Book of Common Prayer
The Glories of the City of God
A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A Song.
87 His foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 (A)The Lord loves the gates of Zion
More than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 (B)Glorious things are spoken of you,
O city of God! Selah
4 “I will make mention of [a]Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me;
Behold, O Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia:
‘This one was born there.’ ”
5 And of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her;
And the Most High Himself shall establish her.”
6 The Lord will record,
When He (C)registers the peoples:
“This one was born there.” Selah
7 Both the singers and the players on instruments say,
“All my springs are in you.”
BOOK FOUR
Psalms 90–106
The Eternity of God, and Man’s Frailty
A Prayer (A)of Moses the man of God.
90 Lord, (B)You have been our [a]dwelling place in all generations.
2 (C)Before the mountains were brought forth,
Or ever You [b]had formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
3 You turn man to destruction,
And say, (D)“Return, O children of men.”
4 (E)For a thousand years in Your sight
Are like yesterday when it is past,
And like a watch in the night.
5 You carry them away like a flood;
(F)They are like a sleep.
In the morning (G)they are like grass which grows up:
6 In the morning it flourishes and grows up;
In the evening it is cut down and withers.
7 For we have been consumed by Your anger,
And by Your wrath we are terrified.
8 (H)You have set our iniquities before You,
Our (I)secret sins in the light of Your countenance.
9 For all our days have passed away in Your wrath;
We finish our years like a sigh.
10 The days of our lives are seventy years;
And if by reason of strength they are eighty years,
Yet their boast is only labor and sorrow;
For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of Your anger?
For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath.
12 (J)So teach us to number our days,
That we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13 Return, O Lord!
How long?
And (K)have compassion on Your servants.
14 Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy,
(L)That we may rejoice and be glad all our days!
15 Make us glad according to the days in which You have afflicted us,
The years in which we have seen evil.
16 Let (M)Your work appear to Your servants,
And Your glory to their children.
17 (N)And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,
And (O)establish the work of our hands for us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands.
Thanksgiving to God for His Enduring Mercy
136 Oh, (A)give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
(B)For His mercy endures forever.
2 Oh, give thanks to (C)the God of gods!
For His mercy endures forever.
3 Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords!
For His mercy endures forever:
4 To Him (D)who alone does great wonders,
For His mercy endures forever;
5 (E)To Him who by wisdom made the heavens,
For His mercy endures forever;
6 (F)To Him who laid out the earth above the waters,
For His mercy endures forever;
7 (G)To Him who made great lights,
For His mercy endures forever—
8 (H)The sun to rule by day,
For His mercy endures forever;
9 The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His mercy endures forever.
10 (I)To Him who struck Egypt in their firstborn,
For His mercy endures forever;
11 (J)And brought out Israel from among them,
For His mercy endures forever;
12 (K)With a strong hand, and with [a]an outstretched arm,
For His mercy endures forever;
13 (L)To Him who divided the Red Sea in two,
For His mercy endures forever;
14 And made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His mercy endures forever;
15 (M)But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea,
For His mercy endures forever;
16 (N)To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His mercy endures forever;
17 (O)To Him who struck down great kings,
For His mercy endures forever;
18 (P)And slew famous kings,
For His mercy endures forever—
19 (Q)Sihon king of the Amorites,
For His mercy endures forever;
20 (R)And Og king of Bashan,
For His mercy endures forever—
21 (S)And gave their land as a [b]heritage,
For His mercy endures forever;
22 A heritage to Israel His servant,
For His mercy endures forever.
23 Who (T)remembered us in our lowly state,
For His mercy endures forever;
24 And (U)rescued us from our enemies,
For His mercy endures forever;
25 (V)Who gives food to all flesh,
For His mercy endures forever.
26 Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven!
For His mercy endures forever.
Jacob Meets Rachel
29 So Jacob went on his journey (A)and came to the land of the people of the East. 2 And he looked, and saw a (B)well in the field; and behold, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks. A large stone was on the well’s mouth. 3 Now all the flocks would be gathered there; and they would roll the stone from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth.
4 And Jacob said to them, “My brethren, where are you from?”
And they said, “We are from (C)Haran.”
5 Then he said to them, “Do you know (D)Laban the son of Nahor?”
And they said, “We know him.”
6 So he said to them, (E)“Is he well?”
And they said, “He is well. And look, his daughter Rachel (F)is coming with the sheep.”
7 Then he said, “Look, it is still [a]high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.”
8 But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and they have rolled the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.”
9 Now while he was still speaking with them, (G)Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and (H)rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 11 Then Jacob (I)kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice and wept. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was (J)her father’s relative and that he was Rebekah’s son. (K)So she ran and told her father.
13 Then it came to pass, when Laban heard the report about Jacob his sister’s son, that (L)he ran to meet him, and embraced him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. So he told Laban all these things. 14 And Laban said to him, (M)“Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” And he stayed with him for a month.
Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, (N)what should your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were [b]delicate, but Rachel was (O)beautiful of form and appearance.
18 Now Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, (P)“I will serve you seven years for Rachel your younger daughter.”
19 And Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.” 20 So Jacob (Q)served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her.
The Law of Liberty
14 Receive(A) one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. 2 For one believes he (B)may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. 3 Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and (C)let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. 4 (D)Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.
5 (E)One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who (F)observes the day, observes it to the Lord; [a]and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for (G)he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks. 7 For (H)none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. 8 For if we (I)live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For (J)to this end Christ died [b]and rose and lived again, that He might be (K)Lord of both the dead and the living. 10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For (L)we shall all stand before the judgment seat of [c]Christ. 11 For it is written:
(M)“As I live, says the Lord,
Every knee shall bow to Me,
And every tongue shall confess to God.”
12 So then (N)each of us shall give account of himself to God. 13 Therefore let us not judge one another [d]anymore, but rather resolve this, (O)not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.
The Law of Love
14 I know and am convinced by the Lord Jesus (P)that there is nothing unclean of itself; but to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. 15 Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. (Q)Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died. 16 (R)Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil; 17 (S)for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and (T)peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 For he who serves Christ in [e]these things (U)is acceptable to God and approved by men.
19 (V)Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which (W)one may [f]edify another. 20 (X)Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. (Y)All things indeed are pure, (Z)but it is evil for the man who eats with [g]offense. 21 It is good neither to eat (AA)meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles [h]or is offended or is made weak. 22 [i]Do you have faith? Have it to yourself before God. (AB)Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. 23 But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for (AC)whatever is not from faith is [j]sin.
47 (A)He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.”
Before Abraham Was, I AM
48 Then the Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and (B)have a demon?”
49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and (C)you dishonor Me. 50 And (D)I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. 51 Most assuredly, I say to you, (E)if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.”
52 Then the Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You (F)have a demon! (G)Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.’ 53 Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. (H)Who do You make Yourself out to be?”
54 Jesus answered, (I)“If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. (J)It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is [a]your God. 55 Yet (K)you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and (L)keep His word. 56 Your father Abraham (M)rejoiced to see My day, (N)and he saw it and was glad.”
57 Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?”
58 Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, (O)before Abraham was, (P)I AM.”
59 Then (Q)they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, (R)going[b] through the midst of them, and so passed by.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.