Book of Common Prayer

(A psalm and a song by the clan of Korah.)

The Glory of Mount Zion

BOOK IV

(Psalms 90–106)

(A prayer by Moses, the man of God.)

God Is Eternal

God's Love Never Fails

¹⁵ Then Nathan went back home.

David's Young Son Dies

The Lord made David's young son very sick.

¹⁶ So David went without eating to show his sorrow, and he begged God to make the boy well. David would not sleep on his bed, but spent each night lying on the floor. ¹⁷ His officials stood beside him and tried to talk him into getting up. But he would not get up or eat with them.

¹⁸ After the child had been sick for seven days, he died, but the officials were afraid to tell David. They said to each other, “Even when the boy was alive, David wouldn't listen to us. How can we tell him his son is dead? He might do something terrible!”

¹⁹ David noticed his servants whispering, and he knew the boy was dead. “Did my son die?” he asked his servants.

“Yes, he did,” they answered.

²⁰ David got up off the floor; he took a bath, combed his hair, and dressed. He went into the Lord's tent and worshiped, then he went back home. David asked for something to eat, and when his servants brought him some food, he ate it.

²¹ His officials said, “What are you doing? You went without eating and cried for your son while he was alive! But now that he's dead, you're up and eating.”

²² David answered:

While he was still alive, I went without food and cried because there was still hope. I said to myself, “Who knows? Maybe the Lord will have pity on me and let the child live.” ²³ But now that he's dead, why should I go without eating? I can't bring him back! Someday I will join him in death, but he can't return to me.

Solomon Is Born

²⁴ David comforted his wife Bathsheba and slept with her. Later on, she gave birth to another son and named him Solomon. The Lord loved Solomon ²⁵ and sent Nathan the prophet to tell David, “The Lord will call him Jedidiah.”^[a]

The End of the War with Ammon

(1 Chronicles 20.1b-3)

²⁶ Meanwhile, Joab had been in the country of Ammon, attacking the city of Rabbah. He captured the royal fortress ²⁷ and sent a messenger to tell David:

I have attacked Rabbah and captured the fortress guarding the city water supply. ²⁸ Call the rest of the army together. Then surround the city, and capture it yourself. If you don't, everyone will remember that I captured the city.

²⁹ David called the rest of the army together and attacked Rabbah. He captured the city ³⁰ and took the crown from the statue of their god Milcom.^[b] The crown was made of about 35 kilograms of gold, and there was a valuable jewel on it. David put the jewel on his own crown.^[c] He also carried off everything else of value. ³¹ David made the people of Rabbah tear down the city walls^[d] with iron picks and axes, and then he put them to work making bricks. He did the same thing with all the other Ammonite cities.

David went back to Jerusalem, and the people of Israel returned to their homes.

Paul Goes through Macedonia and Greece

20 When the riot was over, Paul sent for the followers and encouraged them. He then told them goodbye and left for Macedonia. ² As he traveled from place to place, he encouraged the followers with many messages. Finally, he went to Greece^{[a] 3} and stayed there for three months.

Paul was about to sail to Syria. But some of the Jewish leaders plotted against him, so he decided to return by way of Macedonia. ⁴ With him were Sopater, son of Pyrrhus from Berea, and Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica. Gaius from Derbe was also with him, and so were Timothy and the two Asians, Tychicus and Trophimus. ⁵ They went on ahead to Troas and waited for us there. ⁶ After the Festival of Thin Bread, we sailed from Philippi. Five days later we met them in Troas and stayed there for a week.

Paul's Last Visit to Troas

⁷ On the first day of the week^[b] we met to break bread together.^[c] Paul spoke to the people until midnight because he was leaving the next morning. ⁸ In the upstairs room where we were meeting, there were a lot of lamps. ⁹ A young man by the name of Eutychus was sitting on a window sill. While Paul was speaking, the young man got very sleepy. Finally, he went to sleep and fell three floors all the way down to the ground. When they picked him up, he was dead.

¹⁰ Paul went down and bent over Eutychus. He took him in his arms and said, “Don't worry! He's alive.” ¹¹ After Paul had gone back upstairs, he broke bread, and ate with us. He then spoke until dawn and left. ¹² Then the followers took the young man home alive and were very happy.

The Voyage from Troas to Miletus

¹³ Paul decided to travel by land to Assos. The rest of us went on ahead by ship, and we were to take him aboard there. ¹⁴ When he met us in Assos, he came aboard, and we sailed on to Mitylene. ¹⁵ The next day we came to a place near Chios, and the following day we reached Samos. The day after that we sailed to Miletus. ¹⁶ Paul had decided to sail on past Ephesus, because he did not want to spend too much time in Asia. He was in a hurry and wanted to be in Jerusalem in time for Pentecost.^[d]

Jesus Again Speaks about His Death

(Matthew 17.22,23; Luke 9.43b-45)

³⁰ Jesus left with his disciples and started through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know about it, ³¹ because he was teaching the disciples that the Son of Man would be handed over to people who would kill him. But three days later he would rise to life. ³² The disciples did not understand what Jesus meant, and they were afraid to ask.

Who Is the Greatest?

(Matthew 18.1-5; Luke 9.46-48)

³³ Jesus and his disciples went to his home in Capernaum. After they were inside the house, Jesus asked them, “What were you arguing about along the way?” ^34 (A) They had been arguing about which one of them was the greatest, and so they did not answer.

^35 (B) After Jesus sat down and told the twelve disciples to gather around him, he said, “If you want the place of honor, you must become a slave and serve others!”

³⁶ Then Jesus asked a child to stand near him. He put his arm around the child and said, ^37 (C) “When you welcome even a child because of me, you welcome me. And when you welcome me, you welcome the one who sent me.”

For or against Jesus

(Luke 9.49,50)

³⁸ John said, “Teacher, we saw a man using your name to force demons out of people. But he wasn't one of us, and we told him to stop.”

³⁹ Jesus said to his disciples:

Don't stop him! No one who works miracles in my name will soon turn and say something bad about me. ^40 (D) Anyone who isn't against us is for us. ^41 (E) And anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name, just because you belong to me, will surely be rewarded.