Book of Common Prayer
97 The Lord rules as king.
Let the earth rejoice.
Let all the islands be joyful.
2 Clouds and darkness surround him.
Righteousness and justice are the foundations of his throne.
3 Fire spreads ahead of him.
It burns his enemies who surround him.
4 His flashes of lightning light up the world.
The earth sees them and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax in the presence of the Lord,
in the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
6 The heavens tell about his righteousness,
and all the people of the world see his glory.
7 Everyone who worships idols
and brags about false gods will be put to shame.
All the gods will bow to him.
8 Zion hears about this and rejoices.
The people of Judah are delighted with your judgments, O Lord.
9 You, O Lord, the Most High, are above the whole earth.
You are highest. You are above all the gods.
10 Let those who love the Lord hate evil.
The one who guards the lives of his godly ones
will rescue them from the power of wicked people.
11 Light dawns for righteous people [a]
and joy for those whose motives are decent.
12 Find joy in the Lord, you righteous people.
Give thanks to him as you remember how holy he is.
99 The Lord rules as king.
Let the people tremble.
He is enthroned over the angels.[a]
Let the earth quake.
2 The Lord is mighty in Zion.
He is high above all people.
3 Let them give thanks to your great and fearful name.
He is holy!
4 The king’s strength is that he loves justice.
You have established fairness.
You have done what is fair and right for Jacob.
5 Highly honor the Lord our God.
Bow down at his footstool.
He is holy!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests.
Samuel was among those who prayed to him.
They called to the Lord, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them from a column of smoke.
They obeyed his written instructions and the laws that he gave them.
8 O Lord, our God, you answered them.
You showed them that you are a forgiving God
and that you are a God who punishes their ⌞sinful⌟ deeds.
9 Highly honor the Lord our God.
Bow at his holy mountain.
The Lord our God is holy!
A psalm of thanksgiving.
100 Shout happily to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Serve the Lord cheerfully.
Come into his presence with a joyful song.
3 Realize that the Lord alone is God.
He made us, and we are his.[b]
We are his people and the sheep in his care.
4 Enter his gates with a song of thanksgiving.
Come into his courtyards with a song of praise.
Give thanks to him; praise his name.
5 The Lord is good.
His mercy endures forever.
His faithfulness endures throughout every generation.
94 O Lord, God of vengeance,
O God of vengeance, appear!
2 Arise, O Judge of the earth.
Give arrogant people what they deserve.
3 How long, O Lord, will wicked people triumph?
How long?
4 They ramble.
They speak arrogantly.
All troublemakers brag about themselves.
5 They crush your people, O Lord.
They make those who belong to you suffer.
6 They kill widows and foreigners, and they murder orphans.
7 They say, “The Lord doesn’t see it.
The God of Jacob doesn’t even pay attention to it.”
8 Pay attention, you stupid people!
When will you become wise, you fools?
9 God created ears.
Do you think he can’t hear?
He formed eyes.
Do you think he can’t see?
10 He disciplines nations.
Do you think he can’t punish?
He teaches people.
Do you think he doesn’t know anything?
11 The Lord knows that people’s thoughts are pointless.
12 O Lord, blessed is the person
whom you discipline and instruct from your teachings.
13 You give him peace and quiet from times of trouble
while a pit is dug to trap wicked people.
14 The Lord will never desert his people
or abandon those who belong to him.
15 The decisions of judges will again become fair,
and everyone whose motives are decent will pursue justice.
16 Who will stand up for me against evildoers?
Who will stand by my side against troublemakers?
17 If the Lord had not come to help me,
my soul would have quickly fallen silent ⌞in death⌟.
18 When I said, “My feet are slipping,”
your mercy, O Lord, continued to hold me up.
19 When I worried about many things,
your assuring words soothed my soul.
20 Are wicked rulers who use the law to do unlawful things
able to be your partners?
21 They join forces to take the lives of righteous people.
They condemn innocent people to death.
22 The Lord has become my stronghold.
My God has become my rock of refuge.
23 He has turned their own wickedness against them.
He will destroy them because of their sins.
The Lord our God will destroy them.
95 Come, let’s sing joyfully to the Lord.
Let’s shout happily to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let’s come into his presence with a song of thanksgiving.
Let’s shout happily to him with psalms.
3 The Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth,
and the mountain peaks are his.
5 The sea is his.
He made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let’s worship and bow down.
Let’s kneel in front of the Lord, our maker,
7 because he is our God
and we are the people in his care,
the flock that he leads.
If only you would listen to him today!
8 “Do not be stubborn like ⌞my people were⌟ at Meribah,
like the time at Massah in the desert.
9 Your ancestors challenged me and tested me there,
although they had seen what I had done.
10 For 40 years I was disgusted with those people.
So I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts continue to stray.
They have not learned my ways.’
11 That is why I angrily took this solemn oath:
‘They will never enter my place of rest!’ ”
David Chosen to Be King
16 The Lord asked Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul now that I have rejected him as king of Israel? Fill a flask with olive oil and go. I’m sending you to Jesse in Bethlehem because I’ve selected one of his sons to be king.”
2 “How can I go?” Samuel asked. “When Saul hears about it, he’ll kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I’ve come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice. I will reveal to you what you should do, and you will anoint for me the one I point out to you.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord told him. When he came to Bethlehem, the leaders of the city, trembling with fear, greeted him and said, “May peace be with you.”
5 “Greetings,” he replied, “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Perform the ceremonies to make yourselves holy, and come with me to the sacrifice.” He performed the ceremonies for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. 6 When they came, he saw Eliab and thought, “Certainly, here in the Lord’s presence is his anointed king.”
7 But the Lord told Samuel, “Don’t look at his appearance or how tall he is, because I have rejected him. God does not see as humans see.[a] Humans look at outward appearances, but the Lord looks into the heart.”
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and brought him to Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.”
9 Then Jesse had Shammah come to Samuel. “The Lord has not chosen this one either,” Samuel said. 10 So Jesse brought seven ⌞more⌟ of his sons to Samuel, but Samuel told Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen ⌞any of⌟ these. 11 Are these all the sons you have?”
“There’s still the youngest one,” Jesse answered. “He’s tending the sheep.”
Samuel told Jesse, “Send someone to get him. We won’t continue until he gets here.”
12 So Jesse sent for him. He had a healthy complexion, attractive eyes, and a handsome appearance. The Lord said, “Go ahead, anoint him. He is the one.” 13 Samuel took the flask of olive oil and anointed David in the presence of his brothers. The Lord’s Spirit came over David and stayed with him from that day on. Then Samuel left for Ramah.
Paul Prays That God Would Strengthen Christians
14 This is the reason I kneel in the presence of the Father 15 from whom all the family in heaven and on earth receives its name. 16 I’m asking God to give you a gift from the wealth of his glory. I pray that he would give you inner strength and power through his Spirit. 17 Then Christ will live in you through faith. I also pray that love may be the ground into which you sink your roots and on which you have your foundation. 18 This way, with all of God’s people you will be able to understand how wide, long, high, and deep his love is. 19 You will know Christ’s love, which goes far beyond any knowledge. I am praying this so that you may be completely filled with God.
20 Glory belongs to God, whose power is at work in us. By this power he can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. 21 Glory belongs to God in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time and eternity! Amen.
18 Now, when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he ordered ⌞his disciples⌟ to cross to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.
What It Takes to Be a Disciple(A)
19 An expert in Moses’ Teachings came to him and said, “Teacher, I’ll follow you wherever you go.”
20 Jesus told him, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to sleep.”
21 Another disciple said to him, “Sir, first let me go to bury my father.”
22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”
Jesus Calms the Sea(B)
23 Jesus’ disciples went with him as he left in a boat. 24 Suddenly, a severe storm came across the sea. The waves were covering the boat. Yet, Jesus was sleeping.
25 So they woke him up, saying, “Lord! Save us! We’re going to die!”
26 Jesus said to them, “Why do you cowards have so little faith?” Then he got up, gave an order to the wind and the sea, and the sea became very calm.
27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”
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