Book of Common Prayer

31 To David himself, understanding. Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.

² Blessed is the man to whom the Lord hath not imputed sin, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

³ Because I was silent my bones grew old; whilst I cried out all the day long.

⁴ For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: I am turned in my anguish, whilst the thorn is fastened.

⁵ I have acknowledged my sin to thee, and my injustice I have not concealed. I said I will confess against myself my injustice to the Lord: and thou hast forgiven the wickedness of my sin.

⁶ For this shall every one that is holy pray to thee in a seasonable time. And yet in a flood of many waters, they shall not come nigh unto him.

⁷ Thou art my refuge from the trouble which hath encompassed me: my joy, deliver me from them that surround me.

⁸ I will give thee understanding, and I will instruct thee in this way, in which thou shalt go: I will fix my eyes upon thee.

⁹ Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding. With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto thee.

¹⁰ Many are the scourges of the sinner, but mercy shall encompass him that hopeth in the Lord.

¹¹ Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye just, and glory, all ye right of heart.

35 Unto the end, for the servant of God, David himself.

² The unjust hath said within himself, that he would sin: there is no fear of God before his eyes.

³ For in his sight he hath done deceitfully, that his iniquity may be found unto hatred.

⁴ The words of his mouth are iniquity and guile: he would not understand that he might do well.

⁵ He hath devised iniquity on his bed, he hath set himself on every way that is not good: but evil he hath not hated.

⁶ O Lord, thy mercy is in heaven, and thy truth reacheth, even to the clouds.

⁷ Thy justice is as the mountains of God, thy judgments are a great deep. Men and beasts thou wilt preserve, O Lord:

⁸ O how hast thou multiplied thy mercy, O God! But the children of men shall put their trust under the covert of thy wings.

⁹ They shall be inebriated with the plenty of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the torrent of thy pleasure.

¹⁰ For with thee is the fountain of life; and in thy light we shall see light.

¹¹ Extend thy mercy to them that know thee, and thy justice to them that are right in heart.

¹² Let not the foot of pride come to me, and let not the hand of the sinner move me.

¹³ There the workers of iniquity are fallen, they are cast out, and could not stand.

¹⁰ Moses said: I beseech thee, Lord. I am not eloquent from yesterday and the day before: and since thou hast spoken to thy servant, I have more impediment and slowness of tongue.

¹¹ The Lord said to him: Who made man's mouth? or who made the dumb and the deaf, the seeing and the blind? did not I?

¹² Go therefore and I will be in thy mouth: and I will teach thee what thou shalt speak.

¹³ But he said: I beseech thee, Lord send whom thou wilt send.

¹⁴ The Lord being angry at Moses, said Aaron the Levite is thy brother, I know that he is eloquent: behold he cometh forth to meet thee, and seeing thee shall be glad at heart.

¹⁵ Speak to him, and put my words in his mouth: and I will be in thy mouth, and in his mouth, and will shew you what you must do.

¹⁶ He shall speak in thy stead to the people, and shall be thy mouth: but thou shalt be to him in those things that pertain to God.

¹⁷ And take this rod in thy hand, wherewith thou shalt do the signs.

¹⁸ Moses went his way, and returned to Jethro his father in law and said to him: I will go and return to my brethren into Egypt, that I may see if they be yet alive. And Jethro said to him: Go in peace.

¹⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, in Madian: Go, and return into Egypt: for they are all dead that sought thy life.

²⁰ Moses therefore took his wife, and his sons, and set them upon an ass: and returned into Egypt, carrying the rod of God in his hand.

²¹ And the Lord said to him as he was returning into Egypt: See that thou do all the wonders before Pharao, which I have put in thy hand: I shall harden his heart, and he will not let the people go.

²² And thou shalt say to him: Thus saith the Lord: Israel is my son, my firstborn.

²³ I have said to thee: Let my son go, that he may serve me, and thou wouldst not let him go: behold I will kill thy son, thy firstborn.

²⁴ And when he was in his journey, in the inn, the Lord met him, and would have killed him.

²⁵ Immediately Sephora took a very sharp stone, and circumcised the fore skin of her son, and touched his feet and said: A bloody spouse art thou to me.

²⁶ And he let him go after she had said A bloody spouse art thou to me, because of the circumcision.

²⁷ And the Lord said to Aaron: Go into the desert to meet Moses. And he went forth to meet him in the mountain of God, and kissed him.

²⁸ And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord, by which he had sent him, and the signs that he had commanded.

²⁹ And they came together, and they assembled all the ancients of the children of Israel.

³⁰ And Aaron spoke all the words which the Lord had said to Moses: and he wrought the signs before the people,

³¹ And the people believed. And they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel: and that he had looked upon their affliction: and falling down they adored.

14 Follow after charity, be zealous for spiritual gifts; but rather that you may prophesy.

² For he that speaketh in a tongue, speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man heareth. Yet by the Spirit he speaketh mysteries.

³ But he that prophesieth, speaketh to men unto edification, and exhortation, and comfort.

⁴ He that speaketh in a tongue, edifieth himself: but he that prophesieth, edifieth the church.

⁵ And I would have you all to speak with tongues, but rather to prophesy. For greater is he that prophesieth, than he that speaketh with tongues: unless perhaps he interpret, that the church may receive edification.

⁶ But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you, unless I speak to you either in revelation, or in knowledge, or in prophecy, or in doctrine?

⁷ Even things without life that give sound, whether pipe or harp, except they give a distinction of sounds, how shall it be known what is piped or harped?

⁸ For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?

⁹ So likewise you, except you utter by the tongue plain speech, how shall it be known what is said? For you shall be speaking into the air.

¹⁰ There are, for example, so many kinds of tongues in this world; and none is without voice.

¹¹ If then I know not the power of the voice, I shall be to him to whom I speak a barbarian; and he that speaketh, a barbarian to me.

¹² So you also, forasmuch as you are zealous of spirits, seek to abound unto the edifying of the church.

¹³ And therefore he that speaketh by a tongue, let him pray that he may interpret.

¹⁴ For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is without fruit.

¹⁵ What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, I will pray also with the understanding; I will sing with the spirit, I will sing also with the understanding.

¹⁶ Else if thou shalt bless with the spirit, how shall he that holdeth the place of the unlearned say, Amen, to thy blessing? because he knoweth not what thou sayest.

¹⁷ For thou indeed givest thanks well, but the other is not edified.

¹⁸ I thank my God I speak with all your tongues.

¹⁹ But in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may instruct others also; than ten thousand words in a tongue.

³⁰ And he taught his disciples, and said to them: The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise again the third day.

³¹ But they understood not the word, and they were afraid to ask him.

³² And they came to Capharnaum. And when they were in the house, he asked them: What did you treat of in the way?

³³ But they held their peace, for in the way they had disputed among themselves, which of them should be the greatest.

³⁴ And sitting down, he called the twelve, and saith to them: If any man desire to be first, he shall be the last of all, and the minister of all.

³⁵ And taking a child, he set him in the midst of them. Whom when he had embraced, he saith to them:

³⁶ Whosoever shall receive one such child as this in my name, receiveth me. And whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.

³⁷ John answered him, saying: Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, who followeth not us, and we forbade him.

³⁸ But Jesus said: Do not forbid him. For there is no man that doth a miracle in my name, and can soon speak ill of me.

³⁹ For he that is not against you, is for you.

⁴⁰ For whosoever shall give you to drink a cup of water in my name, because you belong to Christ: amen I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.

⁴¹ And whosoever shall scandalize one of these little ones that believe in me; it were better for him that a millstone were hanged around his neck, and he were cast into the sea.