Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 83[a]
A song, a psalm of Asaph.
83 O God, do not be silent.
Do not ignore us.[b] Do not be inactive, O God.
2 For look, your enemies are making a commotion;
those who hate you are hostile.[c]
3 They carefully plot[d] against your people,
and make plans to harm[e] the ones you cherish.[f]
4 They say, “Come on, let’s annihilate them so they are no longer a nation.[g]
Then the name of Israel will be remembered no more.”
5 Yes,[h] they devise a unified strategy;[i]
they form an alliance[j] against you.
6 It includes[k] the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,[l]
7 Gebal,[m] Ammon, and Amalek,
Philistia and the inhabitants of Tyre.
8 Even Assyria has allied with them,
lending its strength to the descendants of Lot.[n] (Selah)
9 Do to them as you did to Midian[o]—
as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.[p]
10 They were destroyed at Endor;[q]
their corpses were like manure[r] on the ground.
11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,[s]
and all their rulers like Zebah and Zalmunna,[t]
12 who said,[u] “Let’s take over[v] the pastures of God.”
13 O my God, make them like dead thistles,[w]
like dead weeds blown away by[x] the wind.
14 Like the fire that burns down the forest,
or the flames that consume the mountainsides,[y]
15 chase them with your gale winds,
and terrify[z] them with your windstorm.
16 Cover[aa] their faces with shame,
so they might seek[ab] you,[ac] O Lord.
17 May they be humiliated and continually terrified.[ad]
May they die in shame.[ae]
18 Then they will know[af] that you alone are the Lord,[ag]
the Most High[ah] over all the earth.
Psalm 146[a]
146 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist.
3 Do not trust in princes,
or in human beings, who cannot deliver.[b]
4 Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground.
On that day their plans die.[c]
5 How blessed is the one whose helper is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 the one who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who remains forever faithful,[d]
7 vindicates the oppressed,[e]
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord releases the imprisoned.
8 The Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord lifts up all who are bent over.[f]
The Lord loves the godly.
9 The Lord protects the resident foreigner.
He lifts up the fatherless and the widow,[g]
but he opposes the wicked.[h]
10 The Lord rules forever,
your God, O Zion, throughout the generations to come.[i]
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 147[j]
147 Praise the Lord,
for it is good to sing praises to our God.
Yes,[k] praise is pleasant and appropriate.
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem,
and gathers the exiles of Israel.
3 He heals[l] the brokenhearted,
and bandages their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
he names all of them.
5 Our Lord is great and has awesome power;[m]
there is no limit to his wisdom.[n]
6 The Lord lifts up the oppressed,
but knocks[o] the wicked to the ground.
7 Offer to the Lord a song of thanks.[p]
Sing praises to our God to the accompaniment of a harp.
8 He covers[q] the sky with clouds,
provides the earth with rain,
and causes grass to grow on the hillsides.[r]
9 He gives food to the animals,
and to the young ravens when they chirp.[s]
10 He is not enamored with the strength of a horse,
nor is he impressed by the warrior’s strong legs.[t]
11 The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers,[u]
and in those who wait for his loyal love.
12 Extol the Lord, O Jerusalem.
Praise your God, O Zion.
13 For he makes the bars of your gates strong.
He blesses your children[v] within you.
14 He[w] brings peace to your territory.[x]
He abundantly provides for you[y] the best grain.
15 He[z] sends his command through the earth;[aa]
swiftly his order reaches its destination.[ab]
16 He sends the snow that is white like wool;
he spreads the frost that is white like ashes.[ac]
17 He throws his hailstones[ad] like crumbs.
Who can withstand the cold wind he sends?[ae]
18 He then orders it all to melt;[af]
he breathes on it,[ag] and the water flows.
19 He proclaims his word to Jacob,
his statutes and regulations to Israel.
20 He has not done so with any other nation;
they are not aware of his regulations.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 85[a]
For the music director, written by the Korahites, a psalm.
85 O Lord, you showed favor to your land;
you restored the well-being of Jacob.[b]
2 You pardoned[c] the wrongdoing of your people;
you forgave[d] all their sin. (Selah)
3 You withdrew all your fury;
you turned back from your raging anger.[e]
4 Restore us, O God our deliverer.
Do not be displeased with us.[f]
5 Will you stay mad at us forever?
Will you remain angry throughout future generations?[g]
6 Will you not revive us once more?
Then your people will rejoice in you.
7 O Lord, show us your loyal love.
Bestow on us your deliverance.
8 I will listen to what God the Lord says.[h]
For he will make[i] peace with his people, his faithful followers.[j]
Yet they must not[k] return to their foolish ways.
9 Certainly his loyal followers will soon experience his deliverance;[l]
then his splendor will again appear in our land.[m]
10 Loyal love and faithfulness meet;[n]
deliverance and peace greet each other with a kiss.[o]
11 Faithfulness grows from the ground,
and deliverance looks down from the sky.[p]
12 Yes, the Lord will bestow his good blessings,[q]
and our land will yield[r] its crops.
13 Deliverance goes[s] before him,
and prepares[t] a pathway for him.[u]
Psalm 86[v]
A prayer of David.
86 Listen,[w] O Lord. Answer me.
For I am oppressed and needy.
2 Protect me,[x] for I am loyal.
You are my God; deliver your servant who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me,[y] O Lord,
for I cry out to you all day long.
4 Make your servant[z] glad,
for to you, O Lord, I pray.[aa]
5 Certainly,[ab] O Lord, you are kind[ac] and forgiving,
and show great faithfulness to all who cry out to you.
6 O Lord, hear my prayer.
Pay attention to my plea for mercy.
7 In my time of trouble I cry out to you,
for you will answer me.
8 None can compare to you among the gods, O Lord.
Your exploits are incomparable.[ad]
9 All the nations, whom you created,
will come and worship you,[ae] O Lord.
They will honor your name.
10 For you are great and do amazing things.
You alone are God.
11 O Lord, teach me how you want me to live.[af]
Then I will obey your commands.[ag]
Make me wholeheartedly committed to you.[ah]
12 O Lord, my God, I will give you thanks with my whole heart.
I will honor your name continually.[ai]
13 For you will extend your great loyal love to me,[aj]
and will deliver my life[ak] from the depths of Sheol.[al]
14 O God, arrogant men attack me;[am]
a gang[an] of ruthless men, who do not respect you, seek my life.[ao]
15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and merciful God.
You are patient[ap] and demonstrate great loyal love and faithfulness.[aq]
16 Turn toward me and have mercy on me.
Give your servant your strength.
Deliver this son of your female servant.[ar]
17 Show me evidence of your favor.[as]
Then those who hate me will see it and be ashamed,[at]
for you, O Lord, will help me and comfort me.[au]
Zion’s Future Splendor
60 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!
The splendor[a] of the Lord shines on you!
2 For, look, darkness covers the earth
and deep darkness covers[b] the nations,
but the Lord shines on you;
his splendor[c] appears over you.
3 Nations come to your light,
kings to your bright light.
4 Look all around you![d]
They all gather and come to you—
your sons come from far away,
and your daughters are escorted by guardians.
5 Then you will look and smile,[e]
you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride.[f]
For the riches of distant lands[g] will belong to you,
and the wealth of nations will come to you.
6 Camel caravans will cover your roads,[h]
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
All the merchants of Sheba[i] will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing praises to the Lord.[j]
7 All the sheep of Kedar will be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth will be available to you as sacrifices.[k]
They will go up on my altar acceptably,[l]
and I will bestow honor on my majestic temple.
8 Who are these who float along[m] like a cloud,
who fly like doves to their shelters?[n]
9 Indeed, the coastlands[o] look eagerly for me;
the large ships[p] are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God,[q]
the Holy One of Israel,[r] for he has bestowed honor on you.
10 Foreigners will rebuild your walls;
their kings will serve you.
Even though I struck you down in my anger,
I will restore my favor and have compassion on you.[s]
11 Your gates will remain open at all times;
they will not be shut during the day or at night,
so that the wealth of nations may be delivered,
with their kings leading the way.[t]
12 Indeed,[u] nations or kingdoms that do not serve you will perish;
such nations will definitely be destroyed.[v]
13 The splendor of Lebanon will come to you,
its evergreens, firs, and cypresses together,
to beautify my palace;[w]
I will bestow honor on my throne room.[x]
14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;
all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.
They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’[y]
15 You were once abandoned
and despised, with no one passing through,
but I will make you[z] a permanent source of pride
and joy to coming generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations;
you will nurse at the breasts of kings.[aa]
Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your Deliverer,
your Protector,[ab] the Powerful One of Jacob.[ac]
17 Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold;
instead of iron, I will bring you silver;
instead of wood, I will bring you[ad] bronze;
instead of stones, I will bring you[ae] iron.
I will make prosperity[af] your overseer,
and vindication your sovereign ruler.[ag]
Dealing with False Teachers
14 Remind people[a] of these things and solemnly charge them[b] before the Lord[c] not to wrangle over words. This is of no benefit; it just brings ruin on those who listen.[d] 15 Make every effort to present yourself before God as a proven worker who does not need to be ashamed, teaching the message of truth accurately.[e] 16 But avoid profane chatter,[f] because those occupied with it will stray further and further into ungodliness,[g] 17 and their message will spread its infection[h] like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are in this group.[i] 18 They have strayed from the truth[j] by saying that the resurrection has already occurred, and they are undermining some people’s faith. 19 However, God’s solid foundation remains standing, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,”[k] and “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord[l] must turn away from evil.”
20 Now in a wealthy home[m] there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also ones made of wood and of clay, and some are for honorable use, but others for ignoble use.[n] 21 So if someone cleanses himself of such behavior,[o] he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart, useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. 22 But keep away from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faithfulness, love, and peace, in company with others[p] who call on the Lord from a pure heart.[q] 23 But reject foolish and ignorant[r] controversies, because you know they breed infighting.[s] 24 And the Lord’s slave[t] must not engage in heated disputes[u] but be kind toward all, an apt teacher, patient, 25 correcting[v] opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance and then knowledge of the truth[w] 26 and they will come to their senses and escape the devil’s trap where they are held captive[x] to do his will.[y]
The Rich Man
17 Now[a] as Jesus[b] was starting out on his way, someone ran up to him, fell on his knees, and said, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”[c] 18 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good?[d] No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”[e] 20 The man[f] said to him, “Teacher, I have wholeheartedly obeyed[g] all these laws[h] since my youth.”[i] 21 As Jesus looked at him, he felt love for him and said, “You lack one thing. Go, sell whatever you have and give the money[j] to the poor, and you will have treasure[k] in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 But at this statement, the man[l] looked sad and went away sorrowful, for he was very rich.[m]
23 Then[n] Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”[o] 24 The disciples were astonished at these words. But again Jesus said to them,[p] “Children, how hard it is[q] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel[r] to go through the eye of a needle[s] than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 They were even more astonished and said[t] to one another, “Then[u] who can be saved?”[v] 27 Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible for mere humans,[w] but not for God; all things are possible for God.”
28 Peter began to speak to him, “Look,[x] we have left everything to follow you!”[y] 29 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth,[z] there is no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the gospel 30 who will not receive in this age[aa] a hundred times as much—homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, fields, all with persecutions[ab]—and in the age to come, eternal life.[ac] 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”
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