Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 56
For the music leader. According to “The Silent Dove of Distant Places.” A miktam[a] of David, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.
56 God, have mercy on me because I’m being trampled.
All day long the enemy oppresses me.
2 My attackers trample me all day long
because I have so many enemies.
Exalted one, 3 whenever I’m afraid,
I put my trust in you—
4 in God, whose word I praise.
I trust in God; I won’t be afraid.
What can mere flesh do to me?
5 All day long they frustrate my pursuits;
all their thoughts are evil against me.
6 They get together and set an ambush—
they are watching my steps,
hoping for my death.
7 Don’t rescue them for any reason!
In wrath bring down the people, God!
8 You yourself have kept track of my misery.
Put my tears into your bottle—
aren’t they on your scroll already?
9 Then my enemies will retreat when I cry out.
I know this because God is mine.
10 God: whose word I praise.
The Lord: whose word I praise.
11 I trust in God; I won’t be afraid.
What can anyone do to me?
12 I will fulfill my promises to you, God.
I will present thanksgiving offerings to you
13 because you have saved my life from death,
saved my feet from stumbling
so that I can walk before God in the light of life.
Psalm 57
For the music leader. Do not destroy. A miktam[b] of David, when he fled from Saul into the cave.
57 Have mercy on me, God;
have mercy on me
because I[c] have taken refuge in you.
I take refuge
in the shadow of your wings
until destruction passes by.
2 I call out to God Most High—
to God, who comes through for me.
3 He sends orders from heaven and saves me,
rebukes the one who tramples me. Selah
God sends his loyal love and faithfulness.
4 My life is in the middle of a pack of lions.
I lie down among those who devour humans.
Their teeth are spears and arrows;
their tongues are sharpened swords.
5 Exalt yourself, God, higher than heaven!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
6 They laid a net for my feet to bring me down;
they dug a pit for me,
but they fell into it instead! Selah
7 My heart is unwavering, God—
my heart is unwavering.
I will sing and make music.
8 Wake up, my glory!
Wake up, harp and lyre!
I will wake the dawn itself!
9 I will give thanks to you,
my Lord,
among all the peoples;
I will make music to you among the nations
10 because your faithful love
is as high as heaven;
your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
11 Exalt yourself, God, higher than heaven!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
Psalm 58
For the music leader. Do not destroy. A psalm of David, a miktam.[d]
58 Do you really speak what is right, you gods?
Do you really judge humans fairly?
2 No: in your hearts you plan injustice;
your hands do violence on the earth.
3 The wicked backslide from the womb;
liars go astray from birth.
4 Their venom is like a snake’s venom—
like a deaf cobra’s—one that shuts its ears
5 so it can’t hear the snake charmer’s voice
or the spells of a skillful enchanter.
6 God, break their teeth out of their mouths!
Tear out the lions’ jawbones, Lord!
7 Let them dissolve like water flowing away.
When they bend the bow,
let their arrows be like headless shafts.[e]
8 Like the snail that dissolves into slime,
like a woman’s stillborn child,
let them never see the sun.
9 Before your pots feel the thorns,
whether green or burned up,
God will sweep them away![f]
10 But the righteous will rejoice when they see vengeance done,
when they wash their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Then it will be said:
“Yes, there is a reward for the righteous!
Yes, there is a God who judges people on the earth.”
Psalm 64
For the music leader. A psalm of David.
64 Listen to me when I complain, God!
Protect my life from the enemy’s terror!
2 Hide me from the secret plots of wicked people;
hide me from the schemes of evildoers
3 who sharpen their tongues like swords.
They aim their arrow—a cruel word—
4 from their hiding places
so as to shoot an innocent person.
They shoot without warning and without fear.
5 They encourage themselves with evil words.
They plan on laying traps in secret.
“Who will be able to see them?” they ask.
6 “Let someone try to expose our crimes!
We’ve devised a perfect plot!
It’s deep within the human mind and heart.”[a]
7 But God will shoot them with an arrow!
Without warning, they will be wounded!
8 The Lord will make them trip over their own tongues;
everyone who sees them will just shake their heads.
9 Then all people will honor God,
will announce the act of God,
will understand it was God’s work.
10 Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord;
let them take refuge in him;
let everyone whose heart is in the right place give praise!
Psalm 65
For the music leader. A psalm of David. A song.
65 God of Zion, to you even silence is praise.
Promises made to you are kept—
2 you listen to prayer—
and all living things come to you.
3 When wrongdoings become too much for me,
you forgive our sins.
4 How happy is the one you choose to bring close,
the one who lives in your courtyards!
We are filled full by the goodness of your house,
by the holiness of your temple.
5 In righteousness you answer us,
by your awesome deeds,
God of our salvation—
you, who are the security
of all the far edges of the earth,
even the distant seas.
6 You establish the mountains by your strength;
you are dressed in raw power.
7 You calm the roaring seas;
calm the roaring waves,
calm the noise of the nations.
8 Those who dwell on the far edges
stand in awe of your acts.
You make the gateways
of morning and evening sing for joy.
9 You visit the earth and make it abundant,
enriching it greatly
by God’s stream, full of water.
You provide people with grain
because that is what you’ve decided.
10 Drenching the earth’s furrows,
leveling its ridges,
you soften it with rain showers;
you bless its growth.
11 You crown the year with your goodness;
your paths overflow with rich food.
12 Even the desert pastures drip with it,
and the hills are dressed in pure joy.
13 The meadowlands are covered with flocks,
the valleys decked out in grain—
they shout for joy;
they break out in song!
Naboth’s vineyard
21 Now it happened sometime later that Naboth from Jezreel had a vineyard in Jezreel that was next to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria. 2 Ahab ordered Naboth, “Give me your vineyard so it can become my vegetable garden, because it is right next to my palace. In exchange for it, I’ll give you an even better vineyard. Or if you prefer, I’ll pay you the price in silver.”
3 Naboth responded to Ahab, “Lord forbid that I give you my family inheritance!”
4 So Ahab went to his palace, irritated and upset at what Naboth[a] had said to him—because Naboth had said, “I won’t give you my family inheritance!” Ahab lay down on his bed and turned his face away. He wouldn’t eat anything.
5 His wife Jezebel came to him. “Why are you upset and not eating any food?” she asked.
6 He answered her, “I was talking to Naboth. I said, ‘Sell me your vineyard. Or if you prefer, I’ll give you another vineyard for it.’ But he said, ‘I won’t give you my vineyard!’”
7 Then his wife Jezebel said to him, “Aren’t you the one who rules Israel? Get up! Eat some food and cheer up. I’ll get Naboth’s vineyard for you myself.” 8 So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, putting his seal on them. She sent them to the elders and officials who lived in the same town as Naboth. 9 This is what she wrote in the letters: “Announce a fast and place Naboth at the head of the people. 10 Then bring in two liars in front of him and have them testify as follows: ‘You cursed God and king!’ Then take Naboth outside and stone him so he dies.”
11 The elders and the officials who lived in Naboth’s town did exactly as Jezebel specified in the letters that she had sent. 12 They announced a fast and placed Naboth at the head of the people. 13 Then the two liars came and sat in front of him. They testified against Naboth in front of the people, “Naboth cursed God and king!” So the people took Naboth outside the town and stoned him so that he died.
14 It was then reported to Jezebel, “Naboth was stoned. He’s dead.” 15 As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, “Get up and take ownership of the vineyard of Naboth, which he had refused to sell to you. Naboth is no longer alive; he’s dead.” 16 When Ahab heard that Naboth had died, he got up and went down to Naboth’s vineyard to take ownership of it.
Greeting
1 From Paul, called by God’s will to be an apostle of Jesus Christ, and from Sosthenes our brother.
2 To God’s church that is in Corinth:
To those who have been made holy to God in Christ Jesus, who are called to be God’s people.
Together with all those who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place—he’s their Lord and ours!
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving for the Corinthians
4 I thank my God always for you, because of God’s grace that was given to you in Christ Jesus. 5 That is, you were made rich through him in everything: in all your communication and every kind of knowledge, 6 in the same way that the testimony about Christ was confirmed with you. 7 The result is that you aren’t missing any spiritual gift while you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8 He will also confirm your testimony about Christ until the end so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, and you were called by him to partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Rival groups in Corinth
10 Now I encourage you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: Agree with each other and don’t be divided into rival groups. Instead, be restored with the same mind and the same purpose. 11 My brothers and sisters, Chloe’s people gave me some information about you, that you’re fighting with each other. 12 What I mean is this: that each one of you says, “I belong to Paul,” “I belong to Apollos,” “I belong to Cephas,” “I belong to Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you, or were you baptized in Paul’s name? 14 Thank God that I didn’t baptize any of you, except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that nobody can say that you were baptized in my name! 16 Oh, I baptized the house of Stephanas too. Otherwise, I don’t know if I baptized anyone else. 17 Christ didn’t send me to baptize but to preach the good news. And Christ didn’t send me to preach the good news with clever words so that Christ’s cross won’t be emptied of its meaning.
Human wisdom versus the cross
18 The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are being destroyed. But it is the power of God for those of us who are being saved. 19 It is written in scripture: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will reject the intelligence of the intelligent.[a]
Temptation of Jesus
4 Then the Spirit led Jesus up into the wilderness so that the devil might tempt him. 2 After Jesus had fasted for forty days and forty nights, he was starving. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “Since you are God’s Son, command these stones to become bread.”
4 Jesus replied, “It’s written, People won’t live only by bread, but by every word spoken by God.”[a]
5 After that the devil brought him into the holy city and stood him at the highest point of the temple. He said to him, 6 “Since you are God’s Son, throw yourself down; for it is written, I will command my angels concerning you, and they will take you up in their hands so that you won’t hit your foot on a stone.”[b]
7 Jesus replied, “Again it’s written, Don’t test the Lord your God.”[c]
8 Then the devil brought him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 He said, “I’ll give you all these if you bow down and worship me.”
10 Jesus responded, “Go away, Satan, because it’s written,You will worship the Lord your God and serve only him.”[d] 11 The devil left him, and angels came and took care of him.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible