Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66
Praise for God’s Mighty Acts
For the choir director. A song. A psalm.
1 Let the whole earth shout joyfully to God!(A)
2 Sing about the glory of his name;
make his praise glorious.(B)
3 Say to God, “How awe-inspiring are your works!
Your enemies will cringe before you
because of your great strength.(C)
4 The whole earth will worship you
and sing praise to you.
They will sing praise to your name.”(D)Selah
5 Come and see the wonders of God;(E)
his acts for humanity[a] are awe-inspiring.
6 He turned the sea into dry land,
and they crossed the river on foot.(F)
There we rejoiced in him.(G)
7 He rules forever by his might;
he keeps his eye on the nations.(H)
The rebellious should not exalt themselves.(I)Selah
8 Bless our God, you peoples;
let the sound of his praise be heard.(J)
9 He keeps us alive[b]
and does not allow our feet to slip.(K)
10 For you, God, tested us;
you refined us as silver is refined.(L)
11 You lured us into a trap;
you placed burdens on our backs.(M)
12 You let men ride over our heads;
we went through fire and water,
but you brought us out to abundance.[c](N)
13 I will enter your house with burnt offerings;
I will pay you my vows(O)
14 that my lips promised
and my mouth spoke during my distress.(P)
15 I will offer you fattened sheep as burnt offerings,
with the fragrant smoke of rams;
I will sacrifice bulls with goats.(Q)Selah
16 Come and listen, all who fear God,
and I will tell what he has done for me.(R)
17 I cried out to him with my mouth,
and praise was on my tongue.(S)
18 If I had been aware of malice in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.(T)
19 However, God has listened;
he has paid attention to the sound of my prayer.(U)
20 Blessed be God!
He has not turned away my prayer
or turned his faithful love from me.(V)
Psalm 67
All Will Praise God
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us;
may he make his face shine upon us(W)Selah
2 so that your way may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.(X)
Psalm 116
Thanks to God for Deliverance
1 I love the Lord because he has heard
my appeal for mercy.(A)
2 Because he has turned his ear to me,
I will call out to him as long as I live.(B)
3 The ropes of death were wrapped around me,
and the torments of Sheol overcame me;
I encountered trouble and sorrow.(C)
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
“Lord, save me!” (D)
5 The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is compassionate.(E)
6 The Lord guards the inexperienced;
I was helpless, and he saved me.(F)
7 Return to your rest, my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.(G)
8 For you, Lord, rescued me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.(H)
9 I will walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.(I)
10 I believed, even when I said,
“I am severely oppressed.”(J)
11 In my alarm I said,
“Everyone is a liar.”(K)
12 How can I repay the Lord
for all the good he has done for me?(L)
13 I will take the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord.(M)
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.(N)
15 The death of his faithful ones
is valuable in the Lord’s sight.(O)
16 Lord, I am indeed your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your female servant.
You have loosened my bonds.(P)
17 I will offer you a thanksgiving sacrifice
and call on the name of the Lord.(Q)
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people,(R)
19 in the courts of the Lord’s house—
within you, Jerusalem.(S)
Hallelujah!
Psalm 117
Universal Call to Praise
Israel Regathered
10 On that day the root of Jesse(A)
will stand as a banner for the peoples.(B)
The nations will look to him for guidance,(C)
and his resting place will be glorious.(D)
11 On that day(E) the Lord will extend his hand a second time to recover the remnant of his people who survive—from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and the coasts and islands of the west.(F)
12 He will lift up a banner for the nations
and gather the dispersed of Israel;(G)
he will collect the scattered of Judah
from the four corners of the earth.(H)
13 Ephraim’s envy will cease;(I)
Judah’s harassing will end.
Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah,
and Judah will not harass Ephraim.
14 But they will swoop down
on the Philistine flank to the west.
Together they will plunder the people of the east.(J)
They will extend their power over Edom and Moab,
and the Ammonites will be their subjects.(K)
15 The Lord will divide[a][b] the Gulf of Suez.[c]
He will wave his hand over the Euphrates
with his mighty wind(L)
and will split it into seven streams,
letting people walk through on foot.
16 There will be a highway for the remnant of his people
who will survive from Assyria,(M)
as there was for Israel
when they came up from the land of Egypt.(N)
The Great White Throne Judgment
11 Then I saw a great white throne and one seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them.(A) 12 I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.(B) Another book was opened, which is the book of life,(C) and the dead were judged according to their works(D) by what was written in the books. 13 Then the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades(E) gave up the dead that were in them; each one was judged according to their works. 14 Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.(F) This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
The New Creation
21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth;(G) for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,(H) and the sea was no more.(I) 2 I also saw the holy city,(J) the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,(K) prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.(L)
3 Then I heard a loud voice(M) from the throne:[a](N) Look, God’s dwelling[b] is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples,[c](O) and God himself will be with them and will be their God.[d] 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.(P) Death will be no more;(Q) grief, crying, and pain will be no more,(R) because the previous things[e] have passed away.(S)
5 Then the one seated on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new.” He also said, “Write, because these words[f] are faithful and true.”(T) 6 Then he said to me, “It is done!(U) I am the Alpha and the Omega,(V) the beginning and the end.(W) I will freely give to the thirsty(X) from the spring of the water of life.(Y) 7 The one who conquers(Z) will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be my son.(AA) 8 But the cowards, faithless,[g] detestable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars(AB)—their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur,(AC) which is the second death.”(AD)
Gabriel Predicts John’s Birth
5 In the days of King Herod(A) of Judea, there was a priest of Abijah’s division(B) named Zechariah. His wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 Both were righteous in God’s sight,(C) living without blame(D) according to all the commands and requirements of the Lord. 7 But they had no children because Elizabeth could not conceive, and both of them were well along in years.(E)
8 When his division was on duty(F) and he was serving as priest before God, 9 it happened that he was chosen by lot,(G) according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense.(H) 10 At the hour of incense the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. 11 An angel of the Lord(I) appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.(J) 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified and overcome with fear.(K) 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid,(L) Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard.(M) Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.(N) 14 There will be joy and delight for you, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord and will never drink wine or beer.(O) He will be filled with the Holy Spirit(P) while still in his mother’s womb.(Q) 16 He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.(R) 17 And he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of fathers to their children,(S) and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to make ready for the Lord a prepared people.”(T)
18 “How can I know this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “For I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years.”
19 The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel,(U) who stands in the presence of God,(V) and I was sent to speak to you and tell you this good news. 20 Now listen. You will become silent and unable to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah, amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary. 22 When he did come out, he could not speak to them. Then they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He was making signs to them(W) and remained speechless. 23 When the days of his ministry were completed, he went back home.
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived and kept herself in seclusion for five months. She said, 25 “The Lord has done this for me. He has looked with favor in these days to take away my disgrace(X) among the people.”
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