Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 119[a]
א (Alef)
119 How blessed are those whose actions are blameless,[b]
who obey[c] the law of the Lord.
2 How blessed are those who observe his rules,
and seek him with all their heart,
3 who, moreover, do no wrong,
but follow in his footsteps.[d]
4 You demand that your precepts
be carefully kept.[e]
5 If only I were predisposed[f]
to keep your statutes.
6 Then I would not be ashamed,
if[g] I were focused on[h] all your commands.
7 I will give you sincere thanks,[i]
when I learn your just regulations.
8 I will keep your statutes.
Do not completely abandon me.[j]
ב (Bet)
9 How can a young person[k] maintain a pure life?[l]
By guarding it according to your instructions.[m]
10 With all my heart I seek you.
Do not allow me to stray from your commands.
11 In my heart I store up[n] your words,[o]
so I might not sin against you.
12 You deserve praise,[p] O Lord.
Teach me your statutes.
13 With my lips I proclaim
all the regulations you have revealed.[q]
14 I rejoice in the lifestyle prescribed by your rules[r]
as if[s] they were riches of all kinds.[t]
15 I will meditate on[u] your precepts
and focus on[v] your behavior.[w]
16 I find delight[x] in your statutes;
I do not forget your instructions.[y]
ג (Gimel)
17 Be kind to your servant.
Then I will live[z] and keep[aa] your instructions.[ab]
18 Open[ac] my eyes so I can truly see[ad]
the marvelous things in your law.
19 I am a resident foreigner in this land.[ae]
Do not hide your commands from me.
20 I desperately long to know[af]
your regulations at all times.
21 You reprimand arrogant people.
Those who stray from your commands are doomed.[ag]
22 Spare me[ah] shame and humiliation,
for I observe your rules.
23 Though rulers plot and slander me,[ai]
your servant meditates on your statutes.
24 Yes, I find delight in your rules;
they give me guidance.[aj]
Psalm 12[a]
For the music director, according to the sheminith style;[b] a psalm of David.
12 Deliver, Lord!
For the godly[c] have disappeared;[d]
people of integrity[e] have vanished.[f]
2 People lie to one another;[g]
they flatter and deceive.[h]
3 May the Lord cut off[i] all flattering lips,
and the tongue that boasts![j]
4 They say,[k] “We speak persuasively;[l]
we know how to flatter and boast.[m]
Who is our master?”[n]
5 “Because of the violence done to the oppressed,[o]
because of the painful cries[p] of the needy,
I will spring into action,”[q] says the Lord.
“I will provide the safety they so desperately desire.”[r]
6 The Lord’s words are absolutely reliable.[s]
They are as untainted as silver purified in a furnace on the ground,
where it is thoroughly refined.[t]
7 You, Lord, will protect them;[u]
you will continually shelter each one from these evil people,[v]
8 for the wicked seem to be everywhere,[w]
when people promote evil.[x]
Psalm 13[y]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
13 How long, Lord, will you continue to ignore me?[z]
How long will you pay no attention to me?[aa]
2 How long must I worry,[ab]
and suffer in broad daylight?[ac]
How long will my enemy gloat over me?[ad]
3 Look at me![ae] Answer me, O Lord my God!
Revive me,[af] or else I will die.[ag]
4 Then[ah] my enemy will say, “I have defeated him.”
Then[ai] my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.
5 But I[aj] trust in your faithfulness.
May I rejoice because of your deliverance.[ak]
6 I will sing praises[al] to the Lord
when he vindicates me.[am]
Psalm 14[an]
For the music director, by David.
14 Fools say to themselves,[ao] “There is no God.”[ap]
They sin and commit evil deeds;[aq]
none of them does what is right.[ar]
2 The Lord looks down from heaven[as] at the human race,[at]
to see if there is anyone who is wise[au] and seeks God.[av]
3 Everyone rejects God;[aw]
they are all morally corrupt.[ax]
None of them does what is right,[ay]
not even one.
4 All those who behave wickedly[az] do not understand—[ba]
those who devour my people as if they were eating bread,
and do not call out to the Lord.
5 They are absolutely terrified,[bb]
for God defends the godly.[bc]
6 You want to humiliate the oppressed,[bd]
even though[be] the Lord is their[bf] shelter.
7 I wish the deliverance[bg] of Israel would come from Zion!
When the Lord restores the well-being of his people,[bh]
may Jacob rejoice,[bi]
may Israel be happy![bj]
Jonah Prays
17 (2:1)[a] The Lord sent[b] a huge[c] fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
2 Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish 2 and said,
“I[d] called out to the Lord from my distress,
and he answered me;[e]
from the belly of Sheol[f] I cried out for help,
and you heard my prayer.[g]
3 You threw me[h] into the deep waters,[i]
into the middle[j] of the sea;[k]
the ocean current[l] engulfed[m] me;
all the mighty waves[n] you sent[o] swept[p] over me.[q]
4 I thought[r] I had been banished from your sight[s]
and that I would never again[t] see your holy temple.[u]
5 Water engulfed me up to my neck;[v]
the deep ocean[w] surrounded me;
seaweed[x] was wrapped around my head.
6 I went down[y] to the very bottoms[z] of the mountains;[aa]
the gates[ab] of the netherworld[ac] barred me in[ad] forever,[ae]
but you brought me[af] up from the Pit,[ag] O Lord, my God.
7 When my life[ah] was ebbing away,[ai] I called out to[aj] the Lord.
And my prayer came to you, to your holy temple.[ak]
8 Those who worship[al] worthless idols[am] forfeit the mercy that could be theirs.[an]
9 But as for me, I promise to offer a sacrifice to you with a public declaration[ao] of praise;[ap]
I will surely do[aq] what I have promised.[ar]
Salvation[as] belongs to the Lord!”[at]
10 Then the Lord commanded[au] the fish and it vomited Jonah out onto dry land.
Caught in a Violent Storm
9 Since considerable time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous[a] because the fast[b] was already over,[c] Paul advised them,[d] 10 “Men, I can see the voyage is going to end[e] in disaster[f] and great loss not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.”[g] 11 But the centurion[h] was more convinced[i] by the captain[j] and the ship’s owner than by what Paul said.[k] 12 Because the harbor was not suitable to spend the winter in, the majority decided[l] to put out to sea[m] from there. They hoped that[n] somehow they could reach[o] Phoenix,[p] a harbor of Crete facing[q] southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there. 13 When a gentle south wind sprang up, they thought[r] they could carry out[s] their purpose, so they weighed anchor[t] and sailed close along the coast[u] of Crete. 14 Not long after this, a hurricane-force[v] wind called the northeaster[w] blew down from the island.[x] 15 When the ship was caught in it[y] and could not head into[z] the wind, we gave way to it and were driven[aa] along. 16 As we ran under the lee of[ab] a small island called Cauda,[ac] we were able with difficulty to get the ship’s boat[ad] under control. 17 After the crew[ae] had hoisted it aboard,[af] they used supports[ag] to undergird the ship. Fearing they would run aground[ah] on the Syrtis,[ai] they lowered the sea anchor,[aj] thus letting themselves be driven along. 18 The next day, because we were violently battered by the storm,[ak] they began throwing the cargo overboard,[al] 19 and on the third day they threw the ship’s gear[am] overboard with their own hands. 20 When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and a violent[an] storm continued to batter us,[ao] we finally abandoned all hope of being saved.[ap]
21 Since many of them had no desire to eat,[aq] Paul[ar] stood up[as] among them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me[at] and not put out to sea[au] from Crete, thus avoiding[av] this damage and loss. 22 And now I advise[aw] you to keep up your courage, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only the ship will be lost.[ax] 23 For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong[ay] and whom I serve[az] came to me[ba] 24 and said,[bb] ‘Do not be afraid, Paul! You must stand before[bc] Caesar,[bd] and God has graciously granted you the safety[be] of all who are sailing with you.’ 25 Therefore keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God[bf] that it will be just as I have been told. 26 But we must[bg] run aground on some island.”
The Sending of the Twelve Apostles
9 After[a] Jesus[b] called[c] the twelve[d] together, he gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure[e] diseases, 2 and he sent[f] them out to proclaim[g] the kingdom of God[h] and to heal the sick.[i] 3 He[j] said to them, “Take nothing for your[k] journey—no staff,[l] no bag,[m] no bread, no money, and do not take an extra tunic.[n] 4 Whatever[o] house you enter, stay there[p] until you leave the area.[q] 5 Wherever[r] they do not receive you,[s] as you leave that town,[t] shake the dust off[u] your feet as a testimony against them.” 6 Then[v] they departed and went throughout[w] the villages, proclaiming the good news[x] and healing people everywhere.
Herod’s Confusion about Jesus
7 Now Herod[y] the tetrarch[z] heard about everything that was happening, and he was thoroughly perplexed,[aa] because some people were saying that John[ab] had been raised from the dead, 8 while others were saying that Elijah[ac] had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had risen.[ad] 9 Herod said, “I had John[ae] beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” So Herod wanted to learn about Jesus.[af]
The Feeding of the Five Thousand
10 When[ag] the apostles returned,[ah] they told Jesus[ai] everything they had done. Then[aj] he took them with him and they withdrew privately to a town[ak] called Bethsaida.[al] 11 But when the crowds found out, they followed him. He[am] welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God,[an] and cured those who needed healing.[ao] 12 Now the day began to draw to a close,[ap] so[aq] the twelve came and said to Jesus,[ar] “Send the crowd away, so they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging[as] and food, because we are in an isolated place.”[at] 13 But he said to them, “You[au] give them something to eat.” They[av] replied,[aw] “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless[ax] we go[ay] and buy food[az] for all these people.” 14 (Now about 5,000 men[ba] were there.)[bb] Then[bc] he said to his disciples, “Have[bd] them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 So they did as Jesus directed,[be] and the people[bf] all sat down.
16 Then[bg] he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven he gave thanks[bh] and broke them. He gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 They all ate and were satisfied, and what was left over[bi] was picked up—twelve baskets of broken pieces.
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