Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 146
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
2 While I live I will praise the Lord;
I will sing praises unto my God while I have my life.
3 Do not put your trust in princes,
nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help.
4 His breath leaves him, and he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.
5 Blessed is he who has the God of Jacob for his help,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 who made heaven, and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faithfulness forever,
7 who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord releases the prisoners.
8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind;
the Lord raises those who are brought down;
the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord preserves the sojourners;
He lifts up the fatherless and widow,
but on the way of the wicked He brings disaster.
10 The Lord shall reign forever,
your God, O Zion, unto all generations.
Praise you the Lord!
Psalm 147
1 Praise the Lord!
For it is good to sing praises unto our God;
for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
He gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the broken in heart,
and binds up their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
He calls them all by their names.
5 Great is our Lord and great in power;
His understanding is without measure.
6 The Lord lifts up the meek;
He casts the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving;
sing praise upon the harp unto our God:
8 who covers the heaven with clouds,
who provides rain for the earth,
who makes grass to grow upon the mountains.
9 He gives food to the animals
and to the young ravens that chirp.
10 He delights not in the strength of the horse,
nor does He take pleasure in the legs of a man,
11 but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him,
in those who hope in His mercy.
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
13 For He has strengthened the bars of your gates;
He has blessed your children within you.
14 He makes peace in your borders,
and fills you with the finest of the wheat.
15 He sends forth His commandment on the earth;
His word goes out swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool;
He scatters the frost like ashes;
17 He casts forth His ice like morsels;
who can stand before His cold?
18 He sends out His word and melts them;
He causes His wind to blow and the waters flow.
19 He shows His word to Jacob,
and His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
20 He has not dealt so with any other nation;
they have not known His judgments.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 111
1 Praise the Lord!
I will praise the Lord with my whole heart,
in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.
2 The works of the Lord are great,
sought out by all who have pleasure in them.
3 His work is honorable and glorious,
and His righteousness endures forever.
4 He has made His wonderful works to be remembered;
the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.
5 He has given food to those who fear Him;
He will ever be mindful of His covenant.
6 He has shown His people the power of His works,
that He may give them the inheritance of the nations.
7 The works of His hands are true and just;
all His commands are sure.
8 They stand forever and ever,
and are done in truth and uprightness.
9 He sent redemption to His people;
He has commanded His covenant forever;
holy and fearful is His name.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all who live it have insight.
His praise endures forever!
Psalm 112
1 Praise the Lord!
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
who delights greatly in His commandments.
2 His offspring shall be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright shall be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches shall be in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever.
4 To the upright there arises light in the darkness;
he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
5 A good man shows generous favor, and lends;
he will guide his affairs with justice.
6 Surely the righteous man shall not be moved;
the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings;
his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is established; he shall not be afraid,
until he sees triumph upon his enemies.
9 He has given away freely; he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn shall be exalted with honor.
10 The wicked shall see it and be grieved;
he shall gnash his teeth and melt away;
the desire of the wicked shall perish.
Psalm 113
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise, O you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
from this time forth and for evermore.
3 From the rising of the sun to its going down,
the Lord’s name is to be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all nations,
and His glory above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God,
who dwells on high,
6 who looks down on the things
that are in heaven and on the earth?
7 He raises up the poor out of the dust
and lifts the needy out of the ash heap,
8 to make them sit with princes,
even with the princes of His people.
9 He gives the barren woman a dwelling,
making her the joyful mother of children.
Praise the Lord!
Judgment Against Israel’s Neighbors
1 The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel two years before the earthquake.
2 He said:
The Lord roars from Zion
and utters His voice from Jerusalem;
the pastures of the shepherds languish,
the top of Carmel withers.
3 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Damascus,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they have threshed Gilead
with threshing sledges of iron.
4 So I will send fire against the house of Hazael,
and it will devour the fortresses of Ben-Hadad.
5 I will break the gate bar of Damascus;
from the Valley of Aven I will cut off the one enthroned,
and from Beth Eden the one who holds the scepter.
The people of Aram will go into captivity to Kir,
says the Lord.
13 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of the Ammonites,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead,
in order to enlarge their border.
14 So I will kindle a fire against the wall of Rabbah,
and it will devour its fortresses,
with a war cry on the day of battle,
with a tempest on the day of the whirlwind.
15 Their king shall go into captivity,
he and his princes together,
says the Lord.
2 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Moab,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because he burned to lime
the bones of the king of Edom.
2 So I will send fire against Moab,
and it will devour the fortresses of Kerioth;
Moab will die in uproar,
with a war cry and the alarm of the trumpet.
3 I will cut off the ruler from its midst,
and will slay all its princes with him,
says the Lord.
Judgment Against Judah
4 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Judah,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they have rejected the law of the Lord,
and have not kept His commandments.
The lies which their fathers followed
have led them astray.
5 So I will send fire against Judah,
and it will devour the fortresses of Jerusalem.
Judgment Against Israel
6 Thus says the Lord:
For three transgressions of Israel,
and for four, I will not revoke the punishment,
because they sell the righteous for silver,
and the poor for a pair of sandals.
7 They trample the head of the poor
into the dust of the earth,
and push the oppressed out of the way.
A man and his father go in to the same woman,
profaning My holy name.
8 They recline by every altar
on garments taken in pledge,
and in the house of their gods
they drink the wine from those who have been fined.
5 Concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need that I write to you. 2 For you know perfectly that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 When they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape.
4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. 5 You are all the sons of light and the sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. 6 Therefore let us not sleep as others do. But let us be alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we should live together with Him. 11 So comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, just as you are doing.
The Destruction of the Temple Foretold(A)
5 As some spoke of how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts, He said, 6 “As for these things which you see, the days will come when not one stone shall be left on another that will not be thrown down.”
Signs and Persecutions(B)
7 They asked Him, “Teacher, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when this is about to happen?”
8 He said, “Beware lest you be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and ‘The time has drawn near.’ Therefore do not go after them. 9 When you hear of wars and commotions, do not be afraid. For these things must first take place, but the end will not be at hand.”
10 Then He said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 Great earthquakes will occur in various places, and there will be famines and pestilence. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.
12 “But before all these things, they will seize you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for My name’s sake. 13 It will turn out as a testimony for you. 14 Therefore resolve in your hearts beforehand not to practice your defense. 15 For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your opponents will be able to neither refute nor resist. 16 You will be betrayed by parents and brothers and relatives and friends. And they will put some of you to death. 17 You will be hated by all men for My name’s sake, 18 but not a hair of your head shall perish. 19 In your endurance you will gain your souls.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.