Book of Common Prayer
Thanksgiving for Victory
118 ·Thank [Praise] the Lord because he is good.
His ·love [loyalty] ·continues [endures] forever.
2 Let Israel say,
“His ·love [loyalty] ·continues [endures] forever.”
3 Let the ·family [L house] of Aaron [C the priests] say,
“His ·love [loyalty] ·continues [endures] forever.”
4 Let those who ·respect [fear] the Lord [Prov. 1:7] say,
“His ·love [loyalty] ·continues [endures] forever.”
5 I was in ·trouble [distress], so I ·called [prayed] to the Lord.
The Lord answered me and set me ·free [L in a broad place].
6 I will not ·be afraid [fear], because the Lord is with me [Rom. 8:31].
·People can’t do anything [L What can people do…?] to me [Heb. 13:6].
7 The Lord is with me to help me,
so I will ·see my enemies defeated [L look on my enemy; C in triumph].
8 It is better to ·trust [find refuge in] the Lord
than to ·trust [have confidence in] people.
9 It is better to ·trust [find refuge in] the Lord
than to ·trust [have confidence in] princes.
10 All the nations surrounded me,
but I ·defeated them [warded them off] in the name of the Lord.
11 They surrounded me; they surrounded me on every side,
but ·with the Lord’s power [L in the name of the Lord] I ·defeated them [warded them off].
12 They surrounded me like a swarm of bees,
but they ·died [L were extinguished] as quickly as thorns burn.
·By the Lord’s power [L In the name of the Lord], I ·defeated them [warded them off].
13 They [or You] ·chased me [pushed me hard] until I ·was almost defeated [almost fell],
but the Lord helped me.
14 The Lord ·gives me strength and a song [L is my strength and song/or might].
He has ·saved me [given me victory].
15 Shouts of joy and victory
come from the tents of ·those who do right [the righteous]:
“The right hand of the Lord has done powerful things.”
16 The ·power [L right hand] of the Lord ·has won the victory [is exalted];
with his ·power [L right hand] the Lord has done powerful things.
17 I will not die, but live,
and I will ·tell [recount] what the Lord has done.
18 The Lord has ·taught me a hard lesson [L surely disciplined/instructed me],
but he did not ·let me die [L give me over to death].
19 Open for me the ·Temple gates [L gates of righteousness].
Then I will come in and ·thank [praise] the Lord.
20 This is the Lord’s gate;
only ·those who are good [the righteous] may enter through it [15; 24:3–6].
21 Lord, I ·thank [praise] you for answering me.
You have ·saved me [given me victory].
22 The stone that the builders rejected
became the chief cornerstone [Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; Eph. 2:20; 1 Pet. 2:7].
23 ·The Lord did this [L This is from the Lord],
and it is wonderful ·to us [L in our eyes; Matt. 21:42; Mark 12:10–11].
24 This is the day that the Lord has made.
Let us rejoice and be glad ·today [L in it]!
25 Please, Lord, ·save us [give us victory];
please, Lord, give us ·success [prosperity].
26 ·God bless [Blessed be] the one who comes in the name of the Lord.
We bless all of you from the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord [Mark 11:9; Luke 13:35; 19:38].
27 The Lord is God,
and he has ·shown kindness to [illuminated; given light to] us.
·With branches in your hands, join the feast [L Bind the feast/procession with branches].
Come to the ·corners [L horns; Ex. 27:2] of the altar.
28 You are my God, and I will ·thank [praise] you;
you are my God, and I will ·praise your greatness [L exalt you].
29 ·Thank [Praise] the Lord because he is good.
His ·love [loyalty] ·continues [endures] forever.
Praise to God the King
A psalm of praise. Of David.
145 I ·praise your greatness [exalt you], my God the King;
I will ·praise [bless] ·you [L your name] forever and ever.
2 I will ·praise [bless] you every day;
I will praise ·you [L your name] forever and ever.
3 The Lord is great and ·worthy of our praise [greatly to be praised; 48:1];
·no one can understand how great he is [L there is no searching out/limit to his greatness].
4 ·Parents [L A generation] will ·tell their children [L praise to a generation] what you have done.
They will ·retell [proclaim] your mighty acts,
5 ·wonderful majesty, and glory [L and the majestic glory of your splendor; C God’s manifest presence].
And I will ·think about [meditate on] your ·miracles [wonderful works].
6 They will tell about the ·amazing things you do [L might of your awesomeness],
and I will ·tell [recount] how great you are.
7 They will ·remember [bubble forth with] ·your great goodness [L the remembrance of your goodness]
and will sing about your ·fairness [righteousness].
8 The Lord is ·kind [gracious] and ·shows mercy [compassionate].
He ·does not become angry quickly [is slow to anger] but ·is full of love [has great loyalty].
9 The Lord is good to everyone;
he is ·merciful [compassionate] to all he has made [86:15; 103:8; Ex. 34:6–7; Neh. 9:17, 31; Joel 2:13; Jon. 4:2].
10 Lord, everything you have made will ·praise [bless] you;
·those who belong to you [your saints/loyal ones] will bless you.
11 They will tell about the glory of your kingdom
and will speak about your ·power [strength].
12 Then everyone will know the mighty things you do
and the glory and ·majesty [splendor] of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom ·will go on and on [L is an eternal kingdom],
and you will rule ·forever [L from generation to generation; Dan. 4:3].
The Lord ·will keep all his promises [L is faithful/true in all his words];
he is loyal to all he has made.[a]
14 The Lord ·helps [supports] those who have ·been defeated [L fallen]
and ·takes care of [L lifts up] those who are ·in trouble [bowed down].
15 ·All living things look to you for food [L The eyes of all look to you],
and you give ·it [L their food] to them at the right time.
16 You open your hand,
and you satisfy the desire of all living things [Matt. 6:25–27].
17 ·Everything the Lord does is right [L The Lord is righteous in all his ways].
He is loyal ·to all he has made [or in all his deeds].
18 The Lord is ·close [near] to everyone who ·prays to [calls on] him,
to all who ·truly pray to him [call on him in truth/faithfulness].
19 He ·gives those who respect him what they want [L accomplishes the desire of all who fear him; Prov. 1:7].
He listens when they cry, and he ·saves them [gives them victory].
20 The Lord ·protects [guards; keeps] everyone who loves him,
but he will destroy the wicked.
21 ·I will praise [L My mouth will speak the praise of] the Lord.
Let ·everyone [L all flesh] ·praise [bless] his holy name forever.
Samuel Appoints Saul
10 Samuel took a ·jar [flask; vial] of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head. He kissed Saul and said, “The Lord has ·appointed [anointed] you ·to lead [ruler; prince over] his ·people[a] [special possession; inheritance]. 2 After you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb on the border of Benjamin at Zelzah [Gen. 35:19]. They will say to you, ‘The donkeys you were looking for have been found. But now your father has stopped thinking about his donkeys and is ·worrying [anxious] about you. He is asking, “What will I do about my son?” ’
3 “Then you will go on until you reach the ·big [L oak] tree at Tabor. Three men ·on their way to worship [L going up to] God at Bethel will meet you there. One man will be carrying three ·goats [kids]. Another will be carrying three loaves of bread. And the third will have a ·leather bag [skin] full of wine. 4 They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you must accept. 5 Then you will go to ·Gibeah [or the hill] of God, where a Philistine ·camp [garrison] is. When you approach this town, a group of prophets will come down from the ·place of worship [high place]. They will be playing harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres, and they will be prophesying. 6 Then the Spirit of the Lord will ·rush upon [come on; seize; possess] you with power. You will prophesy with them, and you will be changed into a different man. 7 After these signs happen, do ·whatever you find to do [what must be done; what you see fit to do; L what your hand finds to do], because God ·will help [is with] you [C Saul was supposed to attack the garrison, but he did not do so].
8 “Go ahead of me to Gilgal. I will come down to you to offer whole burnt offerings [Lev. 1] and to sacrifice ·fellowship [peace; well-being] offerings [Lev. 3:1]. But you must wait seven days. Then I will come and ·tell [show; reveal to] you what to do [C Saul did not do this either].”
Saul Made King
9 When Saul turned to leave Samuel, God ·changed Saul’s [gave Saul a new/another] heart. All these signs ·came true [were fulfilled; occurred] that day. 10 When they arrived at Gibeah, Saul met a ·group [band; procession] of prophets. The Spirit of God ·rushed upon [overwhelmed; seized; possessed] him, and he prophesied with the prophets. 11 When people who had known Saul before saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, “What has happened to Kish’s son? Is even Saul ·one of [among] the prophets?”
12 A man who lived there ·said [answered; retorted], “Who is the father of these prophets [C Saul’s prophesying amazed and confused him]?” So this became a ·famous saying [proverb]: “Is ·even Saul one of [Saul also among] the prophets?” 13 When Saul finished prophesying, he ·entered the place of worship [came/went to the high place].
14 Saul’s uncle asked him and his servant, “Where have you been?”
Saul said, “We were looking for the donkeys. When we couldn’t find them, we went to talk to Samuel.”
15 Saul’s uncle asked, “Please tell me. What did Samuel say to you?”
16 Saul answered, “He told us the donkeys had already been found.” But Saul did not tell his uncle what Samuel had said about ·his becoming king [the kingdom; C Saul should have announced publicly that he was king].
God Keeps His Promise
13 [L For] The promise Abraham and his ·descendants [seed] received that they would inherit the ·whole world [L world] ·did not come through [was not based on his obedience to] the law, but through ·being right with God by his faith [the righteousness that comes by faith]. 14 [L For] If people ·could receive what God promised [L are heirs] by following the law, then faith is worthless. And ·God’s promise to Abraham [L the promise] is ·worthless [nullified; canceled], 15 because the law can only bring God’s ·anger [wrath]. But if there is no law, there is ·nothing to disobey [no transgression/violation; C the law points out sin (5:13), but it cannot save from sin].
16 So people receive God’s promise by having faith. This happens so the promise can be ·a free gift [by grace]. Then all of Abraham’s ·children [descendants; offspring; L seed] can ·have [be guaranteed; be certain to have] that promise. It is not only for those who live under the law of Moses but for anyone who lives with faith like that of Abraham, who is the father of us all. 17 As it is written in the Scriptures: “I ·am making [L have made] you a father of many nations [Gen. 17:5].” This is true ·before [in the presence of] God, the God Abraham believed, the God who gives life to the dead and who ·creates something out of nothing [L calls things that did not exist into existence].
18 ·Though there was no hope that Abraham would have children [or When all seemed hopeless; L Against hope…], Abraham believed God and continued hoping, and so he became the father of many nations [Gen. 17:5]. As God told him, “·Your descendants also will be too many to count [L So shall your seed/offspring be; Gen. 15:5].” 19 Abraham was almost a hundred years old, ·much past the age for having children [L his own body (as good as) dead], and ·Sarah could not have children [L Sarah’s womb was dead]. Abraham ·thought about all [considered; or acknowledged] this, but his faith in God did not become weak. 20 He never ·doubted or stopped believing [or wavered through unbelief] that God would keep his promise. He grew stronger in his faith and gave ·praise [glory] to God. 21 Abraham ·felt sure [was fully convinced] that God was able to do what he had promised. 22 So, “·God accepted Abraham’s faith, and that faith made him right with God [L it was credited/counted to him for righteousness; Gen. 15:6].” 23 Those words (“·God accepted Abraham’s faith [L it was credited/counted to him]”) were written not only for Abraham 24 but also for us. ·God will accept us also [L …to whom it will be credited/counted] because we believe in the One who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 Jesus was ·given to die [handed/delivered over; 8:32] ·for [because of] our ·sins [violations; transgressions], and he was raised from the dead ·to make us right with God [for our justification; or to confirm our justification].
Leaders Doubt Jesus’ Authority(A)
23 Jesus went to the Temple [courts], and while he was teaching there, the ·leading [T chief] priests and the elders of the people came to him. They said, “What authority do you have to do these things? [L And] Who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus answered, “I also will ask you a question. If you answer me, then I will tell you what authority I have to do these things. 25 Tell me: When John baptized people, did that come from ·God [L heaven; C a reverential Jewish way of referring to God] or just from ·other people [human beings]?”
They argued about Jesus’ question, saying, “If we answer, ‘John’s baptism was from ·God [L heaven],’ Jesus will say, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘It was from ·people [human beings],’ we are afraid of what the crowd will do because they all ·believe [think; hold] that John was a prophet.”
27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Jesus said to them, “Then I won’t tell you what authority I have to do these things.
A Story About Two Sons
28 “Tell me what you think about this: A man had two sons. He went to the ·first [elder] son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in ·my [the] vineyard.’ 29 The son answered, ‘I will not go.’ But later the son ·changed his mind [regretted/thought better of it] and went. 30 Then the father went to the other son and said, ·‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard’ [L the same thing]. The son answered, ‘Yes, sir, I will,’ but he did not go. 31 Which of the two sons ·obeyed [L did the will of] his father?”
·The priests and leaders [L They] answered, “The first son.”
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes ·will enter [are going into] the kingdom of God ·before you do [ahead of you]. 32 [L For] John came to show you the ·right way to live [the way/path of righteousness]. You did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes believed him. Even after seeing this, you still refused to ·change your ways [change your mind; repent] and believe him.
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