Book of Common Prayer
Prayer of an Afflicted Man for Mercy on Himself and on Zion.
A Prayer of the afflicted when he is weak and [a]pours out his complaint before the Lord.
102 (A)Hear my prayer, Lord!
And let my cry for help (B)come to You.
2 (C)Do not hide Your face from me on the day of my distress;
(D)Incline Your ear to me;
On the day when I call (E)answer me quickly.
3 For my days (F)have ended in smoke,
And my (G)bones have been scorched like a hearth.
4 My heart (H)has been struck like [b]grass and has (I)withered,
Indeed, I (J)forget to eat my bread.
5 Because of the [c]loudness of my groaning
My (K)bones [d]cling to my flesh.
6 I resemble a (L)pelican of the wilderness;
I have become like an owl of the ruins.
7 I (M)lie awake,
I have become like a solitary bird on a housetop.
8 My enemies (N)have taunted me all day long;
Those who [e](O)deride me [f]have used my name as a (P)curse.
9 For I have eaten ashes like bread,
And (Q)mixed my drink with weeping
10 (R)Because of Your indignation and Your wrath;
For You have (S)lifted me up and thrown me away.
11 My days are like a [g](T)lengthened shadow,
And [h]I (U)wither away like [i]grass.
12 But You, Lord, [j](V)remain forever,
And Your [k](W)name remains to all generations.
13 You will (X)arise and have (Y)compassion on Zion;
For (Z)it is time to be gracious to her,
For the (AA)appointed time has come.
14 Surely Your servants [l]take pleasure in her stones,
And feel pity for her dust.
15 [m]So the [n](AB)nations will fear the name of the Lord,
And (AC)all the kings of the earth, Your glory.
16 For the Lord has (AD)built up Zion;
He has (AE)appeared in His glory.
17 He has (AF)turned His attention to the prayer of the [o]destitute
And has not despised their prayer.
18 [p]This will be (AG)written for the (AH)generation to come,
[q]That (AI)a people yet to be created [r]may praise [s]the Lord:
19 For He (AJ)looked down from His holy height;
(AK)From heaven the Lord looked [t]upon the earth,
20 To hear the (AL)groaning of the prisoner,
To (AM)set free [u]those who were doomed to death,
21 So that people may (AN)tell of the name of the Lord in Zion,
And His praise in Jerusalem,
22 When (AO)the peoples are gathered together,
And the kingdoms, to serve the Lord.
23 He has broken my strength in the way;
He has (AP)shortened my days.
24 I say, “My God, (AQ)do not take me away in the middle of my days,
Your (AR)years are [v]throughout all generations.
25 In time of old You (AS)founded the earth,
And the (AT)heavens are the work of Your hands.
26 [w]Even they will (AU)perish, but You endure;
All of them will wear out like a garment;
Like clothing You will change them and they will pass away.
27 But You are [x](AV)the same,
And Your years will not come to an end.
28 The (AW)children of Your servants will continue,
And their [y](AX)descendants will be established before You.”
BOOK 5
The Lord Rescues People from Many Troubles.
107 (A)Give thanks to the Lord, for (B)He is good,
For His mercy is everlasting.
2 (C)The redeemed of the Lord shall say so,
Those whom He has (D)redeemed from the hand of the enemy
3 And (E)gathered from the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the [a]south.
4 They (F)wandered in the wilderness in a [b]desert region;
They did not find a way to [c]an inhabited (G)city.
5 They were hungry [d]and thirsty;
Their (H)souls felt weak within them.
6 Then they (I)cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them from their distresses.
7 He also had them walk on a [e](J)straight way,
To go to [f](K)an inhabited city.
8 (L)They shall give thanks to the Lord for His mercy,
And for His [g]wonders to the sons of mankind!
9 For He has (M)satisfied the [h]thirsty soul,
And He has filled the (N)hungry soul with what is good.
10 There were those who (O)lived in darkness and in [i]the shadow of death,
(P)Prisoners in misery and [j]chains,
11 Because they had (Q)rebelled against the words of God
And (R)rejected the (S)plan of the Most High.
12 Therefore He humbled their heart with labor;
They stumbled and there was (T)no one to help.
13 Then they (U)cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them from their distresses.
14 He (V)brought them out of darkness and [k]the shadow of death
And (W)broke their bands apart.
15 (X)They shall give thanks to the Lord for His mercy,
And for His [l]wonders to the sons of mankind!
16 For He has (Y)shattered gates of bronze
And cut off bars of iron.
17 Fools, because of [m]their rebellious way,
And (Z)because of their guilty deeds, were afflicted.
18 Their (AA)souls loathed all kinds of food,
And they (AB)came close to the (AC)gates of death.
19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them from their distresses.
20 He (AD)sent His word and (AE)healed them,
And (AF)saved them from their [n]destruction.
21 (AG)They shall give thanks to the Lord for His mercy,
And for His [o]wonders to the sons of mankind!
22 They shall also offer (AH)sacrifices of thanksgiving,
And (AI)tell of His works with joyful singing.
23 Those who (AJ)go down to the sea in ships,
Who do business on great waters;
24 They have seen the works of the Lord,
And His [p]wonders in the deep.
25 For He (AK)spoke and raised a (AL)stormy wind,
Which (AM)lifted the waves [q]of the sea.
26 They rose up to the heavens, they went down to the depths;
Their soul (AN)melted away in their misery.
27 They reeled and (AO)staggered like a drunken person,
And [r]were at their wits’ end.
28 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He brought them out of their distresses.
29 He (AP)caused the storm to be still,
So that the waves [s]of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad because they were quiet,
So He guided them to their desired harbor.
31 (AQ)They shall give thanks to the Lord for His mercy,
And for His [t](AR)wonders to the sons of mankind!
32 They shall also (AS)exalt Him (AT)in the congregation of the people,
And (AU)praise Him at the seat of the elders.
New Heavens and a New Earth
17 “For behold, I create (A)new heavens and a new earth;
And the (B)former things will not be remembered or come to [a]mind.
18 But be (C)glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing
And her people for gladness.
19 I will also (D)rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people;
And there will no longer be heard in her
The voice of (E)weeping and the sound of crying.
20 No longer will there be [b]in it an infant who lives only a few days,
Or an old person who does (F)not [c]live out his days;
For the youth will die at the age of a hundred,
And the [d](G)one who does not reach the age of a hundred
Will be thought accursed.
21 They will (H)build houses and inhabit them;
They will also (I)plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They will not build and (J)another inhabit,
They will not plant and another eat;
For (K)as the [e]lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people,
And My chosen ones will (L)fully enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They will (M)not labor in vain,
Or give birth to children for disaster;
For they are the [f](N)descendants of those blessed by the Lord,
And their descendants with them.
24 It will also come to pass that before they call, I will (O)answer; while they are still speaking, I will listen. 25 The (P)wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the (Q)lion will eat straw like the ox; and (R)dust will be the serpent’s food. They will (S)do no evil or harm on all My (T)holy mountain,” says the Lord.
Concerning Elders
17 (A)The elders who (B)lead well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who (C)work hard [a]at preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “(D)You shall not muzzle the ox while it is threshing,” and “(E)The laborer is worthy of his wages.” 19 Do not accept an accusation against an (F)elder except on the basis of (G)two or three witnesses. 20 Those who continue in sin, (H)rebuke in the presence of all, (I)so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning. 21 (J)I solemnly exhort you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of His chosen angels, to maintain these principles without bias, doing nothing in a spirit of partiality. 22 (K)Do not lay hands upon anyone too quickly and [b]thereby share (L)responsibility for the sins of others; keep yourself [c]free from sin.
23 Do not go on drinking only water, but (M)use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.
24 The sins of some people are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins (N)follow after. 25 Likewise also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and (O)those which are otherwise cannot be concealed.
28 (A)One of the scribes came up and heard them arguing, and (B)recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the [a]foremost of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The [b]foremost is, ‘(C)Hear, Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one; 30 (D)and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘(E)You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher; You have truly stated that (F)He is One, and there is no other besides Him; 33 (G)and to love Him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, (H)is much more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” (I)And then, no one dared any longer to question Him.
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