Book of Common Prayer
The Thirsting Soul Satisfied in God.
A Psalm of David, [a]when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
63 God, (A)You are my God; I shall be watching for You;
My soul (B)thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You,
In a (C)dry and exhausted land where there is no water.
2 So have I (D)seen You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and glory.
3 Because Your [b](E)favor is better than life,
My lips will praise You.
4 So I will bless You (F)as long as I live;
I will (G)lift up my hands in Your name.
5 My soul is (H)satisfied as with fat and fatness,
And my mouth offers (I)praises with joyful lips.
6 When I remember You (J)on my bed,
I meditate on You in the (K)night watches,
7 For (L)You have been my help,
And in the (M)shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.
8 My soul (N)clings [c]to You;
Your (O)right hand takes hold of me.
9 But those who (P)seek my [d]life to destroy it,
Will go into the [e](Q)depths of the earth.
10 [f]They will be [g](R)turned over to the power of the sword;
They will be a [h](S)prey for foxes.
11 But the (T)king will rejoice in God;
Everyone who (U)swears by Him will boast,
For the (V)mouths of those who speak lies will be stopped.
Praise for the Lord’s Mercies.
A Psalm of David.
103 (A)Bless the Lord, my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His (B)holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, my soul,
And (C)do not forget any of His benefits;
3 Who (D)pardons all your guilt,
Who (E)heals all your diseases;
4 Who (F)redeems your life from the pit,
Who (G)crowns you with favor and compassion;
5 Who (H)satisfies your [a]years with good things,
So that your youth is (I)renewed like the eagle.
6 The Lord (J)performs [b]righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are (K)oppressed.
7 He (L)made known His ways to Moses,
His (M)deeds to the sons of Israel.
8 The Lord is (N)compassionate and gracious,
(O)Slow to anger and abounding in mercy.
9 He (P)will not always contend with us,
Nor will He (Q)keep His anger forever.
10 He has (R)not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor rewarded us according to our guilty deeds.
11 For as high (S)as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who [c]fear Him.
12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He (T)removed our wrongdoings from us.
13 Just (U)as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who [d]fear Him.
14 For (V)He Himself knows [e]our form;
He (W)is mindful that we are nothing but (X)dust.
15 As for man, his days are (Y)like grass;
Like a (Z)flower of the field, so he flourishes.
16 When the (AA)wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its (AB)place no longer knows about it.
17 But the [f](AC)mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting for those who [g]fear Him,
And His justice (AD)to the children’s children,
18 To (AE)those who keep His covenant
And remember His precepts, so as to do them.
19 The Lord has established His (AF)throne in the heavens,
And His [h](AG)sovereignty rules over [i]all.
20 Bless the Lord, you (AH)His angels,
(AI)Mighty in strength, who (AJ)perform His word,
(AK)Obeying the voice of His word!
21 Bless the Lord, all you (AL)His [j]angels,
You (AM)who serve Him, doing His will.
22 Bless the Lord, (AN)all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the Lord, my soul!
Bildad Says Mankind Is Inferior
25 Then Bildad the Shuhite responded,
2 “(A)Dominion and awe [a]belong to Him
Who makes peace in (B)His heights.
3 Is there any number to (C)His troops?
And upon whom does His light not rise?
4 How then can mankind be (D)righteous with God?
Or how can anyone who is born of woman be (E)pure?
5 If even (F)the moon has no brightness
And the (G)stars are not pure in His sight,
6 How much less (H)man, that (I)maggot,
And a son of man, that worm!”
Job Affirms His Righteousness
27 Job again took up his (A)discourse and said,
2 “As God lives, (B)who has taken away my right,
And the Almighty, (C)who has embittered my soul,
3 For as long as [a]life is in me,
And the [b](D)breath of God is in my nostrils,
4 My lips certainly will not speak unjustly,
Nor will (E)my tongue mutter deceit.
5 Far be it from me that I should declare you right;
Until I die, (F)I will not [c]give up my integrity.
6 I have (G)kept hold of my righteousness and will not let it go.
My heart does not rebuke any of my days.
The Lamb and the 144,000 on Mount Zion
14 Then I looked, and behold, (A)the Lamb was standing on (B)Mount Zion, and with Him (C)144,000 who had (D)His name and the (E)name of His Father written (F)on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven, like (G)the sound of many waters and like the (H)sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of (I)harpists playing on their harps. 3 And they *sang [a](J)a new song before the throne and before the (K)four living creatures and the (L)elders; and (M)no one was able to learn the song except the (N)144,000 who had been (O)purchased from the earth. 4 (P)These are the ones who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are celibate. These are the ones who (Q)follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been (R)purchased from mankind (S)as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. 5 And (T)no lie was found in their mouths; they are (U)blameless.
Vision of the Angel with the Gospel
6 And I saw another angel flying in (V)midheaven with (W)an eternal gospel to preach to (X)those who [b]live on the earth, and to (Y)every nation, tribe, language, and people; 7 and he said with a loud voice, “(Z)Fear God and (AA)give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who (AB)made the heaven and the earth, and sea and (AC)springs of waters.”
Disciples and the World
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but (A)if the salt has become tasteless, how [a]can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people.
14 “You are (B)the light of the world. A city set on a [b]hill cannot be hidden; 15 (C)nor do people light a lamp and put it under a [c]basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may (D)see your good works, and (E)glorify your Father who is in heaven.
17 “Do not presume that I came to abolish the (F)Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, (G)until heaven and earth pass away, not [d]the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! 19 Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches [e]others to do the same, shall be called least (H)in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever [f]keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 “For I say to you that unless your (I)righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
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