Book of Common Prayer
119 [Aleph.] O the happiness of those perfect in the way, They are walking in the law of Jehovah,
2 O the happiness of those keeping His testimonies, With the whole heart they seek Him.
3 Yea, they have not done iniquity, In His ways they have walked.
4 Thou hast commanded us Thy precepts to keep diligently,
5 O that my ways were prepared to keep Thy statutes,
6 Then I am not ashamed In my looking unto all Thy commands.
7 I confess Thee with uprightness of heart, In my learning the judgments of Thy righteousness.
8 Thy statutes I keep, leave me not utterly!
9 [Beth.] With what doth a young man purify his path? To observe -- according to Thy word.
10 With all my heart I have sought Thee, Let me not err from Thy commands.
11 In my heart I have hid Thy saying, That I sin not before Thee.
12 Blessed [art] Thou, O Jehovah, teach me Thy statutes.
13 With my lips I have recounted All the judgments of Thy mouth.
14 In the way of Thy testimonies I have joyed, As over all wealth.
15 In Thy precepts I meditate, And I behold attentively Thy paths.
16 In Thy statutes I delight myself, I do not forget Thy word.
17 [Gimel.] Confer benefits on Thy servant, I live, and I keep Thy word.
18 Uncover mine eyes, and I behold wonders out of Thy law.
19 A sojourner I [am] on earth, Hide not from me Thy commands.
20 Broken hath my soul for desire Unto Thy judgments at all times.
21 Thou hast rebuked the cursed proud, Who are erring from Thy commands.
22 Remove from me reproach and contempt, For Thy testimonies I have kept.
23 Princes also sat -- against me they spoke, Thy servant doth meditate in Thy statutes,
24 Thy testimonies also [are] my delight, The men of my counsel!
12 To the Overseer, on the octave. -- A Psalm of David. Save, Jehovah, for the saintly hath failed, For the stedfast have ceased From the sons of men:
2 Vanity they speak each with his neighbour, Lip of flattery! With heart and heart they speak.
3 Jehovah doth cut off all lips of flattery, A tongue speaking great things,
4 Who said, `By our tongue we do mightily: Our lips [are] our own; who [is] lord over us?'
5 Because of the spoiling of the poor, Because of the groaning of the needy, Now do I arise, saith Jehovah, I set in safety [him who] doth breathe for it.
6 Sayings of Jehovah [are] pure sayings; Silver tried in a furnace of earth refined sevenfold.
7 Thou, O Jehovah, dost preserve them, Thou keepest us from this generation to the age.
8 Around the wicked walk continually, According as vileness is exalted by sons of men!
13 To the Overseer. -- A Psalm of David. Till when, O Jehovah, Dost Thou forget me? -- for ever? Till when dost Thou hide Thy face from me?
2 Till when do I set counsels in my soul? Sorrow inn my heart daily? Till when is mine enemy exalted over me?
3 Look attentively; Answer me, O Jehovah, my God, Enlighten mine eyes, lest I sleep in death,
4 Lest mine enemy say, `I overcame him,' Mine adversaries joy when I am moved.
5 And I, in Thy kindness I have trusted, Rejoice doth my heart in Thy salvation.
6 I do sing to Jehovah, For He hath conferred benefits upon me!
14 To the Overseer. -- By David. A fool hath said in his heart, `God is not;' They have done corruptly, They have done abominable actions, There is not a doer of good.
2 Jehovah from the heavens Hath looked on the sons of men, To see if there is a wise one -- seeking God.
3 The whole have turned aside, Together they have been filthy: There is not a doer of good, not even one.
4 Have all working iniquity not known? Those consuming my people have eaten bread, Jehovah they have not called.
5 There they have feared a fear, For God [is] in the generation of the righteous.
6 The counsel of the poor ye cause to stink, Because Jehovah [is] his refuge.
7 `Who doth give from Zion the salvation of Israel? When Jehovah doth turn back [To] a captivity of His people, Jacob doth rejoice -- Israel is glad!
6 And Job answereth and saith: --
7 Is there not a warfare to man on earth? And as the days of an hireling his days?
2 As a servant desireth the shadow, And as a hireling expecteth his wage,
3 So I have been caused to inherit months of vanity, And nights of misery they numbered to me.
4 If I lay down then I said, `When do I rise!' And evening hath been measured, And I have been full of tossings till dawn.
5 Clothed hath been my flesh [with] worms, And a clod of dust, My skin hath been shrivelled and is loathsome,
6 My days swifter than a weaving machine, And they are consumed without hope.
7 Remember Thou that my life [is] a breath, Mine eye turneth not back to see good.
8 The eye of my beholder beholdeth me not. Thine eyes [are] upon me -- and I am not.
9 Consumed hath been a cloud, and it goeth, So he who is going down to Sheol cometh not up.
10 He turneth not again to his house, Nor doth his place discern him again.
11 Also I -- I withhold not my mouth -- I speak in the distress of my spirit, I talk in the bitterness of my soul.
12 A sea-[monster] am I, or a dragon, That thou settest over me a guard?
13 When I said, `My bed doth comfort me,' He taketh away in my talking my couch.
14 And thou hast affrighted me with dreams, And from visions thou terrifiest me,
15 And my soul chooseth strangling, Death rather than my bones.
16 I have wasted away -- not to the age do I live. Cease from me, for my days [are] vanity.
17 What [is] man that Thou dost magnify him? And that Thou settest unto him Thy heart?
18 And inspectest him in the mornings, In the evenings dost try him?
19 How long dost Thou not look from me? Thou dost not desist till I swallow my spittle.
20 I have sinned, what do I to Thee, O watcher of man? Why hast Thou set me for a mark to Thee, And I am for a burden to myself -- and what?
21 Thou dost not take away my transgression, And cause to pass away mine iniquity, Because now, for dust I lie down: And Thou hast sought me -- and I am not!
10 And there was a certain man in Cesarea, by name Cornelius, a centurion from a band called Italian,
2 pious, and fearing God with all his house, doing also many kind acts to the people, and beseeching God always,
3 he saw in a vision manifestly, as it were the ninth hour of the day, a messenger of God coming in unto him, and saying to him, `Cornelius;'
4 and he having looked earnestly on him, and becoming afraid, said, `What is it, Lord?' And he said to him, `Thy prayers and thy kind acts came up for a memorial before God,
5 and now send men to Joppa, and send for a certain one Simon, who is surnamed Peter,
6 this one doth lodge with a certain Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea; this one shall speak to thee what it behoveth thee to do.'
7 And when the messenger who is speaking to Cornelius went away, having called two of his domestics, and a pious soldier of those waiting on him continually,
8 and having declared to them all things, he sent them to Joppa.
9 And on the morrow, as these are proceeding on the way, and are drawing nigh to the city, Peter went up upon the house-top to pray, about the sixth hour,
10 and he became very hungry, and wished to eat; and they making ready, there fell upon him a trance,
11 and he doth behold the heaven opened, and descending unto him a certain vessel, as a great sheet, bound at the four corners, and let down upon the earth,
12 in which were all the four-footed beasts of the earth, and the wild beasts, and the creeping things, and the fowls of the heaven,
13 and there came a voice unto him: `Having risen, Peter, slay and eat.'
14 And Peter said, `Not so, Lord; because at no time did I eat anything common or unclean;'
15 and [there is] a voice again a second time unto him: `What God did cleanse, thou, declare not thou common;'
16 and this was done thrice, and again was the vessel received up to the heaven.
7 And Jesus was walking after these things in Galilee, for he did not wish to walk in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him,
2 and the feast of the Jews was nigh -- that of tabernacles --
3 his brethren, therefore, said unto him, `Remove hence, and go away to Judea, that thy disciples also may behold thy works that thou dost;
4 for no one in secret doth anything, and himself seeketh to be in public; if thou dost these things -- manifest thyself to the world;'
5 for not even were his brethren believing in him.
6 Jesus, therefore, saith to them, `My time is not yet present, but your time is always ready;
7 the world is not able to hate you, but me it doth hate, because I testify concerning it that its works are evil.
8 Ye -- go ye up to this feast; I do not yet go up to this feast, because my time hath not yet been fulfilled;'
9 and saying these things to them, he remained in Galilee.
10 And when his brethren went up, then also he himself went up to the feast, not manifestly, but as in secret;
11 the Jews, therefore, were seeking him, in the feast, and said, `Where is that one?'
12 and there was much murmuring about him among the multitudes, some indeed said -- `He is good;' and others said, `No, but he leadeth astray the multitude;'
13 no one, however, was speaking freely about him, through fear of the Jews.