Book of Common Prayer
Protestation of Integrity and Prayer for Protection.
A Psalm of David.
26 [a](A)Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have (B)walked in my integrity,
And I have (C)trusted in the Lord [b](D)without wavering.
2 (E)Examine me, O Lord, and try me;
(F)Test my [c]mind and my heart.
3 For Your (G)lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And I have (H)walked in Your [d]truth.
4 I do not (I)sit with [e]deceitful men,
Nor will I go with [f](J)pretenders.
5 I (K)hate the assembly of evildoers,
And I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I shall (L)wash my hands in innocence,
And I will go about (M)Your altar, O Lord,
7 That I may proclaim with the voice of (N)thanksgiving
And declare all Your [g]wonders.
8 O Lord, I (O)love the habitation of Your house
And the place [h]where Your (P)glory dwells.
9 (Q)Do not [i]take my soul away along with sinners,
Nor my life with (R)men of bloodshed,
10 In whose hands is a (S)wicked scheme,
And whose right hand is full of (T)bribes.
11 But as for me, I shall (U)walk in my integrity;
(V)Redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12 (W)My foot stands on a (X)level place;
In the (Y)congregations I shall bless the Lord.
A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer.
A Psalm of David.
28 To You, O Lord, I call;
My (A)rock, do not be deaf to me,
For if You (B)are silent to me,
I will become like those who (C)go down to the pit.
2 Hear the (D)voice of my supplications when I cry to You for help,
When I (E)lift up my hands (F)toward [a]Your holy (G)sanctuary.
3 (H)Do not drag me away with the wicked
And with those who work iniquity,
Who (I)speak peace with their neighbors,
While evil is in their hearts.
4 Requite them (J)according to their work and according to the evil of their practices;
Requite them according to the deeds of their hands;
Repay them their [b]recompense.
5 Because they (K)do not regard the works of the Lord
Nor the deeds of His hands,
He will tear them down and not build them up.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
Because He (L)has heard the voice of my supplication.
7 The Lord is my (M)strength and my (N)shield;
My heart (O)trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore (P)my heart exults,
And with (Q)my song I shall thank Him.
8 The Lord is [c]their (R)strength,
And He is a [d](S)saving defense to His anointed.
9 (T)Save Your people and bless (U)Your inheritance;
Be their (V)shepherd also, and (W)carry them forever.
Wickedness of Men and Lovingkindness of God.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord.
36 Transgression speaks to the ungodly within [a]his heart;
There is (A)no fear of God before his eyes.
2 For [b]it (B)flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
3 The (C)words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has (D)ceased to [c]be wise and to do good.
4 He (E)plans wickedness upon his bed;
He sets himself on a (F)path that is not good;
He (G)does not despise evil.
5 Your (H)lovingkindness, O Lord, [d]extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
6 Your (I)righteousness is like the [e]mountains of God;
Your (J)judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, You (K)preserve man and beast.
7 How (L)precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men (M)take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
8 They (N)drink their fill of the [f]abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the (O)river of Your delights.
9 For with You is the (P)fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.
The Vanity of Life.
For the choir director, for [a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (A)guard my ways
That I (B)may not sin with my tongue;
I will guard (C)my mouth as with a muzzle
While the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was (D)mute [b]and silent,
I [c]refrained even from good,
And my [d]sorrow grew worse.
3 My (E)heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Lord, make me to know (F)my end
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how (G)transient I am.
5 “Behold, You have made (H)my days as handbreadths,
And my (I)lifetime as nothing in Your sight;
Surely every man [e]at his best is [f]a mere (J)breath. [g]Selah.
6 “Surely every man (K)walks about as [h]a phantom;
Surely they make an (L)uproar for nothing;
He (M)amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.
7 “And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My (N)hope is in You.
8 “(O)Deliver me from all my transgressions;
Make me not the (P)reproach of the foolish.
9 “I have become (Q)mute, I do not open my mouth,
Because it is (R)You who have done it.
10 “(S)Remove Your plague from me;
Because of (T)the opposition of Your hand I am [i]perishing.
11 “With (U)reproofs You chasten a man for iniquity;
You (V)consume as a moth what is precious to him;
Surely (W)every man is a mere breath. Selah.
Amos Accused, Answers
10 Then Amaziah, the (A)priest of Bethel, sent word to (B)Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has (C)conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is unable to endure all his words. 11 For thus Amos says, ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’” 12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “(D)Go, you seer, flee away to the land of Judah and there eat bread and there do your prophesying! 13 But (E)no longer prophesy at Bethel, for it is a (F)sanctuary of the king and a royal [a]residence.”
14 Then Amos replied to Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, nor am I the (G)son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a [b]grower of sycamore figs. 15 But the Lord took me from [c]following the flock and the Lord said to me, ‘Go (H)prophesy to My people Israel.’ 16 Now hear the word of the Lord: you are saying, ‘You (I)shall not prophesy against Israel (J)nor shall you [d]speak against the house of Isaac.’ 17 Therefore, thus says the Lord, ‘Your (K)wife will become a harlot in the city, your (L)sons and your daughters will fall by the sword, your land will be parceled up by a measuring line and you yourself will die [e]upon (M)unclean soil. Moreover, Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’”
The Patmos Vision
9 (A)I, John, your (B)brother and (C)fellow partaker in the tribulation and (D)kingdom and [a](E)perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos (F)because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was [b](G)in the Spirit on (H)the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice (I)like the sound of a trumpet, 11 saying, “(J)Write in a [c]book what you see, and send it to the (K)seven churches: to (L)Ephesus and to (M)Smyrna and to (N)Pergamum and to (O)Thyatira and to (P)Sardis and to (Q)Philadelphia and to (R)Laodicea.”
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw (S)seven golden lampstands; 13 and (T)in the middle of the lampstands I saw one (U)like [d]a son of man, (V)clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and (W)girded across His chest with a golden sash. 14 His head and His (X)hair were white like white wool, like snow; and (Y)His eyes were like a flame of fire. 15 His (Z)feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His (AA)voice was like the sound of many waters. 16 In His right hand He held (AB)seven stars, and out of His mouth came a (AC)sharp two-edged sword; and His (AD)face was like (AE)the sun [e]shining in its strength.
34 (A)But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced (B)the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together. 35 One of them, [a](C)a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And He said to him, “‘(D)You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the great and [b]foremost commandment. 39 The second is like it, ‘(E)You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 (F)On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
41 (G)Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: 42 “What do you think about [c]the Christ, whose son is He?” They *said to Him, “(H)The son of David.” 43 He *said to them, “Then how does David [d](I)in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying,
44 ‘(J)The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
Until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet”’?
45 If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?” 46 (K)No one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him [e]another question.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.