Book of Common Prayer
For the choir director; according to shoshannim eduth; by Asaph; a psalm.
80 Open your ears, O Shepherd of Israel,
the one who leads ⌞the descendants of⌟ Joseph like sheep,
the one who is enthroned over the angels.[a]
2 Appear in front of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Wake up your power, and come to save us.
3 O God, restore us and smile on us
so that we may be saved.
4 O Lord God, commander of armies, how long will you smolder in anger
against the prayer of your people?
5 You made them eat tears as food.
You often made them drink ⌞their own⌟ tears.
6 You made us a source of conflict to our neighbors,
and our enemies made fun of us.
7 O God, commander of armies, restore us and smile on us
so that we may be saved.
8 You brought a vine from Egypt.
You forced out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it
so that it took root and filled the land.
10 Its shade covered the mountains.
Its branches covered the mighty cedars.
11 It reached out with its branches to the Mediterranean Sea.
Its shoots reached the Euphrates River.
12 Why did you break down the stone fences around this vine?
All who pass by are picking its fruit.
13 Wild boars from the forest graze on it.
Wild animals devour it.
14 O God, commander of armies, come back!
Look from heaven and see!
Come to help this vine.
15 Take care of what your right hand planted,
the son you strengthened for yourself.
16 The vine has been cut down and burned.
Let them be destroyed by the threatening look on your face.
17 Let your power rest on the man you have chosen,
the son of man you strengthened for yourself.
18 Then we will never turn away from you.
Give us life again, and we will call on you.
19 O Lord God, commander of armies, restore us, and smile on us
so that we may be saved.
For the choir director; according to Jeduthun; a psalm by Asaph.
77 Loudly, I cried to God.
Loudly, I cried to God
so that he would open his ears to ⌞hear⌟ me.
2 On the day I was in trouble, I went to the Lord for help.
At night I stretched out my hands in prayer without growing tired.
Yet, my soul refused to be comforted.
3 I sigh as I remember God.
I begin to lose hope as I think about him. Selah
4 (You keep my eyelids open.)
I am so upset that I cannot speak.
5 I have considered the days of old,
the years long ago.
6 I remember my song in the night
and reflect ⌞on it⌟.
My spirit searches ⌞for an answer⌟:
7 Will the Lord reject ⌞me⌟ for all time?
Will he ever accept me?
8 Has his mercy come to an end forever?
Has his promise been canceled throughout every generation?
9 Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has he locked up his compassion because of his anger? Selah
10 Then I said, “It makes me feel sick
that the power of the Most High is no longer the same.”
11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord.
I will remember your ancient miracles.
12 I will reflect on all your actions
and think about what you have done.
13 O God, your ways are holy!
What god is as great as our God?
14 You are the God who performs miracles.
You have made your strength known among the nations.
15 With your might you have defended your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Selah
16 The water saw you, O God.
The water saw you and shook.
Even the depths of the sea trembled.
17 The clouds poured out water.
The sky thundered.
Even your arrows flashed in every direction.
18 The sound of your thunder rumbled in the sky.
Streaks of lightning lit up the world.
The earth trembled and shook.
19 Your road went through the sea.
Your path went through raging water,
but your footprints could not be seen.
20 Like a shepherd, you led your people.
You had Moses and Aaron take them by the hand.
A psalm by Asaph.
79 O God, the nations have invaded the land that belongs to you.
They have dishonored your holy temple.
They have left Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They have given the dead bodies of your servants
to the birds for food.
They have given the flesh of your godly ones
to the animals.
3 They have shed the blood of your people around Jerusalem
as though it were water.
There is no one to bury your people.
4 We have become a disgrace to our neighbors,
an object of ridicule and contempt to those around us.
5 How long, O Lord?
Will you remain angry forever?
Will your fury continue to burn like fire?
6 Pour your fury on the nations that do not know you,
on the kingdoms that have not called you.
7 They have devoured Jacob.
They have destroyed his home.
8 Do not hold the crimes of our ancestors against us.
Reach out to us soon with your compassion,
because we are helpless.
9 Help us, O God, our savior, for the glory of your name.
Rescue us, and forgive our sins for the honor of your name.
10 Why should the nations ⌞be allowed to⌟ say,
“Where is their God?”
Let us watch as the nations learn
that there is punishment for shedding the blood of your servants.
11 Let the groans of prisoners come into your presence.
With your powerful arm rescue those who are condemned to death.
12 Pay each one of our neighbors back
with seven times the number of insults they used to insult you, O Lord.
13 Then we, your people, the flock in your pasture,
will give thanks to you forever.
We will praise you throughout every generation.
The Column of Smoke Leads Israel through the Desert
15 On the day the tent of the words of God’s promise was set up, the ⌞column of⌟ smoke covered it. From evening until morning, the smoke over the tent glowed like fire. 16 The smoke always glowed this way. At night the smoke covering the tent glowed like fire. 17 Whenever the smoke moved from the tent, the Israelites would break camp, and wherever it stopped, the Israelites would set up camp. 18 At the Lord’s command the Israelites would break camp, and at his command they would set up camp. As long as the ⌞column of⌟ smoke stayed over the tent, they would stay in the same place. 19 When the smoke stayed over the tent for a long time, the Israelites obeyed the Lord’s command and wouldn’t break camp. 20 The same thing happened when the smoke stayed only a few days over the tent: At the Lord’s command they would set up camp, and at his command they would break camp. 21 Sometimes the ⌞column of⌟ smoke stayed only from evening until morning. When the smoke moved in the morning, they broke camp. Day or night, when the smoke moved, they broke camp. 22 Whether it was two days, a month, or a year, as long as the ⌞column of⌟ smoke stayed over the tent, the Israelites would stay in the same place and not break camp. But when the smoke moved, they would break camp. 23 At the Lord’s command they set up camp, and at his command they broke camp. They obeyed the command that the Lord had given through Moses.
29 Moses said to his brother-in-law Hobab, son of Reuel the Midianite, “We are going to the place the Lord promised to give us. Come with us. We will be good to you, because the Lord has promised good things to Israel.”
30 Hobab answered, “No, I won’t go. I want to go back to my own country where my relatives are.”
31 But Moses said, “Please don’t leave us. You know where we can set up camp in the desert, and you could be our guide. 32 If you come with us, we will share with you all the good things the Lord gives us.”
33 So they left the mountain of the Lord and traveled for three days. The ark of the Lord’s promise went ahead of them a distance of three days’ journey to find them a place to rest. 34 The Lord’s ⌞column of⌟ smoke was over them by day when they moved the camp.
35 Whenever the ark started to move, Moses would say,
“Arise, O Lord!
Scatter your enemies!
Make those who hate you run away from you!”
36 And whenever it stopped, he would say,
“Return, O Lord, to the countless thousands of Israel!”
Greeting
1 From Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle and appointed to spread the Good News of God.
2 (God had already promised this Good News through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures. 3 This Good News is about his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.[a] In his human nature he was a descendant of David. 4 In his spiritual, holy nature he was declared the Son of God. This was shown in a powerful way when he came back to life. 5 Through him we have received God’s kindness [b] and the privilege of being apostles who bring people from every nation to the obedience that is associated with faith. This is for the honor of his name. 6 You are among those who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ.)
7 To everyone in Rome whom God loves and has called to be his holy people.
Good will [c] and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are yours!
Paul’s Prayer and Desire to Visit Rome
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for every one of you because the news of your faith is spreading throughout the whole world. 9 I serve God by spreading the Good News about his Son. God is my witness that I always mention you 10 every time I pray. I ask that somehow God will now at last make it possible for me to visit you. 11 I long to see you to share a spiritual blessing with you so that you will be strengthened. 12 What I mean is that we may be encouraged by each other’s faith.
13 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that I often planned to visit you. However, until now I have been kept from doing so. What I want is to enjoy some of the results of working among you as I have also enjoyed the results of working among the rest of the nations. 14 I have an obligation to those who are civilized and those who aren’t, to those who are wise and those who aren’t. 15 That’s why I’m eager to tell you who live in Rome the Good News also.
Jesus Cures a Demon-Possessed Boy(A)
14 When they came to a crowd, a man came up to Jesus, knelt in front of him, 15 and said, “Sir, have mercy on my son. He suffers from seizures. Often he falls into fire or water. 16 I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn’t cure him.”
17 Jesus replied, “You unbelieving and corrupt generation! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me!”
18 Jesus ordered the demon to come out of the boy. At that moment the boy was cured.
19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and asked, “Why couldn’t we force the demon out of the boy?”
20 He told them, “Because you have so little faith. I can guarantee this truth: If your faith is the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” [a]
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