Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 20[a]
Prayer for the King in Time of War
1 For the leader. A psalm of David.
I
2 The Lord answer you in time of distress;
the name of the God of Jacob defend you!
3 May he send you help from the sanctuary,
from Zion be your support.(A)
4 May he remember[b] your every offering,
graciously accept your burnt offering,
Selah
5 Grant what is in your heart,
fulfill your every plan.
6 May we shout for joy at your victory,[c]
raise the banners in the name of our God.
The Lord grant your every petition!
II
7 Now I know the Lord gives victory
to his anointed.(B)
He will answer him from the holy heavens
with a strong arm that brings victory.
8 Some rely on chariots, others on horses,
but we on the name of the Lord our God.(C)
9 They collapse and fall,
but we stand strong and firm.(D)
10 Lord, grant victory to the king;
answer when we call upon you.
Psalm 21[d]
Thanksgiving and Assurances for the King
1 For the leader. A psalm of David.
I
2 Lord, the king finds joy in your power;(E)
in your victory how greatly he rejoices!
3 You have granted him his heart’s desire;
you did not refuse the request of his lips.
Selah
4 For you welcomed him with goodly blessings;
you placed on his head a crown of pure gold.
5 He asked life of you;
you gave it to him,
length of days forever.(F)
6 Great is his glory in your victory;
majesty and splendor you confer upon him.
7 You make him the pattern of blessings forever,
you gladden him with the joy of your face.
8 For the king trusts in the Lord,
stands firm through the mercy of the Most High.
II
9 Your hand will find all your enemies;
your right hand will find your foes!
10 At the time of your coming
you will make them a fiery furnace.
Then the Lord in his anger will consume them,
devour them with fire.
11 Even their descendants you will wipe out from the earth,
their offspring from the human race.
12 Though they intend evil against you,
devising plots, they will not succeed,
13 For you will put them to flight;
you will aim at their faces with your bow.
III
14 Arise, Lord, in your power!(G)
We will sing and chant the praise of your might.
Psalm 110[a]
God Appoints the King both King and Priest
1 A psalm of David.
The Lord says to my lord:[b]
“Sit at my right hand,
while I make your enemies your footstool.”(A)
2 The scepter of your might:
the Lord extends your strong scepter from Zion.
Have dominion over your enemies!
3 Yours is princely power from the day of your birth.
In holy splendor before the daystar,
like dew I begot you.(B)
4 The Lord has sworn and will not waver:
“You are a priest forever in the manner of Melchizedek.”[c](C)
5 At your right hand is the Lord,
who crushes kings on the day of his wrath,(D)
6 Who judges nations, heaps up corpses,
crushes heads across the wide earth,
7 [d]Who drinks from the brook by the wayside
and thus holds high his head.(E)
Psalm 116[a]
Thanksgiving to God Who Saves from Death
I
1 I love the Lord, who listened
to my voice in supplication,
2 Who turned an ear to me
on the day I called.
3 I was caught by the cords of death;[b](A)
the snares of Sheol had seized me;
I felt agony and dread.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord,
“O Lord, save my life!”
II
5 Gracious is the Lord and righteous;
yes, our God is merciful.(B)
6 The Lord protects the simple;
I was helpless, but he saved me.
7 Return, my soul, to your rest;
the Lord has been very good to you.(C)
8 For my soul has been freed from death,
my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.(D)
9 I shall walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.[c](E)
III
10 [d]I kept faith, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted!”(F)
11 I said in my alarm,
“All men are liars!”(G)
12 How can I repay the Lord
for all the great good done for me?
13 I will raise the cup of salvation[e]
and call on the name of the Lord.
14 I will pay my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
15 [f]Dear in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his devoted.(H)
16 Lord, I am your servant,
your servant, the child of your maidservant;(I)
you have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer a sacrifice of praise
and call on the name of the Lord.(J)
18 I will pay my vows to the Lord(K)
in the presence of all his people,
19 In the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Hallelujah!
Psalm 117[g]
The Nations Called to Praise
1 Praise the Lord, all you nations!
Extol him, all you peoples!(L)
2 His mercy for us is strong;
the faithfulness of the Lord is forever.
Hallelujah!
Humility[a]
17 My son, conduct your affairs with humility,
and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts.
18 Humble yourself the more, the greater you are,
and you will find mercy in the sight of God.[b](A)
20 For great is the power of the Lord;
by the humble he is glorified.
21 What is too sublime for you, do not seek;
do not reach into things that are hidden from you.(B)
22 What is committed to you, pay heed to;
what is hidden is not your concern.
23 In matters that are beyond you do not meddle,
when you have been shown more than you can understand.
24 Indeed, many are the conceits of human beings;
evil imaginations lead them astray.
Docility[c]
25 Without the pupil of the eye, light is missing;
without knowledge, wisdom is missing.
26 A stubborn heart will fare badly in the end;
those who love danger will perish in it.
27 A stubborn heart will have many a hurt;
adding sin to sin is madness.
28 When the proud are afflicted, there is no cure;
for they are offshoots of an evil plant.(C)
29 The mind of the wise appreciates proverbs,
and the ear that listens to wisdom rejoices.
Alms for the Poor
30 As water quenches a flaming fire,
so almsgiving atones for sins.(D)
31 The kindness people have done crosses their paths later on;
should they stumble, they will find support.
Testimony to Jews in Rome. 17 [a]Three days later he called together the leaders of the Jews. When they had gathered he said to them, “My brothers, although I had done nothing against our people or our ancestral customs, I was handed over to the Romans as a prisoner from Jerusalem.(A) 18 After trying my case the Romans wanted to release me, because they found nothing against me deserving the death penalty.(B) 19 But when the Jews objected, I was obliged to appeal to Caesar, even though I had no accusation to make against my own nation.(C) 20 This is the reason, then, I have requested to see you and to speak with you, for it is on account of the hope of Israel[b] that I wear these chains.”(D) 21 They answered him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, nor has any of the brothers arrived with a damaging report or rumor about you. 22 But we should like to hear you present your views, for we know that this sect is denounced everywhere.”(E)
23 So they arranged a day with him and came to his lodgings in great numbers. From early morning until evening, he expounded his position to them, bearing witness to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus from the law of Moses and the prophets. 24 Some were convinced by what he had said, while others did not believe. 25 [c]Without reaching any agreement among themselves they began to leave; then Paul made one final statement. “Well did the holy Spirit speak to your ancestors through the prophet Isaiah, saying:
26 ‘Go to this people and say:(F)
You shall indeed hear but not understand.
You shall indeed look but never see.
27 Gross is the heart of this people;
they will not hear with their ears;
they have closed their eyes,
so they may not see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart and be converted,
and I heal them.’
28 (G)Let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” [29 ][d]
30 [e]He remained for two full years in his lodgings. He received all who came to him, 31 and with complete assurance and without hindrance he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.
37 (A)On the next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. 38 There was a man in the crowd who cried out, “Teacher, I beg you, look at my son; he is my only child. 39 For a spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams and it convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it releases him only with difficulty, wearing him out. 40 I begged your disciples to cast it out but they could not.” 41 Jesus said in reply, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long will I be with you and endure you? Bring your son here.” 42 As he was coming forward, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion; but Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and returned him to his father. 43 And all were astonished by the majesty of God.
The Second Prediction of the Passion.(B) While they were all amazed at his every deed, he said to his disciples, 44 “Pay attention to what I am telling you. The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.” 45 But they did not understand this saying; its meaning was hidden from them so that they should not understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
The Greatest in the Kingdom.(C) 46 [a]An argument arose among the disciples about which of them was the greatest.(D) 47 Jesus realized the intention of their hearts and took a child and placed it by his side 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. For the one who is least among all of you is the one who is the greatest.”(E)
Another Exorcist.(F) 49 Then John said in reply, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow in our company.” 50 Jesus said to him, “Do not prevent him, for whoever is not against you is for you.”
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