Book of Common Prayer
97 The Lord rules, and the earth is happy.
All the faraway lands are happy.
2 Thick, dark clouds surround him.
Goodness and justice make his kingdom strong.
3 Fire goes before him
and destroys his enemies.
4 His lightning flashes in the sky.
The earth sees it and trembles with fear.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
6 The skies tell about his goodness,
and the nations see his glory.
7 People worship their idols.
They brag about their “gods.”
But they will be embarrassed.
And all their “gods” will bow down before the Lord.
8 Zion, listen and be happy!
Cities of Judah, be glad!
Rejoice because the Lord’s decisions are fair.
9 Lord Most High, you really are the ruler of the earth.
You are much better than the “gods.”
10 Hate evil, you who love the Lord.
He protects his followers and saves them from evil people.
11 Light and happiness shine on those
who want to do right.
12 Good people, be happy in the Lord!
Praise his holy name!
99 The Lord is King,
so let the nations shake with fear.
He sits as King above the Cherub angels,
so let the whole earth shake.
2 The Lord in Zion is great!
He is the great leader over all people.
3 Let all the nations praise your name.
Your name is great and awesome.
Your name is holy.
4 You are the powerful King who loves justice.
You have made things right.
You have brought goodness and fairness to Jacob.
5 Praise the Lord our God,
and bow down before his footstool,[a] for he is holy.
6 Moses and Aaron were some of his priests,
and Samuel was one of the men who called on his name.
They prayed to the Lord,
and he answered them.
7 God spoke from the tall cloud,
and they obeyed his commands
and the law he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered their prayers.
You showed them that you are a forgiving God
and that you punish people for the evil they do.
9 Praise the Lord our God.
Bow down toward his holy mountain and worship him.
The Lord our God is holy!
115 Lord, you should receive the honor, not us.
The honor belongs to you
because of your faithful love and loyalty.
2 Why should the nations wonder
where our God is?
3 Our God is in heaven,
and he does whatever he wants.
4 The “gods” of those nations are only statues
that some human made from gold and silver.
5 Those statues have mouths, but cannot talk.
They have eyes, but cannot see.
6 They have ears, but cannot hear.
They have noses, but cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but cannot feel.
They have feet, but cannot walk.
No sounds come from their throats.
8 The people who make and trust in those statues
will become like them!
9 People of Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is your strength and shield.
10 Aaron’s family, trust in the Lord!
He is your strength and shield.
11 Followers of the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is your strength and shield.
12 The Lord remembers us.
He will bless us.
He will bless Israel.
He will bless Aaron’s family.
13 The Lord will bless his followers,
great and small.
14 May the Lord give more and more to you
and to your children.
15 May you receive blessings from the Lord,[a]
who made heaven and earth.
16 Heaven belongs to the Lord,
but he gave the earth to people.
17 The dead don’t praise him.
Those in the grave don’t praise the Lord.
18 But we will praise the Lord
now and forever!
Praise the Lord!
40 The Israelites had lived in Egypt[a] for 430 years. 41 After 430 years, to the very day, all the armies of the Lord[b] left Egypt. 42 The night they left, the Lord watched over them to bring them safely out of Egypt. So the Israelites will always celebrate this night each year to remember what the Lord did.
43 The Lord told Moses and Aaron, “These are the rules for Passover: No foreigner[c] is allowed to eat the Passover meal. 44-45 A foreigner who is only a hired worker or is only staying in your country is not allowed to eat the meal. But if someone buys a slave and circumcises him, then the slave can eat the Passover meal.
46 “Each family must eat the meal in one house. None of the food is to be taken outside the house. Don’t break any of the lamb’s bones. 47 The whole community of Israel must do this ceremony. 48 If a foreigner living among you wants to share in the Lord’s Passover, he must be circumcised. Then he can share in the meal like any other citizen of Israel. But a man who is not circumcised cannot eat the Passover meal. 49 The same rules are for everyone. It doesn’t matter if they are citizens or foreigners living among you.”
50 So all the Israelites obeyed the commands that the Lord gave to Moses and Aaron. 51 On that same day the Lord led all the Israelites out of the country of Egypt. The people left in groups.
29 If no one will ever be raised from death, then what will the people do who are baptized for those who have died? If the dead are never raised, then why are people baptized for them?
30 And what about us? Why do we put ourselves in danger every hour? 31 I face death every day. That is true, brothers and sisters, just as it is true that I am proud of what you are because of Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 I fought wild animals in Ephesus. If I did that only for human reasons, then I have gained nothing. If we are not raised from death, “Let us eat and drink, because tomorrow we die.”[a]
33 Don’t be fooled: “Bad friends will ruin good habits.” 34 Come back to your right way of thinking and stop sinning. Some of you don’t know God. I say this to shame you.
What Kind of Body Will We Have?
35 But someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have?” 36 These are stupid questions. When you plant something, it must die in the ground before it can live and grow. 37 And when you plant something, what you plant does not have the same “body” that it will have later. What you plant is only a seed, maybe wheat or something else. 38 But God gives it the body that he has planned for it, and he gives each kind of seed its own body. 39 All things made of flesh are not the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds have another, and fish have yet another kind. 40 Also there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. But the beauty of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the beauty of the earthly bodies is another. 41 The sun has one kind of beauty, the moon has another kind, and the stars have another. And each star is different in its beauty.
News That Jesus Has Risen From Death(A)
28 The day after the Sabbath day was the first day of the week. That day at dawn Mary Magdalene and the other woman named Mary went to look at the tomb.
2 Suddenly an angel of the Lord came from the sky, and there was a huge earthquake. The angel went to the tomb and rolled the stone away from the entrance. Then he sat on top of the stone. 3 The angel was shining as bright as lightning. His clothes were as white as snow. 4 The soldiers guarding the tomb were very afraid of the angel. They shook with fear and then became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, “Don’t be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus, the one who was killed on the cross. 6 But he is not here. He has risen from death, as he said he would. Come and see the place where his body was. 7 And go quickly and tell his followers, ‘Jesus has risen from death. He is going into Galilee and will be there before you. You will see him there.’” Then the angel said, “Now I have told you.”
8 So the women left the tomb quickly. They were afraid, but they were also very happy. They ran to tell his followers what happened. 9 Suddenly, Jesus was there in front of them. He said, “Hello!” The women went to him and, holding on to his feet, worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Go tell my followers[a] to go to Galilee. They will see me there.”
Report to the Jewish Leaders
11 The women went to tell the followers. At the same time, some of the soldiers who were guarding the tomb went into the city. They went to tell the leading priests everything that happened. 12 Then the priests met with the older Jewish leaders and made a plan. They paid the soldiers a lot of money 13 and said to them, “Tell the people that Jesus’ followers came during the night and stole the body while you were sleeping. 14 If the governor hears about this, we will talk to him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers kept the money and obeyed the priests. And that story is still spread among the Jews even today.
Jesus Talks to His Followers(B)
16 The eleven followers went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus told them to go.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International