Book of Common Prayer
97 [a]I truly love your law.
It is my meditation throughout the day.
98 [b]Your precept has given me greater wisdom than my enemies,
for it is mine forever.
99 I am wiser than all my teachers
because I meditate on your commands.
100 I have greater insight than the elders,[c]
because I keep your commandments.
101 I point my feet away from evil paths
so that I might observe your word.
102 I refuse to ignore your judgments,
for it is you yourself who have taught me.
103 Your words are sweet to my palate,
even sweeter to my tongue than honey.[d]
104 Through your commandments I achieve wisdom;
therefore, I hate every way that is false.
Nun
105 [e]Your word is a lamp for my feet[f]
and a light to my path.
106 With a solemn vow I have sworn[g]
to obey the judgments of your righteousness.
107 I have been afflicted beyond measure;
O Lord, let me live in accord with your word.
108 Receive, O Lord, the homage my lips offer you,
and instruct me about your judgments.
109 Even though I continually take my life in my hands,[h]
I do not neglect your law.
110 The wicked seek to entrap me,
but I have not strayed from your commands.
111 [i]Your statutes are my everlasting heritage;
they are the very joy of my heart.
112 I have set my heart on keeping your decrees,
even to the end.
Samekh
113 [j]I detest those who are hypocritical,[k]
but I love your law.
114 You are my refuge and my shield;
I put my hope in your word.
115 Depart from my presence, you evildoers,
so that I may observe the precepts of my God.
116 Sustain me according to your promise, and I will live;
do not delude me in my hope.
117 Uphold me, and I will be saved
and will remain completely focused on your decrees.
118 You cast away all those who swerve from your decrees;
their cunning is futile.
119 You discard all the wicked of the earth like dross;[l]
therefore, I love your teachings.
120 My flesh trembles[m] before you in terror;
your judgments fill me with awe.
Ayin
Psalm 81[a]
Exhortation To Worship Worthily
1 For the director.[b] “Upon the gittith.” Of Asaph.
2 Sing out your joy to God our strength;
shout aloud to the God of Jacob.[c]
3 Raise the chant and sound the tambourine;
play the pleasant harp and the lyre.
4 Sound the trumpet at the new moon,
and also at the full moon on the day of our Feast.[d]
5 For this is a law in Israel,
a decree of the God of Jacob.
6 He imposed this testimony on Joseph[e]
when he departed from the land of Egypt.
I now hear an unfamiliar voice:
7 “I lifted the burden from their shoulders;
their hands put aside the laborer’s basket.[f]
8 When you cried out to me in distress, I rescued you;[g]
from the thunderclouds I answered you;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah: Selah
9 “ ‘Listen to me, O my people, while I warn you.
O Israel, if only you would listen to me!
10 You must not accept a foreign god in your presence;
you must not bow down to an alien deity.
11 I am the Lord, your God,
who brought you up from the land of Egypt;
open your mouth[h] wide so that I may fill it.’
12 “But my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel refused to obey me.[i]
13 So I abandoned them to their stubborn hearts[j]
and let them follow their own devices.
14 [k]“If only my people would listen to me,
if only Israel would walk in my ways,[l]
15 I would quickly subdue their enemies
and raise my hand[m] against their foes.
16 “Then those who hate the Lord[n] would tremble before him,
for their doom would last forever.
17 But Israel he would feed with the finest of wheat[o]
and fill them with honey from the rock.”
Psalm 82[p]
Judgment on Abuse of Authority
1 A psalm of Asaph.[q]
God takes his place in the divine council;[r]
in the midst of the gods he pronounces judgment:
2 “How long will you issue unfair judgments
and rule in favor of those who are wicked?[s] Selah
3 [t]“Grant justice to the weak and the orphan;
defend the rights of the lowly and the poor.
4 Rescue the wretched and the needy;
free them from the hand of the wicked.
5 “They neither know nor understand;
they wander around in darkness
while all the foundations of the earth[u] are crumbling.
6 [v]I declare, ‘Although you are gods,
all of you sons of the Most High,
7 you will die as all men do;
like any ruler you will fall.’ ”[w]
8 Rise up, O God, and judge the earth,
for all the nations belong to you.[x]
Chapter 6
Finding the Lost Ax. 1 The sons of the prophets came to Elisha and said, “Look, the place where we meet with you is too small. 2 Let us go to the Jordan. Each of us can take a pole, and we can make a place for ourselves there.” He answered, “Go.”
3 One of them said, “Will you please go with your servants.” He answered, “I will go.” 4 He went with them and they came to the Jordan and began to cut down trees.
5 One of the men was cutting down a tree, but the iron ax head fell into the water. He cried out, “Woe is me, master, for it was borrowed.” 6 The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” So he showed him the place. He cut down a stick and tossed it there, and it made the iron float. 7 He said, “Pick it up.” So he stretched out his hand and grabbed it.
Aramean Ambush. 8 Now the king of Aram was fighting against Israel. He conferred with his servants saying, “I will set up my camp over there.”
9 The man of God sent word to the king of Israel, saying, “Beware of passing by that place, for the Arameans have gone down there.” 10 The king of Israel sent men to the place that the man of God had indicated. He warned him and saved him more than once or twice.
11 The king of Aram was enraged at this, and he summoned his servants and said, “Will you not let me know which of us has sided with the king of Israel?” 12 One of his servants answered, “No one, my lord, O king. It is Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, who tells the king of Israel whatever you say in your bed chamber.”
13 He said, “Go find out where he is so that I can send and capture him.” He was told, “He is in Dothan.”[a] 14 He sent horses and chariots and a large army there. They arrived at night and surrounded the city.
15 Early the next morning, when the servant of the man of God got up and went out, behold, he saw an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city. His servant said to him, “Oh, my lord, what shall we do?” 16 He answered, “Do not be afraid. There are more with us than with them.”
17 Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes so that he might see.” The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and he looked, and behold, the hill was covered with horses and chariots and fire all around Elisha.
18 As they came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this people with blindness.” They were stricken with blindness, as Elisha had said. 19 Then Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you are seeking.” He led them to Samaria.
20 When they entered Samaria, Elisha said, “Open the eyes of these men, O Lord, so that they might see.” The Lord opened their eyes and they saw that they were in the middle of Samaria.
21 When the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, “Shall I kill them, my father? Shall I kill them?” 22 He answered, “Do not kill them! Would you kill someone whom you had taken with the sword or the bow? Give them bread and water so that they can eat and drink and go back to their master.”
23 He prepared a great feast for them, and when they finished eating and drinking, he sent them away, and they returned to their master. No more Aramean raiding parties came into the land of Israel.
9 In my letter, I wrote to you not to associate with people who are leading immoral lives.[a] 10 Obviously, I was not referring to contact with people in the world who are immoral or with those who are greedy or thieves or worshipers of false gods, since to do this you would have to leave the world. 11 What I really meant to get across was that you should not associate with any brother or sister who is sexually immoral, greedy, an idolater, a slanderer, a drunkard or a robber. You should not even eat with such a person.
12 It is no concern of mine to judge those who are outside the fold.[b] It is your responsibility to judge those who are inside. 13 God will pass judgment on the outsiders. Banish the evil person from your midst.
Chapter 6
Avoid Lawsuits against Each Other.[c] 1 If any of you has a dispute with another, how can you seek judgment before those who are unrighteous[d] instead of before the saints? 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, how can you consider yourselves as incompetent to deal with smaller cases? 3 Do you not realize that we are to judge angels?[e] Why then should we not deal with matters of this life?
4 Therefore, if you have such matters to resolve, how can you seek judgment from those who have no standing in the Church? 5 I write this to make you ashamed. Is it really possible that there is no one among you who is wise enough to mediate a dispute between brethren? 6 Why should a brother go to court against another brother, seeking a decision from unbelievers?
7 In truth, the very fact that you engage in lawsuits with one another is a misfortune for you. Why not prefer to be wronged? Why not prefer to be defrauded? 8 Instead, you yourself are guilty of wronging and defrauding your own brethren.
38 Retaliation.[a]“You have heard that it was said: ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say to you: Offer no resistance to someone who is wicked. If someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn and offer him the other cheek as well. 40 If anyone wishes to sue you to gain possession of your tunic, give him your cloak as well. 41 If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him for a second mile. 42 Give to anyone who begs from you, and do not turn your back on anyone who wishes to borrow from you.
43 Love for Enemies.[b]“You have heard that it was said: ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. 45 This will make you children of your heavenly Father. For he causes his sun to rise on evil people as well as on those who are good, and his rain falls on both the righteous and the wicked. 46 If you love only those who love you, what reward will you receive? Do not even tax collectors[c] do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brethren, what about that is so extraordinary? Even the pagans do as much.
48 Perfection.[d]“Therefore, strive to be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.
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