Book of Common Prayer
97 The Lord rules. Let the earth be glad.
Let countries that are far away be full of joy.
2 Clouds and thick darkness surround him.
His rule is built on what is right and fair.
3 The Lord sends fire ahead of him.
It burns up his enemies all around him.
4 His lightning lights up the world.
The earth sees it and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax when the Lord is near.
He is the Lord of the whole earth.
6 The heavens announce that what he does is right.
All people everywhere see his glory.
7 All who worship statues of gods or brag about them are put to shame.
All you gods, worship the Lord!
8 Zion hears about it and is filled with joy.
Lord, the villages of Judah are glad
because of how you judge.
9 Lord, you are the Most High God.
You rule over the whole earth.
You are honored much more than all gods.
10 Let those who love the Lord hate evil.
He guards the lives of those who are faithful to him.
He saves them from the power of sinful people.
11 Good things come to those who do what is right.
Joy comes to those whose hearts are honest.
12 You who are godly, be glad because of what the Lord has done.
Praise him, because his name is holy.
99 The Lord rules.
Let the nations tremble.
He sits on his throne between the cherubim.
Let the earth shake.
2 Great is the Lord in Zion.
He is honored over all the nations.
3 Let them praise his great and wonderful name.
He is holy.
4 The King is mighty and loves justice.
He has set up the rules for fairness.
He has done what is right and fair
for the people of Jacob.
5 Honor the Lord our God.
Worship at his feet.
He is holy.
6 Moses and Aaron were two of his priests.
Samuel was one of those who worshiped him.
They called out to the Lord.
And he answered them.
7 He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud.
They obeyed his laws and the orders he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered them.
You showed Israel that you are a God who forgives.
But when they did wrong, you punished them.
9 Honor the Lord our God.
Worship at his holy mountain.
The Lord our God is holy.
A psalm for giving grateful praise.
100 Shout for joy to the Lord, everyone on earth.
2 Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come to him with songs of joy.
3 Know that the Lord is God.
He made us, and we belong to him.
We are his people.
We are the sheep belonging to his flock.
4 Give thanks as you enter the gates of his temple.
Give praise as you enter its courtyards.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 The Lord is good. His faithful love continues forever.
It will last for all time to come.
94 The Lord is a God who punishes.
Since you are the one who punishes, come and show your anger.
2 Judge of the earth, rise up.
Pay back proud people for what they have done.
3 Lord, how long will those who are evil be glad?
How long will they be full of joy?
4 Proud words pour out of their mouths.
All those who do evil are always bragging.
5 Lord, they crush your people.
They treat badly those who belong to you.
6 They kill outsiders. They kill widows.
They murder children whose fathers have died.
7 They say, “The Lord doesn’t see what’s happening.
The God of Jacob doesn’t pay any attention to it.”
8 You who aren’t wise, pay attention.
You foolish people, when will you become wise?
9 Does he who made the ear not hear?
Does he who formed the eye not see?
10 Does he who corrects nations not punish?
Does he who teaches human beings not know anything?
11 The Lord knows what people think.
He knows that their thoughts don’t amount to anything.
12 Lord, blessed is the person you correct.
Blessed is the person you teach from your law.
13 You give them rest from times of trouble,
until a pit is dug to trap sinners.
14 The Lord won’t say no to his people.
He will never desert those who belong to him.
15 He will again judge people in keeping with what is right.
All those who have honest hearts will follow the right way.
16 Who will rise up for me against sinful people?
Who will stand up for me against those who do evil?
17 Suppose the Lord had not helped me.
Then I would soon have been lying quietly in the grave.
18 I said, “My foot is slipping.”
But Lord, your faithful love kept me from falling.
19 I was very worried.
But your comfort brought me joy.
20 Can you have anything to do with rulers who aren’t fair?
Can those who make laws that cause suffering be friends of yours?
21 Evil people join together against those who do what is right.
They sentence to death those who aren’t guilty of doing anything wrong.
22 But the Lord has become like a fort to me.
My God is my rock. I go to him for safety.
23 He will pay them back for their sins.
He will destroy them for their evil acts.
The Lord our God will destroy them.
95 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord.
Let us give a loud shout to the Rock who saves us.
2 Let us come to him and give him thanks.
Let us praise him with music and song.
3 The Lord is the great God.
He is the greatest King.
He rules over all the gods.
4 He owns the deepest parts of the earth.
The mountain peaks belong to him.
5 The ocean is his, because he made it.
He formed the dry land with his hands.
6 Come, let us bow down and worship him.
Let us fall on our knees in front of the Lord our Maker.
7 He is our God.
We are the sheep belonging to his flock.
We are the people he takes good care of.
If only you would listen to his voice today.
8 He says, “Don’t be stubborn as you were at Meribah.
Don’t be stubborn as you were that day at Massah in the desert.
9 There your people of long ago really tested me.
They did it even though they had seen what I had done for them.
10 For 40 years I was angry with them.
I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray.
They do not know how I want them to live.’
11 So when I was angry, I made a promise.
I said, ‘They will never enjoy the rest I planned for them.’ ”
The Lord Brings Charges Against Israel
4 People of Israel, listen to the Lord’s message.
He is bringing charges
against you who live in Israel.
He says, “There is no faithfulness
or love in the land.
No one recognizes me as God.
2 People curse one another.
They tell lies and commit murder.
They steal and commit adultery.
They break all my laws.
They keep spilling the blood of other people.
3 That is why the land is drying up.
All those who live in it
are getting weaker and weaker.
The wild animals and the birds in the sky are dying.
So are the fish in the ocean.
4 “But you priests should not blame the people.
You should not find fault with one another.
After all, your people
could also bring charges against you.
5 You trip and fall day and night.
And the prophets fall down along with you.
So I will destroy your nation.
She is the one who gave birth to you.
6 My people are destroyed
because they do not know me.
“You priests have refused to obey me.
So I will refuse to accept you as my priests.
You have not paid any attention to my law.
So I will not let your children be my priests.
7 The more priests there were,
the more they sinned against me.
They have traded their glorious God for that shameful god named Baal.
8 They live off the sins of my people.
And they want them to keep on sinning.
9 So here is what I will do.
I will punish people and priests alike.
I will judge them because of their sinful lives.
I will pay them back
for the evil things they have done.
10 “My people will eat.
But they will not have enough.
They will have sex with prostitutes.
But they will not have any children.
That’s because they have deserted me.
They have sex
Paul Continues His Journey to Jerusalem
21 After we had torn ourselves away from the Ephesian elders, we headed out to sea. We sailed straight to Kos. The next day we went to Rhodes. From there we continued on to Patara. 2 We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia. So we went on board and headed out to sea. 3 We came near Cyprus and passed to the south of it. Then we sailed on to Syria. We landed at Tyre. There our ship was supposed to unload. 4 We looked for the believers there and stayed with them for seven days. The believers tried to keep Paul from going on to Jerusalem. They were led by the Holy Spirit to do this. 5 When it was time to leave, we continued on our way. All the believers, including their whole families, went with us out of the city. There on the beach we got down on our knees to pray. 6 We said goodbye to each other. Then we went on board the ship. And they returned home.
7 Continuing on from Tyre, we landed at Ptolemais. There we greeted the brothers and sisters. We stayed with them for a day. 8 The next day we left and arrived at Caesarea. We stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist. He was one of the seven deacons. 9 He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.
10 We stayed there several days. Then a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 He came over to us. Then he took Paul’s belt and tied his own hands and feet with it. He said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘This is how the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will tie up the owner of this belt. They will hand him over to the Gentiles.’ ”
12 When we heard this, we all begged Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 He asked, “Why are you crying? Why are you breaking my heart? I’m ready to be put in prison. In fact, I’m ready to die in Jerusalem for the Lord Jesus.” 14 We couldn’t change his mind. So we gave up. We said, “May what the Lord wants to happen be done.”
Jesus Heals a Man Who Had a Skin Disease
12 While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along. He had a skin disease all over his body. When he saw Jesus, the man fell with his face to the ground. He begged him, “Lord, if you are willing to make me ‘clean,’ you can do it.”
13 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing to do it,” he said. “Be ‘clean’!” Right away the disease left him.
14 Then Jesus ordered him, “Don’t tell anyone. Go and show yourself to the priest. Offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded. It will be a witness to the priest and the people that you are ‘clean.’ ”
15 But the news about Jesus spread even more. So crowds of people came to hear him. They also came to be healed of their sicknesses. 16 But Jesus often went away to be by himself and pray.
Jesus Forgives and Heals a Man Who Could Not Walk
17 One day Jesus was teaching. Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. They heard that the Lord had given Jesus the power to heal the sick. 18 So some men came carrying a man who could not walk. He was lying on a mat. They tried to take him into the house to place him in front of Jesus. 19 They could not find a way to do this because of the crowd. So they went up on the roof. Then they lowered the man on his mat through the opening in the roof tiles. They lowered him into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
20 When Jesus saw that they had faith, he spoke to the man. He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
21 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to think, “Who is this fellow who says such an evil thing? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
22 Jesus knew what they were thinking. So he asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23 Is it easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’? Or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he spoke to the man who could not walk. “I tell you,” he said, “get up. Take your mat and go home.” 25 Right away, the man stood up in front of them. He took his mat and went home praising God. 26 Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with wonder. They said, “We have seen unusual things today.”
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