Book of Common Prayer
A psalm of David. A song for setting apart the completed temple to God.
30 Lord, I will give you honor.
You brought me out of deep trouble.
You didn’t give my enemies the joy of seeing me die.
2 Lord my God, I called out to you for help.
And you healed me.
3 Lord, you brought me up from the place of the dead.
You kept me from going down into the pit.
4 Sing the praises of the Lord, you who are faithful to him.
Praise him, because his name is holy.
5 His anger lasts for only a moment.
But his favor lasts for a person’s whole life.
Weeping can stay for the night.
But joy comes in the morning.
6 When I felt safe, I said,
“I will always be secure.”
7 Lord, when you gave me your help,
you made Mount Zion stand firm.
But when you took away your help,
I was terrified.
8 Lord, I called out to you.
I cried to you for mercy.
9 I said, “What good will come if I become silent in death?
What good will come if I go down into the grave?
Can the dust of my dead body praise you?
Can it tell how faithful you are?
10 Lord, hear me. Have mercy on me.
Lord, help me.”
11 You turned my loud crying into dancing.
You removed my clothes of sadness and dressed me with joy.
12 So my heart will sing your praises. I can’t keep silent.
Lord, my God, I will praise you forever.
A maskil of David.
32 Blessed is the person whose lawless acts are forgiven.
Their sins have been taken away.
2 Blessed is the person whose sin the Lord never counts against them.
That person doesn’t want to cheat anyone.
3 When I kept silent about my sin,
my body became weak
because I groaned all day long.
4 Day and night
you punished me.
I became weaker and weaker
as I do in the heat of summer.
5 Then I admitted my sin to you.
I didn’t cover up the wrong I had done.
I said, “I will admit my lawless acts to the Lord.”
And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
6 Let everyone who is faithful pray to you
while they can still look to you.
When troubles come like a flood,
they certainly won’t reach those who are faithful.
7 You are my hiding place.
You will keep me safe from trouble.
You will surround me with songs sung by those who praise you
because you save your people.
8 I will guide you and teach you the way you should go.
I will give you good advice and watch over you with love.
9 Don’t be like a horse or a mule.
They can’t understand anything.
They have to be controlled by bits and bridles.
If they aren’t, they won’t come to you.
10 Sinful people have all kinds of trouble.
But the Lord’s faithful love
is all around those who trust in him.
11 Be glad because of what the Lord has done for you.
Be joyful, you who do what is right!
Sing, all you whose hearts are honest!
Book II
Psalms 42–72
For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah.
42 A deer longs for streams of water.
God, I long for you in the same way.
2 I am thirsty for God. I am thirsty for the living God.
When can I go and meet with him?
3 My tears have been my food
day and night.
All day long people say to me,
“Where is your God?”
4 When I remember what has happened,
I tell God all my troubles.
I remember how I used to walk to the house of God.
The Mighty One guarded my steps.
We shouted with joy and praised God
as we went along with the joyful crowd.
5 My spirit, why are you so sad?
Why are you so upset deep down inside me?
Put your hope in God.
Once again I will have reason to praise him.
He is my Savior and my God.
6 My spirit is very sad deep down inside me.
So I will remember you here where the Jordan River begins.
I will remember you here on the Hermon mountains
and on Mount Mizar.
7 You have sent wave upon wave of trouble over me.
It roars down on me like a waterfall.
All your waves and breakers have rolled over me.
8 During the day the Lord sends his love to me.
During the night I sing about him.
I say a prayer to the God who gives me life.
9 I say to God my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go around in sorrow?
Why am I treated so badly by my enemies?”
10 My body suffers deadly pain
as my enemies make fun of me.
All day long they say to me,
“Where is your God?”
11 My spirit, why are you so sad?
Why are you so upset deep down inside me?
Put your hope in God.
Once again I will have reason to praise him.
He is my Savior and my God.
43 My God, when you hand down your decision, let it be in my favor.
Stand up for me against an unfaithful nation.
Save me from those lying and sinful people.
2 You are God, my place of safety.
Why have you turned your back on me?
Why must I go around in sorrow?
Why am I beaten down by my enemies?
3 Send me your light and your faithful care.
Let them lead me.
Let them bring me back to your holy mountain,
to the place where you live.
4 Then I will go to the altar of God.
I will go to God. He is my joy and my delight.
God, you are my God.
I will praise you by playing the lyre.
5 My spirit, why are you so sad?
Why are you so upset deep down inside me?
Put your hope in God.
Once again I will have reason to praise him.
He is my Savior and my God.
15 If you are patient, you can win an official over to your side.
And gentle words can break a bone.
16 If you find honey, eat just enough.
If you eat too much of it, you will throw up.
17 Don’t go to your neighbor’s home very often.
If they see too much of you, they will hate you.
18 A person who is a false witness against a neighbor
is like a club, a sword or a sharp arrow.
19 Trusting someone who is not faithful when trouble comes
is like a broken tooth or a disabled foot.
20 You may sing songs to a troubled heart.
But that’s like taking a coat away on a cold day.
It’s like pouring vinegar on a wound.
21 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat.
If he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
22 By doing these things, you will pile up burning coals on his head.
And the Lord will reward you.
23 Like a north wind that brings rain you didn’t expect
is a crafty tongue that brings looks of shock.
24 It is better to live on a corner of a roof
than to share a house with a nagging wife.
25 Hearing good news from a land far away
is like drinking cold water when you are tired.
26 Sometimes godly people give in to those who are evil.
Then they become like a muddy spring of water or a polluted well.
27 It isn’t good for you to eat too much honey.
And you shouldn’t try to search out matters too deep for you.
28 A person without self-control
is like a city whose walls are broken through.
6 You gain a lot when you live a godly life. But you must be happy with what you have. 7 We didn’t bring anything into the world. We can’t take anything out of it. 8 If we have food and clothing, we will be happy with that. 9 People who want to get rich are tempted. They fall into a trap. They are tripped up by wanting many foolish and harmful things. Those who live like that are dragged down by what they do. They are destroyed and die. 10 Love for money causes all kinds of evil. Some people want to get rich. They have wandered away from the faith. They have wounded themselves with many sorrows.
Paul Gives a Final Command to Timothy
11 But you are a man of God. Run away from all these things. Try hard to do what is right and godly. Have faith, love and gentleness. Hold on to what you believe. 12 Fight the good fight along with all other believers. Take hold of eternal life. You were chosen for it when you openly told others what you believe. Many witnesses heard you. 13 God gives life to everything. Christ Jesus told the truth when he was a witness in front of Pontius Pilate. In the sight of God and Christ, I give you a command. 14 Obey it until our Lord Jesus Christ appears. Obey it completely. Then no one can find fault with it or you. 15 God will bring Jesus back at a time that pleases him. God is the blessed and only Ruler. He is the greatest King of all. He is the most powerful Lord of all. 16 God is the only one who can’t die. He lives in light that no one can get close to. No one has seen him. No one can see him. Honor and power belong to him forever. Amen.
17 Command people who are rich in this world not to be proud. Tell them not to put their hope in riches. Wealth is so uncertain. Command those who are rich to put their hope in God. He richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 Command the rich to do what is good. Tell them to be rich in doing good things. They must give freely. They must be willing to share. 19 In this way, they will store up true riches for themselves. It will provide a firm basis for the next life. Then they will take hold of the life that really is life.
20 Timothy, guard what God has trusted you with. Turn away from godless chatter. Stay away from opposing ideas that are falsely called knowledge. 21 Some people believe them. By doing that they have turned away from the faith.
May God’s grace be with you all.
Jesus Explains the Story of the Weeds
36 Then Jesus left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him. They said, “Explain to us the story of the weeds in the field.”
37 He answered, “The one who planted the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world. The good seed stands for the people who belong to the kingdom. The weeds are the people who belong to the evil one. 39 The enemy who plants them is the devil. The harvest is judgment day. And the workers are angels.
40 “The weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire. That is how it will be on judgment day. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels. They will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin. They will also get rid of all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace. There people will weep and grind their teeth. 43 Then God’s people will shine like the sun in their Father’s kingdom. Whoever has ears should listen.
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