Book of Common Prayer
93 The Lord rules.
He puts on majesty as if it were clothes.
The Lord puts on majesty and strength.
Indeed, the world has been set in place.
It is firm and secure.
2 Lord, you began to rule a long time ago.
You have always existed.
3 Lord, the seas have lifted up their voice.
They have lifted up their pounding waves.
4 But Lord, you are more powerful than the roar of the ocean.
You are stronger than the waves of the sea.
Lord, you are powerful in heaven.
5 Your laws do not change, Lord.
Your temple will be holy
for all time to come.
96 Sing a new song to the Lord.
All you people of the earth, sing to the Lord.
2 Sing to the Lord. Praise him.
Day after day tell about how he saves us.
3 Tell the nations about his glory.
Tell all people about the wonderful things he has done.
4 The Lord is great. He is really worthy of praise.
People should have respect for him as the greatest God of all.
5 All the gods of the nations are like their statues.
They can’t do anything.
But the Lord made the heavens.
6 Glory and majesty are all around him.
Strength and glory can be seen in his temple.
7 Praise the Lord, all you nations.
Praise the Lord for his glory and strength.
8 Praise the Lord for the glory that belongs to him.
Bring an offering and come into the courtyards of his temple.
9 Worship the Lord because of his beauty and holiness.
All you people of the earth, tremble when you are with him.
10 Say to the nations, “The Lord rules.”
The world is firmly set in place. It can’t be moved.
The Lord will judge the people of the world fairly.
11 Let the heavens be full of joy. Let the earth be glad.
Let the ocean and everything in it roar.
12 Let the fields and everything in them be glad.
Let all the trees in the forest sing for joy.
13 Let all creation be full of joy in front of the Lord,
because he is coming to judge the earth.
He will faithfully judge the people of the world
in keeping with what is right.
A psalm of David when he was with Abimelek and pretended to be out of his mind. Abimelek drove him away, and David left.
34 I will thank the Lord at all times.
My lips will always praise him.
2 I will find my glory in knowing the Lord.
Let those who are hurting hear me and be joyful.
3 Join me in giving glory to the Lord.
Let us honor him together.
4 I looked to the Lord, and he answered me.
He saved me from everything I was afraid of.
5 Those who look to him have joyful faces.
They are never covered with shame.
6 This poor man called out, and the Lord heard him.
He saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord stands guard
around those who have respect for him.
And he saves them.
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Blessed is the person who goes to him for safety.
9 You holy people of God, have respect for the Lord.
Those who respect him have everything they need.
10 The lions may grow weak and hungry.
But those who look to the Lord have every good thing they need.
11 My children, come. Listen to me.
I will teach you to have respect for the Lord.
12 Do you love life
and want to see many good days?
13 Then keep your tongues from speaking evil.
Keep your lips from telling lies.
14 Turn away from evil, and do good.
Look for peace, and go after it.
15 The Lord looks with favor on those who are godly.
His ears are open to their cry.
16 But the Lord doesn’t look with favor on those who do evil.
He removes all memory of them from the earth.
17 Godly people cry out, and the Lord hears them.
He saves them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is close to those whose hearts have been broken.
He saves those whose spirits have been crushed.
19 The person who does what is right may have many troubles.
But the Lord saves him from all of them.
20 The Lord watches over all his bones.
Not one of them will be broken.
21 Sinners will be killed by their own evil.
The enemies of godly people will be judged.
22 The Lord will save those who serve him.
No one who goes to him for safety will be found guilty.
The Sabbath Year
25 The Lord spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai. He said, 2 “Speak to the Israelites. Tell them, ‘You will enter the land I am going to give you. When you do, you must honor the Lord every seventh year by not farming the land that year. 3 For six years plant your fields. Trim the branches in your vineyards and gather your crops. 4 But the seventh year must be a year of sabbath rest for the land. The land must rest during it. It is a sabbath year to honor the Lord. Do not plant your fields. Do not trim the branches in your vineyards. 5 Do not gather what grows without being planted. And do not gather the grapes from the vines you have not taken care of. The land must have a year of rest. 6 Anything the land produces during the sabbath year will be food for you. It will be for you and your male and female servants. Your hired workers will eat it. So will people who live with you for a while. 7 And so will your livestock and the wild animals that are in your land. Anything the land produces can be eaten.
The Year of Jubilee
8 “ ‘Count off seven sabbath years. Count off seven times seven years. The seven sabbath years add up to a total of 49 years. 9 The tenth day of the seventh month is the day when sin is paid for. On that day blow the trumpet all through your land. 10 Set the 50th year apart. Announce freedom all over the land to everyone who lives there. The 50th year will be a Year of Jubilee for you. Each of you must return to your own family property. And each of you must return to your own tribe. 11 The 50th year will be a Year of Jubilee for you. Do not plant anything. Do not gather what grows without being planted. And do not gather the grapes from the vines you have not taken care of. 12 It is a Year of Jubilee. It will be holy for you. Eat only what the fields produce.
13 “ ‘In the Year of Jubilee all of you must return to your own property.
14 “ ‘Suppose you sell land to any of your own people. Or you buy land from them. Then do not take advantage of each other. 15 The price you pay must be based on the number of years since the last Year of Jubilee. Here is how the price you charge must be decided. It must be based on the number of years left for gathering crops before the next Year of Jubilee. 16 When there are many years left, you must raise the price. When there are only a few years left, you must lower the price. That is because what is really being sold to you is the number of crops the land will produce. 17 Do not take advantage of each other. Instead, have respect for your God. I am the Lord your God.
Facing All Kinds of Trouble
2 My brothers and sisters, you will face all kinds of trouble. When you do, think of it as pure joy. 3 Your faith will be tested. You know that when this happens it will produce in you the strength to continue. 4 And you must allow this strength to finish its work. Then you will be all you should be. You will have everything you need. 5 If any of you needs wisdom, you should ask God for it. He will give it to you. God gives freely to everyone and doesn’t find fault. 6 But when you ask, you must believe. You must not doubt. That’s because a person who doubts is like a wave of the sea. The wind blows and tosses them around. 7 They shouldn’t expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 This kind of person can’t make up their mind. They can never decide what to do.
16 My dear brothers and sisters, don’t let anyone fool you. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from God. This kind of gift comes down from the Father who created the heavenly lights. These lights create shadows that move. But the Father does not change like these shadows. 18 God chose to give us new birth through the message of truth. He wanted us to be the first harvest of his new creation.
The Story of the Rich Fool
13 Someone in the crowd spoke to Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “tell my brother to divide the family property with me.”
14 Jesus replied, “Friend, who made me a judge or umpire between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against wanting to have more and more things. Life is not made up of how much a person has.”
16 Then Jesus told them a story. He said, “A certain rich man’s land produced a very large crop. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have any place to store my crops.’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones. I will store my extra grain in them. 19 I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain stored away for many years. Take life easy. Eat, drink and have a good time.” ’
20 “But God said to him, ‘You foolish man! Tonight I will take your life away from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21 “That is how it will be for whoever stores things away for themselves but is not rich in the sight of God.”
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