Book of Common Prayer
To the director: To the tune “Shoshanim.”[a] A maskil from the Korah family. A love song.
45 Beautiful thoughts fill my mind
as I speak these lines for the king.
These words come from my tongue
as from the pen of a skilled writer.
2 You are more handsome than anyone,
and you say such pleasant things.
So God will always bless you.
3 Put on your sword, mighty warrior,
so impressive in your splendid uniform.
4 Go out in your greatness to win the victory for what is true and right.
Let us see the amazing things you can do with your powerful right arm.[b]
5 Your sharp arrows will go deep into the hearts of your enemies,
who will fall to the ground in front of you.
6 God,[c] your kingdom will last forever.
You use your authority for justice.
7 You love what is right and hate what is wrong.
So God, your God, chose you to be king,
giving you more joy and honor than anyone like you.[d]
8 From your clothes comes the wonderful smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia.
In palaces decorated with ivory, you enjoy the music of stringed instruments.
9 Here are ladies of honor, daughters of kings.
Your bride[e] stands at your right side, wearing a gown decorated with the finest gold.
10 My lady,[f] listen to me.
Listen carefully and understand me.
Forget your people and your father’s family,
11 so that the king will be pleased with your beauty.
He will be your new husband,[g]
so you must honor him.
12 People from Tyre will bring you gifts.
Their richest people will try to win your friendship.
13 The princess is so beautiful in her gown,
like a pearl set in gold.
14 Clothed in beauty, she is led to the king,
followed by her bridesmaids.
15 Filled with joy and excitement,
they enter into the king’s palace.
16 Your sons will be kings like their ancestors.
You will make them rulers throughout the land.
17 You will be famous for generations.
People will praise you forever and ever.
To the director: A song from the Korah family.
47 Everyone, clap your hands.
Shout with joy to God!
2 The Lord Most High is awesome.
He is the great King over all the earth.
3 He helped us defeat other nations.
He put those people under our control.
4 He chose our land for us.
He chose that wonderful land for Jacob, the one he loved. Selah
5 The Lord God goes up to his throne
at the sound of the trumpet and horn.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
7 God is the King of the whole world.
Sing songs of praise![a]
8 God sits on his holy throne;
he rules all the nations.
9 The leaders of the nations have come together
with the people of the God of Abraham.
All the rulers of the world belong to God.
He is over them all!
A song of praise from the Korah family.
48 The Lord is great!
He is praised throughout the city of our God, his holy mountain.
2 His city is such a pleasant place.
It brings joy to people from around the world.
Mount Zion is the true mountain of God.[b]
It is the city of the great King.
3 In the palaces of that city,
God is known as the fortress.
4 Once some kings met together
and planned an attack against this city.
They marched toward the city,
5 but when they saw it, they were amazed.
They all panicked and ran away.
6 Fear grabbed them;
they trembled like a woman giving birth.
7 God, with a strong east wind,
you wrecked their big ships.
8 Yes, we heard the stories about your power.
But we also saw it in the city of our God, the city of the Lord All-Powerful.
God makes that city strong forever. Selah
9 God, in your Temple we remember your loving kindness.
10 Your name is known everywhere, God,
and people throughout the earth praise you.
You have shown that you do what is right.
11 Mount Zion is happy,
and the towns of Judah rejoice, because your decisions are fair.
12 Walk around Jerusalem,
and count its towers.
13 Look at the tall walls,
and see the palaces.
Then you can tell the next generation about them.
14 This God is our God forever and ever.
He will lead us from now to the end of time!
A New Day Is Coming
9 But there will be an end to the gloom those people suffered. In the past, people thought the land of Zebulun and Naphtali was not important. But later, that land will be honored—the land along the sea, the land east of the Jordan River, and Galilee where people from other nations live. 2 Those people lived in darkness, but they will see a great light. They lived in a place as dark as death, but a great light will shine on them.
3 God, you will make the nation grow, and you will make the people happy. They will rejoice in your presence as they do at harvest time. It will be like the joy when people take their share of things they have won in war. 4 That will happen because you will lift the heavy yoke off their shoulders and take away their heavy burden. You will take away the rod that the enemy used to punish your people, as you did when you defeated Midian.[a]
5 Every boot that marched in battle and every uniform stained with blood will be destroyed and thrown into the fire. 6 This will happen when the special child is born. God will give us a son who will be responsible for leading the people. His name will be “Wonderful Counselor, Powerful God, Father Who Lives Forever, Prince of Peace.” 7 His power will continue to grow, and there will be peace without end. This will establish him as the king sitting on David’s throne and ruling his kingdom. He will rule with goodness and justice forever and ever. The strong love[b] that the Lord All-Powerful has for his people will make this happen!
12 You already know these things. You are very strong in the truth you have. But I am always going to help you remember them. 13 While I am still living here on earth, I think it is right for me to remind you of them. 14 I know that I must soon leave this body. Our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me that. 15 I will try my best to make sure you remember these things even after I am gone.
We Saw Christ’s Glory
16 We told you about the power of our Lord Jesus Christ. We told you about his coming. The things we told you were not just clever stories that people invented. No, we saw the greatness of Jesus with our own eyes. 17 Jesus heard the voice of the great and glorious God. That was when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice said, “This is my Son, the one I love. I am very pleased with him.” 18 And we heard that voice. It came from heaven while we were with Jesus on the holy mountain.[a]
19 This makes us more sure about what the prophets said. And it is good for you to follow closely what they said, which is like a light shining in a dark place. You have that light until the day begins and the morning star brings new light to your minds. 20 Most important of all, you must understand this: No prophecy in the Scriptures comes from the prophet’s own understanding. 21 No prophecy ever came from what some person wanted to say. But people were led by the Holy Spirit and spoke words from God.
Peter Is Afraid to Say He Knows Jesus(A)
54 They arrested Jesus and took him away to the house of the high priest. Peter followed Jesus but stayed back at a distance. 55 The soldiers started a fire in the middle of the yard and sat together. Peter sat with them. 56 A servant girl saw him sitting there. She could see because of the light from the fire. She looked closely at Peter’s face. Then she said, “This man was also with Jesus.”
57 But Peter said this was not true. He said, “Lady, I don’t know him.” 58 A short time later, someone else saw Peter and said, “You are also one of them.”
But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”
59 About an hour later, another man said, “It’s true. I’m sure this man was with him, because he is from Galilee.”
60 But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about!”
Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. 61 Then the Lord turned and looked into Peter’s eyes. And Peter remembered what the Lord had said, “Before the rooster crows in the morning, you will say three times that you don’t know me.” 62 Then Peter went outside and cried bitterly.
The Guards Treat Jesus Badly(B)
63 The men guarding Jesus made fun of him and beat him. 64 They covered his eyes so that he could not see them. Then they hit him and said, “Be a prophet[a] and tell us who hit you!” 65 And they shouted all kinds of insults at him.
Jesus Before the Jewish Leaders(C)
66 The next morning, the older leaders of the people, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law came together. They led Jesus away to their high council. 67 They said, “If you are the Messiah, then tell us that you are.”
Jesus said to them, “If I tell you I am the Messiah, you will not believe me. 68 And if I ask you, you will not answer. 69 But beginning now, the Son of Man will sit at the right side of God All-Powerful.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International