Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 50
A psalm by Asaph.
1 Yahweh, the only true El, has spoken.
He has summoned the earth
from where the sun rises to where it sets.
2 Elohim shines from Zion,
the perfection of beauty.
3 Our Elohim will come and will not remain silent.
A devouring fire is in front of him
and a raging storm around him.
4 He summons heaven and earth to judge his people:
5 “Gather around me, my godly people
who have made a pledge to me through sacrifices.”
6 The heavens announce his righteousness
because Elohim is the Shophet. Selah
7 “Listen, my people, and I will speak.
Listen, Israel, and I will testify against you:
I am Elohim, your Elohim!
8 I am not criticizing you for your sacrifices or burnt offerings,
which are always in front of me.
9 But I will not accept another young bull from your household
or a single male goat from your pens.
10 Every creature in the forest,
even the cattle on a thousand hills, is mine.
11 I know every bird in the mountains.
Everything that moves in the fields is mine.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
because the world and all that it contains are mine.
13 Do I eat the meat of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14 Bring your thanks to Elohim as a sacrifice,
and keep your vows to Elyon.
15 Call on me in times of trouble.
I will rescue you, and you will honor me.”
16 But Elohim says to wicked people,
“How dare you quote my decrees
and mouth my promises![a]
17 You hate discipline.
You toss my words behind you.
18 When you see a thief, you want to make friends with him.
You keep company with people who commit adultery.
19 You let your mouth say anything evil.
Your tongue plans deceit.
20 You sit and talk against your own brother.
You slander your own mother’s son.
21 When you did these things, I remained silent.
That made you think I was like you.
I will argue my point with you
and lay it all out for you to see.
22 Consider this, you people who forget Eloah.
Otherwise, I will tear you to pieces,
and there will be no one left to rescue you.
23 Whoever offers thanks as a sacrifice honors me.
I will let everyone who continues in my way
see the salvation that comes from Elohim.”
Psalm 59
For the choir director; al tashcheth; a miktam by David when Saul sent men to watch David’s home and kill him.
1 Rescue me from my enemies, O my Elohim.
Protect me from those who attack me.
2 Rescue me from troublemakers.
Save me from bloodthirsty people.
3 They lie in ambush for me right here!
Fierce men attack me, O Yahweh,
but not because of any disobedience,
4 or any sin, or any guilt on my part.
They hurry to take positions against me.
Wake up, and help me; see for yourself.
5 O Yahweh Elohim Tsebaoth, Elohim of Israel,
arise to punish all the nations.
Have no pity on any traitors. Selah
6 They return in the evening.
They howl like dogs.
They prowl the city.
7 See what pours out of their mouths—
swords from their lips!
They think, “Who will hear us?”
8 O Yahweh, you laugh at them.
You make fun of all the nations.
9 O my strength, I watch for you!
Elohim is my stronghold, my merciful Elohim!
10 Elohim will come to meet me.
He will let me gloat over those who spy on me.
11 Do not kill them.
Otherwise, my people may forget.
Make them wander aimlessly by your power.
Bring them down, O Adonay, our Magen,
12 because of the sins from their mouths
and the words on their lips.
Let them be trapped by their own arrogance
because they speak curses and lies.
13 Destroy them in your rage.
Destroy them until not one of them is left.
Then they will know that Elohim rules Jacob
to the ends of the earth. Selah
14 They return in the evening.
They howl like dogs.
They prowl the city.
15 They wander around to find something to eat.
If they are not full enough,
they will stay all night.
16 But I will sing about your strength.
In the morning I will joyfully sing about your mercy.
You have been my stronghold
and a place of safety in times of trouble.
17 O my strength, I will make music to praise you!
Elohim is my stronghold, my merciful Elohim!
Psalm 60
For the choir director; according to shushan eduth;[a] a miktam by David; for teaching. When David fought Aram Naharaim and Aram Zobah, and when Joab came back and killed 12,000 men from Edom in the Dead Sea region.
1 O Elohim, you have rejected us.
You have broken down our defenses.
You have been angry.
Restore us!
2 You made the land quake.
You split it wide open.
Heal the cracks in it
because it is falling apart.
3 You have made your people experience hardships.
You have given us wine that makes us stagger.
4 Yet, you have raised a flag for those who fear you
so that they can rally to it
when attacked by bows and arrows. Selah
5 Save us with your powerful hand, and answer us
so that those who are dear to you may be rescued.[b]
6 Elohim has promised the following through his holiness:
“I will triumph!
I will divide Shechem.
I will measure the valley of Succoth.
7 Gilead is mine.
Manasseh is mine.
Ephraim is the helmet on my head.
Judah is my scepter.
8 Moab is my washtub.
I will throw my shoe over Edom.
I will shout in triumph over Philistia.”
9 Who will bring me into the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
10 Isn’t it you, O Elohim, who rejected us?
Isn’t it you, O Elohim, who refused to accompany our armies?
11 Give us help against the enemy
because human assistance is worthless.
12 With Elohim we will display great strength.
He will trample our enemies.
Psalm 114
1 When Israel left Egypt,
when Jacob’s family left people who spoke a foreign language,
2 Judah became his holy place and Israel became his kingdom.
3 The Red Sea looked at this and ran away.
The Jordan River turned back.
4 The mountains jumped like rams.
The hills jumped like lambs.
5 Red Sea, why did you run away?
Jordan River, what made you turn back?
6 Mountains, what made you jump like rams?
Hills, what made you jump like lambs?
7 Earth, tremble in the presence of the Lord,
in the presence of the Elohim of Jacob.
8 He turns a rock into a pool filled with water
and turns flint into a spring flowing with water.
Psalm 115
1 Don’t give glory to us, O Yahweh.
Don’t give glory to us.
Instead, give glory to your name
because of your mercy and faithfulness.
2 Why should other nations say, “Where is their Elohim?”
3 Our Elohim is in heaven.
He does whatever he wants.
4 Their idols are made of silver and gold.
They were made by human hands.[a]
5 They have mouths, but they cannot speak.
They have eyes, but they cannot see.
6 They have ears, but they cannot hear.
They have noses, but they cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but they cannot feel.
They have feet, but they cannot walk.
They cannot even make a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make idols end up like them.
So does everyone who trusts them.
9 Israel, trust Yahweh.
He is your helper and your Magen.
10 Descendants of Aaron, trust Yahweh.
He is your helper and your Magen.
11 If you fear Yahweh, trust Yahweh.
He is your helper and your Magen.
12 Yahweh, who is always thinking about us, will bless us.
He will bless the descendants of Israel.
He will bless the descendants of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear Yahweh,
from the least important to the most important.
14 May Yahweh continue to bless you and your children.
15 You will be blessed by Yahweh, the maker of heaven and earth.
16 The highest heaven belongs to Yahweh,
but he has given the earth to the descendants of Adam.
17 Those who are dead do not praise Yah,
nor do those who go into the silence of the grave.
18 But we will thank Yah now and forever.
Hallelujah!
The Lord Meets with Moses on the Mountain
34 Yahweh said to Moses, “Cut two more stone tablets like the first ones, and I will write on them the words that were on the first tablets which you smashed. 2 Be ready in the morning. Then come up on Mount Sinai, and stand in my presence on the top of the mountain. 3 No one may come with you or even be seen anywhere on the mountain. Even the flocks and herds may not graze in front of this mountain.”
4 So Moses cut two more stone tablets like the first ones. Early the next morning he went up on Mount Sinai, as Yahweh had commanded him, carrying the two stone tablets.
5 Yahweh came down in a cloud and stood there with him and called out his name “Yahweh.”
6 Then Yahweh passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh, Yahweh, a compassionate and merciful El, patient, always faithful and ready to forgive. 7 He continues to show his love to thousands of generations, forgiving wrongdoing, disobedience, and sin. He never lets the guilty go unpunished, punishing children and grandchildren for their parents’ sins to the third and fourth generation.”
8 Immediately, Moses knelt, bowing with his face touching the ground. 9 Then he said, “Adonay, please go with us! Even though we are impossible to deal with, forgive our sin and the wrong we have done, and accept us as your own people.”
The Lord Makes His Promise with Israel Again
10 Yahweh said, “I’m making my promise[a] again. In front of all your people I will perform miracles that have never been done in any other nation in all the world. All the people around you will see how awesome these miracles are that I will perform for you. 11 Do everything that I command today. Then I will force the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites out of your way. 12 Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you’re going. This will prove to be a trap to you. 13 But tear down their altars, crush their sacred stones, and cut down their poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah. 14 (Never worship any other god, because Yahweh is El Kanna. In fact, he is known for not tolerating rivals.) 15 Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in that land. When they chase after their gods as though they were prostitutes and sacrifice to them, they may invite you to eat the meat from their sacrifices with them. 16 Then your sons will end up marrying their daughters. When their daughters chase after their gods as though they were prostitutes, they’ll lead your sons to do the same thing.
17 “Never make an idol.
Paul Remembers How the Thessalonians Received the Word of God
13 Here is another reason why we never stop thanking God: When you received God’s word from us, you realized it wasn’t the word of humans. Instead, you accepted it for what it really is—the word of God. This word is at work in you believers.
14 You, brothers and sisters, were like the churches of God in Judea that are united with Christ Yeshua. You suffered the same persecutions from the people of your own country as those churches did from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Yeshua and the prophets and who have persecuted us severely. They are displeasing to God. They are enemies of the whole human race 16 because they try to keep us from telling people who are not Jewish how they can be saved. The result is that those Jews always commit as many sins as possible. So at last they are receiving God’s anger.
17 Brothers and sisters, we have been separated from you for a little while. Although we may not be able to see you, you’re always in our thoughts. We have made every possible effort to fulfill our desire to see you. 18 We wanted to visit you. I, Paul, wanted to visit you twice already, but Satan made that impossible.
19 Who is our hope, joy, or prize that we can brag about in the presence of our Lord Yeshua when he comes? Isn’t it you? 20 You are our glory and joy!
Jesus Talks about Anger
21 “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Never murder. Whoever murders will answer for it in court.’ 22 But I can guarantee that whoever is angry with another believer[a] will answer for it in court. Whoever calls another believer an insulting name will answer for it in the highest court. Whoever calls another believer a fool will answer for it in hellfire.
23 “So if you are offering your gift at the altar and remember there that another believer has something against you, 24 leave your gift at the altar. First go away and make peace with that person. Then come back and offer your gift.
25 “Make peace quickly with your opponent while you are on the way to court with him. Otherwise, he will hand you over to the judge. Then the judge will hand you over to an officer, who will throw you into prison. 26 I can guarantee this truth: You will never get out until you pay every penny of your fine.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.