Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 118[a]
Hymn of Thanksgiving
I
1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,(A)
his mercy endures forever.
2 Let Israel say:
his mercy endures forever.
3 Let the house of Aaron say,
his mercy endures forever.
4 Let those who fear the Lord say,(B)
his mercy endures forever.
II
5 In danger I called on the Lord;
the Lord answered me and set me free.
6 The Lord is with me; I am not afraid;
what can mortals do against me?(C)
7 The Lord is with me as my helper;
I shall look in triumph on my foes.
8 Better to take refuge in the Lord(D)
than to put one’s trust in mortals.
9 Better to take refuge in the Lord
than to put one’s trust in princes.
III
10 All the nations surrounded me;
in the Lord’s name I cut them off.
11 They surrounded me on every side;
in the Lord’s name I cut them off.
12 They surrounded me like bees;(E)
they burned up like fire among thorns;
in the Lord’s name I cut them off.
13 I was hard pressed and falling,
but the Lord came to my help.(F)
14 The Lord, my strength and might,
has become my savior.(G)
IV
15 The joyful shout of deliverance
is heard in the tents of the righteous:
“The Lord’s right hand works valiantly;
16 the Lord’s right hand is raised;
the Lord’s right hand works valiantly.”
17 I shall not die but live
and declare the deeds of the Lord.
18 The Lord chastised me harshly,
but did not hand me over to death.
V
19 Open the gates of righteousness;
I will enter and thank the Lord.(H)
20 This is the Lord’s own gate,
through it the righteous enter.
21 I thank you for you answered me;
you have been my savior.
22 [b]The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.(I)
23 By the Lord has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
24 This is the day the Lord has made;
let us rejoice in it and be glad.
25 Lord, grant salvation![c]
Lord, grant good fortune!
VI
26 Blessed is he
who comes in the name of the Lord.(J)
We bless you from the house of the Lord.
27 The Lord is God and has enlightened us.
Join in procession with leafy branches
up to the horns of the altar.
VII
28 You are my God, I give you thanks;
my God, I offer you praise.
29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
his mercy endures forever.
Psalm 145[a]
The Greatness and Goodness of God
1 Praise. Of David.
I will extol you, my God and king;
I will bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you;
I will praise your name forever and ever.(A)
3 Great is the Lord and worthy of much praise,(B)
whose grandeur is beyond understanding.
4 One generation praises your deeds to the next
and proclaims your mighty works.(C)
5 They speak of the splendor of your majestic glory,
tell of your wonderful deeds.(D)
6 They speak of the power of your awesome acts
and recount your great deeds.(E)
7 They celebrate your abounding goodness
and joyfully sing of your justice.
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.(F)
9 The Lord is good to all,
compassionate toward all your works.(G)
10 All your works give you thanks, Lord
and your faithful bless you.(H)
11 They speak of the glory of your reign
and tell of your mighty works,
12 Making known to the sons of men your mighty acts,
the majestic glory of your rule.
13 Your reign is a reign for all ages,
your dominion for all generations.(I)
The Lord is trustworthy in all his words,
and loving in all his works.
14 The Lord supports all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.(J)
15 The eyes of all look hopefully to you;
you give them their food in due season.(K)
16 You open wide your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is just in all his ways,
merciful in all his works.(L)
18 The Lord is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.(M)
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.(N)
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he destroys.(O)
21 My mouth will speak the praises of the Lord;
all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.
The King’s Entry into Jerusalem[a]
9 Exult greatly, O daughter Zion!
Shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem!
Behold: your king[b] is coming to you,
a just savior is he,
Humble, and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.(A)
10 He shall banish the chariot from Ephraim,(B)
and the horse from Jerusalem;
The warrior’s bow will be banished,
and he will proclaim peace to the nations.(C)
His dominion will be from sea to sea,
and from the River[c] to the ends of the earth.(D)
Restoration of the People
11 As for you, by the blood of your covenant,[d](E)
I have freed your prisoners from a waterless pit.
12 Return to a fortress,[e]
O prisoners of hope;
This very day, I announce
I am restoring double to you.
13 For I have bent Judah as my bow,
I have set Ephraim as its arrow;
I will arouse your sons, O Zion,
against your sons, O Yavan,[f]
and I will use you as a warrior’s sword.
14 The Lord will appear over them,
God’s arrow will shoot forth as lightning;
The Lord God will sound the ram’s horn,
and come in a storm from the south.(F)
15 The Lord of hosts will protect them;
they will devour and conquer with sling stones,
they will drink and become heated as with wine;
they will be full like bowls—like the corners of the altar.(G)
16 And the Lord their God will save them:
the people, like a flock on that day;(H)
For like gemstones of a crown[g]
they will shine on the land.
13 Now who is going to harm you if you are enthusiastic for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer because of righteousness, blessed are you. Do not be afraid or terrified with fear of them, 15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope,(A) 16 but do it with gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who defame your good conduct in Christ may themselves be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that be the will of God, than for doing evil.
18 For Christ also suffered[a] for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the spirit.(B) 19 In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison,[b] 20 who had once been disobedient while God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few persons, eight in all, were saved through water.(C) 21 This prefigured baptism, which saves you now. It is not a removal of dirt from the body but an appeal to God[c] for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,(D) 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.(E)
Chapter 21
The Entry into Jerusalem.[a] 1 (A)When they drew near Jerusalem and came to Bethphage[b] on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find an ass tethered, and a colt with her.[c] Untie them and bring them here to me. 3 And if anyone should say anything to you, reply, ‘The master has need of them.’ Then he will send them at once.” 4 [d]This happened so that what had been spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled:
5 (B)“Say to daughter Zion,
‘Behold, your king comes to you,
meek and riding on an ass,
and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had ordered them. 7 [e]They brought the ass and the colt and laid their cloaks over them, and he sat upon them. 8 [f](C)The very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and strewed them on the road. 9 (D)The crowds preceding him and those following kept crying out and saying:
“Hosanna[g] to the Son of David;
blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord;
hosanna in the highest.”
10 And when he entered Jerusalem the whole city was shaken[h] and asked, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds replied, “This is Jesus the prophet,[i] from Nazareth in Galilee.”
The Cleansing of the Temple.[j] 12 (E)Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all those engaged in selling and buying there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.[k](F) 13 (G)And he said to them, “It is written:
‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’[l]
but you are making it a den of thieves.”
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.