Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 63[a]
Ardent Longing for God
1 A psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.(A)
I
2 O God, you are my God—
it is you I seek!
For you my body yearns;
for you my soul thirsts,
In a land parched, lifeless,
and without water.(B)
3 I look to you in the sanctuary
to see your power and glory.
4 For your love is better than life;[b]
my lips shall ever praise you!
II
5 I will bless you as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands, calling on your name.
6 My soul shall be sated as with choice food,
with joyous lips my mouth shall praise you!
7 I think of you upon my bed,
I remember you through the watches of the night
8 You indeed are my savior,
and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.(C)
9 My soul clings fast to you;
your right hand upholds me.
III
10 But those who seek my life will come to ruin;
they shall go down to the depths of the netherworld!
11 Those who would hand over my life to the sword shall
become the prey of jackals!
12 But the king shall rejoice in God;
all who swear by the Lord[c] shall exult,
but the mouths of liars will be shut!(D)
Psalm 98[a]
The Coming of God
1 A psalm.
I
Sing a new song to the Lord,
for he has done marvelous deeds.(A)
His right hand and holy arm
have won the victory.[b](B)
2 The Lord has made his victory known;
has revealed his triumph in the sight of the nations,
3 He has remembered his mercy and faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.
II
4 Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth;
break into song; sing praise.
5 Sing praise to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and melodious song.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
shout with joy to the King, the Lord.(C)
III
Psalm 103[a]
Praise of Divine Goodness
1 Of David.
I
Bless the Lord, my soul;
all my being, bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, my soul;
and do not forget all his gifts,
3 Who pardons all your sins,
and heals all your ills,
4 Who redeems your life from the pit,(A)
and crowns you with mercy and compassion,
5 Who fills your days with good things,
so your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.[b]
II
6 The Lord does righteous deeds,
brings justice to all the oppressed.(B)
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
to the Israelites his deeds.
8 Merciful and gracious is the Lord,
slow to anger, abounding in mercy.(C)
9 He will not always accuse,
and nurses no lasting anger;
10 He has not dealt with us as our sins merit,
nor requited us as our wrongs deserve.
III
11 For as the heavens tower over the earth,
so his mercy towers over those who fear him.(D)
12 As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our sins from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.
14 For he knows how we are formed,
remembers that we are dust.(E)
15 As for man, his days are like the grass;
he blossoms like a flower in the field.(F)
16 A wind sweeps over it and it is gone;
its place knows it no more.
17 But the Lord’s mercy is from age to age,
toward those who fear him.
His salvation is for the children’s children
18 of those who keep his covenant,
and remember to carry out his precepts.
IV
19 The Lord has set his throne in heaven;
his dominion extends over all.
20 Bless the Lord, all you his angels,(G)
mighty in strength, acting at his behest,
obedient to his command.
21 Bless the Lord, all you his hosts,
his ministers who carry out his will.
22 Bless the Lord, all his creatures,
everywhere in his domain.
Bless the Lord, my soul!
19 Before you speak, learn;
before you get sick, prepare the cure.
20 Before you are judged, examine yourself,
and at the time of scrutiny you will have forgiveness.
21 Before you fall ill, humble yourself;
and when you have sinned, show repentance.[a]
Do not delay forsaking your sins;
do not neglect to do so until you are in distress.
22 Let nothing prevent the prompt payment of your vows;
do not wait until death to fulfill them.(A)
23 Before making a vow prepare yourself;
do not be like one who puts the Lord to the test.
24 Think of wrath on the day of death,
the time of vengeance when he will hide his face.(B)
25 Think of the time of hunger in the time of plenty,
poverty and need in the day of wealth.(C)
26 Between morning and evening there is a change of time;
before the Lord all things are fleeting.
27 The wise are discreet in all things;
where sin is rife they keep themselves from wrongdoing.
28 Every wise person teaches wisdom,[b]
and those who know her declare her praise;
29 Those skilled in words become wise themselves,
and pour forth apt proverbs.
Self-Control[c]
30 Do not let your passions be your guide,(D)
but keep your desires in check.
31 If you allow yourself to satisfy your passions,
they will make you the laughingstock of your enemies.
32 Take no pleasure in too much luxury
which brings on poverty redoubled.
33 Do not become a glutton and a drunkard
with nothing in your purse.
15 I am speaking as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I am saying. 16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?(A) 17 Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.(B)
18 Look at Israel according to the flesh; are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar?(C) 19 So what am I saying? That meat sacrificed to idols is anything? Or that an idol is anything? 20 No, I mean that what they sacrifice, [they sacrifice] to demons,[a] not to God, and I do not want you to become participants with demons.(D) 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and also the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and of the table of demons.(E) 22 Or are we provoking the Lord to jealous anger? Are we stronger than he?(F)
Seek the Good of Others.[b] 23 “Everything is lawful,” but not everything is beneficial.[c] “Everything is lawful,” but not everything builds up.(G) 24 No one should seek his own advantage, but that of his neighbor.(H)
15 (A)“If your brother[a] sins [against you], go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. 16 [b](B)If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that ‘every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 (C)If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church.[c] If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. 18 [d](D)Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 [e](E)Again, [amen,] I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. 20 [f](F)For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant.[g]
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