Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 145[a]
Praise of the Divine Majesty
1 [b]Praise. Of David.
I will extol you, my God and King;
I will bless your name[c] forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you
and praise your name forever and ever.[d]
3 [e]Great is the Lord and worthy of the highest praise;
no one can even begin to comprehend his greatness.[f]
4 Each generation will praise your works[g] to the next
and proclaim your mighty deeds.
5 People will proclaim the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
6 They will speak of the power of your awesome deeds,
and I will relate your greatness.
7 They will celebrate your abundant goodness
and sing joyfully of your saving justice.
8 [h]The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.[i]
9 The Lord is good to all,
showing compassion to every creature.
10 All your creatures praise you,[j] O Lord,
and all your saints bless you.
11 They relate the glory of your kingdom
and tell of all your power.[k]
12 They make known to all people your mighty deeds
and the glorious majesty of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom will last forever,
and your dominion will endure throughout all generations.[l]
[m]The Lord is faithful in all his promises
and kind[n] in all his deeds.
14 The Lord supports all those who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.[o]
15 The eyes of all look hopefully to you,
and you give them their food at the right time.
16 You open your hand
and satisfy the needs of every living creature.[p]
17 [q]The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and merciful in everything he does.[r]
18 The Lord is near to all who call out to him,
to all who call out to him sincerely.[s]
19 He satisfies the desires of all who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.[t]
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
but he will completely destroy all the wicked.[u]
21 May my mouth declare the praise of the Lord,
and may every creature[v] bless his holy name
forever and ever.
Psalm 104[a]
Praise of God the Creator
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul.
O Lord, my God, you are indeed very great.
You are clothed in majesty and splendor,
2 wrapped in light[b] as in a robe.
You have stretched out the heavens like a tent;
3 you have established your palace[c] upon the waters.
You make the clouds serve as your chariot;
you ride forth on the wings of the wind.
4 You have appointed the winds as your messengers
and flames of fire[d] as your ministers.
5 You established the earth on its foundations
so that it will remain unshaken forever.[e]
6 You covered it with the deep like a cloak;
the waters rose above the mountains.
7 At your rebuke[f] the waters took to flight;
at the sound of your thunder they fled in terror.
8 They rose up to the mountains
and flowed down to the valleys,[g]
to the place that you had designated for them.
9 You established a boundary that they were not to cross
so that they would never again cover the earth.
10 [h]You made springs gush forth in the valleys
and flow between the mountains.
11 They supply water to every beast of the field,
and from them the wild asses quench their thirst.
12 On the banks the birds of the air build nests
and sing among the branches.
13 [i]From your dwelling you water the mountains,
enriching the earth with the fruit of your labor.
14 You provide grass for the cattle,
and the plants for man to cultivate.
You bring forth food from the earth
15 and wine to gladden the heart[j] of man,
oil to make his face shine
and bread to strengthen his body.
16 The trees of the Lord have fruit in abundance,
the cedars of Lebanon[k] that he planted.
17 In them the birds build their nests;
in the fir trees the stork makes its home.
18 The high mountains are inhabited by the wild goats;
in the rocky crags the badgers[l] find refuge.
19 You created the moon that marks the seasons
and the sun that knows its time for setting.[m]
20 You bring on darkness, and it is night,
when all the beasts of the forests go on the prowl.
21 The young lions[n] roar for their prey,
seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they steal away
and return to their lairs to rest.
23 People go forth to their work
and to their labor until darkness descends.
24 [o]How countless are your works, O Lord;
by your wisdom you have made them all;
the earth abounds with your creatures.
25 There is the sea, vast and broad,
filled with numberless species,
living creatures both great and small.
26 There the ships sail forth,
and the Leviathan[p] that you formed to play therein.
27 [q]All of them look to you
to give them their food at the appropriate time.[r]
28 [s]When you provide it for them,
they gather it up;
when you open your hand,
they are filled with good things.
29 When you turn away your face,[t]
they are dismayed;
when you take away their breath,
they die and return to the dust.
30 When you send forth your Spirit,[u]
they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.
31 [v]May the glory of the Lord abide forever,
and may the Lord rejoice in his works.[w]
32 When he looks at the earth, it quakes;
when he touches the mountains, they smoke.[x]
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;[y]
I will sing praise to my God while I have life.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
for I find my joy in the Lord.
35 May sinners be banished from the earth,
and may the wicked no longer exist.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.[z]
Alleluia.
Chapter 25
1 O Lord, you are my God.
I will exalt you and praise your name,
for you have accomplished wonderful things,
formulated in ages past, faithful and sure.
2 You have made the city a heap of ruins,
the fortified city a mass of rubble.
The citadel of foreigners is a city no more,
and it will never be rebuilt.
3 Therefore, mighty peoples will honor you,
and the cities of ruthless nations
will regard you with awe.
4 For you have been a refuge for the poor,
a refuge to the needy in their distress,
a shelter from the storm
and a shade from the heat.
5 The blast of the ruthless
is like a winter storm or a scorching drought,
but you subdue the roar of the foe,
and the song of the ruthless fades away.
6 On this mountain[a] the Lord of hosts
will prepare for all peoples
a feast of rich food and vintage wines,
of succulent foods and well-aged wines.
7 On this mountain the Lord will destroy
the veil that shrouds[b] all the peoples,
the path spread over all the nations;
8 he will destroy death forever.
Then the Lord God will wipe away
the tears from every face,
and from the entire earth he will remove
the shame of all his people;
for the Lord has spoken.
9 It will be said on that day,
“Behold, this is our God;
in him we place our hope for deliverance.
This is the Lord for whom we have waited;
let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us.”
13 They were amazed to see the fearlessness shown by Peter and John and to discover that they were uneducated ordinary men. They recognized them as companions of Jesus, 14 but, when they saw the man who had been cured standing beside them, they could not say anything in reply. 15 They ordered them to stand outside while the Sanhedrin discussed the matter.
16 Then they said, “What are we going to do with these men? Everyone living in Jerusalem is aware that a notable sign has been worked through them, and we clearly cannot deny it. 17 But to stop the news from spreading any further among the people, let us issue them a warning never again to speak to anyone in his name.”
18 Therefore, they summoned them back and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 However, Peter and John answered them, “You be the judges about whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God. 20 We cannot possibly refrain from speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
21 After threatening them once again, they released them, for they could find no way to punish them inasmuch as the people were praising God for what had happened. 22 For the man who had been miraculously healed was over forty years old.
23 The Community’s Prayer for the Apostles.[a] As soon as they were released, they went back[b] to the community and reported everything that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 When they heard it, they raised their voices to God with one accord and said, “Lord, maker of heaven and earth and the sea and of everything that is in them, 25 you said by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of our ancestor David, your servant,
‘Why do the Gentiles rage
and the peoples devise futile plots?
26 The kings of the earth take their stand,
and the rulers gather together
against the Lord and against his Anointed.’
27 “Indeed, in this very city both Herod and Pontius Pilate along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel plotted against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, 28 to do whatever your hand and your decree had predestined to take place. 29 And now, O Lord, be aware of their threats, and grant that your servants may proclaim your word with all boldness, 30 as you stretch out your hand to heal and as signs and wonders are accomplished through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
31 When they had finished their prayer, the place where they were gathered together shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and proclaimed the word of God fearlessly.
Triumph of Jesus and the Joy of the Witnesses[a]
16 “In a little while
you will no longer see me,
and then a short time later
you will see me again.”
17 Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘In a little while you will no longer see me, and then a short time later you will see me again,’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’? 18 What is this ‘little while’? We do not know what he means.”
19 Jesus knew that they wanted to question him, so he said to them,
“You are asking one another
what I meant by saying,
‘In a little while
you will no longer see me,
and then a short time later
you will see me again.’
20 Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will weep and mourn
while the world rejoices.
You will be sorrowful,
but your grief will turn into joy.
21 “A woman in labor suffers anguish
because her hour has come.
But when her baby is born,
she no longer recalls the suffering
because of her joy
that she has brought a child into the world.
22 In the same way,
you are now in anguish,
but I will see you again,
and your hearts will rejoice,
and no one shall deprive you of your joy.
23 “On that day,
you will not ask me anything further.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
if you ask the Father for anything in my name,
he will give it to you.
24 Until now, in my name,
you have not asked for anything.
Ask and you will receive,
so that your joy may be complete.
25 “I have used figures of speech
to explain these things to you.
The hour is coming
when I will no longer use figures,
but I will tell you about the Father in plain words.
26 When that day comes,
you will make requests in my name.
I do not say
that I will entreat the Father on your behalf.
27 For the Father himself loves you
because you have loved me
and have come to believe
that I came from God.
28 I came from the Father
and have come into the world.
Now I am leaving the world
and returning to the Father.”
29 “At last you are speaking plainly,” his disciples said, “and not using figures of speech. 30 Now we realize that you know everything and do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this, we believe that you came from God.” 31 Jesus responded,
“Have you finally come to believe?
32 I tell you, the hour is coming,
indeed it has already come,
when you will be scattered,
each one going to his own home,
and you will leave me alone.
And yet I am not alone
because the Father is with me.
33 “I have told you this
so that in me you may be in peace.
In the world
you will endure suffering.
But take courage!
I have overcome the world.”
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