Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66
For the director of music. A song. A psalm.
1 Shout for joy to God, all the earth!(A)
2 Sing the glory of his name;(B)
make his praise glorious.(C)
3 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!(D)
So great is your power
that your enemies cringe(E) before you.
4 All the earth bows down(F) to you;
they sing praise(G) to you,
they sing the praises of your name.”[a]
5 Come and see what God has done,
his awesome deeds(H) for mankind!
6 He turned the sea into dry land,(I)
they passed through(J) the waters on foot—
come, let us rejoice(K) in him.
7 He rules forever(L) by his power,
his eyes watch(M) the nations—
let not the rebellious(N) rise up against him.
8 Praise(O) our God, all peoples,
let the sound of his praise be heard;
9 he has preserved our lives(P)
and kept our feet from slipping.(Q)
10 For you, God, tested(R) us;
you refined us like silver.(S)
11 You brought us into prison(T)
and laid burdens(U) on our backs.
12 You let people ride over our heads;(V)
we went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a place of abundance.(W)
13 I will come to your temple with burnt offerings(X)
and fulfill my vows(Y) to you—
14 vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke
when I was in trouble.
15 I will sacrifice fat animals to you
and an offering of rams;
I will offer bulls and goats.(Z)
16 Come and hear,(AA) all you who fear God;
let me tell(AB) you what he has done for me.
17 I cried out to him with my mouth;
his praise was on my tongue.
18 If I had cherished sin in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened;(AC)
19 but God has surely listened
and has heard(AD) my prayer.
20 Praise be to God,
who has not rejected(AE) my prayer
or withheld his love from me!
Psalm 67[b]
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us—[c](AF)
2 so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation(AG) among all nations.(AH)
Psalm 19[a]
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
1 The heavens(A) declare(B) the glory of God;(C)
the skies(D) proclaim the work of his hands.(E)
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.(F)
3 They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.(G)
In the heavens God has pitched a tent(H) for the sun.(I)
5 It is like a bridegroom(J) coming out of his chamber,(K)
like a champion(L) rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens(M)
and makes its circuit to the other;(N)
nothing is deprived of its warmth.
7 The law of the Lord(O) is perfect,(P)
refreshing the soul.(Q)
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,(R)
making wise the simple.(S)
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,(T)
giving joy(U) to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.(V)
9 The fear of the Lord(W) is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
and all of them are righteous.(X)
10 They are more precious than gold,(Y)
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,(Z)
than honey from the honeycomb.(AA)
11 By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 But who can discern their own errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.(AB)
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;(AC)
may they not rule over me.(AD)
Then I will be blameless,(AE)
innocent of great transgression.
Psalm 46[a]
For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth.[b] A song.
1 God is our refuge(A) and strength,(B)
an ever-present(C) help(D) in trouble.(E)
2 Therefore we will not fear,(F) though the earth give way(G)
and the mountains fall(H) into the heart of the sea,(I)
3 though its waters roar(J) and foam(K)
and the mountains quake(L) with their surging.[c]
4 There is a river(M) whose streams(N) make glad the city of God,(O)
the holy place where the Most High(P) dwells.(Q)
5 God is within her,(R) she will not fall;(S)
God will help(T) her at break of day.
6 Nations(U) are in uproar,(V) kingdoms(W) fall;
he lifts his voice,(X) the earth melts.(Y)
8 Come and see what the Lord has done,(AD)
the desolations(AE) he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars(AF) cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow(AG) and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields[d] with fire.(AH)
10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;(AI)
I will be exalted(AJ) among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
Israel Punished and Restored
2 “Rebuke your mother,(A) rebuke her,
for she is not my wife,
and I am not her husband.
Let her remove the adulterous(B) look from her face
and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.
3 Otherwise I will strip(C) her naked
and make her as bare as on the day she was born;(D)
I will make her like a desert,(E)
turn her into a parched land,
and slay her with thirst.
4 I will not show my love to her children,(F)
because they are the children of adultery.(G)
5 Their mother has been unfaithful
and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, ‘I will go after my lovers,(H)
who give me my food and my water,
my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’(I)
6 Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.(J)
7 She will chase after her lovers but not catch them;
she will look for them but not find them.(K)
Then she will say,
‘I will go back to my husband(L) as at first,(M)
for then I was better off(N) than now.’
8 She has not acknowledged(O) that I was the one
who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,(P)
who lavished on her the silver and gold(Q)—
which they used for Baal.(R)
9 “Therefore I will take away my grain(S) when it ripens,
and my new wine(T) when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
intended to cover her naked body.
10 So now I will expose(U) her lewdness
before the eyes of her lovers;(V)
no one will take her out of my hands.(W)
11 I will stop(X) all her celebrations:(Y)
her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.(Z)
12 I will ruin her vines(AA) and her fig trees,(AB)
which she said were her pay from her lovers;(AC)
I will make them a thicket,(AD)
and wild animals will devour them.(AE)
13 I will punish her for the days
she burned incense(AF) to the Baals;(AG)
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,(AH)
and went after her lovers,(AI)
but me she forgot,(AJ)”
declares the Lord.(AK)
14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the wilderness(AL)
and speak tenderly to her.
Taming the Tongue
3 Not many of you should become teachers,(A) my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged(B) more strictly.(C) 2 We all stumble(D) in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say(E) is perfect,(F) able to keep their whole body in check.(G)
3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal.(H) 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts.(I) Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire,(J) a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body,(K) sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.(L)
7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.(M)
9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.(N) 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs?(O) Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
Two Kinds of Wisdom
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it(P) by their good life, by deeds(Q) done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like(A) treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.(B)
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like(C) a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
The Parable of the Net
47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like(D) a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds(E) of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous(F) 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.(G)
51 “Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.
“Yes,” they replied.
52 He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
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