Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66
Praise for God’s Mighty Acts
For the choir director. A song. A psalm.
1 Shout joyfully to God, all the earth!(A)
2 Sing about the glory of His name;
make His praise glorious.(B)
3 Say to God, “How awe-inspiring are Your works!
Your enemies will cringe before You
because of Your great strength.(C)
4 All the earth will worship You
and sing praise to You.
They will sing praise to Your name.”(D)
5 Come and see the wonders of God;(E)
His acts for humanity are awe-inspiring.
6 He turned the sea into dry land,
and they crossed the river on foot.(F)
There we rejoiced in Him.(G)
7 He rules forever by His might;
He keeps His eye on the nations.(H)
The rebellious should not exalt themselves.(I)
8 Praise our God, you peoples;
let the sound of His praise be heard.(J)
9 He keeps us alive[a]
and does not allow our feet to slip.(K)
10 For You, God, tested us;
You refined us as silver is refined.(L)
11 You lured us into a trap;
You placed burdens on our backs.(M)
12 You let men ride over our heads;
we went through fire and water,
but You brought us out to abundance.[b](N)
13 I will enter Your house with burnt offerings;
I will pay You my vows(O)
14 that my lips promised
and my mouth spoke during my distress.(P)
15 I will offer You fattened sheep as burnt offerings,
with the fragrant smoke of rams;
I will sacrifice oxen with goats.(Q)
16 Come and listen, all who fear God,
and I will tell what He has done for me.(R)
17 I cried out to Him with my mouth,
and praise was on my tongue.(S)
18 If I had been aware of malice in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.(T)
19 However, God has listened;
He has paid attention to the sound of my prayer.(U)
20 May God be praised!
He has not turned away my prayer
or turned His faithful love from me.(V)
9 Who is he[a] trying to teach?
Who is he[b] trying to instruct?
Infants[c] just weaned from milk?
Babies[d] removed from the breast?
10 For he says: “Law after law, law after law,
line after line, line after line,
a little here, a little there.”[e][f]
11 So He will speak to this people
with stammering speech
and in a foreign language.(A)
12 He had said to them:
“This is the place of rest,
let the weary rest;(B)
this is the place of repose.”
But they would not listen.
13 Then the word of the Lord came to them:
“Law after law, law after law,
line after line, line after line,
a little here, a little there,”[g][h]
so they go stumbling backward,
to be broken, trapped, and captured.(C)
A Deal with Death
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord,(D) you mockers(E)
who rule this people in Jerusalem.
15 For you said, “We have cut a deal with Death,
and we have made an agreement with Sheol;
when the overwhelming scourge passes through,(F)
it will not touch us,
because we have made falsehood our refuge
and have hidden behind treachery.”
16 Therefore the Lord God said:
“Look, I have laid a stone(G) in Zion,
a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation;(H)
the one who believes will be unshakable.[i](I)
Unity and Diversity in the Body of Christ
4 Therefore I, the prisoner for the Lord,(A) urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, 2 with all humility(B) and gentleness, with patience,(C) accepting[a](D) one another in love,(E) 3 diligently keeping the unity(F) of the Spirit(G) with the peace(H) that binds us. 4 There is one body and one Spirit(I)—just as you were called to one hope[b](J) at your calling— 5 one Lord,(K) one faith,(L) one baptism, 6 one God(M) and Father(N) of all, who is above all and through all and in all.(O)
7 Now grace was given to each one of us(P) according to the measure of the Messiah’s gift. 8 For it says:
9 But what does “He ascended” mean except that He[e] descended to the lower parts of the earth?[f](S) 10 The One who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens,(T) that He might fill[g] all things.(U) 11 And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ,(V) 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son,(W) growing into a mature man with a stature(X) measured by Christ’s fullness. 14 Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching,(Y) by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit. 15 But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into Him who is the head(Z)—Christ. 16 From Him the whole body, fitted and knit together(AA) by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth(AB) of the body for building up itself in love by the proper working of each individual part.
Psalm 116
Thanks to God for Deliverance
1 I love the Lord because He has heard
my appeal for mercy.(A)
2 Because He has turned His ear to me,
I will call out to Him as long as I live.(B)
3 The ropes of death were wrapped around me,
and the torments of Sheol overcame me;
I encountered trouble and sorrow.(C)
4 Then I called on the name of Yahweh:
“Yahweh, save me!”(D)
5 The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is compassionate.(E)
6 The Lord guards the inexperienced;
I was helpless, and He saved me.(F)
7 Return to your rest, my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.(G)
8 For You, Lord, rescued me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.(H)
9 I will walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.(I)
10 I believed, even when I said,
“I am severely afflicted.”(J)
11 In my alarm I said,
“Everyone is a liar.”(K)
12 How can I repay the Lord
for all the good He has done for me?(L)
13 I will take the cup of salvation
and call on the name of Yahweh.(M)
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all His people.(N)
15 The death of His faithful ones
is valuable in the Lord’s sight.(O)
16 Lord, I am indeed Your servant;
I am Your servant, the son of Your female servant.
You have loosened my bonds.(P)
17 I will offer You a sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on the name of Yahweh.(Q)
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all His people,(R)
19 in the courts of the Lord’s house—
within you, Jerusalem.(S)
Hallelujah!
Psalm 117
Universal Call to Praise
Another Counselor Promised
15 “If you love Me, you will keep[a] My commands.(A) 16 And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor(B) to be with you forever. 17 He is the Spirit(C) of truth.(D) The world is unable to receive Him because it doesn’t see Him or know Him. But you do know Him, because He remains with you and will be[b] in you.(E) 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you.
The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit
19 “In a little while the world will see Me no longer,(F) but you will see Me.(G) Because I live, you will live(H) too. 20 In that day you will know that I am in My Father,(I) you are in Me, and I am in you. 21 The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me.(J) And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father.(K) I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him.”
22 Judas(L) (not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it You’re going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?”(M)
23 Jesus answered, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.(N) 24 The one who doesn’t love Me will not keep My words. The word that you hear is not Mine but is from the Father who sent Me.(O)
25 “I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. 26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit(P)—the Father will send(Q) Him in My name—will teach you all things(R) and remind you of everything I have told you.(S)
Jesus’ Gift of Peace
27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Your heart must not be troubled or fearful.(T) 28 You have heard Me tell you, ‘I am going away(U) and I am coming to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced that I am going to the Father,(V) because the Father is greater than I.(W) 29 I have told you now before it happens(X) so that when it does happen you may believe. 30 I will not talk with you much longer, because the ruler of the world(Y) is coming. He has no power over Me.[c](Z) 31 On the contrary, I am going away[d] so that the world may know that I love the Father. Just as the Father commanded Me, so I do.
“Get up; let’s leave this place.
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.