Book of Common Prayer
Mem.
97 O how I (A)love Your law!
It is my (B)meditation all the day.
98 Your (C)commandments make me wiser than my enemies,
For they are ever [a]mine.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
For Your testimonies are my (D)meditation.
100 I understand (E)more than the aged,
Because I have (F)observed Your precepts.
101 I have (G)restrained my feet from every evil way,
That I may keep Your word.
102 I have not (H)turned aside from Your ordinances,
For You Yourself have taught me.
103 How (I)sweet are Your [b]words to my [c]taste!
Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 From Your precepts I (J)get understanding;
Therefore I (K)hate every false way.
Nun.
105 Your word is a (L)lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
106 I have (M)sworn and I will confirm it,
That I will keep Your righteous ordinances.
107 I am exceedingly (N)afflicted;
[d](O)Revive me, O Lord, according to Your word.
108 O accept the (P)freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord,
And (Q)teach me Your ordinances.
109 My [e](R)life is continually [f]in my hand,
Yet I do not (S)forget Your law.
110 The wicked have (T)laid a snare for me,
Yet I have not (U)gone astray from Your precepts.
111 I have (V)inherited Your testimonies forever,
For they are the (W)joy of my heart.
112 I have (X)inclined my heart to perform Your statutes
Forever, even (Y)to the end.
Samekh.
113 I hate those who are (Z)double-minded,
But I love Your (AA)law.
114 You are my (AB)hiding place and my (AC)shield;
I [g](AD)wait for Your word.
115 (AE)Depart from me, evildoers,
That I may (AF)observe the commandments of my God.
116 (AG)Sustain me according to Your [h]word, that I may live;
And (AH)do not let me be [i]ashamed of my hope.
117 Uphold me that I may be (AI)safe,
That I may (AJ)have regard for Your statutes continually.
118 You have [j]rejected all those (AK)who wander from Your statutes,
For their deceitfulness is [k]useless.
119 You have [l]removed all the wicked of the earth like (AL)dross;
Therefore I (AM)love Your testimonies.
120 My flesh [m](AN)trembles for fear of You,
And I am (AO)afraid of Your judgments.
God’s Goodness and Israel’s Waywardness.
For the choir director; [a]on the Gittith. A Psalm of Asaph.
81 (A)Sing for joy to God our (B)strength;
Shout (C)joyfully to the (D)God of Jacob.
2 Raise a song, strike (E)the timbrel,
The sweet sounding (F)lyre with the (G)harp.
3 Blow the trumpet at the (H)new moon,
At the full moon, on our (I)feast day.
4 For it is a statute for Israel,
An ordinance of the God of Jacob.
5 He established it for a testimony in Joseph
When he [b](J)went throughout the land of Egypt.
I heard a (K)language that I did not know:
6 “I [c](L)relieved his shoulder of the burden,
His hands were freed from the [d]basket.
7 “You (M)called in trouble and I rescued you;
I (N)answered you in the hiding place of thunder;
I proved you at the (O)waters of Meribah. [e]Selah.
8 “(P)Hear, O My people, and I will [f]admonish you;
O Israel, if you (Q)would listen to Me!
9 “Let there be no (R)strange god among you;
Nor shall you worship any foreign god.
10 “(S)I, the Lord, am your God,
Who brought you up from the land of Egypt;
(T)Open your mouth wide and I will (U)fill it.
11 “But My people (V)did not listen to My voice,
And Israel did not [g]obey Me.
12 “So I (W)gave [h]them over to the stubbornness of their heart,
To walk in their own devices.
13 “Oh that My people (X)would listen to Me,
That Israel would (Y)walk in My ways!
14 “I would quickly (Z)subdue their enemies
And (AA)turn My hand against their adversaries.
15 “(AB)Those who hate the Lord would (AC)pretend obedience to Him,
And their time of punishment would be forever.
16 “[i]But I would feed you with the [j](AD)finest of the wheat,
And with (AE)honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
Unjust Judgments Rebuked.
A Psalm of Asaph.
82 God takes His (AF)stand in [k]His own congregation;
He (AG)judges in the midst of the [l](AH)rulers.
2 How long will you (AI)judge unjustly
And (AJ)show partiality to the wicked? [m]Selah.
3 (AK)Vindicate the weak and fatherless;
Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.
4 (AL)Rescue the weak and needy;
Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They (AM)do not know nor do they understand;
They (AN)walk about in darkness;
All the (AO)foundations of the earth are shaken.
6 [n]I (AP)said, “You are gods,
And all of you are (AQ)sons of the Most High.
7 “Nevertheless (AR)you will die like men
And fall like any (AS)one of the princes.”
8 (AT)Arise, O God, (AU)judge the earth!
For it is You who (AV)possesses all the nations.
15 Yes, truth is lacking;
And he who turns aside from evil (A)makes himself a prey.
Now the Lord saw,
And it was [a]displeasing in His sight (B)that there was no justice.
16 And He saw that there was (C)no man,
And was astonished that there was no one to intercede;
Then His (D)own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.
17 He put on (E)righteousness like a breastplate,
And a (F)helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on (G)garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with (H)zeal as a mantle.
18 (I)According to their [b]deeds, [c]so He will repay,
Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will [d]make recompense.
19 So they will fear the name of the Lord from the (J)west
And His glory from the (K)rising of the sun,
For He will (L)come like a [e]rushing stream
Which the wind of the Lord drives.
20 “A (M)Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those who (N)turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the Lord.
21 “As for Me, this is My (O)covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My (P)Spirit which is upon you, and My (Q)words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your [f]offspring, nor from the mouth of your [g]offspring’s offspring,” says the Lord, “from now and forever.”
15 You are aware of the fact that all who are in [a](A)Asia (B)turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 The Lord grant mercy to (C)the house of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and (D)was not ashamed of my [b](E)chains; 17 but when he was in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me— 18 the Lord grant to him to find mercy from the Lord on (F)that day—and you know very well what services he rendered at (G)Ephesus.
Be Strong
2 You therefore, my [c](H)son, (I)be strong in the grace that is in (J)Christ Jesus. 2 The things (K)which you have heard from me in the presence of (L)many witnesses, (M)entrust these to (N)faithful men who will be (O)able to teach others also. 3 (P)Suffer hardship with me, as a good (Q)soldier of (R)Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier in active service (S)entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. 5 Also if anyone (T)competes as an athlete, he [d]does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules. 6 (U)The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive his share of the crops. 7 Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.
8 Remember Jesus Christ, (V)risen from the dead, (W)descendant of David, (X)according to my gospel, 9 [e]for which I (Y)suffer hardship even to (Z)imprisonment as a (AA)criminal; but (AB)the word of God (AC)is not imprisoned. 10 For this reason (AD)I endure all things for (AE)the sake of those who are chosen, (AF)so that they also may obtain the (AG)salvation which is in (AH)Christ Jesus and with it (AI)eternal glory. 11 (AJ)It is a trustworthy statement:
Jesus’ Teaching about Divorce
10 (A)Getting up, He *went from there to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan; crowds *gathered around Him again, and, (B)according to His custom, He once more began to teach them.
2 Some Pharisees came up to Jesus, testing Him, and began to question Him whether it was lawful for a man to [a]divorce a wife. 3 And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?” 4 They said, “(C)Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and [b]send her away.” 5 But Jesus said to them, “[c](D)Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. 6 But (E)from the beginning of creation, God (F)made them male and female. 7 (G)For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother[d], 8 (H)and the two shall become one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”
10 In the house the disciples began questioning Him about this again. 11 And He *said to them, “(I)Whoever [e]divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her; 12 and (J)if she herself [f]divorces her husband and marries another man, she is committing adultery.”
Jesus Blesses Little Children
13 (K)And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; (L)for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I say to you, (M)whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” 16 And He (N)took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.
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