Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66[a]
For the music director, a song, a psalm.
66 Shout out praise to God, all the earth!
2 Sing praises about the majesty of his reputation.[b]
Give him the honor he deserves![c]
3 Say to God:
“How awesome are your deeds!
Because of your great power your enemies cower in fear[d] before you.
4 All the earth worships[e] you
and sings praises to you.
They sing praises to your name.” (Selah)
5 Come and witness[f] God’s exploits![g]
His acts on behalf of people are awesome.[h]
6 He turned the sea into dry land;[i]
they passed through the river on foot.[j]
Let us rejoice in him there.[k]
7 He rules[l] by his power forever;
he watches[m] the nations.
Stubborn rebels should not exalt[n] themselves. (Selah)
8 Praise[o] our God, you nations.
Loudly proclaim his praise.[p]
9 He preserves our lives[q]
and does not allow our feet to slip.
10 For[r] you, O God, tested us;
you purified us like refined silver.
11 You led us into a trap;[s]
you caused us to suffer.[t]
12 You allowed men to ride over our heads;
we passed through fire and water,
but you brought us out into a wide open place.[u]
13 I will enter[v] your temple with burnt sacrifices;
I will fulfill the vows I made to you,
14 which my lips uttered
and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble.
15 I will offer up to you fattened animals as burnt sacrifices,
along with the smell of sacrificial rams.
I will offer cattle and goats. (Selah)
16 Come! Listen, all you who are loyal to God.[w]
I will declare what he has done for me.
17 I cried out to him for help[x]
and praised him with my tongue.[y]
18 If I had harbored sin in my heart,[z]
the Lord would not have listened.
19 However, God heard;
he listened to my prayer.
20 God deserves praise,[aa]
for[ab] he did not reject my prayer
or abandon his love for me.[ac]
Psalm 67[ad]
For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a psalm, a song.
67 May God show us his favor[ae] and bless us.[af]
May he smile on us.[ag] (Selah)
2 Then those living on earth will know what you are like;
all nations will know how you deliver your people.[ah]
3 Let the nations thank you, O God.
Let all the nations thank you.[ai]
4 Let foreigners[aj] rejoice and celebrate.
For you execute justice among the nations,
and govern the people living on earth.[ak] (Selah)
5 Let the nations thank you, O God.
Let all the nations thank you.[al]
6 The earth yields its crops.
May God, our God, bless us.
7 May God bless us.[am]
Then all the ends of the earth will give him the honor he deserves.[an]
Psalm 19[a]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
19 The heavens declare the glory of God;[b]
the sky displays his handiwork.[c]
2 Day after day it speaks out;[d]
night after night it reveals his greatness.[e]
3 There is no actual speech or word,
nor is its[f] voice literally heard.
4 Yet its voice[g] echoes[h] throughout the earth;
its[i] words carry[j] to the distant horizon.[k]
In the sky[l] he has pitched a tent for the sun.[m]
5 Like a bridegroom it emerges[n] from its chamber;[o]
like a strong man it enjoys[p] running its course.[q]
6 It emerges from the distant horizon,[r]
and goes from one end of the sky to the other;[s]
nothing can escape[t] its heat.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect
and preserves one’s life.[u]
The rules set down by the Lord[v] are reliable[w]
and impart wisdom to the inexperienced.[x]
8 The Lord’s precepts are fair[y]
and make one joyful.[z]
The Lord’s commands[aa] are pure[ab]
and give insight for life.[ac]
9 The commands to fear the Lord are right[ad]
and endure forever.[ae]
The judgments given by the Lord are trustworthy
and absolutely just.[af]
10 They are of greater value[ag] than gold,
than even a great amount of pure gold;
they bring greater delight[ah] than honey,
than even the sweetest honey from a honeycomb.
11 Yes, your servant finds moral guidance there;[ai]
those who obey them receive a rich reward.[aj]
12 Who can know all his errors?[ak]
Please do not punish me for sins I am unaware of.[al]
13 Moreover, keep me from committing flagrant sins;[am]
do not allow such sins to control me.[an]
Then I will be blameless,
and innocent of blatant[ao] rebellion.
14 May my words and my thoughts
be acceptable in your sight,[ap]
O Lord, my sheltering rock[aq] and my redeemer.[ar]
Psalm 46[a]
For the music director, by the Korahites; according to the alamoth style;[b] a song.
46 God is our strong refuge;[c]
he is truly our helper in times of trouble.[d]
2 For this reason we do not fear[e] when the earth shakes,[f]
and the mountains tumble into the depths of the sea,[g]
3 when its waves[h] crash[i] and foam,
and the mountains shake[j] before the surging sea.[k] (Selah)
4 The river’s channels bring joy to the city of God,[l]
the special, holy dwelling place of[m] the Most High.[n]
5 God lives within it,[o] it cannot be moved.[p]
God rescues it[q] at the break of dawn.[r]
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms are overthrown.[s]
God[t] gives a shout,[u] the earth dissolves.[v]
7 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is on our side.[w]
The God of Jacob[x] is our stronghold.[y] (Selah)
8 Come, Witness the exploits[z] of the Lord,
who brings devastation to the earth.[aa]
9 He brings an end to wars throughout the earth.[ab]
He shatters[ac] the bow and breaks[ad] the spear;
he burns[ae] the shields with fire.[af]
10 He says,[ag] “Stop your striving and recognize[ah] that I am God.
I will be exalted[ai] over[aj] the nations! I will be exalted over[ak] the earth!”
11 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is on our side![al]
The God of Jacob[am] is our stronghold![an] (Selah)
Habakkuk Complains to the Lord
1 This is the oracle[a] that the prophet Habakkuk saw:
2 How long, Lord, must I cry for help?
But you do not listen!
I call out to you, “Violence!”
But you do not deliver!
3 Why do you force me to witness injustice?[b]
Why do you put up with wrongdoing?[c]
Destruction and violence confront[d] me;
conflict is present and one must endure strife.[e]
4 For this reason the law lacks power,[f]
and justice is never carried out.[g]
Indeed,[h] the wicked intimidate[i] the innocent.[j]
For this reason justice is perverted.[k]
The Lord’s Surprising Answer
5 “Look at the nations and pay attention![l]
You will be shocked and amazed![m]
For I will do something in your lifetime[n]
that you will not believe even though you are forewarned.[o]
6 Look, I am about to empower[p] the Babylonians,
that ruthless[q] and greedy[r] nation.
They sweep across the surface[s] of the earth,
seizing dwelling places that do not belong to them.
7 They are frightening and terrifying;
they decide for themselves what is right.[t]
8 Their horses are faster than leopards
and more alert[u] than wolves in the desert.[v]
Their horses[w] gallop,[x]
their horses come a great distance;
like vultures[y] they swoop down quickly to devour their prey.[z]
9 All of them intend[aa] to do violence;
every face is determined.[ab]
They take prisoners as easily as one scoops up sand.[ac]
10 They mock kings
and laugh at rulers.
They laugh at every fortified city;
they build siege ramps[ad] and capture them.
11 They sweep by like the wind and pass on.[ae]
But the one who considers himself a god will be held guilty.”[af]
Habakkuk Voices Some Concerns
12 Lord, you have been active from ancient times;[ag]
my sovereign God,[ah] you are immortal.[ai]
Lord, you have made them[aj] your instrument of judgment.[ak]
Protector,[al] you have appointed them as your instrument of punishment.[am]
13 You are too just[an] to tolerate[ao] evil;
you are unable to condone[ap] wrongdoing.
So why do you put up with such treacherous people?[aq]
Why do you say nothing when the wicked devour[ar] those more righteous than they are?[as]
14 You made people like fish in the sea,
like animals in the sea[at] that have no ruler.
15 The Babylonian tyrant[au] pulls them all up with a fishhook;
he hauls them in with his throw net.[av]
When he catches[aw] them in his dragnet,
he is very happy.[ax]
16 Because of his success[ay] he offers sacrifices to his throw net
and burns incense to his dragnet;[az]
for because of them he has plenty of food,[ba]
and more than enough to eat.[bb]
17 Will he then[bc] continue to fill and empty his throw net?[bd]
Will he always[be] destroy[bf] nations and spare none?[bg]
2 I will stand at my watch post;
13 Brothers and sisters,[a] I do not consider myself to have attained this. Instead I am single-minded:[b] Forgetting the things that are behind and reaching out for the things that are ahead, 14 with this goal in mind,[c] I strive toward the prize of the upward call of God[d] in Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore let those of us who are “perfect” embrace this point of view.[e] If you think otherwise, God will reveal to you the error of your ways.[f] 16 Nevertheless, let us live up to the standard[g] that we have already attained.[h]
17 Be imitators of me,[i] brothers and sisters,[j] and watch carefully those who are living this way, just as you have us as an example. 18 For many live, about whom I have often told you, and now, with tears, I tell you that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is the belly, they exult in their shame, and they think about earthly things.[k] 20 But our citizenship is in heaven—and we also eagerly await a savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform these humble bodies of ours[l] into the likeness of his glorious body by means of that power by which he is able to subject all things to himself.
Christian Practices
4 So then, my brothers and sisters,[m] dear friends whom I long to see, my joy and crown, stand in the Lord in this way, my dear friends!
13 “But woe to you, experts in the law[a] and you Pharisees, hypocrites![b] You keep locking people out of the kingdom of heaven![c] For you neither enter nor permit those trying to enter to go in.[d]
15 “Woe to you, experts in the law[e] and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You cross land and sea to make one convert,[f] and when you get one,[g] you make him twice as much a child of hell[h] as yourselves!
16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple is bound by nothing.[i] But whoever swears by the gold of the temple is bound by the oath.’ 17 Blind fools! Which is greater, the gold or the temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing.[j] But if anyone swears by the gift on it he is bound by the oath.’ 19 You are blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and the one who dwells in it. 22 And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and the one who sits on it.
23 “Woe to you, experts in the law[k] and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth[l] of mint, dill, and cumin,[m] yet you neglect what is more important in the law—justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You[n] should have done these things without neglecting the others. 24 Blind guides! You strain out a gnat yet swallow a camel![o]
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