Book of Common Prayer
A Sad Complaint
A song of the sons of Korah. For the director of music. By the mahalath leannoth. A maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
88 Lord, you are the God who saves me.
I cry out to you day and night.
2 Accept my prayer.
Listen to my cry.
3 My life is full of troubles.
I am nearly dead.
4 They think I am on the way to my grave.
I am like a man with no strength.
5 I have been left as dead,
like a body lying in a grave.
You don’t remember dead people.
They are cut off from your care.
6 You have brought me close to death.
I am almost in the dark place of the dead.
7 You have been very angry with me.
All your waves crush me. Selah
8 You have taken my friends away from me.
You have made them hate me.
I am trapped and cannot escape.
9 My eyes are weak from crying.
Lord, I have prayed to you every day.
I have lifted my hands in prayer to you.
10 Do you show your miracles for the dead?
Do their spirits rise up and praise you? Selah
11 Will your love be told in the grave?
Will your loyalty be told in the place of death?
12 Will your miracles be known in the dark grave?
Will your goodness be known in the land where the dead are forgotten?
13 But, Lord, I have called out to you for help.
Every morning I pray to you.
14 Lord, why do you reject me?
Why do you hide from me?
15 I have been weak and dying since I was young.
I suffer from your terrors, and I am helpless.
16 You have been angry with me.
Your terrors have destroyed me.
17 They surround me daily like a flood.
They are all around me.
18 You have taken away my loved ones and friends.
Darkness is my only friend.
Safe in the Lord
91 Those who go to God Most High for safety
will be protected by God All-Powerful.
2 I will say to the Lord, “You are my place of safety and protection.
You are my God, and I trust you.”
3 God will save you from hidden traps
and from deadly diseases.
4 He will protect you like a bird
spreading its wings over its young.
His truth will be like your armor and shield.
5 You will not fear any danger by night
or an arrow during the day.
6 You will not be afraid of diseases that come in the dark
or sickness that strikes at noon.
7 At your side 1,000 people may die,
or even 10,000 right beside you.
But you will not be hurt.
8 You will only watch what happens.
You will see the wicked punished.
9 The Lord is your protection.
You have made God Most High your place of safety.
10 Nothing bad will happen to you.
No disaster will come to your home.
11 He has put his angels in charge of you.
They will watch over you wherever you go.
12 They will catch you with their hands.
And you will not hit your foot on a rock.
13 You will walk on lions and cobras.
You will step on strong lions and snakes.
14 The Lord says, “If someone loves me, I will save him.
I will protect those who know me.
15 They will call to me, and I will answer them.
I will be with them in trouble.
I will rescue them and honor them.
16 I will give them a long, full life.
They will see how I can save.”
Thanksgiving for God’s Goodness
A song for the Sabbath day.
92 It is good to praise the Lord,
to sing praises to God Most High.
2 It is good to tell of your love in the morning
and of your loyalty at night.
3 It is good to praise you with the ten-stringed lyre
and with the soft-sounding harp.
4 Lord, you have made me happy by what you have done.
I will sing for joy about what your hands have done.
5 Lord, you have done such great things!
How deep are your thoughts!
6 Stupid people don’t know these things.
Fools don’t understand.
7 Wicked people grow like the grass.
Evil people seem to do well.
But they will be destroyed forever.
8 But, Lord, you will be honored forever.
9 Lord, surely your enemies,
surely your enemies will be destroyed.
All who do evil will be scattered.
10 But you have made me as strong as a wild ox.
You have poured fine oils on me.
11 When I looked, I saw my enemies.
I heard the cries of those who are against me.
12 But good people will grow like palm trees.
They will be tall like the cedar trees of Lebanon.
13 They will be like trees planted in the courtyards of the Lord.
They will grow strong in the courtyards of our God.
14 When they are old, they will still produce fruit.
They will be healthy and fresh.
15 They will say that the Lord is good.
He is my Rock, and there is no wrong in him.
Abimelech Becomes King
9 Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal, also called Gideon, went to his uncles. They lived in the city of Shechem. He said to his uncles and all of his mother’s family group, 2 “Ask the leaders of Shechem this question: ‘Is it better for you to be ruled by the 70 sons of Jerub-Baal or to be ruled by only 1 man?’ Remember, I am your relative.”
3 Abimelech’s uncles spoke to all the leaders of Shechem. They asked them that question. All the leaders decided to follow Abimelech. They said, “He is our brother.” 4 So the leaders of Shechem gave Abimelech about one and three-fourths pounds of silver. The silver was from the temple of the god Baal-of-the-Agreement. Abimelech used the silver to hire some worthless, reckless men. They followed Abimelech wherever he went. 5 Abimelech went to Ophrah, the hometown of his father. There Abimelech murdered his 70 brothers. They were the sons of Abimelech’s father, Gideon. He killed them all on one stone. But Gideon’s youngest son, Jotham, hid from Abimelech and escaped. 6 Then all of the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo came together. They gathered beside the great tree at the stone pillar in Shechem. There they made Abimelech their king.
Jotham’s Story
7 When Jotham heard this, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim. Jotham shouted to the people: “Listen to me, you leaders of Shechem. Then God may listen to you! 8 One day the trees decided to appoint a king to rule over them. They said to the olive tree, ‘You be king over us!’
9 “But the olive tree said, ‘Men and gods are honored by my oil. Should I stop making it just to go and sway over the other trees?’
10 “Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘Come and be our king!’
11 “But the fig tree answered, ‘Should I stop making my sweet and good fruit? Should I stop just to go and sway over the other trees?’
12 “Then the trees said to the vine, ‘Come and be our king!’
13 “But the vine answered, ‘My wine makes men and gods happy. Should I stop making it just to go and sway over the trees?’
14 “Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king.’
15 “But the thornbush said to the trees, ‘If you really want to appoint me king over you, come and find shelter in my shade! But if you do not want to do this, let fire come out of the thornbush. Let the fire burn up the cedars of Lebanon!’
16 “Now, were you completely honest and sincere when you made Abimelech king? Have you been fair to Gideon and his family? Have you treated Gideon as you should?
19 So then, if you have been honest and sincere to Gideon and his family today, be happy with Abimelech as your king. And may he be happy with you! 20 But if you have not acted right, may fire come out of Abimelech! May that fire completely burn you leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo! Also may fire come out of the leaders of Shechem and burn up Abimelech!”
21 Then Jotham ran away. He escaped to the city of Beer. He lived there because he was afraid of his brother Abimelech.
13 The Jewish leaders saw that Peter and John were not afraid to speak. They understood that these men had no special training or education. So they were amazed. Then they realized that Peter and John had been with Jesus. 14 They saw the crippled man standing there beside the two apostles. They saw that the man was healed. So they could say nothing against them. 15 The Jewish leaders told them to leave the meeting. Then the leaders talked to each other about what they should do. 16 They said, “What shall we do with these men? Everyone in Jerusalem knows that they have done a great miracle! We cannot say it is not true. 17 But we must warn them not to talk to people anymore using that name. Then this thing will not spread among the people.”
18 So they called Peter and John in again. They told them not to speak or to teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “What do you think is right? What would God want? Should we obey you or God? 20 We cannot keep quiet. We must speak about what we have seen and heard.” 21-22 The Jewish leaders could not find a way to punish them because all the people were praising God for what had been done. (This miracle was a proof from God. The man who was healed was more than 40 years old!) So the Jewish leaders warned the apostles again and let them go free.
The Believers’ Prayer
23 Peter and John left the meeting of Jewish leaders and went to their own group. They told them everything that the leading priests and the Jewish elders had said to them. 24 When the believers heard this, they prayed to God with one purpose. They prayed, “Lord, you are the One who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and everything in the world. 25 Our father David was your servant. With the help of the Holy Spirit he said:
‘Why are the nations so angry?
Why are the people making useless plans?
26 The kings of the earth prepare to fight.
Their leaders make plans together
against the Lord
and against his Christ.’ Psalm 2:1-2
27 These things really happened when Herod, Pontius Pilate, the non-Jewish people, and the Jewish people all came together against Jesus here in Jerusalem. Jesus is your holy Servant. He is the One you made to be the Christ. 28 These people made your plan happen; it happened because of your power and your will. 29 And now, Lord, listen to what they are saying. They are trying to make us afraid! Lord, we are your servants. Help us to speak your word without fear. 30 Help us to be brave by showing us your power; make sick people well, give proofs, and make miracles happen by the power of Jesus, your holy servant.”
31 After they had prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke God’s word without fear.
The Wedding at Cana
2 Two days later there was a wedding in the town of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there. 2 Jesus and his followers were also invited to the wedding. 3 When all the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
4 Jesus answered, “Dear woman, why come to me? My time has not yet come.”
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you to do.”
6 In that place there were six stone water jars. The Jews used jars like these in their washing ceremony.[a] Each jar held about 20 or 30 gallons.
7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled the jars to the top.
8 Then he said to them, “Now take some out and give it to the master of the feast.”
So the servants took the water to the master. 9 When he tasted it, the water had become wine. He did not know where the wine came from. But the servants who brought the water knew. The master of the wedding called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “People always serve the best wine first. Later, after the guests have been drinking a lot, they serve the cheaper wine. But you have saved the best wine till now.”
11 So in Cana of Galilee, Jesus did his first miracle. There he showed his glory, and his followers believed in him.
Jesus in the Temple
12 Then Jesus went to the town of Capernaum with his mother, brothers and his followers. They all stayed in Capernaum for a few days.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.