Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 24[a]
A psalm of David.
24 The Lord owns the earth and all it contains,
the world and all who live in it.
2 For he set its foundation upon the seas,
and established[b] it upon the ocean currents.[c]
3 Who is allowed to ascend[d] the mountain of the Lord?[e]
Who may go up to his holy dwelling place?
4 The one whose deeds are blameless
and whose motives are pure,[f]
who does not lie,[g]
or make promises with no intention of keeping them.[h]
5 Such godly people are rewarded by the Lord,[i]
and vindicated by the God who delivers them.[j]
6 Such purity characterizes the people who seek his favor,
Jacob’s descendants, who pray to him.[k] (Selah)
7 Look up,[l] you gates.
Rise up,[m] you eternal doors.
Then the majestic king[n] will enter.[o]
8 Who is this majestic king?[p]
The Lord who is strong and mighty.
The Lord who is mighty in battle.
9 Look up, you gates.
Rise up, you eternal doors.
Then the majestic king will enter.
10 Who is this majestic king?
The Lord of Heaven’s Armies.[q]
He is the majestic king. (Selah)
Psalm 29[a]
A psalm of David.
29 Acknowledge the Lord, you heavenly beings,[b]
acknowledge the Lord’s majesty and power.[c]
2 Acknowledge the majesty of the Lord’s reputation.[d]
Worship the Lord in holy attire.[e]
3 The Lord’s shout is heard over the water;[f]
the majestic God thunders,[g]
the Lord appears over the surging water.[h]
4 The Lord’s shout is powerful,[i]
the Lord’s shout is majestic.[j]
5 The Lord’s shout breaks[k] the cedars,
the Lord shatters[l] the cedars of Lebanon.[m]
6 He makes them skip like a calf,
Lebanon and Sirion[n] like a young ox.[o]
7 The Lord’s shout strikes[p] with flaming fire.[q]
8 The Lord’s shout shakes[r] the wilderness,
the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.[s]
9 The Lord’s shout bends[t] the large trees[u]
and strips[v] the leaves from the forests.[w]
Everyone in his temple says, “Majestic!”[x]
10 The Lord sits enthroned over the engulfing waters,[y]
the Lord sits enthroned[z] as the eternal king.
11 The Lord gives[aa] his people strength;[ab]
the Lord grants his people security.[ac]
Psalm 8[a]
For the music director, according to the gittith style;[b] a psalm of David.
8 O Lord, our Lord,[c]
how magnificent[d] is your reputation[e] throughout the earth!
You reveal your majesty in the heavens above.[f]
2 From the mouths of children and nursing babies
you have ordained praise on account of your adversaries,[g]
so that you might put an end to the vindictive enemy.[h]
3 When I look up at the heavens, which your fingers made,
and see the moon and the stars, which you set in place,[i]
4 Of what importance is the human race,[j] that you should notice[k] them?
Of what importance is mankind,[l] that you should pay attention to them?[m]
5 You made them[n] a little less than[o] the heavenly beings.[p]
You crowned mankind[q] with honor and majesty.[r]
6 you appoint them to rule over your creation;[s]
you have placed[t] everything under their authority,[u]
7 including all the sheep and cattle,
as well as the wild animals,[v]
8 the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea,
and everything that moves through the currents[w] of the seas.
9 O Lord, our Lord,[x]
how magnificent[y] is your reputation[z] throughout the earth![aa]
Psalm 84[a]
For the music director, according to the gittith style;[b] written by the Korahites, a psalm.
84 How lovely is the place where you live,[c]
O Lord of Heaven’s Armies![d]
2 I desperately want to be[e]
in the courts of the Lord’s temple.[f]
My heart and my entire being[g] shout for joy
to the living God.
3 Even the birds find a home there,
and the swallow[h] builds a nest,
where she can protect her young[i]
near your altars, O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
my King and my God.
4 How blessed[j] are those who live in your temple
and praise you continually. (Selah)
5 How blessed are those who[k] find their strength in you,
and long to travel the roads that lead to your temple.[l]
6 As they pass through the Baca Valley,[m]
he provides a spring for them.[n]
The rain[o] even covers it with pools of water.[p]
7 They are sustained as they travel along;[q]
each one appears[r] before God in Zion.
8 O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies,[s]
hear my prayer.
Listen, O God of Jacob. (Selah)
9 O God, take notice of our shield.[t]
Show concern for your chosen king.[u]
10 Certainly[v] spending just one day in your temple courts is better
than spending a thousand elsewhere.[w]
I would rather stand at the entrance[x] to the temple of my God
than live[y] in the tents of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God is our sovereign protector.[z]
The Lord bestows favor[aa] and honor;
he withholds no good thing from those who have integrity.[ab]
12 O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[ac]
how blessed are those who trust in you.[ad]
Israel Renews its Commitment to the Lord
24 Joshua assembled all the Israelite tribes at Shechem. He summoned Israel’s elders, rulers, judges, and leaders, and they appeared before God. 2 Joshua told all the people, “This is what the Lord God of Israel has said: ‘In the distant past your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River,[a] including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor. They worshiped[b] other gods, 3 but I took your father Abraham from beyond the Euphrates[c] and brought him into[d] the entire land of Canaan. I made his descendants numerous; I gave him Isaac, 4 and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I assigned Mount Seir,[e] while Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt. 5 I sent Moses and Aaron, and I struck Egypt down when I intervened in their land.[f] Then I brought you out. 6 When I brought your fathers out of Egypt, you arrived at the sea. The Egyptians chased your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. 7 Your fathers[g] cried out for help to the Lord; he made the area between you and the Egyptians dark,[h] and then he drowned them in the sea.[i] You witnessed with your very own eyes[j] what I did in Egypt. You lived in the wilderness for a long time.[k] 8 Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought with you, but I handed them over to you; you conquered[l] their land, and I destroyed them from before you. 9 Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, launched an attack[m] against Israel. He summoned[n] Balaam son of Beor to call down judgment on[o] you. 10 I refused to respond to Balaam; he kept[p] prophesying good things about[q] you, and I rescued you from his power.[r] 11 You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The leaders[s] of Jericho, as well as the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites, fought with you, but I handed them over to you. 12 I sent terror[t] ahead of you to drive out before you the two[u] Amorite kings. I gave you the victory; it was not by your swords or bows.[v] 13 I gave you a land in[w] which you had not worked hard; you took up residence in cities you did not build, and you are eating the produce of[x] vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.’
14 “Now[y] obey[z] the Lord and worship[aa] him with integrity and loyalty. Put aside the gods your ancestors[ab] worshiped[ac] beyond the Euphrates[ad] and in Egypt, and worship[ae] the Lord. 15 If you have no desire[af] to worship[ag] the Lord, then choose today whom you will worship,[ah] whether it be the gods whom your ancestors[ai] worshiped[aj] beyond the Euphrates,[ak] or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But I and my family[al] will worship[am] the Lord.”
23 They set[a] a day to meet with him,[b] and they came to him where he was staying[c] in even greater numbers.[d] From morning until evening he explained things[e] to them,[f] testifying[g] about the kingdom of God[h] and trying to convince[i] them about Jesus from both the law of Moses and the prophets. 24 Some were convinced[j] by what he said,[k] but others refused[l] to believe. 25 So they began to leave,[m] unable to agree among themselves, after Paul made one last statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke rightly to your ancestors[n] through the prophet Isaiah 26 when he said,
‘Go to this people and say,
“You will keep on hearing,[o] but will never understand,
and you will keep on looking,[p] but will never perceive.
27 For the heart of this people has become dull,[q]
and their ears are hard of hearing,[r]
and they have closed their eyes,
so that they would not see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn,[s] and I would heal them.”’[t]
28 “Therefore be advised[u] that this salvation from God[v] has been sent to the Gentiles;[w] they[x] will listen!”[y]
30 Paul[z] lived[aa] there two whole years in his own rented quarters[ab] and welcomed[ac] all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God[ad] and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ[ae] with complete boldness[af] and without restriction.[ag]
Lord of the Sabbath
23 Jesus[a] was going through the grain fields on a Sabbath, and his disciples began to pick some heads of wheat[b] as they made their way. 24 So[c] the Pharisees[d] said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is against the law on the Sabbath?” 25 He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry— 26 how he entered the house of God when Abiathar was high priest[e] and ate the sacred bread,[f] which is against the law[g] for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to his companions?”[h] 27 Then[i] he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for people,[j] not people for the Sabbath. 28 For this reason the Son of Man is lord[k] even of the Sabbath.”
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