Book of Common Prayer
BOOK ONE
(Psalms 1–41)
1 Blessed is the person who does not
follow the advice of wicked people,
take the path of sinners,
or join the company of mockers.
2 Rather, he delights in the teachings of the Lord
and reflects on his teachings day and night.
3 He is like a tree planted beside streams—
a tree that produces fruit in season
and whose leaves do not wither.
He succeeds in everything he does.[a]
4 Wicked people are not like that.
Instead, they are like husks that the wind blows away.
5 That is why wicked people will not be able to stand in the judgment
and sinners will not be able to stand where righteous people gather.
6 The Lord knows the way of righteous people,
but the way of wicked people will end.
2 Why do the nations gather together?
Why do their people devise useless plots?
2 Kings take their stands.
Rulers make plans together
against the Lord and against his Messiah [b] by saying,
3 “Let’s break apart their chains
and shake off their ropes.”
4 The one enthroned in heaven laughs.
The Lord makes fun of them.
5 Then he speaks to them in his anger.
In his burning anger he terrifies them by saying,
6 “I have installed my own king on Zion, my holy mountain.”
7 I will announce the Lord’s decree.
He said to me:
“You are my Son.
Today I have become your Father.
8 Ask me, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance
and the ends of the earth as your own possession.
9 You will break them with an iron scepter.
You will smash them to pieces like pottery.”
10 Now, you kings, act wisely.
Be warned, you rulers of the earth!
11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, or he will become angry
and you will die on your way
because his anger will burst into flames.
Blessed is everyone who takes refuge in him.
A psalm by David when he fled from his son Absalom.
3 O Lord, look how my enemies have increased!
Many are attacking me.
2 Many are saying about me,
“Even with God ⌞on his side⌟,
he won’t be victorious.” Selah
3 But you, O Lord, are a shield that surrounds me.
You are my glory.
You hold my head high.
4 I call aloud to the Lord,
and he answers me from his holy mountain. Selah
5 I lie down and sleep.
I wake up again because the Lord continues to support me.
6 I am not afraid of the tens of thousands
who have taken positions against me on all sides.
7 Arise, O Lord!
Save me, O my God!
You have slapped all my enemies in the face.
You have smashed the teeth of wicked people.
8 Victory belongs to the Lord!
May your blessing rest on your people. Selah
For the choir director; with stringed instruments; a psalm by David.
4 Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness.
You have freed me from my troubles.
Have pity on me, and hear my prayer!
2 You important people,
how long are you going to insult my honor?
How long are you going to love what is empty
and seek what is a lie? Selah
3 Know that the Lord singles out godly people for himself.
The Lord hears me when I call to him.
4 Tremble and do not sin.
Think about this on your bed and remain quiet. Selah
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness
by trusting the Lord.
6 Many are saying, “Who can show us anything good?”
Let the light of your presence shine on us, O Lord.
7 You put more joy in my heart
than when their grain and new wine increase.
8 I fall asleep in peace the moment I lie down
because you alone, O Lord, enable me to live securely.
A shiggaion [a] by David; he sang it to the Lord about the ⌞slanderous⌟ words of Cush, a descendant of Benjamin.
7 O Lord my God, I have taken refuge in you.
Save me, and rescue me from all who are pursuing me.
2 Like a lion they will tear me to pieces
and drag me off with no one to rescue me.
3 O Lord my God,
if I have done this—
if my hands are stained with injustice,
4 if I have paid back my friend with evil
or rescued someone who has no reason to attack me—
5 then let the enemy chase me and catch me.
Let him trample my life into the ground.
Let him lay my honor in the dust. Selah
6 Arise in anger, O Lord.
Stand up against the fury of my attackers.
Wake up, my God.[b]
You have already pronounced judgment.
7 Let an assembly of people gather around you.
Take your seat high above them.
8 The Lord judges the people of the world.
Judge me, O Lord,
according to my righteousness,
according to my integrity.
9 Let the evil within wicked people come to an end,
but make the righteous person secure,
O righteous God who examines thoughts and emotions.
10 My shield is God above,
who saves those whose motives are decent.
11 God is a fair judge,
a God who is angered by injustice every day.
12 If a person does not change, God sharpens his sword.
By bending his bow, he makes it ready ⌞to shoot⌟.
13 He prepares his deadly weapons
and turns them into flaming arrows.
14 See how that person conceives evil,
is pregnant with harm,
and gives birth to lies.
15 He digs a pit and shovels it out.
Then he falls into the hole that he made ⌞for others⌟.
16 His mischief lands back on his own head.
His violence comes down on top of him.
17 I will give thanks to the Lord for his righteousness.
I will make music to praise the name of the Lord Most High.
God Gives Strength to Those Who Depend on Him
12 Who has measured the water of the sea [a] with the palm of his hand
or measured the sky with the length of his hand?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a bushel basket
or weighed the mountains on a scale and the hills on a balance?
13 Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord
or instructed him as his adviser?
14 Whom did he consult?
Who gave him understanding?
Who taught him the right way?
Who taught him knowledge?
Who informed him about the way to understanding?
15 The nations are like a drop in a bucket
and are considered to be like dust on a scale.
The weight of the islands is like fine dust.
16 All the trees in Lebanon are not enough to burn an offering.
Its wild animals are not enough for a single burnt offering.
17 All the nations amount to nothing in his presence.
He considers them less than nothing and worthless.
18 To whom, then, can you compare God?
To what statue can you compare him?
19 Craftsmen make idols.
Goldsmiths cover them with gold.
Silversmiths make silver chains for them.
20 The poorest people choose wood that will not rot
and search out skillful craftsmen
to set up idols that will not fall over.
21 Don’t you know?
Haven’t you heard?
Haven’t you been told from the beginning?
Don’t you understand the foundations of the earth?
22 God is enthroned above the earth,
and those who live on it are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the sky like a canopy
and spreads it out like a tent to live in.
23 He makes rulers unimportant
and makes earthly judges worth nothing.
Greeting
1 From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will.
To God’s holy and faithful people who are united with Christ in the city of Ephesus.[a]
2 Good will [b] and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are yours!
God Chose Us Through Christ
3 Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Through Christ, God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing that heaven has to offer. 4 Before the creation of the world, he chose us through Christ to be holy and perfect in his presence. 5 Because of his love he had already decided to adopt us through Jesus Christ. He freely chose to do this 6 so that the kindness [c] he had given us in his dear Son would be praised and given glory.
7 Through the blood of his Son, we are set free from our sins. God forgives our failures because of his overflowing kindness. 8 He poured out his kindness by giving us every kind of wisdom and insight 9 when he revealed the mystery of his plan to us. He had decided to do this through Christ. 10 He planned to bring all of history to its goal in Christ. Then Christ would be the head of everything in heaven and on earth. 11 God also decided ahead of time to choose us through Christ according to his plan, which makes everything work the way he intends. 12 He planned all of this so that we who had already focused our hope on Christ would praise him and give him glory.
13 You heard and believed the message of truth, the Good News that he has saved you. In him you were sealed with the Holy Spirit whom he promised. 14 This Holy Spirit is the guarantee that we will receive our inheritance. We have this guarantee until we are set free to belong to him. God receives praise and glory for this.
John Prepares the Way(A)
1 This is the beginning of the Good News about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2 The prophet Isaiah wrote,
“I am sending my messenger ahead of you
to prepare the way for you.”
3 “A voice cries out in the desert:
‘Prepare the way for the Lord!
Make his paths straight!’ ”
4 John the Baptizer was in the desert telling people about a baptism of repentance [a] for the forgiveness of sins. 5 All Judea and all the people of Jerusalem went to him. As they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River.
6 John was dressed in clothes made from camel’s hair. He wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey.
7 He announced, “The one who comes after me is more powerful than I. I am not worthy to bend down and untie his sandal straps. 8 I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
John Baptizes Jesus(B)
9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan River. 10 As Jesus came out of the water, he saw heaven split open and the Spirit coming down to him as a dove. 11 A voice from heaven said, “You are my Son, whom I love. I am pleased with you.”
Satan Tempts Jesus(C)
12 At once the Spirit brought him into the desert, 13 where he was tempted by Satan for 40 days. He was there with the wild animals, and the angels took care of him.
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