Book of Common Prayer
To the director: To the tune “Don’t Destroy.” One of Asaph’s songs of praise.
75 We praise you, God!
We praise you because you[a] are near to us.
We tell about the amazing things you have done.
2 God says, “I have chosen a time for judgment,
and I will judge fairly.
3 The earth and all its people may shake,
but I am the one who keeps it steady. Selah
4 “To those who are proud I say, ‘Stop your boasting.’
I warn the wicked, ‘Don’t brag about how strong you are.
5 Don’t be so sure that you will win.
Don’t boast that victory is yours!’”
6 There is no power on earth
that can make a person important.[b]
7 God is the judge.
He decides who will be important.
He lifts one person up and brings another down.
8 The Lord has a cup in his hand.
It is filled with the poisoned wine of his anger.
He will pour out this wine,
and the wicked will drink it to the last drop.
9 I will always tell people how great God is.
I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.
10 God says, “I will take away any power the wicked have
and give it to those who are good.”
To the director: With instruments. One of Asaph’s songs of praise.
76 People in Judah know God.
People in Israel respect his name.
2 His Temple is in Salem.[c]
His house is on Mount Zion.
3 There he shattered the arrows,
shields, swords, and other weapons of war. Selah
4 God, you are glorious coming back
from the hills where you defeated your enemies.
5 They thought they were strong, but now they lie dead in the fields.
Their bodies are stripped of all they owned.
They could not defend themselves.[d]
6 The God of Jacob shouted at them,
and their army of chariots and horses fell dead.
7 God, you are awesome!
No one can stand against you when you are angry.
8-9 You stood as judge and announced your decision.
You saved the humble people of the land.
From heaven you gave the decision,
and the whole earth was silent and afraid.
10 Even human anger can bring you honor
when you use it to punish your enemies.[e]
11 People, you made promises to the Lord your God.
Now give him what you promised.
People everywhere fear and respect God,
and they will bring gifts to him.
12 God defeats great leaders;
all the kings on earth fear him.
A song of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd.
I will always have everything I need.[a]
2 He gives me green pastures to lie in.
He leads me by calm pools of water.
3 He restores my strength.
He leads me on right paths[b] to show that he is good.
4 Even if I walk through a valley as dark as the grave,[c]
I will not be afraid of any danger, because you are with me.
Your rod and staff[d] comfort me.
5 You prepared a meal for me in front of my enemies.
You welcomed me as an honored guest.[e]
My cup is full and spilling over.
6 Your goodness and mercy will be with me all my life,
and I will live in the Lord’s house[f] a long, long time.[g]
A song of David.
27 Lord, you are my Light and my Savior,
so why should I be afraid of anyone?
The Lord is where my life is safe,
so I will be afraid of no one!
2 Evil people might attack me.
They might try to destroy my body.
Yes, my enemies might attack me and try to destroy me,
but they will stumble and fall.
3 Even if an army surrounds me, I will not be afraid.
Even if people attack me in war, I will trust in the Lord.
4 I ask only one thing from the Lord.
This is what I want most:
Let me live in the Lord’s house all my life,
enjoying the Lord’s beauty
and spending time in his palace.[a]
5 He will protect me when I am in danger.
He will hide me in his tent.[b]
He will take me up to his place of safety.
6 If he will help me defeat the enemies around me,
I will offer sacrifices in his tent with shouts of joy.
I will sing and play songs to honor the Lord.
7 Lord, hear my voice.
Be kind and answer me.
8 My heart told me to come to you, Lord,
so I am coming to ask for your help.
9 Don’t turn away from me.
Don’t be angry with your servant.
You are the only one who can help me.
My God, don’t leave me all alone.
You are my Savior.
10 Even if my mother and father leave me,
the Lord will take me in.
11 I have enemies, Lord, so teach me your ways.
Show me the right way to live.
12 My enemies have attacked me.
They have told lies about me and have tried to hurt me.
13 But I really believe
that I will see the Lord’s goodness before I die.[c]
14 Wait for the Lord’s help.
Be strong and brave,
and wait for the Lord’s help.
19 The kings of Canaan came to fight,
but they didn’t carry any treasures home.
They fought at the city of Taanach,
by the waters of Megiddo.
20 The stars fought them from heaven.
From their paths across the sky, they fought against Sisera.
21 The Kishon River, that ancient river,
swept Sisera’s men away.
My soul, march on with strength![a]
22 The horses’ hooves hammered the ground.
Sisera’s mighty horses ran and ran.
23 “The angel of the Lord said, ‘Curse the city of Meroz.
Curse its people!
They did not come to help the Lord fight.’
They did not help the Lord against his powerful enemies.
24 Jael was the wife of Heber the Kenite.
She will be blessed above all women.
25 Sisera asked for water.
Jael gave him milk.
In a bowl fit for a ruler,
she brought him cream.
26 Then Jael reached out and took a tent peg.
Her right hand reached for a workman’s hammer.
She put the peg against the side of Sisera’s head
and hit it with the hammer.
27 He sank down between Jael’s feet.
He fell, and there he lay.
He sank down between her feet.
He fell there.
Where Sisera sank, he fell,
and there he lay, dead!
28 “There is Sisera’s mother, looking out the window,
looking through the curtains and crying.
‘Why is Sisera’s chariot so late?
Why can’t I hear his wagons?’
29 “Her wisest servant girl answers her.
Yes, the servant gives her an answer:
30 ‘I’m sure they won the war,
and they are now taking things from the people they defeated.
They are dividing those things among themselves.
Each soldier is taking a girl or two.
Maybe Sisera found a piece of dyed cloth.
That’s it! Sisera found a piece of fancy cloth,
or maybe two, to wear around his neck in victory.’
31 “May all your enemies die like this, Lord!
But may all those who love you be as strong as the rising sun!”
And there was peace in the land for 40 years.
22 “My fellow Israelites, listen to these words: Jesus from Nazareth was a very special man. God clearly showed this to you. He proved it by the miracles, wonders, and miraculous signs he did through Jesus. You all saw these things, so you know this is true. 23 Jesus was handed over to you, and you killed him. With the help of evil men, you nailed him to a cross. But God knew all this would happen. It was his plan—a plan he made long ago. 24 Jesus suffered the pain of death, but God made him free. He raised him from death. There was no way for death to hold him. 25 David said this about him:
‘I saw the Lord before me always;
he is at my right side to keep me safe.
26 So my heart is happy,
and the words I speak are words of joy.
Yes, even my body will live with hope,
27 because you will not leave me in the place of death.[a]
You will not let the body of your Holy One rot in the grave.
28 You taught me how to live.
You will come close to me and give me great joy.’ (A)
29 “My brothers, I can tell you for sure about David, our great ancestor. He died, was buried, and his tomb is still here with us today. 30 He was a prophet and knew something that God had said. God had promised David that someone from his own family would sit on David’s throne as king.[b] 31 David knew this before it happened. That is why he said this about that future king:
‘He was not left in the place of death.
His body did not rot in the grave.’
David was talking about the Messiah rising from death. 32 So Jesus is the one God raised from death. We are all witnesses of this. We saw him. 33 Jesus was lifted up to heaven. Now he is with God, at God’s right side. The Father has given the Holy Spirit to him, as he promised. So Jesus has now poured out that Spirit. This is what you see and hear. 34 David was not the one who was lifted up to heaven. David himself said,
‘The Lord God said to my Lord:
Sit at my right side,
35 until I put your enemies under your power.[c]’ (B)
36 “So, all the people of Israel should know this for certain: God has made Jesus to be Lord and Messiah. He is the man you nailed to the cross!”
Report to the Jewish Leaders
11 The women went to tell the followers. At the same time, some of the soldiers who were guarding the tomb went into the city. They went to tell the leading priests everything that happened. 12 Then the priests met with the older Jewish leaders and made a plan. They paid the soldiers a lot of money 13 and said to them, “Tell the people that Jesus’ followers came during the night and stole the body while you were sleeping. 14 If the governor hears about this, we will talk to him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers kept the money and obeyed the priests. And that story is still spread among the Jews even today.
Jesus Talks to His Followers(A)
16 The eleven followers went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus told them to go. 17 On the mountain the followers saw Jesus. They worshiped him. But some of the followers did not believe that it was really Jesus. 18 So he came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth is given to me. 19 So go and make followers of all people in the world. Baptize them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach them to obey everything that I have told you to do. You can be sure that I will be with you always. I will continue with you until the end of time.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International