Book of Common Prayer
The Happiness of Those Whose Help Is the Lord
146 Praise[a] the Lord!
(A)Praise the Lord, O my soul!
2 (B)While I live I will praise the Lord;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
3 (C)Do not put your trust in princes,
Nor in [b]a son of man, in whom there is no [c]help.
4 (D)His spirit departs, he returns to his earth;
In that very day (E)his plans perish.
5 (F)Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help,
Whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 (G)Who made heaven and earth,
The sea, and all that is in them;
Who keeps truth forever,
7 (H)Who executes justice for the oppressed,
(I)Who gives food to the hungry.
(J)The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners.
8 (K)The Lord opens the eyes of the blind;
(L)The Lord raises those who are bowed down;
The Lord loves the righteous.
9 (M)The Lord watches over the strangers;
He relieves the fatherless and widow;
(N)But the way of the wicked He [d]turns upside down.
10 (O)The Lord shall reign forever—
Your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the Lord!
Praise to God for His Word and Providence
147 Praise[e] the Lord!
For (P)it is good to sing praises to our God;
(Q)For it is pleasant, and (R)praise is beautiful.
2 The Lord (S)builds up Jerusalem;
(T)He gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
3 (U)He heals the brokenhearted
And binds up their [f]wounds.
4 (V)He counts the number of the stars;
He calls them all by name.
5 (W)Great is our Lord, and (X)mighty in power;
(Y)His understanding is infinite.
6 (Z)The Lord lifts up the humble;
He casts the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
Sing praises on the harp to our God,
8 (AA)Who covers the heavens with clouds,
Who prepares rain for the earth,
Who makes grass to grow on the mountains.
9 (AB)He gives to the beast its food,
And (AC)to the young ravens that cry.
10 (AD)He does not delight in the strength of the horse;
He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.
11 The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him,
In those who hope in His mercy.
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For He has strengthened the bars of your gates;
He has blessed your children within you.
14 (AE)He makes peace in your borders,
And (AF)fills you with [g]the finest wheat.
15 (AG)He sends out His command to the earth;
His word runs very swiftly.
16 (AH)He gives snow like wool;
He scatters the frost like ashes;
17 He casts out His hail like [h]morsels;
Who can stand before His cold?
18 (AI)He sends out His word and melts them;
He causes His wind to blow, and the waters flow.
19 (AJ)He declares His word to Jacob,
(AK)His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
20 (AL)He has not dealt thus with any nation;
And as for His judgments, they have not known them.
[i]Praise the Lord!
Praise to the Lord from Creation
148 Praise[j] the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
Praise Him in the heights!
2 Praise Him, all His angels;
Praise Him, all His hosts!
3 Praise Him, sun and moon;
Praise Him, all you stars of light!
4 Praise Him, (AM)you heavens of heavens,
And (AN)you waters above the heavens!
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
For (AO)He commanded and they were created.
6 (AP)He also established them forever and ever;
He made a decree which shall not pass away.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
(AQ)You great sea creatures and all the depths;
8 Fire and hail, snow and clouds;
Stormy wind, fulfilling His word;
9 (AR)Mountains and all hills;
Fruitful trees and all cedars;
10 Beasts and all cattle;
Creeping things and flying fowl;
11 Kings of the earth and all peoples;
Princes and all judges of the earth;
12 Both young men and maidens;
Old men and children.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
For His (AS)name alone is exalted;
His glory is above the earth and heaven.
14 And He (AT)has exalted the [k]horn of His people,
The praise of (AU)all His saints—
Of the children of Israel,
(AV)A people near to Him.
[l]Praise the Lord!
Praise to God for His Salvation and Judgment
149 Praise[m] the Lord!
(AW)Sing to the Lord a new song,
And His praise in the assembly of saints.
2 Let Israel rejoice in their Maker;
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their (AX)King.
3 (AY)Let them praise His name with the dance;
Let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp.
4 For (AZ)the Lord takes pleasure in His people;
(BA)He will beautify the [n]humble with salvation.
5 Let the saints be joyful in glory;
Let them (BB)sing aloud on their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,
And (BC)a two-edged sword in their hand,
7 To execute vengeance on the nations,
And punishments on the peoples;
8 To bind their kings with chains,
And their nobles with fetters of iron;
9 (BD)To execute on them the written judgment—
(BE)This honor have all His saints.
[o]Praise the Lord!
The Feast of Unleavened Bread(A)
3 And Moses said to the people: (B)“Remember this day in which you went out of Egypt, out of the house of [a]bondage; for (C)by strength of hand the Lord brought you out of this place. (D)No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 (E)On this day you are going out, in the month Abib. 5 And it shall be, when the Lord (F)brings you into the (G)land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, which He (H)swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, (I)that you shall keep this service in this month. 6 (J)Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days. And (K)no leavened bread shall be seen among you, nor shall leaven be seen among you in all your quarters. 8 And you shall (L)tell your son in that day, saying, ‘This is done because of what the Lord did for me when I came up from Egypt.’ 9 It shall be as (M)a sign to you on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the Lord’s law may be in your mouth; for with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 10 (N)You shall therefore keep this [b]ordinance in its season from year to year.
41 There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory.
42 (A)So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. 43 (B)It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, (C)“The first man Adam became a living being.” (D)The last Adam became (E)a life-giving spirit.
46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. 47 (F)The first man was of the earth, (G)made[a] of dust; the second Man is [b]the Lord (H)from heaven. 48 As was the [c]man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; (I)and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And (J)as we have borne the image of the man of dust, (K)we[d] shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
Our Final Victory
50 Now this I say, brethren, that (L)flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.
The Great Commission(A)
16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain (B)which Jesus had appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some (C)doubted.
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, (D)“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 (E)Go [a]therefore and (F)make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 (G)teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am (H)with you always, even to the end of the age.” [b]Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.