Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 25[a]
By David.
25 O Lord, I come before you in prayer.[b]
2 My God, I trust in you.
Please do not let me be humiliated;
do not let my enemies triumphantly rejoice over me.
3 Certainly none who rely on you will be humiliated.
Those who deal in treachery will be thwarted[c] and humiliated.
4 Make me understand your ways, O Lord.
Teach me your paths.[d]
5 Guide me into your truth[e] and teach me.
For you are the God who delivers me;
on you I rely all day long.
6 Remember[f] your compassionate and faithful deeds, O Lord,
for you have always acted in this manner.[g]
7 Do not hold against me[h] the sins of my youth[i] or my rebellious acts.
Because you are faithful to me, extend to me your favor, O Lord.[j]
8 The Lord is both kind and fair;[k]
that is why he teaches sinners the right way to live.[l]
9 May he show[m] the humble what is right.[n]
May he teach[o] the humble his way.
10 The Lord always proves faithful and reliable[p]
to those who follow the demands of his covenant.[q]
11 For the sake of your reputation,[r] O Lord,
forgive my sin, because it is great.[s]
12 The Lord shows his faithful followers
the way they should live.[t]
13 They experience his favor;[u]
their descendants[v] inherit the land.[w]
14 The Lord’s loyal followers receive his guidance,[x]
and he reveals his covenantal demands to them.[y]
15 I continually look to the Lord for help,[z]
for he will free my feet from the enemy’s net.[aa]
16 Turn toward me and have mercy on me,
for I am alone[ab] and oppressed.
17 Deliver me from my distress;[ac]
rescue me from my suffering.[ad]
18 See my pain and suffering.
Forgive all my sins.[ae]
19 Watch my enemies, for they outnumber me;
they hate me and want to harm me.[af]
20 Protect me[ag] and deliver me!
Please do not let me be humiliated,
for I have taken shelter in you.
21 May integrity and godliness protect me,
for I rely on you.
22 O God, rescue[ah] Israel
from all their distress![ai]
Psalm 9[a]
For the music director, according to the alumoth-labben style;[b] a psalm of David.
9 I will thank the Lord with all my heart!
I will tell about all your amazing deeds.[c]
2 I will be happy and rejoice in you.
I will sing praises to you, O Most High.[d]
3 When my enemies turn back,
they trip and are defeated[e] before you.
4 For you defended my just cause;[f]
from your throne you pronounced a just decision.[g]
5 You terrified the nations with your battle cry.[h]
You destroyed the wicked;[i]
you permanently wiped out all memory of them.[j]
6 The enemy’s cities have been reduced to permanent ruins.[k]
You destroyed their cities;[l]
all memory of the enemies has perished.[m]
7 But the Lord[n] rules[o] forever;
he reigns in a just manner.[p]
8 He judges the world fairly;
he makes just legal decisions for the nations.[q]
9 Consequently[r] the Lord provides safety for the oppressed;[s]
he provides safety in times of trouble.[t]
10 Your loyal followers trust in you,[u]
for you, Lord, do not abandon those who seek your help.[v]
11 Sing praises to the Lord, who rules[w] in Zion.
Tell the nations what he has done.[x]
12 For the one who takes revenge against murderers took notice of the oppressed;[y]
he did not overlook[z] their cry for help[aa]
13 when they prayed:[ab]
“Have mercy on me,[ac] Lord!
See how I am oppressed by those who hate me,[ad]
O one who can snatch me away[ae] from the gates of death!
14 Then I will[af] tell about all your praiseworthy acts;[ag]
in the gates of Daughter Zion[ah] I will rejoice because of your deliverance.”[ai]
15 The nations fell[aj] into the pit they had made;
their feet were caught in the net they had hidden.[ak]
16 The Lord revealed himself;
he accomplished justice.
The wicked were ensnared by their own actions.[al] (Higgaion.[am] Selah)
17 The wicked are turned back and sent to Sheol;[an]
this is the destiny of[ao] all the nations that ignore[ap] God,
18 for the needy are not permanently ignored,[aq]
the hopes of the oppressed are not forever dashed.[ar]
19 Rise up, Lord![as]
Don’t let men be defiant.[at]
May the nations be judged in your presence.
20 Terrify them, Lord.[au]
Let the nations know they are mere mortals.[av] (Selah)
Psalm 15[a]
A psalm of David.
15 Lord, who may be a guest in your home?[b]
Who may live on your holy hill?[c]
2 Whoever lives a blameless life,[d]
does what is right,
and speaks honestly.[e]
3 He[f] does not slander,[g]
or do harm to others,[h]
or insult his neighbor.[i]
4 He despises a reprobate,[j]
but honors the Lord’s loyal followers.[k]
He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise.[l]
5 He does not charge interest when he lends his money.[m]
He does not take bribes to testify against the innocent.[n]
The one who lives like this[o] will never be shaken.
The Lord Will Punish the Judean Exiles in Egypt for Their Idolatry
44 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah concerning[a] all the Judeans who were living in the land of Egypt, those in Migdol, Tahpanhes, Memphis, and in the region of southern Egypt:[b] 2 “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[c] says, ‘You have seen all the disaster I brought on Jerusalem and all the towns of Judah. Indeed, they now lie in ruins and are deserted.[d] 3 This happened because of the wickedness the people living there did.[e] They made me angry[f] by worshiping and offering sacrifices to[g] other gods whom neither they nor you nor your ancestors[h] previously knew.[i] 4 I sent my servants the prophets to you people over and over again[j] warning you not to do this disgusting thing I hate.[k] 5 But the people of Jerusalem and Judah[l] would not listen or pay any attention. They would not stop the wickedness they were doing nor quit sacrificing to other gods.[m] 6 So my anger and my wrath were poured out and burned like a fire through the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. That is why they have become the desolate ruins that they are today.’
7 “So now the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[n] asks, ‘Why will you do such great harm to yourselves? Why should every man, woman, child, and baby of yours be destroyed from the midst of Judah? Why should you leave yourselves without a remnant? 8 That is what will result from your making me angry by what you are doing.[o] You are making me angry by sacrificing to other gods here in the land of Egypt where you live. You will be destroyed for doing that! You will become an example used in curses[p] and an object of ridicule among all the nations of the earth.[q] 9 Have you forgotten all the wicked things that have been done in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem by your ancestors, by the kings of Judah and their[r] wives, and by you and your wives? 10 To this day your people[s] have shown no contrition! They have not revered me nor followed the laws and statutes I commanded[t] you and your ancestors.’
11 “Because of this, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘I am determined to bring disaster on you,[u] even to the point of destroying all the Judeans here.[v] 12 I will see to it that all the Judean remnant that was determined to go[w] and live in the land of Egypt will be destroyed. Here in the land of Egypt they will fall in battle[x] or perish from starvation. People of every class[y] will die in war or from starvation. They will become an object of horror and ridicule, an example of those who have been cursed and that people use in pronouncing a curse.[z] 13 I will punish those who live in the land of Egypt with war, starvation, and disease, just as I punished Jerusalem. 14 None of the Judean remnant who have come to live in the land of Egypt will escape or survive to return to the land of Judah. Though they long to return and live there, none of them shall return except a few fugitives.’”[aa]
30 Why too are we in danger every hour? 31 Every day I am in danger of death! This is as sure as[a] my boasting in you,[b] which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 If from a human point of view I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what did it benefit me? If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.[c] 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”[d] 34 Sober up as you should, and stop sinning! For some have no knowledge of God—I say this to your shame!
The Resurrection Body
35 But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 36 Fool! What you sow will not come to life unless it dies. 37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare seed[e]—perhaps of wheat or something else. 38 But God gives it a body just as he planned, and to each of the seeds a body of its own. 39 All flesh is not the same: People have one flesh, animals have another, birds and fish another.[f] 40 And there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. The glory of the heavenly body is one sort and the earthly another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon and another glory of the stars, for star differs from star in glory.
16 “To[a] what should I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces[b] who call out to one another,[c]
17 ‘We played the flute for you, yet you did not dance;[d]
we wailed in mourning,[e] yet you did not weep.’
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon!’[f] 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him,[g] a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors[h] and sinners!’[i] But wisdom is vindicated[j] by her deeds.”[k]
Woes on Unrepentant Cities
20 Then Jesus began to criticize openly the cities[l] in which he had done many of his miracles, because they did not repent. 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin![m] Woe to you, Bethsaida! If[n] the miracles[o] done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,[p] they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.[q] 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon[r] on the day of judgment than for you! 23 And you, Capernaum,[s] will you be exalted to heaven?[t] No, you will be thrown down to Hades![u] For if the miracles done among you had been done in Sodom,[v] it would have continued to this day.[w] 24 But I tell you, it will be more bearable for the region of Sodom[x] on the day of judgment than for you!”
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.