisions (dissensions), party spirit (factions, sects with peculiar opinions, heresies),
21 Envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you beforehand, just as I did previously, that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the [Holy] Spirit [the work which His presence within accomplishes] is love, joy (gladness), peace, patience (an even temper, forbearance), kindness, goodness (benevolence), faithfulness,
23 Gentleness (meekness, humility), self-control (self-restraint, continence). Against such things there is no law [[c]that can bring a charge].
24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus (the Messiah) have crucified the flesh (the godless human nature) with its passions and appetites and desires.
25 If we live by the [Holy] Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. [If by the Holy Spirit [d]we have our life in God, let us go forward [e]walking in line, our conduct controlled by the Spirit.]
22 And they came to Bethsaida. And [people] brought to Him a blind man and begged Him to touch him.
23 And He [a]caught the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands upon him, He asked him, Do you [[b]possibly] see anything?
24 And he looked up and said, I see people, but [they look] like trees, walking.
25 Then He put His hands on his eyes again; and the man looked intently [that is, fixed his eyes on definite objects], and he was restored and saw everything distinctly [even what was [c]at a distance].
26 And He sent him away to his house, telling [him], Do not [even] enter the village [d]or tell anyone there.
27 And Jesus went on with His disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He asked His disciples, Who do people say that I am?
28 And they answered [Him], John the Baptist; and others [say], Elijah; but others, one of the prophets.
29 And He asked them, But who do you yourselves say that I am? Peter replied to Him, You are the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
30 And He charged them sharply to tell no one about Him.
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