Book of Common Prayer
Cry of Desperation
Psalm 88
1 A song, a psalm of the sons of Korah, for the music director, for singing Mahalath, a contemplative song[a] of Heman the Ezrahite.
2 Adonai, God of my salvation,
day and night I cried out before You.
3 Let my prayer come before You.
Turn Your ear to my cry.
4 For my soul is full of troubles,
and my life draws near to Sheol.
5 I am counted with those who go down into the Pit.
I have become as one with no strength—
6 abandoned among the dead,
like the slain that lie in the grave,
whom You remember no more—
cut off from Your hand.
7 You have laid me in the lowest places,
in dark places, in the depths.
8 Your wrath lies heavily on me.
You afflicted me with all Your waves. Selah
9 You have put my companions far from me.
You have made me repulsive to them.
I am shut in and I cannot go out.
10 My eye fails from affliction.
I call upon You every day, Adonai.
I spread out my hands to You.
11 Will You work wonders for the dead?
Or will the departed spirits rise up praising You? Selah
12 Will Your love be declared in the grave?
Or Your faithfulness in the place of ruin?
13 Will Your wonders be known in the darkness?
Your righteousness in the land of oblivion?
14 But I—I cried out to You, Adonai,
and in the morning my prayer meets You.
15 Adonai, why do You spurn me?
Why do You hide Your face from me?
16 From my youth I have been afflicted and close to death.
I suffer Your terrors—I am desperate!
17 Your fury has swept over me.
Your terrors have cut me off.
18 Like water they surge around me all day.
They close in on me together.
19 Friend and loved one You took far from me.
Darkness has become my companion.
Dwell in the Shelter of Elyon
Psalm 91
1 He who dwells in the shelter of Elyon,
will abide in the shadow of Shaddai.
2 I will say of Adonai,
“He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.
3 For He will rescue you from the hunter’s trap
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with His feathers,
and under His wings you will find refuge.
His faithfulness is body armor and shield.
5 You will not fear the terror by night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the plague that stalks in darkness,
nor the scourge that lays waste at noon.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
and ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look on with your eyes
and see the wicked paid back.
9 For you have made Elyon your dwelling,
even Adonai, who is my refuge,
10 so no evil will befall you
nor any plague come near your tent.
11 For He will give His angels charge over you,
to guard you in all your ways.
12 Upon their hands they will lift you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.[a]
13 You will tread upon the lion and cobra,
trample the young lion and serpent.
14 “Because he has devoted his love to Me,
I will deliver him.
I will set him securely on high,
because he knows My Name.
15 When he calls on Me, I will answer him.
I will be with him in trouble, rescue him, and honor him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him
and show him My salvation.”
It Is Good to Praise
Psalm 92
1 A psalm, a song for the Shabbat.
2 It is good to praise Adonai
and to make music to Your Name, Elyon,
3 to declare Your love in the morning
and Your faithfulness at night,
4 with a ten-string harp,
with resounding music on the lyre.
5 For You made me glad, Adonai, by Your deeds.
I sing for joy at the works of Your hands.
6 How great are Your works, Adonai!
How profound are Your thoughts!
7 A brutish man does not know,
nor does a fool understand.
8 Though the wicked spring up like grass,
and all evildoers flourish,
it is only to be ruined forever.
9 But You, Adonai, are exalted forever.
10 For behold, Your enemies, Adonai
—behold Your enemies perish—
all evildoers are scattered.
11 But You exalted my horn like that of a wild ox.
I am anointed with fresh oil.
12 My eye can gaze on those lying in wait for me.
My ears hear about evildoers rising up against me.
13 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree.
He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
14 Planted in the House of Adonai,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.
15 They will still yield fruit in old age.
They will be full of sap and freshness.
16 They declare, “Adonai is upright, my Rock
—there is no injustice in Him.”
Nathan Confronts David
12 Then Adonai sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said to him, “There were two men in the same city—one was rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had an exceedingly huge flock and herd, 3 but the poor man had nothing at all, except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished, and it grew up together with him and his children. It ate from his own morsel and drank from his own cup, and nestled in his bosom, and it was to him like a daughter. 4 Now a traveler came to the rich man, but he was unwilling to take one from his own flock or herd to prepare a meal for the wayfarer who had come to him. Rather, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man that had come to him.”
5 Then David’s anger blazed hot against the man and he said to Nathan, “As Adonai lives, the man that did this deserves to die! 6 So he must make restitution for the lamb fourfold, because he did such a thing and showed no pity.”
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says Adonai, God of Israel: It is I who anointed you king over Israel, and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I also gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your bosom, and I gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. Now if that were too little, then I would have added to you so much more. 9 Why then have you despised the word of Adonai by doing such evil in My eyes? Uriah the Hittite you have struck down with the sword, and his wife you have taken to be your wife, and him you have slain with the sword of the children of Ammon 10 So now the sword will never depart from your house—because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.
11 “Thus says Adonai: Behold, I am going to raise up evil against you from your own household, and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he will lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. 12 Indeed you have done it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and under the sun.”
13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against Adonai.”
Nathan replied to David, “Adonai also has made your sin pass away—you will not die. 14 However, because by this deed you have made the enemies of Adonai greatly blaspheme, so even the child born to you will surely die.”
Idol-Makers Start a Riot
21 Now after these things were accomplished, Paul resolved in the Ruach to go to Jerusalem after passing through Macedonia and Achaia, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome.” 22 So after sending two who were assisting him, Timothy and Erastus, he himself stayed in Asia for a while.
23 Around that time, there arose no small uproar concerning the Way. 24 For a man named Demetrius—a silversmith, a maker of silver shrines of Artemis—was providing no small amount of business to the craftsmen. 25 He gathered these together, along with those of related occupations, and he said, “Men, you know that our wealth is from this business. 26 You see and hear that not only in Ephesus but also throughout all Asia, Paul has persuaded and perverted a considerable crowd, saying that handmade gods are not gods at all. [a] 27 Not only is there a danger that this trade of ours might come into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis might be considered as nothing. She whom all Asia and the world worships might even be thrown down from her majesty.”
28 When they heard, they were filled with fury and began shouting, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 29 The city was filled with confusion. They rushed into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were travel companions of Paul. 30 Paul was wishing to enter among the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. 31 Some of the chiefs of Asia,[b] being his friends, sent to him and begged him not to surrender himself in the theater.
32 Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion. Most did not know why they had come together. 33 Some of the crowd solicited Alexander, whom the Jewish people put forward. Alexander motioned with his hand. He wished to offer a defense to the crowd. 34 But recognizing that he was Jewish, for about two hours they all with one voice cried out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
35 After the town clerk quieted the crowd, he said, “Men of Ephesus, what man is there who doesn’t know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great Artemis and of her image fallen from heaven? 36 Since these things are undeniable, you must be calm and do nothing reckless. 37 For you have brought these men here who are neither sacrilegious nor revilers of our goddess. 38 If Demetrius and the craftsmen with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them accuse them. 39 But if you seek anything further, it will be settled in the lawful assembly. 40 For we are in danger of being charged with rioting today, there being no reason which we are able to give to justify this mob.” Upon saying this, he dismissed the assembly.
The Secret of Prayer
14 When they came to the disciples, they saw a big crowd around them and the Torah scholars arguing with them. 15 Suddenly, when the whole crowd saw Yeshua, they were amazed and began running to greet Him. 16 He questioned them, “What are you arguing about with them?”
17 And a man from the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a spirit that makes him mute. 18 Whenever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes stiff. I told Your disciples to drive it out, but they couldn’t!”
19 And answering them, He said, “Oh faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me.”
20 They brought the boy to Yeshua. When the spirit saw Him, immediately it threw the boy into a convulsion. The boy fell to the ground and began rolling around and foaming at the mouth. 21 Yeshua asked the father, “How long has this been happening to him?”
“Since he was a child,” the man answered. 22 “It has often thrown him into fire or water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion and help us!”
23 “‘If You can’?” Yeshua said to him. “All things are possible for one who believes!”
24 Immediately the boy’s father cried out, “I believe! Help my unbelief!”
25 When Yeshua saw that a crowd was gathering fast, He rebuked the unclean spirit, telling it, “I command you, deaf and mute spirit, come out of him and do not ever enter him again!”
26 After howling and shaking the boy wildly, it came out. The boy became so much like a corpse that many were saying, “He’s dead!” 27 But Yeshua took him by the hand and lifted him, and the boy stood up.
28 After Yeshua came into the house, His disciples began questioning Him in private, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”
29 And He said to them, “This kind cannot come out except by prayer.”[a]
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.