Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 72[a]
A Prayer for the King
1 Of Solomon.
I
2 O God, give your judgment to the king;
your justice to the king’s son;[b](A)
That he may govern your people with justice,
your oppressed with right judgment,(B)
3 That the mountains may yield their bounty for the people,
and the hills great abundance,(C)
4 That he may defend the oppressed among the people,
save the children of the poor and crush the oppressor.
II
5 May they fear you with the sun,
and before the moon, through all generations.(D)
6 May he be like rain coming down upon the fields,
like showers watering the earth,(E)
7 That abundance may flourish in his days,
great bounty, till the moon be no more.
III
8 [c]May he rule from sea to sea,
from the river to the ends of the earth.(F)
9 May his foes kneel before him,
his enemies lick the dust.(G)
10 May the kings of Tarshish and the islands[d] bring tribute,
the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.(H)
11 May all kings bow before him,
all nations serve him.(I)
12 For he rescues the poor when they cry out,
the oppressed who have no one to help.
13 He shows pity to the needy and the poor(J)
and saves the lives of the poor.
14 From extortion and violence he redeems them,
for precious is their blood[e] in his sight.
IV
15 Long may he live, receiving gold from Sheba,
prayed for without cease, blessed day by day.
16 [f]May wheat abound in the land,
flourish even on the mountain heights.
May his fruit be like that of Lebanon,
and flourish in the city like the grasses of the land.(K)
17 May his name be forever;
as long as the sun, may his name endure.(L)
May the tribes of the earth give blessings with his name;[g]
may all the nations regard him as favored.(M)
18 [h]Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does wonderful deeds.(N)
19 Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may he fill all the earth with his glory.(O)
Amen and amen.
20 The end of the psalms of David, son of Jesse.
Yodh
73 Your hands made me and fashioned me;
give me understanding to learn your commandments.
74 Those who fear you rejoice to see me,
because I hope in your word.
75 I know, Lord, that your judgments are righteous;
though you afflict me, you are faithful.
76 May your mercy comfort me
in accord with your promise to your servant.
77 Show me compassion that I may live,
for your law is my delight.
78 Shame the proud for leading me astray with falsehood,
that I may study your testimonies.
79 Let those who fear you turn to me,
those who acknowledge your testimonies.
80 May I be wholehearted toward your statutes,
that I may not be put to shame.
Kaph
81 My soul longs for your salvation;
I put my hope in your word.(A)
82 My eyes long to see your promise.(B)
When will you comfort me?
83 I am like a wineskin shriveled by smoke,(C)
but I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How long can your servant survive?
When will your judgment doom my foes?
85 The arrogant have dug pits for me;
defying your law.
86 All your commandments are steadfast.
Help me! I am pursued without cause.
87 They have almost put an end to me on earth,
but I do not forsake your precepts.
88 In your mercy give me life,
to observe the testimonies of your mouth.
Lamedh
89 [a]Your word, Lord, stands forever;(D)
it is firm as the heavens.
90 Through all generations your truth endures;
fixed to stand firm like the earth.
91 By your judgments they stand firm to this day,
for all things are your servants.
92 Had your law not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts;
through them you give me life.
94 I am yours; save me,
for I cherish your precepts.
95 The wicked hope to destroy me,
but I seek to understand your testimonies.
96 I have seen the limits of all perfection,
but your commandment is without bounds.
Chapter 42
1 Then Job answered the Lord and said:
2 I know that you can do all things,[a]
and that no purpose of yours can be hindered.
3 “Who is this who obscures counsel with ignorance?”
I have spoken but did not understand;
things too marvelous for me, which I did not know.(A)
4 “Listen, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you tell me the answers.”
5 By hearsay I had heard of you,
but now my eye has seen you.[b]
6 Therefore I disown what I have said,
and repent in dust and ashes.[c]
IX. Epilogue
Job’s Restoration. 7 And after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My anger blazes against you and your two friends![d] You have not spoken rightly concerning me, as has my servant Job. 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves, and let my servant Job pray for you.[e] To him I will show favor, and not punish your folly, for you have not spoken rightly concerning me, as has my servant Job.” 9 Then Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite, went and did as the Lord had commanded them. The Lord showed favor to Job.
10 The Lord also restored the prosperity of Job, after he had prayed for his friends; the Lord even gave to Job twice[f] as much as he had before. 11 Then all his brothers and sisters came to him, and all his former acquaintances, and they dined with him in his house. They consoled and comforted him for all the evil the Lord had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of money[g] and a gold ring.
12 (B)Thus the Lord blessed the later days of Job more than his earlier ones. Now he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she-donkeys. 13 He also had seven sons and three daughters: 14 the first daughter he called Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch.[h] 15 In all the land no other women were as beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance[i] among their brothers.
16 After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; and he saw his children, his grandchildren, and even his great-grandchildren.(C) 17 Then Job died, old and full of years.
Imprisonment at Philippi. 16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl with an oracular spirit,[a] who used to bring a large profit to her owners through her fortune-telling. 17 She began to follow Paul and us, shouting, “These people are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation.” 18 She did this for many days. Paul became annoyed, turned, and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” Then it came out at that moment.
19 When her owners saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them to the public square before the local authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates[b] and said, “These people are Jews and are disturbing our city 21 and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us Romans to adopt or practice.” 22 (A)The crowd joined in the attack on them, and the magistrates had them stripped and ordered them to be beaten with rods. 23 After inflicting many blows on them, they threw them into prison and instructed the jailer to guard them securely. 24 When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell and secured their feet to a stake.
20 Now there were some Greeks[a] among those who had come up to worship at the feast.(A) 21 [b]They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”(B) 22 Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.(C) 23 [c]Jesus answered them,(D) “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 [d]Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat;(E) but if it dies, it produces much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life[e] loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life.(F) 26 Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me.(G)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.