Book of Common Prayer
God Saved Israel from Egypt
A ·maskil [skillful psalm; meditation] of Asaph [C a Levitical musician, a descendant of Gershon, at the time of David; 1 Chr. 6:39; 15:17; 2 Chr. 5:12].
78 My people, ·listen [give ear] to my ·teaching [instruction; law];
·listen [L incline your ear] to ·what I say [L the words of my mouth].
2 I will ·speak [L open my mouth] ·using stories [L with a proverb/parable];
I will ·tell [expound] ·secret things [L riddles] from long ago [C the past contains lessons for the present generation].
3 We have heard them and known them
by what our ·ancestors [fathers] have ·told [recounted to] us.
4 We will not ·keep [hide] them from our children;
we will ·tell [recount them to] ·those who come later [a later generation]
about the praises of the Lord.
We will tell about his power
and the ·miracles [wonderful acts] he has done.
5 The Lord ·made an agreement [established a decree/testimony] with Jacob
and gave the ·teachings [instructions; laws] to Israel [Ex. 19–24],
which he commanded our ·ancestors [fathers]
to ·teach [make known] to their children [Deut. 6:6–9, 20–22].
6 Then ·their children [L the later generation] would know them,
even their children not yet born.
And they would ·tell [L rise up and recount them to] their children.
7 So they would ·all trust [L place their trust/confidence in] God
and would not forget what he had done
but would ·obey [protect] his commands.
8 They would not be like their ·ancestors [fathers]
who were ·stubborn and disobedient [L a stubborn and rebellious generation].
Their hearts were not ·loyal [steadfast; L set] to God,
and they were not ·true [faithful] to him [Deut. 9:6–7, 13, 24; 31:27; 32:5; Acts 2:40].
9 The men of Ephraim ·had bows for weapons [L were armed for shooting the bow],
but they ·ran away [turned back] on the day of battle [C perhaps 1 Sam. 4:1–4 or 1 Sam. 28–31].
10 They didn’t ·keep [observe; guard] their ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with God
and refused to ·live [L walk] by his ·teachings [instructions; laws].
11 They forgot what he had done
and the ·miracles [wonderful acts] he had shown them.
12 He did ·miracles [wonderful acts] while their ·ancestors [fathers] watched,
in the fields of Zoan [C a city in the Nile Delta also known as Tanis] in Egypt [C the plagues; Ex. 7–12].
13 He divided the ·Red Sea [L Sea; C probably a lake north of the Gulf of Suez] and led them through [Ex. 14–15].
He made the water stand up like a ·wall [or heap; Ex. 15:8].
14 He led them with a cloud by day
and by the light of a fire by night [105:39; Ex. 13:21; Num. 10:34].
15 He split the rocks in the ·desert [wilderness]
and gave them more ·than enough water, as if from the deep ocean [L water, as much as the deeps].
16 He brought streams out of the rock
and caused water to flow down like rivers [Ex. 17:6; Num. 20:8; 1 Cor. 10:4].
17 But the people continued to sin against him;
in the ·desert [wasteland; wilderness] they ·turned [rebelled] against God Most High.
18 They ·decided to test God [L tested God in their hearts]
by asking for the food ·they wanted [L for their appetite].
19 Then they spoke against God,
saying, “Can God prepare ·food [L a table] in the ·desert [wilderness]?
20 When he ·hit [L struck] the rock, water ·poured out [gushed]
and rivers flowed down.
But can he give us bread also?
Will he provide his people with meat [Ex. 16]?”
21 When the Lord heard them, he was very angry.
·His anger was like fire to the people of [L A fire was ignited against] Jacob;
his anger ·grew against the people of [L rose up against] Israel [Num. 11].
22 They had not ·believed [trusted; been faithful to] God
and had not ·trusted [put confidence in] him to ·save them [give them victory].
23 But he gave a command to the clouds above
and opened the doors of heaven.
24 He rained manna down on them to eat;
he gave them grain from heaven.
25 So they ate the bread of ·angels [L strong ones].
He sent them all the food they could eat.
26 He sent the east wind from heaven
and ·led [guided] the south wind by his power.
27 He rained meat on them like dust.
The birds were as many as the sand of the sea.
28 He made the birds fall inside the camp,
all around the ·tents [L residences].
29 So the people ate and became very ·full [satisfied; satiated].
God had given them what they ·wanted [desired].
30 While ·they were still eating [L their desire had not turned aside],
and while the food was still in their mouths,
31 ·God became angry with them [L the anger of God came up on them].
He killed some of the ·healthiest [most robust; sturdiest] of them;
he ·struck down [laid low] the best young men of Israel.
32 But they kept on sinning;
they did not believe even with the ·miracles [wonderful acts].
33 So he ended their days without ·meaning [purpose; Eccl. 1:2]
and their years in terror.
34 Anytime he killed them, they would ·look to him for help [seek him];
they would ·come back to God [repent] and ·follow [be intent on] him.
35 They would remember that God was their Rock [C the one who protected them],
that God Most High had ·saved [redeemed] them.
36 But ·their words were false [L they deceived/or flattered him with their mouths],
and with their tongues they lied to him.
37 Their hearts were not really ·loyal to [steadfast toward] God;
they ·did not keep [were not faithful to] his ·agreement [covenant].
38 Still God was ·merciful [compassionate].
He ·forgave their sins [made atonement for their guilt]
and did not destroy them.
Many times he held back his anger
and did not stir up all his ·anger [wrath].
39 He remembered that they were ·only human [flesh; 38:3; 56:4; 103:14–15; Gen. 6:3; Is. 2:22],
like a wind that blows and does not come back.
40 They ·turned [rebelled] against God so often in the ·desert [wilderness]
and grieved him ·there [L in the wasteland].
41 Again and again they tested God
and ·brought pain to [provoked] the Holy One of Israel.
42 They did not remember his ·power [L hand]
or the ·time [L day] he ·saved [ransomed] them from the ·enemy [foe].
43 They forgot the signs he did in Egypt
and his wonders in the fields of Zoan [v. 12].
44 He turned their rivers to blood
so no one could drink ·the water [L from their streams; 105:29; Ex. 7:17–20; Rev. 16:4].
45 He sent flies that ·bit [L consumed] the people [Ex. 8:20–32].
He sent frogs that destroyed them [Ex. 7:25—8:15].
46 He gave their crops to grasshoppers
and ·what they worked for [L their labor] to locusts [Ex. 10:1–20].
47 He ·destroyed [L killed] their vines with hail
and their ·sycamore [or fig] trees with ·sleet [or frost; or floods; Ex. 9:13–35].
48 He ·killed their animals with [L handed over their beasts to the] hail
and their cattle with lightning [Ex. 9:1–7].
49 He ·showed [L sent against] them his hot anger.
He sent his strong anger against them,
his ·destroying angels [or messengers of evil/harm].
50 He ·found a way to show [L made a path for] his anger.
He did not ·keep them from dying [L hold back their lives from death]
but ·let them die by a terrible disease [L handed their lives over to plague].
51 God ·killed [L struck] all the firstborn sons in Egypt [Ex. 12],
the ·oldest son of each family [L first of their virility in the tents] of Ham [C the ancestor of the Egyptians; Gen. 10:6].
52 But God led his people out like sheep
and he guided them like a flock through the ·desert [wilderness].
53 He led them to safety so they had nothing to fear,
but ·their enemies drowned in the sea [L the sea covered their enemies].
54 So God brought them to his holy ·land [L boundary],
to the mountain country ·he took with his own power [L his hand acquired].
55 He ·forced out [dispossessed before them] the other nations,
and he ·had his people inherit the land [L alloted the land as an inheritance].
He let the tribes of Israel settle there in tents.
56 But they tested God
and ·turned [rebelled] against God Most High;
they did not ·keep [observe; guard] his ·rules [decrees; testimonies].
57 They ·turned away [recoiled] and were disloyal just like their ·ancestors [fathers].
They ·were like [turned into] a ·crooked bow that does not shoot straight [slack bow; C unreliable and ineffective].
58 They made God angry ·by building places to worship gods [L with their high places; C worship sites associated with pagan worship or inappropriate worship of God; Deut. 12:2–3];
they made him jealous with their idols.
59 When God heard them, he became very angry
and rejected the people of Israel completely.
60 He ·left [cast off] his dwelling at Shiloh,
the Tent where he lived among the people.
61 He let his ·Power [Strength; C the Ark] be captured;
he let his ·glory [beauty; C the Ark] be taken by ·enemies [L the hand of the foe; 1 Sam. 4–5].
62 He ·let his people be killed [L handed his people over to the sword];
he was very angry with his ·children [L inheritance].
63 The young men ·died [L were consumed] by fire,
and the young women ·had no one to marry [had no wedding songs; or could not sing a lament for them].
64 Their priests fell by the sword [1 Sam. 4:12–22],
but their widows were not allowed to cry.
65 Then the Lord ·got up [awoke] as if he had been asleep;
·he awoke like a man [L like a soldier] who had been ·drunk with [shouting/singing because of] wine.
66 He struck ·down [L back] his enemies
and ·disgraced them forever [L placed on them eternal scorn/reproach].
67 But God rejected the ·family [L tent] of Joseph [C the tribe of Ephraim];
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim [C the most important northern tribe, here representing the house of Saul].
68 Instead, he chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion [C the location of the Temple], which he loves.
69 And he built his ·Temple [sanctuary; Holy Place] ·high like the mountains [or like the high heavens].
Like the earth, ·he built it to last [L its foundations are] forever.
70 He chose David to be his servant
and took him from the sheep pens.
71 He brought him from tending the ·sheep [L ewes]
so he could ·lead the flock, [shepherd] the people of Jacob,
his ·own people [inheritance], the people of Israel.
72 And David ·led [shepherded] them with an ·innocent [blameless] heart
and guided them with skillful hands.
Isaac Lies to Abimelech
26 Now there was a ·time of hunger [L famine] in the land, besides the ·time of hunger [L former famine] that happened during Abraham’s life. So Isaac went to the town of Gerar [20:1] to see Abimelech king of the Philistines. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Don’t go down to Egypt, but ·live [settle; dwell] in the land where I tell you to live. 3 ·Stay [Sojourn; Live as an alien] in this land, and I will be with you and bless you [12:3]. I will give you and your ·descendants [L seed] all these lands, and I will ·keep [fulfill] the oath I made to Abraham your father. 4 I will ·give you many descendants [L multiply your seed], as hard to count as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands. Through your ·descendants [L seed] all the nations on the earth will be blessed [12:1–3]. 5 I will do this because your father Abraham ·obeyed me [L listened to my voice]. He did what I said and obeyed my ·instructions [charge], my commands, my teachings, and my ·rules [instructions; laws].”
6 So Isaac ·stayed [resided; settled] in Gerar [20:1].
Isaac Becomes Rich
12 Isaac planted seed in that land, and that year he gathered ·a great harvest [L a hundredfold]. The Lord blessed him very much, 13 and ·he [L the man] became rich. He ·gathered more wealth [grew richer and richer] until he became a very rich man. 14 He had so many slaves and flocks and herds that the Philistines envied him. 15 So they stopped up all the wells the servants of Isaac’s father Abraham had dug. (They had dug them ·when Abraham was alive [L in the days of Abraham his father].) The Philistines filled those wells with ·dirt [dust]. 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Leave ·our country [L my people] because you have become much more powerful than we are.”
17 So Isaac ·left that place [L went from there] and camped in the ·Valley [Wadi] of Gerar and ·lived [resided; settled] there. 18 ·Long before this time Abraham [L In the days of Abraham his father they] had dug many wells, but after he died, the Philistines filled them with ·dirt [dust]. So Isaac dug those wells again and gave them the same names his father had given them. 19 Isaac’s servants dug a well in the ·valley [wadi], ·from which a spring of water flowed [L and discovered springing/living water]. 20 But the ·herdsmen [shepherds] of Gerar ·argued [contended] with ·them [L the shepherds of Isaac] and said, “This water is ours.” So Isaac named that well ·Argue [Contention; C Hebrew: Esek] because they ·argued [contended] with him. 21 Then ·his servants [L they] dug another well. When the people also ·argued about it [contended], Isaac named that well ·Fight [Hebrew: Sitnah]. 22 He moved from there and dug another well. No one ·argued about [contended] this one, so he named it Room Enough [C Hebrew: Rehoboth]. Isaac said, “Now the Lord has made room for us, and we will be ·successful [fruitful; 1:22] in this land.”
23 From there Isaac went [L up] to Beersheba [21:14]. 24 The Lord appeared to him that night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Don’t be afraid, because I am with you [C indicating that the covenant with Abraham would be continued with Isaac]. I will bless you and ·give you many descendants [multiply your seed] because of my servant Abraham.” 25 So Isaac built an altar [C a place of sacrifice] and ·worshiped [L called on the name of] the Lord there. He also ·made a camp [L pitched his tent] there, and his servants dug a well.
26 Abimelech came from Gerar to see Isaac. He brought with him Ahuzzath, ·who advised him [his advisor/friend], and Phicol, the commander of his army. 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to see me? You ·were my enemy [hate me] and ·forced me to leave your country [L sent me away from you].”
28 They answered, “Now we ·know [L clearly see] that the Lord is with you. Let us swear an oath to each other. Let us ·make [L cut] an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with you 29 that since we did not ·hurt [L touch] you, you will not ·hurt [harm] us. We were good to you and sent you away in peace. Now the Lord has blessed you.”
30 So Isaac ·prepared food [made a banquet/feast] for them, and they all ate and drank [C customary to celebrate the signing of the treaty]. 31 Early the next morning the men swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them away, and they left in peace.
32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug, saying, “We found water in that well.” 33 So Isaac named it Shibah [C sounds like Hebrew for “seven” or “promise”] and that city is called Beersheba [21:14] even now.
17 ·Obey [or Have confidence in] your leaders and ·act under [or submit to] their authority. [L For; Because] They are watching over you, because they ·are responsible [will give an account (to God)] for ·your souls [or you]. ·Obey them [Do this; Act this way] so that they will do this work with joy, not ·sadness [or complaint; groaning], for that would be of no ·benefit [advantage; help] to you.
18 Pray for us. We are ·sure [convinced] that we have a clear conscience, ·because [or and] we always want to ·do the right thing [act honorably]. 19 I especially ·beg [urge; exhort] you to pray so that ·God will send me back [L I may be restored] to you soon.
22 My brothers and sisters, I ·beg [urge; exhort] you to ·listen patiently to [bear with] this message I have written to ·encourage [exhort] you, because ·it is not very long [L I have written to you briefly]. 23 I want you to know that our brother Timothy [Acts 16:1–5; 1 Cor. 16:10–11; Phil. 2:19–24; 1 and 2 Timothy] has been ·let out of prison [L released]. If he arrives soon, ·we will both come [he will come with me] to see you.
24 Greet all your leaders and all ·of God’s people [T the saints]. Those from Italy send greetings to you.
25 Grace be with you all.
Some of the earliest surviving Greek copies do not contain 7:53—8:11.
|53 And everyone left and went home.
The Woman Caught in Adultery
8 Jesus went to the Mount of Olives [C east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley]. 2 But ·early in the morning [at dawn] he went back to the Temple [courts; 2:14], and all the people came to him, and he sat and taught them. 3 The ·teachers of the law [scribes; C experts in the law of Moses] and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery. They forced her to stand ·before [or in the midst of] the people. 4 They said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught ·having sexual relations with a man who is not her husband [in the very act of committing adultery]. 5 The law of Moses commands that we stone to death every woman who does this [compare Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:22–24]. What do you say we should do?” 6 They were asking this to ·trick [trap; test] Jesus so that they could have some ·charge [accusation] against him.
But Jesus ·bent over [stooped down] and started writing on the ground with his finger [C we do not know what he is writing though there has been much speculation]. 7 When they continued to ask Jesus their question, he ·raised up [straightened] and said, “Anyone here who ·has never sinned [is guiltless; T is without sin] can throw the first stone at her [Deut. 13:9; 17:7; comp. Lev. 24:14].” 8 Then Jesus ·bent over [stooped down] again and wrote on the ground.
9 Those who heard Jesus began to leave one by one, first the ·older men [elders] and then the others. Jesus was left there alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus ·raised up [straightened] again and asked her, “Woman [C a respectful term of address in Greek; see 2:4], where are they? Has no one ·judged you guilty [condemned you]?”
11 She answered, “No one, sir.”
Then Jesus said, “I also don’t ·judge you guilty [condemn you]. ·You may go now, but don’t sin anymore [T Go, and sin no more].”|
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