Book of Common Prayer
Meditations on the Excellencies of the Word of God
א ALEPH
119 Blessed are the [a]undefiled in the way,
(A)Who walk in the law of the Lord!
2 Blessed are those who keep His testimonies,
Who seek Him with the (B)whole heart!
3 (C)They also do no iniquity;
They walk in His ways.
4 You have commanded us
To keep Your precepts diligently.
5 Oh, that my ways were directed
To keep Your statutes!
6 (D)Then I would not be ashamed,
When I look into all Your commandments.
7 I will praise You with uprightness of heart,
When I learn Your righteous judgments.
8 I will keep Your statutes;
Oh, do not forsake me utterly!
ב BETH
9 How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.
10 With my whole heart I have (E)sought You;
Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!
11 (F)Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
12 Blessed are You, O Lord!
Teach me Your statutes.
13 With my lips I have (G)declared
All the judgments of Your mouth.
14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
15 I will meditate on Your precepts,
And [b]contemplate Your ways.
16 I will (H)delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.
ג GIMEL
17 (I)Deal bountifully with Your servant,
That I may live and keep Your word.
18 Open my eyes, that I may see
Wondrous things from Your law.
19 (J)I am a stranger in the earth;
Do not hide Your commandments from me.
20 (K)My soul [c]breaks with longing
For Your judgments at all times.
21 You rebuke the proud—the cursed,
Who stray from Your commandments.
22 (L)Remove from me reproach and contempt,
For I have kept Your testimonies.
23 Princes also sit and speak against me,
But Your servant meditates on Your statutes.
24 Your testimonies also are my delight
And my counselors.
Man’s Treachery and God’s Constancy
To the Chief Musician. (A)On [a]an eight-stringed harp. A Psalm of David.
12 Help,[b] Lord, for the godly man (B)ceases!
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 (C)They speak idly everyone with his neighbor;
With flattering lips and [c]a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord [d]cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaks [e]proud things,
4 Who have said,
“With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own;
Who is lord over us?”
5 “For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord;
“I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.”
6 The words of the Lord are (D)pure words,
Like silver tried in a furnace of earth,
Purified seven times.
7 You shall keep them, O Lord,
You shall preserve them from this generation forever.
8 The wicked prowl on every side,
When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.
Trust in the Salvation of the Lord
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
13 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
(E)How long will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
(F)Enlighten my eyes,
(G)Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
4 Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”;
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
5 But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.
Folly of the Godless, and God’s Final Triumph(H)
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
14 The (I)fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt,
They have done abominable works,
There is none who does good.
2 (J)The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.
3 (K)They have all turned aside,
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good,
No, not one.
17 Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, 18 (A)that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 19 Then the secret was revealed to Daniel (B)in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven.
20 Daniel answered and said:
(C)“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
(D)For wisdom and might are His.
21 And He changes (E)the times and the seasons;
(F)He removes kings and raises up kings;
(G)He gives wisdom to the wise
And knowledge to those who have understanding.
22 (H)He reveals deep and secret things;
(I)He knows what is in the darkness,
And (J)light dwells with Him.
23 “I thank You and praise You,
O God of my fathers;
You have given me wisdom and might,
And have now made known to me what we (K)asked of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s [a]demand.”
Daniel Explains the Dream
24 Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; take me before the king, and I will tell the king the interpretation.”
25 Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king, and said thus to him, “I have found a man of the [b]captives of Judah, who will make known to the king the interpretation.”
26 The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen, and its interpretation?”
27 Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, “The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. 28 (L)But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar (M)what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these: 29 As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; (N)and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be. 30 (O)But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, (P)and that you may [c]know the thoughts of your heart.
Their Spiritual State
12 I write to you, little children,
Because (A)your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.
13 I write to you, fathers,
Because you have known Him who is (B)from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
Because you have overcome the wicked one.
I write to you, little children,
Because you have (C)known the Father.
14 I have written to you, fathers,
Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men,
Because (D)you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,
And you have overcome the wicked one.
Do Not Love the World
15 (E)Do not love the world or the things in the world. (F)If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, (G)the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And (H)the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
Jesus Prays for All Believers
20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who [a]will believe in Me through their word; 21 (A)that they all may be one, as (B)You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the (C)glory which You gave Me I have given them, (D)that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; (E)that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.
24 (F)“Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; (G)for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father! (H)The world has not known You, but (I)I have known You; and (J)these have known that You sent Me. 26 (K)And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love (L)with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.