Book of Common Prayer

70 To the victory, [the psalm] of David, to have mind. God, behold thou into mine help; Lord, haste thou to help me. (To victory, the song of David, to bring to mind or remembrance. God, look thou to help me; Lord, hasten thou to help me.)^[a]

² Be they shamed, and ashamed; that seek my life. Be they turned aback; and shame they, that will evils to me. (Be they shamed, and ashamed; all who seek to take my life. Be they turned back, and be ashamed; all who desire evil for me.)

³ Be they turned away anon, and shame they; that say to me, Well! well! (Be they turned away at once, and be they ashamed; who scornfully say to me, Well! well!)

⁴ All men that seek thee, make fully joy, and be glad in thee; and they that love thine health, say ever[more], The Lord be magnified. (But let all those who seek thee, make full out joy, or rejoice, and be glad in thee; and let those who love thy salvation, or thy deliverance, say forevermore, The Lord be magnified.)

⁵ Forsooth I am a needy man, and poor (But I am a poor and needy man); God help thou me. Thou art mine helper and my deliverer; Lord, tarry thou not.

71 Lord, I hoped in thee; be I not shamed [into] without end; (Lord, I put my trust in thee; never let me be put to shame;)

² in thy rightwiseness deliver thou me, and ravish me out. Bow down thine ear to me; and make me safe. (in thy righteousness save thou me, and rescue me. Bow down thy ear to me; and save me.)

³ Be thou to me into God a defender; and into a strengthened place, that thou make me safe. For thou art my steadfastness; and my refuge. (God, be thou my defender; and a place of strength, where I shall be safe. For thou art my steadfastness; and my refuge.)

⁴ My God, deliver thou me from the hand of the sinner; and from the hand of a man doing against the law, and of the wicked man. (My God, rescue thou me from the power of the sinner; and from the power of the law-breakers, and of the wicked.)

⁵ For thou, Lord, art my patience (For thou, Lord, art whom I put my trust in); Lord, thou art mine hope from my youth.

⁶ In thee I am confirmed, that is, defended, from the womb; thou art my defender from the womb of my mother. My singing is ever[more] in thee (My praises shall be to thee forevermore);

⁷ I am made as a great wonder to many men; and thou art a strong helper. (I am made a great example to many men; but thou art my strong helper.)

⁸ My mouth be filled with praising; that I sing thy glory, all day thy greatness. (My mouth shall be filled with praise; and I shall sing of thy glory, and of thy greatness, all day long.)

⁹ Cast thou not away me in the time of eld (age)/in the time of oldness; when my strength faileth, forsake thou not me. (Cast thou me not away in the time of old age; when my strength faileth, desert thou me not.)

¹⁰ For mine enemies said of me; and they that kept my life made counsel together. (For my enemies spoke against me; those who laid ambush for me took counsel together.)

¹¹ Saying, God hath forsaken him; pursue ye, and take him; for none there is that shall deliver. (And they said, God hath deserted him; pursue ye after him, and take hold of him; for there is no one who will save him.)

¹² God, be thou not made afar from me; my God, behold thou into mine help. (God, be thou not made far away from me; my God, hasten thou to help me.)

¹³ Men that backbite my soul, be shamed, and fail they; and be they covered with reproof and shame, that seek evils to me. (Let those who backbite me be shamed, and fail they; let those who seek evil for me, be covered with reproach and shame.)

¹⁴ But I shall hope ever[more]; and I shall add to ever over all thy praising. (But I shall have hope in thee forevermore; and I shall praise thee more and more.)

¹⁵ My mouth shall tell thy rightfulness; all day thine health. For I knew not (by) literature, that is, by man’s teaching, but by God’s revelation, (My mouth shall tell out thy righteousness; and thy salvation, or thy deliverance, all day long. For I know not by literature, that is, by man’s teaching, or by reading and study, but by the revelation of God.)

¹⁶ I shall enter into the powers of the Lord; Lord, I shall bethink on thy rightfulness alone. (I shall walk in the Lord’s strength; I shall tell out thy righteousness, thine alone.)

¹⁷ God, thou hast taught me from my youth, and till to now; I shall tell out thy marvels. (God, thou hast taught me from my youth; and I have told out all thy marvellous deeds.)

¹⁸ And till into eld (age)/into oldness, and the last age; God, forsake thou not me. Till I tell thine arm, or power, to each generation that shall come. (And now in my old age, and in the last moments; O God, do not thou desert, or abandon, me. And I shall tell of thy power, or of thy might, to each generation yet to come.)

¹⁹ Till I tell (of) thy might, and thy rightfulness, God, till into the highest great deeds which thou hast done; God, who is like thee? (Yea, until I tell of thy might, or of thy power, and thy righteousness, O God; and of the greatest deeds which thou hast done! O God, who is like thee!)

²⁰ How great tribulations, many and evil, hast thou showed to me; and thou converted, hast quickened me, and hast again-brought me again from the depths of earth. (What great troubles, many and evil, thou hast sent me! and then turned, thou hast granted me life, and hast brought me up again from the watery depths of the earth/and hast brought me up again from the grave.)

²¹ Thou hast multiplied thy great doing; and thou converted (and thou turned), hast comforted me.

²² For why and I shall acknowledge to thee, thou God, thy truth in the instruments of psalm; I shall sing in an harp to thee, that art the holy of Israel. (And I shall praise thee, O God, for thy faithfulness, with the instruments of song; I shall sing to thee on a harp, O Holy One of Israel.)

²³ My lips shall make fully joy, when I shall sing to thee; and my soul, which thou again-boughtest. (My lips shall make full out joy, when I shall sing to thee; as will my soul, which thou hast bought back, or redeemed.)

²⁴ But and my tongue shall think all day on thy rightfulness; when they shall be shamed and ashamed, that seek evils to me. (And my tongue shall tell of thy righteousness all day long; and they, who seek evil for me, shall be shamed, and ashamed.)

74 The learning of Asaph. God, why hast thou put (us) away into the end; thy strong vengeance is wroth on the sheep of thy pasture? (The teaching of Asaph. God, why hast thou deserted us? is it forever? and why is thy anger, yea, thy fury, so strong against the sheep of thy pasture?)

² Be thou mindful of thy gathering together; which thou haddest in possession from the beginning. Thou again-boughtest the rod of thine heritage; the hill of Zion, in which thou dwelledest therein. (Remember thy congregation; whom thou haddest in possession since the old days. Thou redeemedest this tribe for thy inheritance. And remember Mount Zion; where thou dwelledest.)

³ Raise thine hands into the prides of them; how great things the enemy did wickedly in the holy (place). (How greatly wicked were the things that the enemy did in the holy place; raise up thy hands against their pride.)

⁴ And they that hated thee; had glory in the midst of thy solemnity. They setted their signs, either banners, to be signs on the highest (place), as in the out-going; and they knew not. (For they who hated thee, had glory in the midst of thy holy place. They set up their signs, or their banners, there, as signs of victory.)

⁵ As in a wood of trees, they hewed down with axes the gates thereof into itself; (Like in a forest, they hewed down its gates with their axes, as if they were woodsmen;)

⁶ they casted down it with an ax, and a broad falling ax. (they threw them down with their axes, yea, with their broad falling axes.)

⁷ They burnt with fire thy saintuary; they defouled the tabernacle of thy name in earth. (They burned thy sanctuary with fire; they defiled the Temple of thy name, and razed it to the ground.)

⁸ The kindred of them said together in their heart; Make we all the feast days of God to cease in the earth. (They said in their hearts, Let us altogether destroy them; and they burned down all the synagogues of God in the land/and they burned down all the holy places of God in the land.)

⁹ We have not seen our signs, now there is no prophet; and he shall no more know us. (We cannot see our signs, that is, the future, for now there is no prophet here; and none of us know how long this shall last.)

¹⁰ God, how long shall the enemy say despite? the adversary stirreth to ire thy name into the end. (God, how long shall the enemy show their despising of us? shall the adversary scorn thy name forever?)

¹¹ Why turnest thou away thine hand, and to (not) draw out thy right hand from the midst of thy bosom, till into the end? (Why turnest thou away thy hand, and why draw thou not out thy right hand from the midst of thy bosom?)

¹² Forsooth God our king before worlds, wrought health in the midst of earth. (But God, our King forever, hath given salvation, or deliverance, all the world over.)

¹³ Thou madest firm the sea by thy virtue; thou hast troubled the heads of the dragons in waters. (Thou dividedest the sea by thy strength, or thy power; thou hast broken the heads of the dragons in the water/thou hast broken the heads of the Dragon in the water.)

¹⁴ Thou hast broken the heads of the dragon; thou hast given him to be meat to the peoples of Ethiopians. (Thou hast broken the heads of the Dragon, or of Leviathan; thou hast given him to be food for the peoples of the desert.)

¹⁵ Thou hast broken wells, and strands; thou madest dry the floods of Eitan. (Thou hast broken open the wells, or the springs, and the streams; thou hast dried up the mighty rivers.)

¹⁶ The day is thine, and the night is thine; thou madest the morrowtide and the sun.

¹⁷ Thou madest all the ends of the earth; summer, and ver time, either springing time (or spring time), thou formedest those.

¹⁸ Be thou mindful of this thing, the enemy hath said shame to the Lord; and the unwise people hath excited to ire thy name. (Remember this, that the enemy hath said shame to the Lord; and that the foolish and the ignorant have scorned thy name.)

¹⁹ Betake thou not (over) to beasts men acknowledging to thee; and forget thou not into the end the souls of thy poor men. (Give thou not over to beasts those who confess thee; and forget thou not forever the suffering of thy poor.)

²⁰ Behold into thy testament; for they that be made dark of (the) earth, be [full-]filled with the houses of wickednesses. (Remember thy covenant; for the dark places of the earth, be filled full with the houses of wickedness.)

²¹ A meek man be not turned away made ashamed; a poor man and needy shall praise thy name. (Let not the humble be turned away, and be made ashamed; yea, let the poor and the needy praise thy name.)

²² God, rise up, deem thou thy cause; be thou mindful of thy shames, either upbraidings, of those that be all day of the unwise man. (God, rise up, defend thou thy own case; remember the reproaches, or the upbraidings, that come to thee all day long, from the foolish and the ignorant.)

²³ Forget thou not the voices of thine enemies; the pride of them that hate thee ascendeth ever[more]. (Do not thou forget the words, or the shouts, of thy enemies; the noise of those who hate thee goeth up forevermore.)

7 And after these words, Ezra, the son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah,

² son of Shallum, son of Zadok, son of Ahitub,

³ son of Amariah, son of Azariah, son of Meraioth,

⁴ son of Zerahiah, son of Uzzi, son of Bukki,

⁵ son of Abishua, son of Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, priest at the beginning (the chief priest, or the High Priest), this Ezra was (serving God) in the realm of Artaxerxes, king of Persia;

⁶ that Ezra went up from Babylon, and he was a swift writer in the law of Moses (this Ezra left Babylon, and he was a writer, or a teacher, learned in the Law of Moses), which the Lord God of Israel gave; and the king gave to him all his asking, by the good hand of his Lord God on him.

⁷ And in the seventh year of Artaxerxes (the) king, there went up into Jerusalem men of the sons of Israel, and of the sons of priests, and of the sons of deacons, and of singers, and of porters, and of Nethinims. (And in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes, some men of the Israelites, and of the sons of the priests, and of the sons of the Levites, and some of the singers, and the guards, or the doorkeepers, and the Temple workers, went up with Ezra to Jerusalem.)

⁸ And they came into Jerusalem in the fifth month; that is (in) the seventh year of the king(‘s) (reign).

⁹ And in the first day of the first month Ezra began to go up from Babylon, and in the first day of the fifth month he came into Jerusalem, by the good hand, or help, of the God of him. (Yea, on the first day of the first month Ezra left Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came into Jerusalem, by the good hand, or the help, of his God.)

¹⁰ And Ezra (had) made ready his heart to inquire (of) the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel the behest and doom of the Lord. (And Ezra had devoted his heart to inquire into the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach its rules and regulations in Israel/and to teach its rules and regulations to the Israelites.)

¹¹ Soothly this is the exemplar of the epistle of the commandment, which the king Artaxerxes gave to Ezra, (the) priest, (a) writer learned in the words and commandments of the Lord, and in his ceremonies in Israel. (And this is the text of the letter of the decree, which King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra, the priest, a writer learned in the Law of the Lord, and a teacher of its rules and regulations, to the people of Israel.)

¹² (I,) Artaxerxes, king of kings, desireth health to Ezra, the priest (desireth good favour for Ezra, the priest), the most wise writer of the law of (the) God of heaven.

¹³ It is deemed of me, that whomever it pleaseth in my realm of the people of Israel, and of his priests, and deacons, to go into Jerusalem, go he with thee. (It is decreed by me, that whomever in my kingdom of the people of Israel, or of its priests, or of its Levites, desireth to go up to Jerusalem, go he with thee/may go with thee.)

¹⁴ For thou art sent from the presence of the king, and of his seven counsellors, that thou visit Judaea and Jerusalem in the law of thy God, which is in thy hand; (For thou art sent from the presence of the king, and of his seven counsellors, or his officials, so that thou visit the people of Judah and Jerusalem, to see how well they obey the Law of thy God, which is entrusted to thee;)

¹⁵ and that thou bear (the) silver and (the) gold, which the king and his counsellors, (or his officials,) have offered by free will to [the] God of Israel, whose tabernacle is in Jerusalem.

¹⁶ And take thou freely all the silver and gold, whatever thou findest in all the province of Babylon, and that that the people will offer, and of priests that offered by free will to the house of their God, which is in Jerusalem; (And take thou all the silver and the gold, whatever thou findest in all the province of Babylon, and what the people, and the priests, offer by free will for the House of their God, which is in Jerusalem;)

¹⁷ and buy thou busily of this money calves, rams, lambs, and other offerings, and [the] moist sacrifices of those (and with this money prudently buy thou calves, and rams, and lambs, and other offerings, and the proper grain and wine offerings); and offer thou those upon the altar of the temple of your God, which temple is in Jerusalem.

¹⁸ But over this also if any thing pleaseth to thee, and to thy brethren, to do of the silver and gold that leaveth, do ye it by the will of your God; (And over this, whatever thing pleaseth thee, and thy fellows, to do with the silver and the gold that be left, do ye it according to the will of your God;)

¹⁹ also betake thou in the sight of (the) God in Jerusalem the vessels, that be given into the service of the house of thy God. (and regarding those vessels, that were given to thee for the service of the House of thy God, deliver thou them to thy God in Jerusalem.)

²⁰ But also thou shalt give (out) of the treasure (house) of the king, and of the common ark, either purse, (or coffer,) and of men other things, that be needful in the house of thy God, as much (as) ever as (it) is needful, that thou spend. (And for any other thing that be needed in the House of thy God, as much as it is needed that thou spend, thou shalt take it from the king’s treasury.)

²¹ I, Artaxerxes, king, have ordained, and deemed, to all the keepers of the common ark, or hutch (or purse, or coffer), that be beyond the flood, that whatever thing Ezra, the priest, (the) writer of the law of (the) God of heaven, asketh of you, ye give it without tarrying, (And I, King Artaxerxes, command to all the treasurers who be in the province west of the Euphrates River, that whatever Ezra, the priest, the teacher of the Law of the God of heaven, asketh of you, give ye it to him without any hesitation,)

²² unto an hundred talents of silver, and (un)to an hundred cors of wheat, and unto an hundred baths of wine, and unto an hundred baths of oil, and salt without measure.

²³ All thing that pertaineth to the custom, either religion, of (the) God of heaven, be given diligently in the house of (the) God of heaven, lest peradventure he be wroth against the realm of the king, and of his sons. (Yea, let all the things that be demanded by the God of heaven, be diligently given for the House of the God of heaven, lest peradventure he be angry against the kingdom of the king, and of his sons.)

²⁴ Also we make known to you of all the priests, and deacons, singers, and porters, and Nethinims, and ministers of the house of this God, that ye have not power to put on them toll, and tribute, and other costs for keeping of the land. (And we also make known to you, that ye have no power, or authority, to put tolls, or tribute, or any other kind of taxes, for the upkeep of the land, on any of the priests, or the Levites, or the singers, or the guards, or the doorkeepers, or the Temple workers, or the ministers in the House of God.)

²⁵ But thou, Ezra, by the wisdom of thy God, that is in thine hand, ordain judges and governors, that they deem [all] the people, that is beyond the flood, that is, to them that know the law of thy God, and the law of the king; but also teach ye freely unknowing men. (And thou, Ezra, by the wisdom of thy God, which thou hast been given, ordain judges and governors to judge all the people who be in the province west of the Euphrates River, that is, those who know the Law of thy God, and the law of the king; and also freely teach ye unknowing men.)

²⁶ And each man, that doeth not diligently the law of thy God, and the law of the king, this doom shall be of him, either into death, either into exiling, either into losing of his chattel, either certainly into prison. (And any person, who obeyeth not the Law of thy God, and the law of the king, this sentence shall be for him, either death, or exile, or the loss of his chattel, or of his possessions, or imprisonment.)

14 And I saw, and lo! a lamb stood on the mount of Sion, and with him an hundred thousand and four and forty thousand [And I saw, and lo! the lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred and four and forty thousand], having his name, and the name of his Father written in their foreheads.

² And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder; and the voice which I heard, was as of many harpers harping in their harps [and the voice which I heard, as of harpers harping in their harps].

³ And they sung as a new song before the seat of God, and before the four beasts, and the elder men [and the seniors]. And no man might say the song, but those hundred thousand and four and forty thousand [no but they an hundred and four and forty thousand], that be bought from the earth.

⁴ These it be, that be not defouled with women; for they be virgins. These follow the lamb, whither ever he shall go; these be bought of all men, the first fruits to God, and to the lamb;

⁵ and in the mouth of them lying is not found; for they be without wem before the throne of God.

⁶ And I saw another angel, flying by the middle of heaven, having an everlasting gospel [having the everlasting gospel], that he should preach to men sitting on the earth, and on each folk [and upon all folk], and lineage, and language, and people;

⁷ and said [saying] with a great voice, Dread ye the Lord, and give ye to him honour, for the hour of his doom cometh; and worship ye him, that made heaven and earth, the sea, and all things that be in them, and the wells of waters.

⁸ And another angel followed, saying, That great [city] Babylon fell down, fell down, which gave drink to all folks of the wine of [the] wrath of her fornication.

⁹ And the third angel followed them, and said [saying] with a great voice, If any man worship the beast, and the image of it, and taketh the character in his forehead, either in his hand [and take the character in his forehand, or in his hand],

¹⁰ this shall drink of the wine of God's wrath, that is mingled with clear wine in the cup of his wrath, and [he] shall be tormented with fire and brimstone, in the sight of [the] holy angels, and before the sight of the lamb.

¹¹ And the smoke of their torments shall ascend up into the worlds of worlds [And the smoke of their torments shall ascend up into worlds of worlds]; neither they have rest day and night, which worship the beast and his image [that worship the beast, and his image], and if any take the character of his name.

¹² Here is the patience of saints, which keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

¹³ And I heard a voice from heaven, saying to me, Write thou, Blessed be dead men [Blessed the dead], that die in the Lord; from henceforth now the Spirit saith, that they rest of their travails; for the works of them follow them.

14 In that time Herod tetrarch, [that is,] prince of the fourth part, heard the fame of Jesus;

² and said to his children, This is John Baptist, he is risen from death, and therefore works of power work in him. [and said to his children, This is John Baptist, he hath risen from dead, and therefore virtues work in him.]

³ For Herod had held John, and bound him, and putted him in prison for Herodias [and put him into prison for Herodias], the wife of his brother.

⁴ For John said to him, It is not leaveful to thee to have her.

⁵ And he willing to slay him, dreaded the people; for they had him as a prophet.

⁶ But in the day of Herod's birth, the daughter of Herodias danced in the middle, and pleased Herod.

⁷ Wherefore with an oath he promised to give to her, whatever thing she asked of him.

⁸ And she before-warned of her mother, said, Give thou to me here the head of John Baptist in a dish.

⁹ And the king was sorrowful, but for the oath, and for them that sat together at the meat, he commanded to be given.

¹⁰ And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.

¹¹ And his head was brought in a dish, and it was given to the damsel, and she bare it to her mother.

¹² And his disciples came, and took his body, and buried it; and they came, and told to Jesus.