Book of Common Prayer

72 To Solomon. God, give thy doom to the king; and thy rightfulness to the son of the king. (A psalm, or a song, for Solomon. God, give thy judgement to the king; yea, thy righteousness to the king’s son.)

² To deem thy people in rightfulness; and thy poor men in doom. (To judge thy people with righteousness; and thy poor with justice.)

³ Mountains receive peace to the people; and little hills receive rightfulness. (May the mountains and the little hills, bring peace and prosperity to the people; in righteousness.)

⁴ He shall deem the poor men of the people, and he shall make safe the sons of poor men; and he shall make low the false challenger. (He shall judge the poor, and he shall save the sons and the daughters of the poor; and he shall bring down their oppressors.)

⁵ And he shall dwell with the sun, and before the moon, that is, without beginning, and (without) end; in generation and into generation (in all generations).

⁶ He shall come down as rain into a fleece; and as gutters dropping on the earth. (He shall come down like rain onto a field; and like showers dropping upon the earth.)

⁷ Rightfulness shall come forth in his days (Righteousness shall come forth in his days); and the abundance of peace, till the moon be taken away.

⁸ And he shall be lord from the sea till to the sea; and from the flood till to the ends of the world. (And he shall be lord from sea to sea; and from the Euphrates River unto the ends of the earth.)

⁹ Ethiopians shall fall down before him; and his enemies shall lick the earth. (Those who live in the desert shall bow down before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust.)

¹⁰ The kings of Tarshish and isles shall offer gifts; the kings of Arabia and of Seba shall bring gifts. (The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall offer gifts, or tribute; the kings of Sheba and of Seba shall also bring him gifts, or tribute.)

¹¹ And all kings shall worship him; all folks shall serve him (all nations shall serve him).

¹² For he shall deliver a poor man from the mighty; and a poor man to whom there was none helper. (For he shall rescue the poor from the mighty; yea, the poor for whom there was no helper.)

¹³ He shall spare a poor man and needy; and he shall make safe the souls of poor men. (He shall spare the poor and the needy; yea, he shall save the souls, or the lives, of the poor.)

¹⁴ He shall again-buy the souls of them from usuries, and wickedness; and the name of them is honourable before him.

¹⁵ And he shall live, and men shall give to him of the gold of Arabia; and they shall ever worship of him, all day they shall bless him. (And long may he live, and may men give to him the gold of Sheba; they shall worship him forever, yea, all day long they shall bless him.)

¹⁶ Steadfastness shall be in the earth, in the highest place of mountains; the fruit thereof shall be enhanced above the Lebanon; and they shall blossom from the city, as the hay of earth doeth. (May corn grow in all the earth, even on the highest places of the mountains; may the crops there be numbered above that of Lebanon; and may the people in the city increase like the hay, or the grass, in the fields.)

¹⁷ His name be blessed into worlds; his name dwell before the sun. And all the lineages of earth shall be blessed in him; all folks shall magnify him. (May the king’s name be blessed forever; and his name remain as long as the sun. And may all the peoples of the earth ask to be blessed as he was; may all the nations magnify him.)

¹⁸ Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; which alone maketh marvels. (Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; who alone doeth these marvellous deeds.)

¹⁹ And blessed be the name of his majesty [into] without end; and all earth shall be filled with his majesty; be it done, be it done. (And blessed be his majestic name forever; let all the earth be filled with his majesty, or his glory; be it done, be it done.)

²⁰ The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, be ended.

⁷³ [Jod]. Thine hands made me, and formed me; give thou understanding to me, that I learn thy behests. (Thy hands made me, and formed me; now give thou me understanding, so that I can learn thy commandments.)

⁷⁴ They that dread thee shall see me, and they shall be glad; for I hoped more on thy words. (They who fear thee/They who revere thee, shall be glad when they see me; for I trust in thy words.)

⁷⁵ Lord, I knew, that thy dooms be equity; and in thy truth thou hast made me meek. (Lord, I know, that thy judgements be just; and that thou hast punished me because of thy faithfulness.)

⁷⁶ Thy mercy be made, that it comfort me; by thy speech to thy servant. (Let thy love comfort me; yea, according to thy word to thy servant.)

⁷⁷ Thy merciful doings come to me, and I shall live; for thy law is my thinking. (Let thy mercy come to me, and then I shall live; for thy Law is my delight.)

⁷⁸ They that be proud be shamed, for unjustly they did wickedness against me; but I shall be exercised in thy behests. (Let they who be proud be shamed, for unjustly, or for no reason, they did wickedly against me; but I shall think about thy precepts.)

⁷⁹ They that dread thee be turned to me; and they that know thy witnessings. (Let they who fear thee/Let they who revere thee, turn to me; yea, all who know thy teachings.)

⁸⁰ Mine heart be made unwemmed in thy justifyings; that I be not shamed. (Let my heart obey thy statutes, and be without blemish, or without fault; and so I shall not shamed.)

⁸¹ [Caph]. My soul failed into thine health; and I hoped more in thy word. (My soul fainteth waiting for thy salvation, or thy deliverance; but still I trust in thy word.)

⁸² Mine eyes failed into thy speech; saying, When shalt thou comfort me? (My eyes fail waiting for thy word; and so I ask, When shalt thou comfort me?)

⁸³ For I am made as a bouget, (or a bottle,) in frost; (yet) I have not forgotten thy justifyings. (For I am shriveled up, like a wineskin in the smoke; but I have not forgotten thy statutes.)

⁸⁴ How many be the days of thy servant; when thou shalt make doom of them that pursue me? (How many days must thy servant wait? when shalt thou bring judgement upon those who persecute me?)

⁸⁵ Wicked men told to me janglings; but (they be) not as thy law. (The wicked gossiped about me; and they do not obey thy Law.)

⁸⁶ All thy commandments be truth; wicked men have pursued me, help thou me. (All thy commandments be faithful/be trustworthy, and shall stand forever; the wicked persecute me, help thou me!)

⁸⁷ Almost they ended me in [the] earth; but I forsook not thy commandments. (Yea, they almost brought me to an end here on the earth; but I did not forsake thy precepts.)

⁸⁸ By thy mercy quicken thou me; and I shall keep the witnessings of thy mouth. (In thy mercy/In thy love, grant thou me life; so that I can obey the teachings from thy mouth.)

⁸⁹ [Lamed]. Lord, thy word dwelleth in heaven; [into] without end. (Lord, thy word remaineth, or liveth, in heaven, forever.)

⁹⁰ Thy truth dwelleth in generation, and into generation; thou hast founded the earth, and it dwelleth. (Thy faithfulness remaineth for all generations; thou hast founded the earth, and it still remaineth.)

⁹¹ The day lasteth continually by thy ordinance(s); for all things serve to thee. (All things continue to this day according to thy ordinances; for all things serve thee./Thy ordinances, or thy decrees, continue to this day; for all things serve thee.)

⁹² But for thy law was my thinking; then peradventure I had perished in my lowness. (If thy Law had not been my delight; then I would have perished in my time of trouble.)

⁹³ [Into] Without end I shall not forget thy justifyings; for in those thou hast quickened me. (I shall never forget thy precepts; for through them thou hast given me life.)

⁹⁴ I am thine, make thou me safe; for I have sought thy justifyings. (I am thine, save thou me; for I have sought out thy precepts.)

⁹⁵ Sinners abode me, for to lose me; I understood thy witnessings. (The sinners have waited for me, to destroy me; but I shall think about thy teachings.)

⁹⁶ I saw the end of all end; thy commandment is full large. (I have seen the end of the end/I have seen that all things must end; but thy commandment shall go on forever.)

³⁰ Therefore while all the company of the sons of Israel heard, Moses spake the words of this song, and he fulfilled it unto the end. (And so while all the congregation of the Israelites listened, Moses spoke the words of this song, and he spoke every word of it, from the beginning unto the end.)

32 Ye heavens, hear what things I shall speak; the earth hear the words of my mouth.

² My teaching wax (al)together as rain; my speech flow out as dew, as soft rain upon herb, and as drops upon grass. (My teaching shall fall like drops of rain; my speech shall flow out like the dew, like showers on the herbs, and raindrops on the grass.)

³ For I shall inwardly call the name of the Lord; give ye glory to our God. (For I shall call out loud the name of the Lord; give ye glory to our God.)

⁴ The works of God be perfect, and all his ways be dooms (and all his ways be just); God is faithful, and without any wickedness; he is just and rightful.

⁵ They sinned against him, and (they be) not his sons, (they be) in the filths of idolatry; (they be a) depraved and wayward generation.

⁶ Whether thou yieldest these things to the Lord, thou fond people and unwise? Whether he is not thy father, that wielded thee, and made, and formed thee of nought? (Did thou yield these things to the Lord, thou foolish and unwise people? Is he not thy father, who made thee, and formed thee out of nothing, and wieldeth thee?)

⁷ Have thou mind of eld days, think thou (on) all generations; ask thy father, and he shall tell to thee, ask thy greater men, and they shall say to thee. (Remember the days of old, and think thou on all the generations; ask thy father, and he shall tell thee, ask the men of great age, that is, thy elders, and they shall say to thee.)

⁸ When the highest parted folks, when he separated the sons of Adam, he ordained the terms of peoples by the number of the sons of Israel. (When the Most High God divided the nations, when he separated the sons of man, he ordained the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.)

⁹ Forsooth the part of the Lord is his people; Jacob is the little part of his heritage. (But the Lord’s portion was his own people; Jacob was the portion of his inheritance.)

¹⁰ The Lord found him in a desert land, in the place of horror, either hideousness, and of waste wilderness; the Lord led him about, and taught him, and he kept him as the apple of his eye. (The Lord found them in a desert land, in a howling, wasted wilderness; and the Lord led them about, and taught them, and kept them as the apple of his eye.)

¹¹ As an eagle stirring his birds to fly, and flying above them, he spreaded forth his wings, and took them into his protection, and he bare them in his shoulders. (Like an eagle stirring his young to fly, and flying above them, he spread out his wings, and took them up, and he carried them upon his shoulders.)

¹² The Lord alone was his leader, and none alien god was with him. (The Lord alone was their leader, and no other god was with him.)

¹³ The Lord ordained him on an high land, that he should eat the fruits of fields, that he should suck honey of a stone, and oil of the hardest rock; (The Lord ordained them upon the highlands, and they ate the fruits of the fields, and sucked honey out of the stones, and oil out of the hardest rock,)

¹⁴ butter of the drove, and milk of sheep, with the fatness of lambs, and of rams, of the sons of Bashan; and that he should eat kids with [the] marrow, or tried flour, of wheat, and he should drink the clearest blood, or wine, of the grape. (and they ate butter from the herds, and milk from the sheep, and the fatness of lambs, and rams from the sons of Bashan, and goats, and the marrow, or the fine flour, of wheat; and they drank the clearest blood, that is, the purest wine, of the grapes.)

²¹ By unnobleness I say, as if we were frail in this part^[a]. In what thing any man dare, in unwisdom I say, and I dare.

²² They be Hebrews, and I; they be Israelites, and I; they be the seed of Abraham, and I;

²³ they be the ministers of Christ, and I. As less wise I say, I more; in full many travails, in prisons more plenteously, in wounds above manner [in wounds above manner, or over measure], in deaths oft times.

²⁴ I received of the Jews five times forty strokes one less;

²⁵ thrice I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, thrice I was at ship-break, a night and a day I was in the deepness of the sea;

²⁶ in ways oft, in perils of rivers [in perils of floods], in perils of thieves, in perils of kin, in perils of heathen men, in perils in [the] city, in perils in desert, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren,

²⁷ in travail and neediness, in many wakings, in hunger, in thirst [in travail and neediness, either mis-ease, in many wakings, in hunger and thirst], in many fastings, in cold and nakedness.

²⁸ Without those things that be withoutforth, mine each day's travailing is the busyness of all churches. [Without those things that be withoutforth; mine each day's waking, or studying, the busyness of all churches.]

²⁹ Who is frail, and I am not frail? who is caused to stumble, and I am not burnt? [Who is sick, and I am not sick? who is offended, and I am not burnt?]

³⁰ If it behooveth to glory, I shall glory in those things that be of mine infirmity [that be of my infirmity, or frailty].

³¹ [For] God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that is blessed into worlds, knoweth that I lie not [knoweth, that I gab not, or lie not].

³² The provost of Damascus, of the king of the folk of Aretas [The provost, or keeper, of Damascus, of the king of the folk Arteas], kept the city of Damascenes to take me;

³³ and by a window in a basket I was let down by the wall, and so I escaped his hands.

¹¹ When they heard these things, he added, and said a parable, for that he was nigh to Jerusalem, and for they guessed, that at once the kingdom of God should be showed [and for they guessed, that the kingdom of God should be showed anon].

¹² Therefore he said, A worthy man went into a far country [Some nobleman went into a far country], to take to him a kingdom, and to turn again.

¹³ And when his ten servants were called, he gave to them ten bezants; and said to them, Chaffer ye [Merchandize ye], till I come.

¹⁴ But his citizens hated him, and sent a messenger after him, and said, We will not, that he reign on us.^[a]

¹⁵ And it was done, that he turned again, when he had taken the kingdom; and he commanded his servants to be called, to which he had given money, to know [to whom he gave money, that he should know], how much each had won by chaffering.

¹⁶ And the first came, and said [saying], Lord, thy bezant hath won ten bezants.

¹⁷ He said to him, Well be, thou good servant; for in little thing thou hast been true, thou shalt be having power on ten cities [thou shalt have power upon ten cities].

¹⁸ And the tother came, and said [And the tother came, saying], Lord, thy bezant hath made five bezants.

¹⁹ And to this he said, And be thou on five cities. [And he said to this, And be thou upon five cities.]

²⁰ And the third came, and said, Lord, lo! thy bezant, that I had, put up in a sudarium.^[b]

²¹ For I dreaded thee, for thou art an austere man; thou takest away that that thou settedest not, and thou reapest that that thou hast not sown.

²² He saith to him, Wicked servant, of thy mouth I deem thee. Knewest thou, that I am an austere man, taking away that thing that I setted not, and reaping that thing that I sowed not^[c]?

²³ and why hast thou not given my money to the board, and I coming should have asked it with usuries? [and why hast thou not given my money to the board, that and I coming should have received it soothly with usuries?]

²⁴ And he said to men standing nigh, Take away from him the bezant, and give ye to him that hath ten bezants.^[d]

²⁵ And they said to him, Lord, he hath ten bezants.

²⁶ And I say to you, to each man that hath, it shall be given, and he shall increase [and he shall abound]; but from him that hath not, also that thing that he hath, shall be taken of him [shall be taken from him].

²⁷ Nevertheless bring ye hither those mine enemies, that would not that I reigned on them [that would not me to reign upon them], and slay ye before me.