Book of Common Prayer

61 O God, listen to me! Hear my prayer! ² For wherever I am, though far away at the ends of the earth, I will cry to you for help. When my heart is faint and overwhelmed, lead me to the mighty, towering Rock of safety. ³ For you are my refuge, a high tower where my enemies can never reach me. ⁴ I shall live forever in your tabernacle; oh, to be safe beneath the shelter of your wings! ⁵ For you have heard my vows, O God, to praise^[a] you every day, and you have given me the blessings you reserve for those who reverence your name.

⁶ You will give me^[b] added years of life, as rich and full as those of many generations, all packed into one. ⁷ And I shall live before the Lord forever. Oh, send your loving-kindness and truth to guard and watch over me, ⁸ and I will praise your name continually, fulfilling my vow of praising you each day.

62 I stand silently before the Lord, waiting for him to rescue me. For salvation comes from him alone. ² Yes, he alone is my Rock, my rescuer, defense and fortress. Why then should I be tense with fear when troubles come?

^3-4 But what is this? They pick on me at a time when my throne^[c] is tottering; they plot my death and use lies and deceit to try to force me from the throne. They are so friendly to my face while cursing in their hearts!

⁵ But I stand silently before the Lord, waiting for him to rescue me. For salvation comes from him alone. ⁶ Yes, he alone is my Rock, my rescuer, defense, and fortress—why then should I be tense with fear when troubles come?

⁷ My protection and success^[d] come from God alone. He is my refuge, a Rock where no enemy can reach me. ⁸ O my people, trust him all the time. Pour out your longings before him, for he can help! ⁹ The greatest of men or the lowest—both alike are nothing in his sight. They weigh less than air on scales.

¹⁰ Don’t become rich by extortion and robbery; if your riches increase, don’t be proud. ^11-12 God has said it many times, that power belongs to him (and also, O Lord, steadfast love belongs to you). He rewards each one of us according to what our works deserve.

68 Arise, O God, and scatter all your enemies! Chase them away! ² Drive them off like smoke before the wind; melt them like wax in fire! So let the wicked perish at the presence of God.

³ But may the godly man exult. May he rejoice and be merry. ⁴ Sing praises to the Lord! Raise your voice in song to him who rides upon the clouds!^[a] Jehovah is his name—oh, rejoice in his presence. ⁵ He is a father to the fatherless; he gives justice to the widows, for he is holy.^{[b] 6} He gives families to the lonely, and releases prisoners from jail, singing with joy! But for rebels there is famine and distress.

⁷ O God, when you led your people through the wilderness, ⁸ the earth trembled and the heavens shook. Mount Sinai quailed before you—the God of Israel. ^9-10 You sent abundant rain upon your land, O God, to refresh it in its weariness! There your people lived, for you gave them this home when they were destitute.

^11-13 The Lord speaks. The enemy flees. The women at home^[c] cry out the happy news: “The armies that came to destroy us have fled!” Now all the women of Israel are dividing the booty. See them sparkle with jewels of silver and gold, covered all over as wings cover doves! ¹⁴ God scattered their enemies like snowflakes melting in the forests of Zalmon.

^15-16 O mighty mountains in Bashan! O splendid many-peaked ranges! Well may you look with envy at Mount Zion, the mount where God has chosen to live forever. ¹⁷ Surrounded by unnumbered chariots, the Lord moves on from Mount Sinai and comes to his holy Temple high upon Mount Zion. ¹⁸ He ascends the heights, leading many captives in his train. He receives gifts for men,^[d] even those who once were rebels. God will live among us here.

¹⁹ What a glorious Lord! He who daily bears our burdens also gives us our salvation.

²⁰ He frees us! He rescues us from death. ²¹ But he will crush his enemies, for they refuse to leave their guilty, stubborn ways. ²² The Lord says, “Come,” to all his people’s enemies;^[e] they are hiding on Mount Hermon’s highest slopes and deep within the sea! ²³ His people must destroy them. Cover your feet with their blood; dogs will eat them.

²⁴ The procession of God my King moves onward to the sanctuary— ²⁵ singers in front, musicians behind, girls playing the timbrels in between. ²⁶ Let all the people of Israel praise the Lord, who is Israel’s fountain. ²⁷ The little tribe of Benjamin leads the way. The princes and elders of Judah, and the princes of Zebulun and Naphtali are right behind.^{[f] 28} Summon your might; display your strength, O God, for you have done such mighty things for us.

²⁹ The kings of the earth are bringing their gifts to your Temple in Jerusalem. ³⁰ Rebuke our enemies, O Lord. Bring them—submissive, tax in hand.^[g] Scatter all who delight in war. ³¹ Egypt will send gifts of precious metals. Ethiopia will stretch out her hands to God in adoration. ³² Sing to the Lord, O kingdoms of the earth—sing praises to the Lord, ³³ to him who rides upon the ancient heavens, whose mighty voice thunders from the sky.

³⁴ Power belongs to God! His majesty shines down on Israel; his strength is mighty in the heavens. ³⁵ What awe we feel, kneeling here before him in the sanctuary. The God of Israel gives strength and mighty power to his people. Blessed be God!

¹⁴ Then the scene changed, and I saw a white cloud and someone sitting on it who looked like Jesus, who was called “The Son of Man,”^[a] with a crown of solid gold upon his head and a sharp sickle in his hand.

¹⁵ Then an angel came from the temple and called out to him, “Begin to use the sickle, for the time has come for you to reap; the harvest is ripe on the earth.” ¹⁶ So the one sitting on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the harvest was gathered in. ¹⁷ After that another angel came from the temple in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle.

¹⁸ Just then the angel who has power to destroy the world with fire,^[b] shouted to the angel with the sickle, “Use your sickle now to cut off the clusters of grapes from the vines of the earth, for they are fully ripe for judgment.” ¹⁹ So the angel swung his sickle on the earth and loaded the grapes into the great winepress of God’s wrath. ²⁰ And the grapes were trodden in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out in a stream 200 miles long and as high as a horse’s bridle.

15 And I saw in heaven another mighty pageant showing things to come: Seven angels were assigned to carry down to earth the seven last plagues—and then at last God’s anger will be finished.

² Spread out before me was what seemed to be an ocean of fire and glass, and on it stood all those who had been victorious over the Evil Creature and his statue and his mark and number. All were holding harps of God, ^3-4 and they were singing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:

⁵ Then I looked and saw that the Holy of Holies of the temple in heaven was thrown wide open!

⁶ The seven angels who were assigned to pour out the seven plagues then came from the temple, clothed in spotlessly white linen, with golden belts across their chests. ⁷ And one of the four Living Beings handed each of them a golden flask filled with the terrible wrath of the Living God who lives forever and forever. ⁸ The temple was filled with smoke from his glory and power; and no one could enter until the seven angels had completed pouring out the seven plagues.

13 About this time he was informed that Pilate had butchered some Jews from Galilee as they were sacrificing at the Temple in Jerusalem.

² “Do you think they were worse sinners than other men from Galilee?” he asked. “Is that why they suffered? ³ Not at all! And don’t you realize that you also will perish unless you leave your evil ways and turn to God?

⁴ “And what about the eighteen men who died when the Tower of Siloam fell on them? Were they the worst sinners in Jerusalem? ⁵ Not at all! And you, too, will perish unless you repent.”

⁶ Then he used this illustration: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if he could find any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed. ⁷ Finally he told his gardener to cut it down. ‘I’ve waited three years and there hasn’t been a single fig!’ he said. ‘Why bother with it any longer? It’s taking up space we can use for something else.’

⁸ “‘Give it one more chance,’ the gardener answered. ‘Leave it another year, and I’ll give it special attention and plenty of fertilizer. ⁹ If we get figs next year, fine; if not, I’ll cut it down.’”