Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 97
1 Yahweh rules as king.
Let the earth rejoice.
Let all the islands be joyful.
2 Clouds and darkness surround him.
Righteousness and justice are the foundations of his throne.
3 Fire spreads ahead of him.
It burns his enemies who surround him.
4 His flashes of lightning light up the world.
The earth sees them and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax in the presence of Yahweh,
in the presence of the Adonay of the whole earth.
6 The heavens tell about his righteousness,
and all the people of the world see his glory.
7 Everyone who worships idols
and brags about false gods will be put to shame.
All the gods will bow to him.
8 Zion hears about this and rejoices.
The people of Judah are delighted with your judgments, O Yahweh.
9 You, O Yahweh Elyon, are above the whole earth.
You are highest. You are above all the gods.
10 Let those who love Yahweh hate evil.
The one who guards the lives of his godly ones
will rescue them from the power of wicked people.
11 Light dawns for righteous people[a]
and joy for those whose motives are decent.
12 Find joy in Yahweh, you righteous people.
Give thanks to him as you remember how holy he is.
Psalm 99
1 Yahweh rules as king.
Let the people tremble.
He is enthroned over the angels.[a]
Let the earth quake.
2 Yahweh is mighty in Zion.
He is high above all people.
3 Let them give thanks to your great and fearful name.
He is holy!
4 The king’s strength is that he loves justice.
You have established fairness.
You have done what is fair and right for Jacob.
5 Highly honor Yahweh our Elohim.
Bow down at his footstool.
He is holy!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests.
Samuel was among those who prayed to him.
They called to Yahweh, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them from a column of smoke.
They obeyed his written instructions and the laws that he gave them.
8 O Yahweh, our Elohim, you answered them.
You showed them that you are a forgiving El
and that you are an El who punishes their sinful deeds.
9 Highly honor Yahweh our Elohim.
Bow at his holy mountain.
Yahweh our Elohim is holy!
Psalm 100
A psalm of thanksgiving.
1 Shout happily to Yahweh, all the earth.
2 Serve Yahweh cheerfully.
Come into his presence with a joyful song.
3 Realize that Yahweh alone is Elohim.
He made us, and we are his.[b]
We are his people and the sheep in his care.
4 Enter his gates with a song of thanksgiving.
Come into his courtyards with a song of praise.
Give thanks to him; praise his name.
5 Yahweh is good.
His mercy endures forever.
His faithfulness endures throughout every generation.
Psalm 94
1 O Yahweh, El of vengeance,
O El of vengeance, appear!
2 Arise, O Shophet of the earth.
Give arrogant people what they deserve.
3 How long, O Yahweh, will wicked people triumph?
How long?
4 They ramble.
They speak arrogantly.
All troublemakers brag about themselves.
5 They crush your people, O Yahweh.
They make those who belong to you suffer.
6 They kill widows and foreigners, and they murder orphans.
7 They say, “Yah doesn’t see it.
The Elohim of Jacob doesn’t even pay attention to it.”
8 Pay attention, you stupid people!
When will you become wise, you fools?
9 Elohim created ears.
Do you think he can’t hear?
He formed eyes.
Do you think he can’t see?
10 He disciplines nations.
Do you think he can’t punish?
He teaches people.
Do you think he doesn’t know anything?
11 Yahweh knows that people’s thoughts are pointless.
12 O Yah, blessed is the person
whom you discipline and instruct from your teachings.
13 You give him peace and quiet from times of trouble
while a pit is dug to trap wicked people.
14 Yahweh will never desert his people
or abandon those who belong to him.
15 The decisions of judges will again become fair,
and everyone whose motives are decent will pursue justice.[a]
16 Who will stand up for me against evildoers?
Who will stand by my side against troublemakers?
17 If Yahweh had not come to help me,
my soul would have quickly fallen silent in death.
18 When I said, “My feet are slipping,”
your mercy, O Yahweh, continued to hold me up.
19 When I worried about many things,
your assuring words soothed my soul.
20 Are wicked rulers who use the law to do unlawful things
able to be your partners?
21 They join forces to take the lives of righteous people.
They condemn innocent people to death.
22 Yahweh has become my stronghold.
My Elohim has become my rock of refuge.
23 He has turned their own wickedness against them.
He will destroy them because of their sins.
Yahweh our Elohim will destroy them.
Psalm 95
1 Come, let’s sing joyfully to Yahweh.
Let’s shout happily to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let’s come into his presence with a song of thanksgiving.
Let’s shout happily to him with psalms.
3 Yahweh is a great El and a great Melek above all gods.
4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth,
and the mountain peaks are his.
5 The sea is his.
He made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let’s worship and bow down.
Let’s kneel in front of Yahweh, our maker,
7 because he is our Elohim
and we are the people in his care,
the flock that he leads.
If only you would listen to him today!
8 “Do not be stubborn like my people were at Meribah,
like the time at Massah in the desert.
9 Your ancestors challenged me and tested me there,
although they had seen what I had done.
10 For 40 years I was disgusted with those people.
So I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts continue to stray.
They have not learned my ways.’
11 That is why I angrily took this solemn oath:
‘They will never enter my place of rest!’”
20 Yahweh said to Moses and Aaron, 21 “Move away from these men, and I’ll destroy them in an instant.” 22 Immediately, they bowed with their faces touching the ground and said, “O El, you are the Elohim who gives the breath of life to everyone! If one man sins, will you be angry with the whole community?”
23 Then Yahweh said to Moses, 24 “Tell the community: Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.”
25 Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the leaders of Israel followed him. 26 He said to the community, “Move away from the tents of these wicked men. Don’t touch anything that belongs to them, or you’ll be swept away because of all their sins.” 27 So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram had come out and were standing at the entrances to their tents with their wives and children.
28 Moses said, “This is how you will know that Yahweh sent me to do all these things and that it wasn’t my idea: 29 If these men die like all other people—if they die a natural death—then Yahweh hasn’t sent me. 30 But if Yahweh does something totally new—if the ground opens up, swallows them and everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive to their graves—then you’ll know that these men have treated Yahweh with contempt.”
31 As soon as he had finished saying all this, the ground under them split, 32 and the earth opened up to swallow them, their families, the followers of Korah, and all their property. 33 They went down alive to their graves with everything that belonged to them. The ground covered them, and so they disappeared from the assembly. 34 All the Israelites around them ran away when they heard their screams. They thought the ground would swallow them, too.
35 Fire came from Yahweh and consumed the 250 men who were offering incense.[a]
We Have God’s Approval by Faith
4 What can we say that we have discovered about our ancestor Abraham? 2 If Abraham had God’s approval because of something he did, he would have had a reason to brag. But he could not brag to God about it. 3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and that faith was regarded as the basis of Abraham’s approval by God.”
4 When people work, their pay is not regarded as a gift but something they have earned. 5 However, when people don’t work but believe God, the one who approves ungodly people, their faith is regarded as the basis of God’s approval. 6 David says the same thing about those who are blessed: God approves of people without their earning it. David said,
7 “Blessed are those whose disobedience is forgiven
and whose sins are pardoned.
8 Blessed is the person whom the Lord no longer considers sinful.”
9 Are only the circumcised people blessed, or are uncircumcised people blessed as well? We say, “Abraham’s faith was regarded as the basis of God’s approval.” 10 How was his faith regarded as the basis of God’s approval? Was he circumcised or was he uncircumcised at that time? He had not been circumcised. 11 Abraham’s faith was the basis of his approval by God while he was still uncircumcised. The mark of circumcision is the seal of that approval. Therefore, he is the father of every believer who is not circumcised, and their faith, too, is regarded as the basis of their approval by God. 12 He is also the father of those who not only are circumcised but also are following in the footsteps of his faith. Our father Abraham had that faith before he was circumcised.
23 Yeshua said to his disciples, “I can guarantee this truth: It will be hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 I can guarantee again that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
25 He amazed his disciples more than ever when they heard this. “Then who can be saved?” they asked.
26 Yeshua looked at them and said, “It is impossible for people to save themselves, but everything is possible for God.”
27 Then Peter replied to him, “Look, we’ve given up everything to follow you. What will we get out of it?”
28 Yeshua said to them, “I can guarantee this truth: When the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne in the world to come, you, my followers, will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who gave up homes, brothers or sisters, father, mother, children, or fields because of my name will receive a hundred times more and will inherit eternal life. 30 However, many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.