Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 87
Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm. A song.
1 He has founded his city on the holy mountain.(A)
2 The Lord loves the gates of Zion(B)
more than all the other dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are said of you,
city of God:[a](C)
4 “I will record Rahab[b](D) and Babylon
among those who acknowledge me—
Philistia(E) too, and Tyre(F), along with Cush[c]—
and will say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”[d](G)
5 Indeed, of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her,
and the Most High himself will establish her.”
6 The Lord will write in the register(H) of the peoples:
“This one was born in Zion.”
BOOK IV
Psalms 90–106
Psalm 90
A prayer of Moses the man of God.
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place(A)
throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born(B)
or you brought forth the whole world,
from everlasting to everlasting(C) you are God.(D)
3 You turn people back to dust,
saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.”(E)
4 A thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.(F)
5 Yet you sweep people away(G) in the sleep of death—
they are like the new grass of the morning:
6 In the morning it springs up new,
but by evening it is dry and withered.(H)
7 We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins(I) in the light of your presence.(J)
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.(K)
10 Our days may come to seventy years,(L)
or eighty,(M) if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,(N)
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.(O)
11 If only we knew the power of your anger!
Your wrath(P) is as great as the fear that is your due.(Q)
12 Teach us to number our days,(R)
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.(S)
13 Relent, Lord! How long(T) will it be?
Have compassion on your servants.(U)
14 Satisfy(V) us in the morning with your unfailing love,(W)
that we may sing for joy(X) and be glad all our days.(Y)
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble.
16 May your deeds be shown to your servants,
your splendor to their children.(Z)
Psalm 136
1 Give thanks(A) to the Lord, for he is good.(B)
His love endures forever.(C)
2 Give thanks(D) to the God of gods.(E)
His love endures forever.
3 Give thanks(F) to the Lord of lords:(G)
His love endures forever.
4 to him who alone does great wonders,(H)
His love endures forever.
5 who by his understanding(I) made the heavens,(J)
His love endures forever.
6 who spread out the earth(K) upon the waters,(L)
His love endures forever.
7 who made the great lights(M)—
His love endures forever.
8 the sun to govern(N) the day,
His love endures forever.
9 the moon and stars to govern the night;
His love endures forever.
10 to him who struck down the firstborn(O) of Egypt
His love endures forever.
11 and brought Israel out(P) from among them
His love endures forever.
12 with a mighty hand(Q) and outstretched arm;(R)
His love endures forever.
13 to him who divided the Red Sea[a](S) asunder
His love endures forever.
14 and brought Israel through(T) the midst of it,
His love endures forever.
15 but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;(U)
His love endures forever.
16 to him who led his people through the wilderness;(V)
His love endures forever.
17 to him who struck down great kings,(W)
His love endures forever.
18 and killed mighty kings(X)—
His love endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the Amorites(Y)
His love endures forever.
20 and Og king of Bashan(Z)—
His love endures forever.
21 and gave their land(AA) as an inheritance,(AB)
His love endures forever.
22 an inheritance(AC) to his servant Israel.(AD)
His love endures forever.
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.”(A) 32 And they spread among the Israelites a bad report(B) about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours(C) those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size.(D) 33 We saw the Nephilim(E) there (the descendants of Anak(F) come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers(G) in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”
The People Rebel
14 That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud.(H) 2 All the Israelites grumbled(I) against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, “If only we had died in Egypt!(J) Or in this wilderness!(K) 3 Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword?(L) Our wives and children(M) will be taken as plunder.(N) Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?(O)” 4 And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.(P)”
5 Then Moses and Aaron fell facedown(Q) in front of the whole Israelite assembly(R) gathered there. 6 Joshua son of Nun(S) and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes(T) 7 and said to the entire Israelite assembly, “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good.(U) 8 If the Lord is pleased with us,(V) he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey,(W) and will give it to us.(X) 9 Only do not rebel(Y) against the Lord. And do not be afraid(Z) of the people of the land,(AA) because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with(AB) us.(AC) Do not be afraid of them.”(AD)
10 But the whole assembly talked about stoning(AE) them. Then the glory of the Lord(AF) appeared at the tent of meeting to all the Israelites. 11 The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people treat me with contempt?(AG) How long will they refuse to believe in me,(AH) in spite of all the signs(AI) I have performed among them? 12 I will strike them down with a plague(AJ) and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation(AK) greater and stronger than they.”(AL)
13 Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear about it! By your power you brought these people up from among them.(AM) 14 And they will tell the inhabitants of this land about it. They have already heard(AN) that you, Lord, are with these people(AO) and that you, Lord, have been seen face to face,(AP) that your cloud stays over them,(AQ) and that you go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.(AR) 15 If you put all these people to death, leaving none alive, the nations who have heard this report about you will say, 16 ‘The Lord was not able to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath,(AS) so he slaughtered them in the wilderness.’(AT)
17 “Now may the Lord’s strength be displayed, just as you have declared: 18 ‘The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion.(AU) Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.’(AV) 19 In accordance with your great love, forgive(AW) the sin of these people,(AX) just as you have pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now.”(AY)
20 The Lord replied, “I have forgiven them,(AZ) as you asked. 21 Nevertheless, as surely as I live(BA) and as surely as the glory of the Lord(BB) fills the whole earth,(BC) 22 not one of those who saw my glory and the signs(BD) I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times(BE)— 23 not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath(BF) to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt(BG) will ever see it.(BH) 24 But because my servant Caleb(BI) has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly,(BJ) I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.(BK) 25 Since the Amalekites(BL) and the Canaanites(BM) are living in the valleys, turn(BN) back tomorrow and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea.[a](BO)”
No One Is Righteous
9 What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage?(A) Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin.(B) 10 As it is written:
“There is no one righteous, not even one;
11 there is no one who understands;
there is no one who seeks God.
12 All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.”[a](C)
13 “Their throats are open graves;
their tongues practice deceit.”[b](D)
“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”[c](E)
14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”[d](F)
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 ruin and misery mark their ways,
17 and the way of peace they do not know.”[e](G)
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”[f](H)
19 Now we know that whatever the law says,(I) it says to those who are under the law,(J) so that every mouth may be silenced(K) and the whole world held accountable to God.(L) 20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law;(M) rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.(N)
Divorce(A)
19 When Jesus had finished saying these things,(B) he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. 2 Large crowds followed him, and he healed them(C) there.
3 Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife(D) for any and every reason?”
4 “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’[a](E) 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’[b]?(F) 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”
7 “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”(G)
8 Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”(H)
10 The disciples said to him, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”
11 Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given.(I) 12 For there are eunuchs who were born that way, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others—and there are those who choose to live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”
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