Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 131
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
1 Lord, my heart is not haughty,
my eyes are not raised too high.
I have not striven for enormities,
for things too wonderful for me.
2 I composed and quieted my desire,
like a child given suck by his mother;
like a child who sucks is my desire within me.
3 Let Israel hope in the Lord
from now and forever.
Psalm 132(A)
A Song of Ascents.
1 O Lord, remember David
and all his afflictions,
2 how he swore unto the Lord,
and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob:
3 “I will not come into my house,
nor go up to my bed;
4 I will not give sleep to my eyes,
or slumber to my eyelids,
5 until I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling for the mighty God of Jacob.”
6 We heard of it in Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.
7 “We will go to His dwelling place,
we will worship at His footstool.”
8 Arise, O Lord, go to Your resting place,
You and the ark of Your strength.
9 Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let Your godly ones shout for joy.
10 For Your servant David’s sake,
do not turn away Your anointed king.
11 The Lord has sworn with a sure oath to David
that He will not turn from it:
“From the fruit of your body
I will set a son on your throne.
12 If your children will keep My covenant
and My testimonies that I shall teach them,
then their children shall also sit
upon your throne forever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling:
14 “This is My resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have chosen it.
15 I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
and her godly ones shall shout for joy.
17 “There I will make a horn sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for My anointed one.
18 His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine.”
Psalm 133
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
for brothers to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like precious oil upon the head,
that runs down on the beard—
even Aaron’s beard—
and going down to the collar of his garments;
3 as the dew of Hermon,
that descends upon the mountains of Zion,
for there the Lord has commanded the blessing,
even life forever.
Psalm 140
For the Music Director. A Psalm of David.
1 Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;
protect me from violent men,
2 who plan evil deeds in their heart
and continually gather together for conflicts.
3 They have tongues as sharp as a serpent;
adders’ poison is with their lips. Selah
4 Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
preserve me from the violent men
who have planned to overthrow me.
5 The proud have hid a snare for me,
and with cords they have spread a net;
they have set traps for me. Selah
6 I said to the Lord, “You are my God;
hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.”
7 O God my Lord, the strength of my salvation,
You have covered my head in the day of battle.
8 Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
do not allow his evil plot,
lest he be raised up. Selah
9 As for the head of those who encompass me,
let the mischief of their own lips overwhelm them;
10 let burning coals fall upon them;
let them be cast into the fire,
into deep pits that they do not rise up again.
11 Let not an evil speaker be established in the land;
let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him!
12 I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted
and will give justice to the poor.
13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto Your name;
the upright shall dwell in Your presence.
Psalm 142
A Contemplative Maskil of David, when he was in the cave. A Prayer.
1 I cried unto the Lord with my voice;
with my voice I made my supplication unto the Lord.
2 I poured out my complaint before Him;
I declared to Him my trouble.
3 When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,
then You knew my path.
In the way where I walk,
they have laid a snare for me.
4 I looked on my right and noticed,
but there was no one who would care for me;
there is no refuge for me;
no one cares for my soul.
5 I cried unto You, O Lord;
I said, “You are my refuge
and my portion in the land of the living.”
6 Attend to my cry,
for I am brought very low;
deliver me from my persecutors,
for they are stronger than me.
7 Bring my soul out of prison,
that I may praise Your name;
the righteous shall surround me,
for You shall deal bountifully with me.
Jeremiah Threatened With Death
26 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying: 2 Thus says the Lord: Stand in the court of the house of the Lord, and speak to all the cities of Judah who come to worship in the house of the Lord all the words that I command you to speak to them. Do not diminish a word. 3 Perhaps they will listen and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent of the calamity which I purpose to do to them because of the evil of their deeds. 4 You will say to them: Thus says the Lord: If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you, 5 to listen to the words of My servants the prophets, whom I sent to you, both rising up early and sending them, but you have not listened, 6 then I will make this house like Shiloh and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth.
7 So the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. 8 And when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people took hold of him, saying, “You shall surely die. 9 Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate without an inhabitant’?” And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.
10 When the officials of Judah heard these things, then they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and sat down in the entry of the New Gate of the house of the Lord. 11 Then the priests and the prophets spoke to the officials and to all the people, saying, “This man deserves to die! For he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears.”
12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and to all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that you have heard. 13 Therefore now amend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the Lord your God; and the Lord will repent of the disaster that He has pronounced against you. 14 As for me, here I am in your hand. Do with me as seems good and right to you. 15 But know for certain that if you put me to death, you will surely bring innocent blood upon yourselves and upon this city and upon the inhabitants. For truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your ears.”
Jeremiah Spared From Death
16 Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets, “This man is not worthy of death. For he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.”
The Remnant of Israel
11 I say then, has God rejected His people? God forbid! For I also am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah? How he pleads with God against Israel, saying, 3 “Lord, they have killed Your prophets and destroyed Your altars. I alone am left, and they seek my life”?[a] 4 But what is the divine reply to him? “I have kept for Myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”[b] 5 So then at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. 6 And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace. But if it is by works, then is it no longer by grace; otherwise work would no longer be work.
7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it was seeking. But the elect obtained it, and the rest were hardened. 8 As it is written:
“God has given them a spirit of slumber,
eyes that would not see
and ears that would not hear,
to this very day.”[c]
9 And David says:
“Let their table become a snare and a trap,
a stumbling block and a retribution to them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they may not see,
and always bow down their backs.”[d]
The Salvation of the Gentiles
11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid! But through their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. 12 Now if their transgression means riches for the world, and their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fullness mean?
19 Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?”
21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
Jesus Rejected by the Jews
22 The Feast of the Dedication[a] was at Jerusalem, and it was winter. 23 Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s Porch. 24 Then the Jews surrounded Him, saying, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
25 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you did not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name bear witness of Me. 26 But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. 27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 I give them eternal life. They shall never perish, nor shall anyone snatch them from My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them from My Father’s hand. 30 My Father and I are one.”
31 Again the Jews took up stones to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?”
33 The Jews answered Him, “We are not stoning You for a good work, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, claim to be God.”
34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, “You are gods”[b]’? 35 If He called them ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came, and the Scripture cannot be broken, 36 do you say of Him, whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? 37 If I am not doing the works of My Father, do not believe Me. 38 But if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.” 39 Again they tried to seize Him, but He escaped from their hands.
40 Then He went away again beyond the Jordan into the place where John was baptizing at first, and He remained there. 41 Many came to Him and said, “John did no sign. But everything that John said about this Man was true.” 42 And many believed in Him there.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.