Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 103[a]
Praise of Divine Goodness
1 Of David.
I
Bless the Lord, my soul;
all my being, bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, my soul;
and do not forget all his gifts,
3 Who pardons all your sins,
and heals all your ills,
4 Who redeems your life from the pit,(A)
and crowns you with mercy and compassion,
5 Who fills your days with good things,
so your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.[b]
II
6 The Lord does righteous deeds,
brings justice to all the oppressed.(B)
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
to the Israelites his deeds.
8 Merciful and gracious is the Lord,
slow to anger, abounding in mercy.(C)
9 He will not always accuse,
and nurses no lasting anger;
10 He has not dealt with us as our sins merit,
nor requited us as our wrongs deserve.
III
11 For as the heavens tower over the earth,
so his mercy towers over those who fear him.(D)
12 As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our sins from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him.
14 For he knows how we are formed,
remembers that we are dust.(E)
15 As for man, his days are like the grass;
he blossoms like a flower in the field.(F)
16 A wind sweeps over it and it is gone;
its place knows it no more.
17 But the Lord’s mercy is from age to age,
toward those who fear him.
His salvation is for the children’s children
18 of those who keep his covenant,
and remember to carry out his precepts.
IV
19 The Lord has set his throne in heaven;
his dominion extends over all.
20 Bless the Lord, all you his angels,(G)
mighty in strength, acting at his behest,
obedient to his command.
21 Bless the Lord, all you his hosts,
his ministers who carry out his will.
22 Bless the Lord, all his creatures,
everywhere in his domain.
Bless the Lord, my soul!
Psalm 111[a]
Praise of God for Goodness to Israel
1 Hallelujah!
I will praise the Lord with all my heart(A)
in the assembled congregation of the upright.[b]
2 Great are the works of the Lord,
studied by all who delight in them.
3 Majestic and glorious is his work,
his righteousness endures forever.
4 He won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the Lord.(B)
5 He gives food to those who fear him,[c]
he remembers his covenant forever.
6 He showed his powerful deeds to his people,
giving them the inheritance of the nations.
7 The works of his hands are true and just,
reliable all his decrees,
8 Established forever and ever,
to be observed with truth and equity.
9 He sent release to his people,
decreed his covenant forever;
holy and fearsome is his name.
10 [d]The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;(C)
prudent are all who practice it.
His praise endures forever.
Psalm 114[a]
The Lord’s Wonders at the Exodus
1 When Israel came forth from Egypt,
the house of Jacob from an alien people,
2 Judah became God’s sanctuary,
Israel, God’s domain.(A)
3 [b]The sea saw and fled;
the Jordan turned back.(B)
4 The mountains skipped like rams;
the hills, like lambs.(C)
5 Why was it, sea, that you fled?
Jordan, that you turned back?
6 Mountains, that you skipped like rams?
You hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble, earth, before the Lord,(D)
before the God of Jacob,
8 [c]Who turned the rock into pools of water,
flint into a flowing spring.(E)
Zion’s Future Deliverance
18 Truly, the Lord is waiting to be gracious to you,
truly, he shall rise to show you mercy;
For the Lord is a God of justice:
happy are all who wait for him!(A)
19 Yes, people of Zion, dwelling in Jerusalem,
you shall no longer weep;
He will be most gracious to you when you cry out;
as soon as he hears he will answer you.(B)
20 The Lord will give you bread in adversity
and water in affliction.
No longer will your Teacher[a] hide himself,
but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher,(C)
21 And your ears shall hear a word behind you:
“This is the way; walk in it,”
when you would turn to the right or the left.
36 Therefore let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”(A)
37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and they asked Peter and the other apostles, “What are we to do, my brothers?”(B) 38 Peter [said] to them, “Repent and be baptized,[a] every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit.(C) 39 For the promise is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call.”(D) 40 He testified with many other arguments, and was exhorting them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”(E) 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day.(F)
Communal Life.[b] 42 (G)They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers.(H) 43 Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.(I) 44 All who believed were together and had all things in common;(J) 45 they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one’s need. 46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
The Advocate. 15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.(A) 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate[a] to be with you always,(B) 17 the Spirit of truth,[b] which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you, and will be in you.(C) 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.[c] 19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live.(D) 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.(E) 21 Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”(F) 22 Judas, not the Iscariot,[d] said to him, “Master, [then] what happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?”(G) 23 Jesus answered and said to him, “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.(H) 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.
25 “I have told you this while I am with you. 26 The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that [I] told you.(I) 27 Peace[e] I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.(J) 28 [f]You heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’(K) If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe.(L) 30 I will no longer speak much with you, for the ruler of the world[g] is coming. He has no power over me, 31 but the world must know that I love the Father and that I do just as the Father has commanded me. Get up, let us go.(M)
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