Book of Common Prayer
148 Alleluia. Ye of heavens, praise the Lord; praise ye him in high things. (Alleluia. Ye in heaven/Ye in the heavens, praise the Lord; praise ye him in high places.)
2 All his angels, praise ye him; all his virtues, praise ye him (all his hosts, praise ye him).
3 Sun and moon, praise ye him; all stars and light, praise ye him (all the stars of light/all the shining stars, praise ye him.).
4 Heavens of heavens, praise ye him (Heaven of heavens/The highest heaven, praise ye him); and the waters that be above (the) heavens,
5 praise they the name of the Lord. For he said, and things were made; he commanded, and things were made of nought (he commanded, and everything was made out of nothing).
6 He ordained those things into the world, and into the world of world; he setted a commandment, and it shall not pass. (He ordained those things forever and ever; he gave a command, and it shall not pass away.)
7 Ye of the earth, praise the Lord; dragons, and all depths of waters. (Praise the Lord, from the earth; ye dragons, and all the depths of the waters.)
8 Fire, hail, snow, ice, spirits of tempests; that do his word. (Fire, hail, snow, ice, and the winds of the tempests; that all follow his command.)
9 Mountains, and all little hills; trees bearing fruit, and all cedars.
10 Wild beasts, and all tame beasts; serpents, and feathered birds.
11 The kings of earth, and all peoples; the princes, and all judges of earth. (The kings of the earth, and all the peoples; the princes, and the judges, that is, the leaders, over all the earth.)
12 Young men, and virgins, eld men with [the] younger, (Young men, and virgins, old men, and the young,)
13 praise the name of the Lord; for the name of him alone is enhanced. His acknowledging be on heaven and earth; (praise the name of the Lord; for only his name should be exalted. For his glory is above the earth, and above heaven;)
14 and he hath enhanced the horn of his people. An hymn be to all his saints; to the children of Israel, to a people nighing to him. (and he hath exalted the horn of his people. So let there be a hymn to all his saints; to the children of Israel, to the people who be the closest to him/So let there be praises from all his saints; from the children of Israel, from the people who be the closest to him.)
149 Alleluia. Sing ye to the Lord a new song; his praising be in the church of saints. (Alleluia. Sing ye a new song to the Lord; let his praises be in the congregation of his saints.)
2 Israel be glad in him that made him; and the daughters of Zion make full out joy in their king. (Let the people of Israel be glad in him, who made them; and let the daughters of Zion rejoice in their King.)
3 Praise they his name in a quire; say they psalm to him in a tympan, and psaltery. (Praise they his name with a dance; sing they songs to him with a tympan, or with a drum, and a lute./Praise they his name with dancing; sing they songs to him with a tambourine, and a lute.)
4 For the Lord is well pleased in his people; and he hath raised mild men into health. (For the Lord is well pleased with his people; and he hath raised up the meek to victory/and he hath given salvation, or deliverance, to the humble.)
5 Saints shall make full out joy in glory; they shall be glad in their beds. (The saints shall rejoice in triumph; they shall sing joyfully all night long.)
6 The full out joyings of God in the throat of them; and swords sharp on both sides in the hands of them. (Let there be rejoicing for God on their lips/in their mouths; and let sharp swords be in their hands.)
7 To do vengeance in nations; and blamings in peoples. (To bring vengeance to the nations; and to punish the peoples.)
8 To bind the kings of them in stocks; and the noble men of them in iron manacles. (To bind up their kings in the stocks; and their noble men in iron manacles.)
9 That they make in them (the) doom written; this is the glory to all his saints. (So that they execute the judgement written against them; this is the glory for all his saints.)
150 Alleluia. Praise ye the Lord in his saints; praise ye him in the firmament of his virtue. (Alleluia. Praise ye the Lord in his sanctuary; praise ye him in the firmament of his power/praise ye him in his mighty heavens.)
2 Praise ye him in his virtues; praise ye him by the multitude of his greatness. (Praise ye him for his mighty works; praise ye him for the abundance of his greatness.)
3 Praise ye him in the sound of a trump; praise ye him in a psaltery and harp. (Praise ye him with the sound of a trumpet; praise ye him with a lute and a harp.)
4 Praise ye him in a tympan and quire; praise ye him in strings and organ. (Praise ye him with a tympan, or a drum, and a dance/Praise ye him with a tambourine, and dancing; praise ye him with strings and an organ.)
5 Praise ye him in cymbals sounding well, praise ye him in cymbals of jubilation; (Praise ye him with good-sounding cymbals, yea, praise ye him with cymbals of jubilation;)
6 each spirit, praise the Lord. (every creature that hath breath, praise the Lord. Amen.)
114 Alleluia. In the going out of Israel from Egypt; of the house of Jacob from the heathen people. (Alleluia. When Israel went out from Egypt, yea, the house of Jacob from a people with a strange language;)
2 Judah was made the hallowing of him; Israel the power of him. (Judah was made the Lord’s sanctuary; and Israel was made his dominion.)
3 The sea saw, and fled; Jordan was turned aback. (The Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds, saw it, and fled away; the Jordan River turned back, or backed away.)
4 Mountains full out joyed as rams; and little hills as the lambs of sheep. (The mountains rejoiced like rams; and the little hills like the lambs of sheep.)
5 Thou sea, what was to thee, for thou fleddest; and thou, Jordan, for thou were turned aback? (O Red Sea/O Sea of Reeds, what happened to thee, that thou fleddest away? and O Jordan, why hast thou turned back?)
6 Mountains, ye made full out joy as rams; and little hills, as the lambs of sheep. (O mountains, why did ye rejoice like rams? and ye little hills, like the lambs of sheep?)
7 The earth was moved from the face of the Lord; from the face of God of Jacob. (The earth shaketh at the presence of the Lord; at the presence of the God of Jacob.)
8 Which turned a stone into a pond of waters; and an hard rock into wells of waters. (Who turned the rock into a pool of water; yea, the hard rock cliff into a flowing spring.)
115 Lord, not to us, Lord, not to us; but give thou glory to thy name. Of thy mercy, and of thy truth; (Lord, not to us, Lord, not to us; but give thou glory to thy name. For thy love, and for the sake of thy faithfulness;)
2 lest any time heathen men say, Where is the God of them? (lest any time the heathen say, Where is their God?)
3 Forsooth our God in heaven; did all things, whichever he would. (For our God is in heaven; and he doeth whatever he desireth.)
4 The simulacra of heathen men be silver and gold (The idols of the heathen be made out of silver and gold); the works of men’s hands.
5 They have mouth(s), and shall not speak; they have eyes, and shall not see. (They have mouths, but they cannot speak; they have eyes, but they cannot see.)
6 They have ears, and shall not hear; they have nostrils, and shall not smell. (They have ears, but they cannot hear; they have nostrils, but they cannot smell.)
7 They have hands, and shall not grope; they have feet, and shall not go; they shall not cry in their throat. (They have hands, but they cannot feel; they have feet, but they cannot move; and they cannot make any sound.)
8 They that make those simulacra be made like those; and all that trust in them. (Let all who make those idols be made like them; and also all who trust in them.)
9 The house of Israel hoped in the Lord (But let the house of Israel trust in the Lord); he is the helper of them, and the defender of them.
10 The house of Aaron hoped in the Lord (And let the house of Aaron trust in the Lord); he is the helper of them, and the defender of them.
11 They that dread the Lord, hoped in the Lord (Let all who fear the Lord/Let all who revere the Lord, trust in the Lord); he is the helper of them, and the defender of them.
12 The Lord was mindful of us; and blessed us. He blessed the house of Israel; he blessed the house of Aaron. (The Lord remembereth us; and will bless us. He will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.)
13 He blessed all men that dread the Lord; both little and greater. (He will bless all those who fear the Lord/all those who revere the Lord; both small and great alike.)
14 The Lord add, either increase, on you; on you, and on your sons. (May the Lord give you increase; yea, you, and your sons and your daughters.)
15 Blessed be ye of the Lord; that made heaven and earth. (May ye be blessed by the Lord; who made heaven and earth.)
16 Heaven of heaven is to the Lord/Heaven of heavens to the Lord; but he gave the earth to the sons of men. (Heaven and the heavens be the Lord’s; but he gave the earth to the sons and daughters of men.)
17 Lord, not dead men shall praise thee; neither all men that go down into hell. (Lord, the dead shall not praise thee; yea, none who go down into Sheol, or the land of the dead/none who go down into the grave.)
18 But we that live, bless the Lord; from this time now, and till into the world. (But we who live, bless the Lord; from this time now, and forever.)
50 And David had the mastery against the Philistine in a sling and a stone, and he killed the Philistine smitten. And when David had no sword in his hand, (And so David had the mastery against the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck down the Philistine, and killed him. And when David had no sword in his hand,)
51 he ran, and stood on the Philistine, and took (hold of) his sword; and David drew out the sword of his sheath, and killed him, and cut off his head (and David drew the sword out of its sheath, and killed him, and cut off his head). And the Philistines saw, that the strongest of them was dead, and they fled.
52 And the sons of Israel and of Judah rose up together, and cried [out], and pursued the Philistines, till the time they came into the valley, and unto the gate(s) of Ekron. And the wounded men of the Philistines fell down in the way of Shaaraim, and unto Gath, and unto Ekron (And the wounded men of the Philistines fell down on the way to Shaaraim, and unto Gath, and unto Ekron).
53 And the sons of Israel turned again, after that they had pursued the Philistines, and they assailed their tents. (And the Israelites returned, after that they had pursued the Philistines, and they looted their camp.)
54 Forsooth David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it into Jerusalem; soothly he putted his armours in the tabernacle of the Lord (but he put Goliath’s arms, or his weapons, in his own tent).
55 Forsooth in that time in which Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, [the] prince of his chivalry, Abner, of what generation is this young man? And Abner said, King, thy soul liveth, I know not. (Now at the time when Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the leader of his cavalry, or his army, Abner, whose son is this young man? And Abner said, O king, as thy soul liveth, I do not know.)
56 And the king said, Ask thou, whose son this boy is.
57 And when David had come again, when the Philistine was slain, Abner took David, and brought him in, having in the hand the head of the Philistine, before Saul. (And when David had come back, after the Philistine was killed, Abner took David, and brought him in before Saul, with the head of the Philistine still in his hand.)
58 And Saul said to him, Of what generation art thou, young man? And David said, I am the son of thy servant, Jesse of Bethlehem.
18 And it was done, when David had ended to speak to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was glued together to the soul of David, that is, (they were) joined together by the glue of charity, (or of love,) that may not be broken, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul (and Jonathan loved him as much as he loved his own life).
2 And Saul took David in that day, and granted not to him, that he should turn again into the house of his father. (And from that day on, Saul kept David with him, and would not allow him to return to his father’s house.)
3 And Jonathan and David made a bond of peace; for Jonathan loved David as his own soul; (And Jonathan and David made a covenant; for Jonathan loved David as much as he loved his own life;)
4 for why Jonathan unclothed himself from the coat that he was clothed in, and he gave it to David, and his other clothes, unto his sword and his bow, and unto his girdle.
4 For the end of the law is Christ, to rightwiseness to each man that believeth.
5 For Moses wrote, For the man that shall do rightwiseness that is of the law, shall live in it.
6 But the rightwiseness that is of belief, saith thus, Say thou not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? that is to say, to lead down Christ;
7 or who shall go down into hell? that is, to again-call Christ from death.[a]
8 But what saith the scripture? The word is nigh in thy mouth, and in thine heart; this is the word of belief, which we preach.
9 That if thou acknowledge in thy mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and believest in thine heart, that God raised him from death [that God raised him from dead], thou shalt be safe.
10 For by heart me believeth to rightwiseness [Forsooth by heart men believeth to rightwiseness], but by mouth acknowledging is made to health.
11 For why the scripture saith, Each that believeth in him, shall not be confounded.
12 And there is no distinction of Jew and of Greek; for the same Lord of all is rich into all, that inwardly call him [that in-call him].
13 For each man, whoever shall inwardly call [whoever shall in-call] the name of the Lord, shall be safe.
14 How then shall they inwardly call him [How therefore shall they in-call him], into whom they have not believed? or how shall they believe to him, whom they have not heard? How shall they hear, without a preacher?
15 and how shall they preach, but they be sent? As it is written, How fair be the feet of them that preach peace, of them that preach good things [As it is written, How fair the feet of men evangelizing peace, of preaching good things].
16 But not all men obey to the gospel [But not all obey to the gospel]. For Esaias saith, Lord, who believed to our hearing?
17 Therefore faith is of hearing [Therefore faith by hearing], but hearing by the word of Christ.
29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, that build [the] sepulchres of prophets, and make fair the burials of just men,
30 and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been their fellows in the blood of prophets.
31 And so ye be in witnessing to yourselves [And so ye be into witnessing to yourselves], that ye be the sons of them that slew the prophets.
32 And full-fill ye the measure of your fathers. [And fill ye the measure of your fathers.]
33 Ye adders, and adders' brood [Ye serpents, fruits of adders], how shall ye flee from the doom of hell?
34 Therefore lo! I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes [Therefore lo! I send to you prophets, and wise men, and scribes, or writers]; and of them ye shall slay and crucify, and of them ye shall scourge in your synagogues, and shall pursue from city into city;
35 that all the just blood come on [upon] you, that was shed on the earth, from the blood of just Abel [till] to the blood of Zacharias, the son of Barachias, whom ye slew betwixt the temple and the altar [whom ye slew between the temple and the altar].
36 Truly I say to you, all these things shall come on [upon] this generation.
37 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that slayest prophets, and stonest them that be sent to thee, how oft would I gather together thy children, as an hen gathereth together her chickens under her wings, and thou wouldest not.
38 Lo! your house shall be left to you desert.
39 And I say to you, ye shall not see me from henceforth, till ye say, Blessed is he, that cometh in the name of the Lord.
2001 by Terence P. Noble