Book of Common Prayer
The Great King[a]
24 (A)The world and all that is in it belong to the Lord;
the earth and all who live on it are his.
2 He built it on the deep waters beneath the earth
and laid its foundations in the ocean depths.
3 Who has the right to go up the Lord's hill?[b]
Who may enter his holy Temple?
4 (B)Those who are pure in act and in thought,
who do not worship idols
or make false promises.
5 The Lord will bless them and save them;
God will declare them innocent.
6 Such are the people who come to God,
who come into the presence of the God of Jacob.
7 Fling wide the gates,
open the ancient doors,
and the great king will come in.
8 Who is this great king?
He is the Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, victorious in battle.
9 Fling wide the gates,
open the ancient doors,
and the great king will come in.
10 Who is this great king?
The triumphant Lord—he is the great king!
The Voice of the Lord in the Storm[a]
29 (A)Praise the Lord, you heavenly beings;
praise his glory and power.
2 Praise the Lord's glorious name;
bow down before the Holy One when he appears.[b]
3 The voice of the Lord is heard on the seas;
the glorious God thunders,
and his voice echoes over the ocean.
4 The voice of the Lord is heard
in all its might and majesty.
5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars,
even the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes the mountains of Lebanon jump like calves
and makes Mount Hermon leap like a young bull.
7 The voice of the Lord makes the lightning flash.
8 His voice makes the desert shake;
he shakes the desert of Kadesh.
9 The Lord's voice shakes the oaks[c]
and strips the leaves from the trees
while everyone in his Temple shouts, “Glory to God!”
10 The Lord rules over the deep waters;
he rules as king forever.
11 The Lord gives strength to his people
and blesses them with peace.
God's Glory and Human Dignity[a]
8 O Lord, our Lord,
your greatness is seen in all the world!
Your praise reaches up to the heavens;
2 (A)it is sung by children and babies.
You are safe and secure from all your enemies;
you stop anyone who opposes you.
3 When I look at the sky, which you have made,
at the moon and the stars, which you set in their places—
4 (B)what are human beings, that you think of them;
mere mortals, that you care for them?
5 (C)Yet you made them inferior only to yourself;[b]
you crowned them with glory and honor.
6 (D)You appointed them rulers over everything you made;
you placed them over all creation:
7 sheep and cattle, and the wild animals too;
8 the birds and the fish
and the creatures in the seas.
9 O Lord, our Lord,
your greatness is seen in all the world!
Longing for God's House[a]
84 How I love your Temple, Lord Almighty!
2 How I want to be there!
I long to be in the Lord's Temple.
With my whole being I sing for joy
to the living God.
3 Even the sparrows have built a nest,
and the swallows have their own home;
they keep their young near your altars,
Lord Almighty, my king and my God.
4 How happy are those who live in your Temple,
always singing praise to you.
5 How happy are those whose strength comes from you,
who are eager to make the pilgrimage to Mount Zion.
6 As they pass through the dry valley of Baca,
it becomes a place of springs;
the autumn rain fills it with pools.
7 They grow stronger as they go;
they will see the God of gods on Zion.
8 Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty.
Listen, O God of Jacob!
9 Bless our king, O God,
the king you have chosen.
10 One day spent in your Temple
is better than a thousand anywhere else;
I would rather stand at the gate of the house of my God
than live in the homes of the wicked.
11 The Lord is our protector and glorious king,
blessing us with kindness and honor.
He does not refuse any good thing
to those who do what is right.
12 Lord Almighty, how happy are those who trust in you!
David's Lament for Saul and Jonathan
17 David sang this lament for Saul and his son Jonathan, 18 (A)and ordered it[a] to be taught to the people of Judah. (It is recorded in The book of Jashar.)
19 “On the hills of Israel our leaders are dead!
The bravest of our soldiers have fallen!
20 Do not announce it in Gath
or in the streets of Ashkelon.
Do not make the women of Philistia glad;
do not let the daughters of pagans rejoice.
21 “May no rain or dew fall on Gilboa's hills;
may its fields be always barren!
For the shields of the brave lie there in disgrace;
the shield of Saul is no longer polished with oil.
22 Jonathan's bow was deadly,
the sword of Saul was merciless,
striking down the mighty, killing the enemy.
23 “Saul and Jonathan, so wonderful and dear;
together in life, together in death;
swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.
24 “Women of Israel, mourn for Saul!
He clothed you in rich scarlet dresses
and adorned you with jewels and gold.
25 “The brave soldiers have fallen,
they were killed in battle.
Jonathan lies dead in the hills.
26 “I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan;
how dear you were to me!
How wonderful was your love for me,
better even than the love of women.
27 “The brave soldiers have fallen,
their weapons abandoned and useless.”
9 Love must be completely sincere. Hate what is evil, hold on to what is good. 10 Love one another warmly as Christians, and be eager to show respect for one another. 11 Work hard and do not be lazy. Serve the Lord with a heart full of devotion. 12 Let your hope keep you joyful, be patient in your troubles, and pray at all times. 13 Share your belongings with your needy fellow Christians, and open your homes to strangers.
14 (A)Ask God to bless those who persecute you—yes, ask him to bless, not to curse. 15 (B)Be happy with those who are happy, weep with those who weep. 16 (C)Have the same concern for everyone. Do not be proud, but accept humble duties.[a] Do not think of yourselves as wise.
17 If someone has done you wrong, do not repay him with a wrong. Try to do what everyone considers to be good. 18 Do everything possible on your part to live in peace with everybody. 19 (D)Never take revenge, my friends, but instead let God's anger do it. For the scripture says, “I will take revenge, I will pay back, says the Lord.” 20 (E)Instead, as the scripture says: “If your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them a drink; for by doing this you will make them burn with shame.” 21 Do not let evil defeat you; instead, conquer evil with good.
The Final Judgment
31 (A)“When the Son of Man comes as King and all the angels with him, he will sit on his royal throne, 32 and the people of all the nations will be gathered before him. Then he will divide them into two groups, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the righteous people at his right and the others at his left. 34 Then the King will say to the people on his right, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world. 35 (B)I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes, 36 naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me, in prison and you visited me.’ 37 The righteous will then answer him, ‘When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? 38 When did we ever see you a stranger and welcome you in our homes, or naked and clothe you? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’ 40 The King will reply, ‘I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these followers of mine, you did it for me!’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Away from me, you that are under God's curse! Away to the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels! 42 I was hungry but you would not feed me, thirsty but you would not give me a drink; 43 I was a stranger but you would not welcome me in your homes, naked but you would not clothe me; I was sick and in prison but you would not take care of me.’ 44 Then they will answer him, ‘When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and we would not help you?’ 45 The King will reply, ‘I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help me.’ 46 (C)These, then, will be sent off to eternal punishment, but the righteous will go to eternal life.”
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.