Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 46
God’s Defense of His City and People
To the leader. Of the Korahites. According to Alamoth. A Song.
1 God is our refuge and strength,
a very present[a] help in trouble.(A)
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea,(B)
3 though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah(C)
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.(D)
5 God is in the midst of the city;[b] it shall not be moved;
God will help it when the morning dawns.(E)
6 The nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice; the earth melts.(F)
7 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.[c] Selah(G)
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord;
see what desolations he has brought on the earth.(H)
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.(I)
10 “Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations;
I am exalted in the earth.”(J)
11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.[d] Selah
Psalm 97
The Glory of God’s Reign
1 The Lord is king! Let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!(A)
2 Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.(B)
3 Fire goes before him
and consumes his adversaries on every side.(C)
4 His lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.(D)
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
and all the peoples behold his glory.
7 All servants of images are put to shame,
those who make their boast in worthless idols;
all gods bow down before him.(E)
8 Zion hears and is glad,
and the towns[a] of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments, O God.(F)
9 For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.(G)
Psalm 96
Praise to God Who Comes in Judgment
1 O sing to the Lord a new song;
sing to the Lord, all the earth.(A)
2 Sing to the Lord; bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.(B)
3 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples.(C)
4 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised;
he is to be revered above all gods.(D)
5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.(E)
6 Honor and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.(F)
7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.(G)
8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come into his courts.(H)
9 Worship the Lord in holy splendor;
tremble before him, all the earth.(I)
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord is king!
The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved.
He will judge the peoples with equity.”(J)
11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar and all that fills it;(K)
12 let the field exult and everything in it.
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
13 before the Lord, for he is coming,
for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness
and the peoples with his truth.(L)
Psalm 100
All Lands Summoned to Praise God
A Psalm of thanksgiving.
1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.(A)
2 Serve the Lord with gladness;
come into his presence with singing.
3 Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;[a]
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.(B)
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him; bless his name.(C)
5 For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever
and his faithfulness to all generations.(D)
The Servant’s Mission
49 Listen to me, O coastlands;
pay attention, you peoples from far away!
The Lord called me before I was born;
while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.(A)
2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword;
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow;
in his quiver he hid me away.(B)
3 And he said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”(C)
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;
I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my cause is with the Lord
and my reward with my God.”(D)
5 And now the Lord says,
who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
and that Israel might be gathered to him,
for I am honored in the sight of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—(E)
6 he says,
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to restore the survivors of Israel;
I will give you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”(F)
7 Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations,
the slave of rulers,
“Kings shall see and stand up;
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves,
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”(G)
22 I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb.(A) 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.(B) 25 Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.(C) 26 People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.(D)
14 But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him.(A)
God’s Chosen Servant
15 When Jesus became aware of this, he departed. Many[a] followed him, and he cured all of them,(B) 16 and he ordered them not to make him known.(C) 17 This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah:
18 “Here is my servant, whom I have chosen,
my beloved, with whom my soul is well pleased.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the gentiles.(D)
19 He will not wrangle or cry aloud,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.
20 He will not break a bruised reed
or quench a smoldering wick
until he brings justice to victory.
21 And in his name the gentiles will hope.”
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.