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
Lexham English Bible (LEB)
Version
Psalm 40

God’s Faithfulness and Deliverance

For the music director. Of David. A psalm.[a]

40 I waited patiently for Yahweh,
And he inclined to me
and heard my cry for help.
And so he brought me up from the roaring pit,[b]
from the miry clay.
And he put my feet upon a rock;
he made my steps steady.
Then he put a new song in my mouth,
a praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and will trust Yahweh.
Blessed is the man who makes Yahweh his trust
and does not turn to the proud and to those who fall away to a lie.[c]
Many things, O Yahweh my God, you have done—
your wonderful deeds and your thoughts toward us.
There is none to compare with you.
If I tried to proclaim and tell of them,
they would be too numerous to count.
A sacrifice and offering you do not desire.
My ears you have opened.[d]
Burnt offering and sin offering you have not demanded.
Then I said, “Look, I come.
In the scroll of the book
it is written concerning me:
‘I delight to do your will, O my God,
and your law is deep within me.’”[e]
I have brought good tidings of righteousness in the great congregation.
Look, I have not shut my lips.
O Yahweh, you surely know that.[f]
10 Your righteousness I have not hidden in the midst of my heart.
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation.
I have not concealed your loyal love or your faithfulness
from the great congregation.
11 As for you, O Yahweh, do not withhold your mercies from me.
Let your loyal love and your faithfulness
continually preserve me.
12 For evils without number have encompassed me.
My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails me.
13 Be pleased, O Yahweh, to deliver me.
O Yahweh, hurry to help me.
14 Let them be shamed and abashed altogether
who seek to take away my life.[g]
Let them be repulsed and humiliated
who desire my harm.
15 Let them be appalled because of their shame,
those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”
16 Let them rejoice and be glad in you,
all those who seek you.
Let them say continually, “Yahweh is great!”
—those who love your salvation.
17 But I am poor and needy.
Let my Lord consider me.
You are my help and my deliverer.
O my God, do not delay.

Psalm 54

Answered Prayer for Deliverance from Adversaries

For the music director, with stringed instruments.

A maskil of David,

when the Ziphites went and said to Saul,

“Is not David hiding himself among us?”[a]

54 O God, by your name save me,
and by your power vindicate me.
O God, hear my prayer;
heed the words of my mouth.
For foreigners have risen against me,
and ruthless men seek my life.
They have not set God before them. Selah
See, God is my helper;
The Lord is with those who sustain my life.[b]
He will repay[c] my enemies for their[d] evil;
in your faithfulness destroy them.
I will freely sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name,
O Yahweh, because it is good.
Because he has delivered me from all trouble,
and my eye has looked with satisfaction on my enemies.

Psalm 51

A Prayer of Repentance and Plea for Mercy

For the music director. A psalm of David.

When Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.[a]

51 Be gracious to me, O God, according to your loyal love.
According to your abundant mercies,
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and from my sin cleanse me.
For I myself know[b] my transgressions,[c]
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, only you, I have sinned
and have done this evil[d] in your eyes,
so that you are correct when you speak,
you are blameless when you judge.
Behold, in iniquity I was born,
and in sin my mother conceived me.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward parts,
and in the hidden parts you make me to know wisdom.
Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean.
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Make me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins,
and all my iniquities blot out.
10 Create a clean heart for me, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.[e]
11 Do not cast me away from your presence,
and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and with a willing spirit sustain me.
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will turn back to you.
14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
the God of my salvation;
then my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
16 For you do not delight in sacrifice or I would give it.
With a burnt offering you are not pleased.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
A broken and contrite heart,
O God, you will not despise.
18 Do good in your favor toward Zion.
Build the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will delight in righteous sacrifices,
burnt offering and whole burnt offering.
Then bulls will be offered on your altar.

1 Samuel 31

Saul and Jonathan Die on Mount Gilboa

31 Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines, and they fell slain on Mount Gilboa. And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and the Philistines killed Jonathan and Abinadab and Malki-Shua, the sons of Saul. Saul was in the thick of the battle,[a] and the archers[b] spotted[c] him, and he was badly wounded by the archers. Then Saul said to his armor bearer,[d] “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, so that these uncircumcised do not come and thrust me through and make a fool of me!” But his armor bearer[e] was not willing to do so because he was very afraid. So Saul took the sword and fell on it. And when his armor bearer[f] saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. So Saul died, and his three sons, his armor bearer,[g] and all his men together that same day.

And when the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley and those who were beyond the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the towns and fled. Thus the Philistines came and lived in them.

And then[h] the next day, the Philistines came to strip the dead and they found Saul and his three sons lying dead on Mount Gilboa. So they cut off his head and stripped off his armor. Then they sent messengers around in the land of the Philistines to proclaim victory in the temples[i] of their idols and to the people. 10 And they put his armor in the temple[j] of the Ashtoreth,[k] and they fastened his corpse to the wall of Beth Shan. 11 When the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard about it, what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all of the valiant men[l] set out and went all night and took the corpse of Saul and the corpses of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan, and they came to Jabesh and burned them there. 13 Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk in Jabesh, and they fasted for seven days.

Acts 15:12-21

12 And the whole group became silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul describing all the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. 13 And after they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, “Men and brothers, listen to me! 14 Simeon has described how God first concerned himself to take from among the Gentiles a people for his name. 15 And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written:

16 ‘After these things I will return
    and build up again the tent of David that has fallen,
    and the parts of it that had been torn down I will build up again
    and will restore it,
17 so that the rest of humanity may seek the Lord,
    even all the Gentiles[a] who are called by my name,[b]
    says the Lord,[c] who makes these things 18 known from of old.’[d]

19 Therefore I conclude we should not cause difficulty for those from among the Gentiles who turn to God, 20 but we should write a letter to them to abstain from the pollution of idols and from sexual immorality and from what has been strangled and from blood. 21 For Moses has those who proclaim him in every city from ancient generations, because he[e] is read aloud in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”

Mark 5:21-43

A Woman Healed and a Daughter Raised

21 And after[a] Jesus had crossed over again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered to him, and he was beside the sea. 22 And one of the rulers of the synagogue came—Jairus by name—and when he[b] saw him, he fell down at his feet. 23 And he was imploring him many times, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death![c] Come, lay your[d] hands on her, so that she will get well and will live.” 24 And he went with him, and a large crowd was following him and pressing around him.

25 And there was a woman who was suffering from hemorrhages[e] twelve years. 26 And she had endured many things under many physicians, and had spent all that she had[f] and had received no help at all, but instead became worse.[g] 27 When she[h] heard about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind him and[i] touched his cloak, 28 for she was saying, “If I touch just his clothing, I will be healed!” 29 And immediately her hemorrhage stopped[j] and she realized in her[k] body that she was healed of her[l] suffering. 30 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from himself, turned around in the crowd and[m] said, “Who touched my clothing?” 31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing upon you, and you say ‘Who touched me?’” 32 And he was looking around to see the one who had done this. 33 So the woman, frightened and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 34 But he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be well from your suffering.”

35 While[n] he was still speaking, they came from the synagogue ruler’s house[o] saying, “Your daughter has died. Why trouble the Teacher further?” 36 But Jesus, ignoring[p] what was said,[q] told the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not be afraid—only believe!” 37 And he did not allow anyone to follow along with him except Peter and James and John, the brother of James. 38 And they came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue and saw a commotion, and people weeping and wailing loudly. 39 And when he[r] entered, he said to them, “Why are you agitated and weeping? The child is not dead, but is sleeping.” 40 And they began laughing[s] at him. But he sent them all out and[t] took along the father and mother of the child, and those who were with him, and went in to where the child was. 41 And taking hold of the child’s hand, he said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”), 42 and immediately the girl stood up and began walking around[u] (for she was twelve years old). And immediately they were utterly and completely astonished.[v] 43 And he commanded them strictly that no one should learn of this, and said to give her something[w] to eat.

Lexham English Bible (LEB)

2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software