Book of Common Prayer
Glory and Universality of the Messiah’s Reign
A Psalm (A)of Solomon.
72 Give the king Your judgments, O God,
And Your righteousness to the king’s Son.
2 (B)He will judge Your people with righteousness,
And Your poor with justice.
3 (C)The mountains will bring peace to the people,
And the little hills, by righteousness.
4 (D)He will bring justice to the poor of the people;
He will save the children of the needy,
And will [a]break in pieces the oppressor.
5 [b]They shall fear You
(E)As long as the sun and moon endure,
Throughout all generations.
6 (F)He shall come down like rain upon the grass before mowing,
Like showers that water the earth.
7 In His days the righteous shall flourish,
(G)And abundance of peace,
Until the moon is no more.
8 (H)He shall have dominion also from sea to sea,
And from the River to the ends of the earth.
9 (I)Those who dwell in the wilderness will bow before Him,
(J)And His enemies will lick the dust.
10 (K)The kings of Tarshish and of the isles
Will bring presents;
The kings of Sheba and Seba
Will offer gifts.
11 (L)Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him;
All nations shall serve Him.
12 For He (M)will deliver the needy when he cries,
The poor also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will spare the poor and needy,
And will save the souls of the needy.
14 He will redeem their life from oppression and violence;
And (N)precious shall be their blood in His sight.
15 And He shall live;
And the gold of (O)Sheba will be given to Him;
Prayer also will be made for Him continually,
And daily He shall be praised.
16 There will be an abundance of grain in the earth,
On the top of the mountains;
Its fruit shall wave like Lebanon;
(P)And those of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
17 (Q)His name shall endure forever;
His name shall continue as long as the sun.
And (R)men shall be blessed in Him;
(S)All nations shall call Him blessed.
18 (T)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
(U)Who only does wondrous things!
19 And (V)blessed be His glorious name forever!
(W)And let the whole earth be filled with His glory.
Amen and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
Praise to God for His Faithfulness and Justice
111 Praise[a] the Lord!
(A)I will praise the Lord with my whole heart,
In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.
2 (B)The works of the Lord are great,
(C)Studied by all who have pleasure in them.
3 His work is (D)honorable and glorious,
And His righteousness endures forever.
4 He has made His wonderful works to be remembered;
(E)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 declared to His people the power of His works,
In giving them the [b]heritage of the nations.
7 The works of His hands are (F)verity[c] and justice;
All His precepts are sure.
8 (G)They stand fast forever and ever,
And are (H)done in truth and uprightness.
9 (I)He has sent redemption to His people;
He has commanded His covenant forever:
(J)Holy and awesome is His name.
10 (K)The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
A good understanding have all those who do His commandments.
His praise endures forever.
The Majesty and Condescension of God
113 Praise[a] the Lord!
(A)Praise, O servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord!
2 (B)Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore!
3 (C)From the rising of the sun to its going down
The Lord’s name is to be praised.
4 The Lord is (D)high above all nations,
(E)His glory above the heavens.
5 (F)Who is like the Lord our God,
Who dwells on high,
6 (G)Who humbles Himself to behold
The things that are in the heavens and in the earth?
7 (H)He raises the poor out of the dust,
And lifts the (I)needy out of the ash heap,
8 That He may (J)seat him with princes—
With the princes of His people.
9 (K)He grants the [b]barren woman a home,
Like a joyful mother of children.
Praise the Lord!
God’s Covenant with David(A)
7 Now it came to pass (B)when the king was dwelling in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies all around, 2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in (C)a house of cedar, (D)but the ark of God dwells inside tent (E)curtains.”
3 Then Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your (F)heart, for the Lord is with you.”
4 But it happened that night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and tell My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: (G)“Would you build a house for Me to dwell in? 6 For I have not dwelt in a house (H)since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in (I)a tent and in a tabernacle. 7 Wherever I have (J)moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded (K)to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’ ” ’ 8 Now therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: (L)“I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel. 9 And (M)I have been with you wherever you have gone, (N)and have [a]cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth. 10 Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will (O)plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; (P)nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously, 11 (Q)since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord [b]tells you (R)that He will make you a [c]house.
12 (S)“When your days are fulfilled and you (T)rest with your fathers, (U)I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 (V)He shall build a house for My name, and I will (W)establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 (X)I will be his Father, and he shall be (Y)My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the [d]blows of the sons of men. 15 But My mercy shall not depart from him, (Z)as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 And (AA)your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before [e]you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
17 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
Trained by Saving Grace
11 For (A)the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 (B)looking for the blessed (C)hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 (D)who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed (E)and purify for Himself (F)His own special people, zealous for good works.
15 Speak these things, (G)exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.
Graces of the Heirs of Grace
3 Remind them (H)to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, (I)to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. 3 For (J)we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. 4 But when (K)the kindness and the love of (L)God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 (M)not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through (N)the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 (O)whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that having been justified by His grace (P)we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
8 (Q)This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39 Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, (A)to a city of Judah, 40 and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was (B)filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, (C)“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 (D)Blessed is she who [a]believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”
The Song of Mary
46 And Mary said:
48 For (A)He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth (B)all generations will call me blessed.
49 For He who is mighty (C)has done great things for me,
And (D)holy is His name.
50 And (E)His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.
51 (F)He has shown strength with His arm;
(G)He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 (H)He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
53 He has (I)filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty.
54 He has helped His (J)servant Israel,
(K)In remembrance of His mercy,
55 (L)As He spoke to our (M)fathers,
To Abraham and to his (N)seed forever.”
56 And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.