Book of Common Prayer
[a] A song of David.
37 Don’t get upset about evil people.
Don’t be jealous of those who do wrong.
2 They are like grass and other green plants
that dry up quickly and then die.
3 So trust in the Lord and do good.
Live on your land and be dependable.[b]
4 Enjoy serving the Lord,
and he will give you whatever you ask for.
5 Depend on the Lord.
Trust in him, and he will help you.
6 He will make it as clear as day that you are right.
Everyone will see that you are being fair.
7 Trust in the Lord and wait quietly for his help.
Don’t be angry when people make evil plans and succeed.
8 Don’t become so angry and upset that you, too, want to do evil.
9 The wicked will be destroyed,
but those who call to the Lord for help will get the land he promised.
10 In a short time there will be no more evil people.
You can look for them all you want, but they will be gone.
11 Humble people will get the land God promised,
and they will enjoy peace.
12 The wicked plan bad things for those who are good.
They show their teeth in anger at them.
13 But our Lord will laugh at them.
He will make sure they get what they deserve.
14 The wicked draw their swords to kill the poor and the helpless.
They aim their arrows to murder all who live right.
15 But their bows will break,
and their swords will pierce their own hearts.
16 A few good people are better
than a large crowd of those who are evil.
17 The wicked will be destroyed,
but the Lord cares for those who are good.
18 The Lord protects pure people all their life.
Their reward will continue forever.
19 When trouble comes,
good people will not be destroyed.
When times of hunger come,
good people will have plenty to eat.
20 But evil people are the Lord’s enemies,
and they will be destroyed.
Their valleys will dry up and burn.
They will be destroyed completely.
21 The wicked borrow money and never pay it back.
But good people are kind and generous.
22 Everyone the Lord blesses will get the land he promised.
Everyone he curses will be destroyed.
23 The Lord shows us how we should live,
and he is pleased when he sees people living that way.
24 If they stumble, they will not fall,
because the Lord reaches out to steady them.
25 I was young, and now I am old,
but I have never seen good people left with no one to help them;
I have never seen their children begging for food.
26 They are kind and generous,
and their children are a blessing.
27 Stop doing anything evil and do good,
and you will always have a place to live.
28 The Lord loves what is right,
and he will never leave his followers without help.
He will always protect them,
but he will destroy the families of the wicked.
29 Good people will get the land God promised
and will live on it forever.
30 Those who do what is right give good advice.
Their decisions are always fair.
31 They have learned God’s teachings,
and they will never stop living right.[c]
32 The wicked are always looking for ways to kill good people.
33 But the Lord will not let the wicked defeat them.
He will not let good people be judged guilty.
34 Do what the Lord says, and wait for his help.
He will reward you and give you the land he promised.
You will see the wicked being forced to leave.
35 I once saw a wicked man who was powerful.
He was like a strong, healthy tree.
36 But then he was gone.
I looked for him, but I could not find him.
37 Be pure and honest.
Peace loving people will have many descendants.
38 But those who break the law will be destroyed completely.
And their descendants will be forced to leave the land.[d]
39 The Lord saves those who are good.
When they have troubles, he is their strength.
40 The Lord helps good people and rescues them.
They depend on him, so he rescues them from the wicked.
Cyrus Helps the Prisoners Return
1 During the first year[a] that Cyrus was king of Persia, the Lord caused him to make an announcement. It was written down, and Cyrus ordered that it be read throughout his kingdom. This was done so that what the Lord had told Jeremiah[b] years before would now happen. This was the announcement:
2 From King Cyrus of Persia:
The Lord, the God of heaven, gave all the kingdoms on earth to me. And he chose me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in the country of Judah. 3 If any of God’s people are living among you, I pray God will bless them. You must let them go to Jerusalem in the country of Judah. You must let them go build the Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 And so in any place where there might be survivors of Israel, the men in that place must support these survivors. Give them silver, gold, animals, and other things. Give them gifts for God’s Temple in Jerusalem.
5 So the family leaders from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin prepared to go up to Jerusalem. They were going to Jerusalem to build the Lord’s Temple. Also everyone who God had encouraged prepared to go to Jerusalem. 6 All their neighbors gave them many gifts. They gave them silver, gold, animals, and other expensive things. Their neighbors freely gave them all those things. 7 Also, King Cyrus brought out the things that belonged in the Lord’s Temple that Nebuchadnezzar had taken away from Jerusalem. He had put them in his temple where he kept his false gods. 8 King Cyrus of Persia told Mithredath, the man who keeps his money, to bring those things out. So Mithredath brought them out to Sheshbazzar, the leader of Judah.
9 This is what Mithredath brought out of the Lord’s Temple: 30 gold dishes, 1000 silver dishes, 29 knives and pans, 10 30 gold bowls, 410 silver bowls similar to the gold bowls, and 1000 other dishes.
11 All together, there were 5400 things made from gold and silver. Sheshbazzar brought them all with him when the prisoners left Babylon and went back to Jerusalem.
The Collection for Believers in Judea
16 Now, about the collection of money for God’s people: Do the same as I told the Galatian churches to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each of you should take some of your money and put it in a special place. Save up as much as you can from what you are blessed with. Then you will not have to gather it all after I come. 3 When I arrive, I will send some men to take your gift to Jerusalem. These will be the ones you all agree should go. I will send them with letters of introduction. 4 If it seems good for me to go too, we can all travel together.
Paul’s Plans
5 I plan to go through Macedonia, so I will come to you after that. 6 Maybe I will stay with you for a time. I might even stay all winter. Then you can help me on my trip, wherever I go. 7 I don’t want to come see you now, because I would have to leave to go to other places. I hope to stay a longer time with you, if the Lord allows it. 8 But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost. 9 I will stay here, because a good opportunity for a great and growing work has been given to me now. And there are many people working against it.
Jesus Is God’s Chosen Servant
15 Jesus knew what the Pharisees were planning. So he left that place, and many people followed him. He healed all who were sick, 16 but he warned them not to tell others who he was. 17 This was to give full meaning to what Isaiah the prophet said when he spoke for God:
18 “Here is my servant,
the one I have chosen.
He is the one I love,
and I am very pleased with him.
I will fill him with my Spirit,
and he will bring justice to the nations.
19 He will not argue or shout;
no one will hear his voice in the streets.
20 He will not break off even a bent stem of grass.[a]
He will not put out even the weakest flame.
He will not give up until he has made justice victorious.
21 All people will hope in him.” (A)
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International