Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 72[a]
A Prayer for the King
1 Of Solomon.
I
2 O God, give your judgment to the king;
your justice to the king’s son;[b](A)
That he may govern your people with justice,
your oppressed with right judgment,(B)
3 That the mountains may yield their bounty for the people,
and the hills great abundance,(C)
4 That he may defend the oppressed among the people,
save the children of the poor and crush the oppressor.
II
5 May they fear you with the sun,
and before the moon, through all generations.(D)
6 May he be like rain coming down upon the fields,
like showers watering the earth,(E)
7 That abundance may flourish in his days,
great bounty, till the moon be no more.
III
8 [c]May he rule from sea to sea,
from the river to the ends of the earth.(F)
9 May his foes kneel before him,
his enemies lick the dust.(G)
10 May the kings of Tarshish and the islands[d] bring tribute,
the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.(H)
11 May all kings bow before him,
all nations serve him.(I)
12 For he rescues the poor when they cry out,
the oppressed who have no one to help.
13 He shows pity to the needy and the poor(J)
and saves the lives of the poor.
14 From extortion and violence he redeems them,
for precious is their blood[e] in his sight.
IV
15 Long may he live, receiving gold from Sheba,
prayed for without cease, blessed day by day.
16 [f]May wheat abound in the land,
flourish even on the mountain heights.
May his fruit be like that of Lebanon,
and flourish in the city like the grasses of the land.(K)
17 May his name be forever;
as long as the sun, may his name endure.(L)
May the tribes of the earth give blessings with his name;[g]
may all the nations regard him as favored.(M)
18 [h]Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does wonderful deeds.(N)
19 Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may he fill all the earth with his glory.(O)
Amen and amen.
20 The end of the psalms of David, son of Jesse.
Yodh
73 Your hands made me and fashioned me;
give me understanding to learn your commandments.
74 Those who fear you rejoice to see me,
because I hope in your word.
75 I know, Lord, that your judgments are righteous;
though you afflict me, you are faithful.
76 May your mercy comfort me
in accord with your promise to your servant.
77 Show me compassion that I may live,
for your law is my delight.
78 Shame the proud for leading me astray with falsehood,
that I may study your testimonies.
79 Let those who fear you turn to me,
those who acknowledge your testimonies.
80 May I be wholehearted toward your statutes,
that I may not be put to shame.
Kaph
81 My soul longs for your salvation;
I put my hope in your word.(A)
82 My eyes long to see your promise.(B)
When will you comfort me?
83 I am like a wineskin shriveled by smoke,(C)
but I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How long can your servant survive?
When will your judgment doom my foes?
85 The arrogant have dug pits for me;
defying your law.
86 All your commandments are steadfast.
Help me! I am pursued without cause.
87 They have almost put an end to me on earth,
but I do not forsake your precepts.
88 In your mercy give me life,
to observe the testimonies of your mouth.
Lamedh
89 [a]Your word, Lord, stands forever;(D)
it is firm as the heavens.
90 Through all generations your truth endures;
fixed to stand firm like the earth.
91 By your judgments they stand firm to this day,
for all things are your servants.
92 Had your law not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts;
through them you give me life.
94 I am yours; save me,
for I cherish your precepts.
95 The wicked hope to destroy me,
but I seek to understand your testimonies.
96 I have seen the limits of all perfection,
but your commandment is without bounds.
Reform in the Temple. 4 [a]Before this, the priest Eliashib, who had been placed in charge of the chambers of the house of our God and who was an associate of Tobiah, 5 (A)had set aside for the latter’s use a large chamber in which had previously been stored the grain offerings, incense and vessels, the tithes in grain, wine, and oil allotted to the Levites, singers, and gatekeepers, and the offerings due the priests. 6 During all this time I had not been in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes,[b] king of Babylon, I had gone back to the king. After a suitable period of time, however, I asked leave of the king 7 and returned to Jerusalem, where I discovered the evil thing that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, in setting aside for him a chamber in the courts of the house of God. 8 This displeased me very much, so I had all of Tobiah’s household goods thrown outside the chamber. 9 Then I gave orders to purify the chambers, and I brought back the vessels of the house of God, the grain offerings, and the incense.
10 I learned, too, that the portions due the Levites were no longer being given, so that the Levites and the singers who should have been carrying out the services had deserted to their own fields. 11 I reprimanded the magistrates, demanding, “Why is the house of God neglected?” Then I brought the Levites together and had them resume their stations. 12 (B)All Judah once more brought in the tithes of grain, wine, and oil to the storerooms. 13 In charge of the storerooms I appointed Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah, one of the Levites, together with Hanan, son of Zaccur, son of Mattaniah, as their assistant; for they were considered trustworthy. It was their duty to make the distribution to their kinsmen. 14 Remember this to my credit, my God! Do not forget the good deeds I have done for the house of my God and its services!
Sabbath Observance. 15 (C)In those days I perceived that people in Judah were treading the wine presses on the sabbath; that they were bringing in sheaves of grain, loading them on their donkeys, together with wine, grapes, figs, and every other kind of load, and bringing them to Jerusalem on the sabbath day. I warned them to sell none of these provisions. 16 In Jerusalem itself the Tyrians residing there were importing fish and every other kind of merchandise and selling it to the Judahites on the sabbath. 17 I reprimanded the nobles of Judah, demanding: “What is this evil thing you are doing, profaning the sabbath day? 18 Did not your ancestors act in this same way, with the result that our God has brought all this evil upon us and upon this city? Would you add to the wrath against Israel by once more profaning the sabbath?”
19 When the shadows were falling on the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I ordered the doors to be closed and prohibited their reopening until after the sabbath. I posted some of my own people at the gates so that no load might enter on the sabbath day. 20 The merchants and sellers of various kinds of merchandise spent the night once or twice outside Jerusalem, 21 but then I warned them: “Why do you spend the night alongside the wall? If you keep this up, I will beat you!” From that time on, they did not return on the sabbath. 22 Then I ordered the Levites to purify themselves and to watch the gates, so that the sabbath day might be kept holy. This, too, remember in my favor, my God, and have mercy on me in accordance with your great mercy!
Chapter 12
The Woman and the Dragon. 1 [a]A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman[b] clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.(A) 2 She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.[c] 3 Then another sign appeared in the sky; it was a huge red dragon,[d] with seven heads and ten horns, and on its heads were seven diadems.(B) 4 Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky and hurled them down to the earth. Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth, to devour her child when she gave birth.(C) 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.[e] Her child was caught up to God and his throne.(D) 6 The woman herself fled into the desert where she had a place prepared by God, that there she might be taken care of for twelve hundred and sixty days.[f]
7 [g]Then war broke out in heaven; Michael[h] and his angels battled against the dragon. The dragon and its angels fought back, 8 but they did not prevail and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 The huge dragon, the ancient serpent,[i] who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceived the whole world, was thrown down to earth, and its angels were thrown down with it.(E)
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Anointed.
For the accuser[j] of our brothers is cast out,
who accuses them before our God day and night.
11 They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
love for life did not deter them from death.
12 Therefore, rejoice, you heavens,
and you who dwell in them.
But woe to you, earth and sea,
for the Devil has come down to you in great fury,
for he knows he has but a short time.”
53 When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.
V. Jesus, the Kingdom, and the Church
The Rejection at Nazareth. 54 [a]He came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.(A) They were astonished[b] and said, “Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?(B) 55 Is he not the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother named Mary and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?(C) 56 Are not his sisters all with us? Where did this man get all this?” 57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.”(D) 58 And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.
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