Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer for the King[a]
72 Teach the king to judge with your righteousness, O God;
share with him your own justice,
2 so that he will rule over your people with justice
and govern the oppressed with righteousness.
3 May the land enjoy prosperity;
may it experience righteousness.
4 May the king judge the poor fairly;
may he help the needy
and defeat their oppressors.
5 May your people worship you as long as the sun shines,
as long as the moon gives light, for ages to come.
6 May the king be like rain on the fields,
like showers falling on the land.
7 May righteousness flourish in his lifetime,
and may prosperity last as long as the moon gives light.
8 (A)His kingdom will reach from sea to sea,
from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
9 The peoples of the desert will bow down before him;
his enemies will throw themselves to the ground.
10 The kings of Spain and of the islands will offer him gifts;
the kings of Sheba and Seba[b] will bring him offerings.
11 All kings will bow down before him;
all nations will serve him.
12 He rescues the poor who call to him,
and those who are needy and neglected.
13 He has pity on the weak and poor;
he saves the lives of those in need.
14 He rescues them from oppression and violence;
their lives are precious to him.
15 Long live the king!
May he be given gold from Sheba;[c]
may prayers be said for him at all times;
may God's blessings be on him always!
16 May there be plenty of grain in the land;
may the hills be covered with crops,
as fruitful as those of Lebanon.
May the cities be filled with people,
like fields full of grass.
17 May the king's name never be forgotten;
may his fame last as long as the sun.
May all nations ask God to bless them
as he has blessed the king.[d]
18 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel!
He alone does these wonderful things.
19 Praise his glorious name forever!
May his glory fill the whole world.
Amen! Amen!
20 This is the end of the prayers of David son of Jesse.
The Justice of the Law of the Lord
73 You created me, and you keep me safe;
give me understanding, so that I may learn your laws.
74 Those who honor you will be glad when they see me,
because I trust in your promise.
75 I know that your judgments are righteous, Lord,
and that you punished me because you are faithful.
76 Let your constant love comfort me,
as you have promised me, your servant.
77 Have mercy on me, and I will live
because I take pleasure in your law.
78 May the proud be ashamed for falsely accusing me;
as for me, I will meditate on your instructions.
79 May those who honor you come to me—
all those who know your commands.
80 May I perfectly obey your commandments
and be spared the shame of defeat.
A Prayer for Deliverance
81 I am worn out, Lord, waiting for you to save me;
I place my trust in your word.
82 My eyes are tired from watching for what you promised,
while I ask, “When will you help me?”
83 I am as useless as a discarded wineskin;
yet I have not forgotten your commands.
84 How much longer must I wait?
When will you punish those who persecute me?
85 The proud, who do not obey your law,
have dug pits to trap me.
86 Your commandments are all trustworthy;
people persecute me with lies—help me!
87 They have almost succeeded in killing me,
but I have not neglected your commands.
88 Because of your constant love be good to me,
so that I may obey your laws.
Faith in the Law of the Lord
89 Your word, O Lord, will last forever;
it is eternal in heaven.
90 Your faithfulness endures through all the ages;
you have set the earth in place, and it remains.
91 All things remain to this day because of your command,
because they are all your servants.
92 If your law had not been the source of my joy,
I would have died from my sufferings.
93 I will never neglect your instructions,
because by them you have kept me alive.
94 I am yours—save me!
I have tried to obey your commands.
95 The wicked are waiting to kill me,
but I will meditate on your laws.
96 I have learned that everything has limits;
but your commandment is perfect.
The Lord's Love for Israel
54 (A)Jerusalem, you have been like a childless woman,
but now you can sing and shout for joy.
Now you will have more children
than a woman whose husband never left her.
2 Make the tent you live in larger;
lengthen its ropes and strengthen the pegs!
3 You will extend your boundaries on all sides;
your people will get back the land
that the other nations now occupy.
Cities now deserted will be filled with people.
4 Do not be afraid—you will not be disgraced again;
you will not be humiliated.
You will forget your unfaithfulness as a young wife,
and your desperate loneliness as a widow.
5 Your Creator will be like a husband to you—
the Lord Almighty is his name.
The holy God of Israel will save you—
he is the ruler of all the world.
6 Israel, you are like a young wife,
deserted by her husband and deeply distressed.
But the Lord calls you back to him and says:
7 “For one brief moment I left you;
with deep love I will take you back.
8 I turned away angry for only a moment,
but I will show you my love forever.”
So says the Lord who saves you.
9 (B)“In the time of Noah I promised
never again to flood the earth.
Now I promise not to be angry with you again;
I will not reprimand or punish you.
10 (C)The mountains and hills may crumble,
but my love for you will never end;
I will keep forever my promise of peace.”
So says the Lord who loves you.
The Future Jerusalem
11 (D)The Lord says,
“O Jerusalem, you suffering, helpless city,
with no one to comfort you,
I will rebuild your foundations with precious stones.
12 I will build your towers with rubies,
your gates with stones that glow like fire,
and the wall around you with jewels.
13 (E)“I myself will teach your people
and give them prosperity and peace.
14 Justice and right will make you strong.
You will be safe from oppression and terror.
15 Whoever attacks you,
does it without my consent;
whoever fights against you will fall.
16 “I create the blacksmith,
who builds a fire and forges weapons.
I also create the soldier,
who uses the weapons to kill.
17 But no weapon will be able to hurt you;
you will have an answer for all who accuse you.
I will defend my servants
and give them victory.”
The Lord has spoken.
The Example of Hagar and Sarah
21 Let me ask those of you who want to be subject to the Law: do you not hear what the Law says? 22 (A)It says that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman, the other by a free woman. 23 His son by the slave woman was born in the usual way, but his son by the free woman was born as a result of God's promise. 24 These things can be understood as a figure: the two women represent two covenants. The one whose children are born in slavery is Hagar, and she represents the covenant made at Mount Sinai. 25 Hagar, who stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia, is[a] a figure of the present city of Jerusalem, in slavery with all its people. 26 (B)But the heavenly Jerusalem is free, and she is our mother. 27 (C)For the scripture says,
“Be happy, you childless woman!
Shout and cry with joy, you who never felt the pains of childbirth!
For the woman who was deserted will have more children
than the woman whose husband never left her.”
28 Now, you, my friends, are God's children as a result of his promise, just as Isaac was. 29 (D)At that time the son who was born in the usual way persecuted the one who was born because of God's Spirit; and it is the same now. 30 (E)But what does the scripture say? It says, “Send the slave woman and her son away; for the son of the slave woman will not have a part of the father's property along with the son of the free woman.” 31 So then, my friends, we are not the children of a slave woman but of a free woman.
The Pharisees Ask for a Miracle(A)
11 (B)Some Pharisees came to Jesus and started to argue with him. They wanted to trap him, so they asked him to perform a miracle to show that God approved of him. 12 (C)But Jesus gave a deep groan and said, “Why do the people of this day ask for a miracle? No, I tell you! No such proof will be given to these people!”
13 He left them, got back into the boat, and started across to the other side of the lake.
The Yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod(D)
14 The disciples had forgotten to bring enough bread and had only one loaf with them in the boat. 15 (E)“Take care,” Jesus warned them, “and be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.”
16 They started discussing among themselves: “He says this because we don't have any bread.”
17 Jesus knew what they were saying, so he asked them, “Why are you discussing about not having any bread? Don't you know or understand yet? Are your minds so dull? 18 (F)You have eyes—can't you see? You have ears—can't you hear? Don't you remember 19 when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand people? How many baskets full of leftover pieces did you take up?”
“Twelve,” they answered.
20 “And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand people,” asked Jesus, “how many baskets full of leftover pieces did you take up?”
“Seven,” they answered.
21 “And you still don't understand?” he asked them.
Jesus Heals a Blind Man at Bethsaida
22 They came to Bethsaida, where some people brought a blind man to Jesus and begged him to touch him. 23 Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. After spitting on the man's eyes, Jesus placed his hands on him and asked him, “Can you see anything?”
24 The man looked up and said, “Yes, I can see people, but they look like trees walking around.”
25 Jesus again placed his hands on the man's eyes. This time the man looked intently, his eyesight returned, and he saw everything clearly. 26 Jesus then sent him home with the order, “Don't go back into the village.”
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.