Book of Common Prayer
31 (0) For the leader. A psalm of David:
2 (1) In you, Adonai, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame;
in your justice, save me!
3 (2) Turn your ear toward me,
come quickly to my rescue,
be for me a rock of strength,
a fortress to keep me safe.
4 (3) Since you are my rock and fortress,
lead me and guide me for your name’s sake.
5 (4) Free me from the net they have hidden to catch me,
because you are my strength.
6 (5) Into your hand I commit my spirit;
you will redeem me, Adonai, God of truth.
7 (6) I hate those who serve worthless idols;
as for me, I trust in Adonai.
8 (7) I will rejoice and be glad in your grace,
for you see my affliction,
you know how distressed I am.
9 (8) You did not hand me over to the enemy;
you set my feet where I can move freely.
10 (9) Show me favor, Adonai, for I am in trouble.
My eyes grow dim with anger,
my soul and body as well.
11 (10) For my life is worn out with sorrow
and my years with sighing;
my strength gives out under my guilt,
and my bones are wasting away.
12 (11) I am scorned by all my adversaries,
and even more by my neighbors;
even to acquaintances
I am an object of fear —
when they see me in the street,
they turn away from me.
13 (12) Like a dead man, I have passed from their minds;
I have become like a broken pot.
14 (13) All I hear is whispering,
terror is all around me;
they plot together against me,
scheming to take my life.
15 (14) But I, I trust in you, Adonai;
I say, “You are my God.”
16 (15) My times are in your hand;
rescue me from my enemies’ power,
from those who persecute me.
17 (16) Make your face shine on your servant;
in your grace, save me.
18 (17) Adonai, don’t let me be put to shame,
for I have called on you;
let the wicked be put to shame,
let them be silenced in Sh’ol.
19 (18) May lying lips be struck dumb,
that speak insolently against the righteous
with such pride and contempt.
20 (19) But oh, how great is your goodness,
which you have stored up for those who fear you,
which you do for those who take refuge in you,
before people’s very eyes!
21 (20) In the shelter of your presence
you hide them from human plots,
you conceal them in your shelter,
safe from contentious tongues.
22 (21) Blessed be Adonai!
For he has shown me his amazing grace
when I was in a city under siege.
23 (22) As for me, in my alarm I said,
“I have been cut off from your sight!”
Nevertheless, you heard my pleas
when I cried out to you.
24 (23) Love Adonai, you faithful of his.
Adonai preserves the loyal,
but the proud he repays in full.
25 (24) Be strong, and fill your hearts with courage,
all of you who hope in Adonai.
35 (0) By David:
(1) Adonai, oppose those who oppose me;
fight against those who fight against me.
2 Grasp your shield and protective gear,
and rise to my defense.
3 Brandish spear and battle-axe
against my pursuers;
let me hear you say,
“I am your salvation.”
4 May those who seek my life
be disgraced and put to confusion;
may those who are plotting harm for me
be repulsed and put to shame.
5 May they be like chaff before the wind,
with the angel of Adonai to drive them on.
6 May their way be dark and slippery,
with the angel of Adonai to pursue them.
7 For unprovoked, they hid their net over a pit;
unprovoked, they dug it for me.
8 May destruction come over him unawares.
May the net he concealed catch himself;
may he fall into it and be destroyed.
9 Then I will be joyful in Adonai,
I will rejoice in his salvation.
10 All my bones will say,
“Who is like you?
Who can rescue the weak
from those stronger than they,
the poor and needy
from those who exploit them?”
11 Malicious witnesses come forward,
asking me things about which I know nothing.
12 They repay me evil for good;
it makes me feel desolate as a parent bereaved.
13 But I, when they were ill, wore sackcloth;
I put myself out and fasted;
I can pray that what I prayed for them
might also happen to me.
14 I behaved as I would for my friend or my brother;
I bent down in sorrow as if mourning my mother.
15 But when I stumble, they gather in glee;
they gather against me and strike me unawares;
they tear me apart unceasingly.
16 With ungodly mocking and grimacing,
they grind their teeth at me.
17 Adonai, how much longer will you look on?
Rescue me from their assaults,
save the one life I have from the lions!
18 I will give you thanks in the great assembly,
I will give you praise among huge crowds of people.
19 Don’t let those who are wrongfully my enemies
gloat over me;
and those who hate me unprovoked —
don’t let them smirk at me.
20 For they don’t speak words of peace
but devise ways to deceive
the peaceful of the land.
21 They shout to accuse me, “Aha! Aha!
we saw you with our own eyes!”
22 You saw them, Adonai; don’t stay silent.
Adonai, don’t stay far away from me.
23 Wake up! Get up, my God, my Lord!
Defend me and my cause!
24 Give judgment for me, Adonai, my God,
as your righteousness demands.
Don’t let them gloat over me.
25 Don’t let them say to themselves,
“Aha! We got what we wanted!”
or say, “We swallowed them up!”
26 May those who gloat over my distress
be disgraced and humiliated.
May those who aggrandize themselves at my expense
be covered with shame and confusion.
27 But may those who delight in my righteousness
shout for joy and be glad!
Let them say always, “How great is Adonai,
who delights in the peace of his servant!”
28 Then my tongue will tell of your righteousness
and praise you all day long.
19 You, my son: listen, be wise,
and set your mind on the right way.
20 Don’t be one of those who guzzle wine
or of those who eat meat to excess,
21 for both drunkard and glutton will become poor —
drowsiness will clothe them with rags.
29 Who has misery? Who has regret?
Who fights and complains all the time?
Who gets bruised for no good reason?
Who has bloodshot eyes?
30 Those who spend their time over wine,
those always trying out mixed drinks.
31 Don’t gaze at the red wine
as it gives its color to the cup.
It may glide down smoothly now;
32 but in the end, it bites like a serpent —
yes, it strikes like a poisonous snake.
33 Your eyes will see peculiar things,
your mind will utter nonsense.
34 You will feel as if lying on the waves of the sea
or sprawled on top of the mast —
35 “They hit me, but I didn’t feel it!
They beat me up, and I didn’t even know it!
When will I wake up? . . .
I’ll go get another drink.”
24 Don’t be envious of evil people,
and don’t desire to be with them.
2 For their minds are occupied with violence,
and their lips speak of making trouble.
17 The leaders who lead well should be considered worthy of double honor, especially those working hard at communicating the Word and at teaching. 18 For the Tanakh says, “You are not to muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain,”[a] in other words, “The worker deserves his wages.” 19 Never listen to any accusation against a leader unless it is supported by two or three witnesses.[b] 20 Rebuke before the whole assembly those leaders who continue sinning, as a warning to the others. 21 Before God, the Messiah Yeshua and the chosen angels, I solemnly charge you to observe these instructions, not pre-judging and not doing anything out of favoritism. 22 Do not be hasty in granting s’mikhah to anyone, and do not share in other people’s sins — keep yourself pure.
23 Stop drinking water; instead, use a little wine for the sake of your digestion and because of your frequent illnesses.
24 The sins of some people are obvious and go ahead of them to judgment, but the sins of others follow afterwards. 25 Likewise, good deeds are obvious; and even when they are not, they can’t stay hidden.
31 Yeshua put before them another parable. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed which a man takes and sows in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows up it is larger than any garden plant and becomes a tree, so that the birds flying about come and nest in its branches.”
33 And he told them yet another parable. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with a bushel of flour, then waited until the whole batch of dough rose.”
34 All these things Yeshua said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without using a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet,
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will say what has been hidden since the creation of the universe.”[a]
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.