Book of Common Prayer

The King of Glory Entering Zion.

A Psalm of David.

The Voice of the Lord in the Storm.

A Psalm of David.

The Lord’s Glory and Man’s Dignity.

For the choir director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of David.

Longing for the Temple Worship.

For the choir director; ^[a]on the Gittith. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

Usury Abolished

5 Now ^(A)there was a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their ^(B)Jewish brothers. ² For there were those who said, “We, our sons and our daughters are many; therefore let us ^(C)get grain that we may eat and live.” ³ There were others who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards and our houses that we might get grain because of the famine.” ⁴ Also there were those who said, “We have borrowed money ^(D)for the king’s tax on our fields and our vineyards. ⁵ Now ^(E)our flesh is like the flesh of our brothers, our children like their children. Yet behold, ^(F)we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters are forced into bondage already, and ^[a]we are helpless because our fields and vineyards belong to others.”

⁶ Then I was very ^(G)angry when I had heard their outcry and these words. ⁷ I consulted with myself and contended with the nobles and the rulers and said to them, “^(H)You are exacting usury, each from his brother!” Therefore, I held a great assembly against them. ⁸ I said to them, “We according to our ability ^(I)have ^[b]redeemed our Jewish brothers who were sold to the nations; now would you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us?” Then they were silent and could not find a word to say. ⁹ Again I said, “The thing which you are doing is not good; should you not walk in the fear of our God because of ^(J)the reproach of the nations, our enemies? ¹⁰ And likewise I, my brothers and my servants are lending them money and grain. Please, let us leave off this usury. ¹¹ Please, give back to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money and of the grain, the new wine and the oil that you are exacting from them.” ¹² Then they said, “We ^(K)will give it back and ^(L)will require nothing from them; we will do exactly as you say.” So I called the priests and ^(M)took an oath from them that they would do according to this ^[c]promise. ¹³ I ^(N)also shook out the ^[d]front of my garment and said, “Thus may God shake out every man from his house and from his possessions who does not fulfill this ^[e]promise; even thus may he be shaken out and emptied.” And ^(O)all the assembly said, “Amen!” And they praised the Lord. Then the people did according to this ^[f]promise.

Nehemiah’s Example

¹⁴ Moreover, from the day that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from ^(P)the twentieth year to the ^(Q)thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes, for twelve years, neither I nor my ^[g]kinsmen have eaten the governor’s food allowance. ¹⁵ But the former governors who were before me ^[h]laid burdens on the people and took from them bread and wine besides forty shekels of silver; even their servants domineered the people. But I did not do so ^(R)because of the fear of God. ¹⁶ I also ^[i]applied myself to the work on this wall; we did not buy any land, and all my servants were gathered there for the work. ¹⁷ Moreover, ^(S)there were at my table one hundred and fifty Jews and officials, besides those who came to us from the nations that were around us. ¹⁸ Now ^(T)that which was prepared for each day was one ox and six choice sheep, also birds were prepared for me; and once in ten days all sorts of wine were furnished in abundance. Yet for all this ^(U)I did not demand the governor’s food allowance, because the servitude was heavy on this people. ^19 (V)Remember me, O my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.

⁷ On ^(A)the first day of the week, when ^(B)we were gathered together to ^(C)break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his ^[a]message until midnight. ⁸ There were many ^(D)lamps in the ^(E)upper room where we were gathered together. ⁹ And there was a young man named ^[b]Eutychus sitting ^[c]on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, he was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead. ¹⁰ But Paul went down and ^(F)fell upon him, and after embracing him, he ^(G)said, “^[d]Do not be troubled, for his life is in him.” ¹¹ When he had gone back up and had ^(H)broken the bread and ^[e]eaten, he talked with them a long while until daybreak, and then left. ¹² They took away the boy alive, and were ^[f]greatly comforted.

²² And He said to His disciples, “^(A)For this reason I say to you, ^[a]do not worry about your ^[b]life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. ²³ For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. ²⁴ Consider the ^(B)ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor ^(C)barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! ²⁵ And which of you by worrying can add a single ^[c](D)hour to his ^[d]life’s span? ²⁶ If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? ²⁷ Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even ^(E)Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. ²⁸ But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? ^(F)You men of little faith! ²⁹ And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not ^(G)keep worrying. ³⁰ For ^[e]all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. ³¹ But seek His kingdom, and ^(H)these things will be added to you.