Book of Common Prayer

Psalm 104

¹ Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, You are very great! You are clothed with honor and majesty—

² [You are the One] Who covers Yourself with light as with a garment, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain or a tent,

³ Who lays the beams of the upper room of His abode in the waters [above the firmament], Who makes the clouds His chariot, Who walks on the wings of the wind,

⁴ Who makes winds His messengers, flames of fire His ministers.^(A)

⁵ You laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be moved forever.^(B)

⁶ You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.^(C)

⁷ At Your rebuke they fled; at the voice of Your thunder they hastened away.

⁸ The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place which You appointed for them.

⁹ You have set a boundary [for the waters] which they may not pass over, that they turn not again to deluge the earth.

¹⁰ He sends forth springs into the valleys; their waters run among the mountains.

¹¹ They give drink to every [wild] beast of the field; the wild asses quench their thirst there.

¹² Beside them the birds of the heavens have their nests; they sing among the branches.^(D)

¹³ He waters the mountains from His upper rooms; the earth is satisfied and abounds with the fruit of His works.

¹⁴ He causes vegetation to grow for the cattle, and all that the earth produces for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food out of the earth—

¹⁵ And wine that gladdens the heart of man, to make his face shine more than oil, and bread to support, refresh, and strengthen man’s heart.

¹⁶ The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly and are filled with sap, the cedars of Lebanon which He has planted,

¹⁷ Where the birds make their nests; as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.

¹⁸ The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the conies and badgers.

¹⁹ [The Lord] appointed the moon for the seasons; the sun knows [the exact time of] its setting.

²⁰ You [O Lord] make darkness and it becomes night, in which creeps forth every wild beast of the forest.

²¹ The young lions roar after their prey and seek their food from God.

²² When the sun arises, they withdraw themselves and lie down in their dens.

²³ Man goes forth to his work and remains at his task until evening.

²⁴ O Lord, how many and varied are Your works! In wisdom have You made them all; the earth is full of Your riches and Your creatures.

²⁵ Yonder is the sea, great and wide, in which are swarms of innumerable creeping things, creatures both small and great.

²⁶ There go the ships of the sea, and Leviathan (the sea monster), which You have formed to sport in it.

²⁷ These all wait and are dependent upon You, that You may give them their food in due season.

²⁸ When You give it to them, they gather it up; You open Your hand, and they are filled with good things.

²⁹ When You hide Your face, they are troubled and dismayed; when You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.

³⁰ When You send forth Your Spirit and give them breath, they are created, and You replenish the face of the ground.

³¹ May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works—

³² Who looks on the earth, and it quakes and trembles, Who touches the mountains, and they smoke!

³³ I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have any being.

³⁴ May my meditation be sweet to Him; as for me, I will rejoice in the Lord.

³⁵ Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul! Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)

61 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed and qualified me to preach the Gospel of good tidings to the meek, the poor, and afflicted; He has sent me to bind up and heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the [physical and spiritual] captives and the opening of the prison and of the eyes to those who are bound,^(A)

² To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord [the year of His favor] ^[a]and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,^(B)

³ To grant [consolation and joy] to those who mourn in Zion—to give them an ornament (a garland or diadem) of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, the garment [expressive] of praise instead of a heavy, burdened, and failing spirit—that they may be called oaks of righteousness [lofty, strong, and magnificent, distinguished for uprightness, justice, and right standing with God], the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.

⁴ And they shall rebuild the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former desolations and renew the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

⁵ Aliens shall stand [ready] and feed your flocks, and foreigners shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

⁶ But you shall be called the priests of the Lord; people will speak of you as the ministers of our God. You shall eat the wealth of the nations, and the glory [once that of your captors] shall be yours.^(C)

⁷ Instead of your [former] shame you shall have a twofold recompense; instead of dishonor and reproach [your people] shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land they shall possess double [what they had forfeited]; everlasting joy shall be theirs.

⁸ For I the Lord love justice; I hate robbery and wrong with violence or a burnt offering. And I will faithfully give them their recompense in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant or league with them.

⁹ And their offspring shall be known among the nations and their descendants among the peoples. All who see them [in their prosperity] will recognize and acknowledge that they are the people whom the Lord has blessed.

²³ Now before the faith came, we were perpetually guarded under the Law, kept in custody in preparation for the faith that was destined to be revealed (unveiled, disclosed),

²⁴ So that the Law served ^[a][to us Jews] as our trainer [our guardian, our guide to Christ, to lead us] until Christ [came], that we might be justified (declared righteous, put in right standing with God) by and through faith.

²⁵ But now that the faith has come, we are no longer under a trainer (the guardian of our childhood).

²⁶ For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith.

²⁷ For as many [of you] as were baptized into Christ [into a spiritual union and communion with Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah] have put on (clothed yourselves with) Christ.

²⁸ There is [now no distinction] neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is not male ^[b]and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

²⁹ And if you belong to Christ [are in Him Who is Abraham’s Seed], then you are Abraham’s offspring and [spiritual] heirs according to promise.

⁴ But when the proper time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born subject to [the regulations of] the Law,

⁵ To purchase the freedom of (to ransom, to redeem, to ^[a]atone for) those who were subject to the Law, that we might be adopted and have sonship conferred upon us [and be recognized as God’s sons].

⁶ And because you [really] are [His] sons, God has sent the [^[b]Holy] Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba (Father)! Father!

⁷ Therefore, you are no longer a slave (bond servant) but a son; and if a son, then [it follows that you are] an heir ^[c]by the aid of God, through Christ.