Book of Common Prayer
An Experience of the Captivity.
137 By the (A)rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down and (B)wept,
When we remembered Zion.
2 Upon the [a](C)willows in the midst of it
We (D)hung our [b]harps.
3 For there our captors [c](E)demanded of us [d]songs,
And (F)our tormentors, jubilation, saying,
“Sing for us one of the songs of Zion!”
4 How can we sing (G)the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?
5 If I (H)forget you, Jerusalem,
May my right hand [e]forget its skill.
6 May my (I)tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
If I do not [f](J)exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.
7 Remember, Lord, against the sons of (K)Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Those who said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare
(L)To its foundation!”
8 Daughter of Babylon, you [g](M)devastated one,
Blessed will be one who (N)repays you
With [h]the retribution with which you have repaid us.
9 Blessed will be one who seizes and (O)dashes your children
Against the rock.
Prayer for Rescue and Prosperity.
A Psalm of David.
144 Blessed be the Lord, (A)my rock,
Who (B)trains my hands for war,
And my fingers for battle;
2 My faithfulness and (C)my fortress,
My (D)stronghold and my savior,
My (E)shield and He in whom I take refuge,
Who (F)subdues [a]my people under me.
3 Lord, (G)what is man, that You look after him?
Or a son of man, that You think of him?
4 (H)Man is like the breath;
His (I)days are like a passing shadow.
5 (J)Bend down Your heavens, Lord, and (K)come down;
(L)Touch the mountains, that they may smoke.
6 Flash forth (M)lightning and scatter them;
Send out Your (N)arrows and confuse them.
7 Reach out with Your hand (O)from on high;
Rescue me and (P)save me from great waters,
From the hand of (Q)foreigners
8 Whose mouth (R)speaks deceit,
And whose (S)right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
9 God, I will sing a (T)new song to You;
On a (U)harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,
10 Who (V)gives salvation to kings,
Who (W)rescues His servant David from the evil sword.
11 Rescue me and save me from the hand of (X)foreigners,
Whose mouth (Y)speaks deceit
And whose (Z)right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
12 When our sons in their youth are like (AA)growing plants,
And our daughters like (AB)corner pillars [b]fashioned for a palace,
13 Our (AC)granaries are full, providing every kind of produce,
And our flocks deliver thousands and ten thousands in our [c]fields;
14 May our (AD)cattle [d]be bred
Without [e](AE)mishap and without [f](AF)loss,
May there be no (AG)outcry in our streets!
15 Blessed are the people who are so situated;
(AH)Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
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?
Darkness over the Land
21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “(A)Reach out with your hand toward the sky, so that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even a darkness (B)which may be felt.” 22 So Moses reached out with his hand toward the sky, and there was (C)thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days. 23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, (D)but all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings. 24 Then Pharaoh (E)called for Moses, and said, “Go, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be left behind. Even (F)your little ones may go with you.” 25 But Moses said, “You must also [a]let us have sacrifices and burnt offerings, so that we may [b]sacrifice them to the Lord our God. 26 (G)Therefore, our livestock too shall go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we shall take some of them to serve the Lord our God. And until we arrive there, we ourselves do not know with what we shall serve the Lord.” 27 But (H)the Lord [c]hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he was not willing to let them go. 28 Then Pharaoh said to him, “(I)Get away from me! [d]Be careful, do not see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you shall die!” 29 Moses said, “You have spoken correctly; (J)I shall never see your face again!”
The Last Plague
11 Now the Lord said to Moses, “One more plague I will bring on Pharaoh and on Egypt; (K)after that he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will assuredly drive you out from here completely. 2 Speak now [e]so that the people hear, that (L)each man is to ask of his neighbor, and each woman of her neighbor, articles of silver and articles of gold.” 3 And (M)the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. (N)Furthermore, the man Moses himself was [f]greatly esteemed in the land of Egypt, both in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants and in the sight of the people.
4 Then Moses said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘About (O)midnight I am going out into the midst of Egypt, 5 and (P)all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of the Pharaoh who sits on his throne, to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the millstones; all the firstborn of the cattle as well. 6 So there shall be (Q)a great cry in all the land of Egypt, such as there has not been before and such as shall never be again. 7 (R)But not even a dog will [g]threaten any of the sons of Israel, nor anything from person to animal, so that you may [h]learn how the Lord distinguishes between Egypt and Israel.’ 8 And (S)all these servants of yours will come down to me and bow themselves [i]before me, saying, ‘Go out, you and all the people who [j]follow you,’ and after that I will go out.” (T)And he left Pharaoh in the heat of anger.
13 But having the same (A)spirit of faith, according to what is written: “(B)I believed, therefore I spoke,” we also believe, therefore we also speak, 14 knowing that He who (C)raised the Lord Jesus (D)will also raise us with Jesus, and will (E)present us with you. 15 For all things are (F)for your sakes, so that grace, having [a](G)spread to more and more people, will cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
16 Therefore we (H)do not lose heart, but though our outer person is decaying, yet our (I)inner person is (J)being renewed day by day. 17 For our momentary, (K)light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, 18 while we (L)look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Bartimaeus Receives His Sight
46 (A)Then they *came to Jericho. And later, (B)as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, a beggar who was blind named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus the (C)Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, (D)Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, “(E)Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him here.” So they *called the man who was blind, saying to him, “(F)Take courage, stand up! He is calling for you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and came to Jesus. 51 And replying to him, Jesus said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And the man who was blind said to Him, “[a](G)Rabboni, I want to regain my sight!” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go; (H)your faith has [b]made you well.” And immediately he regained his sight and began following Him on the road.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.