Book of Common Prayer
145 [Koph]. I cried in all mine heart, Lord, hear thou me; I shall seek thy justifyings. (I cried with all my heart, O Lord, please answer me; for I shall follow thy statutes.)
146 I cried to thee, make thou me safe; that I keep thy commandments. (I cried to thee, save thou me; so that I can keep thy commandments/and I shall obey thy commandments.)
147 I before came in ripeness, and I cried; I hoped above on thy words. (I came before thee in the morning; I have great hope in thy words.)
148 Mine eyes before came to thee full early; that I should bethink (on) thy speeches. (My eyes be open through the night/I lie awake all night; so that I can think about thy words.)
149 Lord, hear thou my voice by thy mercy; and quicken thou me by thy doom. (Lord, hear thou me in thy mercy; and grant thou me life according to thy judgement./Lord, hear thou me in thy love; and grant thou me life by thy decree.)
150 They that pursue me nighed to wickedness; forsooth they be made far from thy law. (They who pursue me approach near to wickedness; and they be made far from thy Law./They who wickedly pursue me come near to me; but they be made far from thy Law.)
151 Lord, thou art nigh; and all thy ways be truth. (Lord, thou art near; and all thy commandments be true.)
152 In the beginning I knew of thy witnessings; for thou hast founded those [into] without end. (Long ago I knew of thy teachings; for thou hast founded them to last forever.)
153 [Resh]. See thou my meekness, and deliver thou me; for I forgat not thy law. (See thou my troubles, and save thou me; for I have not forgotten thy Law.)
154 Deem thou my doom, and again-buy thou me; quicken me for thy speech. (Judge thou my case, and buy thou me back, that is, rescue me; yea, grant thou me life according to thy word, or thy promise.)
155 Health is far from sinners; for they sought not thy justifyings. (Salvation is far from sinners; for they did not search out thy statutes/for they do not obey thy laws.)
156 Lord, thy mercies be many; quicken thou me by thy doom. (Lord, thy constant love is great; grant thou me life according to thy judgement./Lord, thy mercy is great; grant thou me life by thy decree.)
157 They be many that pursue me, and do tribulation to me; I bowed not away from thy witnessings. (There be many who persecute me, and give me trouble; but I have not turned away from thy teachings.)
158 I saw breakers of the law, and I was melted, either languished; for they kept not thy speeches. (I saw the law-breakers, and I was greatly distressed; for they did not obey thy words, or thy commands.)
159 Lord, see thou, for I loved thy commandments; quicken thou me in thy mercy. (Lord, see thou, how I love thy precepts; grant thou me life according to thy love.)
160 The beginning of thy word is truth; all the dooms of thy rightwiseness be [into] without end. (The beginning of thy word is truth; and all thy righteous judgements be forever.)
161 [Schin]. Princes pursued me without cause; and my heart dreaded of thy words. (The rulers persecuted me for no reason; but my heart is in awe of thy words.)
162 I shall be glad on thy speeches; as he that findeth many spoils. (I shall be glad, or rejoice, in thy words; yea, like he who findeth much prey.)
163 I hated and loathed wickedness; forsooth I loved thy law. (I hate and loathe all lies; but I love thy Law.)
164 I said praisings to thee seven times in the day; on the dooms of thy rightfulness. (Seven times a day I praise thee; for thy righteous judgements/for thy rightful decrees.)
165 Much peace is to them that love thy law; and no cause of stumbling is to them. (There is much peace for those who love thy Law; and they have no reason to slip, or to stumble.)
166 Lord, I abode thine health; and I loved thy behests. (Lord, I wait for thy salvation, or thy deliverance; and I follow thy commandments.)
167 My soul kept thy witnessings; and loved those greatly. (I obey thy teachings; and I love them so very much.)
168 I kept thy commandments, and thy witnessings; for all my ways be in thy sight. (I obey thy precepts, and thy teachings; and all my ways be before thee.)
169 [Tau]. Lord, my beseeching come nigh in thy sight; by thy speech give thou understanding to me. (Lord, let my plea come before thee; give thou me understanding of thy word/give thou me understanding according to thy word.)
170 Mine asking enter into thy sight; by thy speech deliver thou me. (Let my asking come before thee; save thou me according to thy word.)
171 My lips shall tell out an hymn; when thou hast taught me thy justifyings. (My lips shall tell out thy praises/My lips shall praise thee; because thou hast taught me thy statutes.)
172 My tongue shall pronounce thy speech; for why all thy commandments be equity. (My tongue shall tell out thy word; for all thy commandments be just, or fair.)
173 Thine hand be made, that it save me; for I have chosen thy behests. (Let thy hand swiftly save me; for I have chosen thy precepts.)
174 Lord, I coveted thine health; and thy law is my thinking. (Lord, I desire thy salvation, or thy deliverance; and thy Law is my delight.)
175 My soul shall live, and it shall praise thee; and thy dooms shall help me. (Let me live, and I shall praise thee; and let thy judgements help me/and let thy decrees guide me.)
176 I erred as a sheep that perished; Lord, seek thy servant, for I forgat not thy commandments. (I have wandered about like a lost sheep; Lord, search for thy servant, for I have not forgotten thy commandments.)
128 The song of degrees. Blessed be all men, that dread the Lord; that go in his ways. (Happy be all those, who fear the Lord/who revere the Lord; and who go in his ways.)
2 For thou shalt eat the travails of thine hands; thou art blessed, and it shall be well to thee. (For thou shalt eat the fruit of thy labour; thou shalt be happy, and it shall be well with thee.)
3 Thy wife shall be as a plenteous vine; in the sides of thine house. Thy sons as the new springs of olive trees; in the compass of thy board. (Thy wife shall be like a fruitful vine; by the side of thy house. And thy sons and thy daughters shall be like the new branches of olive trees; all around thy table.)
4 Lo! so a man shall be blessed; that dreadeth the Lord. (Lo! so shall the man be blessed; who feareth the Lord/who hath reverence for the Lord.)
5 The Lord bless thee from Zion; and see thou the goods of Jerusalem in all the days of thy life. (May the Lord bless thee from Zion; and may thou see the prosperity of Jerusalem/and may thou share in the prosperity of Jerusalem, all the days of thy life.)
6 And see thou the sons of thy sons; see thou peace on Israel. (And may thou see the sons of thy sons/the children of thy children. May peace be upon Israel.)
129 The song of degrees. Israel say now; Oft they have fought against me from my youth. (Let Israel say now; they have often fought against me from my youth.)
2 Oft they [have] fought against me from my youth; and soothly they might not to me (Yea, they have often fought against me from my youth; but truly they could never overcome me.)
3 Sinners forged on my back; they made long their wickedness. (The sinners scourged my back; they made their furrows deep and long in me.)
4 The Lord is just, (he) shall beat (together) the nolls of sinners; (But the Lord is just, and he shall free me from the bonds of the wicked;)
5 all that hate Zion be they shamed, and turned aback. (let all who hate Zion be put to shame, and be turned, or driven, back.)
6 Be they made as the hay of housetops; that dried up, before that it be drawn up. (Be they made like the grass on the rooftops; it dried up, before that it could be pulled up.)
7 Of which hay he that shall reap, shall not fill his hand; and he that shall gather handfuls, shall not fill his bosom. (Of which grass he who shall reap, shall not get a handful; and he who shall gather handfuls, shall not get an armful.)
8 And they that passed forth said not, The blessing of the Lord be on you; we blessed you in the name of the Lord. (And so they who pass by, shall never say, The blessing of the Lord be upon you; we bless you in the name of the Lord.)
130 The song of degrees. Lord, I cried to thee from the depths;
2 Lord, hear thou my voice. Thine ears be made attentive into the voice of my beseeching (Let thy ears be made attentive to the words of my plea).
3 Lord, if thou keepest wickednesses; Lord, who shall sustain, or abide? (Lord, if thou keepest a record of our wickednesses; then Lord, who shall survive?/then Lord, who will not be condemned?)
4 For mercy is at thee; (But there is mercy with thee, and I stand in awe of thee;)
5 and, Lord, for thy law I abode thee. My soul sustained in his word; (yea, Lord, I wait for thee. My soul is sustained, and I hope, and I trust, in his word.)
6 my soul hoped in the Lord. From the morrowtide keeping till to the night; (My soul waiteth for the Lord, more eagerly than those who wait for the morning light; yea, more eagerly than those who stand guard, or be on watch, until the morning light.)
7 Israel hope in the Lord. For why mercy is at the Lord; and plenteous redemption is at him. (Israel, trust in the Lord. For there is always love with the Lord; and there is plentiful redemption with him.)
8 And he shall again-buy Israel; from all the wickednesses thereof. (And he shall redeem the people of Israel; from all their wickednesses.)
41 Forsooth when the morrowtide was made, Balak led Balaam (up) to the high places of Baal (Balak led Balaam up to Bamoth Baal, that is, the Heights of Baal), and (there) he beheld (unto) the last part of the people, that is, (he saw) all the host (of the Israelites) till to the last part.
23 And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here to me seven altars, and make thou ready so many calves, and rams of the same number. (And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here seven altars for me, and prepare seven calves, and the same number of rams.)
2 And when Balak had done by the word of Balaam, they putted a calf and a ram together on the altar. (And when Balak had done what Balaam had asked, they offered a calf and a ram on each altar.)
3 And (then) Balaam said to Balak, Stand thou (here) a little while beside thy burnt sacrifice, while I go, if in hap the Lord (shall) meet (with) me; and I shall tell thee whatever thing he shall command. And when he had gone [away] swiftly (And when he had quickly gone away by himself),
4 God came to him; and Balaam spake to him, and said, I have raised up seven altars, and I have put a calf and a ram above each of them (and I have put a calf and a ram on each of them).
5 Forsooth the Lord putted a word in his mouth, and said, Turn again to Balak, and thou shalt speak these things. (And the Lord put a word in his mouth, and said, Return to Balak, and thou shalt say these things to him.)
6 He turned again, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and all the princes of Moabites. (And he returned, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, he and all the leaders of the Moabites.)
7 And when his parable was taken, he said, Balak, the king of Moabites, brought me from Aram, from the hills of the east; and he said, Come thou, and curse Jacob; haste thou, and curse Israel. (And when he had received his prophecy, he said, Balak, the king of the Moabites, brought me from Syria, yea, from the hills of the east; and he said, Come thou, and curse Jacob; hurry thou, and curse Israel.)
8 How shall I curse, whom God hath cursed not? (But how can I curse, whom God hath not cursed?) by what reason shall I loathe, whom God loatheth not?
9 From the highest flints I shall see him, and from the little hills I shall behold him; the people shall dwell alone, and it shall not be reckoned among heathen men. (From the highest rocks I shall see them, and from the little hills I shall behold them; these people shall live alone, and they shall not be counted among the heathen.)
10 Who may number the dust, that is, the kindred, of Jacob, and who may know the number of the generation of Israel? My life die in the death of just men, and my last things be made like them! (O let me die like the righteous die, and let my ending be made like theirs!)
11 And Balak said to Balaam, What is this that thou doest? I called thee, that thou shouldest curse mine enemies, and on the contrary, thou blessest them.
12 To whom Balaam answered, Whether I may speak (any) other thing, no but that that the Lord commandeth?
13 Is then that thing that is good, made death to me? God forbid [Far be it]. But sin, that it seem sin, through good thing wrought death to me, that me sin over manner through the commandment [But sin, that it appear sin, through good thing wrought death to me, that there be made sin sinning over manner, or measure, by commandment].
14 And we know, that the law is spiritual; but I am fleshly, sold under sin.
15 For I understand not that that I work; for I do not the good thing that I will, but I do that evil thing that I hate.
16 And if I do that thing that I will not, I consent to the law, that it is good.
17 But now I work not it now, but the sin that dwelleth in me.
18 But I know, that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good; for will lieth to me (for will lieth before me), but I find not to perform good thing [truly to perform good thing I find not].
19 For I do not that good thing that I will, but I do that evil thing that I will not.
20 And if I do that evil thing that I will not [Soothly if I do that thing that I will not], I work not it, but the sin that dwelleth in me.
21 Therefore I find the law to me willing to do good thing [Therefore I find a law to me willing to do good thing], for evil thing lieth to me (for evil thing lieth before me).
22 For I delight together to the law of God, after the inner man.
23 But I see another law in my members, fighting against the law of my soul, and making me captive in the law of sin, that is in my members.
24 I am an unhappy man [I am a woeful man]; who shall deliver me from the body of this sin?
25 [Forsooth] The grace of God, by Jesus Christ our Lord. Therefore I myself by the soul serve to the law of God; but by the flesh to the law of sin.
33 Hear ye another parable. There was an husbandman, that planted a vineyard, and hedged it about, and delved a presser therein, and builded a tower [and built a tower], and hired it to earth-tillers, and went far in pilgrimage.
34 And when the time of fruits approached, he sent his servants to the earth-tillers, to take fruits of it.[a]
35 And the earth-tillers took his servants, and they beat one, they slew another, and stoned another. [And, his servants taken, the earth-tillers beat one, they killed another, forsooth they stoned another.]
36 Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and in like manner they did to them [and they did to them in like manner].
37 And at the last he sent his son to them, and said [saying], They shall dread my son.
38 But the earth-tillers, seeing the son, said within themselves, This is the heir; come ye, slay we him, and we shall have his heritage.
39 And they took him, and casted [cast] him out of the vineyard, and slew him.
40 Therefore when the lord of the vineyard shall come, what shall he do to those earth-tillers?
41 They say to him, He shall destroy evil the evil men, and he shall set to hire his vineyard to other earth-tillers, which shall yield to him fruit in their times.[b]
42 Jesus saith to them, Read ye never in scriptures, The stone which the builders reproved, this is made into the head of the corner? Of the Lord this thing is done, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
43 Therefore I say to you, that the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and shall be given to a folk doing [the] fruits of it.[c]
44 And he that shall fall on this stone, shall be broken; but on whom it shall fall, it shall bruise him all to pieces [it shall pound him all to pieces].
45 And when the princes of priests and [the] Pharisees had heard his parables, they knew that he [had] said of them.
46 And they sought to hold him, but they dreaded the people [And they, seeking to hold him, dreaded the companies], for they had him as a prophet.
2001 by Terence P. Noble