Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 105
105 Give thanks to the Lord;
call upon his name;
make his deeds known to all people!
2 Sing to God;
sing praises to the Lord;
dwell on all his wondrous works!
3 Give praise to God’s holy name!
Let the hearts rejoice of all those seeking the Lord!
4 Pursue the Lord and his strength;
seek his face always!
5 Remember the wondrous works he has done,
all his marvelous works, and the justice he declared—
6 you who are the offspring of Abraham, his servant,
and the children of Jacob, his chosen ones.
7 The Lord—he is our God.
His justice is everywhere throughout the whole world.
8 God remembers his covenant forever,
the word he commanded to a thousand generations,
9 which he made with Abraham,
the solemn pledge he swore to Isaac.
10 God set it up as binding law for Jacob,
as an eternal covenant for Israel,
11 promising, “I hereby give you the land of Canaan
as your allotted inheritance.”
12 When they were few in number—
insignificant, just immigrants—
13 wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to the next,
14 God didn’t let anyone oppress them.
God punished kings for their sake:
15 “Don’t touch my anointed ones;
don’t harm my prophets!”
16 When God called for a famine in the land,
destroying every source of food,
17 he sent a man ahead of them,
who was sold as a slave: it was Joseph.
18 Joseph’s feet hurt in his shackles;
his neck was in an iron collar,
19 until what he predicted actually happened,
until what the Lord had said proved him true.[a]
20 The king sent for Joseph and set him free;
the ruler of many people released him.
21 The king made Joseph master of his house and ruler over everything he owned,
22 to make sure his princes acted according to his will,
and to teach wisdom to his advisors.
23 That’s how Israel came to Egypt,
how Jacob became an immigrant in the land of Ham.
24 God made his people very fruitful,
more powerful than their enemies,
25 whose hearts God changed so they hated his people
and dealt shrewdly with his servants.
26 God sent Moses his servant
and the one he chose, Aaron.
27 They put God’s signs on Egypt,[b]
his marvelous works on the land of Ham.
28 God sent darkness, and it became dark,
but the Egyptians rejected his word.
29 God turned their waters into blood
and killed their fish.
30 God made their land swarm with frogs[c]—
even in the bedrooms of their king!
31 God spoke, and the insects came—
gnats throughout their whole country!
32 God turned their rain into hail
along with lightning flashes throughout their land.
33 God destroyed their vines and their fig trees;
shattered the trees of their countryside.
34 God spoke, and the locusts came—
countless grasshoppers came!
35 They devoured all the plants in their land;
they devoured the fruit of their soil.
36 God struck down all the oldest sons throughout their land;
struck down their very pride and joy.
37 Then God brought Israel out, filled with silver and gold;
not one of its tribes stumbled.
38 Egypt celebrated when they left,
because the dread of Israel had come upon them.
39 God spread out clouds as a covering;
gave lightning to provide light at night.
40 The people asked, and God brought quail;
God filled them full with food from heaven.
41 God opened the rock and out gushed water—
flowing like a river through the desert!
42 Because God remembered his holy promise
to Abraham his servant,
43 God brought his people out with rejoicing,
his chosen ones with songs of joy.
44 God gave them the lands of other nations;
they inherited the wealth of many peoples—
45 all so that they would keep his laws
and observe his instructions.
Praise the Lord!
Fifth night vision
4 The messenger speaking with me returned and woke me like one who awakens someone who is asleep.
2 Then he said to me, “What do you see?”
I said, “I see a lampstand
made entirely of gold.
It has a bowl on top.
The bowl has seven lamps on top
and seven metal pipes for those lamps.
3 It has two olive trees beside the lampstand,
one to the right of its bowl and one to the left.”
4 I responded to the messenger speaking with me,
“What are these, sir?”
5 The messenger responded to me:
“Don’t you know what these are?”
I said, “No, sir. I don’t.”
6 He answered me:
“This is the Lord’s word to Zerubbabel:
Neither by power, nor by strength,
but by my spirit, says the Lord of heavenly forces.”
7 Who are you, great mountain?
Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain.
He will present the capstone to shouts of great gratitude.
8 The Lord’s word came to me:
9 The hands of Zerubbabel laid the foundation of this house,
and his hands will finish it
so that you will know that the Lord of heavenly forces has sent me to you.
10 Those who despise a time of little things will rejoice when they see the plumb line[a] in Zerubbabel’s hand.
These are the seven eyes of the Lord, surveying the entire earth.
11 I responded to him,
“What are these two olive trees on the right and left sides of the lampstand?”
12 Then I responded a second time,
“What are these two olive branches that empty out golden oil through the two gold pipes?”
13 He said to me, “Don’t you know what these are?”
I said, “No, sir.”
14 He said,
“These are the two anointed ones[b] standing beside the Lord of all the earth.”
The old and new life
17 So I’m telling you this, and I insist on it in the Lord: you shouldn’t live your life like the Gentiles anymore. They base their lives on pointless thinking, 18 and they are in the dark in their reasoning. They are disconnected from God’s life because of their ignorance and their closed hearts. 19 They are people who lack all sense of right and wrong, and who have turned themselves over to doing whatever feels good and to practicing every sort of corruption along with greed.
20 But you didn’t learn that sort of thing from Christ. 21 Since you really listened to him and you were taught how the truth is in Jesus, 22 change the former way of life that was part of the person you once were, corrupted by deceitful desires. 23 Instead, renew the thinking in your mind by the Spirit 24 and clothe yourself with the new person created according to God’s image in justice and true holiness.
25 Therefore, after you have gotten rid of lying, Each of you must tell the truth to your neighbor[a] because we are parts of each other in the same body. 26 Be angry without sinning.[b] Don’t let the sun set on your anger. 27 Don’t provide an opportunity for the devil. 28 Thieves should no longer steal. Instead, they should go to work, using their hands to do good so that they will have something to share with whoever is in need.
29 Don’t let any foul words come out of your mouth. Only say what is helpful when it is needed for building up the community so that it benefits those who hear what you say. 30 Don’t make the Holy Spirit of God unhappy—you were sealed by him for the day of redemption. 31 Put aside all bitterness, losing your temper, anger, shouting, and slander, along with every other evil. 32 Be kind, compassionate, and forgiving to each other, in the same way God forgave you in Christ.
Healing of a man who was paralyzed
9 Boarding a boat, Jesus crossed to the other side of the lake and went to his own city. 2 People brought to him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a cot. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man who was paralyzed, “Be encouraged, my child, your sins are forgiven.”
3 Some legal experts said among themselves, “This man is insulting God.”
4 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, “Why do you fill your minds with evil things? 5 Which is easier—to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But so you will know that the Human One[a] has authority on the earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“Get up, take your cot, and go home.” 7 The man got up and went home. 8 When the crowds saw what had happened, they were afraid and praised God, who had given such authority to human beings.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible