Book of Common Prayer
God Implored to Confound His Enemies.
A Song, a Psalm of Asaph.
83 God, (A)do not remain quiet;
(B)Do not be silent and, God, do not be still.
2 For behold, Your enemies (C)make an uproar,
And (D)those who hate You have [a](E)exalted themselves.
3 They (F)make shrewd plans against Your people,
And [b]conspire together against (G)Your [c]treasured ones.
4 They have said, “Come, and (H)let’s wipe them out [d]as a nation,
So that the (I)name of Israel will no longer be remembered.”
5 For they have [e](J)conspired together with one mind;
They make a covenant against You:
6 The tents of (K)Edom and the (L)Ishmaelites,
(M)Moab and the (N)Hagrites;
7 (O)Gebal, (P)Ammon, and (Q)Amalek,
(R)Philistia with the inhabitants of (S)Tyre;
8 (T)Assyria also has joined them;
They have become [f]a help to the (U)children of Lot. Selah
9 Deal with them (V)as with Midian,
As (W)with Sisera and Jabin at the river of Kishon,
10 Who were destroyed at En-dor,
Who (X)became like dung for the ground.
11 Make their nobles like (Y)Oreb and Zeeb,
And all their leaders like (Z)Zebah and Zalmunna,
12 Who said, “(AA)Let’s possess for ourselves
The (AB)pastures of God.”
13 My God, make them like the [g](AC)whirling dust,
Like (AD)chaff before the wind.
14 Like (AE)fire that burns the forest,
And like a flame that (AF)sets the mountains on fire,
15 So pursue them (AG)with Your heavy gale,
And terrify them with Your storm.
16 (AH)Fill their faces with dishonor,
So that they will seek Your name, Lord.
17 May they be (AI)ashamed and dismayed forever,
And may they be humiliated and perish,
18 So that they will (AJ)know that (AK)You alone, whose name is the Lord,
Are the (AL)Most High over all the earth.
BOOK 2
Thirsting for God in Trouble and Exile.
For the music director. A [a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.
42 As the deer [b]pants for the water brooks,
So my soul [c](A)pants for You, God.
2 My soul (B)thirsts for God, for the (C)living God;
When shall I come and [d](D)appear before God?
3 My (E)tears have been my food day and night,
While they (F)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
4 I remember these things and (G)pour out my soul within me.
For I (H)used to go over with the multitude and walk them to the house of God,
With a voice of (I)joy and thanksgiving, a multitude celebrating a festival.
5 (J)Why are you [e](K)in despair, my soul?
And why are you (L)restless within me?
(M)Wait for God, for I will [f]again praise [g]Him
For the [h](N)help of His [i]presence, my God.
6 My soul is [j]in despair within me;
Therefore I (O)remember You from (P)the land of the Jordan
And the [k]peaks of (Q)Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your (R)breakers and Your waves have passed over me.
8 The Lord will (S)send His goodness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me (T)in the night,
A prayer to (U)the God of my life.
9 I will say to God (V)my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go about (W)mourning [l]because of the (X)oppression of the enemy?”
10 As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries taunt me,
While they (Y)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
11 (Z)Why are you [m]in despair, my soul?
And why are you restless within me?
Wait for God, for I will again praise [n]Him
For the [o]help of His presence, my God.
Prayer for Help.
43 (AA)Vindicate me, God, and (AB)plead my case against an ungodly nation;
[p]Save me from (AC)the deceitful and unjust person!
2 For You are the (AD)God of my strength; why have You (AE)rejected me?
Why do I go about (AF)mourning [q]because of the oppression of the enemy?
Prayer for God’s Mercy upon the Nation.
For the music director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
85 Lord, You showed (A)favor to Your land;
You (B)restored the fortunes of Jacob.
2 You (C)forgave the guilt of Your people;
You (D)covered all their sin. Selah
3 You (E)withdrew all Your fury;
You (F)turned away from Your burning anger.
4 (G)Restore us, God of our salvation,
And (H)cause Your indignation toward us to cease.
5 Will (I)You be angry with us forever?
Will You prolong Your anger to [a]all generations?
6 Will You not [b](J)revive us again,
So that Your people may (K)rejoice in You?
7 Show us Your mercy, Lord,
And (L)grant us Your salvation.
8 [c]I will hear what God the Lord will say;
For He will (M)speak peace to His people, to His godly ones;
And may they not (N)turn back to [d]foolishness.
9 Certainly (O)His salvation is near to those who [e]fear Him,
That (P)glory may dwell in our land.
10 (Q)Graciousness and [f]truth have met together;
(R)Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
11 [g]Truth (S)sprouts from the earth,
And righteousness looks down from heaven.
12 Indeed, (T)the Lord will give what is good,
And our (U)land will yield its produce.
13 (V)Righteousness will go before Him
And will make His footsteps into a way.
Pleading and Trust.
A Prayer of David.
86 (W)Incline Your ear, Lord, and answer me;
For I am (X)afflicted and needy.
2 (Y)Protect my [h]soul, for I am (Z)godly;
You my God, save Your servant who (AA)trusts in You.
3 Be (AB)gracious to me, Lord,
For (AC)I call upon You all day long.
4 Make the soul of Your servant joyful,
For to You, Lord, (AD)I lift up my soul.
5 For You, Lord, are (AE)good, and (AF)ready to forgive,
And (AG)abundant in mercy to all who call upon You.
6 (AH)Listen, Lord, to my prayer;
And give Your attention to the sound of my pleading!
7 On (AI)the day of my trouble I will call upon You,
For (AJ)You will answer me.
8 There is (AK)no one like You among the gods, Lord,
Nor are there any works (AL)like Yours.
9 (AM)All nations whom You have made will come and worship before You, Lord,
And they will glorify Your name.
10 For You are (AN)great, and You (AO)do [i]wondrous deeds;
You alone (AP)are God.
11 (AQ)Teach me Your way, Lord;
I will walk in Your truth;
(AR)Unite my heart to fear Your name.
12 I will (AS)give thanks to You, Lord my God, with all my heart,
And I will glorify Your name forever.
13 For Your graciousness toward me is great,
And You have (AT)saved my soul from the [j]depths of [k]Sheol.
14 God, arrogant men have (AU)risen up against me,
And a gang of violent men have sought my [l]life,
And they have not set You before them.
15 But You, Lord, are a (AV)compassionate and gracious God,
Slow to anger and abundant in mercy and [m]truth.
16 (AW)Turn to me, and be gracious to me;
(AX)Grant Your strength to Your servant,
And save the (AY)son of Your maidservant.
17 (AZ)Show me a sign of good,
That those who hate me may (BA)see it and be ashamed,
Because You, Lord, (BB)have helped me and comforted me.
Jacob Moves to Egypt
46 So Israel set out with all that he had, and came to (A)Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the (B)God of his father Isaac. 2 And (C)God spoke to Israel [a]in visions of the night and said, “(D)Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” 3 Then He said, “(E)I am God, the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will (F)make you into a great nation there. 4 (G)I will go down with you to Egypt, and (H)I will also assuredly bring you up again; and (I)Joseph will [b]close your eyes.”
5 Then Jacob left Beersheba, and the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob and their little ones and their wives in the (J)wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 They also took their livestock and their possessions, which they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and (K)came to Egypt, Jacob and all his [c]descendants with him: 7 his sons and his grandsons with him, his daughters and his granddaughters, and all his [d]descendants he brought with him to Egypt.
28 Now Jacob sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph, to [a]guide him to (A)Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen. 29 And Joseph [b]prepared his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel; as soon as he appeared to him, Joseph threw himself on his neck and (B)wept on his neck a long time. 30 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive.” 31 But Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “(C)I will go up and tell Pharaoh, and will say to him, ‘My brothers and my father’s household, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me; 32 and the men are shepherds, for they have been [c]keepers of livestock; and they have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have.’ 33 When Pharaoh calls for you and says, ‘(D)What is your occupation?’ 34 you shall say, ‘Your servants have been [d](E)keepers of livestock since our youth even until now, both we and our fathers,’ so that you may live in the land of (F)Goshen; for every shepherd is an (G)abomination to the Egyptians.”
Paul’s Use of Freedom
9 Am I not (A)free? Am I not an (B)apostle? Have I not (C)seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not (D)my work in the Lord? 2 If I am not an apostle to others, at least I am to you; for you are the (E)seal of my (F)apostleship in the Lord.
3 My defense to those who examine me is this: 4 [a](G)Do we not have a right to eat and drink? 5 [b](H)Do we not have a right to take along a [c]believing wife, even as the rest of the apostles and the (I)brothers of the Lord, and [d](J)Cephas? 6 Or do only [e](K)Barnabas and I have no right to refrain from [f]working? 7 Who at any time serves (L)as a soldier at his own expense? Who (M)plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not [g]consume some of the milk of the flock?
8 I am not just asserting these things (N)according to human judgment, am I? Or does the Law not say these things as well? 9 For it is written in the Law of Moses: “(O)You shall not muzzle the ox while it is threshing.” God is not concerned about (P)oxen, is He? 10 Or is He speaking entirely for our sake? Yes, it was written (Q)for our sake, because (R)the plowman ought to plow in hope, and the thresher to thresh in hope of sharing in the crops. 11 (S)If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? 12 If others share the right over you, do we not more? Nevertheless, we (T)did not use this right, but we endure all things (U)so that we will cause no hindrance to the (V)gospel of Christ. 13 (W)Do you not know that those who (X)perform sacred services eat the food of the temple, and those who attend regularly to the altar have their share [h]from the altar? 14 So also (Y)the Lord directed those who proclaim the (Z)gospel to (AA)get their living from the gospel.
15 But I have (AB)used none of these things. And I have not written these things so that it will be done so in my case; for it would be better for me to die than that. No one shall make (AC)my boast an empty one!
30 (A)The (B)apostles *gathered together with Jesus; and they reported to Him all that they had done and taught. 31 And He *said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a little while.” (For there were many people coming and going, and (C)they did not even have time to eat.) 32 (D)And they went away in (E)the boat to a secluded place by themselves.
Five Thousand Men Fed
33 The people saw them going, and many recognized them and ran there together on foot from all the cities, and got there ahead of them. 34 When Jesus went [a]ashore, He (F)saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because (G)they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things. 35 And when it was already late, His disciples came up to Him and said, “[b]This place is secluded and it is already late; 36 send them away so that they may go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves [c]something to eat.” 37 But He answered them, “You give them something to eat!” (H)And they *said to Him, “Shall we go and spend two hundred [d](I)denarii on bread, and give it to them to eat?” 38 But He *said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they *said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 And He ordered them all to recline by groups on the green grass. 40 They reclined in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He (J)blessed the food and broke the loaves and He gave them to the disciples again and again to set before them; and He divided the two fish among them all. 42 And they all ate and were satisfied; 43 and they picked up twelve full (K)baskets of the broken pieces of bread, and of the fish. 44 There were (L)five thousand [e]men who ate the loaves.
Jesus Walks on the Water
45 (M)And immediately Jesus had His disciples get into (N)the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, to (O)Bethsaida, while He Himself *dismissed the crowd. 46 And after (P)saying goodbye to them, He left (Q)for the mountain to pray.
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