Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 146[a]
Trust in God the Creator and Redeemer
1 Hallelujah!
2 Praise the Lord, my soul;
I will praise the Lord all my life,
sing praise to my God while I live.(A)
I
3 Put no trust in princes,
in children of Adam powerless to save.(B)
4 Who breathing his last, returns to the earth;
that day all his planning comes to nothing.(C)
II
5 Blessed the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord, his God,
6 The maker of heaven and earth,
the seas and all that is in them,(D)
Who keeps faith forever,
7 secures justice for the oppressed,(E)
who gives bread to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free;(F)
8 the Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord raises up those who are bowed down;(G)
the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord protects the resident alien,
comes to the aid of the orphan and the widow,(H)
but thwarts the way of the wicked.
10 The Lord shall reign forever,
your God, Zion, through all generations!(I)
Hallelujah!
Psalm 147[b]
God’s Word Restores Jerusalem
1 Hallelujah!
I
How good to sing praise to our God;
how pleasant to give fitting praise.(J)
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem,
and gathers the dispersed of Israel,(K)
3 Healing the brokenhearted,
and binding up their wounds.(L)
4 He numbers the stars,
and gives to all of them their names.(M)
5 Great is our Lord, vast in power,
with wisdom beyond measure.(N)
6 The Lord gives aid to the poor,
but casts the wicked to the ground.(O)
II
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
with the lyre make music to our God,(P)
8 [c]Who covers the heavens with clouds,
provides rain for the earth,
makes grass sprout on the mountains,(Q)
9 Who gives animals their food
and young ravens what they cry for.(R)
10 [d]He takes no delight in the strength of horses,
no pleasure in the runner’s stride.(S)
11 Rather the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
those who put their hope in his mercy.
III
12 Glorify the Lord, Jerusalem;
Zion, offer praise to your God,
13 For he has strengthened the bars of your gates,
blessed your children within you.(T)
14 He brings peace to your borders,
and satisfies you with finest wheat.(U)
15 [e]He sends his command to earth;
his word runs swiftly!(V)
16 Thus he makes the snow like wool,
and spreads the frost like ash;(W)
17 He disperses hail like crumbs.
Who can withstand his cold?
18 Yet when again he issues his command, it melts them;
he raises his winds and the waters flow.
19 He proclaims his word to Jacob,
his statutes and laws to Israel.(X)
20 He has not done this for any other nation;
of such laws they know nothing.
Hallelujah!
Psalm 111[a]
Praise of God for Goodness to Israel
1 Hallelujah!
I will praise the Lord with all my heart(A)
in the assembled congregation of the upright.[b]
2 Great are the works of the Lord,
studied by all who delight in them.
3 Majestic and glorious is his work,
his righteousness endures forever.
4 He won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the Lord.(B)
5 He gives food to those who fear him,[c]
he remembers his covenant forever.
6 He showed his powerful deeds to his people,
giving them the inheritance of the nations.
7 The works of his hands are true and just,
reliable all his decrees,
8 Established forever and ever,
to be observed with truth and equity.
9 He sent release to his people,
decreed his covenant forever;
holy and fearsome is his name.
10 [d]The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;(C)
prudent are all who practice it.
His praise endures forever.
Psalm 112[e]
The Blessings of the Just
1 Hallelujah!
Blessed the man who fears the Lord,
who greatly delights in his commands.(D)
2 His descendants shall be mighty in the land,
a generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches shall be in his house;
his righteousness[f] shall endure forever.
4 Light shines through the darkness for the upright;(E)
gracious, compassionate, and righteous.
5 It is good for the man gracious in lending,
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 For he shall never be shaken;
the righteous shall be remembered forever.(F)
7 He shall not fear an ill report;
his heart is steadfast, trusting the Lord.
8 His heart is tranquil, without fear,
till at last he looks down on his foes.
9 Lavishly he gives to the poor;
his righteousness shall endure forever;(G)
his horn[g] shall be exalted in honor.
10 The wicked sees and is angry;
gnashes his teeth and wastes away;
the desire of the wicked come to nothing.
Psalm 113[h]
Praise of God’s Care for the Poor
1 Hallelujah!
I
Praise, you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.(H)
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
both now and forever.
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting(I)
let the name of the Lord be praised.
II
4 High above all nations is the Lord;
above the heavens his glory.(J)
5 Who is like the Lord our God,
enthroned on high,
6 (K)looking down on heaven and earth?
7 He raises the needy from the dust,
lifts the poor from the ash heap,(L)
8 Seats them with princes,
the princes of the people,
9 Gives the childless wife a home,
the joyful mother of children.(M)
Hallelujah!
III. Announcement of Judgment
Chapter 6
1 [a]Hear, then, what the Lord says:
Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
and let the hills hear your voice!(A)
2 Hear, O mountains, the Lord’s case,
pay attention, O foundations of the earth!
For the Lord has a case against his people;
he enters into trial with Israel.
3 My people, what have I done to you?
how have I wearied you? Answer me!(B)
4 I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
from the place of slavery I ransomed you;
And I sent before you Moses,
Aaron, and Miriam.(C)
5 [b]My people, remember what Moab’s King Balak planned,
and how Balaam, the son of Beor, answered him.
Recall the passage from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the just deeds of the Lord.(D)
6 [c]With what shall I come before the Lord,
and bow before God most high?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?(E)
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with myriad streams of oil?
[d] Shall I give my firstborn for my crime,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 [e]You have been told, O mortal, what is good,
and what the Lord requires of you:
Only to do justice and to love goodness,
and to walk humbly with your God.(F)
9 [a]For as I see it, God has exhibited us apostles as the last of all, like people sentenced to death, since we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and human beings alike.(A) 10 We are fools on Christ’s account, but you are wise in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are held in honor, but we in disrepute.(B) 11 To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clad and roughly treated, we wander about homeless(C) 12 and we toil, working with our own hands. When ridiculed, we bless; when persecuted, we endure;(D) 13 when slandered, we respond gently. We have become like the world’s rubbish, the scum of all, to this very moment.
14 I am writing you this not to shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved children.[b] 15 Even if you should have countless guides to Christ, yet you do not have many fathers, for I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.(E) 16 Therefore, I urge you, be imitators of me.(F)
21 (A)Then Jesus went from that place and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” 23 But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” 24 [a]He said in reply, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 (B)But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children[b] and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” 28 (C)Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is your faith![c] Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.
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