Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 55
For the Music Director. With stringed instruments. A Contemplative Maskil of David.
1 Give ear to my prayer, O God,
and do not hide Yourself from my supplication.
2 Attend to me, and answer me;
I am restless in my complaint, and I murmur,
3 because of the voice of the enemy,
because of the pressure of the wicked,
for they cause trouble to drop on me,
and in wrath they have animosity against me.
4 My heart is in pain within me,
and the terrors of death have fallen on me.
5 Fear and trembling come into me,
and horror has overwhelmed me.
6 I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!
For then I would fly away and be at rest.
7 Indeed, then I would wander far off,
and remain in the wilderness. Selah
8 I would hasten my escape
from the windy storm and tempest.”
9 Confuse, O Lord, divide their tongues,
for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go around it on its walls;
trouble and sorrow are in its midst.
11 Destruction is in its midst;
oppression and treachery do not depart from its streets.
12 For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
then I could bear it.
Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me;
then I could hide from him.
13 But it was you, my peer,
my guide, and my acquaintance.
14 We took pleasant counsel together,
and walked to the house of God in company.
15 May death surprise them,
and may their lives go down to Sheol,
for wickedness is in their dwellings and among them.
16 As for me, I will call on God,
and the Lord will save me.
17 Evening and morning and at noon,
I will make my complaint and murmur,
and He will hear my voice.
18 He has ransomed my life in peace
from the battle against me,
for there were many against me.
19 God will hear and afflict them,
even He who sits enthroned from of old. Selah
Because they do not change,
therefore they do not fear God.
20 My friend has set his hands against those at peace with him;
he has violated his covenant.
21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,
but battle was in his heart;
his words were softer than oil,
yet they were drawn swords.
22 Cast your burden on the Lord,
and He will sustain you;
He will never allow
the righteous to be moved.
23 But You, O God, will cast the wicked down
into the pit of destruction;
men of blood and deceitful men
will not live out half their days.
But I will trust in You.
Psalm 138
A Psalm of David.
1 I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I will sing Your praise.
2 I will worship toward Your holy temple,
and praise Your name
for Your lovingkindness and for Your truth;
for You have exalted Your word
above all Your name.
3 On the day I called, You answered me,
and strengthened me in my soul.
4 All the kings of the earth shall praise You, O Lord,
for they have heard the words of Your mouth.
5 Indeed, they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
for great is the glory of the Lord.
6 Though the Lord is exalted, yet He has concern for the lowly,
but the proud one He knows from a distance.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
You will preserve me;
You stretch forth Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and Your right hand saves me.
8 The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me;
Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever;
do not forsake the works of Your hands.
Psalm 139
For the Music Director. A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, You have searched me
and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I get up;
You understand my thought from far off.
3 You search my path and my lying down
and are aware of all my ways.
4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
but behold, O Lord, You know it fully.
5 You put Yourself behind and before me,
and keep Your hand on me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is lofty, and I cannot fathom it.
7 Where shall I go from Your spirit,
or where shall I flee from Your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell at the end of the sea,
10 even there Your hand shall guide me,
and Your right hand shall take hold of me.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light shall be as night about me,”
12 even the darkness is not dark to You,
but the night shines as the day,
for the darkness is like light to You.
13 You brought my inner parts into being;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise you, for You made me with fear and wonder;
marvelous are Your works,
and You know me completely.
15 My frame was not hidden from You
when I was made in secret,
and intricately put together in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw me unformed,
yet in Your book
all my days were written,
before any of them came into being.
17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them,
they are more in number than the sand;
when I awake,
I am still with You.
19 If only You would slay the wicked, O God!
O violent men, depart from me.
20 For they speak against You with malice,
and Your enemies take your name in vain.
21 Do I not hate those, O Lord, who hate You?
And do I not abhor those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
try me, and know my concerns,
End of the Drought
41 Elijah said to Ahab, “Get up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of a heavy rainfall.” 42 So Ahab got up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, and he threw himself down on the ground and put his face between his knees.
43 And he said to his servant, “Go up now, and look toward the sea.”
And he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.”
And he said, “Go again,” seven times.
44 On the seventh time, he said, “A small cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising out of the sea.”
And he said, “Go up and say to Ahab, ‘Mount your chariot and get down, so that the rain does not stop you.’ ”
45 In the meantime, the sky turned black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel. 46 The hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
Elijah Flees From Jezebel
19 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done and how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.”
3 When he saw that she was serious, he arose and ran for his life to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. 4 But he went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a juniper tree and asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough! Now, O Lord, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.”
5 As he lay and slept under the juniper tree, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 He looked, and there was a cake baked on coals and a jar of water at his head. And he ate and drank and then lay down again.
7 The angel of the Lord came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.” 8 He arose and ate and drank and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God.
17 Brothers, become fellow imitators with me and observe those who walk according to our example. 18 For many are walking in such a way that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ. I have told you of them often and tell you again, even weeping. 19 Their destination is destruction, their god is their appetite, their glory is in their shame, their minds are set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, from where also we await for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our body of humiliation, so that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working of His power even to subdue all things to Himself.
4 Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brothers, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my beloved.
Exhortations
2 I exhort Euodia and Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 I ask you also, true companion, help those women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with my other fellow laborers, whose names are in the Book of Life.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let everyone come to know your gentleness. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with gratitude, make your requests known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will protect your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
The Baptism of Jesus(A)
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 But John prohibited Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?”
15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he permitted Him.
16 And when Jesus was baptized, He came up immediately out of the water. And suddenly the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending on Him like a dove. 17 And a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.