Book of Common Prayer
An Experience of the Captivity.
137 By the (A)rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down and (B)wept,
When we remembered Zion.
2 Upon the [a](C)willows in the midst of it
We (D)hung our [b]harps.
3 For there our captors [c](E)demanded of us [d]songs,
And (F)our tormentors mirth, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”
4 How can we sing (G)the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?
5 If I (H)forget you, O Jerusalem,
May my right hand [e]forget her skill.
6 May my (I)tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
If I do not [f](J)exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.
7 Remember, O Lord, against the sons of (K)Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Who said, “Raze it, raze it
(L)To its very foundation.”
8 O daughter of Babylon, you [g](M)devastated one,
How blessed will be the one who (N)repays you
With [h]the recompense with which you have repaid us.
9 How blessed will be the one who seizes and (O)dashes your little ones
Against the rock.
Prayer for Rescue and Prosperity.
A Psalm of David.
144 Blessed be the Lord, (A)my rock,
Who (B)trains my hands for war,
And my fingers for battle;
2 My lovingkindness and (C)my fortress,
My (D)stronghold and my deliverer,
My (E)shield and He in whom I take refuge,
Who (F)subdues [a]my people under me.
3 O Lord, (G)what is man, that You take knowledge of him?
Or the son of man, that You think of him?
4 (H)Man is like a mere breath;
His (I)days are like a passing shadow.
5 (J)Bow Your heavens, O Lord, and (K)come down;
(L)Touch the mountains, that they may smoke.
6 Flash forth (M)lightning and scatter them;
Send out Your (N)arrows and confuse them.
7 Stretch forth Your hand (O)from on high;
Rescue me and (P)deliver me out of great waters,
Out of the hand of (Q)aliens
8 Whose mouths (R)speak deceit,
And whose (S)right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
9 I will sing a (T)new song to You, O God;
Upon a (U)harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,
10 Who (V)gives salvation to kings,
Who (W)rescues David His servant from the evil sword.
11 Rescue me and deliver me out of the hand of (X)aliens,
Whose mouth (Y)speaks deceit
And whose (Z)right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
12 Let our sons in their youth be as (AA)grown-up plants,
And our daughters as (AB)corner pillars [b]fashioned as for a palace;
13 Let our (AC)garners be full, furnishing every kind of produce,
And our flocks bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our [c]fields;
14 Let our (AD)cattle [d]bear
Without [e](AE)mishap and without [f](AF)loss,
Let there be no (AG)outcry in our streets!
15 How blessed are the people who are so situated;
How (AH)blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
The Lord’s Care over All His Works.
104 (A)Bless the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, You are very great;
You are (B)clothed with splendor and majesty,
2 Covering Yourself with (C)light as with a cloak,
(D)Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain.
3 [a]He (E)lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters;
[b]He makes the (F)clouds His chariot;
[c]He walks upon the (G)wings of the wind;
4 [d]He makes [e](H)the winds His messengers,
[f]Flaming (I)fire His ministers.
5 He (J)established the earth upon its foundations,
So that it will not [g]totter forever and ever.
6 You (K)covered it with the deep as with a garment;
The waters were standing above the mountains.
7 At Your (L)rebuke they fled,
At the (M)sound of Your thunder they hurried away.
8 The mountains rose; the valleys sank down
To the (N)place which You established for them.
9 You set a (O)boundary that they may not pass over,
So that they will not return to cover the earth.
10 [h]He sends forth (P)springs in the valleys;
They flow between the mountains;
11 They (Q)give drink to every beast of the field;
The (R)wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 [i]Beside them the birds of the heavens (S)dwell;
They [j]lift up their voices among the branches.
13 [k]He (T)waters the mountains from His upper chambers;
(U)The earth is satisfied with the fruit of His works.
14 [l]He causes the (V)grass to grow for the [m]cattle,
And (W)vegetation for the [n]labor of man,
So that [o]he may bring forth [p]food (X)from the earth,
15 And (Y)wine which makes man’s heart glad,
(Z)So that he may make his face glisten with oil,
And [q]food which (AA)sustains man’s heart.
16 The trees of the Lord [r]drink their fill,
The cedars of Lebanon which He planted,
17 Where the (AB)birds build their nests,
And the (AC)stork, whose home is the [s]fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for the (AD)wild goats;
The (AE)cliffs are a refuge for the [t](AF)shephanim.
19 He made the moon (AG)for the seasons;
The (AH)sun knows the place of its setting.
20 You (AI)appoint darkness and it becomes night,
In which all the (AJ)beasts of the forest [u]prowl about.
21 The (AK)young lions roar after their prey
[v]And (AL)seek their food from God.
22 When the sun rises they withdraw
And lie down in their (AM)dens.
23 Man goes forth to (AN)his work
And to his labor until evening.
24 O Lord, how (AO)many are Your works!
[w]In (AP)wisdom You have made them all;
The (AQ)earth is full of Your [x]possessions.
25 [y]There is the (AR)sea, great and [z]broad,
In which are swarms without number,
Animals both small and great.
26 There the (AS)ships move along,
And [aa](AT)Leviathan, which You have formed to sport in it.
27 They all (AU)wait for You
To (AV)give them their food in [ab]due season.
28 You give to them, they gather it up;
You (AW)open Your hand, they are satisfied with good.
29 You (AX)hide Your face, they are dismayed;
You (AY)take away their [ac]spirit, they expire
And (AZ)return to their dust.
30 You send forth Your [ad](BA)Spirit, they are created;
And You renew the face of the ground.
31 Let the (BB)glory of the Lord endure forever;
Let the Lord (BC)be glad in His works;
32 [ae]He (BD)looks at the earth, and it (BE)trembles;
He (BF)touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 [af]I will sing to the Lord [ag](BG)as long as I live;
[ah]I will (BH)sing praise to my God [ai]while I have my being.
34 Let my (BI)meditation be pleasing to Him;
As for me, I shall (BJ)be glad in the Lord.
35 Let sinners be (BK)consumed from the earth
And let the (BL)wicked be no more.
(BM)Bless the Lord, O my soul.
[aj](BN)Praise [ak]the Lord!
11 It will be a day for (A)building your walls.
On that day will your boundary be extended.
12 It will be a day when [a]they will (B)come to you
From Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
From Egypt even to the [b]Euphrates,
Even from sea to sea and mountain to mountain.
13 And the earth will become (C)desolate because of her inhabitants,
On account of the (D)fruit of their deeds.
14 (E)Shepherd Your people with Your (F)scepter,
The flock of Your [c]possession
Which dwells by itself in the woodland,
In the midst of [d]a fruitful field.
Let them feed in (G)Bashan and Gilead
(H)As in the days of old.
15 “As in the days when you came out from the land of Egypt,
I will show [e](I)you miracles.”
16 Nations (J)will see and be ashamed
Of all their might.
They will (K)put their hand on their mouth,
Their ears will be deaf.
17 They will (L)lick the dust like a serpent,
Like (M)reptiles of the earth.
They will come (N)trembling out of their [f]fortresses;
To the Lord our God they will come in (O)dread
And they will be afraid before You.
18 Who is a God like You, who (P)pardons iniquity
And passes over the rebellious act of the (Q)remnant of His [g]possession?
He does not (R)retain His anger forever,
Because He (S)delights in [h]unchanging love.
19 He will again have compassion on us;
(T)He will tread our iniquities under foot.
Yes, You will (U)cast all [i]their sins
Into the depths of the sea.
20 You will give [j](V)truth to Jacob
And [k]unchanging love to Abraham,
Which You (W)swore to our forefathers
From the days of old.
7 (A)The end of all things [a]is near; therefore, (B)be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of [b]prayer. 8 Above all, (C)keep fervent in your love for one another, because (D)love covers a multitude of sins. 9 (E)Be hospitable to one another without (F)complaint. 10 (G)As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good (H)stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11 (I)Whoever speaks, is to do so [c]as one who is speaking the (J)utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving [d](K)by the strength which God supplies; so that (L)in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, (M)to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Share the Sufferings of Christ
12 (N)Beloved, do not be surprised at the (O)fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; 13 but to the degree that you (P)share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the (Q)revelation of His glory (R)you may rejoice with exultation. 14 If you are reviled [e](S)for the name of Christ, (T)you are blessed, (U)because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 Make sure that (V)none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a [f](W)troublesome meddler; 16 but if anyone suffers as a (X)Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to (Y)glorify God in this name. 17 For it is time for judgment (Z)to begin [g]with (AA)the household of God; and if it (AB)begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those (AC)who do not obey the (AD)gospel of God? 18 (AE)And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, [h]what will become of the (AF)godless man and the sinner? 19 Therefore, those also who suffer according to (AG)the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.
Sight for the Blind
29 (A)As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Him. 30 And two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, “Lord, (B)have mercy on us, (C)Son of David!” 31 The crowd sternly told them to be quiet, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, (D)Son of David, have mercy on us!” 32 And Jesus stopped and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” 33 They *said to Him, “Lord, we want our eyes to be opened.” 34 Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes; and immediately they regained their sight and followed Him.
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