Book of Common Prayer
(A psalm by David for the music leader. Use flutes.)
A Prayer for Help
1 Listen, Lord, as I pray!
Pay attention when I groan.[a]
2 You are my King and my God.
Answer my cry for help
because I pray to you.
3 Each morning you listen
to my prayer,
as I bring my requests[b] to you
and wait for your reply.
4 You are not the kind of God
who is pleased with evil.
Sinners can't stay with you.
5 No one who boasts can stand
in your presence, Lord,
and you hate evil people.
6 You destroy every liar,
and you despise violence
and deceit.
7 Because of your great mercy,
I come to your house, Lord,
and I am filled with wonder
as I bow down to worship
at your holy temple.
8 You do what is right,
and I ask you to guide me.
Make your teaching clear
because of my enemies.
9 (A) Nothing they say is true!
They just want to destroy.
Their words are deceitful
like a hidden pit,
and their tongues are good
only for telling lies.
10 Punish them, God,
and let their own plans
bring their downfall.
Get rid of them!
They keep committing crimes
and turning against you.
11 Let all who run to you
for protection
always sing joyful songs.
Provide shelter for those
who truly love you
and let them rejoice.
12 Our Lord, you bless those
who live right,
and you shield them
with your kindness.
(A psalm by David for the music leader. Use stringed instruments.[c])
A Prayer in Time of Trouble
1 (B) Don't punish me, Lord,
or even correct me
when you are angry!
2 Have pity on me and heal
my feeble body.
My bones tremble with fear,
3 and I am in deep distress.
How long will it be?
4 Turn and come to my rescue.
Show your wonderful love
and save me, Lord.
5 If I die, I cannot praise you
or even remember you.
6 My groaning has worn me out.
At night my bed and pillow
are soaked with tears.
7 Sorrow has made my eyes dim,
and my sight has failed
because of my enemies.
8 (C) You, Lord, heard my crying,
and those hateful people
had better leave me alone.
9 You have answered my prayer
and my plea for mercy.
10 My enemies will be ashamed
and terrified,
as they quickly run away
in complete disgrace.
A Prayer for Help
1 Why are you far away, Lord?
Why do you hide yourself
when I am in trouble?
2 Proud and brutal people
hunt down the poor.
But let them get caught
by their own evil plans!
3 The wicked brag about
their deepest desires.
Those greedy people hate
and curse you, Lord.
4 The wicked are too proud
to turn to you
or even think about you.
5 They are always successful,
though they can't understand
your teachings,
and they keep sneering
at their enemies.
6 In their hearts they say,
“Nothing can hurt us!
We'll always be happy
and free from trouble.”
7 (A) They curse and tell lies,
and all they talk about
is how to be cruel
or how to do wrong.
8 They hide outside villages,
waiting to strike and murder
some innocent victim.
9 They are hungry lions
hiding in the bushes,
hoping to catch
some helpless passerby.
They trap the poor in nets
and drag them away.
10 They crouch down and wait
to grab a victim.
11 They say, “God can't see!
He's got on a blindfold.”
12 Do something, Lord God,
and use your powerful arm
to help those in need.
13 The wicked don't respect you.
In their hearts they say,
“God won't punish us!”
14 But you see the trouble
and the distress,
and you will do something.
The poor can count on you,
and so can orphans.
15 Now break the power
of all merciless people.
Punish them for doing wrong
and make them stop.
16 Our Lord, you will always rule,
but every godless nation
will vanish from the earth.
17 You listen to the longings
of those who suffer.
You offer them hope,
and you pay attention
to their cries for help.
18 You defend orphans
and everyone else in need,
so that no one on earth
can terrify others again.
(A psalm by David for the music leader.)
Trusting the Lord
1 The Lord is my fortress!
Don't say to me,
“Escape like a bird
to the mountains!”
2 You tell me, “Watch out!
Those evil people have put
their arrows on their bows,
and they are standing
in the shadows,
aiming at good people.
3 What can an honest person do
when everything crumbles?”
4 The Lord is sitting
in his sacred temple
on his throne in heaven.
He knows everything we do
because he sees us all.
5 The Lord tests honest people,
but despises those
who are cruel
and love violence.
6 He will send fiery coals[a]
and flaming sulfur
down on the wicked,
and they will drink nothing
but a scorching wind.
7 The Lord always does right
and wants justice done.
Everyone who does right
will see his face.
3 People of Israel,
I rescued you from Egypt.
Now listen to my judgment
against you.
2 Of all nations on earth,
you are the only one
I have chosen.
That's why I will punish you
because of your sins.
The Work of a Prophet
3 Can two people walk together
without agreeing to meet?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest
unless it has caught
a victim?
Does it growl in its den
unless it is eating?
5 How can anyone catch a bird
without using a net?
Does a trap spring shut
unless something is caught?
6 Isn't the whole city frightened
when the trumpet
signals an attack?
Isn't the Lord the one who brings
disaster on a city?
7 Whatever the Lord God
plans to do,
he tells his servants,
the prophets.
8 Everyone is terrified
when a lion roars—
and ordinary people
become prophets
when the Lord God speaks.
Samaria Is Doomed
9 Here is a message
for the leaders
of Philistia[a] and Egypt—
tell everyone to come together
on the hills of Samaria.
Let them see the injustice
and the lawlessness
in that city.
10 The Lord has said
that they don't even know how
to do right.
They have become rich
from violence and robbery.
11 And so the Lord God has sworn
that they will be surrounded.
Enemies will break through
their defenses
and steal their treasures.
12 You are holding firmly to the truth you were given. But I am still going to remind you of these things. 13 In fact, I think I should keep on reminding you until I leave this body. 14 And our Lord Jesus Christ has already told me that I will soon leave it behind. 15 This is why I am doing my best to make sure that each of you remembers all of this after I am gone.
The Message about the Glory of Christ
16 When we told you about the power and the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were not telling clever stories someone had made up. But with our own eyes we saw his true greatness. 17 (A) God, our great and wonderful Father, truly honored him by saying, “This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.” 18 We were there with Jesus on the holy mountain and heard this voice speak from heaven.
19 All of this makes us even more certain that what the prophets said is true. So you should pay close attention to their message, as you would to a lamp shining in some dark place. You must keep on paying attention until daylight comes and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20 But you need to realize that no one alone can understand any of the prophecies in the Scriptures. 21 The prophets did not think these things up on their own, but they were guided by the Spirit of God.
Jesus in the Temple
(Mark 11.15-19; Luke 19.45-48; John 2.13-22)
12 Jesus went into the temple and chased out everyone who was selling or buying. He turned over the tables of the moneychangers and the benches of the ones who were selling doves. 13 (A) He told them, “The Scriptures say, ‘My house should be called a place of worship.’ But you have turned it into a place where robbers hide.”
14 Blind and lame people came to Jesus in the temple, and he healed them. 15 But the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses were angry when they saw his miracles and heard the children shouting praises to the Son of David.[a] 16 (B) The men said to Jesus, “Don't you hear what those children are saying?”
“Yes, I do!” Jesus answered. “Don't you know that the Scriptures say, ‘Children and infants will sing praises’?” 17 Then Jesus left the city and went out to the village of Bethany, where he spent the night.
Jesus Puts a Curse on a Fig Tree
(Mark 11.12-14,20-24)
18 When Jesus got up the next morning, he was hungry. He started out for the city, 19 and along the way he saw a fig tree. But when he came to it, he found only leaves and no figs. So he told the tree, “You will never again grow any fruit!” Right then the fig tree dried up.
20 The disciples were shocked when they saw how quickly the tree had dried up. 21 (C) But Jesus said to them, “If you have faith and don't doubt, I promise you can do what I did to this tree. And you will be able to do even more. You can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. 22 If you have faith when you pray, you will be given whatever you ask for.”
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