Book of Common Prayer
God Will Reward Fairly
Of David.
37 Don’t be ·upset [worried; angry] because of evil people.
Don’t be jealous of those who do wrong [Prov. 24:1, 19],
2 because like the grass, they will ·soon [quickly] ·dry up [wither].
Like green plants, they will soon ·die [fade] away.
3 ·Trust [L Have confidence in] the Lord [Prov. 3:5] and do good.
·Live [Reside; Settle] in the land and ·feed on truth [or find reliable pastureland].
4 Enjoy serving the Lord,
and he will give you ·what you want [L the requests of your heart].
5 ·Depend on [L Commit your way to] the Lord;
·trust [have confidence in] him, and he will take care of you [Prov. 16:3; 1 Pet. 5:7].
6 Then your ·goodness [righteousness] will shine like the ·sun [L light],
and your ·fairness [justice] like the noonday sun.
7 ·Wait [L Be quiet before] and ·trust [L wait for] the Lord.
Don’t be ·upset [worried; angry] ·when others get rich [L with the prosperity/success of their way]
or when ·someone else’s plans succeed [or they do evil deeds].
8 ·Don’t get angry [L Hold back from anger; Abandon wrath].
Don’t be ·upset [worried; angry]; it only leads to ·trouble [or evil].
9 Evil people will be ·sent away [L cut off],
but those who ·trust [wait/pin their hope on] the Lord will inherit the land.
10 In a little while the wicked will be no more.
You may look for them, but they will be ·gone [or no more].
11 ·People who are not proud [L The humble/meek] will inherit the land [Matt. 5:5]
and will enjoy ·complete peace [or much prosperity].
12 The wicked make evil plans against ·good [righteous] people.
They ·grind [gnash] their teeth at them [C in anger].
13 But the Lord laughs at the wicked,
because he sees that their day [C of judgment] is coming.
14 The wicked draw their swords
and ·bend [string] their bows
to ·kill [L fell] the poor and helpless,
to ·kill [slaughter] those ·who are honest [L whose way is straight].
15 But their swords will ·stab [L enter] their own hearts,
and their bows will break.
16 It is better to have little and be ·right [or righteous]
than to have much and be ·wrong [or wicked; Prov. 15:16; 16:8, 19].
17 The ·power [L arm] of the wicked will be broken,
but the Lord ·supports [upholds] those who ·do right [are righteous].
18 The Lord ·watches over [L knows] the ·lives [L days] of the ·innocent [blameless],
and their ·reward [inheritance] will last forever.
19 They will not be ashamed ·when trouble comes [L in the day of evil/trouble].
They will be ·full [satisfied; satiated] in times of ·hunger [famine].
20 But the wicked will ·die [perish].
The Lord’s enemies will be like the ·beauty [best] of the ·fields [L pastures; C flowers or animals];
·they will disappear [L vanishing, they will vanish] ·like [or in] smoke.
21 The wicked borrow and don’t pay back,
but ·those who do right [the righteous] give freely to others.
22 Those whom ·the Lord [L he] blesses will inherit the land,
but those he curses will be ·sent away [L cut off].
23 When people’s steps ·follow [L are made firm/established by] the Lord [Prov. 24:16],
God ·is pleased with [delights in] their ways.
24 If they stumble, they will not fall,
because the Lord ·holds [upholds] their hand.
25 I was young, and now I am old,
but I have never seen ·good [righteous] people ·left helpless [abandoned; forsaken; Gen. 28:15; Matt. 28:20]
or their ·children [seed] ·begging for [seeking] food [Prov. 10:3].
26 Good people always lend freely to others,
and their ·children [seed] are a blessing.
27 ·Stop doing [Turn aside from] evil and do good,
so you will ·live [dwell] forever.
28 The Lord loves ·justice [judgment]
and will not ·leave [abandon; forsake] ·those who worship him [his loyal ones/saints].
He will always ·protect [keep; guard] them,
but the ·children [seed] of the wicked will ·die [L be cut off].
29 ·Good [Righteous] people will inherit the land
and will ·live [dwell] in it forever.
30 ·Good people speak with [L The mouth of the righteous mutters] wisdom,
and ·they say what is fair [L their tongue speaks justice/judgment].
31 The ·teachings [instructions; laws] of their God are in their heart [Jer. 31:33],
so ·they do not fail to keep them [L their steps do not slip/slide/totter].
32 The wicked watch for ·good [righteous] people
·so that they may [L to seek to] kill them [Prov. 1:8–19].
33 But the Lord will not ·take away his protection [L abandon/forsake them to their hand/power/control]
or let ·good people be judged guilty [them be condemned when brought to trial].
34 ·Wait for [Hope in] the Lord
and ·follow him [L keep/guard his way].
He will ·honor [exalt] you and ·give you [you will inherit] the land,
and you will see the wicked ·sent away [or destroyed].
35 I saw a wicked and ·cruel [oppressive] man
who ·looked [flourished] like a luxurious cedar tree [C strong and healthy].
36 But he ·died [passed on] and was ·gone [no more];
I ·looked for [sought] him, but he couldn’t be found.
37 ·Think of [Observe] the ·innocent [blameless] person,
and watch the ·honest [upright; virtuous] one.
The man who has peace
will have ·children to live after him [posterity].
38 But sinners will be destroyed;
·in the end [or the posterity of] the wicked will ·die [L be cut off].
39 The Lord ·saves [rescues; T delivers] ·good [righteous] people;
he is their strength in times of ·trouble [distress].
40 The Lord helps them and ·saves [rescues; T delivers] them;
he ·saves [rescues; T delivers] them from the wicked,
because they ·trust [take refuge] in him for protection.
The Ten Commandments
20 Then God spoke all these words:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt ·where you were slaves [L from the house of bondage].
3 “You must not have any other gods ·except [or before] me.
4 “You must not make for yourselves an idol that looks like anything in the ·sky [heavens] above or on the earth below or in the water below the ·land [earth]. 5 You must not worship or serve them, because I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God. ·If you hate me, I will punish your children, and even your grandchildren and great-grandchildren [L I will visit/punish the guilt of the fathers on the sons/T children until the third and fourth generations of those who hate me]. 6 But I show kindness to ·thousands [or thousands of generations of those] who love me and obey my commands.
7 “You must not ·use the name of the Lord your God thoughtlessly [take/lift up the name of the Lord your God in vain]; the Lord will ·punish [L not hold/treat as innocent; not acquit] anyone who ·misuses [takes in vain] his name.
8 “Remember to ·keep the Sabbath holy [consecrate/sanctify the Sabbath]. 9 Work and get everything done during six days each week, 10 but the seventh day is a ·day of rest to honor [Sabbath to] the Lord your God. On that day no one may do any work: not you, your son or daughter, your male or female slaves, your animals, or the ·foreigners [sojourners; wanderers; resident aliens] living in your ·cities [L gates]. 11 The reason is that in six days the Lord made everything—the ·sky [heavens], the earth, the sea, and everything in them. On the seventh day he rested. So the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and ·made it holy [consecrated/sanctified it].
12 “Honor your father and your mother so that you will live ·a long time [L for many days] in the land that the Lord your God is going to give you.
13 “You must not murder anyone.
14 “You must not ·be guilty of [commit] adultery.
15 “You must not steal.
16 “You must not ·tell lies about [bear false witness against] your neighbor.
17 “You must not ·want to take [covet] your neighbor’s house. You must not ·want [covet] his wife or his male or female slaves, or his ox or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor [C this commandment internalizes previous commandments].”
18 When the people heard the thunder and the ·trumpet [ram’s horn], and when they saw the lightning and the smoke rising from the mountain, they ·shook with fear [trembled] and stood far away from the mountain. 19 Then they said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak to us, or we will die.”
20 Then Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid, because God has come to test you. He wants ·you to respect him [L to put the fear of him on you] so you will not sin.”
21 The people stood far away from the mountain while Moses went near the dark cloud where God was.
Paul’s Work for the Church
24 [L Now] I ·am happy [rejoice] in my sufferings for you. And I ·accept [fill up; complete] in my ·body [flesh] what ·Christ must still suffer [or is lacking in the suffering of Christ] ·through [or on behalf of] his body, the church. [C By suffering while spreading the Gospel, Paul both participates in Christ’s death and helps complete God’s plan.] 25 I became a ·servant [minister] of the church because God gave me a ·special work to do [stewardship; commission] ·that helps you [L for you], and that work is to ·tell fully [or complete; or preach everywhere; L fulfill] the ·message [word] of God. 26 This message is the ·secret [mystery; C something God had not previously disclosed; Eph. 1:9] that was hidden from ·everyone since the beginning of time [L ages and generations], but now it is made known to ·God’s holy people [T the saints]. 27 God ·decided [chose; willed] to let his people know this rich and glorious ·secret [mystery; 1:26] which he has for ·all people [the nations/Gentiles]. This ·secret [mystery] is ·that Christ lives in you. He is our only hope for glory [L Christ in you, the hope of glory]. 28 So we continue to ·preach [proclaim; announce] Christ to each person, using all wisdom to ·warn [instruct; admonish] and to teach everyone, in order to bring each one into God’s presence as a mature person in Christ. 29 To do this, I ·work [toil; labor] and struggle, using ·Christ’s [L his] great strength that works so powerfully in me.
2 [L For] I want you to know how hard I ·work [contend; struggle] for you, those in Laodicea [C a city northwest of Colossae; 4:16; Rev. 3:14–22], and others who have never ·seen me [met me personally; L seen my face in the flesh]. 2 I want ·them [L their hearts] to be ·strengthened [encouraged; comforted] and joined together with love so that they may be rich in their ·understanding [L assurance of understanding]. This leads to their knowing fully God’s ·secret [mystery; 1:26], that is, Christ himself. 3 In him all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are ·safely kept [hidden].
4 I say this so that no one can ·fool [deceive] you by ·arguments that seem good, but are false [persuasive/enticing/specious arguments]. 5 [L For] Though I am absent from you in my body, ·my heart is [in spirit I am] with you, and I ·am happy [rejoice] to see your ·good lives [discipline; orderly lives; or unbroken ranks] and your ·strong [firm; steadfast] faith in Christ.
Continue to Live in Christ
6 [L Therefore] As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to ·live [walk] in him. 7 Keep your roots deep in him and have your lives built on him. Be ·strong [established] in the faith, just as you were taught, ·and always be thankful [abounding/overflowing with gratitude].
The Temptation of Jesus(A)
4 Then the Spirit led Jesus [L up; out] into the ·desert [wilderness] to be tempted [or tested] by the devil. 2 Jesus fasted for forty days and nights [C analogous to Israel’s forty years in the desert]. After this, he was ·very hungry [famished]. 3 The ·devil came to Jesus to tempt him [L tempter/tester came to Jesus], saying, “If you are the Son of God, ·tell [command] these rocks to ·become bread [turn into loaves].”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written in the Scriptures, ‘A person lives not on bread alone, but by ·everything God says [L every word that comes out of God’s mouth; Deut. 8:3].’”
5 Then the devil ·led [took] Jesus to the holy city [C Jerusalem] and put him on ·a high place [the highest point; the pinnacle] of the Temple. 6 The devil said, “If you are the Son of God, ·jump [L throw yourself] down, because it is written in the Scriptures:
‘He ·has put his angels in charge of you [or will order his angels to protect you; L will command his angel concerning you].
They will ·catch you in [lift you up with] their hands
so that you will not hit your foot on a rock [Ps. 91:11–12].’”
7 Jesus answered him, “It also says in the Scriptures, ‘Do not test the Lord your God [Deut. 6:16].’”
8 ·Then [Again] the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and all their ·splendor [glory]. 9 The devil said, “If you will ·bow [fall] down and worship me, I will give you all these things.”
10 Jesus said to him, “·Go away from me [Get out of here; Be gone], Satan! [L For] It is written in the Scriptures, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him [Deut. 6:13].’”
11 So the devil left Jesus, and angels came and ·took care of [served; ministered to] him.
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