Book of Common Prayer
A psalm by the descendants of Korah. A song.
The Holy City for All People
87 God’s[a] foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 The Lord loves the gates of Zion
more than the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken about you,
city of God.
4 I will mention Rahab and Babylon
among those who acknowledge me—
including Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia[b]—
“This one was born there,” they say.[c]
5 Indeed, about Zion it will be said:
“More than one person[d] was born in it,” and
“The Most High himself did[e] it.”
6 The Lord will record,
as he registers the peoples,[f]
“This one was born there.”
BOOK IV (Psalms 90-106)
A prayer by Moses, the godly man
Life is Short
90 Lord, you’ve been our refuge[a]
from generation to generation.
2 Before the mountains were formed
or the earth and the world were brought forth,
you are God from eternity to eternity.
3 You return people to dust
merely by[b] saying, “Return, you mortals!”
4 One thousand years in your sight are but a single day
that passes by, just like a night watch.
5 You will sweep them away while they are asleep—
by morning they are like growing grass.
6 In the morning it blossoms and is renewed,
but toward evening, it fades and withers.
7 Indeed, we are consumed[c] by your anger
and terrified by your wrath.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
what we have concealed in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass[d] away in your wrath;
our years fade away[e] and end like a sigh.
10 We live for 70 years,
or 80 years if we’re healthy,[f]
yet even in the prime years[g] there are troubles and sorrow.
They pass by quickly and we fly away.
11 Who can know the intensity of your anger?
Because our fear of you matches your wrath,
12 teach us to keep account of our days
so we may develop inner wisdom.
13 Please return, Lord! When will it be?
Comfort your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your gracious love
so we may sing for joy
and rejoice every day.
15 Cause us to rejoice throughout the time when you have afflicted us,
the years when we have known[h] trouble.
16 May your awesome deeds be revealed to your servants,
as well as your splendor to their children.
17 May your favor be on us, Lord our God;
make our endeavors successful;
yes, make our endeavors secure!
God’s Gracious Love
136 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
4 To the one who alone does great and wondrous things,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
5 to the one who by wisdom made the heavens,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
6 to the one who spread out the earth over the waters,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
7 to the one who made the great lights,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
8 the sun to illumine[a] the day,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
9 and the moon and stars to illumine[b] the night,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
10 to the one who struck the firstborn of Egypt,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
11 and brought Israel out from among them,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
12 with a strong hand and an active[c] arm,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
13 To the one who split the Reed[d] Sea in two
for his gracious love is everlasting—
14 and made Israel pass through the middle of it,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
15 and cast Pharaoh and his armies into the Reed[e] Sea,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
16 To the one who led his people into the wilderness,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
17 to the one who struck down great kings,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
18 and killed famous kings,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
19 including Sihon king of the Amorites,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
20 and Og king of Bashan,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
21 and gave their land as an inheritance,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
22 to Israel his servant as a possession,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
23 He it is who remembered us in our lowly circumstances,
for his gracious love is everlasting—
24 and rescued us from our enemies,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
25 He gives food to all creatures,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
26 Give thanks to the God of Heaven,
for his gracious love is everlasting.
The Lord’s Call to Judgment
9 “Declare this among the nations:
‘Prepare for war!
Wake up your elite forces!
Let all the soldiers draw near!
Call them up!
10 Beat your plow blades into swords,
and your pruning knives into spears!
Let the frail say, “I am strong!”
11 Hurry and come, all you gentiles!
Gather yourselves together!’”
“Lord, cause your mighty army[a] to come down.
12 “Let the nations be awakened
and come to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
because I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.
13 Put in the sickle,
because the harvest is ripe.
Come and go down,
because the winepress is full.
The wine vats are overflowing,
because their evil is great!
14 “Multitudes, multitudes
in the Valley of Judgment!
For the Day of the Lord is near
in the Valley of Judgment!
15 The sun and moon will grow dark,
and the stars will stop shining.
16 “The Lord will roar from Zion,
and shout from Jerusalem.
The heavens and the earth will shake,
but the Lord will be the refuge of his people,
and the strength of the people of Israel.”
God’s Blessings on His People
17 “And truly you will know that I am the Lord your God,
dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain.
Then Jerusalem will be holy,
and no foreigners will invade her again.
Do Not Show Partiality
2 My brothers, do not let your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[a] be tainted by favoritism. 2 Suppose a man wearing gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly,[b] and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in. 3 If you give special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Please take this seat,” but you say to the poor man, “Stand over there” or “Sit on the floor at my feet,”[c] 4 then you will have made false distinctions among yourselves and will have judged from evil motives, will you not?
5 Listen, my dear brothers! God has chosen the poor in the world to become rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who keep on loving him, has he not? 6 But you have humiliated the man who is poor. Are not rich people the ones who oppress you and drag you into court? 7 Are not they the ones who blaspheme the noble Name[d] by which you have been called?
8 Nevertheless, you are doing the right thing if you obey the royal Law in keeping with the Scripture, “You must love your neighbor as yourself.”[e] 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and will be convicted by the Law as violators. 10 For whoever keeps the whole Law but fails in one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For the one who said, “Never commit adultery,”[f] also said, “Never murder.”[g] Now if you do not commit adultery, but you murder, you become a violator of the Law. 12 You must make it your habit to speak and act like people who are going to be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For the one who has shown no mercy will be judged without mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
10 Whoever is faithful with very little is also faithful with a lot, and whoever is dishonest with very little is also dishonest with a lot. 11 So if you haven’t been faithful with unrighteous wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? 12 And if you haven’t been faithful with what belongs to foreigners, who will give you what is your own?
13 “No servant can serve two masters, because either he will hate one and love the other, or be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and wealth!”
The Law and the Kingdom of God(A)
14 Now the Pharisees, who love money, had been listening to all this and began to ridicule Jesus.[a] 15 So he told them, “You try to justify yourselves in front of people, but God knows your hearts, because what is highly valued by people is detestable to God.
16 “The Law and the Prophets were fulfilled[b] with John. Since then, the good news about the kingdom of God is being proclaimed, and everybody enters it enthusiastically.[c] 17 However, it is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for one stroke of a letter in the Law to be dropped. 18 Any man who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.”
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