Book of Common Prayer
Prayer for Deliverance from Evil Men
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
140 Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;
Preserve me from violent men,
2 Who plan evil things in their hearts;
(A)They continually gather together for war.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a serpent;
The (B)poison of asps is under their lips. Selah
4 (C)Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from violent men,
Who have purposed to make my steps stumble.
5 The proud have hidden a (D)snare for me, and cords;
They have spread a net by the wayside;
They have set traps for me. Selah
6 I said to the Lord: “You are my God;
Hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.
7 O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation,
You have [a]covered my head in the day of battle.
8 Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
Do not further his wicked scheme,
(E)Lest they be exalted. Selah
9 “As for the head of those who surround me,
Let the evil of their lips cover them;
10 (F)Let burning coals fall upon them;
Let them be cast into the fire,
Into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
11 Let not a slanderer be established in the earth;
Let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him.”
12 I know that the Lord will (G)maintain
The cause of the afflicted,
And justice for the poor.
13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name;
The upright shall dwell in Your presence.
A Plea for Relief from Persecutors
A (A)Contemplation[a] of David. A Prayer (B)when he was in the cave.
142 I cry out to the Lord with my voice;
With my voice to the Lord I make my supplication.
2 I pour out my complaint before Him;
I declare before Him my trouble.
3 When my spirit [b]was (C)overwhelmed within me,
Then You knew my path.
In the way in which I walk
They have secretly (D)set a snare for me.
4 Look on my right hand and see,
For there is no one who acknowledges me;
Refuge has failed me;
No one cares for my soul.
5 I cried out to You, O Lord:
I said, “You are my refuge,
My portion in the land of the living.
6 [c]Attend to my cry,
For I am brought very low;
Deliver me from my persecutors,
For they are stronger than I.
7 Bring my soul out of prison,
That I may (E)praise Your name;
The righteous shall surround me,
For You shall deal bountifully with me.”
Prayer for Safekeeping from Wickedness
A Psalm of David.
141 Lord, I cry out to You;
Make haste to me!
Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You.
2 Let my prayer be set before You (A)as incense,
(B)The lifting up of my hands as (C)the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard, O Lord, over my (D)mouth;
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not incline my heart to any evil thing,
To practice wicked works
With men who work iniquity;
(E)And do not let me eat of their delicacies.
5 (F)Let the righteous strike me;
It shall be a kindness.
And let him rebuke me;
It shall be as excellent oil;
Let my head not refuse it.
For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked.
6 Their judges are overthrown by the sides of the [a]cliff,
And they hear my words, for they are sweet.
7 Our bones are scattered at the mouth of the grave,
As when one plows and breaks up the earth.
An Earnest Appeal for Guidance and Deliverance
A Psalm of David.
143 Hear my prayer, O Lord,
Give ear to my supplications!
In Your faithfulness answer me,
And in Your righteousness.
2 Do not enter into judgment with Your servant,
(A)For in Your sight no one living is righteous.
3 For the enemy has persecuted my soul;
He has crushed my life to the ground;
He has made me dwell in [a]darkness,
Like those who have long been dead.
4 (B)Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me;
My heart within me is distressed.
5 (C)I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all Your works;
I [b]muse on the work of Your hands.
6 I spread out my hands to You;
(D)My soul longs for You like a thirsty land. Selah
7 Answer me speedily, O Lord;
My spirit fails!
Do not hide Your face from me,
(E)Lest I [c]be like those who [d]go down into the pit.
8 Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness (F)in the morning,
For in You do I trust;
(G)Cause me to know the way in which I should walk,
For (H)I lift up my soul to You.
14 They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing;
For the majesty of the Lord
They shall cry aloud from the sea.
15 Therefore (A)glorify the Lord in the dawning light,
(B)The name of the Lord God of Israel in the coastlands of the sea.
16 From the ends of the earth we have heard songs:
“Glory to the righteous!”
But I said, [a]“I am ruined, ruined!
Woe to me!
(C)The treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously,
Indeed, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.”
17 (D)Fear and the pit and the snare
Are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall be
That he who flees from the noise of the fear
Shall fall into the pit,
And he who comes up from the midst of the pit
Shall be [b]caught in the snare;
For (E)the windows from on high are open,
And (F)the foundations of the earth are shaken.
19 (G)The earth is violently broken,
The earth is split open,
The earth is shaken exceedingly.
20 The earth shall (H)reel[c] to and fro like a drunkard,
And shall totter like a hut;
Its transgression shall be heavy upon it,
And it will fall, and not rise again.
21 It shall come to pass in that day
That the Lord will punish on high the host of exalted ones,
And on the earth (I)the kings of the earth.
22 They will be gathered together,
As prisoners are gathered in the [d]pit,
And will be shut up in the prison;
After many days they will be punished.
23 Then the (J)moon will be disgraced
And the sun ashamed;
For the Lord of hosts will (K)reign
On (L)Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
And before His elders, gloriously.
Suffering for Right and Wrong
13 (A)And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? 14 (B)But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. (C)“And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” 15 But [a]sanctify [b]the Lord God in your hearts, and always (D)be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the (E)hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16 (F)having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. 17 For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.
Christ’s Suffering and Ours
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring [c]us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, 19 by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, 20 who formerly were disobedient, [d]when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. 21 (G)There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism (H)(not the removal of the filth of the flesh, (I)but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and (J)is at the right hand of God, (K)angels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him.
Christ’s Example to Be Followed
4 Therefore, since Christ suffered [e]for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, (L)but for the will of God. 3 For we have spent enough of our past [f]lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. 4 In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you. 5 They will give an account to Him who is ready (M)to judge the living and the dead. 6 For this reason (N)the gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but (O)live according to God in the spirit.
Jesus a Third Time Predicts His Death and Resurrection(A)
17 (B)Now Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside on the road and said to them, 18 (C)“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death, 19 (D)and deliver Him to the Gentiles to (E)mock and to (F)scourge and to (G)crucify. And the third day He will (H)rise again.”
Greatness Is Serving(I)
20 (J)Then the mother of (K)Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him.
21 And He said to her, “What do you wish?”
She said to Him, “Grant that these two sons of mine (L)may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.”
22 But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink (M)the cup that I am about to drink, [a]and be baptized with (N)the baptism that I am baptized with?”
They said to Him, “We are able.”
23 So He said to them, (O)“You will indeed drink My cup, [b]and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.”
24 (P)And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. 26 Yet (Q)it shall not be so among you; but (R)whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. 27 (S)And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— 28 (T)just as the (U)Son of Man did not come to be served, (V)but to serve, and (W)to give His life a ransom (X)for many.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.