Book of Common Prayer
God Judges with Equity
For the choir director. [a]Al-tashheth. A Psalm of Asaph. [b]A Song.
75 We (A)give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks,
For Your name is (B)near;
Men recount (C)Your wondrous deeds.
2 “For I select an (D)appointed time,
It is I who (E)judge with equity.
3 The (F)earth and all who dwell in it [c]melt;
It is I who have firmly set its (G)pillars. [d]Selah.
4 I said to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’
And to the wicked, ‘(H)Do not raise up the horn;
5 Do not raise up your horn on high,
(I)Nor speak with insolent [e]pride.’”
6 For one’s rising up does not come from the east, nor from the west,
And not from the [f](J)desert;
7 But (K)God is the Judge;
He (L)puts down one and raises up another.
8 For a (M)cup is in the hand of Yahweh, and the wine foams;
It is (N)full of His mixture, and He pours from this;
Surely all the wicked of the earth must drain and (O)drink down its dregs.
9 But as for me, I will (P)declare it forever;
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10 And all the (Q)horns of the wicked I will cut off,
But (R)the horns of the righteous will be raised up.
God’s Name Is Great in Israel
For the choir director. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
76 God is (S)known in Judah;
His name is (T)great in Israel.
2 So His [g](U)tabernacle is in (V)Salem;
His (W)dwelling place is in Zion.
3 There He (X)broke the [h]flaming arrows,
The shield and the sword and the battle. [i]Selah.
4 You are shining,
Majestic from the mountains of prey.
5 The (Y)stouthearted were plundered,
[j]They sank into sleep;
And none of the [k]warriors could use his hands.
6 At Your (Z)rebuke, O God of Jacob,
Both (AA)chariot rider and horse slumbered into a deep sleep.
7 But You, You are [l](AB)fearsome;
And (AC)who can stand in Your presence when once [m]You are angry?
Yahweh Is My Shepherd
A Psalm of David.
23 Yahweh is my (A)shepherd,
I [a]shall (B)not want.
2 He makes me lie down in (C)green pastures;
He (D)leads me beside [b](E)quiet waters.
3 He (F)restores my soul;
He (G)guides me in the [c](H)paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
4 Even though I (I)walk through the [d]valley of the shadow of death,
I (J)fear no [e]evil, for (K)You are with me;
Your (L)rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You (M)prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You [f]have (N)anointed my head with oil;
My (O)cup overflows.
6 [g]Surely (P)goodness and lovingkindness will [h]pursue me all the days of my life,
And I will [i](Q)dwell in the house of Yahweh [j]forever.
Yahweh Is My Light and My Salvation
Of David.
27 Yahweh is my (A)light and my (B)salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
Yahweh is the [a](C)strong defense of my life;
(D)Whom shall I dread?
2 When evildoers came upon me to (E)devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they (F)stumbled and fell.
3 Though a (G)host encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
In this I (H)trust.
4 (I)One thing I have asked from Yahweh, that I shall seek:
That I may (J)dwell in the house of Yahweh all the days of my life,
To behold (K)the [b]beauty of Yahweh
And to (L)inquire in His temple.
5 For in the (M)day of calamity He will (N)conceal me in His shelter;
In the secret place of His tent He will (O)hide me;
He will (P)lift me up on a rock.
6 And now (Q)my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me,
And I will offer in His tent (R)sacrifices with loud shouts of joy;
I will (S)sing, and I will sing praises to Yahweh.
7 (T)Hear, O Yahweh, when I call with my voice,
And be gracious to me and (U)answer me.
8 On Your behalf my heart says, “(V)Seek My face,”
“Your face, O Yahweh, (W)I shall seek.”
9 (X)Do not hide Your face from me,
Do not turn Your slave away in (Y)anger;
You have been (Z)my help;
(AA)Do not abandon me and do not (AB)forsake me,
O God of my salvation!
10 [c]For my father and (AC)my mother have forsaken me,
But (AD)Yahweh will take me up.
11 (AE)Instruct me in Your way, O Yahweh,
And lead me in a (AF)level path
Because of [d]my foes.
12 Do not give me over to the [e](AG)desire of my adversaries,
For (AH)false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as (AI)breathe out violence.
13 [f]I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the (AJ)goodness of Yahweh
In the (AK)land of the living.
14 (AL)Hope in Yahweh;
Be (AM)strong and let your heart take courage;
Hope in Yahweh.
5 Now there was at the citadel in Susa a Jew. And his name was (A)Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite, 6 (B)who had been taken away into exile from Jerusalem with the exiles who had been taken away into exile with Jeconiah king of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had taken away into exile. 7 And he was bringing up Hadassah, that is (C)Esther, his uncle’s daughter, for she had no father or mother. Now the young lady was beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.
Esther Advances in Favor
8 Now it happened that when the word and law of the king were heard and (D)many young ladies were gathered to the citadel of Susa into the hand of (E)Hegai, that Esther was taken to the king’s [a]house into the hand of Hegai, who kept charge of the women.
15 Now when it reached the turn of Esther, (A)the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai who had taken her as his daughter, to go in to the king, she did not seek anything except what (B)Hegai, the king’s eunuch who kept charge of the women, said. And Esther advanced in favor in the eyes of all who saw her. 16 So Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus to his royal house in the tenth month which is the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.
Esther Is Made Queen
17 And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she advanced in favor and lovingkindness before him more than all the virgins, so that (C)he set the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. 18 Then (D)the king held a great feast, Esther’s feast, for all his princes and his servants; he also held a remission of taxes for the provinces and gave gifts (E)according to the king’s hand.
19 (F)And when the virgins were gathered together the second time, then Mordecai (G)was sitting at the king’s gate. 20 (H)Esther had not yet told anyone about her kinsmen or her people, just as Mordecai had commanded her; indeed Esther was doing [a]what Mordecai declared that she do, just as she had done (I)when she was being brought up by him.
Two of the King’s Eunuchs Are Hanged
21 In those days, while Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, (J)Bigthan and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs from those who were doorkeepers, became furious and sought to send forth their hand against King Ahasuerus. 22 But the matter became known to Mordecai, and (K)he told it to Queen Esther, and Esther said it to the king in Mordecai’s name. 23 Then the matter was sought out and found to be true, so they were both hanged on a [b]gallows; and it was written in (L)the book of the chronicles in the king’s presence.
In Athens
16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at (A)Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols. 17 So he was reasoning (B)in the synagogue with the Jews and (C)the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be present. 18 And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were [a]conversing with him. Some were saying, “What would (D)this [b]idle babbler wish to say?” Others, “He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,”—because he was proclaiming the good news of (E)Jesus and the resurrection. 19 And they (F)took him and brought him [c]to the [d](G)Areopagus, saying, “May we know what (H)this new teaching is [e]which you are speaking? 20 For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. So we want to know what these things mean.” 21 (Now all the Athenians and the strangers (I)visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something newer.)
22 So Paul stood in the midst of the [f]Areopagus and said, “Men of (J)Athens, I observe that you are very (K)religious in all respects. 23 For while I was passing through and examining the (L)objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ Therefore what (M)you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. 24 (N)The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is (O)Lord of heaven and earth, does not (P)dwell in temples made with hands; 25 nor is He served by human hands, (Q)as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; 26 and (R)He made from one man every nation of mankind to inhabit all the face of the earth, having (S)determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, (T)though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for (U)in Him we live and move and [g]exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His offspring.’ 29 Being then the offspring of God, we (V)ought not to suppose that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the craft and thought of man. 30 Therefore having (W)overlooked (X)the times of ignorance, God is (Y)now commanding men that everyone everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed (Z)a day in which (AA)He will judge [h](AB)the world in righteousness [i]through a Man whom He (AC)determined, having furnished proof to all [j]by (AD)raising Him from the dead.”
32 Now when they heard about (AE)the resurrection of the dead, some began to sneer, but others said, “We shall hear you [k]again concerning this.” 33 In this way, Paul went out of their midst. 34 But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the (AF)Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.
44 And Jesus cried out and said, “(A)He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me. 45 (B)And he who sees Me sees the One who sent Me. 46 (C)I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness. 47 And if anyone hears My words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for (D)I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. 48 (E)He who rejects Me and does not receive My words, has one who judges him; (F)the word I spoke is what will judge him on (G)the last day. 49 (H)For I did not speak from Myself, but the Father Himself who sent Me (I)has given Me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. 50 And I know that (J)His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak (K)just as the Father has told Me.”
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