Book of Common Prayer
33 He changed rivers into a desert.
He stopped springs from flowing.
34 He made the fertile land become salty,
because the people living there did such evil things.
35 He changed the desert into a land with pools of water.
He caused springs to flow from dry ground.
36 He led the hungry to that good land,
and they built a city to live in.
37 They planted seeds in their fields and grapes in their vineyards,
and they had a good harvest.
38 God blessed them with many children
and plenty of animals.
39 But because of disaster and troubles,
their families became small and weak.
40 God shames even great leaders
and makes them wander through empty deserts.
41 But he rescues the poor from their misery.
He makes their families large like flocks of sheep.
42 Good people see this and are happy.
But the wicked see it and don’t know what to say.
43 Whoever is wise will remember these things
and begin to understand the Lord’s faithful love.
A praise song of David.
108 God, I am ready, heart and soul,
to sing songs of praise.
Wake up, my soul!
2 Harps and lyres, wake up,
and let’s wake the dawn!
3 Lord, I will praise you before all people.
I will sing praises about you to every nation.
4 Your faithful love is higher
than the highest clouds in the sky!
5 Rise above the heavens, God.
Let all the world see your glory.
6 Use your great power and help us!
Answer my prayer and save the people you love.
7 God has made this promise in his Temple[a]:
“I will win the war and rejoice in victory!
I will divide this land among my people.
I will give them Shechem.
I will give them Succoth Valley.
8 Gilead and Manasseh will be mine.
Ephraim will be my helmet.
Judah will be my royal scepter.
9 Moab will be the bowl for washing my feet.
Edom will be the slave who carries my sandals.
I will defeat the Philistines and shout in victory!”
10-11 But, God, it seems that you have left us!
You do not go out with our army.
So who will lead me into the strong, protected city?
Who will lead me into battle against Edom?
12 Help us defeat the enemy!
No one on earth can rescue us.
13 Only God can make us strong.
Only God can defeat our enemies!
33 Rejoice in the Lord, good people!
It is only right for good people to praise him.
2 Play the lyre and praise the Lord.
Play the ten-stringed harp for him.
3 Sing a new song[a] to him.
Play it well and sing it loud!
4 The Lord’s word is true,
and he is faithful in everything he does.
5 He loves goodness and justice.
The Lord’s faithful love fills the earth.
6 The Lord spoke the command, and the world was made.
The breath from his mouth created everything in the heavens.
7 He gathered together the water of the sea.
He put the ocean in its place.
8 Everyone on earth should fear and respect the Lord.
All the people in the world should fear him,
9 because when he speaks, things happen.
And if he says, “Stop!”—then it stops.[b]
10 The Lord can ruin every decision the nations make.
He can spoil all their plans.
11 But the Lord’s decisions are good forever.
His plans are good for generation after generation.
12 Great blessings belong to those who have the Lord as their God!
He chose them to be his own special people.
13 The Lord looked down from heaven
and saw all the people.
14 From his high throne he looked down
at all the people living on earth.
15 He created every person’s mind,
and he knows what each one is doing.
16 A king is not saved by the power of his army.
A soldier does not survive by his own great strength.
17 Horses don’t really bring victory in war.
Their strength cannot help you escape.
18 The Lord watches over his followers,
those who wait for him to show his faithful love.
19 He saves them from death.
He gives them strength when they are hungry.
20 So we will wait for the Lord.
He helps us and protects us.
21 He makes us happy.
We trust his holy name.
22 Lord, we worship you,
so show your great love for us.
God Will Judge All Nations
66 This is what the Lord says:
“Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is where I rest my feet.
So do you think you can build a house for me?
Do I need a place to rest?
2 I am the one who made all things.
They are all here because I made them,” says the Lord.
“These are the people I care for:
the poor, humble people who obey my commands.
3 Some people kill bulls as a sacrifice,
but they also beat people.
They kill sheep as a sacrifice,
but they also break the necks of dogs.
They offer up grain offerings,
but they also offer the blood of pigs.[a]
They burn incense,
but they also love their worthless idols.
They choose their own ways,
and they love their terrible idols.
4 So I decided to use their own tricks.
I will punish them using what they are most afraid of.
I will do this because I called to them,
but they did not answer.
I spoke to them,
but they did not listen.
They did what I said is evil.
They chose to do what I did not like.”
5 You who obey the Lord’s commands,
listen to what he says:
“Your brothers hated you.
They turned against you because you followed me.
Your brothers said, ‘When the Lord shows his glory,
then we will rejoice with you.’
But they will be punished.”
Punishment and a New Nation
6 Listen! There is a loud noise coming from the city and from the Temple. It is the Lord punishing his enemies. He is giving them the punishment they deserve.
6 Devotion to God is, in fact, a way for people to be very rich, but only if it makes them satisfied with what they have. 7 When we came into the world, we brought nothing. And when we die, we can take nothing out. 8 So, if we have food and clothes, we will be satisfied with that. 9 People who want to be rich bring temptations to themselves. They are caught in a trap. They begin to want many foolish things that will hurt them. These things ruin and destroy people. 10 The love of money causes all kinds of evil. Some people have turned away from what we believe because they want to get more and more money. But they have caused themselves a lot of pain and sorrow.
Some Things to Remember
11 But you belong to God. So you should stay away from all those things. Always try to do what is right, to be devoted to God, and to have faith, love, patience, and gentleness. 12 We have to fight to keep our faith. Try as hard as you can to win that fight. Take hold of eternal life. It is the life you were chosen to have when you confessed your faith in Jesus—that wonderful truth that you spoke so openly and that so many people heard. 13 Before God and Christ Jesus I give you a command. Jesus is the one who confessed that same wonderful truth when he stood before Pontius Pilate. And God is the one who gives life to everything. Now I tell you this: 14 Do what you were commanded to do without fault or blame until the time when our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. 15 God will make that happen at the right time. God is the blessed and only Ruler. He is the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. 16 God is the only one who never dies. He lives in light so bright that people cannot go near it. No one has ever seen him; no one is able to see him. All honor and power belong to him forever. Amen.
17 Give this command to those who are rich with the things of this world. Tell them not to be proud. Tell them to hope in God, not their money. Money cannot be trusted, but God takes care of us richly. He gives us everything to enjoy. 18 Tell those who are rich to do good—to be rich in good works. And tell them they should be happy to give and ready to share. 19 By doing this, they will be saving up a treasure for themselves. And that treasure will be a strong foundation on which their future life will be built. They will be able to have the life that is true life.
20 Timothy, God has trusted you with many things. Keep these things safe. Stay away from people who talk about useless things that are not from God and who argue against you with a “knowledge” that is not knowledge at all. 21 Some people who claim to have that “knowledge” have gone completely away from what we believe.
God’s grace be with you all.
Is the Messiah David’s Son or David’s Lord?(A)
35 Jesus was teaching in the Temple area. He asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David? 36 With the help of the Holy Spirit, David himself says,
‘The Lord God said to my Lord:
Sit by me at my right side,
and I will put your enemies under your control.[a]’ (B)
37 David himself calls the Messiah ‘Lord.’ So how can the Messiah be David’s son?” Many people listened to Jesus and were very pleased.
Jesus Criticizes the Teachers of the Law(C)
38 Jesus continued teaching. He said, “Be careful of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around wearing clothes that look important. And they love for people to show respect to them in the marketplaces. 39 They love to have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 But they cheat widows and take their homes. Then they try to make themselves look good by saying long prayers. God will punish them very much.”
True Giving(D)
41 Jesus sat near the Temple collection box[b] and watched as people put money into it. Many rich people put in a lot of money. 42 Then a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth less than a penny.
43 Jesus called his followers to him and said, “This poor widow put in only two small coins. But the truth is, she gave more than all those rich people. 44 They have plenty, and they gave only what they did not need. This woman is very poor, but she gave all she had. It was money she needed to live on.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International