Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 66
Praise for God’s Mighty Acts
For the choir director. A song. A psalm.
1 Let the whole earth shout joyfully to God!(A)
2 Sing about the glory of his name;
make his praise glorious.(B)
3 Say to God, “How awe-inspiring are your works!
Your enemies will cringe before you
because of your great strength.(C)
4 The whole earth will worship you
and sing praise to you.
They will sing praise to your name.”(D)Selah
5 Come and see the wonders of God;(E)
his acts for humanity[a] are awe-inspiring.
6 He turned the sea into dry land,
and they crossed the river on foot.(F)
There we rejoiced in him.(G)
7 He rules forever by his might;
he keeps his eye on the nations.(H)
The rebellious should not exalt themselves.(I)Selah
8 Bless our God, you peoples;
let the sound of his praise be heard.(J)
9 He keeps us alive[b]
and does not allow our feet to slip.(K)
10 For you, God, tested us;
you refined us as silver is refined.(L)
11 You lured us into a trap;
you placed burdens on our backs.(M)
12 You let men ride over our heads;
we went through fire and water,
but you brought us out to abundance.[c](N)
13 I will enter your house with burnt offerings;
I will pay you my vows(O)
14 that my lips promised
and my mouth spoke during my distress.(P)
15 I will offer you fattened sheep as burnt offerings,
with the fragrant smoke of rams;
I will sacrifice bulls with goats.(Q)Selah
16 Come and listen, all who fear God,
and I will tell what he has done for me.(R)
17 I cried out to him with my mouth,
and praise was on my tongue.(S)
18 If I had been aware of malice in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.(T)
19 However, God has listened;
he has paid attention to the sound of my prayer.(U)
20 Blessed be God!
He has not turned away my prayer
or turned his faithful love from me.(V)
Psalm 67
All Will Praise God
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us;
may he make his face shine upon us(W)Selah
2 so that your way may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.(X)
Psalm 19
The Witness of Creation and Scripture
For the choir director. A psalm of David.
1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the expanse(A) proclaims the work of his hands.(B)
2 Day after day they pour out speech;
night after night they communicate knowledge.[a]
3 There is no speech; there are no words;
their voice is not heard.
4 Their message[b] has gone out to the whole earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.(C)
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun.(D)
5 It is like a bridegroom coming from his home;
it rejoices like an athlete running a course.
6 It rises from one end of the heavens
and circles to their other end;(E)
nothing is hidden from its heat.
7 The instruction of the Lord is perfect,
renewing one’s life;(F)
the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy,
making the inexperienced wise.(G)
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
making the heart glad;(H)
the command of the Lord is radiant,
making the eyes light up.(I)
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever;(J)
the ordinances of the Lord are reliable
and altogether righteous.(K)
10 They are more desirable than gold—
than an abundance of pure gold;(L)
and sweeter than honey
dripping from a honeycomb.(M)
11 In addition, your servant is warned by them,
and in keeping them there is an abundant reward.(N)
12 Who perceives his unintentional sins?
Cleanse me from my hidden faults.(O)
13 Moreover, keep your servant from willful sins;(P)
do not let them rule me.(Q)
Then I will be blameless
and cleansed from blatant rebellion.(R)
14 May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable to you,(S)
Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.(T)
Psalm 46
God Our Refuge
For the choir director. A song of the sons of Korah. According to Alamoth.(A)
1 God is our refuge and strength,
a helper who is always found
in times of trouble.(B)
2 Therefore we will not be afraid,
though the earth trembles
and the mountains topple
into the depths of the seas,(C)
3 though its water roars and foams
and the mountains quake with its turmoil.(D)Selah
4 There is a river—
its streams delight the city of God,
the holy dwelling place of the Most High.(E)
5 God is within her; she will not be toppled.
God will help her when the morning dawns.(F)
6 Nations rage, kingdoms topple;
the earth melts when he lifts his voice.(G)
7 The Lord of Armies is with us;
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.(H)Selah
8 Come, see the works of the Lord,
who brings devastation on the earth.(I)
9 He makes wars cease throughout the earth.
He shatters bows and cuts spears to pieces;
he sets wagons ablaze.(J)
10 “Stop fighting, and know that I am God,
exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth.”(K)
11 The Lord of Armies is with us;
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.(L)Selah
8 When Israel saw Joseph’s sons, he said, “Who are these?”
9 And Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons God has given me here.”
So Israel said, “Bring them to me and I will bless them.”(A) 10 Now his eyesight was poor because of old age; he could hardly[a] see.(B) Joseph brought them to him, and he kissed and embraced them.(C) 11 Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face again, but now God has even let me see your offspring.” 12 Then Joseph took them from his father’s knees and bowed with his face to the ground.(D)
Ephraim’s Greater Blessing
13 Then Joseph took them both—with his right hand Ephraim toward Israel’s left, and with his left hand Manasseh toward Israel’s right—and brought them to Israel. 14 But Israel stretched out his right hand and put it on the head of Ephraim, the younger, and crossing his hands, put his left on Manasseh’s head, although Manasseh was the firstborn.(E) 15 Then he blessed Joseph and said:
The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked,(F)
the God who has been my shepherd(G) all my life to this day,
16 the angel who has redeemed me from all harm(H)—
may he bless these boys.
And may they be called by my name
and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac,(I)
and may they grow to be numerous within the land.
17 When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head, he thought it was a mistake[b] and took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s. 18 Joseph said to his father, “Not that way, my father! This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.”
19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know! He too will become a tribe,[c] and he too will be great; nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his offspring will become a populous nation.”[d] 20 So he blessed them that day, putting Ephraim before Manasseh when he said, “The nation Israel will invoke blessings by you, saying, ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”
21 Israel said to Joseph, “Look, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you back to the land of your fathers.(J) 22 Over and above what I am giving your brothers, I am giving you the one mountain slope[e] that I took from the Amorites with my sword and bow.”(K)
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead(A) lives in you, then he who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through[a] his Spirit who lives in you.
The Holy Spirit’s Ministries
12 So then, brothers and sisters, we are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh, 13 because if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body,(B) you will live. 14 For all those led by God’s Spirit(C) are God’s sons.(D) 15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear.(E) Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption,(F) by whom we cry out, “Abba,[b] Father!” (G) 16 The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit(H) that we are God’s children, 17 and if children, also heirs(I)—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with him(J) so that we may also be glorified with him.
From Groans to Glory
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing(K) with the glory(L) that is going to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation eagerly waits with anticipation(M) for God’s sons(N) to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected(O) to futility(P)—not willingly, but because of him who subjected it(Q)—in the hope 21 that the creation itself(R) will also be set free from the bondage to decay into the glorious freedom of God’s children. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together with labor pains(S) until now. 23 Not only that,(T) but we ourselves who have the Spirit as the firstfruits(U)—we also groan within ourselves,(V) eagerly waiting for adoption,(W) the redemption of our bodies.(X) 24 Now in this hope(Y) we were saved, but hope(Z) that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? 25 Now if we hope for what we do not see,(AA) we eagerly wait for it with patience.
27 Don’t work for the food that perishes(A) but for the food that lasts for eternal life,(B) which the Son of Man(C) will give you, because God the Father(D) has set his seal of approval on him.”
28 “What can we do to perform the works of God?” they asked.
29 Jesus replied, “This is the work(E) of God—that you believe in the one he has sent.”(F)
30 “What sign, then, are you going to do so that we may see and believe you?” they asked. “What are you going to perform? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna(G) in the wilderness,(H) just as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”[a](I)
32 Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, Moses(J) didn’t give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 Then they said, “Sir, give us this bread always.”
35 “I am(K) the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me(L) will ever be hungry,(M) and no one who believes in me(N) will ever be thirsty(O) again. 36 But as I told you, you’ve seen me,[b] and yet you do not believe. 37 Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out.(P) 38 For I have come down from heaven,(Q) not to do my own will, but the will of him(R) who sent me. 39 This is the will of him who sent me: that I should lose none of those he has given me but should raise(S) them up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father: (T) that everyone who sees the Son(U) and believes in him will have eternal life, and I will raise(V) him up on the last day.”
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