Book of Common Prayer
Prayer of an Afflicted Man for Mercy on Himself and on Zion.
A Prayer of the Afflicted when he is faint and [a]pours out his complaint before the Lord.
102 (A)Hear my prayer, O Lord!
And let my cry for help (B)come to You.
2 (C)Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my distress;
(D)Incline Your ear to me;
In the day when I call (E)answer me quickly.
3 For my days (F)have been [b]consumed in smoke,
And my (G)bones have been scorched like a hearth.
4 My heart (H)has been smitten like [c]grass and has (I)withered away,
Indeed, I (J)forget to eat my bread.
5 Because of the [d]loudness of my groaning
My (K)bones [e]cling to my flesh.
6 I [f]resemble a (L)pelican of the wilderness;
I have become like an owl of the waste places.
7 I (M)lie awake,
I have become like a lonely bird on a housetop.
8 My enemies (N)have reproached me all day long;
Those who [g](O)deride me [h]have used my name as a (P)curse.
9 For I have eaten ashes like bread
And (Q)mingled my drink with weeping
10 (R)Because of Your indignation and Your wrath,
For You have (S)lifted me up and cast me away.
11 My days are like a [i](T)lengthened shadow,
And [j]I (U)wither away like [k]grass.
12 But You, O Lord, [l](V)abide forever,
And Your [m](W)name 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 [n]find pleasure in her stones
And feel pity for her dust.
15 [o]So the [p](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)regarded the prayer of the [q]destitute
And has not despised their prayer.
18 [r]This will be (AG)written for the (AH)generation to come,
[s]That (AI)a people yet to be created [t]may praise [u]the Lord.
19 For He (AJ)looked down from His holy height;
(AK)From heaven the Lord gazed [v]upon the earth,
20 To hear the (AL)groaning of the prisoner,
To (AM)set free [w]those who were doomed to death,
21 That men 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 weakened my strength in the way;
He has (AP)shortened my days.
24 I say, “O my God, (AQ)do not take me away in the [x]midst of my days,
Your (AR)years are throughout all generations.
25 “Of old You (AS)founded the earth,
And the (AT)heavens are the work of Your hands.
26 “[y]Even they will (AU)perish, but You endure;
And all of them will wear out like a garment;
Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.
27 “But You are [z](AV)the same,
And Your years will not come to an end.
28 “The (AW)children of Your servants will continue,
And their [aa](AX)descendants will be established before You.”
BOOK 5
The Lord Delivers Men from Manifold Troubles.
107 Oh (A)give thanks to the Lord, for (B)He is good,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
2 Let (C)the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has (D)redeemed from the hand of the adversary
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)soul fainted within them.
6 Then they (I)cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He delivered them out of their distresses.
7 He led them also by a [e](J)straight way,
To go to [f](K)an inhabited city.
8 (L)Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His [g]wonders to the sons of men!
9 For He has (M)satisfied the [h]thirsty soul,
And the (N)hungry soul He has filled with what is good.
10 There were those who (O)dwelt in darkness and in the shadow of death,
(P)Prisoners in [i]misery and [j]chains,
11 Because they had (Q)rebelled against the words of God
And (R)spurned the (S)counsel of the Most High.
12 Therefore He humbled their heart with labor;
They stumbled and there was (T)none to help.
13 Then they (U)cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them out of their distresses.
14 He (V)brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death
And (W)broke their bands apart.
15 (X)Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His [k]wonders to the sons of men!
16 For He has (Y)shattered gates of bronze
And cut bars of iron asunder.
17 Fools, because of [l]their rebellious way,
And (Z)because of their iniquities, were afflicted.
18 Their (AA)soul abhorred all kinds of food,
And they (AB)drew near to the (AC)gates of death.
19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them out of their distresses.
20 He (AD)sent His word and (AE)healed them,
And (AF)delivered them from their [m]destructions.
21 (AG)Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His [n]wonders to the sons of men!
22 Let them 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 [o]wonders in the deep.
25 For He (AK)spoke and raised up a (AL)stormy wind,
Which (AM)lifted up the waves [p]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 man,
And [q]were at their wits’ end.
28 Then they cried 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 [r]of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad because they were quiet,
So He guided them to their desired haven.
31 (AQ)Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His [s](AR)wonders to the sons of men!
32 Let them (AS)extol Him also (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 but a few days,
Or an old man who does (F)not [c]live out his days;
For the youth will die at the age of one hundred
And the [d](G)one who does not reach the age of one 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)wear out the work of their hands.
23 “They will (M)not labor in vain,
Or bear children for calamity;
For they are the [f](N)offspring 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; and while they are still speaking, I will hear. 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 in all My (T)holy mountain,” says the Lord.
Concerning Elders
17 (A)The elders who (B)rule 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 he is threshing,” and “(E)The laborer is worthy of his wages.” 19 Do not receive 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 charge 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 hastily and [b]thereby share (L)responsibility for the sins of others; keep yourself [c]free from sin.
23 No longer drink water exclusively, but (M)use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.
24 The sins of some men 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 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 foremost is, ‘(C)Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; 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 The scribe said to Him, “Right, Teacher; You have truly stated that (F)He is One, and there is no one else 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 himself, (H)is much more than all 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)After that, no one would venture to ask Him any more questions.
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