Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 16
A Miktam of David.
1 Preserve me, O God,
for in You I take refuge.
2 I have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
my welfare has no existence outside of You.”
3 For the holy ones who are in the land,
they are the majestic ones; in them is all my delight.
4 Those who chase after other gods,
their sorrows will be multiplied;
their drink offerings of blood I will not offer,
nor lift their names on my lips.
5 The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup;
You support my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
yes, an inheritance is beautiful for me.
7 I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
my affections also instruct me in the night seasons.
8 I have set the Lord always before me;
because He is at my right hand,
I will not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
my flesh also will rest in security.
10 For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
nor will You suffer Your godly one to see corruption.
11 You will make known to me the path of life;
in Your presence is fullness of joy;
at Your right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
Psalm 17
A Prayer of David.
1 Hear a just cause, O Lord,
attend to my cry;
give ear to my prayer
that is not spoken from deceitful lips.
2 May my sentence go out from Your presence;
may Your eyes see rightly.
3 You have examined my heart; You have visited me in the night;
You have tried me and found nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men,
by the word of Your lips
I have avoided
the paths of the violent,
5 placing my steps in Your paths,
that my footsteps do not slip.
6 I called on You, for You will answer me, O God;
incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
7 Show marvelously Your lovingkindness,
O Deliverer of those who seek refuge
by Your right hand from those who arise in opposition.
8 Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
9 from the wicked who bring ruin to me,
from my deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They close their hard hearts;
with their mouth they speak proudly.
11 They have now encircled us in our steps;
they have set their eyes to bend down to the earth;
12 it is like a lion that is anxious to rip its prey,
and as a young lion lurking in secrecy.
13 Arise, O Lord! Confront him, cast him down!
Deliver my soul from the wicked by Your sword,
14 from men by Your hand, O Lord,
from men of the world whose portion is in this life.
You fill their belly with Your treasure;
they are satisfied with children,
and they leave their abundance to their infants.
15 As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I will be satisfied when I awake with Your likeness.
Psalm 22
For the Music Director. To the melody of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David.
1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
Why are You so far from delivering me,
and from my roaring words of distress?
2 O my God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not answer;
and at night, but I have no rest.
3 But You are holy,
O You who inhabits the praises of Israel.
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
they trusted, and You did deliver them.
5 They cried to You and were delivered;
they trusted in You and were not put to shame.
6 But I am a worm, and not a man;
a reproach of men and despised by the people.
7 All who see me laugh me to scorn;
they sneer with the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8 “Trust in the Lord,
let Him deliver him;
let Him rescue him,
seeing He delights in him.”
9 But You are He who took me out of the womb;
You caused me to trust
while I was on my mother’s breasts.
10 I was cast on You from birth;
You are my God from my mother’s womb.
11 Be not far from me
for trouble is near,
for there is none to help.
12 Many bulls encircle me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me.
13 They open their mouths against me,
as a preying and roaring lion.
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted inside my body.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue cleaves to my jaws;
and You have set me toward the dust of death.
16 For dogs have encompassed me;
the assembly of the wicked has enclosed me;
like a lion they pin my hands and my feet;
17 I can count all my bones;
they look and stare on me.
18 They part my garments among them
and cast lots for my clothes.
19 But do not be far from me, O Lord;
O my Help, hasten to my aid.
20 Rescue my soul from the sword,
my only life from the power of the dog.
21 Save me from the lion’s mouth,
and from the horns of the wild ox, answer me!
22 I will declare Your name to my community;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise You.
23 You who fear the Lord, praise Him;
all you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
and stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.
24 For He has not despised nor abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted;
nor has He hid His face from him;
but when he cried to Him, He heard.
25 From You my praise will be in the great congregation;
I will pay my vows before those who fear Him.
26 The meek will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek Him will praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever.
27 All the ends of the world
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will worship before You.
28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,
and He rules among the nations.
29 All the prosperous ones of the earth will eat and worship;
all who go down to the dust will bow before Him,
even he who cannot keep his own soul alive.
30 Posterity will serve Him;
it will be told to generations about the Lord;
31 they will come and declare His righteousness
to a people yet to be born,
that He has acted.
Boaz Marries Ruth
4 So Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there. And now the redeemer of whom he had spoken passed by, and Boaz said, “Come over, friend, and sit here.” So he went over and sat down.
2 Then Boaz took ten men from among the elders of the town and said, “Sit here.” So they sat down. 3 He said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the land of Moab, must sell the plot of land belonging to our brother Elimelek. 4 I thought I should inform you and say, ‘Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you want to redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not redeem it, tell me so that I know, for there is no one prior to you to redeem it, and I am next after you.’ ”
So he said, “I will redeem it.”
5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the deceased, to perpetuate the name of the deceased through his inheritance.”
6 The redeemer replied, “I am not able to redeem it for myself lest I ruin my own inheritance. Take my redemption rights for yourself, for I cannot do it.”
7 (Now this was the custom in ancient times in Israel for redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, a man would remove his sandal and give it to his neighbor. This was a binding act in Israel.)
8 Therefore the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it yourself,” and he removed his sandal.
9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought everything that belonged to Elimelek, Kilion, and Mahlon from Naomi. 10 Moreover I have also acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, to be my wife, in order to preserve the name of the deceased man for his inheritance, so that his name will not be cut off from among his brothers or from his town. You are witnesses this day.”
11 Then all the people who were at the gate, along with the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming to your house like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you do well in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem! 12 May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman.”
The Genealogy of David
13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. When they came together, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she bore a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you without a redeemer. May he become famous in Israel! 15 He will be a comfort for your soul and support you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”
16 Then Naomi took the child, laid him on her lap, and became his nurse. 17 The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
17 Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. 18 For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox that treads out the grain,”[a] and, “The laborer is worthy of his reward.”[b] 19 Do not receive an accusation against an elder, except before two or three witnesses. 20 Rebuke in the presence of everyone those who sin, that the rest also may fear. 21 I command you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing by partiality.
22 Do not lay hands suddenly on anyone, and do not partake of other men’s sins. Keep yourself pure.
23 No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent illnesses.
24 Some men’s sins are evident, pointing to judgment, but other men’s sins are revealed later. 25 Likewise, the good works of some are evident, but those that are not cannot be hidden.
The Healing of the Man With Edema
14 On the Sabbath they watched Him as He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees to eat bread. 2 There before Him was a man who had edema.[a] 3 Jesus said to the lawyers and Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” 4 But they remained silent. So He took him and healed him, and let him go.
5 Then He said, “Which of you having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 6 And they could not answer Him regarding these things.
A Lesson to Guests and a Host
7 When He marked how they chose the seats of honor, He told a parable to those who were invited, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by any man to a wedding banquet, do not sit down in a seat of honor, lest a more honorable man than you be invited by him; 9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give this man the seat,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest seat. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest seat, so that when he who invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have respect in the presence of those who sit at dinner with you. 11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.