Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 101
The Good Ruler
Heading
By David. A psalm.
The Righteousness of the Lord
1 I will sing about your mercy and justice.
To you, O Lord, I will make music.
The Righteousness of the King
2 I will act wisely, following the way that is honest.
When will you come to me?
Within my palace I will conduct myself with integrity.[a]
Righteousness in His Court
3 I will not tolerate an evil[b] cause in my sight.
I hate unfaithfulness and apostasy.[c]
It will not stick to me.
4 A perverted heart shall be kept far from me.
I will not acknowledge evil.
5 I will silence anyone who slanders his neighbor in secret.
I cannot tolerate anyone who has arrogant eyes and a proud heart.
6 My eyes will watch for the faithful in the land,
so that they can be seated with me.
Those who walk in the way of integrity will serve as my ministers.
7 Anyone who practices deceit will not sit inside my palace.
Anyone who is a liar will not stand in my sight.
8 Every morning I will silence all the wicked in the land,
in order to cut off every evildoer from the city of the Lord.
Psalm 109
Deceitful Men Have Opened Their Mouths
Heading
For the choir director. By David. A psalm.
The Problem and the Prayer
1 O God whom I praise, do not be silent,
2 because they have opened wicked, deceitful mouths against me.
They have spoken against me with lying tongues.
3 They surround me with hateful words.
They attack me without cause.
4 In return for my love they accuse me,
but I am a man of prayer.[a]
5 They repay me with evil for good,
with hatred for my love.
The Curse
6 Appoint an evil one to testify against him,
and let an accuser[b] stand at his right hand.
7 When he is tried, let him be found guilty,
and let his prayer be sin.
8 Let his days be few.
Let another take his office.
9 Let his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow.
10 Let his children always wander and beg.
Let them seek food far from their ruined homes.[c]
11 Let a creditor confiscate all he has.
Let strangers plunder everything he worked for.
12 Let there be no one to extend mercy to him.
Let there be no one to show favor to his fatherless children.
13 Let his descendants be cut off.
In the next generation let their name be blotted out.
14 Let the guilt of his fathers be remembered before the Lord.
Let the sin of his mother never be blotted out.
15 Let their sins remain before the Lord continually,
and let the memory of these people be cut off from the earth.
16 Because he did not remember to show mercy,
but he pursued the poor man and the needy
and the brokenhearted to put them to death.
17 Since he loved cursing, so let it fall on him.
He found no pleasure in blessing, so let it be far from him.
18 Since he wore cursing as his clothing,
let it enter into his stomach like water
and into his bones like oil.
19 Let it be like a garment wrapped around him,
like a belt tied around him forever.
20 May the Lord do all this to my accusers
and to those who speak evil against my life.
Prayer for Help
21 But you, Lord God, deal with me for the sake of your name.
Because of the goodness of your mercy, deliver me.
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded[d] within me.
23 Like a shadow after it lengthens, I go away.
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees give way from fasting,
and my flesh has become lean, without fat.
25 But I—I am scorned by them.
They see me. They shake their heads.
26 Help me, O Lord my God.
Save me according to your mercy.
27 Let them know that this is your hand.
You, O Lord, have done it.
28 They may curse, but you will bless.
They rose up, but they will be put to shame.
Then your servant will rejoice.
29 My accusers will be dressed with disgrace.
Their shame will wrap around them like a robe.
Closing Praise
30 With my mouth I will keep on thanking the Lord.
In the midst of many people I will praise him.
Ayin: It Is Time to Act
121 I have carried out what is just and right.
Do not leave me to my oppressors.
122 Guarantee good for your servant.
Do not let the arrogant oppress me.
123 My eyes wear out,
as I watch for your salvation and your righteousness.
124 Deal with your servant according to your mercy,
and teach me your statutes.
125 I am your servant. Give me discernment,
so that I may know your testimonies.
126 Lord, it is time to do something!
They have broken your laws.
127 Because I love your commandments more than gold,
more than pure gold,
128 because I value everything in all your precepts,
I hate every wrong road.
Pe: Streams of Tears
129 Your testimonies are wonders.
That is why my soul guards them.
130 The doorway to your words lets in light.
It gives understanding to the inexperienced.
131 I open wide my mouth and I gasp,
because I long for your commandments.
132 Turn to me and give me grace.
This is your judgment for those who love your name.[a]
133 Keep my footsteps steady by your sayings,
and do not let any evil rule over me.
134 Redeem me from oppressive people,
and I will keep your precepts.
135 Make your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your statutes.
136 Streams of water run down from my eyes,
because they do not keep your laws.
Tsadhe: My Zeal for the Word
137 You are righteous, O Lord,
and your judgments are right.
138 You have commanded your testimonies.
They are righteous and very trustworthy.
139 My zeal wears me out,
because my foes forget your words.
140 Your saying has been thoroughly refined,
and your servant loves it.
141 I am insignificant and despised,
but I do not forget your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is righteous forever,
and your law is truth.
143 Distress and anguish have found me,
but your commandments are my delights.
144 Your testimonies are right forever.
Give me understanding, and I will live.
36 The Lord spoke to Moses:[a] 37 “Tell Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest to remove the censers from the burning debris and scatter the fire far away, for the censers are holy. 38 Make the censers belonging to those who sinned at the cost of their own lives into hammered sheets for plating the altar, because they presented them before the Lord, and the censers are holy. They will serve as a sign to the Israelites.”
39 Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, which had been presented by those who had been burned up by fire. They hammered them into plating for the altar 40 as a reminder to the Israelites that no unauthorized person, who is not from the descendants of Aaron, should come near to burn incense before the Lord and become like Korah and his followers. Eleazar the priest did just as the Lord said to him through Moses.
41 But on the next day the entire Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. They said, “You have killed the people of the Lord!”
42 When the community assembled together against Moses and Aaron and turned toward the Tent of Meeting, the cloud covered it, and the Glory of the Lord appeared. 43 Moses and Aaron went in front of the Tent of Meeting. 44 The Lord spoke to Moses: 45 “Get away from this community so that I may put an end to them instantly!” Moses and Aaron fell facedown to the ground.
46 Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer, put fire from the altar in it, place incense on it, go quickly to the community, and make atonement for them, because wrath has gone out from the Lord! The plague has begun.”
47 Aaron did as Moses said and ran into the middle of the assembly. The plague had already begun among the people. He put the incense on his censer and made atonement for the people. 48 He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped. 49 Now those who died by the plague totaled 14,700, besides those who died because of the offense of Korah. 50 Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, and the plague was stopped.
Abraham Received What God Promised by Faith, Not by Law
13 Indeed, the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not given to Abraham or his descendants through the law, but through the righteousness that is by faith. 14 To be sure, if people are heirs by the law, faith is empty and the promise is nullified. 15 For law brings wrath. (Where there is no law, there is no transgression.) 16 For this reason, the promise is by faith, so that it may be according to grace and may be guaranteed to all of Abraham’s descendants—not only to the one who is a descendant by law, but also to the one who has the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.”[a]
Abraham’s Faith Was a Firm Trust in God’s Promise
In the presence of God, Abraham believed him who makes the dead alive and calls non-existing things so that they exist.[b] 18 Hoping beyond what he could expect, he believed that he would become the father of many nations, just as he was told: “This is how many your descendants will be.”[c] 19 He did not weaken in faith, even though he considered his own body as good as dead (because he was about one hundred years old), and even though he considered Sarah’s womb to be dead. 20 He did not waver in unbelief with respect to God’s promise, but he grew strong in faith, giving glory to God 21 and being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. 22 This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”[d]
23 Now the statement “it was credited to him” was not written for him alone, 24 but also for us to whom it would be credited, namely, to us who believe in the one who raised our Lord Jesus from the dead. 25 He was handed over to death because of our trespasses and was raised to life because of our justification.
The Workers in the Vineyard
20 “Indeed the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing to pay the workers a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 He also went out about the third hour[a] and saw others standing unemployed in the marketplace. 4 To these he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will give you whatever is right.’ So they went. 5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6 When he went out about the eleventh hour, he found others standing unemployed. He said to them, ‘Why have you stood here all day unemployed?’
7 “They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’
“He told them, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’ 8 When it was evening, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with the last group and ending with the first.’
9 “When those who were hired around the eleventh hour came, they each received a denarius. 10 When those who were hired first came, they thought they would receive more. But they each received a denarius too. 11 After they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner: 12 ‘Those who were last worked one hour, and you made them equal to us who have endured the burden of the day and the scorching heat!’
13 “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not make an agreement with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go. I want to give to the last one hired the same as I also gave to you. 15 Can’t I do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 In the same way, the last will be first, and the first, last.”
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.