Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 34[a]
By David, when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, causing the king to send him away.[b]
34 I will praise[c] the Lord at all times;
my mouth will continually praise him.[d]
2 I will boast[e] in the Lord;
let the oppressed hear and rejoice.[f]
3 Magnify the Lord with me.
Let us praise[g] his name together.
4 I sought the Lord’s help[h] and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
5 Look to him and be radiant;
do not let your faces be ashamed.[i]
6 This oppressed man cried out and the Lord heard;
he saved him[j] from all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord camps around
the Lord’s[k] loyal followers[l] and delivers them.[m]
8 Taste[n] and see that the Lord is good.
How blessed[o] is the one[p] who takes shelter in him.[q]
9 Fear the Lord, you chosen people of his,[r]
for those who fear him lack nothing.
10 Even young lions sometimes lack food and are hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
11 Come children. Listen to me.
I will teach you what it means to fear the Lord.[s]
12 Do you want to really live?[t]
Would you love to live a long, happy life?[u]
13 Then make sure you don’t speak evil words[v]
or use deceptive speech.[w]
14 Turn away from evil and do what is right.[x]
Strive for peace and promote it.[y]
15 The Lord pays attention to the godly
and hears their cry for help.[z]
16 But the Lord opposes evildoers
and wipes out all memory of them from the earth.[aa]
17 The godly[ab] cry out and the Lord hears;
he saves them from all their troubles.[ac]
18 The Lord is near the brokenhearted;
he delivers[ad] those who are discouraged.[ae]
19 The godly[af] face many dangers,[ag]
but the Lord saves[ah] them[ai] from each one of them.
20 He protects[aj] all his bones;[ak]
not one of them is broken.[al]
21 Evil people self-destruct;[am]
those who hate the godly are punished.[an]
22 The Lord rescues his servants;[ao]
all who take shelter in him escape punishment.[ap]
Delivery of the Exiles
49 Listen to me, you coastlands![a]
Pay attention, you people who live far away!
The Lord summoned me from birth;[b]
he commissioned me when my mother brought me into the world.[c]
2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
he hid me in the hollow of his hand;
he made me like a sharpened[d] arrow,
he hid me in his quiver.[e]
3 He said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, through whom I will reveal my splendor.”[f]
4 But I thought,[g] “I have worked in vain;
I have expended my energy for absolutely nothing.”[h]
But the Lord will vindicate me;
my God will reward me.[i]
5 So now the Lord says,
the one who formed me from birth[j] to be his servant—
he did this[k] to restore Jacob to himself,
so that Israel might be gathered to him;
and I will be honored[l] in the Lord’s sight,
for my God is my source of strength[m]—
6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,
to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,
and restore the remnant[n] of Israel?[o]
I will make you a light to the nations,[p]
so you can bring[q] my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”
The Apostles’ Ministry
4 One[a] should think about us this way—as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Now what is sought in stewards is that one be found faithful. 3 So for me, it is a minor matter that I am judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not acquitted because of this. The one who judges me is the Lord. 5 So then, do not judge anything before the time. Wait until the Lord comes. He will[b] bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the motives of hearts. Then each will receive recognition[c] from God.
6 I have applied these things to myself and Apollos because of you, brothers and sisters,[d] so that through us you may learn “not to go beyond what is written,” so that none of you will be puffed up in favor of the one against the other. 7 For who concedes you any superiority? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it, why do you boast as though you did not? 8 Already you are satisfied! Already you are rich! You have become kings without us! I wish you had become kings so that we could reign with you! 9 For, I think, God has exhibited us apostles last of all, as men condemned to die, because we have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to people. 10 We are fools for Christ, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are distinguished, we are dishonored! 11 To the present hour we are hungry and thirsty, poorly clothed, brutally treated, and without a roof over our heads. 12 We do hard work, toiling with our own hands. When we are verbally abused, we respond with a blessing, when persecuted, we endure, 13 when people lie about us, we answer in a friendly manner. We are the world’s dirt and scum, even now.
A Father’s Warning
14 I am not writing these things to shame you, but to correct you as my dear children. 15 For though you may have 10,000 guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, because I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 16 I encourage you, then, be imitators of me.
Psalm 96[a]
96 Sing to the Lord a new song.[b]
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord. Praise his name.
Announce every day how he delivers.[c]
3 Tell the nations about his splendor.
Tell[d] all the nations about his amazing deeds.
4 For the Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise;
he is more awesome than all gods.[e]
5 For all the gods of the nations are worthless,[f]
but the Lord made the sky.
6 Majestic splendor emanates from him;[g]
his sanctuary is firmly established and beautiful.[h]
7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the nations,
ascribe to the Lord splendor and strength.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the splendor he deserves.[i]
Bring an offering and enter his courts.
9 Worship the Lord in holy attire.[j]
Tremble before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!
The world is established; it cannot be moved.
He judges the nations fairly.”
11 Let the sky rejoice, and the earth be happy.
Let the sea and everything in it shout.
12 Let the fields and everything in them celebrate.
Then let the trees of the forest shout with joy
13 before the Lord, for he comes.
For he comes to judge the earth.
He judges the world fairly,[k]
and the nations in accordance with his justice.[l]
Psalm 100[a]
A thanksgiving psalm.
100 Shout out praises to the Lord, all the earth!
2 Worship[b] the Lord with joy.
Enter his presence with joyful singing.
3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God.
He made us and we belong to him,[c]
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise.
Give him thanks.
Praise his name.
5 For the Lord is good.
His loyal love endures,[d]
and he is faithful through all generations.[e]
35 Again the next day John[a] was standing there[b] with two of his disciples. 36 Gazing at Jesus as he walked by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”[c] 37 When John’s[d] two disciples heard him say this,[e] they followed Jesus.[f] 38 Jesus turned around and saw them following and said to them, “What do you want?”[g] So they said to him, “Rabbi” (which is translated Teacher),[h] “where are you staying?” 39 Jesus[i] answered,[j] “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. Now it was about four o’clock in the afternoon.[k]
Andrew’s Declaration
40 Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two disciples who heard what John said[l] and followed Jesus.[m] 41 He first[n] found his own brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah!”[o] (which is translated Christ).[p] 42 Andrew brought Simon[q] to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, the son of John.[r] You will be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).[s]
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