Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 20[a]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
20 May the Lord answer[b] you[c] when you are in trouble;[d]
may the God of Jacob[e] make you secure.
2 May he send you help from his temple;[f]
from Zion may he give you support.
3 May he take notice of[g] all your offerings;
may he accept[h] your burnt sacrifice. (Selah)
4 May he grant your heart’s desire;[i]
may he bring all your plans to pass.[j]
5 Then we will shout for joy over your[k] victory;
we will rejoice[l] in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant all your requests.
6 Now I am sure[m] that the Lord will deliver[n] his chosen king;[o]
he will intervene for him[p] from his holy, heavenly temple,[q]
and display his mighty ability to deliver.[r]
7 Some trust in chariots and others in horses,[s]
but we[t] depend on[u] the Lord our God.
8 They will fall down,[v]
but we[w] will stand firm.[x]
9 The Lord will deliver the king;[y]
he will answer us[z] when we call to him for help![aa]
Psalm 21[ab]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
21 O Lord, the king rejoices in the strength you give;[ac]
he takes great delight in the deliverance you provide.[ad]
2 You grant[ae] him his heart’s desire;
you do not refuse his request.[af] (Selah)
3 For you bring him[ag] rich[ah] blessings;[ai]
you place a golden crown on his head.
4 He asked you to sustain his life,[aj]
and you have granted him long life and an enduring dynasty.[ak]
5 Your deliverance brings him great honor;[al]
you give him majestic splendor.[am]
6 For you grant him lasting blessings;
you give him great joy by allowing him into your presence.[an]
7 For the king trusts[ao] in the Lord,
and because of the Most High’s[ap] faithfulness he is not shaken.[aq]
8 You[ar] prevail over[as] all your enemies;
your power is too great for those who hate you.[at]
9 You burn them up like a fiery furnace[au] when you appear.[av]
The Lord angrily devours them;[aw]
the fire consumes them.
10 You destroy their offspring[ax] from the earth,
their descendants[ay] from among the human race.[az]
11 Yes,[ba] they intend to do you harm;[bb]
they dream up a scheme,[bc] but they do not succeed.[bd]
12 For you make them retreat[be]
when you aim your arrows at them.[bf]
13 Rise up, O Lord, in strength![bg]
We will sing and praise[bh] your power.
Psalm 110[a]
A psalm of David.
110 Here is the Lord’s proclamation[b] to my lord:[c]
“Sit down at my right hand[d] until I make your enemies your footstool.”[e]
2 The Lord[f] extends[g] your dominion[h] from Zion.
Rule in the midst of your enemies.
3 Your people willingly follow you[i] when you go into battle.[j]
On the holy hills[k] at sunrise[l] the dew of your youth[m] belongs to you.[n]
4 The Lord makes this promise on oath[o] and will not revoke it:[p]
“You are an eternal priest[q] after the pattern of[r] Melchizedek.”[s]
5 O Lord,[t] at your right hand
he strikes down[u] kings in the day he unleashes his anger.[v]
6 He executes judgment[w] against[x] the nations.
He fills the valleys with corpses;[y]
he shatters their heads over the vast battlefield.[z]
7 From the stream along the road he drinks;
then he lifts up his head.[aa]
Psalm 116[a]
116 I love the Lord
because he heard my plea for mercy,[b]
2 and listened to me.[c]
As long as I live, I will call to him when I need help.[d]
3 The ropes of death tightened around me,[e]
the snares[f] of Sheol confronted me.
I was confronted[g] with trouble and sorrow.
4 I called on the name of the Lord,
“Please, Lord, rescue my life!”
5 The Lord is merciful and fair;
our God is compassionate.
6 The Lord protects[h] the untrained;[i]
I was in serious trouble[j] and he delivered me.
7 Rest once more, my soul,[k]
for the Lord has vindicated you.[l]
8 Yes,[m] Lord,[n] you rescued my life from death,
kept my eyes from tears
and my feet from stumbling.
9 I will serve[o] the Lord
in the land[p] of the living.
10 I had faith when I said,
“I am severely oppressed.”
11 I rashly declared,[q]
“All men are liars.”
12 How can I repay the Lord
for all his acts of kindness to me?
13 I will celebrate my deliverance,[r]
and call on the name of the Lord.
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
before all his people.
15 The Lord values
the lives of his faithful followers.[s]
16 Yes, Lord! I am indeed your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your female servant.[t]
You saved me from death.[u]
17 I will present a thank offering to you,
and call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
before all his people,
19 in the courts of the Lord’s temple,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 117[v]
Nebuchadnezzar Destroys Jerusalem
8 On the seventh[a] day of the fifth month,[b] in the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard,[c] who served the king of Babylon, arrived in Jerusalem. 9 He burned down the Lord’s temple, the royal palace, and all the houses in Jerusalem, including every large house.[d] 10 The whole Babylonian army that came with the captain of the royal guard tore down the walls that surrounded Jerusalem. 11 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, deported the rest of the people who were left in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen.[e] 12 But he[f] left behind some of the poor of the land and gave them fields and vineyards.
Gedaliah Appointed Governor
22 Now King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, as governor over the people whom he allowed to remain in the land of Judah.[a] 23 All the officers of the Judahite army[b] and their troops heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah to govern. So they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. The officers who came were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah son of the Maacathite. 24 Gedaliah took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety.[c] He said, “You don’t need to be afraid to submit to the Babylonian officials. Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you.” 25 But in the seventh month[d] Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family,[e] came with ten of his men and murdered Gedaliah,[f] as well as the Judeans and Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. 26 Then all the people, from the youngest to the oldest, as well as the army officers, left for[g] Egypt, because they were afraid of what the Babylonians might do.
No Resurrection?
12 Now if Christ is being preached as raised from the dead,[a] how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is futile and your faith is empty. 15 Also, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified against God that he raised Christ from the dead, when in reality he did not raise him, if indeed the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is useless; you are still in your sins. 18 Furthermore, those who have fallen asleep[b] in Christ have also perished. 19 For if only in this life we have hope in Christ, we should be pitied more than anyone.
20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man,[c] the resurrection of the dead also came through a man.[d] 22 For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; then when Christ comes, those who belong to him.[e] 24 Then[f] comes the end,[g] when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he has brought to an end all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be eliminated is death. 27 For he has put everything in subjection under his feet.[h] But when it says “everything” has been put in subjection, it is clear that this does not include the one who put everything in subjection to him. 28 And when all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will be subjected to the one who subjected everything to him, so that God may be all in all.
29 Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead?[i] If the dead are not raised at all, then why are they baptized for them?
7 While they were going away, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness[a] to see? A reed shaken by the wind?[b] 8 What[c] did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing?[d] Look, those who wear soft clothing are in the palaces of kings![e] 9 What did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more[f] than a prophet! 10 This is the one about whom it is written:
11 “I tell you the truth,[i] among those born of women, no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least[j] in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is! 12 From[k] the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence,[l] and forceful people[m] lay hold of it. 13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John appeared.[n] 14 And if you are willing to accept it,[o] he is Elijah, who is to come. 15 The one who has ears had better listen![p]
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.