Book of Common Prayer
Protestation of Integrity and Prayer for Protection.
A Psalm of David.
26 [a](A)Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have (B)walked in my integrity,
And I have (C)trusted in the Lord [b](D)without wavering.
2 (E)Examine me, O Lord, and try me;
(F)Test my [c]mind and my heart.
3 For Your (G)lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And I have (H)walked in Your [d]truth.
4 I do not (I)sit with [e]deceitful men,
Nor will I go with [f](J)pretenders.
5 I (K)hate the assembly of evildoers,
And I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I shall (L)wash my hands in innocence,
And I will go about (M)Your altar, O Lord,
7 That I may proclaim with the voice of (N)thanksgiving
And declare all Your [g]wonders.
8 O Lord, I (O)love the habitation of Your house
And the place [h]where Your (P)glory dwells.
9 (Q)Do not [i]take my soul away along with sinners,
Nor my life with (R)men of bloodshed,
10 In whose hands is a (S)wicked scheme,
And whose right hand is full of (T)bribes.
11 But as for me, I shall (U)walk in my integrity;
(V)Redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12 (W)My foot stands on a (X)level place;
In the (Y)congregations I shall bless the Lord.
A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer.
A Psalm of David.
28 To You, O Lord, I call;
My (A)rock, do not be deaf to me,
For if You (B)are silent to me,
I will become like those who (C)go down to the pit.
2 Hear the (D)voice of my supplications when I cry to You for help,
When I (E)lift up my hands (F)toward [a]Your holy (G)sanctuary.
3 (H)Do not drag me away with the wicked
And with those who work iniquity,
Who (I)speak peace with their neighbors,
While evil is in their hearts.
4 Requite them (J)according to their work and according to the evil of their practices;
Requite them according to the deeds of their hands;
Repay them their [b]recompense.
5 Because they (K)do not regard the works of the Lord
Nor the deeds of His hands,
He will tear them down and not build them up.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
Because He (L)has heard the voice of my supplication.
7 The Lord is my (M)strength and my (N)shield;
My heart (O)trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore (P)my heart exults,
And with (Q)my song I shall thank Him.
8 The Lord is [c]their (R)strength,
And He is a [d](S)saving defense to His anointed.
9 (T)Save Your people and bless (U)Your inheritance;
Be their (V)shepherd also, and (W)carry them forever.
Wickedness of Men and Lovingkindness of God.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord.
36 Transgression speaks to the ungodly within [a]his heart;
There is (A)no fear of God before his eyes.
2 For [b]it (B)flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
3 The (C)words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has (D)ceased to [c]be wise and to do good.
4 He (E)plans wickedness upon his bed;
He sets himself on a (F)path that is not good;
He (G)does not despise evil.
5 Your (H)lovingkindness, O Lord, [d]extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
6 Your (I)righteousness is like the [e]mountains of God;
Your (J)judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, You (K)preserve man and beast.
7 How (L)precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men (M)take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
8 They (N)drink their fill of the [f]abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the (O)river of Your delights.
9 For with You is the (P)fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.
The Vanity of Life.
For the choir director, for [a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (A)guard my ways
That I (B)may not sin with my tongue;
I will guard (C)my mouth as with a muzzle
While the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was (D)mute [b]and silent,
I [c]refrained even from good,
And my [d]sorrow grew worse.
3 My (E)heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Lord, make me to know (F)my end
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how (G)transient I am.
5 “Behold, You have made (H)my days as handbreadths,
And my (I)lifetime as nothing in Your sight;
Surely every man [e]at his best is [f]a mere (J)breath. [g]Selah.
6 “Surely every man (K)walks about as [h]a phantom;
Surely they make an (L)uproar for nothing;
He (M)amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.
7 “And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My (N)hope is in You.
8 “(O)Deliver me from all my transgressions;
Make me not the (P)reproach of the foolish.
9 “I have become (Q)mute, I do not open my mouth,
Because it is (R)You who have done it.
10 “(S)Remove Your plague from me;
Because of (T)the opposition of Your hand I am [i]perishing.
11 “With (U)reproofs You chasten a man for iniquity;
You (V)consume as a moth what is precious to him;
Surely (W)every man is a mere breath. Selah.
The Vision Fulfilled
28 “All this (A)happened to Nebuchadnezzar the king. 29 (B)Twelve months later he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon. 30 The king [a]reflected and said, ‘Is this not Babylon the (C)great, which I myself have built as a royal [b]residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?’ 31 While the word was in the king’s mouth, a voice [c]came from heaven, saying, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared: [d]sovereignty has been removed from you, 32 and (D)you will be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling place will be with the beasts of the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle, and (E)seven [e]periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the (F)Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes.’ 33 Immediately the word concerning Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled; and he was (G)driven away from mankind and began eating grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.
34 “But at the end of [f]that period, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven and my [g]reason returned to me, and I blessed the (H)Most High and praised and honored (I)Him who lives forever;
For His dominion is an (J)everlasting dominion,
And His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
35 “(K)All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing,
But (L)He does according to His will in the host of heaven
And among the inhabitants of earth;
And (M)no one can [h]ward off His hand
Or say to Him, ‘(N)What have You done?’
36 At that time my [i](O)reason returned to me. And my majesty and (P)splendor were [j]restored to me for the glory of my kingdom, and my counselors and my nobles began seeking me out; so I was reestablished in my [k]sovereignty, and surpassing (Q)greatness was added to me. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt and honor the King of (R)heaven, for (S)all His works are [l]true and His ways [m]just, and He is able to humble those who (T)walk in pride.”
God Is Love
7 (A)Beloved, let us (B)love one another, for love is from God; and (C)everyone who loves is [a](D)born of God and (E)knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for (F)God is love. 9 By this the love of God was manifested [b](G)in us, that (H)God has sent His [c]only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, (I)not that we loved God, but that (J)He loved us and sent His Son to be (K)the propitiation for our sins. 11 (L)Beloved, if God so loved us, (M)we also ought to love one another. 12 (N)No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His (O)love is perfected in us. 13 (P)By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 14 We have seen and (Q)testify that the Father has (R)sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
15 (S)Whoever confesses that (T)Jesus is the Son of God, God (U)abides in him, and he in God. 16 (V)We have come to know and have believed the love which God has [d](W)for us. (X)God is love, and the one who (Y)abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, (Z)love is perfected with us, so that we may have (AA)confidence in (AB)the day of judgment; because (AC)as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but (AD)perfect love casts out fear, because fear [e]involves punishment, and the one who fears is not (AE)perfected in love. 19 (AF)We love, because He first loved us. 20 (AG)If someone says, “I love God,” and (AH)hates his brother, he is a (AI)liar; for (AJ)the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, (AK)cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And (AL)this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God (AM)should love his brother also.
31 And (A)He came down to (B)Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was teaching them on the Sabbath; 32 and (C)they were amazed at His teaching, for (D)His [a]message was with authority. 33 In the synagogue there was a man [b]possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 34 “Let us alone! [c](E)What business do we have with each other, Jesus [d]of (F)Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—(G)the Holy One of God!” 35 But Jesus (H)rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, he came out of him without doing him any harm. 36 And amazement came upon them all, and they began talking with one another saying, “What is [e]this message? For (I)with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.” 37 And (J)the report about Him was spreading into every locality in the surrounding district.
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