Book of Common Prayer
Book 1: Psalms 1–41
Two Ways to Live
1 ·Happy [Blessed] are those who don’t ·listen to [L walk in the counsel of] the wicked,
who don’t ·go where sinners go [L stand in the way of sinners],
who don’t ·do what evil people do [L sit in the seat of mockers].
2 They ·love [delight in] the Lord’s ·teachings [laws; instructions],
and they ·think about [meditate on] those ·teachings [laws; instructions] day and night.
3 They are like a tree planted by ·a river [L streams of water; C full of life, strong, vibrant].
The tree produces fruit in season,
and its leaves don’t ·die [wither].
Everything they do will ·succeed [prosper].
4 But wicked people are not like that.
They are like chaff that the wind blows away [C dead, unstable].
5 So the wicked will not ·escape God’s punishment [L stand in the judgment].
Sinners will not ·worship with God’s people [L be in the assembly of the righteous].
6 This is because the Lord ·takes care of his people [L knows the way of the righteous],
but the way of the wicked will be destroyed.
The Lord’s Chosen King
2 Why ·are the nations so angry [do the nations rage/or conspire]?
Why ·are the people making useless plans [do the people plot in vain]?
2 The kings of the earth ·prepare to fight [L take their stand],
and their leaders ·make plans [plot] together
against the Lord
and his ·appointed one [anointed; Messiah; C the king, ultimately Jesus; Acts 4:25–28].
3 They say, “Let’s break ·the chains that hold us back [L their chains/bonds]
and throw off ·the ropes that tie us down [L their ropes/cords from us].”
4 But the one who sits in heaven [C God] laughs;
the Lord ·makes fun of [ridicules; derides] them.
5 Then the Lord ·warns them [L speaks to them in anger]
and frightens them with his ·anger [fury].
6 He says, “I have ·appointed [installed; set] my own king
over my holy mountain, Zion [C the location of the Temple in Jerusalem; 9:11; 48:2, 11; 50:2; 1 Kin. 8:1].”
7 Now I will ·tell [recount to] you what the Lord has ·declared [decreed]:
He said to me, “You are my son.
Today I have become your father [2 Sam. 7:14; Matt. 3:17; Mark 1:11; Luke 3:22; Acts 13:32–33; Heb. 1:5].
8 ·If you ask me [L Ask of me], I will give you the nations as your inheritance;
all the ·people on [L ends of the] earth will be ·yours [L your possession].
9 You will rule over them with an iron ·rod [scepter; C a symbol of royal authority; Rev. 12:5; 19:15].
You will ·break [dash] them into pieces like pottery.”
10 ·So [Now], kings, be wise;
·rulers [L rulers/judges of the earth], ·learn this lesson [be warned].
11 ·Obey [Serve] the Lord with great fear.
·Be happy [Rejoice], ·but tremble [L with trembling].
12 ·Show that you are loyal to his [L Kiss the] son,
or ·you will be destroyed by his anger [L he will be angry and you will perish on the way],
because he can quickly become angry.
But ·happy [blessed] are those who ·trust him for protection [find refuge in him].
A Morning Prayer
David sang this when he ran away from his son Absalom [2 Sam. 15–19].
3 Lord, ·I have many enemies [L how many are my foes?]!
·Many people [L How many…?] have ·turned [L risen] against me.
2 Many are saying about me,
“·God won’t rescue him [L There is no salvation for him in God].” ·
3 But, Lord, you are my shield [C protector],
my ·wonderful God [L glory] who ·gives me courage [L lifts up my head].
4 I will ·pray [L lift my voice] to the Lord,
and he will answer me from his holy mountain [C Zion, the location of the Temple]. ·
5 I can lie down and go to sleep,
and I will wake up again,
because the Lord ·gives me strength [sustains/upholds me].
6 Thousands of troops may ·surround me [L set themselves around me],
but I am not afraid.
7 Lord, rise up!
My God, come ·save [rescue; T deliver] me!
You have struck my enemies on the cheek;
you have broken the teeth of the wicked.
8 ·The Lord can save his people [L Salvation/Rescue/Deliverance belongs to the Lord].
·Bless your people [L May your blessing be on your people]. ·
An Evening Prayer
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.
4 Answer me when I ·pray [L call] to you,
my God who ·does what is right [is righteous; or who vindicates me].
·Make things easier for me [Give me room; Widen my way] when I am in trouble.
Have mercy on me and hear my prayer.
2 People, how long will you turn my ·honor [glory] into shame?
How long will you love what is ·false [empty] and ·look for [seek] lies [C possibly referring to false gods]? ·
3 You know that the Lord has ·chosen [set apart; distinguished] for himself those who are loyal to him [C in covenant relationship with him].
The Lord listens when I ·pray [call] to him.
4 When you ·are angry [are disturbed; L tremble], do not sin.
·Think about these things [Meditate; L Speak to your heart] quietly
·as you go to bed [L on your bed]. ·
5 ·Do what is right as a sacrifice to the Lord [L Sacrifice right/righteous sacrifices]
and trust the Lord.
6 Many people ask,
“Who will ·give us [L make us see] anything good?”
Lord, ·be kind to us [L let the light of your face shine on us; Num. 6:24–26].
7 But you have ·made me very happy [L given joy to my heart],
happier than they are,
even with all their grain and new wine.
8 I ·go to bed [L lie down] and sleep in peace,
because, Lord, only you ·keep me safe [make me secure].
A Prayer for Fairness
A shiggaion [C a musical or literary term of uncertain meaning] of David which he sang to the Lord about Cush, from the tribe of Benjamin [C an unknown person, but the tribe of Benjamin, Saul’s tribe, resisted David’s kingship at first; 2 Sam. 3–4].
7 Lord my God, I ·trust in you for protection [find refuge in you].
·Save [Rescue; T Deliver] me and rescue me
from those who are ·chasing [pursuing] me.
2 Otherwise, like a lion they will tear me apart.
They will ·rip me to pieces [or drag me away], and no one can ·save [rescue; T deliver] me.
3 Lord my God, what have I done?
Have my hands done something ·wrong [to make me guilty]?
4 Have I done wrong to ·my friend [L the one at peace with me]
or stolen without reason from my enemy?
5 If I have, let my enemy ·chase [pursue] me and ·capture [overtake] me.
Let him trample ·me [L my life] into the ·dust [earth]
and ·bury me [L lay my honor] in the ground. ·
6 Lord, rise up in your anger;
·stand up [L lift yourself up] against my enemies’ ·anger [fury].
·Get up [Wake up], ·my God [or for me], and ·demand fairness [insist on/L command judgment].
7 Gather the ·nations [L assembly/congregations of the peoples] around you
and ·rule [or take a seat over; L return] them from ·above [on high].
8 Lord, judge the people.
Lord, ·defend [judge] me ·because I am right [according to my righteousness],
·because I have done no wrong [according to my innocence].
9 God, you ·do what is right [are righteous].
You ·know [L test] our ·thoughts [L hearts/minds] and ·feelings [L kidneys; C the seat of emotions in Hebrew thought].
Stop those wicked actions done by evil people,
and ·help [establish] those who ·do what is right [are righteous].
10 God ·protects me like a [is my] shield;
he saves those whose hearts ·are right [have integrity].
11 God ·judges by what is right [is a righteous judge],
and God is ·always ready to punish the wicked [L angry every day].
12 If they do not ·change their lives [repent],
God will sharpen his sword;
he will string his bow and take aim.
13 He has prepared his deadly weapons;
he has made his flaming arrows.
14 There are people who ·think up [L conceive] evil
and ·plan [L are pregnant with] ·trouble [malice] and ·tell [L give birth to] lies.
15 They dig a ·hole [pit] ·to trap others [L and dig it deep],
but they will fall into it themselves.
16 ·They will get themselves into trouble [L Their trouble/malice will return to their head];
the violence they cause will ·hurt only themselves [L come down on their heads; Prov. 26:27; Matt. 26:52].
17 I praise the Lord ·because he does what is right [according to his righteousness].
I sing praises to the Lord Most High.
11 My ·child [L son], do not reject the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t ·get angry [loathe] when he corrects you.
12 The Lord corrects those he loves,
just as ·parents [L fathers] correct the child they delight in.
13 ·Happy [Blessed] is the person who finds wisdom,
the one who ·gets [gains] understanding.
14 ·Wisdom [L Her profit] is worth more than silver;
·it brings more profit [L her yield more] than gold.
15 Wisdom is more precious than ·rubies [or pearls];
nothing you could want is equal to it.
16 ·With [In] her right hand ·wisdom offers you a long life [L are length of days],
and ·with [in] her left hand ·she gives you [are] riches and honor.
17 ·Wisdom will make your life [L Her paths are] pleasant
and ·will bring you [L her trails are] peace.
18 As a tree produces fruit, wisdom gives life to those who use it,
and everyone who uses it will be happy.
19 The Lord ·made [L laid the foundations of] the earth, ·using his wisdom [or with Wisdom; 8:22–31].
He set the ·sky [heavens] in place, using his ·understanding [competence].
20 With his knowledge, ·he made springs flow into rivers [L the deeps burst open]
and the clouds drop ·rain on the earth [L dew].
18 My children [2:1], we should love people not only ·with words and talk [L in word and tongue], but ·by our actions and true caring [or by showing true love through our actions; L in deed and truth].
Warning Against False Teachers
4 ·My dear friends [L Beloved], many false prophets [Deut. 13:1–5; 18:14–22; Mark 13:22] have gone out into the world. So do not ·believe [trust] every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are from God [C the false teachers evidently claimed that their teaching was from the Spirit; 1 Cor. 12:1–3; 14:29; 1 Thess. 5:19–21]. 2 This is how you can ·know [recognize] God’s Spirit: Every spirit [C a teacher/prophet claiming inspiration from the Spirit] who ·confesses [acknowledges] that Jesus Christ came ·to earth as a human [L in the flesh] is from God. 3 And every spirit who ·refuses to say this about Jesus [L does not confess/acknowledge Jesus] is not from God [2 John 7]. It is the spirit of the ·enemy of Christ [L antichrist; 2:18, 22], which you have heard is coming, and now he is already in the world.
4 ·My dear children [2:1], you ·belong to [L are from] God and have ·defeated [conquered; overcome] them [C the antichrists/false teachers]; because ·God’s Spirit, who is in you, is greater than the devil, who is in the world [L that which is in you is greater than that which is in the world]. 5 And they ·belong to [L are from] the world, so what they say is from the world, and the world ·listens to [hears; obeys] them. 6 But we ·belong to [are from] God, and those who know God ·listen to [hear; obey] us. But those who are not from God do not ·listen to [hear; obey] us. That is how we ·know [recognize] the Spirit that is true and the spirit that ·is false [deceives; errs].
Jesus and John the Baptist(A)
11 After Jesus finished ·telling these things to [instructing; see 7:28] his twelve ·followers [disciples], he left there and went to ·the towns in Galilee [L their towns] to teach and preach.
2 John the Baptist was in prison, but he heard about ·what Christ was doing [or the deeds/actions of the Messiah]. So John sent some of his ·followers [disciples] to Jesus. 3 They asked him, “Are you the ·One who is to come [Expected One; C the Messiah], or should we ·wait for [look for; expect] someone else?”
4 Jesus answered them, “Go ·tell [report to] John what you hear and see: 5 The blind can see, the ·crippled [lame] can walk, and ·people with skin diseases [T lepers; see 8:2] are ·healed [L cleansed]. The deaf can hear, the dead are raised to life, and the ·Good News [Gospel] is preached to the poor [C signs of God’s restoration of creation, predicted by the prophet Isaiah; Is. 29:18–19; 35:5–6; 61:1–2]. 6 Those who ·do not stumble in their faith [are not offended] because of me are blessed.”
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