Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 87
A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A song.
1 On the holy hills stands the city [of Jerusalem and the temple] God founded.
2 The Lord loves the gates of Zion [through which the crowds of pilgrims enter from all nations] more than all the dwellings of Jacob (Israel).
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah [pause, and calmly realize what that means]!
4 I will make mention of Rahab [the poetic name for Egypt] and Babylon as among those who know [the city of God]—behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia (Cush)—[saying], This man was born there.
5 Yes, of Zion it shall be said, This man and that man were born in her, for the Most High Himself will establish her.
6 The Lord shall count, when He registers the peoples, that this man was born there. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
7 The singers as well as the players on instruments shall say, All my springs (my sources of life and joy) are in you [city of our God].
Book Four
Psalm 90
A Prayer of Moses the man of God.
1 Lord, You have been our dwelling place and our refuge in all generations [says Moses].
2 Before the mountains were brought forth or ever You had formed and given birth to the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting You are God.
3 You turn man back to dust and corruption, and say, Return, O sons of the earthborn [to the earth]!
4 For a thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night.(A)
5 You carry away [these disobedient people, doomed to die within forty years] as with a flood; they are as a sleep [vague and forgotten as soon as they are gone]. In the morning they are like grass which grows up—
6 In the morning it flourishes and springs up; in the evening it is mown down and withers.
7 For we [the Israelites in the wilderness] are consumed by Your anger, and by Your wrath are we troubled, overwhelmed, and frightened away.
8 Our iniquities, our secret heart and its sins [which we would so like to conceal even from ourselves], You have set in the [revealing] light of Your countenance.
9 For all our days [out here in this wilderness, says Moses] pass away in Your wrath; we spend our years as a tale that is told [for we adults know we are doomed to die soon, without reaching Canaan].(B)
10 The days of our years are [a]threescore years and ten (seventy years)—or even, if by reason of strength, fourscore years (eighty years); yet is their pride [in additional years] only labor and sorrow, for it is soon gone, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of Your anger? [Who worthily connects this brevity of life with Your recognition of sin?] And Your wrath, who connects it with the reverent and worshipful fear that is due You?
12 So teach us to number our days, that we may get us a heart of wisdom.
13 Turn, O Lord [from Your fierce anger]! How long—? Revoke Your sentence and be compassionate and at ease toward Your servants.
14 O satisfy us with Your mercy and loving-kindness in the morning [now, before we are older], that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad in proportion to the days in which You have afflicted us and to the years in which we have suffered evil.
16 Let Your work [the signs of Your power] be revealed to Your servants, and Your [glorious] majesty to their children.
17 And let the beauty and delightfulness and favor of the Lord our God be upon us; confirm and establish the work of our hands—yes, the work of our hands, confirm and establish it.
Psalm 136
1 O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever.
2 O give thanks to the God of gods, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever.
3 O give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever—
4 To Him Who alone does great wonders, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
5 To Him Who by wisdom and understanding made the heavens, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
6 To Him Who stretched out the earth upon the waters, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
7 To Him Who made the great lights, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever—
8 The sun to rule over the day, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
9 The moon and stars to rule by night, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
10 To Him Who smote Egypt in their firstborn, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;(A)
11 And brought out Israel from among them, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;(B)
12 With a strong hand and with an outstretched arm, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
13 To Him Who divided the Red Sea into parts, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;(C)
14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
15 But shook off and overthrew Pharaoh and his host into the Red Sea, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
16 To Him Who led His people through the wilderness, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
17 To Him Who smote great kings, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
18 And slew famous kings, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever—(D)
19 Sihon king of the Amorites, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;(E)
20 And Og king of Bashan, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;(F)
21 And gave their land as a heritage, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
22 Even a heritage to Israel His servant, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;(G)
23 To Him Who [earnestly] remembered us in our low estate and imprinted us [on His heart], for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
24 And rescued us from our enemies, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
25 To Him Who gives food to all flesh, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever;
26 O give thanks to the God of heaven, for His mercy and loving-kindness endure forever!
4 And He said to me, Son of man, go, get you to the house of Israel and speak to them with My words.
5 For you are not sent to a people of a foreign speech and of a difficult language but to the house of Israel;
6 Not to many peoples of foreign speech and of a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to such people, they would have listened to you and heeded My words.
7 But the house of Israel will not listen to you and obey you since they will not listen to Me and obey Me, for all the house of Israel are impudent and stubborn of heart.
8 Behold, I have made your face strong and hard against their faces and your forehead strong and hard against their foreheads.
9 Like an adamant harder than flint or a diamond point have I made your forehead; fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.(A)
10 Moreover, He said to me, Son of man, all My words that I shall speak to you, receive in your heart and hear with your ears.
11 And go, get you to the [Jewish] captives [in Babylon], to the children of your people, and speak to them and tell them, Thus says the Lord God, whether they will hear or refuse to hear.
12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing [saying], Blessed be the glory of the Lord from His place [above the firmament].
13 I heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures as they touched and joined each one the other [its sister wing], and I heard the noise of the wheels beside them and the noise of a great rushing.
14 So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away [in the vision], and I went in bitterness [of discouragement] in the heat of my spirit; and the hand of the Lord was strong upon me.
15 Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, who sat and dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat and remained there among them seven days, overwhelmed with astonishment and silent.
16 And at the end of seven days, the word of the Lord came to me:
17 Son of man, I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel; therefore hear the word at My mouth and give them warning from Me.(B)
7 In the days of His flesh [Jesus] offered up definite, special petitions [for that which He not only wanted [a]but needed] and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him Who was [always] able to save Him [out] from death, and He was heard because of His reverence toward God [His godly fear, His piety, [b] in that He shrank from the horrors of separation from the bright presence of the Father].
8 Although He was a Son, He learned [active, special] obedience through what He suffered
9 And, [His completed experience] making Him perfectly [equipped], He became the Author and Source of eternal salvation to all those who give heed and obey Him,(A)
10 Being [c]designated and recognized and saluted by God as High Priest after the order (with [d]the rank) of Melchizedek.(B)
11 Concerning this we have much to say which is hard to explain, since you have become dull in your [spiritual] hearing and sluggish [even [e]slothful in achieving spiritual insight].
12 For even though by this time you ought to be teaching others, you actually need someone to teach you over again the very first principles of God’s Word. You have come to need milk, not solid food.
13 For everyone who continues to feed on milk is obviously inexperienced and unskilled in the doctrine of righteousness (of conformity to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action), for he is a mere infant [not able to talk yet]!
14 But solid food is for full-grown men, for those whose senses and mental faculties are trained by practice to discriminate and distinguish between what is morally good and noble and what is evil and contrary either to divine or human law.
37 Now it occurred the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him.
38 And behold, a man from the crowd shouted out, Master, I implore You to look at my son, for he is my only child;
39 And behold, a spirit seizes him and suddenly he cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and he is sorely shattered, and it will scarcely leave him.
40 And I implored Your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.
41 Jesus answered, O [faithless ones] unbelieving and without trust in God, a perverse ([a]wayward, [b]crooked and [c]warped) generation! Until when and how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here [to Me].
42 And even while he was coming, the demon threw him down and [completely] convulsed him. But Jesus censured and severely rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the child and restored him to his father.
43 And all were astounded at the evidence of God’s mighty power and His majesty and magnificence. But [while] they were all marveling at everything Jesus was doing, He said to His disciples,
44 Let these words sink into your ears: the Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men [[d]whose conduct is opposed to God].
45 However, they did not comprehend this saying; and it was kept hidden from them, so that they should not grasp it and understand, and they were afraid to ask Him about the statement.
46 But a controversy arose among them as to which of them might be the greatest [surpassing the others in excellence, worth, and authority].
47 But Jesus, as He perceived the thoughts of their hearts, took a little child and put him at His side
48 And told them, Whoever receives and accepts and welcomes this child in My name and for My sake receives and accepts and welcomes Me; and whoever so receives Me so also receives Him Who sent Me. For he who is least and lowliest among you all—he is [the one who is truly] great.
49 John said, Master, we saw a man driving out demons in Your name and we commanded him to stop it, for he does not follow along with us.
50 But Jesus told him, Do not forbid [such people]; for whoever is not against you is for you.
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