Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66[a]
Thanksgiving for God’s Deliverance
1 For the director.[b] A song. A psalm.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;[c]
2 sing to the glory of his name;[d]
offer to him glorious praise.
3 Say to God: “How awesome are your deeds!
Because of your great power,
your enemies grovel before you.
4 The whole earth bows down in worship before you,
singing praises to you,
singing praises to your name.” Selah
5 Come and behold[e] the works of God,
the awesome deeds he has done for people.
6 He changed the sea into dry land;
they crossed the river[f] on foot.
There we rejoiced in him,
7 for he rules forever by his power.
His eyes keep watch over the nations
so that the rebellious not exalt themselves. Selah
8 [g]Bless our God, all you peoples;
let the sound of his praise be heard.
9 For he has preserved our lives[h]
and has kept our feet from stumbling.
10 For you, O God, have put us to the test;
you have purified us as silver is refined.
11 [i]You allowed us to be snared in the net
and placed heavy burdens on our backs.
12 You let our captors ride over our heads,[j]
and we went through fire and water,
but now you have afforded us relief.
13 [k]I will enter your house with burnt offerings
and carry out my vows to you,
14 the vows that my lips pronounced
and my mouth promised when I was in distress.
15 I will offer burnt offerings of fat animals
with the smoke of burning rams;
I will sacrifice to you bulls and goats. Selah
16 Come and listen, all you who fear God,
while I relate what he has done for me.
17 [l]I lifted up my voice in prayer to him;
his praise[m] was on my tongue.
18 [n]If I had harbored evil in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.
19 But God truly did listen,
and he was attentive to the words of my prayer.
20 Blessed[o] be God,
because he did not reject my prayer
or withhold his kindness from me.
Psalm 67[p]
Prayer That All May Worship God
1 For the director.[q] With stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
2 O God, be gracious to us and bless us
and let your face shine upon us.[r] Selah
3 [s]Then your ways will be known on earth
and your salvation among all nations.
4 Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
5 Let the nations rejoice and exult,
for you judge the peoples fairly
and guide the nations upon the earth.[t] Selah
6 Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
7 The earth has yielded its harvest;
God, our God, has blessed us.
8 May God continue to bless us
and be revered to the ends of the earth.
Psalm 19[a]
God’s Glory in Creation
1 For the director.[b] A psalm of David.
2 [c]The heavens proclaim the glory of God;
the firmament shows forth the work of his hands.
3 One day imparts that message to the next,
and night conveys that knowledge to night.
4 All this occurs without speech or utterance;
no voice can be heard.
5 [d]Yet their message goes forth throughout the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.
[e]In the heavens he has placed a tent for the sun,
6 which comes forth like a bridegroom from his wedding chamber,
rejoicing like an athlete who runs his course.
7 It rises from one end of the heavens,
and its circuit is completed at the other;
nothing can be hidden from its heat.
8 The law of the Lord is perfect,
affording refreshment to the soul.
The decree of the Lord is worthy of trust,
imparting wisdom to the simple.[f]
9 The precepts of the Lord are right,
causing the heart[g] to rejoice.
The commands of the Lord are clear,
giving light to the eyes.
10 The fear of the Lord[h] is pure,
destined to endure forever.
The ordinances of the Lord are true,
and all of them are just.
11 They are even more precious than gold,
than an abundance of the purest gold;
they are also sweeter than honey
that drips from the comb.[i]
12 [j]By these your servant is instructed;
obedience in following them will ensure a great reward.
13 But who can fully recognize his shortcomings?
Cleanse me of my hidden faults.
14 From willful sins preserve your servant;
never let them gain power over me.
Then I will be blameless
and innocent of serious sin.
15 Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart[k]
find favor in your sight,
O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 46[a]
God, Refuge of His People
1 For the director.[b] A song of the sons of Korah. According to alamoth.
2 [c]God is our refuge and our strength,
a well-proved help in times of trouble.[d]
3 Therefore, we will not be afraid, though the earth be shaken
and the mountains tumble into the depths of the sea,
4 though its waters rage and seethe
and the mountains tremble at the upheaval.
The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.[e] Selah
5 There is a river[f] whose streams bring joy to the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
6 God is in her midst; she will not be overcome;
God will help her at break of dawn.[g]
7 The nations are in tumult and kingdoms fall;
when he raises his voice,[h] the earth melts away.
8 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
9 Come and behold the works of the Lord,
the astonishing deeds he has wrought on the earth.
10 He puts an end to wars all over the earth;
he breaks the bow and snaps the spear,
and he burns the shields with flames.[i]
11 “Be still and acknowledge that I am God,
exalted among the nations,
exalted on the earth.”[j]
12 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
26 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 27 “How long will this wicked assembly grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of the people of Israel that they grumble against me. 28 So I declare to them: As I live, says the Lord, I will make the things you have said in my hearing happen: 29 your dead bodies will fall to the ground in this wilderness. None of you who are twenty years or older and who have complained about me 30 will enter the land in which I swore I would make you dwell except for Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua, the son of Nun. 31 However, as for your little ones whom you said would become plunder, I will bring them in and they will come to know the land that you have despised. 32 But your dead bodies will fall to the ground in this wilderness. 33 Your children will wander in this wilderness for forty years, and they will bear the burden of your unfaithfulness, until your dead bodies lie in the wilderness. 34 The number of days that you explored the land was forty, and there will be one year for each day. You will bear the burden of your sins for forty years and you will come to know my rejection.[a] 35 I, the Lord, have proclaimed this. I will surely do this to this evil assembly that has gathered together against me. In this wilderness they will come to an end, there they will die.”
36 The men whom Moses sent to explore the land, and who, when they returned, incited the assembly to complain against him by giving an evil report concerning the land, 37 those men who brought the evil report concerning the land were struck down by a plague before the Lord. 38 Of the men who went to explore the land, Joshua, the son of Nun, and Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, survived.
39 Doomed Invasion. When Moses reported these sayings to all the people of Israel, the people mourned bitterly. 40 They rose up early the next morning and went to the top of the mountain and said, “Here we are! We have sinned, but we are ready to go up to the place that the Lord has promised.” 41 But Moses said, “Why are you now disobeying the command of the Lord? This will not succeed. 42 Do not go up, for the Lord is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies. 43 The Amalekites and the Canaanites are there in front of you. You will fall by the sword, because you turned away from the Lord. The Lord will not be with you.” 44 In their presumption, they went up into the high hill country, but the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord and Moses did not go out from the camp. 45 The Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in the hill country came down and attacked them and drove them back to Hormah.
Chapter 15
The Council of Jerusalem[a]
The Question of Circumcision. Some men who had come down from Judea were teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised in accordance with the tradition of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 As a result, Paul and Barnabas engaged in a lengthy and acrimonious debate with them, and finally it was decided that Paul and Barnabas and some of the others should go up to Jerusalem to discuss this question with the apostles and the elders.3 So the church sent them on their journey; and as they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, they reported how the Gentiles had been converted, and this news was received with great joy by all the brethren. 4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the Church and by the apostles and the elders, and they gave a report of all that God had accomplished through them. 5 But some from the group of Pharisees who had become believers stood up and declared, “It is necessary for the Gentiles to be circumcised and ordered to observe the Law of Moses.”
Salvation through the Grace of Christ. 6 The apostles and the elders convened to consider this matter. 7 After a long period of debate, Peter stood up to address them. “Brethren,” he said, “you are well aware that in the early days God made his choice among you that it would be through my mouth that the Gentiles would hear the message of the gospel and become believers. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by giving to them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between them and us, for he purified their hearts by faith.
10 “Therefore, why are you determined to try God’s patience by laying a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither we nor our ancestors have found easy to bear? 11 On the contrary, we believe that we are saved in the same way as they are, through the grace of the Lord Jesus.” 12 On hearing this, the whole assembly fell silent, and they listened as Barnabas and Paul described all the signs and wonders that God had worked through them among the Gentiles.
The Urgency of Making the Decision
49 Jesus and His Passion.[a]“I have come to spread fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already blazing! 50 I have a baptism with which to be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it has been completed!
51 Jesus, Cause of Dissensions.[b]“Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.
52 “From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; 53 they will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
54 Discerning the Signs of the Times.[c] He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, ‘It is going to rain,’ and so it happens. 55 And when you see the wind blowing from the south, you say, ‘It is going to be hot,’ and so it happens. 56 You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky. Why then do you not know how to interpret the present time?
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