Book of Common Prayer
God the Judge of the Righteous and the Wicked.
A Psalm of [a]Asaph.
50 (A)The Mighty One, God, the Lord, has spoken,
And summoned the earth (B)from the rising of the sun to its setting.
2 Out of Zion, (C)the perfection of beauty,
God (D)has shone forth.
3 May our God (E)come and not keep silence;
(F)Fire devours before Him,
And it is very (G)tempestuous around Him.
4 He (H)summons the heavens above,
And the earth, to judge His people:
5 “Gather My (I)godly ones to Me,
Those who have made a (J)covenant with Me by (K)sacrifice.”
6 And the (L)heavens declare His righteousness,
For (M)God Himself is judge. [b]Selah.
7 “(N)Hear, O My people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify [c]against you;
I am God, (O)your God.
8 “I do (P)not reprove you for your sacrifices,
And your burnt offerings are continually before Me.
9 “I shall take no (Q)young bull out of your house
Nor male goats out of your folds.
10 “For (R)every beast of the forest is Mine,
The cattle on a thousand hills.
11 “I know every (S)bird of the mountains,
And everything that moves in the field is [d]Mine.
12 “If I were hungry I would not tell you,
For the (T)world is Mine, and [e]all it contains.
13 “Shall I eat the flesh of [f](U)bulls
Or drink the blood of male goats?
14 “Offer to God (V)a sacrifice of thanksgiving
And (W)pay your vows to the Most High;
15 (X)Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I shall (Y)rescue you, and you will (Z)honor Me.”
16 But to the wicked God says,
“What right have you to tell of My statutes
And to take (AA)My covenant in your mouth?
17 “For you (AB)hate discipline,
And you (AC)cast My words behind you.
18 “When you see a thief, you [g](AD)are pleased with him,
And [h]you (AE)associate with adulterers.
19 “You [i](AF)let your mouth loose in evil
And your (AG)tongue frames deceit.
20 “You sit and (AH)speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.
21 “These things you have done and (AI)I kept silence;
You thought that I was just like you;
I will (AJ)reprove you and state the case in order before your eyes.
Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies.
For the choir director; set to [a]Al-tashheth. A [b]Mikhtam of David, [c]when Saul sent men and they watched the house in order to kill him.
59 (A)Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;
[d](B)Set me securely on high away from those who rise up against me.
2 Deliver me from (C)those who do iniquity
And save me from (D)men of bloodshed.
3 For behold, they (E)have [e]set an ambush for my [f]life;
[g]Fierce men [h](F)launch an attack against me,
(G)Not for my transgression nor for my sin, O Lord,
4 [i](H)For no guilt of mine, they run and set themselves against me.
(I)Arouse Yourself to [j]help me, and see!
5 You, (J)O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel,
Awake to [k](K)punish all the nations;
(L)Do not be gracious to any who are treacherous in iniquity. [l]Selah.
6 They (M)return at evening, they howl like a (N)dog,
And go around the city.
7 Behold, they (O)belch forth with their mouth;
(P)Swords are in their lips,
For, they say, “(Q)Who hears?”
8 But You, O Lord, (R)laugh at them;
You (S)scoff at all the nations.
9 Because of [m]his (T)strength I will watch for You,
For God is my (U)stronghold.
10 [n]My God (V)in His lovingkindness will meet me;
God will let me (W)look triumphantly upon [o]my foes.
11 Do not slay them, (X)or my people will forget;
[p](Y)Scatter them by Your power, and bring them down,
O Lord, (Z)our shield.
12 [q]On account of the (AA)sin of their mouth and the words of their lips,
Let them even be (AB)caught in their pride,
And on account of (AC)curses and [r]lies which they utter.
13 [s](AD)Destroy them in wrath, [t]destroy them that they may be no more;
That men may (AE)know that God [u]rules in Jacob
To the ends of the earth. Selah.
14 They (AF)return at evening, they howl like a dog,
And go around the city.
15 They (AG)wander about [v]for food
And [w]growl if they are not satisfied.
16 But as for me, I shall (AH)sing of Your strength;
Yes, I shall (AI)joyfully sing of Your lovingkindness in the (AJ)morning,
For You have been my (AK)stronghold
And a (AL)refuge in the day of my distress.
17 (AM)O my strength, I will sing praises to You;
For God is my (AN)stronghold, the [x]God who shows me lovingkindness.
Lament over Defeat in Battle, and Prayer for Help.
For the choir director; according to [y]Shushan Eduth. A [z]Mikhtam of David, to teach; [aa]when he struggled with Aram-naharaim and with Aram-zobah, and Joab returned, and smote twelve thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt.
60 O God, (AO)You have rejected us. You have [ab](AP)broken us;
You have been (AQ)angry; O, (AR)restore us.
2 You have made the [ac](AS)land quake, You have split it open;
(AT)Heal its breaches, for it totters.
3 You have [ad](AU)made Your people experience hardship;
You have given us [ae]wine to (AV)drink that makes us stagger.
4 You have given a (AW)banner to those who fear You,
That it may be displayed because of the truth. [af]Selah.
5 (AX)That Your (AY)beloved may be delivered,
(AZ)Save with Your right hand, and answer [ag]us!
6 God has spoken in His [ah](BA)holiness:
“I will exult, I will portion out (BB)Shechem and measure out the valley of (BC)Succoth.
7 “(BD)Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;
(BE)Ephraim also is the [ai]helmet of My head;
Judah is My [aj](BF)scepter.
8 “(BG)Moab is My washbowl;
Over (BH)Edom I shall throw My shoe;
Shout loud, O (BI)Philistia, because of Me!”
9 Who will bring me into the besieged city?
Who [ak]will lead me to Edom?
10 Have not You Yourself, O God, (BJ)rejected us?
And (BK)will You not go forth with our armies, O God?
11 O give us help against the adversary,
For (BL)deliverance [al]by man is in vain.
12 [am]Through God we shall (BM)do valiantly,
And it is He who will (BN)tread down our adversaries.
Praise for God’s Mighty Deeds and for His Answer to Prayer.
For the choir director. A Song. A Psalm.
66 (A)Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;
2 Sing the (B)glory of His name;
Make His (C)praise glorious.
3 Say to God, “How (D)awesome are Your works!
Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will [a](E)give feigned obedience to You.
4 “(F)All the earth will worship You,
And will (G)sing praises to You;
They will sing praises to Your name.” [b]Selah.
5 (H)Come and see the works of God,
Who is (I)awesome in His deeds toward the sons of men.
6 He (J)turned the sea into dry land;
They passed through (K)the river on foot;
There let us (L)rejoice in Him!
7 He (M)rules by His might forever;
His (N)eyes keep watch on the nations;
Let not the rebellious (O)exalt themselves. Selah.
8 Bless our God, O peoples,
And [c](P)sound His praise abroad,
9 Who [d](Q)keeps us in life
And (R)does not allow our feet to [e]slip.
10 For You have (S)tried us, O God;
You have (T)refined us as silver is refined.
11 You (U)brought us into the net;
You laid an oppressive burden upon our loins.
12 You made men (V)ride over our heads;
We went through (W)fire and through water,
Yet You (X)brought us out into a place of abundance.
13 I shall (Y)come into Your house with burnt offerings;
I shall (Z)pay You my vows,
14 Which my lips uttered
And my mouth spoke when I was (AA)in distress.
15 I shall (AB)offer to You burnt offerings of fat beasts,
With the smoke of (AC)rams;
I shall make an offering of [f]bulls with male goats. Selah.
16 (AD)Come and hear, all who [g]fear God,
And I will (AE)tell of what He has done for my soul.
17 I cried to Him with my mouth,
And [h]He was (AF)extolled with my tongue.
18 If I [i](AG)regard wickedness in my heart,
The (AH)Lord [j]will not [k]hear;
19 But certainly (AI)God has heard;
He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.
20 (AJ)Blessed be God,
Who (AK)has not turned away my prayer
Nor His lovingkindness from me.
The Nations Exhorted to Praise God.
For the choir director; with stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.
67 God be gracious to us and (AL)bless us,
And (AM)cause His face to shine [l]upon us— [m]Selah.
2 That (AN)Your way may be known on the earth,
(AO)Your salvation among all nations.
3 Let the (AP)peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
4 Let the (AQ)nations be glad and sing for joy;
For You will (AR)judge the peoples with uprightness
And (AS)guide the nations on the earth. Selah.
5 Let the (AT)peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
6 The (AU)earth has yielded its produce;
God, our God, (AV)blesses us.
7 God blesses us,
[n]That (AW)all the ends of the earth may fear Him.
3 When the inhabitants of (A)Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 4 they also acted craftily and [a]set out as envoys, and took worn-out sacks on their donkeys, and wineskins worn-out and torn and [b]mended, 5 and worn-out and patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and had become crumbled. 6 They went to Joshua to the (B)camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country; now therefore, make a covenant with us.” 7 The men of Israel said to the (C)Hivites, “Perhaps you are living [c]within our land; (D)how then shall we make a covenant with you?” 8 But they said to Joshua, “(E)We are your servants.” Then Joshua said to them, “Who are you and where do you come from?” 9 They said to him, “Your servants have come from (F)a very far country because of the [d]fame of the Lord your God; for (G)we have heard the report of Him and all that He did in Egypt, 10 and all that He did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon and to Og king of Bashan who was at Ashtaroth. 11 So our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying, ‘Take provisions in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them and say to them, “(H)We are your servants; now then, make a covenant with us.”’ 12 This our bread was warm when we took it for our provisions out of our houses on the day that we left to come to you; but now behold, it is dry and has become crumbled. 13 These wineskins which we filled were new, and behold, they are torn; and these our clothes and our sandals are worn out because of the very long journey.” 14 So the men of Israel took some of their provisions, and (I)did not ask for the [e]counsel of the Lord. 15 (J)Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live; and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.
16 It came about at the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were neighbors and that they were living [f]within their land. 17 Then the sons of Israel set out and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were (K)Gibeon and Chephirah and Beeroth and Kiriath-jearim. 18 The sons of Israel did not strike them because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord the God of Israel. And the whole congregation grumbled against the leaders. 19 But all the leaders said to the whole congregation, “We have sworn to them by the Lord, the God of Israel, and now we cannot touch them. 20 This we will do to them, even let them live, so that wrath will not be upon us for the oath which we swore to them.” 21 The leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became (L)hewers of wood and drawers of water for the whole congregation, just as the leaders had spoken to them.
Self-denial on Behalf of Others
15 Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of (A)those without strength and not just please ourselves. 2 Each of us is to (B)please his neighbor [a]for his good, to his (C)edification. 3 For even (D)Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “(E)The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.” 4 For (F)whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. 5 Now may the (G)God [b]who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you (H)to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, 6 so that with one accord you may with one [c]voice glorify (I)the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7 Therefore, (J)accept one another, just as Christ also accepted [d]us to the glory of God. 8 For I say that Christ has become a servant to (K)the circumcision on behalf of the truth of God to confirm (L)the promises given to the fathers, 9 and for (M)the Gentiles to (N)glorify God for His mercy; as it is written,
10 Again he says,
“(P)Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people.”
11 And again,
“(Q)Praise the Lord all you Gentiles,
And let all the peoples praise Him.”
12 Again Isaiah says,
“(R)There shall come (S)the root of Jesse,
And He who arises to rule over the Gentiles,
(T)In Him shall the Gentiles hope.”
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all (U)joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope (V)by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Peter’s Denials
69 (A)Now Peter was sitting outside in the (B)courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.” 71 When he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and *said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 And again he denied it with an oath, “I do not know the man.” 73 A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too are one of them; (C)for even the way you talk [a]gives you away.” 74 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed. 75 And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, “(D)Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.