Book of Common Prayer
The Majesty of the Lord.
93 (A)The Lord [a]reigns, He is (B)clothed with majesty;
The Lord has (C)clothed and girded Himself with strength;
Indeed, the (D)world is firmly established, it will not be moved.
2 Your (E)throne is established from of old;
You (F)are from everlasting.
3 The (G)floods have lifted up, O Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice,
The floods lift up their pounding waves.
4 More than the sounds of many waters,
Than the mighty breakers of the sea,
The Lord (H)on high is mighty.
5 Your (I)testimonies are fully confirmed;
(J)Holiness befits Your house,
O Lord, [b]forevermore.
A Call to Worship the Lord the Righteous Judge.
96 (A)Sing to the Lord a (B)new song;
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
(C)Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
3 Tell of (D)His glory among the nations,
His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.
4 For (E)great is the Lord and (F)greatly to be praised;
He is to be (G)feared (H)above all gods.
5 For (I)all the gods of the peoples are [a]idols,
But (J)the Lord made the heavens.
6 (K)Splendor and majesty are before Him,
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.
7 [b]Ascribe to the Lord, O (L)families of the peoples,
[c](M)Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
8 [d]Ascribe to the Lord the (N)glory of His name;
Bring an [e](O)offering and come into His courts.
9 (P)Worship the Lord in [f]holy attire;
(Q)Tremble before Him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “(R)The Lord reigns;
Indeed, the (S)world is firmly established, it will not be moved;
He will (T)judge the peoples with [g]equity.”
11 Let the (U)heavens be glad, and let the (V)earth rejoice;
Let (W)the sea [h]roar, and [i]all it contains;
12 Let the (X)field exult, and all that is in it.
Then all the (Y)trees of the forest will sing for joy
13 Before the Lord, (Z)for He is coming,
For He is coming to judge the earth.
(AA)He will judge the world in righteousness
And the peoples in His faithfulness.
The Lord, a Provider and Deliverer.
A Psalm of David when he [a]feigned madness before [b]Abimelech, who drove him away and he departed.
34 I will (A)bless the Lord at all times;
His (B)praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul will (C)make its boast in the Lord;
The (D)humble will hear it and rejoice.
3 O (E)magnify the Lord with me,
And let us (F)exalt His name together.
4 I (G)sought the Lord, and He answered me,
And (H)delivered me from all my fears.
5 They (I)looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces will (J)never be ashamed.
6 This [c]poor man cried, and (K)the Lord heard him
And saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The (L)angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him,
And rescues them.
8 O (M)taste and see that the Lord is good;
How (N)blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
9 O fear the Lord, you (O)His saints;
For to those who fear Him there is (P)no want.
10 The young lions do lack and suffer hunger;
But they who seek the Lord shall (Q)not be in want of any good thing.
11 (R)Come, you children, listen to me;
(S)I will teach you (T)the fear of the Lord.
12 (U)Who is the man who desires life
And loves length of days that he may (V)see good?
13 Keep (W)your tongue from evil
And your lips from speaking (X)deceit.
14 (Y)Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and (Z)pursue it.
15 The (AA)eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous
And His ears are open to their cry.
16 The (AB)face of the Lord is against evildoers,
To (AC)cut off the memory of them from the earth.
17 The righteous (AD)cry, and the Lord hears
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord (AE)is near to the (AF)brokenhearted
And saves those who are [d](AG)crushed in spirit.
19 (AH)Many are the (AI)afflictions of the righteous,
But the Lord (AJ)delivers him out of them all.
20 He keeps all his bones,
(AK)Not one of them is broken.
21 (AL)Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous will be [e]condemned.
22 The Lord (AM)redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who (AN)take refuge in Him will be [f]condemned.
Haman’s Plot against the Jews
3 After these events King Ahasuerus (A)promoted Haman, the son of Hammedatha (B)the Agagite, and (C)advanced him and [a]established his authority over all the princes who were with him. 2 All the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate bowed down [b]and paid homage to Haman; for so the king had commanded concerning him. But (D)Mordecai neither bowed down nor paid homage. 3 Then the king’s servants who were at (E)the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “(F)Why are you transgressing the king’s command?” 4 Now it was when they had spoken daily to him and he would not listen to them, that they told Haman to see whether Mordecai’s reason would stand; for he had told them that he was a Jew. 5 When Haman saw that (G)Mordecai neither bowed down nor paid homage to him, Haman was filled with rage. 6 But he [c]disdained to [d]lay hands on Mordecai alone, for they had told him who the people of Mordecai were; therefore Haman (H)sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus.
7 In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, [e]Pur, that is the lot, was (I)cast before Haman from day to day and from month to month, [f]until the twelfth month, that is (J)the month Adar. 8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom; (K)their laws are different from those of all other people and they do not observe the king’s laws, so it is not in the king’s interest to let them remain. 9 If it is pleasing to the king, let it be [g]decreed that they be destroyed, and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who carry on the king’s business, to put into the king’s treasuries.” 10 Then (L)the king took his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha (M)the Agagite, (N)the enemy of the Jews. 11 The king said to Haman, “The silver is [h]yours, and the people also, to do with them as you please.”
12 (O)Then the king’s scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and it was written just as Haman commanded to (P)the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province and to the princes of each people, each province according to its script, each people according to its language, being written (Q)in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king’s signet ring. 13 Letters were sent by (R)couriers to all the king’s provinces (S)to destroy, to kill and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, women and children, (T)in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to (U)seize their possessions as plunder. 14 (V)A copy of the edict to be [i]issued as law in every province was published to all the peoples so that they should be ready for this day. 15 The couriers went out impelled by the king’s command while the decree was [j]issued at the citadel in Susa; and while the king and Haman sat down to drink, (W)the city of Susa was in confusion.
Esther Learns of Haman’s Plot
4 When Mordecai learned (X)all that had been done, [k]he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the midst of the city and wailed loudly and bitterly. 2 He went as far as the king’s gate, for no one was to enter the king’s gate clothed in sackcloth. 3 In each and every province where the command and decree of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with (Y)fasting, weeping and wailing; and many lay on sackcloth and ashes.
19 [a]This (A)you know, (B)my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, (C)slow to speak and (D)slow to anger; 20 for (E)the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore, (F)putting aside all filthiness and all [b]that remains of wickedness, in [c]humility receive (G)the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. 22 (H)But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his [d]natural face (I)in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, [e]he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, (J)the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but [f]an effectual doer, this man will be (K)blessed in [g]what he does.
26 If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not [h](L)bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless. 27 Pure and undefiled religion (M)in the sight of our God and Father is this: to (N)visit (O)orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained [i]by (P)the world.
Giving to the Poor and Prayer
6 “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men (A)to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
2 “So when you [a]give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they (B)may be honored by men. (C)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 3 But when you [b]give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your [c]giving will be in secret; and (D)your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
5 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to (E)stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners [d](F)so that they may be seen by men. (G)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 But you, when you pray, (H)go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and (I)your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
Fasting; The True Treasure; Wealth (Mammon)
16 “(A)Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they [a]neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. (B)Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 17 But you, when you fast, (C)anoint your head and wash your face 18 so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your (D)Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
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