Book of Common Prayer
Book I
Psalms 1–41
1 Blessed is the person who obeys the law of the Lord.
They don’t follow the advice of evil people.
They don’t make a habit of doing what sinners do.
They don’t join those who make fun of the Lord and his law.
2 Instead, the law of the Lord gives them joy.
They think about his law day and night.
3 That kind of person is like a tree that is planted near a stream of water.
It always bears its fruit at the right time.
Its leaves don’t dry up.
Everything godly people do turns out well.
4 Sinful people are not like that at all.
They are like straw
that the wind blows away.
5 When the Lord judges them, their life will come to an end.
Sinners won’t have any place among those who are godly.
6 The Lord watches over the lives of godly people.
But the lives of sinful people will lead to their death.
2 Why do the nations plan evil together?
Why do they make useless plans?
2 The kings of the earth rise up against the Lord.
The rulers of the earth join together against his anointed king.
3 “Let us break free from their chains,” they say.
“Let us throw off their ropes.”
4 The God who sits on his throne in heaven laughs.
The Lord makes fun of those rulers and their plans.
5 When he is angry, he warns them.
When his anger blazes out, he terrifies them.
6 He says to them,
“I have placed my king on my holy mountain of Zion.”
7 I will announce what the Lord has promised.
He said to me, “You are my son.
Today I have become your father.
8 Ask me, and I will give the nations to you.
All nations on earth will belong to you.
9 You will break them with an iron scepter.
You will smash them to pieces like clay pots.”
10 Kings, be wise!
Rulers of the earth, be warned!
11 Serve the Lord and have respect for him.
Celebrate his rule with trembling.
12 Obey the son completely, or he will be angry.
Your way of life will lead to your death.
His anger can blaze out at any moment.
Blessed are all those who go to him for safety.
A psalm of David when he ran away from his son Absalom.
3 Lord, I have so many enemies!
So many people are rising up against me!
2 Many are saying about me,
“God will not save him.”
3 Lord, you are like a shield that keeps me safe.
You bring me honor. You help me win the battle.
4 I call out to the Lord.
He answers me from his holy mountain.
5 I lie down and sleep.
I wake up again, because the Lord takes care of me.
6 I won’t be afraid even though tens of thousands
attack me on every side.
7 Lord, rise up!
My God, save me!
Strike all my enemies in the face.
Break the teeth of sinful people.
8 Lord, you are the one who saves.
May your blessing be on your people.
For the director of music. A psalm of David to be played on stringed instruments.
4 My faithful God,
answer me when I call out to you.
Give me rest from my trouble.
Have mercy on me. Hear my prayer.
2 How long will you people turn my glory into shame?
How long will you love what will certainly fail you?
How long will you pray to statues of gods?
3 Remember that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself.
The Lord hears me when I call out to him.
4 Tremble and do not sin.
When you are in bed,
look deep down inside yourself and be silent.
5 Offer to the Lord the sacrifices that godly people offer.
Trust in him.
6 Lord, many are asking, “Who will make us successful?”
Lord, may you do good things for us.
7 Fill my heart with joy
when the people have lots of grain and fresh wine.
8 In peace I will lie down and sleep.
Lord, you alone keep me safe.
A shiggaion of David. He sang it to the Lord about Cush, who was from the tribe of Benjamin.
7 Lord my God, I go to you for safety.
Help me. Save me from all those who are chasing me.
2 If you don’t, they will tear me apart as if they were lions.
They will rip me to pieces so that no one can save me.
3 Lord my God, suppose I have done something wrong.
Suppose I am guilty.
4 Or I have done evil to my friend.
Or I have robbed my enemy without any reason.
5 Then let my enemy chase me and catch me.
Let him stomp me into the ground.
Let him bury me in the dust.
6 Lord, rise up in your anger.
Rise up against the great anger of my enemies.
My God, wake up. Command that the right thing be done.
7 Let all the people of the earth gather around you.
Rule over them from your throne in heaven.
8 Lord, judge all people.
Lord, show that I have done what is right.
Most High God, remember that I am honest.
9 God, you always do what is right.
You look deep down inside the hearts and minds of people.
Bring to an end the terrible things sinful people do.
Make godly people safe.
10 The Most High God is like a shield that keeps me safe.
He saves those whose hearts are honest.
11 God judges fairly.
He shows his anger every day.
12 If evil people don’t change their ways,
God will sharpen his sword.
He will get his bow ready to use.
13 He has prepared his deadly weapons.
He has made his flaming arrows ready.
14 Whoever is full of evil
plans trouble and ends up telling lies.
15 Whoever digs a hole and shovels it out
falls into the pit they have made.
16 The trouble they cause comes back on them.
The terrible things they do will happen to them.
17 I will give thanks to the Lord because he does what is right.
I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.
21 Then Moses reached out his hand over the Red Sea. All that night the Lord pushed the sea back with a strong east wind. He turned the sea into dry land. The waters were divided. 22 The people of Israel went through the sea on dry ground. There was a wall of water on their right side and on their left.
23 The Egyptians chased them. All Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. 24 Near the end of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud. He saw the Egyptian army and threw it into a panic. 25 He jammed the wheels of their chariots. That made the chariots hard to drive. The Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for Israel against Egypt.”
26 Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said, “Reach out your hand over the sea. The waters will flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” 27 So Moses reached out his hand over the sea. At sunrise the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians tried to run away from the sea. But the Lord swept them into it. 28 The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen. It covered the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the people of Israel into the sea. Not one of the Egyptians was left.
29 But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground. There was a wall of water on their right side and on their left. 30 That day the Lord saved Israel from the power of Egypt. The Israelites saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. 31 The Israelites saw the amazing power the Lord showed against the Egyptians. So the Israelites had great respect for the Lord and put their trust in him. They also put their trust in his servant Moses.
1 I, Peter, am writing this letter. I am an apostle of Jesus Christ.
I am sending this letter to you, God’s chosen people. You are people who have had to wander in the world. You are scattered all over the areas of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia. 2 You have been chosen in keeping with what God the Father had planned. That happened through the Spirit’s work to make you pure and holy. God chose you so that you might obey Jesus Christ. God wanted you to be in a covenant relationship with him. He established this relationship by the blood of Christ.
May more and more grace and peace be given to you.
Peter Praises God for a Living Hope
3 Give praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy he has given us a new birth and a living hope. This hope is living because Jesus Christ rose from the dead. 4 He has given us new birth so that we might share in what belongs to him. This is a gift that can never be destroyed. It can never spoil or even fade away. It is kept in heaven for you. 5 Through faith you are kept safe by God’s power. Your salvation is going to be completed. It is ready to be shown to you in the last days. 6 Because you know all this, you have great joy. You have joy even though you may have had to suffer for a little while. You may have had to suffer sadness in all kinds of trouble. 7 Your troubles have come in order to prove that your faith is real. Your faith is worth more than gold. That’s because gold can pass away even when fire has made it pure. Your faith is meant to bring praise, honor and glory to God. This will happen when Jesus Christ returns. 8 Even though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him. You are filled with a glorious joy that can’t be put into words. 9 You are receiving the salvation of your souls. This salvation is the final result of your faith.
10 The prophets searched very hard and with great care to find out about this salvation. They spoke about the grace that was going to come to you. 11 They wanted to find out when and how this salvation would come. The Spirit of Christ in them was telling them about the sufferings of the Messiah. These were his sufferings that were going to come. The Spirit of Christ was also telling them about the glory that would follow. 12 It was made known to the prophets that they were not serving themselves. Instead, they were serving you when they spoke about the things that you have now heard. Those who have preached the good news to you have told you these things. They have done it with the help of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God. Believe in me also. 2 There are many rooms in my Father’s house. If this were not true, would I have told you that I am going there? Would I have told you that I would prepare a place for you there? 3 If I go and do that, I will come back. And I will take you to be with me. Then you will also be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
Jesus Is the Way to the Father
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going. So how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father also. From now on, you do know him. And you have seen him.”
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father. That will be enough for us.”
9 Jesus answered, “Don’t you know me, Philip? I have been among you such a long time! Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. So how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father? Don’t you believe that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. The Father lives in me. He is the one who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say I am in the Father. Also believe that the Father is in me. Or at least believe what the works I have been doing say about me. 12 What I’m about to tell you is true. Anyone who believes in me will do the works I have been doing. In fact, they will do even greater things. That’s because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do anything you ask in my name. Then the Father will receive glory from the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name. I will do it.
Jesus Promises That the Holy Spirit Will Come
15 “If you love me, obey my commands. 16 I will ask the Father. And he will give you another friend to help you and to be with you forever. 17 That friend is the Spirit of truth. The world can’t accept him. That’s because the world does not see him or know him. But you know him. He lives with you, and he will be in you.
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