Book of Common Prayer
A Hymn About God’s Power
97 The Lord is king. Let the earth rejoice.
Faraway lands should be glad.
2 Thick, dark clouds surround him.
His kingdom is built on what is right and fair.
3 A fire goes before him
and burns up his enemies all around.
4 His lightning flashes in the sky.
When the people see it, they tremble.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord.
He is Lord of all the earth.
6 The skies tell about his goodness.
And all the people see his glory.
7 Those who worship idols should be ashamed.
They brag about their false gods.
All the gods should worship the Lord.
8 When Jerusalem hears this, she is glad.
The towns of Judah rejoice.
They are happy because of your judgments, Lord.
9 You are the Lord Most High over all the earth.
You are supreme over all gods.
10 People who love the Lord should hate evil.
The Lord watches over those who follow him.
He frees them from the power of the wicked.
11 Light shines on those who do right.
Joy belongs to those who are honest.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, you who do right.
Praise his holy name.
God the Fair and Holy King
99 The Lord is king.
Let the nations shake with fear.
He sits between the gold creatures with wings.
Let the earth shake.
2 The Lord in Jerusalem is great.
He is supreme over all the nations.
3 Let them praise your name.
It is great, holy and to be feared.
4 The King is powerful and loves justice.
Lord, you made things fair.
You have done what is fair and right
for the people of Jacob.
5 Praise the Lord our God.
Worship at the Temple, his footstool.
He is holy.
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests.
And Samuel was among his worshipers.
They called to the Lord,
and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud.
They kept the rules and laws he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered them.
You showed them that you are a forgiving God.
But you punished them for their wrongs.
9 Praise the Lord our God.
Worship at his holy mountain.
The Lord our God is holy.
A Call to Praise God
A song of thanks.
100 Shout to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Serve the Lord with joy.
Come before him with singing.
3 Know that the Lord is God.
He made us, and we belong to him.
We are his people, the sheep he tends.
4 Come into his city with songs of thanksgiving.
Come into his courtyards with songs of praise.
Thank him, and praise his name.
5 The Lord is good. His love continues forever.
His loyalty continues from now on.
God Will Pay Back His Enemies
94 The Lord is a God who gives people what they should get.
God, show your greatness and punish!
2 Rise up, Judge of the earth.
Give the proud what they should get.
3 How long will the wicked be happy?
How long, Lord?
4 They are full of proud words.
Those who do evil brag about what they have done.
5 Lord, they crush your people.
They make your children suffer.
6 They kill widows and foreigners.
They murder orphans.
7 They say, “The Lord doesn’t see.
The God of Jacob doesn’t notice.”
8 You stupid ones among the people, pay attention.
You fools, when will you understand?
9 Can’t the creator of ears hear?
Can’t the maker of eyes see?
10 Won’t the one who corrects nations punish you?
Doesn’t the teacher of men know everything?
11 The Lord knows what people think.
He knows they are just a puff of wind.
12 Lord, those you correct are happy.
You give them your teachings.
13 You give them rest from times of trouble
until a grave is dug for the wicked.
14 The Lord won’t leave his people.
He will not give up his children.
15 Judgment will again be fair.
And all who are honest will follow it.
16 Who will help me fight against the wicked?
Who will stand with me against those who do evil?
17 If the Lord had not helped me,
I would have died soon.
18 I said, “I am about to be overwhelmed.”
But, Lord, your love kept me safe.
19 I was very worried.
But you comforted me and made me happy.
20 Crooked leaders cannot be your friends.
They use the law to cause suffering.
21 They join forces against people who do right.
They sentence to death the innocent.
22 But the Lord protects me like a strong, walled city.
My God is the rock of my protection.
23 God will pay them back for their sins.
He will destroy them for their evil.
The Lord our God will destroy them.
A Call to Praise and Obedience
95 Come, let’s sing for joy to the Lord.
Let’s shout praises to the Rock who saves us.
2 Let’s come to him with thanksgiving.
Let’s sing songs to him.
3 The Lord is the great God.
He is the great King over all gods.
4 The deepest places on earth are his.
And the highest mountains belong to him.
5 The sea is his because he made it.
He created the land with his own hands.
6 Come, let’s bow down and worship him.
Let’s kneel before the Lord who made us.
7 He is our God.
And we are the people he takes care of
and the sheep that he tends.
Today listen to what he says:
8 “Do not be stubborn, as your ancestors were at Meribah,
as they were that day at Massah in the desert.
9 There your ancestors tested me.
They put me to the test even though they saw what I did.
10 I was angry with those people for 40 years.
I said, ‘They are not loyal to me.
They have not understood my ways.’
11 I was angry and made a promise,
‘They will never enter my land of rest.’”
Habakkuk’s Prayer
3 This is the prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, on shigionoth.
2 Lord, I have heard the news about you.
Lord, I am amazed at the powerful things you have done.
Do great things once again in our time.
Make those things happen again in our own days.
Even when you are angry,
remember to be gentle with us.
3 God is coming from Teman in the south.
The Holy One comes from Mount Paran.[a] Selah
The Lord’s greatness covers the heavens.
His praise fills the earth.
4 He is like a bright light.
Rays of light shine from his hand.
And there he hides his power.
5 Sickness goes before him,
and fever follows behind him.
6 The Lord stands and shakes the earth.
He looks, and the nations shake with fear.
The mountains, which stood for ages, break into pieces.
The old hills fall down.
God has always done this.
7 I saw that the tents of Cushan were in trouble.
The tents of Midian trembled.
8 Lord, were you angry at the rivers?
Were you angry at the streams?
Were you angry with the sea
when you rode your horses and chariots to victory?[b]
9 You uncovered your bow.
You commanded many arrows to be brought to you. Selah
You split the earth with rivers.
10 The mountains saw you and shook with fear.
The rushing water flowed by.
The sea made a loud noise,
and its waves rose high.
11 The sun and moon stood still in the sky.
They stopped when they saw the flash of your flying arrows.
They stopped when they saw the gleam of your shining spear.
12 In anger you marched on the earth.
In anger you punished the nations.
13 You came to save your people.
You came to save your chosen one.
You crushed the leader of the wicked ones.
You took everything away from them. Selah
14 With the enemy’s own spear you stabbed the leader of his army.
His soldiers rushed out like a storm to scatter us.
They were happy as if
they were robbing the poor people in secret.
15 But you marched through the sea with your horses,
stirring the great waters.
16 I hear these things, and my body trembles.
My lips tremble when I hear the sound.
My bones feel weak.
My legs shake.
But I will wait patiently for the day of disaster.
That day is coming to the people who attack us.
17 Fig trees may not grow figs.
There may be no grapes on the vines.
There may be no olives growing on the trees.
There may be no food growing in the fields.
There may be no sheep in the pens.
There may be no cattle in the barns.
18 But I will still be glad in the Lord.
I will rejoice in God my Savior.
Controlling the Things We Say
3 My brothers, not many of you should become teachers. You know that we who teach will be judged more strictly than others. 2 We all make many mistakes. If there were a person who never said anything wrong, he would be perfect. He would be able to control his whole body, too. 3 We put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us. We can control their whole bodies. 4 It is the same with ships. A ship is very big, and it is pushed by strong winds. But a very small rudder controls that big ship. The man who controls the rudder decides where the ship will go. The ship goes where the man wants. 5 It is the same with the tongue. It is a small part of the body, but it brags about doing great things.
A big forest fire can be started with only a little flame. 6 And the tongue is like a fire. It is a whole world of evil among the parts of our bodies. The tongue spreads its evil through the whole body. It starts a fire that influences all of life. The tongue gets this fire from hell. 7 People can tame every kind of wild animal, bird, reptile, and fish, and they have tamed them. 8 But no one can tame the tongue. It is wild and evil. It is full of poison that can kill. 9 We use our tongues to praise our Lord and Father, but then we curse people. And God made them like himself. 10 Praises and curses come from the same mouth! My brothers, this should not happen. 11 Do good and bad water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers, can a fig tree make olives? Can a grapevine make figs? No! And a well full of salty water cannot give good water.
Sin and Forgiveness
17 Jesus said to his followers, “Things will surely happen that cause people to sin. But how terrible for the one who causes them to happen. 2 It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large stone around his neck than to cause one of these weak people to sin. 3 So be careful!
“If your brother sins, tell him he is wrong. But if he is sorry and stops sinning, forgive him. 4 If your brother sins against you seven times in one day, but he says that he is sorry each time, then forgive him.”
How Big Is Your Faith?
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Give us more faith!”
6 The Lord said, “If your faith is as big as a mustard seed,[a] then you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Dig yourself up and plant yourself in the sea!’ And the tree will obey you.
Be Good Servants
7 “Suppose one of you has a servant who has been plowing the ground or caring for the sheep. When the servant comes in from working in the field, would you say, ‘Come in and sit down to eat’? 8 No, you would say to your servant, ‘Prepare something for me to eat. Then get yourself ready and serve me. When I finish eating and drinking, then you can eat and drink.’ 9 The servant does not get any special thanks for doing what his master told him to do. 10 It is the same with you. When you do everything you are told to do, you should say, ‘We don’t deserve any special thanks. We have only done the work we should do.’”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.