Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 78[a]
A well-written song[b] by Asaph.
78 Pay attention, my people, to my instruction.
Listen to the words I speak.[c]
2 I will sing a song that imparts wisdom;
I will make insightful observations about the past.[d]
3 What we have heard and learned[e]—
that which our ancestors[f] have told us—
4 we will not hide from their[g] descendants.
We will tell the next generation
about the Lord’s praiseworthy acts,[h]
about his strength and the amazing things he has done.
5 He established a rule[i] in Jacob;
he set up a law in Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to make his deeds known to their descendants,[j]
6 so that the next generation, children yet to be born,
might know about them.
They will grow up and tell their descendants about them.[k]
7 Then they will place their confidence in God.
They will not forget the works of God,
and they will obey[l] his commands.
8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,
who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation that was not committed
and faithful to God.[m]
9 The Ephraimites[n] were armed with bows,[o]
but they retreated in the day of battle.[p]
10 They did not keep their covenant with God,[q]
and they refused to obey[r] his law.
11 They forgot what he had done,[s]
the amazing things he had shown them.
12 He did amazing things in the sight of their ancestors,
in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.[t]
13 He divided the sea and led them across it;
he made the water stand in a heap.
14 He led them with a cloud by day,
and with the light of a fire all night long.
15 He broke open rocks in the wilderness,
and gave them enough water to fill the depths of the sea.[u]
16 He caused streams to flow from the rock,
and made the water flow like rivers.
17 Yet they continued to sin against him,
and rebelled against the Most High[v] in the desert.
18 They willfully challenged God[w]
by asking for food to satisfy their appetite.
19 They insulted God, saying,[x]
“Is God really able to give us food[y] in the wilderness?
20 Yes,[z] he struck a rock and water flowed out;
streams gushed forth.
But can he also give us food?
Will he provide meat for his people?”
21 When[aa] the Lord heard this, he was furious.
A fire broke out against Jacob,
and his anger flared up[ab] against Israel,
22 because they did not have faith in God,
and did not trust his ability to deliver them.[ac]
23 He gave a command to the clouds above,
and opened the doors in the sky.
24 He rained down manna for them to eat;
he gave them the grain of heaven.[ad]
25 Man ate the food of the mighty ones.[ae]
He sent them more than enough to eat.[af]
26 He brought the east wind through the sky,
and by his strength led forth the south wind.
27 He rained down meat on them like dust,
birds as numerous as the sand on the seashores.[ag]
28 He caused them to fall right in the middle of their camp,
all around their homes.
29 They ate until they were beyond full;[ah]
he gave them what they desired.
30 They were not yet filled up;[ai]
their food was still in their mouths,
31 when the anger of God flared up against them.
He killed some of the strongest of them;
he brought the young men of Israel to their knees.
32 Despite all this, they continued to sin,
and did not trust him to do amazing things.[aj]
33 So he caused them to die unsatisfied[ak]
and filled with terror.[al]
34 When he struck them down,[am] they sought his favor;[an]
they turned back and longed for God.
35 They remembered that God was their protector,[ao]
and that God Most High[ap] was their deliverer.[aq]
36 But they deceived him with their words,[ar]
and lied to him.[as]
37 They were not really committed to him,[at]
and they were unfaithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he is compassionate.
He forgives sin and does not destroy.
He often holds back his anger,
and does not stir up his fury.[au]
39 He remembered[av] that they were made of flesh,
and were like a wind that blows past and does not return.[aw]
40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness,
and insulted him[ax] in the wastelands.
41 They again challenged God,[ay]
and offended[az] the Holy One of Israel.[ba]
42 They did not remember what he had done,[bb]
how he delivered them from the enemy,[bc]
43 when he performed his awesome deeds[bd] in Egypt,
and his acts of judgment[be] in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their rivers into blood,
and they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of biting insects against them,[bf]
as well as frogs that overran their land.[bg]
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,
the fruit of their labor to the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail,
and their sycamore-fig trees with driving rain.
48 He rained hail down on their cattle,[bh]
and hurled lightning bolts down on their livestock.[bi]
49 His raging anger lashed out against them.[bj]
He sent fury, rage, and trouble
as messengers who bring disaster.[bk]
50 He sent his anger in full force.[bl]
He did not spare them from death;
he handed their lives over to destruction.[bm]
51 He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power[bn] in the tents of Ham.
52 Yet he brought out his people like sheep;
he led them through the wilderness like a flock.
53 He guided them safely along, and they were not afraid;
but the sea covered their enemies.
54 He brought them to the border of his holy land,
to this mountainous land[bo] that his right hand[bp] acquired.
55 He drove the nations out from before them;
he assigned them their tribal allotments[bq]
and allowed the tribes of Israel to settle down.[br]
56 Yet they challenged and defied[bs] God Most High,[bt]
and did not obey[bu] his commands.[bv]
57 They were unfaithful[bw] and acted as treacherously as[bx] their ancestors;
they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow.[by]
58 They made him angry with their pagan shrines,[bz]
and made him jealous with their idols.
59 God heard and was angry;
he completely rejected Israel.
60 He abandoned[ca] the sanctuary at Shiloh,
the tent where he lived among men.
61 He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured;[cb]
he gave the symbol of his splendor[cc] into the hand of the enemy.[cd]
62 He delivered his people over to the sword,
and was angry with his chosen nation.[ce]
63 Fire consumed their[cf] young men,
and their[cg] virgins remained unmarried.[ch]
64 Their[ci] priests fell by the sword,
but their[cj] widows did not weep.[ck]
65 But then the Lord awoke from his sleep;[cl]
he was like a warrior in a drunken rage.[cm]
66 He drove his enemies back;
he made them a permanent target for insults.[cn]
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 He chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above,[co]
as secure as the earth, which he established permanently.[cp]
70 He chose David, his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds.
71 He took him away from following the mother sheep,[cq]
and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,
and of Israel, his chosen nation.[cr]
72 David[cs] cared for them with pure motives;[ct]
he led them with skill.[cu]
David Offers a Prayer to God
18 King David went in, sat before the Lord, and said, “Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family,[a] that you should have brought me to this point? 19 And you didn’t stop there, O Lord God! You have also spoken about the future of your servant’s family.[b] Is this your usual way of dealing with men,[c] O Sovereign Lord? 20 What more can David say to you? You have given your servant special recognition,[d] O Sovereign Lord! 21 For the sake of your promise and according to your purpose[e] you have done this great thing in order to reveal it to your servant.[f] 22 Therefore you are great, O Sovereign Lord, for there is none like you. There is no God besides you! What we have heard is true.[g] 23 Who is like your people, Israel, a unique nation[h] on the earth? Their God[i] went[j] to claim[k] a nation for himself and to make a name for himself! You did great and awesome acts for your land,[l] before your people whom you delivered for yourself from the Egyptian empire and its gods.[m] 24 You made Israel your very own people for all time.[n] You, O Lord, became their God. 25 So now, O Lord God, make this promise you have made about your servant and his family a permanent reality.[o] Do as you promised,[p] 26 so you may gain lasting fame,[q] as people say,[r] ‘The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is God over Israel!’ The dynasty[s] of your servant David will be established before you, 27 for you, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, have told[t] your servant, ‘I will build you a dynastic house.’[u] That is why your servant has had the courage[v] to pray this prayer to you. 28 Now, O Sovereign Lord, you are the true God.[w] May your words prove to be true![x] You have made this good promise to your servant.[y] 29 Now be willing to bless your servant’s dynasty[z] so that it may stand permanently before you, for you, O Sovereign Lord, have spoken. By your blessing may your servant’s dynasty be blessed from now on into the future!”[aa]
Paul Before the Proconsul Gallio
12 Now while Gallio[a] was proconsul[b] of Achaia,[c] the Jews attacked Paul together[d] and brought him before the judgment seat,[e] 13 saying, “This man is persuading[f] people to worship God in a way contrary to[g] the law!” 14 But just as Paul was about to speak,[h] Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of some crime or serious piece of villainy,[i] I would have been justified in accepting the complaint[j] of you Jews,[k] 15 but since it concerns points of disagreement[l] about words and names and your own law, settle[m] it yourselves. I will not be[n] a judge of these things!” 16 Then he had them forced away[o] from the judgment seat.[p] 17 So they all seized Sosthenes, the president of the synagogue,[q] and began to beat[r] him in front of the judgment seat.[s] Yet none of these things were of any concern[t] to Gallio.
Paul Returns to Antioch in Syria
18 Paul, after staying[u] many more days in Corinth, said farewell to[v] the brothers and sailed away to Syria accompanied by[w] Priscilla and Aquila.[x] He[y] had his hair cut off[z] at Cenchrea[aa] because he had made a vow.[ab] 19 When they reached Ephesus,[ac] Paul[ad] left Priscilla and Aquila[ae] behind there, but he himself went[af] into the synagogue[ag] and addressed[ah] the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay longer, he would not consent,[ai] 21 but said farewell to[aj] them and added,[ak] “I will come back[al] to you again if God wills.”[am] Then[an] he set sail from Ephesus, 22 and when he arrived[ao] at Caesarea,[ap] he went up and greeted[aq] the church at Jerusalem[ar] and then went down to Antioch.[as] 23 After he spent[at] some time there, Paul left and went through the region of Galatia[au] and Phrygia,[av] strengthening all the disciples.
Apollos Begins His Ministry
24 Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, arrived in Ephesus. He was an eloquent speaker,[aw] well-versed[ax] in the scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in[ay] the way of the Lord, and with great enthusiasm[az] he spoke and taught accurately the facts[ba] about Jesus, although he knew[bb] only the baptism of John. 26 He began to speak out fearlessly[bc] in the synagogue,[bd] but when Priscilla and Aquila[be] heard him, they took him aside[bf] and explained the way of God to him more accurately. 27 When Apollos[bg] wanted to cross over to Achaia,[bh] the brothers encouraged[bi] him[bj] and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he[bk] assisted greatly those who had believed by grace, 28 for he refuted the Jews vigorously[bl] in public debate,[bm] demonstrating from the scriptures that the Christ[bn] was Jesus.[bo]
A Two-stage Healing
22 Then[a] they came to Bethsaida. They brought a blind man to Jesus[b] and asked him to touch him. 23 He took the blind man by the hand and brought him outside of the village. Then[c] he spit on his eyes, placed his hands on his eyes[d] and asked, “Do you see anything?” 24 Regaining his sight[e] he said, “I see people, but they look like trees walking.” 25 Then Jesus[f] placed his hands on the man’s[g] eyes again. And he opened his eyes,[h] his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. 26 Jesus[i] sent him home, saying, “Do not even go into the village.”[j]
Peter’s Confession
27 Then Jesus and his disciples went to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked his disciples,[k] “Who do people say that I am?” 28 They said,[l] “John the Baptist, others say Elijah,[m] and still others, one of the prophets.” 29 He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him,[n] “You are the Christ.”[o] 30 Then[p] he warned them not to tell anyone about him.[q]
First Prediction of Jesus’ Death and Resurrection
31 Then[r] Jesus[s] began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer[t] many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law,[u] and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He spoke openly about this. So[v] Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But after turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but on man’s.”[w]
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