Book of Common Prayer
15 Lord, who may go and find refuge and shelter in your tabernacle up on your holy hill?
2 Anyone who leads a blameless life and is truly sincere. 3 Anyone who refuses to slander others, does not listen to gossip, never harms his neighbor, 4 speaks out against sin, criticizes those committing it, commends the faithful followers of the Lord, keeps a promise even if it ruins him, 5 does not crush his debtors with high interest rates, and refuses to testify against the innocent despite the bribes offered him—such a man shall stand firm forever.
67 O God, in mercy bless us; let your face beam with joy as you look down at us.
2 Send us around the world with the news of your saving power and your eternal plan for all mankind. 3 How everyone throughout the earth will praise the Lord! 4 How glad the nations will be, singing for joy because you are their King[a] and will give true justice to their people! 5 Praise God, O world! May all the peoples of the earth give thanks to you. 6-7 For the earth has yielded abundant harvests. God, even our own God, will bless us. And peoples from remotest lands will worship him.
32 All the believers were of one heart and mind, and no one felt that what he owned was his own; everyone was sharing. 33 And the apostles preached powerful sermons about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and there was warm fellowship among all the believers,[a] 34-35 and no poverty—for all who owned land or houses sold them and brought the money to the apostles to give to others in need.
36 For instance, there was Joseph (the one the apostles nicknamed “Barnabas, the encourager.” He was of the tribe of Levi, from the island of Cyprus). 37 He was one of those who sold a field he owned and brought the money to the apostles for distribution to those in need.
19 The heavens are telling the glory of God; they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship. 2 Day and night they keep on telling about God. 3-4 Without a sound or word, silent in the skies, their message reaches out to all the world. The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it 5 and moves out across the skies as radiant as a bridegroom[a] going to his wedding, or as joyous as an athlete looking forward to a race! 6 The sun crosses the heavens from end to end, and nothing can hide from its heat.
7-8 God’s laws are perfect. They protect us, make us wise, and give us joy and light. 9 God’s laws are pure, eternal, just.[b] 10 They are more desirable than gold. They are sweeter than honey dripping from a honeycomb. 11 For they warn us away from harm and give success to those who obey them.
12 But how can I ever know what sins are lurking in my heart? Cleanse me from these hidden faults. 13 And keep me from deliberate wrongs; help me to stop doing them. Only then can I be free of guilt and innocent of some great crime.
14 May my spoken words and unspoken thoughts be pleasing even to you, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer.
146 Praise the Lord! Yes, really praise him! 2 I will praise him as long as I live, yes, even with my dying breath.
3 Don’t look to men for help; their greatest leaders fail; 4 for every man must die. His breathing stops, life ends, and in a moment all he planned for himself is ended. 5 But happy is the man who has the God of Jacob as his helper, whose hope is in the Lord his God— 6 the God who made both earth and heaven, the seas and everything in them. He is the God who keeps every promise, 7 who gives justice to the poor and oppressed and food to the hungry. He frees the prisoners 8 and opens the eyes of the blind; he lifts the burdens from those bent down beneath their loads. For the Lord loves good men. 9 He protects the immigrants and cares for the orphans and widows. But he turns topsy-turvy the plans of the wicked.
10 The Lord will reign forever. O Jerusalem,[a] your God is King in every generation! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!
26 Upon arrival in Jerusalem he tried to meet with the believers, but they were all afraid of him. They thought he was faking! 27 Then Barnabas brought him to the apostles and told them how Paul had seen the Lord on the way to Damascus, what the Lord had said to him, and all about his powerful preaching in the name of Jesus. 28 Then they accepted him, and after that he was constantly with the believers 29 and preached boldly in the name of the Lord. But then some Greek-speaking Jews with whom he had argued plotted to murder him. 30 However, when the other believers heard about his danger, they took him to Caesarea and then sent him to his home in Tarsus.
31 Meanwhile, the church had peace throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria, and grew in strength and numbers. The believers learned how to walk in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.