Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 33[a]
33 You godly ones, shout for joy because of the Lord!
It is appropriate for the morally upright to offer him praise.
2 Give thanks to the Lord with the harp.
Sing to him to the accompaniment of a ten-stringed instrument.
3 Sing to him a new song.[b]
Play skillfully as you shout out your praises to him.[c]
4 For the Lord’s decrees[d] are just,[e]
and everything he does is fair.[f]
5 He promotes[g] equity and justice;
the Lord’s faithfulness extends throughout the earth.[h]
6 By the Lord’s decree[i] the heavens were made,
and by the breath[j] of his mouth all the starry hosts.
7 He piles up the water of the sea;[k]
he puts the oceans[l] in storehouses.
8 Let the whole earth fear[m] the Lord.
Let all who live in the world stand in awe of him.
9 For he spoke, and it[n] came into existence.
He issued the decree,[o] and it stood firm.
10 The Lord frustrates[p] the decisions of the nations;
he nullifies the plans[q] of the peoples.
11 The Lord’s decisions stand forever;
his plans abide throughout the ages.[r]
12 How blessed[s] is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people whom he has chosen to be his special possession.[t]
13 The Lord watches[u] from heaven;
he sees all people.[v]
14 From the place where he lives he looks carefully
at all the earth’s inhabitants.
15 He is the one who forms every human heart,[w]
and takes note of all their actions.
16 No king is delivered by his vast army;
a warrior is not saved by his great might.
17 A horse disappoints those who trust in it for victory;[x]
despite its great strength, it cannot deliver.
18 Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers,[y]
those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness[z]
19 by saving their lives from death[aa]
and sustaining them during times of famine.[ab]
20 We[ac] wait for the Lord;
he is our deliverer[ad] and shield.[ae]
21 For our hearts rejoice in him,
for we trust in his holy name.
22 May we experience your faithfulness, O Lord,[af]
for[ag] we wait for you.
3 Moses[a] went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, “Thus you will tell the house of Jacob, and declare to the people[b] of Israel: 4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt and how I lifted you on eagles’ wings[c] and brought you to myself.[d] 5 And now, if you will diligently listen to me[e] and keep[f] my covenant, then you will be my[g] special possession[h] out of all the nations, for all the earth is mine, 6 and you will be to me[i] a kingdom of priests[j] and a holy nation.’[k] These are the words that you will speak to the Israelites.”
7 So Moses came and summoned the elders of Israel. He set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him, 8 and all the people answered together, “All that the Lord has commanded we will do!”[l] So Moses brought the words of the people back to the Lord.
16 On[a] the third day in the morning there was thunder and lightning and a dense[b] cloud on the mountain, and the sound of a very loud[c] horn;[d] all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17 Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their place at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was completely covered with smoke because the Lord had descended on it in fire, and its smoke went up like the smoke of a great furnace,[e] and the whole mountain shook[f] violently. 19 When the sound of the horn grew louder and louder,[g] Moses was speaking[h] and God was answering him with a voice.[i]
20 The Lord came down on Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain, and the Lord summoned Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
A Living Stone, a Chosen People
4 So as you come to him,[a] a living stone rejected by men but[b] chosen and precious[c] in God’s sight, 5 you yourselves, as living stones, are built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood and to offer[d] spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it says[e] in scripture, “Look, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and precious cornerstone,[f] and whoever believes[g] in him[h] will never[i] be put to shame.”[j] 7 So you who believe see[k] his value,[l] but for those who do not believe, the stone that the builders rejected has become the[m] cornerstone,[n] 8 and a stumbling-stone[o] and a rock to trip over.[p] They stumble[q] because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.[r] 9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may proclaim the virtues[s] of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 You[t] once were not a people, but now you are God’s people. You were shown no mercy,[u] but now you have received mercy.
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