Book of Common Prayer
95 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord.
Let us give a loud shout to the Rock who saves us.
2 Let us come to him and give him thanks.
Let us praise him with music and song.
3 The Lord is the great God.
He is the greatest King.
He rules over all the gods.
4 He owns the deepest parts of the earth.
The mountain peaks belong to him.
5 The ocean is his, because he made it.
He formed the dry land with his hands.
6 Come, let us bow down and worship him.
Let us fall on our knees in front of the Lord our Maker.
7 He is our God.
We are the sheep belonging to his flock.
We are the people he takes good care of.
If only you would listen to his voice today.
8 He says, “Don’t be stubborn as you were at Meribah.
Don’t be stubborn as you were that day at Massah in the desert.
9 There your people of long ago really tested me.
They did it even though they had seen what I had done for them.
10 For 40 years I was angry with them.
I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray.
They do not know how I want them to live.’
11 So when I was angry, I made a promise.
I said, ‘They will never enjoy the rest I planned for them.’ ”
For the director of music. A psalm of David to the tune of “The Doe of the Morning.”
22 My God, my God, why have you deserted me?
Why do you seem so far away when I need you to save me?
Why do you seem so far away that you can’t hear my groans?
2 My God, I cry out in the daytime. But you don’t answer.
I cry out at night. But you don’t let me sleep.
3 But you rule from your throne as the Holy One.
You are the God Israel praises.
4 Our people of long ago put their trust in you.
They trusted in you, and you saved them.
5 They cried out to you and were saved.
They trusted in you, and you didn’t let them down.
6 Everyone treats me like a worm and not a man.
They hate me and look down on me.
7 All those who see me laugh at me.
They shout at me and make fun of me.
They shake their heads at me.
8 They say, “He trusts in the Lord.
Let the Lord help him.
If the Lord is pleased with him,
let him save him.”
9 But you brought me out of my mother’s body.
You made me trust in you
even when I was at my mother’s breast.
10 From the time I was born, you took good care of me.
Ever since I came out of my mother’s body, you have been my God.
11 Don’t be far away from me.
Trouble is near,
and there is no one to help me.
12 Many enemies are all around me.
They are like strong bulls from the land of Bashan.
13 They are like roaring lions that tear to pieces what they kill.
They open their mouths wide to attack me.
14 My strength is like water that is poured out on the ground.
I feel as if my bones aren’t connected.
My heart has turned to wax.
It has melted away inside me.
15 My mouth is dried up like a piece of broken pottery.
My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.
You bring me down to the edge of the grave.
16 A group of sinful people has closed in on me.
They are all around me like a pack of dogs.
They have pierced my hands and my feet.
17 Everyone can see all my bones right through my skin.
People stare at me. They laugh when I suffer.
18 They divide up my clothes among them.
They cast lots for what I am wearing.
19 Lord, don’t be so far away from me.
You give me strength. Come quickly to help me.
20 Save me from being killed by the sword.
Save the only life I have. Save me from the power of those dogs.
21 Save me from the mouths of those lions.
Save me from the horns of those wild oxen.
22 I will announce your name to my people.
I will praise you among those who are gathered to worship you.
23 You who have respect for the Lord, praise him!
All you people of Jacob, honor him!
All you people of Israel, worship him!
24 He has not forgotten the one who is hurting.
He has not turned away from his suffering.
He has not turned his face away from him.
He has listened to his cry for help.
25 Because of what you have done,
I will praise you in the whole community of those who worship you.
In front of those who respect you,
I will keep my promises.
26 Those who are poor will eat and be satisfied.
Those who seek the Lord will praise him.
May their hearts be filled with new hope!
27 People from one end of the earth to the other
will remember and turn to the Lord.
The people of all the nations
will bow down in front of him.
28 The Lord is King.
He rules over the nations.
29 All rich people of the earth will feast and worship God.
All who go down to the grave will kneel in front of him.
Those who cannot keep themselves alive will kneel.
30 Those who are not yet born will serve him.
Those who are born later will be told about the Lord.
31 And they will tell people who have not yet been born,
“The Lord has done what is right!”
A psalm of David.
141 I call out to you, Lord. Come quickly to help me.
Listen to me when I call out to you.
2 May my prayer come to you like the sweet smell of incense.
When I lift up my hands in prayer, may it be like the evening sacrifice.
3 Lord, guard my mouth.
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Don’t let my heart be drawn to what is evil.
Don’t let me join with people who do evil.
Don’t let me eat their fancy food.
5 If a godly person hit me, it would be an act of kindness.
If they would correct me, it would be like pouring olive oil on my head.
I wouldn’t say no to it.
I will always pray against the things that sinful people do.
6 When their rulers are thrown down from the rocky cliffs,
those evil people will realize that my words were true.
7 They will say, “As clumps of dirt are left from plowing up the ground,
so our bones will be scattered near an open grave.”
8 But Lord and King, I keep looking to you for help.
I go to you for safety. Don’t let me die.
9 Keep me from the traps of those who do evil.
Save me from the traps they have set for me.
10 Let evil people fall into their own nets.
But let me go safely on my way.
A psalm of David.
143 Lord, hear my prayer.
Listen to my cry for mercy.
You are faithful and right.
Come and help me.
2 Don’t take me to court and judge me,
because in your eyes no living person does what is right.
3 My enemies chase me.
They crush me down to the ground.
They make me live in the darkness
like those who died long ago.
4 So I grow weak.
Deep down inside me, I’m afraid.
5 I remember what happened long ago.
I spend time thinking about all your acts.
I consider what your hands have done.
6 I spread out my hands to you in prayer.
I’m thirsty for you, just as dry ground is thirsty for rain.
7 Lord, answer me quickly.
I’m growing weak.
Don’t turn your face away from me,
or I will be like those who go down into the grave.
8 In the morning let me hear about your faithful love,
because I’ve put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should live,
because I trust you with my life.
9 Lord, save me from my enemies,
because I go to you for safety.
10 Teach me to do what you want,
because you are my God.
May your good Spirit
lead me on a level path.
11 Lord, bring yourself honor by keeping me alive.
Because you do what is right, get me out of trouble.
12 Because your love is faithful, put an end to my enemies.
Destroy all of them, because I serve you.
The Plague of Hail
13 Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Get up early in the morning. Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says, “Let my people go. Then they will be able to worship me. 14 If you do not let them go, I will send the full force of my plagues against you this time. They will strike your officials and your people. Then you will know that there is no one like me in the whole earth. 15 By now I could have reached out my hand. I could have struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. 16 But I had a special reason for making you king. I decided to show you my power. I wanted my name to become known everywhere on earth. 17 But you are still against my people. You will not let them go. 18 So at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm ever to fall on Egypt in its entire history. 19 Give an order now to bring your livestock inside to a safe place. Bring in everything that is outside. The hail will fall on all the people and animals that are left outside. They will die.” ’ ”
20 The officials of Pharaoh who had respect for what the Lord had said obeyed him. They hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside. 21 But others didn’t pay attention to what the Lord had said. They left their slaves and livestock outside.
22 Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Reach out your hand toward the sky. Then hail will fall all over Egypt. It will beat down on people and animals alike. It will strike everything growing in the fields of Egypt.” 23 Moses reached out his walking stick toward the sky. Then the Lord sent thunder and hail. Lightning flashed down to the ground. The Lord rained hail on the land of Egypt. 24 Hail fell and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in Egypt’s entire history. 25 Hail struck everything in the fields all over Egypt. It fell on people and animals alike. It beat down everything growing in the fields. It tore all the leaves off the trees. 26 The only place it didn’t hail was in the area of Goshen. That’s where the people of Israel were.
27 Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron. “This time I’ve sinned,” he said to them. “The Lord has done what is right. I and my people have done what is wrong. 28 Pray to the Lord, because we’ve had enough thunder and hail. I’ll let you and your people go. You don’t have to stay here any longer.”
29 Moses replied, “When I’ve left the city, I’ll lift up my hands and pray to the Lord. The thunder will stop. There won’t be any more hail. Then you will know that the earth belongs to the Lord. 30 But I know that you and your officials still don’t have any respect for the Lord God.”
31 The barley was ripe. The flax was in bloom. So they were both destroyed. 32 But the wheat and spelt weren’t destroyed. That’s because they ripen later.
33 Then Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. Moses lifted up his hands and prayed to the Lord. The thunder and hail stopped. The rain didn’t pour down on the land any longer. 34 Pharaoh saw that the rain, hail and thunder had stopped. So he sinned again. He and his officials became stubborn. 35 So Pharaoh was stubborn. He wouldn’t let the people of Israel go, just as the Lord had said through Moses.
A Treasure in Clay Jars
4 So because of God’s mercy, we have work to do. He has given it to us. And we don’t give up. 2 Instead, we have given up doing secret and shameful things. We don’t twist God’s word. In fact, we do just the opposite. We present the truth plainly. In the sight of God, we make our appeal to everyone’s sense of what is right and wrong. 3 Suppose our good news is covered with a veil. Then it is veiled to those who are dying. 4 The god of this world has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They can’t see the light of the good news that makes Christ’s glory clear. Christ is the likeness of God. 5 The message we preach is not about ourselves. Our message is about Jesus Christ. We say that he is Lord. And we say that we serve you because of Jesus. 6 God said, “Let light shine out of darkness.” (Genesis 1:3) He made his light shine in our hearts. His light gives us the light to know God’s glory. His glory is shown in the face of Christ.
7 Treasure is kept in clay jars. In the same way, we have the treasure of the good news in these earthly bodies of ours. That shows that the mighty power of the good news comes from God. It doesn’t come from us. 8 We are pushed hard from all sides. But we are not beaten down. We are bewildered. But that doesn’t make us lose hope. 9 Others make us suffer. But God does not desert us. We are knocked down. But we are not knocked out. 10 We always carry around the death of Jesus in our bodies. In that way, the life of Jesus can be shown in our bodies. 11 We who are alive are always in danger of death because we are serving Jesus. This happens so that his life can also be shown in our earthly bodies. 12 Death is at work in us. But life is at work in you.
Jesus Speaks a Third Time About His Coming Death
32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem. Jesus was leading the way. The disciples were amazed. Those who followed were afraid. Again Jesus took the 12 disciples to one side. He told them what was going to happen to him. 33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said. “The Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will sentence him to death. Then they will hand him over to the Gentiles. 34 They will make fun of him and spit on him. They will whip him and kill him. Three days later he will rise from the dead!”
James and John Ask Jesus for a Favor
35 James and John came to Jesus. They were the sons of Zebedee. “Teacher,” they said, “we would like to ask you for a favor.”
36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
37 They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right hand in your glorious kingdom. Let the other one sit at your left hand.”
38 “You don’t know what you’re asking for,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup of suffering I drink? Or can you go through the baptism of suffering I must go through?”
39 “We can,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink. And you will go through the baptism I go through. 40 But it is not for me to say who will sit at my right or left hand. These places belong to those they are prepared for.”
41 The other ten disciples heard about it. They became angry at James and John. 42 Jesus called them together. He said, “You know about those who are rulers of the Gentiles. They hold power over their people. Their high officials order them around. 43 Don’t be like that. Instead, anyone who wants to be important among you must be your servant. 44 And anyone who wants to be first must be the slave of everyone. 45 Even the Son of Man did not come to be served. Instead, he came to serve others. He came to give his life as the price for setting many people free.”
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