Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer of Faith in Troubled Times
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
31 Lord, I ·trust [seek refuge] in you;
let me never be ·disgraced [shamed].
·Save [Rescue; T Deliver] me ·because you do what is right [in your righteousness].
2 ·Listen [L Incline your ear] to me
and ·save [rescue; T deliver] me quickly.
Be my rock of ·protection [refuge],
a strong ·city [fortress] to save me.
3 You are my rock and my ·protection [fortress].
For the ·good [sake] of your name, lead me and guide me.
4 Set me free from the ·trap [snare; net] they ·set [hid] for me,
because you are my ·protection [refuge].
5 ·I give you my life [L Into your hand I commend my spirit; Luke 23:46].
·Save [Redeem; or You have redeemed] me, Lord, ·God of truth [or faithful God].
6 I hate those who ·worship [serve; have concern for] ·false [worthless] gods.
I ·trust [have confidence] only in the Lord.
7 I will be glad and rejoice in your ·love [loyalty; covenant love],
because you saw my ·suffering [affliction];
you knew ·my troubles [the distress of my soul].
8 You have not handed me over to my enemies
but have ·set me in a safe place [L made my feet stand in a broad place].
9 Lord, ·have mercy [be gracious], because I am in ·misery [distress; trouble].
My eyes ·are weak [waste away; are dim] from so much crying,
·and my whole being is tired [L as is my soul and my body] from grief.
10 My life is ending in ·sadness [sorrow],
and my years are spent ·in crying [L with sighs/moans].
My ·troubles are using up my strength [L strength stumbles in my affliction/misery],
and my bones ·are getting weaker [waste away].
11 Because of all my ·troubles [distress], my enemies ·hate [scorn] me,
and even my neighbors look down on me.
When my ·friends [acquaintances] see me in public,
they are afraid and ·run [flee].
12 I am like a piece of a broken pot.
I am forgotten as if I were dead.
13 I have heard many ·insults [threats].
Terror is all around me.
They make plans against me
and ·want [plot] to kill me.
14 Lord, I ·trust [have confidence in] you.
I have said, “You are my God.”
15 My ·life is [times/fortunes are] in your hands.
·Save [Rescue; T Deliver] me from my enemies
and from those who are ·chasing [pursuing] me.
16 ·Show your kindness to me, [Shine your face on] your servant [Num. 6:25].
Save me because of your ·love [loyalty; covenant love].
17 Lord, I ·called [prayed] to you,
so do not let me be ·disgraced [shamed].
Let the wicked be ·disgraced [shamed]
and lie silent in ·the grave [or the underworld; L Sheol].
18 With pride and hatred
they speak against ·those who do right [the righteous].
So silence their lying lips.
19 How great is your goodness
that you have stored up for those who fear you,
that you have ·given to [L accomplished for] those who ·trust [have confidence in] you.
·You do this for all to see [L …before humanity].
20 You ·protect [hide] them ·by your [L in the shelter of your] presence
from what people plan against them.
You ·shelter them [L store them in shelter] from ·evil words [contentious/accusing tongues].
21 ·Praise [Blessed be] the Lord.
His ·love [loyalty; covenant love] to me was wonderful
when ·my city was attacked [or I was like a city under siege].
22 In my ·distress [alarm], I said,
“·God cannot see me [L I am cut off from your eyes]!”
But you heard my ·prayer [supplication]
when I cried out to you for help.
23 Love the Lord, all you ·who belong to him [loyal ones; saints].
The Lord protects those who ·truly believe [are faithful],
but he ·punishes [repays] ·the proud as much as they have sinned [L those who act with pride].
24 All you who ·put your hope in [wait for] the Lord
be strong and ·brave [L let your heart be courageous].
A Prayer for Help
Of David.
35 Lord, ·battle with [contend with; accuse; bring a charge against] those who ·battle with [contend with; accuse; bring a charge against] me.
Fight against those who fight against me.
2 Pick up the ·shield and armor [L small shield and large shield].
Rise up and help me.
3 Lift up your ·spears [javelins], both large and small,
against those who ·chase [pursue] me.
Tell ·me [L my soul], “I ·will save you [am your salvation/victory].”
4 Make those who ·want to kill me [L seek my life/soul]
be ashamed and ·disgraced [humiliated].
Make those who ·plan to harm me [plot evil against me]
turn back and ·run away [be dismayed].
5 Make them like chaff [C the worthless leftovers from threshing grain] blown by the wind
as the angel of the Lord ·forces [drives] them away.
6 Let their road be dark and slippery
as the angel of the Lord chases them.
7 For no reason they ·spread out [L hid] their ·net [L pit] to trap me;
for no reason they dug a pit for me.
8 So let ruin strike them ·suddenly [or without their awareness].
Let them be caught in their own nets;
let them fall into the pit and ·die [be ruined].
9 Then ·I [my soul] will rejoice in the Lord;
I will be happy when he ·saves me [provides victory for me].
10 Even my bones will say,
“Lord, who is like you?
You ·save [rescue; T deliver] the ·weak [afflicted; or poor] from the strong,
the ·weak [afflicted; or poor] and poor from robbers.”
11 ·Men without mercy stand up to testify [L Violent witnesses rise up].
They ask me things I do not know.
12 They repay me with evil for the good I have done,
and ·they make me very sad [my soul is bereaved].
13 Yet when they were sick, I put on ·clothes of sadness [sackcloth; burlap]
and showed my sorrow by fasting.
But my prayers ·were not answered [L turned back on my bosom].
14 I acted as if they were my ·friends [or neighbors] or brothers.
I ·bowed in sadness as if I were crying [went around as if mourning] for my mother.
15 But when I ·was in trouble [stumbled], they gathered and laughed;
they gathered to attack before I knew it.
They ·insulted [tore at] me without stopping.
16 They made fun of me and were cruel to me
and ·ground [gnashed] their teeth at me in anger.
17 Lord, how long will you watch this happen?
Save my life from their attacks;
·save me from these people who are like [L my life from the] lions.
18 I will ·praise [thank] you in the great ·meeting [assembly].
I will praise you among ·crowds of people [the mighty crowd/throng].
19 Do not let my enemies ·laugh at [rejoice over] me;
they hate me for no reason.
Do not let them ·make fun of me [L wink their eye at me; C a reference to secretive plans or magic; Prov. 6:12–13];
they have no cause to hate me.
20 Their words are not ·friendly [peaceful]
but are lies ·about [or against] ·peace-loving people [L the quiet in the land].
21 They ·speak against me [L open their mouths]
and say, “Aha! ·We saw what you did [Our eyes have seen it]!”
22 Lord, you have been watching. Do not keep quiet.
Lord, do not ·leave me alone [L be far from me].
23 Wake up! ·Come [Arouse yourself] and ·defend [vindicate; show justice to] me!
My God and Lord, ·fight [contend] for me!
24 Lord my God, ·defend [vindicate] me with your justice.
Don’t let them ·laugh at [rejoice over] me.
25 Don’t let them ·think [L say in their hearts], “Aha! We got what we wanted!”
Don’t let them say, “We ·destroyed [L swallowed] him.”
26 Let them be ashamed and ·embarrassed [humiliated],
because they ·were happy [rejoiced] when I hurt.
·Cover [L Clothe] them with shame and disgrace,
because they thought they were better than I was.
27 May ·my friends [L those who want my vindication] sing and shout for joy.
May they always say, “Praise the greatness of the Lord,
who ·loves [delights; takes pleasure] to see ·his servants do well [L the peace/prosperity of his servant].”
28 ·I [L My tongue] will tell of your goodness
and will praise you every day.
10 But Moses said to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been a ·skilled speaker [L man of words]. Even now, after talking to you, I cannot speak well. I ·speak slowly and can’t find the best words [L have a heavy/slow mouth and a heavy/slow tongue].”
11 Then the Lord said to him, “Who made a person’s mouth? And who makes someone deaf or ·not able to speak [mute]? Or who gives a person sight or blindness? It is I, the Lord. 12 Now go! I will ·help you speak [L be with your mouth], and I will teach you what to say.”
13 But Moses said, “Please, Lord, send someone ·else [L you want to send].”
14 The Lord became angry with Moses and said, “[L Do I not know that…?] Your brother Aaron, from the family of Levi, is a ·skilled [fluent; smooth] speaker. He is already coming to meet you, and ·he will be happy [L his heart will rejoice] when he sees you. 15 You will speak to Aaron and ·tell him what to say [L place your words in his mouth]. I will ·help both of you to speak [L be with your mouth and with his mouth] and will teach you what to do. 16 Aaron will speak to the people for you. ·You will tell him what God says, and he will speak for you [L He will be your mouth and you will be like God to him]. 17 Take your ·walking stick [staff; 4:2] ·with you [L in your hand], and use it to do the ·miracles [signs].”
Moses Returns to Egypt
18 Moses went back to Jethro, his father-in-law, and said to him, “Let me go back to my ·people [relatives; brothers; kindred] in Egypt. I want to see if they are still alive.”
Jethro said to Moses, “·Go! I wish you well [L Go in peace].”
19 While Moses was still in Midian, the Lord said to him, “Go back to Egypt, because the men who ·wanted to kill you [L were seeking your life] are dead now.”
20 So Moses took his wife and his sons, put them on a donkey, and started back to Egypt. He took ·with him [L in his hand] the ·walking stick [staff] of God.
21 The Lord said to Moses, “When you get back to Egypt, do all the miracles I have ·given you the power to do [L set in our hand]. Show them to ·the king of Egypt [L Pharaoh]. But I will ·make the king very stubborn [L harden his heart], and he will not let the people go. 22 Then say to ·the king [L Pharaoh], ‘·This is what [Thus] the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son [C the privileged child]. 23 I told you to let my son go so he may ·worship [serve] me. But you refused to let Israel go, so I will kill your firstborn son [11:1–10].’”
24 ·As Moses was on his way to Egypt [L On the way], he stopped at a resting place for the night. The Lord met him there and tried to kill him. 25 But Zipporah took a flint knife and ·circumcised [L cut the foreskin of] her son. Taking the skin, she touched Moses’ feet [C a euphemism for his genitalia] with it and said to him, “You are a bridegroom of blood to me.” 26 She said, “You are a bridegroom of blood,” ·because she had to circumcise her son [L by circumcision]. So the Lord let Moses alone [C this event is difficult to interpret, but shows that circumcision is important to God].
27 Meanwhile the Lord said to Aaron, “Go out into the ·desert [wilderness] to meet Moses.” When Aaron went, he met Moses at Sinai, the mountain of God, and kissed him. 28 Moses ·told [reported to] Aaron everything the Lord had said to him when he sent him to Egypt. He also told him about the miracles [signs] which the Lord had commanded him to do.
29 Moses and Aaron gathered all the elders of the ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel], 30 and Aaron told them everything that the Lord had told Moses. Then Moses did the ·miracles [signs] for all the people to see, 31 and the ·Israelites [L people] ·believed [trusted]. When they heard that the Lord was concerned about them and had seen their ·troubles [afflictions; humiliation], they bowed down and worshiped him.
Desire Spiritual Gifts
14 ·You should seek after [Pursue; Make your aim] love, and ·you should truly want to have [eagerly desire; be zealous for] the spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. 2 ·I will explain why. [L For] Those who ·have the gift of speaking in different languages [or speak with ecstatic utterance; L speak in a tongue; 12:10, 29, 30; 13:1] are not speaking to people; they are speaking to God. No one understands them; they are speaking ·secret things [mysteries] ·through [by; in; with] the Spirit. 3 But those who prophesy are speaking to people ·to give them strength [for edification/upbuilding], encouragement, and ·comfort [consolation]. 4 The ones who speak in different languages are ·helping [edifying; building up] only themselves, but those who prophesy are ·helping [edifying; building up] the whole church. 5 I wish all of you ·had the gift of speaking in different kinds of languages [L spoke in tongues; v. 2], but more, I wish you would prophesy. Those who prophesy are greater than those who ·can only speak in different languages [L speak in tongues; v. 2]—unless someone ·is there who can explain what is said [L interprets (the tongues)] so that the whole church can be ·helped [edified; built up].
6 Brothers and sisters, how will it help you if I come to you speaking in ·different languages [L tongues; v. 2], unless I bring you a ·new truth [revelation] or ·some new knowledge [L knowledge], or prophecy, or teaching? 7 It is the same as with lifeless things that make sounds—like a flute or a harp. If they do not make ·clear [distinct] musical notes, ·you will not [L how will you…?] know what is being played. 8 And in a war, if the trumpet does not give a clear sound, who will prepare for battle? 9 It is the same with you. Unless you speak ·clearly [intelligible words] with your tongue, ·no one can [L how will anyone…?] understand what you are saying. You will be talking into the air! 10 It may be true that there are all kinds of sounds in the world, and none is without meaning. 11 But unless I understand the meaning of what someone says to me, we will be like ·foreigners [barbarians] to each other. 12 It is the same with you. Since you ·eagerly desire [are zealous for] ·spiritual gifts [or manifestations of the Spirit], seek ·most of all to have [to excel in] the gifts that ·help the church grow stronger [build up/edify the church].
13 [L Therefore] The one who has the gift of ·speaking in a different language [or ecstatic utterance; L tongues] should pray for the gift to interpret what is spoken. 14 If I pray ·in a different language [or with ecstatic utterance; L in a tongue], my spirit is praying, but my mind ·does nothing [L is unfruitful]. 15 So what should I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind. I will ·sing [sing praises/psalms] with my spirit, but I will also ·sing [sing praises/psalms] with my mind. 16 [L Otherwise] If you ·praise God [or pronounce a blessing] with your spirit, those persons there ·without understanding [or without the gift; or who are inquirers/seekers; vv. 23, 24] cannot say “Amen” [C from a Hebrew term meaning “it is true”; 1 Chr. 16:36] to your prayer of thanks, because they do not know what you are saying. 17 You may be thanking God ·in a good way [well enough], but the other person is not ·helped [edified; built up].
18 I thank God that I speak ·in different kinds of languages [or with ecstatic utterance; L in tongues] more than all of you. 19 But in the church meetings I would rather speak five words ·I understand [L with my mind] in order to teach others than thousands of words ·in a different language [or with ecstatic utterance; L in a tongue].
Jesus Again Talks About His Death(A)
30 Then Jesus and his ·followers [disciples] left that place and went through Galilee. He didn’t want anyone to know where he was, 31 because he was teaching his ·followers [disciples]. He said to them, “The Son of Man will be ·handed over [delivered over; betrayed] to ·people [L human hands], and they will kill him [C the “handing over” may be Judas’ betrayal or God’s actions in “giving up” his Son to accomplish salvation; Rom. 4:25]. After three days, he will rise from the dead.” 32 But they did not understand what Jesus meant, and they were afraid to ask him.
Who Is the Greatest?(B)
33 Jesus and his ·followers [disciples] went to Capernaum. When they went into a house there, he asked them, “What were you ·arguing about [discussing] on the road?” 34 But they did not answer, because their ·argument [discussion] on the road was about which one of them was the greatest.
35 Jesus sat down and called ·the twelve apostles [the Twelve] to him. He said, “Whoever wants to be ·the most important [first] must be last of all and servant of all.”
36 Then Jesus took a small child and had ·him [or her; C the Greek here does not specify gender] stand among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said, 37 “Whoever ·accepts [welcomes; receives] a child like this in my name [C as a representative or follower of Jesus] accepts me. And whoever ·accepts [welcomes; receives] me accepts [not only me, but] the One who sent me.” [C Children had low social status, so the saying indicates concern for the lowly.]
Anyone Not Against Us Is for Us(C)
38 Then John said, “Teacher, we saw someone using your name [C invoking your authority] to ·force [drive; cast] demons out of a person. We told him to stop, because he does not belong to our group.”
39 But Jesus said, “Don’t stop him, because anyone who uses my name to do powerful things will not ·easily [quickly] say evil things about me. 40 Whoever is not against us is ·with [for] us. 41 I tell you the truth, whoever gives you a drink of water because you belong to the ·Christ [Messiah] will ·truly get [L certainly not lose] his reward.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.