Print Page Options
Previous Prev Day Next DayNext

Book of Common Prayer

Daily Old and New Testament readings based on the Book of Common Prayer.
Duration: 861 days
New Catholic Bible (NCB)
Version
Psalm 146-147

The Concluding Hallel—Pss 146–150[a]

Psalm 146[b]

Trust in God, Creator and Redeemer

[c]Alleluia.

Praise the Lord, O my soul.[d]
    I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God throughout my life.[e]
Do not place your trust in princes,
    in mortal men who have no power to save.
When the spirit departs, they return to the earth;
    on that very day all their plans come to naught.[f]
[g]Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,[h]
    whose hope is in the Lord, his God,
the Maker of heaven and earth,[i]
    the sea, and everything in them—
    the one who keeps faith forever.
He grants justice to the oppressed[j]
    and gives bread to the hungry.
The Lord releases prisoners
    and opens the eyes of those who cannot see.[k]
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
    the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the stranger
    and sustains the fatherless and the widow,[l]
    but he blocks the way of the wicked.
10 The Lord will reign forever,[m]
    your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Alleluia.

Psalm 147[n]

Hymn to the City of God

[o]Alleluia.

How good it is to sing praises to our God;
    how pleasant it is to give him fitting praise.[p]
The Lord restores Jerusalem
    and gathers together the dispersed people of Israel.[q]
He heals the brokenhearted
    and bandages their wounds.[r]
He fixes the number of the stars
    and assigns a name to each.[s]
Great is our Lord and awesome in power;
    his wisdom is without limit.[t]
The Lord sustains the poor
    but humbles the wicked in the dust.[u]
[v]Offer songs of thanksgiving to the Lord;
    play the lyre in honor of our God.
He veils the heavens with clouds,
    supplies the earth with rain,
    and makes the hills sprout with grass.[w]
He provides food for the animals
    and for the young ravens when they call.[x]
10 [y]He takes no pleasure in the strength of the horse,
    or delight in the fleetness of a runner.
11 The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
    those who place their hope in his kindness.
12 [z]Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
    Glorify your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates
    and blesses your children within you.[aa]
14 He brings peace to your borders
    and fills you with the finest of wheat.[ab]
15 He sends a command to the earth;
    his word runs with utmost speed.
16 He gives the snow like wool
    and scatters the frost like ashes.[ac]
17 He hurls down his hail like crumbs;
    who can withstand his cold?[ad]
18 He sends his word, and the ice melts;
    he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.
19 [ae]He has revealed his word to Jacob,
    his decrees and his judgments to Israel.
20 He has not done this for the other nations;
    they are not aware of his judgments.
Alleluia.

Psalm 111-113

Psalm 111[a]

Praise of God for His Wondrous Works

Alleluia.

I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart[b]
    in the council of the upright and in the assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord;[c]
    they are pondered by all who delight in them.
His deeds[d] show forth majesty and splendor,
    and his righteousness endures forever.
He has won renown for his wonders;[e]
    gracious and compassionate is the Lord.
He provides food for those who fear him,[f]
    and is forever mindful of his covenant.
He has manifested the power of his works to his people
    by giving them the lands[g] of the nations.
The works of his hands[h] are faithful and right,
    and all his commandments are trustworthy.
They are established forever and ever
    to be observed in fidelity and truthfulness.
He has granted deliverance to his people
    and established his covenant forever;
    holy and awe-inspiring is his name.[i]
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;[j]
    those who are guided by it will grow in understanding.
    His praise will last forever.

Psalm 112[k]

The Blessings of the Righteous

Alleluia.

Blessed[l] is the man who fears the Lord,
    who greatly delights in his precepts.
His descendants will be powerful upon the earth;
    the generation of the upright will be blessed.[m]
His house will be filled with wealth and riches,[n]
    and his righteousness will endure forever.
He shines as a light for the upright in the darkness;
    kindness, mercy, and justice are his hallmarks.[o]
The future bodes well[p] for him
    who is generous in helping those in need
    and who conducts his affairs with justice.
[q]He will never be swayed;
    the righteous man will be remembered forever.
He has no fear of bad news,
    for his heart remains steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
Since his heart is tranquil, he will not be afraid,
    and he will witness the downfall of his enemies.
He bestows gifts lavishly on the poor;
    his righteousness will endure forever,
    and his horn[r] will be exalted in glory.
10 The wicked will be furious when he sees this,
    gnashing his teeth and pining away;
    the desires of the wicked will be fruitless.[s]

The Egyptian Hallel—Pss 113–118[t]

Psalm 113[u]

Praise of the Lord for His Care of the Lowly

Alleluia.

Praise, you servants of the Lord,[v]
    praise the name of the Lord.
[w]Blessed be the name of the Lord
    now and forevermore.
From the rising of the sun to its setting
    the name of the Lord is to be praised.
[x]High is the Lord over all the nations,
    and supreme over the heavens is his glory.
Who is like the Lord, our God,
    the one who is enthroned on high
and who stoops down to look
    on the heavens and the earth?
[y]He raises the poor from the dust
    and lifts the needy from the rubbish heap,
seating them with princes,
    with the princes of his people.
He settles the barren woman[z] in a home
    and makes her the joyful mother of children.
Alleluia.

Isaiah 43:8-13

Bring forth my people,
    those who have eyes yet are blind,
    those who have ears yet are deaf.
Let all the nations gather together
    and let the peoples assemble.
Who among them foretold this
    and proclaimed to us former events?
Let them produce witnesses to prove themselves right;
    let those who hear them say, “It is true!”
10 You are my witnesses, says the Lord,
    and my servants whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe in me
    and understand that it is I.
No god was formed before me,
    nor will there be any after me.
11 I am the Lord,
    and there is no other savior but me.
12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed,
    and not some strange god among you;
    you are my witnesses to this, says the Lord.
13 I am God, and from eternity I am he;
    no one can deliver from my hand;
    no one can overrule or alter what I do.

1 Peter 2:2-10

Like newborn infants, long for pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may advance on the path to salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

The Mystery of the Church.[a] Come to him, a living stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious. You, too, are like living stones, being built up into a spiritual temple and a holy priesthood[b] to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it states in Scripture,

“See, I am laying a stone in Zion,
    a cornerstone chosen and precious.
Whoever believes in it
    will not be put to shame.”

Therefore, it is precious to you who believe. However, for those who do not believe,

“The stone that the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone,”

and

“A stone that makes them stumble,
    and a rock that makes them fall.”

They stumble because they disobey the word—for this they were born.[c]

But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people claimed by God as his own possession,” so that you may proclaim the praise of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

10 Once you were not a people,
    but now you are God’s people.
Once you had not received mercy,
    but now you have received mercy.

John 14:1-7

The Way, the Truth, and the Life[a]

Chapter 14

Jesus, the Way, Leads to the Father[b]

“Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You place your trust in God.[c]
Trust also in me.
In my Father’s house
there are many dwelling places.
If there were not,
would I have told you
that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again
and will take you to myself,
so that where I am,
you may also be.
You know the way
to the place I am going.”

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?”

Jesus, the Truth, Reveals the Father[d]

Jesus replied,

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father
except through me.
If you know me,
then you will know my Father also.
From now on you do know him.
You have seen him.”

New Catholic Bible (NCB)

Copyright © 2019 by Catholic Book Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.