Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 63
My Soul Thirsts for You
Heading
A psalm by David. When he was in the wilderness of Judah.[a]
Thirsting for God
1 God, you are my God. Eagerly I seek you.
My soul thirsts for you. My flesh longs for you,
in a dry and dreary land without water.
2 Yes, in the sanctuary I have watched you
to see your power and your glory.
Joy Even in Adversity
3 Because your mercy is better than life,
my lips will worship you.
4 Yes, I will bless you as long as I live.
In your name I will lift up my hands.
5 My soul will be satisfied with rich food.[b]
My mouth will praise you with lips filled with songs.
6 Whenever I remember you on my bed,
throughout the watches of the night I meditate on you.
7 Because you are a help for me,
I sing for joy under the shade of your wings.
8 My soul clings to you.
Your right hand upholds me.
Destruction for the Defiant
9 But those who seek my life will go to destruction.
They will go into the depths of the earth.
10 They will be given over to the power of the sword.
They will become food for foxes.[c]
11 But the king will rejoice in God.
All who swear by him will praise him,
but the mouths of those speaking lies will be shut.
Psalm 98
Sing to the Lord a New Song
Heading
A psalm.
Invitation
1 Sing to the Lord a new song,
for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.
Let His People Sing
2 The Lord has made his salvation known.
He has revealed his righteousness to the eyes of the nations.
3 He has remembered his mercy and his faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Let All People Sing
4 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Break out in joyful song! Make music!
5 Make music to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of music.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn
shout for joy before the King, the Lord.
Let the Whole Earth Sing
7 Let the sea roar, and everything that fills it,
the world, and all who live in it.
8 Let the rivers clap their hands.
Let the mountains sing for joy together before the Lord,
9 for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples with fairness.[a]
Psalm 103
Bless the Lord, Who Forgives All Your Sins
Heading
By David.
Invitation to Praise
1 Bless the Lord,[a] O my soul.
All that is within me, bless his holy name.
Praise for Personal Blessings
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and do not forget all his benefits—
3 who pardons all your guilt,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with mercy and compassion,
5 who satisfies your life[b] with goodness,
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
Praise for Blessings Through Moses
6 The Lord performs righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel.
God’s Great Mercy
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in mercy.
9 He will not always accuse.
He will not keep his anger forever.
10 He does not treat us as our sins deserve.
He does not repay us according to our guilty deeds.
God’s Mercy Illustrated
11 Yes, as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so powerful is his mercy toward those who fear him.
12 As distant as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our rebellious acts from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.
14 For he knows how we were formed.
He remembers that we are dust.
Man’s Short Life
15 As for man, his days are like grass.
Like a wildflower he blossoms.
16 Then the wind blows over it, and it is gone,
and its place recognizes it no more.
The Covenant With Moses Proclaims God’s Eternal Mercy
17 But the Lord’s mercy is from eternity to eternity
over those who fear him,
and his righteousness is with their children’s children,
18 with those who keep his covenant,
with those who remember his precepts in order to obey them.
Closing Praise
19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
and his royal power rules over all.
20 Bless the Lord, you his angels,
you strong warriors who obey his word
by listening to what he says.
21 Bless the Lord, all his armies,
you who minister to him,
you who do whatever pleases him.
22 Bless the Lord, everything he has made
in all places where he rules.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.
11 Love the Lord your God and always carry out his requirements, his statutes, his ordinances, and his commandments.
2 Know this today! I am not addressing your children, who have not known and seen all these things:
the discipline of the Lord your God;
his greatness, his strong hand, and his outstretched arm;
3 his signs and his deeds that he performed in Egypt
against Pharaoh king of Egypt and against all his land;
4 what he did to the army of Egypt and its horses and chariots;
how he caused the water of the Red Sea to flow over their heads
when they pursued you;
how the Lord has destroyed them to this day;
5 what he did for you in the wilderness until you came to this place;
6 what he did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab son of Reuben;
how the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them
with their households, their tents,
and every living thing that was at their feet,
in the middle of all Israel.
7 Know today it is your own eyes that have seen every deed that the Lord your God performed.
8 Therefore, keep the whole set of commands that I am giving you today so that you may have the strength to enter and take possession of the land that you are about to cross into and possess, 9 and so that you may live for a long time on the land that the Lord your God swore to give to your fathers and to their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey.
10 The land that you are about to enter and possess is not like that land of Egypt that you left, where you were accustomed to sow your seed and water it by hand[a] like a vegetable garden. 11 But the land you are entering to possess is a land of mountains and valleys. It drinks water provided by rain from the heavens. 12 It is a land that the Lord your God takes care of. The eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it, from the start to the end of the year.
The Angel With a Little Scroll
10 Then I saw another powerful angel coming down out of heaven. He was clothed with a cloud, a rainbow was over his head, his face was like the sun, his feet were like pillars of fire, 2 and he had in his hand a little scroll, which had been opened. He put his right foot on the sea and his left on the land, 3 and he cried out with a loud voice, just as a lion roars. And when he cried out, the seven thunders spoke using their own voices.
4 When the seven thunders had spoken, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Seal up the things that the seven thunders said, and do not write them down.”
5 The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven, 6 and he swore by the one who lives forever and ever, who created the sky and the things in it, the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it. He said, “There will be no more delay. 7 Instead, in the days of the sound made by the seventh angel, that is, when he is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will also be completed, exactly as he made this good news known to his servants the prophets.”
John’s Commission to Prophesy
8 The voice that I heard from heaven also spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that has been opened in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” 9 I went to the angel and said to him, “Give me the little scroll.”
He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.” 10 I took the little scroll out of the angel’s hand and ate it. It was as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. 11 And they said to me, “It is necessary that you prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”
The Treasure, the Pearl, and the Net
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid again. In his joy, he goes away and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls. 46 When he found one very valuable pearl, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. 48 When the net was filled, they pulled it onto the shore. They sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but threw the bad ones away. 49 That is how it will be at the end of the world. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous who are among them. 50 And they will throw the wicked into the fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 51 Jesus said to them, “Did you understand all these things?”
They answered him, “Yes.”
52 He said to them, “Therefore every expert in the law who has been trained as a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his treasure both new things and old things.”
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he left that place.
A Prophet Without Honor
54 Jesus entered his hometown and taught in their synagogue. As a result, the people were amazed and said, “Where did this fellow get this wisdom and these miracles? 55 Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother named Mary? And aren’t James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas his brothers? 56 And aren’t all of his sisters here with us? Where then did this fellow get all of these things?” 57 And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own hometown and in his own house.” 58 He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.