Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 45[a]
For the music director, according to the tune of “Lilies”;[b] by the Korahites, a well-written poem,[c] a love song.
45 My heart is stirred by a beautiful song.[d]
I say, “I have composed this special song[e] for the king;
my tongue is as skilled as the stylus of an experienced scribe.”[f]
2 You are the most handsome of all men.[g]
You speak in an impressive and fitting manner.[h]
For this reason[i] God grants you continual blessings.[j]
3 Strap your sword to your thigh, O warrior.[k]
Appear in your majestic splendor.[l]
4 Appear in your majesty and be victorious.[m]
Ride forth for the sake of what is right,[n]
on behalf of justice.[o]
Then your right hand will accomplish mighty acts.[p]
5 Your arrows are sharp
and penetrate the hearts of the king’s enemies.
Nations fall at your feet.[q]
6 Your throne,[r] O God, is permanent.[s]
The scepter[t] of your kingdom is a scepter of justice.
7 You love[u] justice and hate evil.[v]
For this reason God, your God,[w] has anointed you[x]
with the oil of joy,[y] elevating you above your companions.[z]
8 All your garments are perfumed with[aa] myrrh, aloes, and cassia.
From the luxurious palaces[ab] comes the music of stringed instruments that makes you happy.[ac]
9 Princesses[ad] are among your honored women.[ae]
Your bride[af] stands at your right hand, wearing jewelry made with gold from Ophir.[ag]
10 Listen, O princess.[ah]
Observe and pay attention![ai]
Forget your homeland[aj] and your family.[ak]
11 Then[al] the king will be attracted by[am] your beauty.
After all, he is your master. Submit[an] to him.[ao]
12 Rich people from Tyre
will seek your favor by bringing a gift.[ap]
13 The princess[aq] looks absolutely magnificent,[ar]
decked out in pearls and clothed in a brocade trimmed with gold.[as]
14 In embroidered robes she is escorted to the king.
Her attendants, the maidens of honor who follow her,
are led before you.[at]
15 They are bubbling with joy as they walk in procession
and enter the royal palace.[au]
16 Your[av] sons will carry on[aw] the dynasty of your ancestors;[ax]
you will make them princes throughout the land.
17 I will proclaim your greatness through the coming years,[ay]
then the nations will praise you[az] forever.
Psalm 47[a]
For the music director, by the Korahites; a psalm.
47 All you nations, clap your hands.
Shout out to God in celebration.[b]
2 For the Lord Most High[c] is awe-inspiring;[d]
he is the great king who rules the whole earth![e]
3 He subdued nations beneath us[f]
and countries[g] under our feet.
4 He picked out for us a special land[h]
to be a source of pride for[i] Jacob,[j] whom he loves.[k] (Selah)
5 God has ascended his throne[l] amid loud shouts;[m]
the Lord has ascended amid the blaring of ram’s horns.[n]
6 Sing to God! Sing!
Sing to our king! Sing!
7 For God is king of the whole earth.
Sing a well-written song.[o]
8 God reigns[p] over the nations.
God sits on his holy throne.
9 The nobles of the nations assemble,
along with the people of the God of Abraham,[q]
for God has authority over the rulers[r] of the earth.
He is highly exalted.[s]
Psalm 48[t]
A song, a psalm by the Korahites.
48 The Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise
in the city of our God,[u] his holy hill.
2 It is lofty and pleasing to look at,[v]
a source of joy to the whole earth.[w]
Mount Zion resembles the peaks of Zaphon;[x]
it is the city of the great king.
3 God is in its fortresses;
he reveals himself as its defender.[y]
4 For[z] look, the kings assemble;[aa]
they advance together.
5 As soon as they see,[ab] they are shocked;[ac]
they are terrified, they quickly retreat.[ad]
6 Look at them shake uncontrollably,[ae]
like a woman writhing in childbirth.[af]
7 With an east wind
you shatter[ag] the large ships.[ah]
8 We heard about God’s mighty deeds; now we have seen them,[ai]
in the city of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[aj]
in the city of our God.
God makes it permanently secure.[ak] (Selah)
9 Within your temple
we reflect on your loyal love, O God.
10 The praise you receive as far away as the ends of the earth
is worthy of your reputation, O God.[al]
You execute justice.[am]
11 Mount Zion rejoices;
the towns[an] of Judah are happy,[ao]
because of your acts of judgment.[ap]
12 Walk around[aq] Zion. Encircle it.
Count its towers.
13 Consider its defenses.[ar]
Walk through[as] its fortresses,
so you can tell the next generation about it.[at]
14 For God, our God, is our defender forever.[au]
He guides[av] us.[aw]
23 In the thirty-first year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri became king over Israel. He ruled for twelve years, six of them in Tirzah. 24 He purchased the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents[a] of silver. He launched a construction project there[b] and named the city he built after Shemer, the former owner of the hill of Samaria. 25 Omri did more evil in the sight of[c] the Lord than all who were before him. 26 He followed in the footsteps of Jeroboam son of Nebat and encouraged Israel to sin;[d] they angered the Lord God of Israel with their worthless idols.[e]
27 The rest of the events of Omri’s reign, including his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[f] 28 Omri passed away[g] and was buried in Samaria. His son Ahab replaced him as king.[h]
Ahab Promotes Idolatry
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri’s son Ahab became king over Israel. Ahab son of Omri ruled over Israel for twenty-two years in Samaria. 30 Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the sight of[i] the Lord than all who were before him. 31 As if following in the sinful footsteps of Jeroboam son of Nebat were not bad enough, he married Jezebel the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians. Then he worshiped and bowed to Baal.[j] 32 He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal he had built in Samaria. 33 Ahab also made an Asherah pole; he[k] did more to anger the Lord God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
34 During Ahab’s reign,[l] Hiel the Bethelite rebuilt Jericho. Abiram, his firstborn son, died when he laid the foundation;[m] Segub, his youngest son, died when he erected its gates,[n] in keeping with the Lord’s message that he had spoken through Joshua son of Nun.[o]
Ministry as a Prisoner
12 I want you to know, brothers and sisters,[a] that my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel:[b] 13 The[c] whole imperial guard[d] and everyone else knows[e] that I am in prison[f] for the sake of Christ, 14 and most of the brothers and sisters,[g] having confidence in the Lord[h] because of my imprisonment, now more than ever[i] dare to speak the word[j] fearlessly.
15 Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. 16 The latter do so from love because they know that I am placed here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, because they think they can cause trouble for me in my imprisonment.[k] 18 What is the result? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.
Yes,[l] and I will continue to rejoice, 19 for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance[m] through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. 20 My confident hope[n] is that I will in no way be ashamed[o] but that with complete boldness, even now as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether I live or die.[p] 21 For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. 22 Now if I am to go on living in the body,[q] this will mean productive work[r] for me, yet I don’t know which I prefer:[s] 23 I feel torn between the two,[t] because I have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far, 24 but it is more vital for your sake that I remain[u] in the body.[v] 25 And since I am sure of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for the sake of your progress[w] and joy in the faith,[x] 26 so that what you can be proud of may increase[y] because of me in Christ Jesus, when I come back to you.[z]
27 Only conduct yourselves[aa] in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ so that—whether I come and see you or whether I remain absent—I should hear that[ab] you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, by contending side by side for the faith of the gospel,[ac] 28 and by not being intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is[ad] a sign of their[ae] destruction, but of your salvation—a sign which[af] is from God. 29 For it has been granted to you[ag] not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are encountering[ah] the same conflict that you saw me face and now hear that I am facing.[ai]
The Resurrection
16 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought aromatic spices[a] so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, at sunrise, they went to the tomb. 3 They had been asking each other, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” 4 But[b] when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled back. 5 Then[c] as they went into the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe[d] sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6 But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified.[e] He has been raised![f] He is not here. Look, there is the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples, even Peter, that he is going ahead of you into Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you.” 8 Then[g] they went out and ran from the tomb, for terror and bewilderment had seized them.[h] And they said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.
The Longer Ending of Mark[i]
9 [[Early on the first day of the week, after he arose, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had driven out seven demons. 10 She went out and told those who were with him, while they were mourning and weeping. 11 And when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.
12 After this he appeared in a different form to two of them while they were on their way to the country. 13 They went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them. 14 Then he appeared to the eleven themselves, while they were eating, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen him resurrected. 15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 The one who believes and is baptized will be saved, but the one who does not believe will be condemned. 17 These signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new languages;[j] 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands, and whatever poison they drink will not harm them;[k] they will place their hands on the sick and they will be well.” 19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 They went out and proclaimed everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through the accompanying signs.]]
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