Book of Common Prayer
A Rebuke for Unjust Judges
Psalm 82
1 A psalm of Asaph.
God takes His stand in the assembly of God.
He judges among the ‘gods’:
2 “How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
3 Give justice to the poor and fatherless.
Be just to the afflicted and destitute.
4 Rescue the weak and needy.
Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know nothing;
they understand nothing—
they walk about in darkness.
All of earth’s foundations are shaken.
6 I said: ‘You are ‘gods’,
and you are all sons of Elyon,[a]
7 yet you will die like men,
and will fall like any of the princes.’”
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth!
For You possess all the nations.
Creation Rejoices in His Salvation
Psalm 98
1 A psalm.
Sing to Adonai a new song,
for He has done marvelous things.
His right hand and His holy arm
have won victory for Him.
2 Adonai has made His salvation known.
He has revealed His righteousness before the eyes of the nations.
3 He has remembered His lovingkindness,
His faithfulness to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
4 Shout joyfully to Adonai, all the earth.
Break forth, sing for joy, and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to Adonai with the harp,
with the harp and a voice of melody.
6 With trumpets and sound of the shofar
blast a sound before the King, Adonai.
7 Let the sea roar and all within it,
the world and those who dwell in it.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands,
let the mountains sing for joy together—
9 before Adonai, for He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness
and the peoples with fairness.
My Messenger is Coming
3 “Behold, I am sending My messenger[a],
and he will clear the way before Me.[b]
Suddenly He will come to His Temple
—the Lord whom you seek—
and the Messenger of the covenant
—the One whom you desire—
behold, He is coming,”
says Adonai-Tzva’ot.
2 But who can endure the day of His coming?
Or who can stand when He appears?[c]
For He will be like a refiner’s fire,[d]
and like soap for cleaning raw wool.
3 And He will sit as a smelter or a purifier of silver,
and He will cleanse the sons of Levi,
and purify them like gold or silver.
Then they will become for Adonai
those who present an offering in righteousness.
4 Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to Adonai,
as in days of antiquity and years of old.
5 “Then I will draw near to you in judgment,
and I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, adulterers, perjurers
those who extort a worker’s wage,
or oppress the widow or an orphan,
those who mislead a stranger.
They do not fear Me,”
says Adonai-Tzva’ot.
The Living Word, Source of Life
22 Afterwards, Yeshua and His disciples came to the land of Judea. There He was staying with them and immersing. 23 Now John also was immersing at Aenon near Salim, because much water was there and many were coming and being immersed; 24 for John had not yet been thrown into prison.
25 Now an argument came up between John’s disciples and a Judean concerning purification. 26 They came to John and said, “Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about—look, He is immersing, and all are coming to Him!”
27 John answered, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28 You yourselves testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah,’ but rather, ‘I am sent before Him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the best man rejoices when he stands and hears the bridegroom’s voice. So now my joy is complete! 30 He must increase, while I must decrease.”
Restore Us, Revive Us
Psalm 80
1 For the music director, on “Lilies,”[a] a testimony: a psalm of Asaph.
2 Give ear, Shepherd of Israel,
You who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who are enthroned upon the cheruvim, shine forth!
3 Before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh,
stir up Your might, and come to save us.
4 O God, restore us, make Your face shine,
and we will be saved.
5 Adonai-Tzva’ot, how long will You be angry
with the prayer of Your people?
6 You have fed them the bread of tears
and made them drink a measure of tears.
7 You make us a contention to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock as they please.
8 Elohei-Tzva’ot, restore us, and make Your face shine,
and we will be saved.
9 You pulled out a vine from Egypt.
You drove out nations and planted it.
10 You cleared a place for it,
and it took deep root and filled the land.
11 The mountains were covered by its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
12 It sent out its branches to the sea,
and its shoots to the river.
13 Why have You broken down its fences,
so all who pass by the way pick its fruit?
14 A boar from the forest ravages it,
whatever moves in the field feeds on it.
15 Elohei-Tzva’ot, please return!
Look down from heaven and see!
Now take care of this vine—
16 the shoot Your right hand planted—
the son You strengthened for Yourself.
17 It is burned with fire, it is cut down.
They perish from the rebuke of Your face.
18 Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand—
the son of man
You made strong for Yourself.
19 Then we will not turn away from You.
Revive us, and we will call on Your Name.
20 Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot, restore us.
Make Your face shine, and we will be saved.
2 Now when John heard in prison about the works of the Messiah, he sent word through his disciples 3 and said to Yeshua, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?”
4 Yeshua replied, “Go report to John what you hear and see: 5 the blind see and the lame walk, those with tzara’at are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised and the poor have good news proclaimed to them. 6 Blessed is the one who is not led to stumble because of Me.”[a]
A Prophet Without Honor
7 Now as they were leaving, Yeshua began to talk to the crowd concerning John. “What did you go out to the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 No? So what did you go out to see? A man dressed in finery? Look, those who wear finery are in the palaces of kings! 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, even more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written,
‘Behold, I send My messenger before You,
who will prepare Your way before You.’[b]
11 “Amen, I tell you, among those born of women, none has arisen greater than John the Immerser. Yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the Immerser until now, the kingdom of heaven is treated with violence, and the violent grasp hold of it. 13 For all the prophets and the Torah prophesied until the time of John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. 15 He who has ears, let him hear!
16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It’s like children sitting in the marketplaces who call to one other, saying,
17 ‘We played the flute for you,
but you did not dance.
We wailed,
but you did not mourn.’
18 “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”[c]
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.