Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 20
For the Music Director. A Psalm of David.
1 May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble;
may the name of the God of Jacob defend you;
2 may He send you help from the sanctuary,
and strengthen you from Zion;
3 may He remember all your offerings,
and accept your burnt offering. Selah
4 May He grant you according to your own heart,
and fulfill all your counsel.
5 We will rejoice in your salvation,
and in the name of our God we will set up our banners;
may the Lord fulfill all your petitions.
6 Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
with the saving strength of His right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses,
but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.
8 They are brought down and fallen,
but we arise and stand upright.
9 Save, Lord!
May the King answer us when we call.
Psalm 21
For the Music Director. A Psalm of David.
1 The king will rejoice in Your strength, O Lord,
and in Your salvation how greatly will he rejoice!
2 You have given him his heart’s desire,
and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah
3 For You meet him with the blessings of goodness;
You set a crown of pure gold on his head.
4 He asked life of You, and You gave it him,
length of days forever and ever.
5 His glory is great in Your salvation;
honor and majesty You set on him.
6 For You place blessings on him forever;
You make him rejoice with gladness with Your presence.
7 For the king trusts in the Lord,
and by the lovingkindness of the Most High
he will not be moved.
8 Your hand will find out all Your enemies;
Your right hand will find out those who hate You.
9 You will make them as a fiery oven
in the time of Your appearance;
the Lord will swallow them up in His wrath,
and fire will devour them.
10 You will destroy their offspring from the earth,
and their descendants from among the children of men.
11 For they intended evil against You;
they devised evil thoughts they will not be able to accomplish.
12 For You will make them turn their back,
when You aim with Your bowstrings against their face.
13 Be exalted, Lord, by Your strength;
may we sing and make music to Your might.
Psalm 110
A Psalm of David.
1 The Lord said to my lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
until I make your enemies
your footstool.”
2 The Lord shall send your mighty scepter out of Zion;
rule in the midst of your enemies.
3 Your people will follow you
in the day of your battle;
on the holy mountains
at dawn of the morning,
the dew of your youth belongs to you.
4 The Lord has sworn
and will not change,
“You are a priest forever
after the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right hand;
He shall strike down kings in the day of His wrath.
6 He shall judge among the nations; He shall fill them with dead bodies;
He shall scatter heads all over the land.
7 He shall drink of the brook in the path;
then He shall lift up the head.
Psalm 116
1 I love the Lord, because He has heard my voice
and my supplications.
2 Because He has inclined His ear to me,
therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.
3 The cords of death encircled me,
and the pains of Sheol took hold of me;
I found trouble and sorrow.
4 Then called I upon the name of the Lord:
“O Lord, I plead with You, deliver my soul.”
5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
indeed, our God is merciful.
6 The Lord protects the simple;
I was brought low, and He helped me.
7 Return to your rest, O my soul;
for the Lord has vindicated you.
8 For You have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,
and my feet from falling.
9 I will walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.
10 I believed, indeed I have spoken:
“I am greatly afflicted.”
11 I said in my haste,
“All men are liars.”
12 What shall I render unto the Lord
for all His benefits toward me?
13 I will take the cup of salvation
and call upon the name of the Lord.
14 I will pay my vows unto the Lord
now in the presence of all His people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of His godly ones.
16 O Lord, I am Your servant;
I am Your servant, the son of Your female servant;
You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving
and will call upon the name of the Lord.
18 I will pay my vows unto the Lord
now in the presence of all His people,
19 in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 117
1 Praise the Lord, all you nations!
Exalt Him, all you peoples!
2 For His merciful kindness is great toward us,
and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!
51 All the work that King Solomon made for the house of the Lord was completed. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated—the silver, the gold, and the cups—and he put them among the treasures of the house of the Lord.
The Ark Brought to the Temple(A)
8 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, so that they could ensure that the ark of the covenant of the Lord would be brought out of the City of David in Zion. 2 All the men of Israel assembled themselves before King Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.
3 All the elders of Israel came, and the priests carried the ark. 4 The priests and Levites brought up the ark of the Lord, the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy implements that were in the tabernacle. 5 King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel who were assembled before him stood together in front of the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be told or numbered.
6 The priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place in the inner sanctuary of the house, to the Most Holy Place under the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark and covered the ark and the poles from above. 8 The poles were so long that the ends of the poles could be seen out in the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from outside, and they are there to this day. 9 There was nothing in the ark except for the two tablets of stone that Moses put there at Horeb when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel after they had come out of the land of Egypt.
10 And when the priests came out of the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the Lord, 11 so that the priests could not continue to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord.
12 Then Solomon spoke, saying, “The Lord said that He would dwell in the thick darkness. 13 I have surely built You a house to dwell in, a settled place for You to abide in forever.”
14 Then the king turned around and blessed all the congregation of Israel (and all the congregation of Israel stood), 15 and he said,
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth to my father David and has with His hand fulfilled His word, saying, 16 ‘Since the day that I brought forth My people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city from any tribe of Israel to build a house where My name might be praised, but I chose David to be over My people Israel.’
17 “My father David had it in mind to build a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 18 The Lord said to my father David, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for My name, you had good intentions. 19 Nevertheless, you shall not build the house, but your son who will come out of your loins, he shall build the house for My name.’
20 “The Lord has fulfilled His word that He spoke, and I have been elevated to the position of my father David, to sit on the throne of Israel as the Lord promised, and have built a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 21 I have set a place there for the ark, which houses the covenant of the Lord which He made with our fathers when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.”
Paul Preaches in Rome
17 After three days Paul called the leaders of the Jews together. When they had assembled, he said to them, “Brothers, having done nothing contrary to our people or the customs of our fathers, I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18 When they had examined me, they were determined to release me, because there was no charge against me deserving death. 19 But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar, not that I had any charge to bring against my nation. 20 For this reason I have asked to see you and speak with you, because I am bound with this chain for the hope of Israel.”
21 They said to him, “We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none of the brothers that have come have reported or spoken any evil of you. 22 But we think it is proper to hear from you what you think. For concerning this sect, we know that it is spoken against everywhere.”
23 When they had arranged a day to be with him, many came to him at his residence. From morning until evening he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God to them, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets. 24 Some believed what was said, but some did not believe. 25 Being in disagreement with one another, they were dismissed after Paul had said one word: “The Holy Spirit accurately spoke to our fathers through Isaiah the prophet,
26 ‘Go to this people and say:
You shall certainly hear, but never understand;
and you shall certainly see, but never perceive;
27 for the heart of this people has grown dull.
Their ears are hard of hearing,
and they have closed their eyes,
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.[a]’
28 “Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles. They will hear it!”
29 When he had said these words, the Jews departed and disputed greatly among themselves. 30 Paul remained two whole years in his own rented house. He welcomed all who came to him, 31 boldly and freely preaching the kingdom of God and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus(A)
43 Immediately, while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.
44 Now he who betrayed Him had given them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the One. Seize Him and lead Him away safely.” 45 So as soon as he came, he went to Him immediately and said, “Rabbi, Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 46 They laid hands on Him and seized Him. 47 Then one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
48 Jesus said to them, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would a thief? 49 Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” 50 Then they all deserted Him and fled.
The Young Man Who Fled
51 A young man followed Him, wearing a linen cloth around himself. And the young men laid hold of him, 52 so he left the linen cloth, and fled from them unclothed.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.