Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 140
Rescue Me From Evil Men
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For the choir director. A psalm by David.
Plea for Deliverance
1 Keep me safe, Lord, from the evil man.
Protect me from the violent man,
2 who plans evil in his heart.
Every day they gather for battle.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a snake. Interlude
The poison of vipers is under their lips.
4 Keep me safe, Lord, from the hands of the wicked.
Protect me from the violent man, who plans to trip my feet.
5 The proud have hidden a snare for me, and ropes.[a]
They have spread out a net along my route. Interlude
They have set traps for me.
Confidence
6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
Hear, O Lord, the sound of my cry for mercy.
7 O Lord, my Lord, the strength of my salvation,
you cover my head on the day for weapons.
8 Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked.
Do not let their scheme succeed when they rise up.[b] Interlude
Plea for Justice
9 May the trouble caused by their lips
fall on the heads of those who surround me.
10 Let burning coals fall on them.
Cause them to fall into the fire,
or into pits from which they will never rise.
11 Do not let the slanderer[c] be established in the land.
As for the man of violence—
may evil hunt him and beat him down.
Confidence
12 I know that the Lord will provide justice for the oppressed,
judgment for the poor.
13 Surely the righteous will give thanks to your name.
The upright will live in your presence.
Psalm 142
When My Spirit Grows Faint
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A maskil[a] by David. When he was in the cave.[b] A prayer.
A Prayer for the Weary
1 With my voice I cry out to the Lord.
With my voice I call to the Lord for mercy.
2 I pour out my complaint before him.
I tell my distress before him.
3 When my spirit grows faint within me,
you are the one who knows my course.
On the path where I walk they have hidden a snare for me.
4 Look to my right and see.
There is no one who recognizes me.
There is no escape for me.
No one cares about my life.
5 I cry out to you, Lord.
I say, “You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living.”
6 Pay attention to my loud cry,
because I am very weak.
Rescue me from those who pursue me,
because they are too strong for me.
7 Set me free from my prison,
so I can give thanks to your name.
Then the righteous will gather around me,
because you have accomplished your purpose for me.
Psalm 141
Guard My Lips and Heart
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A psalm by David.
Accept My Prayer
1 Lord, I call to you. Hurry to me.
Turn your ear toward my voice when I call to you.
2 May my prayer linger before you like incense,
the lifting up of my hands like an evening offering.
Guard My Heart and Mouth
3 Set a guard over my mouth, Lord.
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not let my heart turn toward anything evil,
to take part in wicked deeds with men who do evil.
Let me not taste their delicacies.
Correct Me
5 Let a righteous man strike me—it is mercy.
Let him rebuke me—it is lotion[a] on my head.
My head will not refuse it.
Reject the Wicked
But my prayer is still against their evil deeds.
6 Their rulers will be thrown down by the sides of the cliff,
and they will hear that my words were pleasant.
7 They will say,[b] “As one splits and breaks up the earth,
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”
Closing Plea
8 But my eyes look to you, Lord God.[c]
In you I take refuge. Do not take away my life.
9 Keep me from the snares they have set for me,
from the traps of the evildoers.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I pass by safely.
Psalm 143
Do Not Bring Your Servant Into Judgment
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A psalm by David.
Prayer for Forgiveness
1 Lord, hear my prayer.
Give ear to my cry for mercy.
In your faithfulness, answer me in your righteousness.
2 Do not bring charges against your servant,
because no one living can be righteous before you.
The Problem
3 For the enemy pursues my soul.
He crushes my life to the ground.
He makes me dwell in dark places like those long dead,
4 so my spirit grows faint inside me.
Within me my heart is devastated.
The Reason for Hope
5 I remember the days of long ago.
I meditate on all your works,
and I consider what your hands have done.
6 I spread out my hands to you. Interlude
My soul thirsts for you like a weary land.
The Prayer
7 Hurry! Answer me, Lord.
My spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me,
or I will be like those who go down to the pit.
8 Let me hear about your mercy in the morning,
for I trust in you.
Teach me the way that I should go,
for I lift up my soul to you.
9 Rescue me from my enemies, O Lord,
for I hide myself in you.
10 Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God.
May your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
11 For the sake of your name, O Lord, preserve my life.
In your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.
12 In your mercy, wipe out my enemies,
and destroy all who threaten my life,
for I am your servant.
36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled for eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebidah daughter of Pedaiah from Ramah. 37 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just like everything that his fathers had done.
Judgment for Judah
24 In the days of Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years, but he then rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar again.
2 Then the Lord sent bands of Chaldeans, bands of Arameans, bands of Moabites, and bands of Ammonite raiders against Jehoiakim. He sent them into Judah to destroy them according to the word of the Lord, which he had spoken through his servants the prophets. 3 Surely this happened at the Lord’s command to remove them from his presence because of all the sins Manasseh had committed, 4 as well as the innocent blood he had shed. He filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord was not willing to forgive.
5 As for the rest of Jehoiakim’s deeds and everything he did, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Judah? 6 Jehoiakim rested with his fathers. Then his son Jehoiachin became king in his place.
7 The king of Egypt did not march out from his land again because the king of Babylon had seized everything that had belonged to the king of Egypt, from the Stream of Egypt to the Euphrates River.
Jehoiachin Son of Jehoiakim, King of Judah
8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he ruled for three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Nehushta daughter of Elnathan from Jerusalem.
9 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just like everything that his father had done. 10 At that time, the officers of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem and put the city under siege. 11 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his officers were besieging it.
12 Then Jehoiachin king of Judah surrendered to the king of Babylon—he and his mother, his officials, his officers, and his eunuchs.[a] In the eighth year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, he took Jehoiachin prisoner. 13 He brought out all the treasures of the House of the Lord and the treasures of the palace of the king. He cut up all the gold articles in the House of the Lord, which Solomon king of Israel had made, just as the Lord had said. 14 He exiled all Jerusalem and all the officers and all the warriors—ten thousand men went into exile—as well as all the craftsmen and metal workers. No one was left except the poorest people of the land. 15 He exiled Jehoiachin to Babylon. He also took the king’s mother, the king’s wives, his eunuchs, and the leading citizens of the land into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 16 The king of Babylon also took into exile all the soldiers—seven thousand men—and the craftsmen and metal workers—a thousand men, all strong and trained for war.[b] 17 Then the king of Babylon made Jehoiachin’s uncle Mattaniah king in his place, but he changed his name to Zedekiah.
The Diversity of the Gifts Enhances the Unity of the Body of Christ
12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by[a] one Spirit we all were baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free people, and we were all caused to drink one Spirit. 14 Furthermore, the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not part of the body,” it does not on that account cease to be part of the body. 16 If the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not part of the body,” it does not on that account cease to be part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has arranged the members in the body, each and every one of them, as he desired. 19 If they were all one member, where would the body be? 20 But as it is, there are many members, yet one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need for you,” or again the head to the feet, “I have no need for you.” 22 On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are much more necessary. 23 As for the parts of the body we consider less honorable, these we provide with more honor. We treat our unpresentable parts with more modesty, 24 whereas our presentable parts have no such need. But God put the body together in a way that gave more honor to the parts that lack it. 25 He did it so that there might not be any division in the body, but that the members might all have the same concern for one another. 26 So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it, or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
Two Blind Men
27 As Jesus left that place, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”
28 When he entered the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”
They told him, “Yes, Lord.”
29 Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done for you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus warned them emphatically, “See to it that no one learns about this.” 31 But they went out and spread the word about him throughout that entire region.
Jesus Heals a Mute Man
32 Just as they were leaving, people brought to him a demon-possessed man who could not talk. 33 After the demon was driven out, the mute man spoke. The crowds were amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel!”
34 But the Pharisees said, “He drives out demons by the ruler of demons.”
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.