Book of Common Prayer
56 To the Overseer. -- `On the Dumb Dove far off.' -- A secret treasure of David, in the Philistines' taking hold of him in Gath. Favour me, O God, for man swallowed me up, All the day fighting he oppresseth me,
2 Mine enemies have swallowed up all the day, For many [are] fighting against me, O most High,
3 The day I am afraid I am confident toward Thee.
4 In God I praise His word, in God I have trusted, I fear not what flesh doth to me.
5 All the day they wrest my words, Concerning me all their thoughts [are] for evil,
6 They assemble, they hide, they watch my heels, When they have expected my soul.
7 By iniquity they escape, In anger the peoples put down, O God.
8 My wandering Thou hast counted, Thou -- place Thou my tear in Thy bottle, Are they not in Thy book?
9 Then turn back do mine enemies in the day I call. This I have known, that God [is] for me.
10 In God I praise the word, In Jehovah I praise the word.
11 In God I trusted, I fear not what man doth to me,
12 On me, O God, [are] Thy vows, I repay thank-offerings to Thee.
13 For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, Dost Thou not my feet from falling? To walk habitually before God in the light of the living!
57 To the Overseer. -- `Destroy not.' -- A secret treasure of David, in his fleeing from the face of Saul into a cave. Favour me, O God, favour me, For in Thee is my soul trusting, And in the shadow of Thy wings I trust, Until the calamities pass over.
2 I call to God Most High, To God [who] is perfecting for me.
3 He sendeth from the heaven, and saveth me, He reproached -- who is panting after me. Selah. God sendeth forth His kindness and His truth.
4 My soul [is] in the midst of lions, I lie down [among] flames -- sons of men, Their teeth [are] a spear and arrows, And their tongue a sharp sword.
5 Be Thou exalted above the heavens, O God, Above all the earth Thine honour.
6 A net they have prepared for my steps, Bowed down hath my soul, They have digged before me a pit, They have fallen into its midst. Selah.
7 Prepared is my heart, O God, Prepared is my heart, I sing and praise.
8 Awake, mine honour, awake, psaltery and harp, I awake the morning dawn.
9 I thank Thee among the peoples, O Lord, I praise Thee among the nations.
10 For great unto the heavens [is] Thy kindness, And unto the clouds Thy truth.
11 Be thou exalted above the heavens, O God. Above all the earth Thine honour!
58 To the Overseer. -- `Destroy not.' -- A secret treasure, by David. Is it true, O dumb one, righteously ye speak? Uprightly ye judge, O sons of men?
2 Even in heart ye work iniquities, In the land the violence of your hands ye ponder.
3 The wicked have been estranged from the womb, They have erred from the belly, speaking lies.
4 Their poison [is] as poison of a serpent, As a deaf asp shutting its ear,
5 Which hearkeneth not to the voice of whisperers, A charmer of charms most skilful.
6 O God, break their teeth in their mouth, The jaw-teeth of young lions break down, O Jehovah.
7 They are melted as waters, They go up and down for themselves, His arrow proceedeth as they cut themselves off.
8 As a snail that melteth he goeth on, [As] an untimely birth of a woman, They have not seen the sun.
9 Before your pots discern the bramble, As well the raw as the heated He whirleth away.
10 The righteous rejoiceth that he hath seen vengeance, His steps he washeth in the blood of the wicked.
11 And man saith: `Surely fruit [is] for the righteous: Surely there is a God judging in the earth!'
64 To the Overseer. -- A Psalm of David. Hear, O God, my voice, in my meditation, From the fear of an enemy Thou keepest my life,
2 Hidest me from the secret counsel of evil doers, From the tumult of workers of iniquity.
3 Who sharpened as a sword their tongue, They directed their arrow -- a bitter word.
4 To shoot in secret places the perfect, Suddenly they shoot him, and fear not.
5 They strengthen for themselves an evil thing, They recount of the hiding of snares, They have said, `Who doth look at it?'
6 They search out perverse things, `We perfected a searching search,' And the inward part of man, and the heart [are] deep.
7 And God doth shoot them [with] an arrow, Sudden have been their wounds,
8 And they cause him to stumble, Against them [is] their own tongue, Every looker on them fleeth away.
9 And all men fear, and declare the work of God, And His deed they have considered wisely.
10 The righteous doth rejoice in Jehovah, And hath trusted in Him, And boast themselves do all the upright of heart!
65 To the Overseer. -- A Psalm of David. A Song. To Thee, silence -- praise, O God, [is] in Zion, And to Thee is a vow completed.
2 Hearer of prayer, to Thee all flesh cometh.
3 Matters of iniquities were mightier than I, Our transgressions -- Thou dost cover them.
4 O the happiness of [him whom] Thou choosest, And drawest near, he inhabiteth Thy courts, We are satisfied with the goodness of Thy house, Thy holy temple.
5 By fearful things in righteousness Thou answerest us, O God of our salvation, The confidence of all far off ends of earth and sea.
6 Establishing mountains by His power, He hath been girded with might,
7 Restraining the noise of seas, the noise of their billows, And the multitude of the peoples.
8 And the inhabitants of the uttermost parts From Thy signs are afraid, The outgoings of morning and evening Thou causest to sing.
9 Thou hast inspected the earth, and waterest it, Thou makest it very rich, the rivulet of God [is] full of water, Thou preparest their corn, When thus Thou dost prepare it,
10 Its ridges have been filled, Deepened hath been its furrow, With showers Thou dost soften it, Its springing up Thou blessest.
11 Thou hast crowned the year of Thy goodness, And Thy paths drop fatness.
12 Drop do the pastures of a wilderness, And joy of the heights Thou girdest on.
13 Clothed have lambs the flock, And valleys are covered with corn, They shout -- yea, they sing!
16 And the people answer and say, `Far be it from us to forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods;
17 for Jehovah our God [is] He who is bringing us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, out of a house of servants, and who hath done before our eyes these great signs, and doth keep us in all the way in which we have gone, and among all the peoples through whose midst we passed;
18 and Jehovah casteth out the whole of the peoples, even the Amorite inhabiting the land, from our presence; we also do serve Jehovah, for He [is] our God.'
19 And Joshua saith unto the people, `Ye are not able to serve Jehovah, for a God most holy He [is]; a zealous God He [is]; He doth not bear with your transgression and with your sins.
20 When ye forsake Jehovah, and have served gods of a stranger, then He hath turned back and done evil to you, and consumed you, after that He hath done good to you.'
21 And the people saith unto Joshua, `No, but Jehovah we do serve.'
22 And Joshua saith unto the people, `Witnesses ye are against yourselves, that ye have chosen for you Jehovah to serve Him (and they say, `Witnesses!')
23 and, now, turn aside the gods of the stranger which [are] in your midst, and incline your heart unto Jehovah, God of Israel.'
24 And the people say unto Joshua, `Jehovah our God we serve, and to His voice we hearken.'
25 And Joshua maketh a covenant with the people on that day, and layeth on it a statute and an ordinance, in Shechem.
26 And Joshua writeth these words in the Book of the Law of God, and taketh a great stone, and raiseth it up there under the oak which [is] in the sanctuary of Jehovah.
27 And Joshua saith unto all the people, `Lo, this stone is against us for a witness, for it hath heard all the sayings of Jehovah which He hath spoken with us, and it hath been against you for a witness, lest ye lie against your God.'
28 And Joshua sendeth the people away, each to his inheritance.
29 And it cometh to pass, after these things, that Joshua son of Nun, servant of Jehovah, dieth, a son of a hundred and ten years,
30 and they bury him in the border of his inheritance, in Timnath-Serah, which [is] in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the hill of Gaash.
31 And Israel serveth Jehovah all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who prolonged days after Joshua, and who knew all the work of Jehovah which He did to Israel.
32 And the bones of Joseph, which the sons of Israel brought up out of Egypt, they buried in Shechem, in the portion of the field which Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor father of Shechem, with a hundred kesitah; and they are to the sons of Joseph for an inheritance.
33 And Eleazar son of Aaron died, and they bury him in the hill of Phinehas his son, which was given to him in the hill-country of Ephraim.
16 And I commend you to Phebe our sister -- being a ministrant of the assembly that [is] in Cenchrea --
2 that ye may receive her in the Lord, as doth become saints, and may assist her in whatever matter she may have need of you -- for she also became a leader of many, and of myself.
3 Salute Priscilla and Aquilas, my fellow-workmen in Christ Jesus --
4 who for my life their own neck did lay down, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the assemblies of the nations --
5 and the assembly at their house; salute Epaenetus, my beloved, who is first-fruit of Achaia to Christ.
6 Salute Mary, who did labour much for us;
7 salute Andronicus and Junias, my kindred, and my fellow-captives, who are of note among the apostles, who also have been in Christ before me.
8 Salute Amplias, my beloved in the Lord;
9 salute Arbanus, our fellow-workman in Christ, and Stachys, my beloved;
10 salute Apelles, the approved in Christ; salute those of the [household] of Aristobulus;
11 salute Herodion, my kinsman; salute those of the [household] of Narcissus, who are in the Lord;
12 salute Tryphaena, and Tryphosa, who are labouring in the Lord; salute Persis, the beloved, who did labour much in the Lord.
13 Salute Rufus, the choice one in the Lord, and his mother and mine,
14 salute Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren with them;
15 salute Philologus, and Julias, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints with them;
16 salute one another in a holy kiss; the assemblies of Christ do salute you.
24 And Pilate having seen that it profiteth nothing, but rather a tumult is made, having taken water, he did wash the hands before the multitude, saying, `I am innocent from the blood of this righteous one; ye -- ye shall see;'
25 and all the people answering said, `His blood [is] upon us, and upon our children!'
26 Then did he release to them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered [him] up that he may be crucified;
27 then the soldiers of the governor having taken Jesus to the Praetorium, did gather to him all the band;
28 and having unclothed him, they put around him a crimson cloak,
29 and having plaited him a crown out of thorns they put [it] on his head, and a reed in his right hand, and having kneeled before him, they were mocking him, saying, `Hail, the king of the Jews.'
30 And having spit on him, they took the reed, and were smiting on his head;
31 and when they had mocked him, they took off from him the cloak, and put on him his own garments, and led him away to crucify [him].