Book of Common Prayer
To the director: With instruments. A maskil of David.
55 God, hear my prayer.
Don’t ignore my cry for help.
2 Please listen and answer me.
Let me speak to you and tell you what upsets me.
3 My enemies shout at me and threaten me.
In their anger they attack me.
They bring troubles crashing down on me.
4 My heart is pounding inside me.
I am afraid to die.
5 I am trembling with fear.
I am terrified!
6 Oh, I wish I had wings like a dove.
I would fly away and find a place to rest.
7 I would go far into the desert and stay there. Selah
8 I would run away.
I would escape from this storm of trouble.
9 My Lord, confuse their words and stop their plans.
I see so much cruelty and fighting in this city.
10 Day and night, in every neighborhood,
the city is filled with evil and trouble.
11 There is so much crime in the streets.
People who hurt and cheat others are everywhere.
12 If it were an enemy insulting me,
I could bear it.
If it were my enemies attacking me,
I could hide.
13 But it is you, the one so close to me,
my companion, my good friend, who does this.
14 We used to share our secrets with one another,
as we walked through the crowds together in God’s Temple.
15 I wish death would take my enemies by surprise!
I wish the earth would open up and swallow them alive,[a]
because they plan such terrible things together.
16 I will call to God for help,
and the Lord will save me.
17 I speak to God morning, noon, and night.
I tell him what upsets me, and he listens to me!
18 I have fought in many battles,
but he has always rescued me and brought me back safely.
19 God, who has always ruled as king,
will hear me and punish my enemies. Selah
But they will never change.
They don’t fear and respect God.
20 This one who was once my friend now attacks his friends.
He is breaking every promise he made.
21 His words about peace are as smooth as butter,
but he has only war on his mind.
His words are as slick as oil,
but they cut like a knife.
22 Give your worries to the Lord,
and he will care for you.
He will never let those who are good be defeated.
23 But, God, you will send those liars and murderers to the grave.
They will die before their life is half finished!
As for me, I will put my trust in you.
A maskil of Asaph.
74 God, why have you turned away from us for so long?
Why are you still angry with us, your own flock?
2 Remember the people you bought so long ago.
You saved us, and we belong to you.
And remember Mount Zion, the place where you lived.
3 God, come walk through these ancient ruins.
Come back to the Holy Place that the enemy destroyed.
4 The enemy shouted their war cries in the Temple.
They put up their flags there to show they had won the war.
5 Their soldiers attacked the doors,
like workmen chopping down trees.
6 Using axes and hatchets,
they smashed the carved panels inside.
7 They burned down your Holy Place.
It was built to honor your name,
but they pulled it down to the ground.
8 The enemy decided to crush us completely.
They burned every holy place[a] in the country.
9 We do not see any of our signs.[b]
There are no more prophets.
And no one knows how long this will last.
10 God, how much longer will the enemy make fun of us?
Will you let them insult your name forever?
11 Why won’t you help us?
Use your power to defeat our enemies!
12 God, you have been our King for a long time.
You have saved us many times on this earth.
13 With your great power you split open the sea
and broke the heads of the sea monster.
14 Yes, you smashed the heads of Leviathan[c]
and left his body for animals to eat.
15 You make the springs and rivers flow,
and you make the rivers dry up.
16 You control the day and the night.
You made the sun and the moon.
17 You set the limits for everything on earth.
And you created summer and winter.
18 Lord, remember, the enemy insulted you!
Those foolish people hate your name!
19 Don’t give us like a helpless dove to those wild animals.
Never forget your poor, suffering people.
20 Remember the agreement you gave us,
because violence fills every dark place in this land.
21 Your people were treated badly.
Don’t let them be hurt anymore.
Let your poor, helpless people praise you.
22 God, get up and defend yourself!
Remember, those fools challenged you.
23 Don’t forget the shouts of your enemies.
They insulted you again and again.
Trusting in People and Trusting in God
5 This is what the Lord says:
“Bad things will happen to those who put their trust in people.
Bad things will happen to those who depend on human strength.
That is because they have stopped trusting the Lord.
6 They are like a bush in a desert where no one lives.
It is in a hot and dry land.
It is in bad soil.
That bush does not know about the good things that God can give.
7 “But those who trust in the Lord will be blessed.
They know that the Lord will do what he says.
8 They will be strong like trees planted near a stream
that send out roots to the water.
They have nothing to fear when the days get hot.
Their leaves are always green.
They never worry, even in a year that has no rain.
They always produce fruit.
9 “Nothing can hide its evil as well as the human mind.
It can be very sick,
and no one really understands it.
10 But I am the Lord,
and I can look into a person’s heart.
I can test a person’s mind and decide what each one should have.
I can give each person the right payment for what they do.
Jeremiah’s Third Complaint
14 Lord, if you heal me, I surely will be healed.
Save me, and I surely will be saved.
Lord, I praise you!
15 The people of Judah continue to ask me questions.
They say, “Jeremiah, what about the message from the Lord?
Let’s see that message come true.”
16 Lord, I did not run away from you.
I followed you.
I became the shepherd[a] you wanted.
I did not want the terrible day to come.
You know what I said.
You see all that is happening.
17 Please don’t make me afraid of you.
I depend on you in times of trouble.
Some Things to Do
4 My dear brothers and sisters, I love you and want to see you. You bring me joy and make me proud of you. Continue following the Lord as I have told you.
2 Euodia and Syntyche, you both belong to the Lord, so please agree with each other. 3 For this I make a special request to my friend who has served with me so faithfully: Help these women. They worked hard with me in telling people the Good News, together with Clement and others who worked with me. Their names are written in the book of life.[a]
4 Always be filled with joy in the Lord. I will say it again. Be filled with joy.
5 Let everyone see that you are gentle and kind. The Lord is coming soon. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. 7 And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds.[b]
8 Brothers and sisters, continue to think about what is good and worthy of praise. Think about what is true and honorable and right and pure and beautiful and respected. 9 And do what you learned and received from me—what I told you and what you saw me do. And the God who gives peace will be with you.
Paul Thanks the Philippian Believers
10 I am so happy, and I thank the Lord that you have again shown your care for me. You continued to care about me, but there was no way for you to show it. 11 I am telling you this, but not because I need something. I have learned to be satisfied with what I have and with whatever happens. 12 I know how to live when I am poor and when I have plenty. I have learned the secret of how to live through any kind of situation—when I have enough to eat or when I am hungry, when I have everything I need or when I have nothing. 13 Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do.
Jesus Talks About His Death
27 “Now I am very troubled. What should I say? Should I say, ‘Father save me from this time of suffering’? No, I came to this time so that I could suffer. 28 Father, do what will bring you glory!”
Then a voice came from heaven, “I have already brought glory to myself. I will do it again.”
29 The people standing there heard the voice. They said it was thunder.
But others said, “An angel spoke to him!”
30 Jesus said, “That voice was for you and not for me. 31 Now is the time for the world to be judged. Now the ruler of this world will be thrown out. 32 I will be lifted up[a] from the earth. When that happens, I will draw all people to myself.” 33 Jesus said this to show how he would die.
34 The people said, “But our law says that the Messiah will live forever. So why do you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”
35 Then Jesus said, “The light[b] will be with you for only a short time more. So walk while you have the light. Then the darkness will not catch you. People who walk in the darkness don’t know where they are going. 36 So put your trust in the light while you still have it. Then you will be children of light.” When Jesus finished saying these things, he went away to a place where the people could not find him.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International