Book of Common Prayer
Song of Thanks for Being Kept Safe
18 I love You, O Lord, my strength. 2 The Lord is my rock, and my safe place, and the One Who takes me out of trouble. My God is my rock, in Whom I am safe. He is my safe-covering, my saving strength, and my strong tower. 3 I call to the Lord, Who has the right to be praised. And I am saved from those who hate me.
4 The ropes of death were all around me. The floods of death make me afraid. 5 The ropes of the grave were all around me. The traps of death were set for me. 6 I called to the Lord in my trouble. I cried to God for help. He heard my voice from His holy house. My cry for help came into His ears.
7 Then the earth shook. The mountains were shaking. They shook because He was angry. 8 Smoke went out from His nose and the fire that kept coming from His mouth burned everything around it. 9 He parted the heavens and came down. Dark clouds were under His feet. 10 He sat upon a cherub and flew. He traveled on the wings of the wind. 11 He made darkness His hiding place, the covering around Him, the dark rain clouds of the sky. 12 Through the light before Him passed His dark clouds, hail stones and fire. 13 The Lord made thunder in the heavens. The voice of the Most High spoke out, hail stones and fire. 14 He sent out His arrows and divided them. He threw down lightning and sent them running. 15 Then the deep part of the sea could be seen. And the deep part of the earth was opened up, because of Your sharp words, O Lord, because of the powerful breath from Your nose.
16 He sent from above, and took me. He lifted me out of many waters. 17 He took me away from the powerful one who fights against me, and from those who hated me. They were too strong for me. 18 They stood against me in the day of my trouble. But the Lord was my strength. 19 He brought me out into a big place. He gave me a safe place, because He was pleased with me.
20 The Lord has paid me because of my being right with Him. Because of my clean hands He has paid me. 21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord. And I have not sinned by turning from my God. 22 All His Laws are in front of me. I have not set His Laws aside. 23 Before Him I was without blame. And I have kept myself from sin. 24 So the Lord has paid me back for being right with Him, and for my hands being clean in His eyes.
25 To the faithful, You show Yourself faithful. To those without blame, You show Yourself without blame. 26 With the pure, You show Yourself pure. With the sinful You show Yourself to be against them. 27 You save those who are suffering, but You bring low those who have pride in their eyes. 28 You make my lamp bright. The Lord my God lights my darkness. 29 With Your help I can go against many soldiers. With my God I can jump over a wall.
30 As for God, His way is perfect. The Word of the Lord has stood the test. He is a covering for all who go to Him for a safe place. 31 For Who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock except our God? 32 It is God Who covers me with strength and makes my way perfect. 33 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer. And He sets me on my high places. 34 He teaches me how to fight, so that I can use a bow of brass. 35 You have also given me the covering that saves me. Your right hand holds me up. And Your care has made me great. 36 You make the road wide for my steps, and my feet have not tripped.
37 I went after those who fight against me, and caught them. And I did not return until they were destroyed. 38 I hit them so they were not able to rise. They fell under my feet. 39 You have given me strength for war. You have put under me those who have fought against me. 40 You have made them turn their backs to me also. And I destroyed those who hated me. 41 They cried for help, but there was no one to save. They cried to the Lord, but He did not answer them. 42 Then I beat them as small as the dust in the wind. I emptied them out like mud in the streets.
43 You have taken me away from the fighting of the people. You have made me the leader of nations. People whom I have not known will serve me. 44 As soon as they hear, they obey me. Those from other lands obey me. 45 These people from other lands lose their strength of heart. And they come shaking from behind their walls. 46 The Lord lives! How great is my Rock! Praise be to the God Who saves me! 47 He is the God Who punishes those who have done wrong to me. He puts nations under my rule. 48 He saves me from those who hate me. Yes, You lift me above those who rise up against me. You save me from those who want to hurt me. 49 So I will give thanks to You among the nations, O Lord. And I will sing praises to Your name. 50 He gives His king great power over trouble. And He shows loving-kindness to His chosen one, to David, and to his children after him forever.
Bildad Talks
8 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered, 2 “How long will you say these things, and the words of your mouth be a strong wind? 3 Does God make wrong what is fair? Does the All-powerful make wrong what is right? 4 If your children have sinned against Him, He has given them over to the power of their sin. 5 If you will look for God and pray to the All-powerful, 6 if you are pure and right and good, for sure He will help you. Because you are right and good He will put you back where you should be. 7 And even if your beginning was small, your end will be very great.
8 “Ask about those who have lived before. Think about what their fathers learned. 9 For we are only of yesterday and know nothing. Our days on earth are as a shadow. 10 Will they not teach you and tell you, and speak words of wisdom?
20 See, God will not turn away from a man who is honest and faithful. And He will not help those who do wrong. 21 He will yet make you laugh and call out with joy. 22 Those who hate you will be dressed with shame. And the tent of the sinful will be no more.”
Cornelius’ Men Find Peter
17 Peter thought about the meaning of the dream. The men that Cornelius had sent came. They were standing by the gate asking about Simon’s house. 18 They called to ask if Simon Peter was staying there.
19 Peter was still thinking about the dream when the Holy Spirit said to him, “See, three men are looking for you. 20 Get up. Go down and go with them. Do not doubt if you should go, because I sent them.” 21 Peter went down to the men who had been sent by Cornelius. He said, “I am the one you are looking for. Why have you come?” 22 They said, “Cornelius sent us. He is a captain and a good man and he honors God. The whole Jewish nation can say this is true. An angel from God told him to send for you. He asks you to come to his house. He wants to hear what you have to say.”
Peter Goes to Cornelius
23 Peter asked them to come in and stay with him for the night. The next day he went with them. Some of the brothers from Joppa went along. 24 The next day they came to Caesarea. Cornelius was looking for them. He had gathered all his family and close friends at his house. 25 When Peter came, Cornelius got down at his feet and worshiped him. 26 But Peter raised him up and said, “Get up! I am just a man like you.” 27 As Peter spoke with Cornelius, he went into the house and found a large group of people gathered together. 28 Peter said to them, “You know it is against our Law for a Jew to visit a person of another nation. But God has shown me I should not say that any man is unclean. 29 For this reason I came as soon as you sent for me. But I want to ask you why you sent for me?”
30 Cornelius said, “Four days ago at three o’clock in the afternoon I was praying here in my house. All at once, I saw a man standing in front of me. He had on bright clothes. 31 He said to me, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayers and has remembered your gifts of love. 32 You must send to Joppa and ask Simon Peter to come here. He is staying at the house of Simon, the man who works with leather. His house is by the sea-shore.’ 33 I sent for you at once. You have done well to come. We are all here and God is with us. We are ready to hear whatever the Lord has told you to say.”
Jesus Tells Where His Teaching Is From
14 The religious gathering was half over when Jesus went to the house of God and taught. 15 The Jews were surprised and wondered, saying, “How can this Man know so much when He has never been to school?”
16 Jesus said to them, “What I teach is not Mine. It is from God Who sent Me. 17 If anyone will do what God wants, he will know if My teaching is from God, or if I am speaking of Myself. 18 The man who speaks of himself is looking for greatness for himself. But He Who is looking for the greatness of the One Who sent Him is true. There is nothing false in Him. 19 Did not Moses give you the Law? And yet not one of you keeps the Law. Why do you try to kill me?”
20 The people said, “You have a demon in You. Who is trying to kill You?”
21 Jesus said to them, “I did one work and you are surprised. 22 Moses gave you the religious act of becoming a Jew. (Yet it was not from Moses but from the early fathers.) You do this religious act on a man on the Day of Rest. 23 Now if you can do that, why are you angry with Me for healing a man on the Day of Rest? 24 Do not say a person is guilty by what you see. Be sure you know when you say what is right or wrong.”
25 Some of the people of Jerusalem said, “Is not this the Man the Jews want to kill? 26 But see! This Man is speaking out in the open. They are saying nothing to Him. Do the leaders know this is the true Christ? 27 We know where this Man came from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where He comes from.”
28 Then Jesus spoke with a loud voice as He taught in the house of God. He said, “You know Me. You know where I came from. I have not come on My own. The One Who sent Me is true but you do not know Him. 29 I know Him because I am from Him and He sent Me.”
30 Then they wanted to take Jesus but no one put his hands on Him. His time had not yet come. 31 Many of the people believed in Him. They said, “When Christ comes, will He do more powerful works than this Man?”
32 The proud religious law-keepers heard the people talking about Jesus. The religious leaders of the Jews and the proud religious law-keepers sent soldiers to take Him. 33 Jesus said to them, “I will be with you a little while yet. Then I will go back to Him Who sent Me. 34 You will look for Me but you will not find Me. Where I go, you cannot come.”
35 The Jews said to themselves, “Where can He go that we will not find Him? Will He go to our people who live among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? 36 What does He mean when He says, ‘You will look for Me but you will not find Me, and where I go, you cannot come’?”
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