Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 72
A Psalm of Solomon.
1 Give the king Your judgments, O God,
and Your righteousness to the king’s son.
2 May he judge Your people with righteousness,
and Your poor with justice.
3 May the mountains bring well-being to the people,
and the hills, in righteousness.
4 May he judge the poor of the people,
may he save the children of the needy,
and crush the oppressor.
5 May they fear You as long as the sun endures,
and the moon, throughout all generations.
6 May he descend like rain on the mown grass,
as showers dripping on the earth.
7 In his days may the righteous flourish,
and abundance of peace until the moon is no more.
8 May he have dominion from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
9 May those who dwell in the wilderness bow before him,
and his enemies lick the dust.
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles
bring presents;
the kings of Sheba and Seba offer a gift.
11 May all kings bow down before him;
may all nations serve him.
12 Indeed, may he deliver the needy when he cries;
the poor also, and him who has no helper.
13 May he have compassion on the poor and needy,
and save the lives of the needy.
14 May he redeem their life from deceit and violence;
and may their blood be precious in his sight.
15 May he live long,
and may one give him the gold of Sheba;
and pray for him continually;
and all day long may he be blessed.
16 May there be abundance of grain in the earth
on the top of the mountains;
may its fruit shake like Lebanon;
and may those from the city flourish like grass of the earth.
17 May his name endure forever;
may his name increase as long as the sun.
May men be blessed in him;
may all nations call him blessed!
18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous deeds.
19 Blessed be His glorious name forever;
and may the whole earth be filled with His glory.
Amen, and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
י Yodh
73 Your hands have made me and fashioned me;
give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.
74 Those who fear You will be glad when they see me,
because I have hoped in Your word.
75 I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right,
and that You in faithfulness have afflicted me.
76 Let Your merciful kindness comfort me,
according to Your word to Your servant.
77 Let Your compassion come to me, that I may live,
for Your law is my delight.
78 Let the proud be ashamed, for they have been wicked to me in falsehood,
but I will meditate on Your precepts.
79 Let those who fear You turn to me,
that they might know Your testimonies.
80 Let my heart be blameless in Your statutes,
that I may not be ashamed.
כ Kaph
81 My soul longs for Your deliverance,
but I hope in Your word.
82 My eyes are weary for Your word,
saying, “When will You comfort me?”
83 For I have become like a wineskin dried in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten Your statutes.
84 How many days are given to Your servant?
When will You provide judgment on those who persecute me?
85 The proud have dug pits for me,
and they do not live in accordance to Your law.
86 All Your commandments are faithful;
I am persecuted without cause; help me!
87 They have almost consumed me on the earth,
but I have not abandoned Your precepts.
88 Revive me according to Your lovingkindness,
that I may keep the testimony from Your mouth.
ל Lamedh
89 Forever, O Lord, Your word
is established in heaven.
90 Your faithfulness is for all generations;
You have established the earth, and it is firm.
91 They continue this day according to Your ordinance,
for all are Your servants.
92 Unless Your law had been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget Your precepts,
for with them You have revived me.
94 I am Yours; deliver me,
for I have sought Your precepts.
95 The wicked have waited to destroy me,
but I will consider Your testimonies.
96 I have seen that all perfection has an end,
but Your commandment is quite broad.
Micaiah Prophesies Against Ahab(A)
22 And there were three years without war between Aram and Israel. 2 In the third year, Jehoshaphat king of Judah went to visit the king of Israel. 3 The king of Israel said to his servants, “You know that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, but we have done nothing to take it out of the hand of the king of Aram!”
4 And he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to battle Ramoth Gilead?”
And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.” 5 Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please ask for a word from the Lord today.”
6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, approximately four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go against Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall I wait?”
And they said, “Go up, for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.”
7 Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord here whom we can ask?”
8 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we can inquire of the Lord. But I hate him because he never prophesies good for me, but always evil.”
And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say so.”
9 Then the king of Israel called an officer and said, “Quickly, bring Micaiah the son of Imlah.”
10 The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah each put on his robes and sat on his throne at the entrance of the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets prophesied before them. 11 Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah made horns of iron and said, “Thus says the Lord: With these you shall push the Arameans until you have consumed them.”
12 All the prophets prophesied similarly, saying, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead and prosper, for the Lord will deliver it into the king’s hand.”
13 The servant who had gone to get Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “See here, the words of the prophets unanimously declare success for the king. Please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak that which is good.”
14 Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, I will speak whatever the Lord says to me.”
15 So he came to the king. And the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall we wait?”
And he answered him, “Go and prosper, for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king.”
16 The king said to him, “How many times must I admonish you to tell me only the truth in the name of the Lord?”
17 And he said, “I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep without a shepherd, and the Lord said, ‘These have no master. Let every man return to his own house in peace.’ ”
18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”
19 And he said, “Hear, therefore, the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside Him on His right hand and on His left. 20 The Lord said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab so that he will go up and die at Ramoth Gilead?’
“And one said this, and another said that. 21 Then a spirit came forth and stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will persuade him.’
22 “The Lord said to him, ‘How?’
“And he said, ‘I will go and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’
“And He said, ‘You will be successful and persuade him. Go forth, and do so.’
23 “Now therefore, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all your prophets here, and He has spoken evil concerning you!”
24 Then Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah walked up and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, “Which way did the spirit of the Lord go from me in order to speak to you?”
25 And Micaiah said, “You will see in that day, when you go into an inner chamber to hide.”
26 The king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah back to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son, 27 and say, ‘Thus says the king: Put this man in the prison, and feed him with reduced rations of bread and water until I return safely.’ ”
28 Micaiah said, “If you return safely, the Lord has not spoken through me.” And he said, “Listen, all you people!”
Proclaiming Christ Crucified
2 Brothers, when I came to you, I did not come with superiority of speech or wisdom, declaring to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. 3 I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. 4 My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.
The Revelation by God’s Spirit
6 Yet we speak wisdom among those who are mature, although not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the ages for our glory. 8 None of the rulers of this age knew it. For had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it is written,
“Eye has not seen,
nor ear heard,
nor has it entered into the heart of man
the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”[a]
10 But God has revealed them to us by His Spirit.
For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man, except the spirit of man which is in him? Likewise, no one knows the things of God, except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, so that we might know the things that are freely given to us by God. 13 These things also we proclaim, not in the words which man’s wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
The Calling of the First Disciples(A)
18 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, throwing a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
21 And going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and He called them. 22 They immediately left the boat and their father and followed Him.
Ministering to Great Crowds(B)
23 Jesus went throughout all Galilee teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all sorts of diseases among the people. 24 His fame went throughout all Syria. And they brought to Him all sick people who were taken with various diseases and tormented with pain, those who were possessed with demons, those who had seizures, and those who had paralysis, and He healed them. 25 Great crowds followed Him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.