Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer Against the Enemies
A song of Asaph.
83 God, do not keep quiet.
God, do not be silent or still.
2 Your enemies are making plans.
Those who hate you are getting ready to attack.
3 They are making plans against your people.
They plan to hurt those you love.
4 They say, “Come, let’s destroy them as a nation.
Then no one will remember the name ‘Israel’ anymore.”
5 They are united in their plan.
These have made an agreement against you:
6 the families of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,
7 the people of Byblos, Ammon, Amalek,
Philistia and Tyre.
8 Even Assyria has joined them
to help Ammon and Moab, the descendants of Lot. Selah
9 God, do to them what you did to Midian.
Do what you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.
10 They died at Endor.
Their bodies rotted on the ground.
11 Do to their important leaders what you did to Oreb and Zeeb.
Do to their princes what you did to Zebah and Zalmunna.
12 They said, “Let’s take for ourselves
the pasturelands that belong to God.”
13 My God, make them like the tumbleweed,
like chaff blown away by the wind.
14 Be like a fire that burns a forest
or like flames that blaze through the hills.
15 Chase them with your storm.
Frighten them with your wind.
16 Cover them with shame.
Then people will look for you, Lord.
17 Make them afraid and ashamed forever.
Disgrace them and destroy them.
18 Then they will know that you are the Lord.
They will know that only you are God Most High over all the earth.
The Lord the Shepherd
A song of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd.
I have everything I need.
2 He gives me rest in green pastures.
He leads me to calm water.
3 He gives me new strength.
For the good of his name,
he leads me on paths that are right.
4 Even if I walk
through a very dark valley,
I will not be afraid
because you are with me.
Your rod and your shepherd’s staff comfort me.
5 You prepare a meal for me
in front of my enemies.
You pour oil of blessing on my head.[a]
You give me more than I can hold.
6 Surely your goodness and love will be with me
all my life.
And I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
A Song of Trust in God
Of David.
27 The Lord is my light and the one who saves me.
So why should I fear anyone?
The Lord protects my life.
So why should I be afraid?
2 Evil people may try to destroy my body.
My enemies and those who hate me attack me.
But they are overwhelmed and defeated.
3 If an army surrounds me,
I will not be afraid.
If war breaks out,
I will trust the Lord.
4 I ask only one thing from the Lord.
This is what I want:
Let me live in the Lord’s house
all my life.
Let me see the Lord’s beauty.
Let me look around in his Temple.
5 During danger he will keep me safe in his shelter.
He will hide me in his Holy Tent.
Or he will keep me safe on a high mountain.
6 My head is higher
than my enemies around me.
I will offer joyful sacrifices in his Holy Tent.
I will sing and praise the Lord.
7 Lord, hear me when I call.
Be kind and answer me.
8 My heart said of you, “Go, worship him.”
So I come to worship you, Lord.
9 Do not turn away from me.
Do not turn your servant away in anger.
You have helped me.
Do not push me away or leave me alone,
God, my Savior.
10 If my father and mother leave me,
the Lord will take me in.
11 Lord, teach me your ways.
Guide me to do what is right
because I have enemies.
12 Do not let my enemies defeat me.
They tell lies about me.
They say they will hurt me.
13 I truly believe
I will live to see the Lord’s goodness.
14 Wait for the Lord’s help.
Be strong and brave
and wait for the Lord’s help.
A Prayer for the Nation
For the director of music. A song of the sons of Korah.
85 Lord, you have been kind to your land.
You gave the people of Jacob back their riches.
2 You forgave the guilt of the people.
You covered all their sins. Selah
3 You stopped all your anger.
You stopped your strong anger.
4 God our Savior, bring us back again.
Stop being angry with us.
5 Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you stay angry from now on?
6 Won’t you give us life again?
Your people would rejoice in you.
7 Lord, show us your love.
Save us.
8 I will listen to God the Lord.
He has ordered peace for his people who worship him.
Don’t let them go back to foolishness.
9 God will soon save those who respect him.
And his greatness will be seen in our land.
10 Love and truth will belong to God’s people.
Goodness and peace will be theirs.
11 On earth people will be loyal to God.
And God’s goodness will shine down from heaven.
12 The Lord will give his goodness.
And the land will give its crops.
13 Goodness will go before God
and prepare the way for him.
A Cry for Help
A prayer of David.
86 Lord, listen to me and answer me.
I am poor and helpless.
2 Protect me, because I worship you.
My God, save me, your servant.
I trust in you.
3 Lord, be merciful to me.
I have called to you all day.
4 Give happiness to me, your servant.
Lord, I give my life to you.
5 Lord, you are kind and forgiving.
You have great love for those who call to you.
6 Lord, hear my prayer.
Listen when I ask for mercy.
7 I call to you in times of trouble.
You certainly will answer me.
8 Lord, there is no god like you.
There are no works like yours.
9 Lord, all the nations you have made
will come and worship you.
They will honor you.
10 You are great, and you do miracles.
Only you are God.
11 Lord, teach me what you want me to do.
And I will live by your truth.
Teach me to respect you completely.
12 Lord, my God, I will praise you with all my heart.
I will honor your name forever.
13 You have great love for me.
You have saved me from death.
14 God, proud men turn against me.
A gang of cruel men are trying to kill me.
They do not respect you.
15 But Lord, you are a God who shows mercy and is kind.
You don’t become angry quickly.
You have great love and faithfulness.
16 Turn to me and be merciful.
Give me, your servant, strength.
Save me, the son of your female servant.
17 Show me a sign of your goodness.
When my enemies look, they will be ashamed.
You, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.
People in Heaven Praise God
19 After this I heard what sounded like a great many people in heaven. They were saying:
“Hallelujah![a]
Salvation, glory, and power belong to our God.
2 His judgments are true and right.
Our God has punished the prostitute.
She is the one who made the earth evil with her sexual immorality.
God has punished the prostitute to pay her back for the death of his servants.”
3 Again they said:
“Hallelujah!
She is burning, and her smoke will rise forever and ever.”
4 Then the 24 elders[b] and the four living things bowed down. They worshiped God, who sits on the throne. They said:
“Amen, Hallelujah!”
5 Then a voice came from the throne:
“Praise our God, all you who serve him!
Praise our God, all you who honor him, both small and great!”
6 Then I heard what sounded like a great many people. It sounded like the noise of flooding water and like loud thunder. The people were saying:
“Hallelujah!
Our Lord God rules. He is the All-Powerful.
7 Let us rejoice and be happy
and give God glory!
Give God glory, because the wedding of the Lamb has come.
And the Lamb’s bride has made herself ready.
8 Fine linen was given to the bride for her to wear.
The linen was bright and clean.”
(The fine linen means the good things done by God’s holy people.)
9 Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Those who are invited to the wedding meal of the Lamb are happy!” Then the angel said, “These are the true words of God.”
10 Then I bowed down at the angel’s feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not worship me! I am a servant like you and your brothers who have the truth of Jesus. Worship God! Because the truth about Jesus is the spirit that gives all prophecy.”
The Leaders Ask for a Miracle
16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus. They wanted to trap him. So they asked him to show them a miracle to prove that he was from God.
2 Jesus answered,[a] “When you see the sunset, you know what the weather will be. If the sky is red, then you say we will have good weather. 3 And in the morning if the sky is dark and red, then you say that it will be a rainy day. You see these signs in the sky, and you know what they mean. In the same way, you see the things that are happening now. But you don’t know their meaning. 4 Evil and sinful people ask for a miracle as a sign. But they will have no sign—only the sign of Jonah.”[b] Then Jesus left them and went away.
Guard Against Wrong Teachings
5 Jesus and his followers went across the lake. But the followers forgot to bring bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Be careful! Guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”
7 The followers discussed the meaning of this. They said, “Did Jesus say this because we forgot to bring bread?”
8 Jesus knew that they were talking about this. So he asked them, “Why are you talking about not having bread? Your faith is small. 9 You still don’t understand? Remember the five loaves of bread that fed the 5,000 people? And remember that you filled many baskets with bread after the people finished eating? 10 And remember the seven loaves of bread that fed the 4,000 people? Remember that you filled many baskets then also? 11 So I was not talking to you about bread. Why don’t you understand that? I am telling you to be careful and guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.” 12 Then the followers understood what Jesus meant. He was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread. He was telling them to guard against the teaching of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.