Book of Common Prayer
God Saved Israel from Egypt
A maskil of Asaph.
78 My people, listen to my teaching.
Listen to what I say.
2 I will speak using stories.
I will tell things that have been secret since long ago.
3 We have heard them and know them.
Our fathers told them to us.
4 We will not keep them from our children.
We will tell those who come later
about the praises of the Lord.
We will tell about his power
and the miracles he has done.
5 The Lord made an agreement with Jacob.
He gave the teachings to Israel.
And he commanded our ancestors
to teach them to their children.
6 Then their children would know them,
even their children not yet born.
And they would tell their children.
7 So they would all trust God.
They would not forget what God had done.
Instead, they would obey his commands.
8 They would not be like their ancestors
who were stubborn and disobedient.
Their hearts were not loyal to God.
They were not true to him.
9 The men of Ephraim had bows for weapons.
But they ran away on the day of battle.
10 They didn’t keep their agreement with God.
They refused to live by his teachings.
11 They forgot what he had done
and the miracles he had shown them.
12 He did miracles while their ancestors watched,
in the fields of Zoan in Egypt.
13 He divided the Red Sea and led them through.
He made the water stand up like a wall.
14 He led them with a cloud by day.
And he led them at night by the light of a fire.
15 He split the rocks in the desert.
And he gave them much water, as if it were from the deep ocean.
16 He brought streams out of the rock.
The water flowed down like rivers.
17 But the people continued to sin against him.
In the desert they turned against God Most High.
18 They decided to test God
by asking for the food they wanted.
19 Then they spoke against God.
They said, “Can God prepare food in the desert?
20 When he hit the rock, water poured out.
Rivers flowed down.
But can he give us bread also?
Will he provide his people with meat?”
21 When the Lord heard them, he was very angry.
His anger was like fire to the people of Jacob.
His anger grew against the people of Israel.
22 They had not believed God.
They had not trusted him to save them.
23 But he gave a command to the clouds above.
The doors of heaven opened.
24 He rained manna down on them to eat.
He gave them grain from heaven.
25 So they ate the bread of angels.
He sent them all the food they could eat.
26 He sent the east wind from heaven.
He led the south wind by his power.
27 He rained meat on them like dust.
The birds were as many as the sand of the sea.
28 He made the birds fall inside the camp,
all around the tents.
29 So the people ate and became very full.
God had given them what they wanted.
30 While they were still eating,
and while the food was still in their mouths,
31 God became angry with them.
He killed some of the healthiest of them.
He struck down the best young men of Israel.
32 But they kept on sinning.
They did not believe even with the miracles.
33 So he ended their days without meaning
and their years in terror.
34 Anytime he killed them, some would look to him for help.
They would come back to God and follow him.
35 They would remember that God was their Rock,
that God Most High had saved them.
36 But their words were false.
Their tongues lied to him.
37 Their hearts were not really loyal to God.
They did not keep his agreement.
38 Still God was merciful.
He forgave their sins.
He did not destroy them.
Many times he held back his anger.
He did not stir up all his anger.
39 He remembered that they were only human.
They were like a wind that blows and does not come back.
40 They turned against God so often in the desert!
There they made him very sad.
41 Again and again they tested God.
They brought pain to the Holy One of Israel.
42 They did not remember his power
or the time he saved them from the enemy.
43 They forgot the signs he did in Egypt
and his miracles in the fields of Zoan.
44 He turned the rivers to blood.
So no one could drink the water.
45 He sent flies that bit the people.
He sent frogs that destroyed them.
46 He gave their crops to grasshoppers
and what they worked for to locusts.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail
and their sycamore trees with sleet.
48 He killed their animals with hail
and their cattle with lightning.
49 He showed them his hot anger.
He sent his strong anger against them.
He sent his destroying angels.
50 He found a way to show his anger.
He did not keep them from dying.
He let them die by a terrible disease.
51 God killed all the firstborn sons in Egypt,
the oldest son of each family of Ham.[a]
52 But God led out his people like sheep.
He guided them like a flock through the desert.
53 He led them to safety. They had nothing to fear.
But their enemies drowned in the sea.
54 So God brought them to his holy land.
He brought them to the mountain country he took with his own power.
55 He forced out the other nations.
And he had his people inherit the land.
He let the tribes of Israel settle there in tents.
56 But they tested God
and turned against the Most High.
They did not keep his rules.
57 They turned away and sinned just like their ancestors.
They were like a crooked bow that does not shoot straight.
58 They made God angry by building places to worship false gods.
They made him jealous with their idols.
59 When God heard them, he became very angry.
And he rejected the people of Israel completely.
60 He left his dwelling at Shiloh,
the tent where he lived among men.
61 He let his Ark of the Covenant be captured.
He let the Ark of the Covenant, which was his glory, be taken by enemies.
62 He let his people be killed.
He was very angry with his children.
63 The young men died by fire.
The young women had no one to marry.
64 Their priests fell by the sword.
But their widows were not allowed to cry.
65 Then the Lord got up as if he had been asleep.
He awoke like a man who was drunk with wine.
66 He struck down his enemies.
He disgraced them forever.
67 But God rejected the family of Joseph.
He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 Instead, he chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 And he built his Temple high like the mountains.
Like the earth, he built it to last forever.
70 He chose David to be his servant.
He took him from the sheep pens.
71 He brought him from tending the sheep
so he could lead the flock, the people of Jacob.
This flock was his own people, the people of Israel.
72 And David led them with an innocent heart.
He guided them with skillful hands.
Esther Speaks to the King
5 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes. Then she stood in the inner courtyard of the king’s palace, facing the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the doorway. 2 The king saw Queen Esther standing in the courtyard. When he saw her, he was very pleased. He held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther went up to him and touched the end of the scepter.
3 Then the king asked, “What is it, Queen Esther? What do you want to ask me? I will give you as much as half of my kingdom.”
4 Esther answered, “My king, if it pleases you, come today with Haman to a banquet. I have prepared it for you.”
5 Then the king said, “Bring Haman quickly so we may do what Esther asks.”
So the king and Haman went to the banquet Esther had prepared for them. 6 As they were drinking wine, the king said to Esther, “Now, Esther, what are you asking for? I will give it to you. What is it you want? I will give you as much as half of my kingdom.”
7 Esther answered, “This is what I want and ask for. 8 My king, I hope you are pleased with me. If it pleases you, give me what I ask for and do what I want. Come with Haman tomorrow to the banquet I will prepare for you. Then I will answer your question about what I want.”
Haman’s Plans Against Mordecai
9 Haman left the king’s palace that day happy and content. Then he saw Mordecai at the king’s gate. And he saw that Mordecai did not stand up nor did he tremble with fear before him. So Haman became very angry with Mordecai. 10 But he controlled his anger and went home.
Then Haman called his friends and Zeresh, his wife, together. 11 And he told them about how wealthy he was and how many sons he had. He also told them about all the ways the king had honored him. And he told them how the king had placed him higher than his important men and his royal officers. 12 “And that’s not all,” Haman added. “I’m the only person Queen Esther invited to come with the king to the banquet she gave. And tomorrow also the queen has asked me to be her guest with the king. 13 But all this does not really make me happy. I’m not happy as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate.”
14 Then Haman’s wife Zeresh and all his friends said, “Have a platform built to hang someone. Build it 75 feet high. And in the morning ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on it. Then go to the banquet with the king and be happy.” Haman liked this suggestion. So he ordered the platform to be built.
Paul Is Brought Before Gallio
12 Gallio became the governor of the country of Southern Greece. At that time, some of the Jews came together against Paul and took him to the court. 13 They said to Gallio, “This man is teaching people to worship God in a way that is against our law!”
14 Paul was about to say something, but Gallio spoke to the Jews. Gallio said, “I would listen to you Jews if you were complaining about a crime or some wrong. 15 But the things you are saying are only questions about words and names—arguments about your own law. So you must solve this problem yourselves. I don’t want to be a judge of these things!” 16 Then Gallio made them leave the court.
17 Then they all grabbed Sosthenes. (Sosthenes was now the leader of the synagogue.) They beat him there before the court. But this did not bother Gallio.
Paul Returns to Antioch
18 Paul stayed with the believers for many more days. Then he left and sailed for Syria. Priscilla and Aquila went with him. At Cenchrea, Paul cut off his hair.[a] This showed that he had made a promise to God. 19 Then they went to Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. While Paul was there, he went into the synagogue and talked with the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay with them longer, he refused. 21 He left them, but he said, “I will come back to you again if God wants me to.” And so he sailed away from Ephesus.
22 Paul landed at Caesarea. Then he went and gave greetings to the church in Jerusalem. After that, Paul went to Antioch. 23 He stayed there for a while and then left and went through the countries of Galatia and Phrygia. He traveled from town to town in these countries, giving strength to all the followers.
Apollos in Ephesus and Corinth
24 A Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. He was born in the city of Alexandria. He was an educated man who knew the Scriptures well. 25 He had been taught about the Lord. He was always very excited when he spoke and taught the truth about Jesus. But the only baptism that Apollos knew about was the baptism that John[b] taught. 26 Apollos began to speak very boldly in the synagogue, and Priscilla and Aquila heard him. So they took him to their home and helped him better understand the way of God. 27 Now Apollos wanted to go to the country of Southern Greece, so the believers helped him. They wrote a letter to the followers there, asking them to accept him. These followers had believed in Jesus because of God’s grace. When Apollos went there, he helped them very much. 28 He argued very strongly with the Jews before all the people. Apollos clearly proved that the Jews were wrong. Using the Scriptures, he proved that Jesus is the Christ.
15 All the people were hoping for the Christ to come, and they wondered about John. They thought, “Maybe he is the Christ.”
16 John answered everyone, “I baptize you with water, but there is one coming later who can do more than I can. I am not good enough to untie his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 17 He will come ready to clean the grain. He will separate the good grain from the chaff. He will put the good part of the grain into his barn. Then he will burn the chaff with a fire that cannot be put out.”[a] 18 And John continued to preach the Good News, saying many other things to encourage the people.
19 But John spoke against Herod, the governor, because of his sin with Herodias, the wife of Herod’s brother. John also criticized Herod for the many other evil things Herod did. 20 So Herod did another evil thing: He put John in prison.
Jesus Is Baptized by John
21 When all the people were being baptized by John, Jesus also was baptized. While Jesus was praying, heaven opened and 22 the Holy Spirit came down on him. The Spirit was in the form of a dove. Then a voice came from heaven and said, “You are my Son and I love you. I am very pleased with you.”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.