Book of Common Prayer
55 1 David being in great heaviness and distress, complaineth of the cruelty of Saul, 13 and of the falsehood of his familiar acquaintance, 17 Uttering the most ardent affections to move the Lord to pity him. 22 After, being assured of deliverance, he setteth forth the grace of God, as though he had already obtained his request.
To him that excelleth on Neginoth. A Psalm of David to give instruction.
1 Hear [a]my prayer, O God, and hide not thyself from my supplication.
2 Hearken unto me, and answer me: I mourn in my prayer, and make a noise,
3 For the [b]voice of the enemy, and for the vexation of the wicked, because [c]they have brought iniquity upon me, and furiously hate me.
4 Mine heart trembleth within me, and the terrors of death are fallen upon me.
5 Fear and trembling are come upon me, and an horrible fear hath [d]covered me.
6 And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove: then would I [e]fly away and rest.
7 Behold I would take my flight far off, and lodge in the wilderness. Selah.
8 He would make haste for my deliverance [f]from the stormy wind and tempest.
9 Destroy, O Lord, and [g]divide their tongues: for I have seen cruelty and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof, both [h]iniquity and mischief are in the midst of it.
11 Wickedness is in the midst thereof: deceit and guile depart not from her streets.
12 Surely mine [i]enemy did not defame me, for I could have borne it: neither did mine adversary exalt himself against me: for I would have hid me from him.
13 But it was thou, O man, even my [j]companion, my guide, and my familiar:
14 Which delighted in consulting together, and went into the house of God as companions.
15 Let death seize upon them: let them [k]go down quick into the grave: for wickedness is in their dwellings even in the midst of them.
16 But I will call unto God, and the Lord will save me.
17 Evening and morning, and at noon will I pray [l]and make a noise, and he will hear my voice.
18 He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for [m]many were with me.
19 God shall hear and afflict them, even he that reigneth of old, Selah: because they [n]have no changes, therefore they fear not God.
20 He [o]laid his hand upon such as be at peace with him, and he brake his covenant.
21 The words of his mouth were softer than butter, yet war was in his heart, his words were more gentle than oil, yet they were swords.
22 Cast thy [p]burden upon the Lord, and he shall nourish thee: he will not suffer the righteous to fall [q]forever.
23 And thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of corruption: the bloody, and deceitful men shall not live [r]half their days: but I will trust in thee.
138 1 David with great courage praiseth the goodness of God toward him, the which is so great, 4 That it is known to foreign princes, who shall praise the Lord together with him. 6 And he is assured to have the like comfort of God in the time following, as he had heretofore.
A Psalm of David.
1 I will praise thee with my whole heart: even before the [a]gods will I praise thee.
2 I will worship toward thine holy [b]Temple and praise thy Name, because of thy loving-kindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy Name above all things by thy word.
3 When I called, then thou heardest me, and hast [c]increased strength in my soul.
4 All the [d]kings of the earth shall praise thee, O Lord: for they have heard the words of thy mouth.
5 And they shall sing of the ways of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord is great.
6 For the Lord is high, yet he beholdeth the lowly, but the proud he knoweth [e]afar off.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, yet wilt thou revive me: thou wilt stretch forth thine hand upon the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.
8 The Lord will [f]perform his work toward me: O Lord, thy mercy endureth forever: forsake not the works of thine hands.
139 1 David cleanseth his heart from all hypocrisy, showeth that there is nothing so hid, which God seeth not. 13 Which he confirmeth by the creation of man. 14 After declaring his zeal and fear of God, he professeth to be enemy to all them that contemn God.
To him that excelleth. A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, thou hast tried me, and known me.
2 Thou knowest my [g]sitting and my rising: thou understandest my thought afar off.
3 Thou [h]compassest my paths, and my lying down, and art accustomed to all my ways.
4 For there is not a word in my [i]tongue, but lo, thou knowest it wholly, O Lord.
5 Thou holdest me strait behind and before, and layest thine [j]hand upon me.
6 Thy knowledge is too wonderful for me: it is so high that I cannot attain unto it.
7 Whither shall I go from thy [k]Spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8 If I ascend into heaven, thou art there: if I lie down in hell, thou art there.
9 Let me take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea:
10 Yet thither shall thine hand [l]lead me, and thy right hand hold me.
11 If I say, Yet the darkness shall hide me, even the night shall be [m]light about me.
12 Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee: but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and light are both alike.
13 For thou hast [n]possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise thee, for I am [o]fearfully and wondrously made: marvelous are thy works, and my soul knoweth it well.
15 My bones are not hid from thee, though I was made in a secret place, and fashioned [p]beneath in the earth.
16 Thine eyes did see me, when I was without form: [q]for in thy book were all things written, which in continuance were fashioned, when there was none of them before.
17 How [r]dear therefore are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they are more than the sand: when I awake, [s]I am still with thee.
19 Oh that thou wouldest [slay], O God, the wicked and bloody men, to whom I say, Depart ye from me:
20 Which speak wickedly of thee, and being thine enemies are lifted up in vain.
21 Do not I [t]hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? and do not I earnestly contend with those that rise up against thee?
22 I hate them with an unfeigned hatred, as they were mine utter enemies.
23 Try me, O God, and know mine heart: prove me and know my thoughts,
4 7 The building of Jerusalem is hindered, 15 but God breaketh their enterprise. 17 The Jews build with one hand, and hold their weapons in the other.
1 But when Sanballat heard that we built the wall, then was he wroth and sore grieved, and mocked the Jews,
2 And said before his [a]brethren and the army of Samaria, thus he said, What do these [b]weak Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they finish it in a day? will they make the stones whole again out of the heaps of dust, seeing they are burnt?
3 And Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and said, Although they build, yet if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stony wall.
4 [c]Hear, O our God (for we are despised) and turn their shame upon their own head, and give them unto a prey [d]in the land of their captivity,
5 And cover not their [e]iniquity, neither let their sin be put out in thy presence: for they have provoked us before the builders.
6 So we built the wall, and all the wall was joined unto the [f]half thereof, and the heart of the people was to work.
7 ¶ But when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodims heard that the walls of Jerusalem were repaired, (for the breaches began to be stopped) then they were very wroth,
8 And conspired all together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to [g]hinder them.
9 Then we prayed unto our God, and set watchmen by them, day and night, because of them.
10 And Judah said, The strength of the bearers is weakened, and there is much earth, so that we are not able to build the wall.
11 Also our adversaries had said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come into the midst of them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.
12 But when the Jews (which dwelt beside them) came, they told us [h]ten times, [i]From all places, whence ye shall return, they will be upon us.
13 Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall upon the tops of the stones, and placed the people by their families, with their swords, their spears, and their bows.
14 Then I beheld, and rose up, and said unto the princes, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not afraid of them: [j]remember the great Lord, and fearful, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.
15 And when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, then God brought their counsel to nought, and we turned all again to the wall, every one unto his work.
16 And from that day half of the young men did the labor, and the other half part of them held the spears, and shields, and bows, and habergeons: and the Rulers stood [k]behind all the house of Judah.
17 They that built on the wall, and they that bare burdens, and they that laded, did the work with one hand, and with the other held the sword.
18 For every one of the builders had his sword girded on his loins, and so built: and he that blew the trumpet, was beside me.
19 Then said I unto the Princes, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another.
20 In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, [l]resort ye thither unto us: our God shall fight for us.
21 So we labored in the work, and half of them held the spears, from the appearing of the morning, till the stars came forth.
22 And at the same time said I unto the people, Let everyone with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that they may be a watch for us in the night, and labor in the day.
23 So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the ward (which followed me) none of us did put off our clothes, save everyone put them off [m]for washing.
4 And I heard the number of them, which were sealed, and there were sealed [a]an hundred and four and forty thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
5 Out of the tribe of Judah were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.
6 Of the tribe of Asher were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Naphtali were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasseh were sealed twelve thousand.
7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. [b]Of the tribe of [c]Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Zebulun were sealed twelve thousand.
8 Of the tribe of [d]Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.
9 After these things I beheld, and lo, a great multitude, [e]which no man could number, of all nations and kindreds, and people, and tongues [f]stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with long white robes, and palms in their hands.
10 [g]And they cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation cometh of our God, that sitteth upon the throne, and of the Lamb.
11 And all the Angels stood round about the throne, and about the Elders, and the four beasts, and they fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,
12 Saying, Amen, Praise and glory, and wisdom, and thanks, and honor, and power, and might, be unto our God for evermore, Amen.
13 [h]And one of the Elders spake, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in long white robes? and whence came they?
14 And I said unto him, Lord, thou knowest. And he said unto me, [i]These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their long robes, and have made their long robes white in the blood of the Lamb.
15 Therefore are they in the presence of the throne of God, and serve him [j]day and night in his Temple, and he that sitteth on the throne will dwell [k]among them.
16 (A)They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore, neither shall the sun light on them, neither any heat.
17 For the Lamb, which is in the midst of the throne, shall govern them, and shall lead them unto the lively fountains of waters, and (B)God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
31 ¶ (A)[a]Another parable he put forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man taketh and soweth in his field:
32 Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and it is a tree, so that the birds of heaven come and build in the branches thereof.
33 ¶ (B)Another parable spake he to them, The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman taketh and hideth in three pecks of meal, till all be leavened.
34 ¶ (C)All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables, and without parables spake he not unto them,
35 That it might be fulfilled, which was spoken by the Prophet, saying, (D)I will open my mouth in parables, and will utter the things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.
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