Book of Common Prayer
A Davidic Psalm: As a Reminder.
The Outcast Cries Out
38 Lord! Do not rebuke me in your anger;
do not correct me in your wrath,
2 because your arrows have sunk deep into me,
and your hand has come down hard on me.
3 My body is unhealthy due to your anger,
and my bones have no rest due to my sin.
4 My iniquities loom over my head;
like a cumbersome burden, they are too heavy for me.
5 My wounds have putrefied and festered
because of my foolishness.
6 I am bent over and walk about greatly bowed down;
all day long I go around mourning.
7 My insides[a] are burning
and my body is unhealthy.
8 I am weak and utterly crushed;
I cry out in distress because of my heart’s anguish.
9 Lord, all my longings are before you,
and my groaning is not hidden from you.
10 My heart pounds,
my strength fails me,
even the gleam in my eye is gone.
11 As for my friends and my neighbors,
they stand aloof from my distress;
even my close relatives stand at a distance.
12 Those who seek my life lay snares for me;
those who seek to do me harm brag all day long about their wicked planning.
13 I am like the deaf, who cannot hear,
and like the mute, who cannot open his mouth.
14 Indeed, I have become like a man who hears nothing,
and in whose mouth there is no rebuke.
15 Because I have placed my hope in you, Lord,
you will answer, Lord, my God.
16 For I said, “Do not let them gloat over me,
as they congratulate themselves when my foot slips.”
17 Indeed, I am being set up for a fall,
and I am continuously reminded of my pain.
18 I confess my iniquity,
and my sin troubles me.
19 But my enemies are alive and well;[b]
those who hate me[c] for no reason are numerous.[d]
20 They[e] reward my good with evil,
opposing me because I seek to do good.[f]
21 Don’t forsake me, Lord.
My God, do not be so distant from me.
22 Come quickly and help me,
Lord, my deliverer.
Daleth
Strength Comes from the Word
25 My soul clings to the dust;
revive me according to your word.
26 I have talked about my ways,
and you have answered me;
Teach me your statutes.
27 Help me understand how your precepts function,[a]
and I will meditate on your wondrous acts.
28 I weep because of sorrow;
fortify me according to your word.
29 Remove false paths from me;
and graciously give me your instruction.[b]
30 I have chosen the faithful way;
I have firmly placed your ordinances before me.[c]
31 I cling to your decrees;
Lord, do not put me to shame.
32 I eagerly race along the way of your commands,
for you enable me to do so.[d]
He
Instructed by the Word
33 Teach me, Lord, about the way of your statutes,
and I will observe them without fail.[e]
34 Give me understanding
and I will observe your instruction.[f]
I will keep it with all of my heart.
35 Help me live my life by your commands,
because my joy is in them.
36 Turn my heart to your decrees
and away from unjust gain.
37 Turn my eyes away from gazing at worthless things,
and revive me by your ways.
38 Confirm your promise to your servant,
which is for those who fear you.
39 Turn away the shame that I dread,
because your ordinances are good.
40 Look, I long for your precepts;
revive me through your righteousness.
Vav
A Song of Praise
41 May your gracious love come to me, Lord,
your salvation, just as you said.
42 Then I can answer the one who insults me,
for I place my trust in your word.
43 Never take your truthful words from me,
For I wait for[g] your ordinances.
44 Then I will always keep your Law,
forever and ever,
45 I will walk in liberty,
for I seek your precepts.
46 Then I will speak of your decrees before kings
and not be ashamed.
47 I will take delight in your commands,
which I love.
48 I will lift up my hands to your commands,
which I love,
and I will meditate on your statutes.
24 “This is what the Lord says, your Redeemer
and the one who formed you in the womb:
‘I am the Lord, who has made everything,
who alone stretched out the heavens,
who spread out the earth—
Who was with me at that time?—[a]
25 who frustrates the omens of idle talkers,
and drives diviners mad,
who turns back the wise,
and makes their knowledge foolish;[b]
26 who carries out the words of his servants,
and fulfills the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem, “It will be inhabited,”
and of Judah’s cities, “They will be rebuilt,”
and of her ruins, “I’ll raise them up”;
27 who says to the watery deep, “Be dry—
I will dry up your rivers;”
28 who says about Cyrus, “He’s my shepherd,
and he’ll carry out everything that I please:
He’ll say of Jerusalem, ‘Let it be rebuilt,’
and of my[c] Temple, ‘Let its foundations be laid again.’”’”
Cyrus: God’s Deliverer
45 This is what the Lord says to his anointed, Cyrus,
whose right hand I have grasped
to subdue nations before him,
as I strip kings of their armor,[d]
to open doors[e] before him
and gates that cannot keep closed:
2 “I myself will go before you,
and he[f] will make the mountains[g] level;
I’ll shatter bronze doors
and cut through iron bars.
3 I’ll give you concealed treasures[h]
and riches hidden in secret places,
so that you’ll know that it is I, the Lord,
the God of Israel, who calls you by name.
4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,
Israel[i] my chosen,
I’ve called you,
and he has established you with a name,[j]
although you have not acknowledged me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other besides me:
and there are no gods.[k]
I’m strengthening you,
although you have not acknowledged me,
6 so that from the sun’s rising[l] to the west
people may know that there is none besides me.
“I am the Lord, and there is no other.”
God is Sovereign
7 “I form light and create darkness,
I make goodness[m] and create disaster.
I am the Lord, who does all these things.
5 So be imitators of God, as his dear children. 2 Live lovingly, just as the Messiah[a] also loved us[b] and gave himself for us as an offering and sacrifice, a fragrant aroma to God. 3 Do not let sexual sin, impurity of any kind, or greed even be mentioned among you, as is proper for saints. 4 Obscene, flippant, or vulgar talk is totally inappropriate. Instead, let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you know very well that no immoral or impure person, or anyone who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has an inheritance in the kingdom of the Messiah[c] and of God.
Living in the Light
6 Do not let anyone deceive you with meaningless words, for it is because of these things that God becomes angry with those who disobey.[d] 7 So do not be partners with them. 8 For once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light, 9 for the fruit that the light[e] produces consists of every form of goodness, righteousness, and truth. 10 Determine what pleases the Lord, 11 and have nothing to do with the unfruitful actions that darkness produces. Instead, expose them for what they are. 12 For it is shameful even to mention what is done by these disobedient people[f] in secret. 13 But everything that is exposed to the light becomes visible, 14 for the light is making everything visible. That is why it says,
The Parable about a Farmer(A)
4 Then Jesus[a] began to teach again beside the sea. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it,[b] while the entire crowd remained beside the sea on the shore. 2 He began teaching them many things in parables. While he was teaching them he said, 3 “Listen! A farmer went out to sow. 4 As he was sowing, some seeds fell along the path, and birds came and ate them up. 5 Others fell on stony ground, where they didn’t have a lot of soil. They sprouted at once, because the soil wasn’t deep. 6 But when the sun came up, they were scorched. Since they didn’t have any roots, they dried up. 7 Others fell among thorn bushes, and the thorn bushes came up and choked them out, and they didn’t produce anything. 8 But others fell on good soil and produced a crop. They grew up, increased in size, and produced 30, 60, or 100 times what was sown.”[c] 9 He added, “Let the person who has ears to hear, listen!”
The Purpose of the Parables(B)
10 When he was alone with the Twelve and those around him, they began to ask him about the parables. 11 He told them, “The secret about the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside, everything comes in parables 12 so that
‘they may see clearly but not perceive,
and they may hear clearly but not understand,
otherwise they might turn around and be forgiven.’”[d]
Jesus Explains the Parable about the Farmer(C)
13 Then he told them, “You don’t understand this parable, so how can you understand any of the parables? 14 The farmer sows the word. 15 Some people are like the seeds[e] along the path, where the word is sown. When they hear it, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 Others are like the seeds[f] sown on the stony ground. When they hear the word, at once they joyfully accept it, 17 but since they don’t have any roots, they last for only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes along because of the word, they immediately fall away. 18 Still others are like the seeds[g] sown among the thorn bushes. These are the people who hear the word, 19 but the worries of life, the deceitful pleasures of wealth, and the desires for other things come in and choke the word so that it can’t produce a crop. 20 Others are like the seeds[h] sown on good soil. They hear the word, accept it, and produce crops—30, 60, or 100 times what was sown.”[i]
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