Book of Common Prayer
Protestation of Integrity and Prayer for Protection.
A Psalm of David.
26 [a](A)Vindicate me, Lord, for I have (B)walked in my integrity,
And I have (C)trusted in the Lord [b](D)without wavering.
2 (E)Examine me, Lord, and put me to the test;
(F)Refine my [c]mind and my heart.
3 For Your [d](G)goodness is before my eyes,
And I have (H)walked in Your truth.
4 I do not (I)sit with [e]deceitful people,
Nor will I go with [f](J)pretenders.
5 I (K)hate the assembly of evildoers,
And I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I will (L)wash my hands in innocence,
And I will go around (M)Your altar, Lord,
7 That I may proclaim with the voice of (N)thanksgiving
And declare all Your [g]wonders.
8 Lord, I (O)love the dwelling of Your house,
And the place [h]where Your (P)glory remains.
9 (Q)Do not [i]take my soul away along with sinners,
Nor my life with (R)men of bloodshed,
10 In whose hands is a (S)wicked scheme,
And whose right hand is full of (T)bribes.
11 But as for me, I will (U)walk in my integrity;
(V)Redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12 (W)My foot stands on (X)level ground;
In the (Y)congregations I will bless the Lord.
A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer.
A Psalm of David.
28 To You, Lord, I call;
My (A)rock, do not be deaf to me,
For if You (B)are silent to me,
I will become like those who (C)go down to the pit.
2 Hear the (D)sound of my pleadings when I cry to You for help,
When I (E)raise my hands (F)toward [a]Your holy (G)sanctuary.
3 (H)Do not drag me away with the wicked
And with those who practice injustice,
Who (I)speak peace with their neighbors,
While evil is in their hearts.
4 Give back to them (J)according to their work and according to the evil of their practices;
Give back to them according to the work of their hands;
Repay them what is due them.
5 Because they (K)do not regard the works of the Lord
Nor the deeds of His hands,
He will tear them down and not build them up.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
Because He (L)has heard the sound of my pleading.
7 The Lord is my (M)strength and my (N)shield;
My heart (O)trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore (P)my heart triumphs,
And with (Q)my song I shall thank Him.
8 The Lord is [b]their (R)strength,
And He is a refuge of (S)salvation to His anointed.
9 (T)Save Your people and bless (U)Your inheritance;
Be their (V)shepherd also, and (W)carry them forever.
Wickedness of Humanity and Goodness of God.
For the music director. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord.
36 [a]Wrongdoing speaks to the ungodly within [b]his heart;
There is (A)no fear of God before his eyes.
2 For it (B)flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his wrongful deed and the hatred of it.
3 The (C)words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has (D)ceased to [c]be wise and to do good.
4 He (E)plans wickedness on his bed;
He sets himself on a (F)path that is not good;
He (G)does not reject evil.
5 Your (H)mercy, Lord, [d]extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
6 Your (I)righteousness is like the [e]mountains of God;
Your (J)judgments are like the great deep.
Lord, You [f](K)protect mankind and animals.
7 How (L)precious is Your mercy, God!
And the sons of mankind (M)take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
8 They (N)drink their fill of the [g]abundance of Your house;
And You allow them to drink from the (O)river of Your delights.
9 For the (P)fountain of life is with You;
In Your light we see light.
The Futility of Life.
For the music director, for [a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (A)keep watch over my ways
So that I (B)do not sin with my tongue;
I will keep watch over (C)my mouth as with a muzzle
While the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was (D)mute [b]and silent,
I [c]refused to say even something good,
And my pain was stirred up.
3 My (E)heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Lord, let me know (F)my end,
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how (G)transient I am.
5 Behold, You have made (H)my days like [d]hand widths,
And my (I)lifetime as nothing in Your sight;
Certainly all mankind standing is [e]a mere (J)breath. Selah
6 Certainly every person (K)walks around as [f]a fleeting shadow;
They certainly make an (L)uproar for nothing;
He (M)amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.
7 “And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My (N)hope is in You.
8 (O)Save me from all my wrongdoings;
Do not make me an object of (P)reproach for the foolish.
9 I have become (Q)mute, I do not open my mouth,
Because it is (R)You who have done it.
10 (S)Remove Your plague from me;
Because of (T)the opposition of Your hand I am [g]perishing.
11 With (U)rebukes You punish a person for wrongdoing;
You (V)consume like a moth what is precious to him;
Certainly (W)all mankind is mere breath! Selah
15 “So (A)be very careful [a]yourselves, since you did not see any (B)form on the day the Lord spoke to you at Horeb from the midst of the fire, 16 so that you do not (C)act corruptly and (D)make a carved image for yourselves in the form of any figure, a representation of male or female, 17 a representation of any animal that is on the earth, a representation of (E)any winged bird that flies in the sky, 18 a representation of anything that crawls on the ground, or a representation of any fish that is in the water below the earth. 19 And be careful not to raise your eyes to heaven and look at the sun, the moon, and the stars, (F)all the heavenly [b]lights, (G)and allow yourself to be drawn away and worship them and serve them, things which the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. 20 But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of (H)the iron furnace, from Egypt, to (I)be a people of His own possession, as today.
21 “(J)Now the Lord was angry with me on your account, and He swore that I would not cross the Jordan, and that I would not enter the good land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance. 22 For (K)I am going to die in this land; I am not crossing the Jordan, but you are going to cross, and you will take possession of this (L)good land. 23 So be careful [c]yourselves, (M)that you do not forget the covenant of the Lord your God which He made with you, and (N)make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything against which the Lord your God has commanded you. 24 For the Lord your God is a (O)consuming fire, a (P)jealous God.
Paul’s Integrity
12 For our [a]proud confidence is this: the testimony of (A)our conscience, that in holiness and (B)godly sincerity, (C)not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you. 13 For we write nothing else to you than what you read and understand, and I hope you will understand (D)until the end; 14 just as you also partially did understand us, that we are your reason to be proud as you also are ours, on (E)the day of our Lord Jesus.
15 In this confidence I intended at first to (F)come to you, so that you might [b]twice receive a [c](G)blessing; 16 [d]that is, to (H)pass [e]your way into (I)Macedonia, and again from Macedonia to come to you, and by you to be (J)helped on my journey to Judea. 17 Therefore, I was not vacillating when I intended to do this, was I? Or what I decide, do I decide (K)according to the flesh, so that with me there will be [f]yes, yes and no, no at the same time? 18 But as (L)God is faithful, (M)our word to you is not yes and no. 19 For (N)the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who was preached among you by us—by me and (O)Silvanus and (P)Timothy—was not yes and no, but has been yes (Q)in Him. 20 For (R)as many as the promises of God are, (S)in Him they are yes; therefore through Him also is (T)our Amen to the glory of God through us. 21 Now He who (U)establishes us with you in Christ and (V)anointed us is God, 22 who also (W)sealed us and (X)gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a [g]pledge.
The Lost Sheep
15 Now all the (A)tax collectors and [a]sinners were coming near [b]Jesus to listen to Him. 2 And both the Pharisees and the scribes began to complain, saying, “This Man receives sinners and (B)eats with them.”
3 And so He told them this parable, saying, 4 “(C)What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the other ninety-nine in the [c]open pasture and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he puts it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my sheep that was lost!’ 7 I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.
The Lost Coin
8 “Or what woman, if she has ten [d]silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found the coin which I had lost!’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is joy (D)in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
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