Book of Common Prayer
A Promise to Rule Well
A song of David.
101 I will sing of love and fairness.
Lord, I will sing praises to you.
2 I will be careful to live an innocent life.
When will you come to me?
I will live an innocent life in my house.
3 I will not look at anything wicked.
I hate those who turn against you.
They will not be found near me.
4 Let those who want to do wrong stay away from me.
I will have nothing to do with evil.
5 If anyone secretly says things against his neighbor,
I will stop him.
I will not allow people
to be proud and look down on others.
6 I will look for trustworthy people
so I can live with them in the land.
Only those who live innocent lives
will be my servants.
7 No one who is dishonest will live in my house.
No liars will stay around me.
8 Every morning I will destroy
the wicked in the land.
I will rid the Lord’s city
of people who do evil.
A Prayer Against an Enemy
For the director of music. A song of David.
109 God, I praise you.
Do not be silent.
2 Wicked people and liars have spoken against me.
They have told lies about me.
3 They have said hateful things about me.
They attack me for no reason.
4 They attacked me, even though I loved them
and prayed for them.
5 I was good to them, but they repay me with evil.
I loved them, but they hate me in return.
6 They say about me, “Have the Evil One work against him.
Let the devil accuse him.
7 When he is judged, let him be found guilty.
Let even his prayers show that he is guilty.
8 Let his life be cut short.
Let another man replace him as leader.
9 Let his children become orphans.
Let his wife become a widow.
10 Make his children wander around, begging for food.
Let them be forced out of the ruins they live in.
11 Let the people he owes money to take everything he owns.
Let strangers steal everything he has worked for.
12 Let no one show him love.
Let no one have mercy on his children.
13 Let all his descendants die.
Let him be forgotten by people who live after him.
14 Let the Lord remember how wicked his ancestors were.
Don’t let the sins of his mother be wiped out.
15 Let the Lord always remember their sins.
Then he will make people forget about them completely.
16 “He did not remember to be loving.
He hurt the poor, the needy and those who were sad
until they were nearly dead.
17 He loved to put curses on others.
So let those same curses fall on him.
He did not like to bless others.
So do not let good things happen to him.
18 He cursed others as often as he wore clothes.
Cursing others filled his body and his life,
like drinking water and using olive oil.
19 So let curses cover him like clothes.
Let them wrap around him like a belt.”
20 May the Lord do these things to those who accuse me,
to those who speak evil against me.
21 But you, Lord God,
be kind to me so others will know you are good.
Because your love is good, save me.
22 I am poor and helpless.
And I am very sad.
23 I am dying like an evening shadow.
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees are weak from hunger.
I have become thin.
25 My enemies insult me.
They look at me and shake their heads.
26 Lord my God, help me.
Because you are loving, save me.
27 Then they will know that you have saved me.
They will know it was your power, Lord.
28 They may curse me, but you bless me.
They may attack me, but they will be disgraced.
Then I, your servant, will be glad.
29 Let those who accuse me be disgraced.
Let them be covered with shame like a coat.
30 I will thank the Lord very much.
I will praise him in front of many people.
121 I have done what is fair and right.
Don’t leave me to my enemies.
122 Promise that you will help me, your servant.
Don’t let proud people hurt me.
123 My eyes are tired from looking for your salvation
and for your good promise.
124 Show your love to me, your servant.
Teach me your demands.
125 I am your servant. Give me wisdom
so I can understand your rules.
126 Lord, it is time for you to do something.
People have disobeyed your teachings.
127 I love your commands
more than the purest gold.
128 I respect all your orders.
So I hate lying ways.
129 Your rules are wonderful.
That is why I obey them.
130 Learning your words gives wisdom
and understanding for the foolish.
131 I want to learn your commands.
I am like a person breathing hard and waiting impatiently.
132 Look at me and have mercy on me
as you do for those who love you.
133 Guide my steps as you promised.
Don’t let any sin control me.
134 Save me from harmful people.
Then I will obey your orders.
135 Show your kindness to me, your servant.
Teach me your demands.
136 Tears stream from my eyes
because people do not obey your teachings.
137 Lord, you do what is right.
And your laws are fair.
138 The rules you commanded are right
and completely trustworthy.
139 I am so upset I am worn out.
This is because my enemies have forgotten your words.
140 Your promises are proven.
I, your servant, love them.
141 I am unimportant and hated.
But I have not forgotten your orders.
142 Your goodness continues forever.
And your teachings are true.
143 I have had troubles and misery.
But I love your commands.
144 Your rules are good forever.
Help me understand so I can live.
The Lord Saves the Israelites
2 The Ark of the Covenant stayed at Kiriath Jearim a long time—20 years in all. And the people of Israel began to follow the Lord again. 3 Samuel spoke to the whole group of Israel. He said, “If you’re turning back to the Lord with all your hearts, you must remove your foreign gods. You must remove your idols of Ashtoreth. You must give yourselves fully to the Lord and serve only him. Then he will save you from the Philistines.”
4 So the Israelites put away their idols of Baal and Ashtoreth. And they served only the Lord.
5 Samuel said, “All Israel must meet at Mizpah. I will pray to the Lord for you.” 6 So the Israelites met together at Mizpah. They drew water from the ground and poured it out before the Lord. They did not eat that day. They confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” And Samuel served as judge of Israel at Mizpah.
7 The Philistines heard the Israelites were meeting at Mizpah. So the Philistine kings came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard they were coming, they were afraid. 8 They said to Samuel, “Don’t stop praying to the Lord our God for us! Ask the Lord to save us from the Philistines!” 9 Then Samuel took a baby lamb. He offered the lamb to the Lord as a whole burnt offering. He called to the Lord for Israel’s sake. And the Lord answered him.
10 While Samuel was burning the offering, the Philistines came near. They were going to attack Israel. But the Lord thundered against the Philistines with loud thunder. They were so frightened they became confused. So the Israelites defeated the Philistines in battle. 11 The men of Israel ran out of Mizpah and chased the Philistines. They went almost to Beth Car, killing the Philistines along the way.
Peace Comes to Israel
12 After this happened Samuel took a stone. He set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named the stone Ebenezer.[a] Samuel said, “The Lord has helped us to this point.” 13 So the Philistines were defeated. They did not enter the Israelites’ land again.
The Lord was against the Philistines all Samuel’s life. 14 Earlier the Philistines had taken towns from the Israelites. But the Israelites won them back, from Ekron to Gath. They also took back from the Philistines the neighboring lands of these towns. There was peace also between Israel and the Amorites.
15 Samuel continued as judge of Israel all his life. 16 Every year he went from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah. He judged the Israelites in all these towns. 17 But Samuel always went back to Ramah, where his home was. He also judged Israel there. And there he built an altar to the Lord.
Seven Men Are Chosen
6 More and more people were becoming followers of Jesus. But during this same time, the Greek-speaking followers had an argument with the other Jewish followers. The Greek-speaking Jews said that their widows were not getting their share of the food that was given out every day. 2 The 12 apostles called the whole group of followers together. They said, “It is not right for us to stop our work of teaching God’s word in order to serve tables. 3 So, brothers, choose seven of your own men. They must be men who are good. They must be full of wisdom and full of the Spirit. We will put them in charge of this work. 4 Then we can use all our time to pray and to teach the word of God.”
5 The whole group liked the idea. So they chose these seven men: Stephen (a man with great faith and full of the Holy Spirit), Philip,[a] Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas (a man from Antioch who had become a Jew). 6 Then they put these men before the apostles. The apostles prayed and laid their hands on[b] the men.
7 The word of God was reaching more and more people. The group of followers in Jerusalem became larger and larger. A great number of the Jewish priests believed and obeyed.
Stephen Is Arrested
8 Stephen was richly blessed by God. God gave him the power to do great miracles and signs among the people. 9 But some Jews were against him. They belonged to a synagogue of Free Men[c] (as it was called). (This synagogue was also for Jews from Cyrene and from Alexandria.) Jews from Cilicia and Asia were also with them. They all came and argued with Stephen.
10 But the Spirit was helping him to speak with wisdom. His words were so strong that they could not argue with him. 11 So they paid some men to say, “We heard him say things against Moses and against God!”
12 This upset the people, the Jewish elders, and the teachers of the law. They came to Stephen, grabbed him and brought him to a meeting of the Jewish leaders. 13 They brought in some men to tell lies about Stephen. They said, “This man is always saying things against this holy place and the law of Moses. 14 We heard him say that Jesus from Nazareth will destroy this place. He also said that Jesus will change the things that Moses told us to do.” 15 All the people in the meeting were watching Stephen closely. His face looked like the face of an angel.
The Lord’s Supper
14 When the time came, Jesus and the apostles were sitting at the table. 15 He said to them, “I wanted very much to eat this Passover meal with you before I die. 16 I will never eat another Passover meal until it is given its true meaning in the kingdom of God.”
17 Then Jesus took a cup. He gave thanks to God for it and said, “Take this cup and give it to everyone here. 18 I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine[a] until God’s kingdom comes.”
19 Then Jesus took some bread. He thanked God for it, broke it, and gave it to the apostles. Then Jesus said, “This bread is my body[b] that I am giving for you. Do this to remember me.” 20 In the same way, after supper, Jesus took the cup and said, “This cup shows the new agreement that God makes with his people. This new agreement begins with my blood which is poured out for you.”
Who Will Turn Against Jesus?
21 Jesus said, “One of you will turn against me. His hand is by my hand on the table. 22 The Son of Man will do what God has planned. But how terrible it will be for that man who gives the Son of Man to be killed.”
23 Then the apostles asked each other, “Which one of us would do that to Jesus?”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.