Book of Common Prayer
118 O give thanks unto Hashem; for He is tov; Ki l’olam chasdo (for His mercy endureth forever).
2 Let Yisroel now say, Ki l’olam chasdo.
3 Let the Bais Aharon now say, Ki l’olam chasdo.
4 Let them now that fear Hashem say, Ki l’olam chasdo,
5 I called upon Hashem in distress; Hashem answered me, and set me in a broad place.
6 Hashem is on my side; I will not fear; what can adam do unto me?
7 Hashem taketh my part through them that help me; therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me.
8 It is better to trust in Hashem than to put confidence in adam.
9 It is better to trust in Hashem than to put confidence in nedivim (nobles).
10 All Goyim surrounded me; but in the Shem Hashem will I cut them off.
11 They surrounded me; yes, they compassed me about; but in the Shem Hashem I will cut them off.
12 They compassed me about like devorim (bees); they are extinguished like the eish of kotzim (thorns); for in the Shem Hashem I will cut them off.
13 Thou hast hard pushed at me that I fell; but Hashem helped me.
14 Hashem is my oz (strength) and zimrah (song), and He is become my Yeshuah (salvation).
15 The voice of rejoicing and Yeshuah (salvation) is in the ohalim of the tzaddikim; the Yamin Hashem doeth valiantly.
16 The Yamin Hashem is exalted; the Yamin Hashem doeth valiantly.
17 I shall not die, but live, and declare the ma’asim (works) of Hashem.
18 Hashem hath hard chastened me severely; but He hath not given me over unto mavet (death).
19 Open to me the sha’arei tzedek; I will go through them, and I will praise Hashem;
20 This is the sha’ar of Hashem, into which the tzaddikim shall enter.
21 I will praise Thee; for Thou hast heard me, and art become my Yeshuah (salvation).
22 The Even (Stone) which the Bonim (Builders) rejected [mem-alef-samech, see same word Psalm 89:38 (39)] has become the Rosh Pinnah (Cornerstone).
23 This is Hashem’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.
24 This is the yom which Hashem hath made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Save now, we beseech Thee, Hashem; Hashem, we beseech thee, send now prosperity.
26 Baruch habah b’Shem Hashem; we have blessed you from the Beis Hashem.
27 Hashem is G-d, Who hath showed us light; bind the chag (festival offering) with cords, even until [you come to] the karnot of the Mizbe’ach.
28 Thou art my G-d, and I will praise Thee; Thou art Elohai, I will exalt Thee.
29 O give thanks unto Hashem; for He is tov; ki l’olam chasdo (for His mercy endureth forever). [T.N. A ma’amin b’Moshiach will carry Scripture with him at all times, as the following Psalm teaches.]
145 (Tehillah of Dovid). [Alef} I will extol Thee, Elohai HaMelech; and I will bless Thy Shem l’olam va’ed .
2 [Beis] Kol yom will I bless Thee; and I will praise Thy Shem l’olam va’ed.
3 [Gimel] Gadol is Hashem, and me’od to be praised; and His greatness is not cheker (searchable).
4 [Dalet] Dor l’dor (generation to generation) shall praise Thy ma’asim, and shall declare Thy gevurot (mighty acts).
5 [Heh] I will speak of the hadar kavod of Thy hod, and of Thy nifle’ot (wonderful works).
6 [Vav] And men shall speak of the power of Thy norot; and I will declare Thy greatness.
7 [Zayin] They shall utter the zekher (memory, recollection) of Thy rav tov and shall sing of Thy tzedakah.
8 [Chet] Channun (gracious) is Hashem, and full of compassion; erech apayim (slow to anger), and of great chesed.
9 [Tet] Tov is Hashem to all; and His rachamim is over all His ma’asim.
10 [Yod] All Thy ma’asim shall praise Thee, Hashem; and Thy chasidim shall bless Thee.
11 [Khaf] They shall speak of the kavod of Thy Malchus, and tell of Thy gevurah;
12 [Lamed] To make known to the Bnei HaAdam His gevurah, and the kavod hadar of His Malchus.
13 [Mem] Thy Malchus is a Malchus kol olamim, and Thy Memshelet for kol dor vador.
14 [Samekh] Hashem upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that are bowed down.
15 [Ayin] The eyes of all look to Thee; and Thou givest them their okhel (food) in its season.
16 [Peh] Thou openest Thine Yad, and satisfiest the ratzon of kol chai.
17 [Tzadi] Tzaddik is Hashem in all His drakhim, and chasid in all His ma’asim,
18 [Koph] Karov (near) is Hashem unto all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon Him in emes.
19 [Resh] He will fulfil the ratzon of them that fear Him; He also will hear their cry, and will save them.
20 [Shin] Shomer is Hashem over all them that love Him; but kol haresha’im will He destroy.
21 [Tav] My mouth shall speak the tehillat Hashem; and let kol basar bless His Shem Kodesh l’olam va’ed. [T.N. See Messianic Psalms which include Ps 2, 22, 45, 72, 110, 47, 93, 96-99, 89 and which indicate Moshiach’s righteous character, experience, ideals, call, and reign.]
10 Then Shmuel took a flask of shemen, and poured it upon his rosh, and kissed him [Ps 2:12], and said, Hath not Hashem meshachacha (anointed thee) to be Nagid over His nachalah?
2 When thou art departed from me today, then thou shalt find two anashim near Kevurat Rachel on the border of Binyamin at Tzeltzach; and they will say unto thee, The donkeys which thou wentest to seek are found; and, hinei, Avicha hath taken leave of caring about the donkeys, and careth for you, saying, What shall I do for beni (my son)?
3 Then shalt thou go on forward from there, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tavor, and there shall meet thee shloshah anashim going up to HaElohim to Beit-El, one carrying shloshet gedayim (three young goats), and another carrying shloshet kikrot (three loaves) lechem, and another carrying a skin of yayin;
4 And they will give thee a Shalom greeting, and give thee two of the lechem; which thou shalt receive of their yad.
5 After that thou shalt come to the Giveat HaElohim, where is the outpost of the Pelishtim (Philistines); and it shall come to pass, when thou art come there to the Ir, that thou shalt meet a chevel (company, band) of nevi’im coming down from the high place with a nevel (lyre), tof (tambourine), khalil (flute), and kinnor (harp) before them; and they shall prophesy;
6 And the Ruach [Hakodesh] of Hashem will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be changed into an ish acher (another man, a different man).
7 And let it be, when these otot (signs) are come unto thee, that thou do what yadecha (thy hand) finds [i.e., what thou seest fit to do]; for HaElohim is with thee.
8 And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and, hinei, I will come down unto thee, to offer olot (burnt offerings), and to sacrifice zivkhei shelamim (sacrifices of peace offerings); shivat yamim shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and show thee what thou shalt do.
9 And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Shmuel, Elohim changed for him a lev acher (another heart, a different heart); and all those otot (signs) came to pass that day.
10 And when they came there to the Giveah (Hill), hinei, a chevel (company, band) of nevi’im met him; and the Ruach [Hakodesh] of Elohim came upon him, and he prophesied among them.
11 And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, hinei, he prophesied with the nevi’im, then HaAm said one to another, What is this that hath happened unto the Ben Kish? Is Sha’ul also among the nevi’im?
12 And an ish from that place answered and said, And who is avihem (their father, cf Amos 7:14)? Therefore it became a mashal (proverb), Is Sha’ul also among the nevi’im?
13 And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the bamah (high place).
14 And the dod Sha’ul said unto him and to his na’ar, Where went ye? And he said, To search for the donkeys; and when we saw that they were nowhere, we came to Shmuel.
15 And the dod Sha’ul said, Tell me, now, what Shmuel said unto you.
16 And Sha’ul said unto his dod, He told us plainly that the donkeys were found. But of the matter of the melukhah (kingship), whereof Shmuel spoke, he told him not.
13 For the havtachah (promise) to Avraham Avinu and his zera (seed), that he should be Yoresh HaOlam (Heir of the World), did not come through the context of law but through the Tzidkat HaEmunah (the Righteousness of Faith).
14 For if the salvation-byworks legalists are yoreshim (heirs), emunah (faith) is rendered invalid and the havtachah (the promise) is annulled,
15 for the Torah brings about the Charon Af Hashem (Ro 1:18; 3:20; SHEMOT 32:8-10), and where there is no Torah there is no peysha (transgression, rebellion, violation of the Law).
16 For this reason the havtachah (promise) is of emunah (faith), in order that it might be in accordance with unmerited Chen v’Chesed Hashem, that the havtachah might be certain to all the zera (seed), not to him who is of the Torah only, but also to bnei emunat Avraham (the sons of the faith of Avraham Avinu, to those who are of the faith of Abraham). Avraham Avinu is the father of us all,
17 as it is written, AV HAMON GOYIM N’TATICHA ("I have made you father of many nations" BERESHIS 17:5). This was in the sight of Hashem in whom "he believed," G-d who gives Chayyim to the Mesim and calls things which have no existence into existence.
18 Against tikvah (hope), in tikvah "he believed," in order that he might become AV HAMON GOYIM ("father of many nations" BERESHIS 17:5) in accordance with what had been said, "So shall your ZERA ("seed’) be" BERESHIS 15:5.
19 Without weakening in emunah (in personal faith, bitachon, trust) he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead vi-bahlt (since) he was about one hundred years old, and also the deadness of Sarah’s womb.
20 He did not, in disbelief, doubt the havtachah of Hashem (the promise of G-d), but was strengthened in emunah (faith), giving kavod (glory) to Hashem,
21 Being fully convinced that what Hashem had promised He also was able to do.
22 Therefore, V’YACHSHEVEH-HA LO TZEDAKAH ("it [his faith in G-d] was accounted, credited to him for righteousness" BERESHIS 15:6).
23 Nor was it written down for his sake alone that "it was reckoned to him,"
24 But also for us, to whom it is to be reckoned, who believe in Him who raised Yehoshua Adoneinu from the mesim (dead ones),
25 Who was handed over for PEYSHA’EINU (our transgressions, YESHAYAH 53:5) and made to stand up in his Techiyas HaMoshiach that we be YITZDAK IM HASHEM (be justified with G-d, that we have our justification, our acquittal, vindication see Ro 5:18).
23 And after Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach had gone into the Beis Hamikdash, while he was bringing forth his torah, the Rashei Hakohanim and the Zekenim of the people approached him, saying, By what samchut (authority) do you do these things? And who granted you this samchut?
24 And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said in reply to them, I also will ask you a question, which, if you will tell me, I also will tell you by what samchut I do these things...
25 The tevilah in the mikveh mayim of Yochanan...it was from where, from Shomayim or from Bnei Adam? And they were discussing it among themselves, saying, If we say, From Shomayim, he will say to us, Why then do you not believe him?
26 But if we say, From Bnei Adam, we fear the multitude, for everyone considers Yochanan a Navi.
27 And in reply to him, they said, We do not have daas. And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said to them, Neither will I tell you by what samchut I do these things.
28 What do you think? A man had two banim (sons). And having approached the rishon (first), the man said, Beni (my son), go today and work in the kerem (vineyard).
29 But the first son said in reply, I will not. But later, having changed his mind, he went.
30 And having approached the other son, the man spoke similarly. But the second son, in reply, said, I will go, Adoni. Yet he did not go.
31 Which of the two did the ratzon haAv (the will of the Father)? They say, The rishon (the first). Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach says to them, Omein, I say to you, that the mochesim (tax-collectors) and the zonot (prostitutes) are going in ahead of you into the Malchut Hashem.
32 For Yochanan of the tevilah of teshuva came to you in the Derech Tzidkat Hashem (Way of Righteousness), and you did not believe him. But the mochesim and the zonot believed him. But you, even after you saw, did not change your mind [i.e., make teshuva] and believe him.
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International