Book of Common Prayer
Incline Your Ear to My Cry
A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the choir director. According to Mahalath Leannoth. A [a]Maskil of Heman [b]the Ezrahite.
88 O Yahweh, the (A)God of my salvation,
I have (B)cried out by day and throughout the night before You.
2 Let my prayer (C)come before You;
(D)Incline Your ear to my cry of lamentation!
3 For my (E)soul has been saturated with calamities,
And (F)my life has reached Sheol.
4 I am counted among those who (G)go down to the pit;
I am like a man (H)without strength,
5 Released (I)among the dead,
Like the slain who lie in the grave,
Whom You remember no more,
And they are (J)cut off from Your hand.
6 You have put me in (K)the pit far below,
In (L)dark places, in the (M)depths.
7 Your wrath (N)lies upon me,
And You afflict me with (O)all Your breaking waves. [c]Selah.
8 You have removed (P)my acquaintances far from me;
You have set me as [d]an (Q)abomination to them;
I am (R)shut up and cannot go out.
9 My (S)eye has wasted away because of affliction;
I have (T)called upon You every day, O Yahweh;
I have (U)spread out my [e]hands to You.
10 Will You do wonders for the dead?
Will (V)the [f]departed spirits rise and praise You? Selah.
11 Will Your lovingkindness be recounted in the grave,
Your faithfulness in [g]Abaddon?
12 Will Your wonders be known in the (W)darkness?
And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But as for me, O Yahweh, I have cried out (X)to You for help,
And (Y)in the morning my prayer comes before You.
14 O Yahweh, why (Z)do You reject my soul?
Why do You (AA)hide Your face from me?
15 I have been afflicted and (AB)about to breathe my last from my youth on;
I bear (AC)Your terrors; I am [h]overcome.
16 Your (AD)burning anger has passed over me;
Your horrors have [i](AE)destroyed me.
17 They have (AF)surrounded me (AG)like water all day long;
They have (AH)encompassed me altogether.
18 You have removed (AI)lover and friend far from me;
My acquaintances are in darkness.
In the Shadow of the Almighty
91 He who abides in the (A)shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the (B)shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to Yahweh, “My (C)refuge and my (D)fortress,
My God, in whom I (E)trust!”
3 For it is He who delivers you from the (F)snare of the trapper
And from the destructive (G)pestilence.
4 He will (H)cover you with His pinions,
And (I)under His wings you will take refuge;
His (J)truth is a (K)large shield and bulwark.
5 You (L)will not be afraid of (M)terror by night,
Or (N)arrow that flies by day;
6 Of (O)pestilence that moves in darkness,
Or of (P)destruction that devastates at noon.
7 A thousand may fall at your side
And ten thousand at your right hand,
But (Q)it shall not approach you.
8 You will only look on with your eyes
And (R)see the recompense of the wicked.
9 [a]For you have made Yahweh—(S)my refuge,
The Most High—(T)your dwelling place.
10 (U)No evil will befall you,
And no plague will come near your [b]tent.
11 For He will command (V)His angels concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will (W)bear you up,
Lest you strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will (X)tread upon the fierce lion and cobra,
The young lion and the [c]serpent you will trample down.
14 “(Y)Because he has loved Me, therefore I will protect him;
I will (Z)set him securely on high, because he has (AA)known My name.
15 He will (AB)call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in his [d]distress;
I will rescue him and (AC)honor him.
16 With [e]a (AD)long life I will satisfy him
And (AE)I will show him My salvation.”
How Great Are Your Works, O Yahweh
A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath day.
92 It is (AF)good to give thanks to Yahweh
And to (AG)sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
2 To (AH)declare Your lovingkindness in the morning
And Your (AI)faithfulness [f]by night,
3 [g]With the (AJ)ten-stringed lute and with the (AK)harp,
[h]With resounding music [i]upon the (AL)lyre.
4 For You, O Yahweh, have made me glad by [j]what You (AM)have done,
I will (AN)sing for joy at the (AO)works of Your hands.
5 How (AP)great are Your works, O Yahweh!
Your [k](AQ)thoughts are very (AR)deep.
6 A (AS)senseless man does not know,
And a (AT)fool does not understand this:
7 That when the wicked (AU)flourished like grass
And all (AV)the workers of iniquity blossomed,
It was only that they might be (AW)destroyed forevermore.
8 But You are (AX)on high forever, O Yahweh.
9 For, behold, Your enemies, O Yahweh,
For, behold, (AY)Your enemies will perish;
All the workers of iniquity will be (AZ)scattered.
10 But You have raised up my (BA)horn like that of the wild ox;
I have [l]been (BB)anointed with fresh oil.
11 And my eye has (BC)looked exultantly upon [m]my foes,
My ears hear of the evildoers who rise up against me.
12 The (BD)righteous man will [n]flourish like the palm tree,
He will grow like a (BE)cedar in Lebanon.
13 (BF)Planted in the house of Yahweh,
They will flourish (BG)in the courts of our God.
14 They will still [o](BH)yield fruit in old age;
They shall be [p]rich and fresh,
15 To [q]declare that (BI)Yahweh is upright;
He is my (BJ)rock, and there is (BK)no unrighteousness in Him.
Abimelech Kills His Brothers
9 And (A)Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother’s [a]relatives and spoke to them and to the whole family of the household of his mother’s father, saying, 2 “Speak, now, in the hearing of all the lords of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you, that (B)seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you, or that one man rule over you?’ Also, remember that I am (C)your bone and your flesh.” 3 And his mother’s [b]relatives spoke all these words on his behalf in the hearing of all the lords of Shechem; and [c]they were inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is (D)our [d]relative.” 4 So they gave him seventy pieces of silver from the house of (E)Baal-berith with which Abimelech hired worthless and reckless fellows, and they followed him. 5 Then he came to his father’s house at Ophrah and (F)killed his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, (G)seventy men, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, for he hid himself. 6 Then all the lords of Shechem and all [e]Beth-millo assembled together, and they went and made Abimelech king, by the [f]oak of the pillar which was in Shechem.
7 Then they told Jotham, so he went and stood on the top of (H)Mount Gerizim and lifted his voice and called out. Thus he said to them, “Listen to me, O lords of Shechem, that God may listen to you. 8 The trees surely went forth to anoint a king over them, and they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us!’ 9 But the olive tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my fatness, with [g]which God and men are honored, and go to wave over the trees?’ 10 Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come, reign over us!’ 11 But the fig tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my sweetness and my good produce and go to wave over the trees?’ 12 Then the trees said to the vine, ‘You come, reign over us!’ 13 But the vine said to them, ‘Shall I leave my new wine, which makes God and men glad, and go to wave over the trees?’ 14 Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You come, reign over us!’ 15 And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in [h]truth you are anointing me as king over you, come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, may fire come out from the bramble and consume the cedars of Lebanon.’
16 “So now, if you have dealt in [i]truth and integrity and made Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with (I)Jerubbaal and his house and [j]have dealt with him according to the bountiful works of his hands—
19 if then you have dealt in [a]truth and integrity with Jerubbaal and his house this day, be glad in Abimelech, and let him also be glad in you. 20 But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and consume the lords of Shechem and [b]Beth-millo; and let fire come out from the lords of Shechem and from [c]Beth-millo and consume Abimelech.” 21 Then Jotham escaped and fled and went to Beer and remained there because of Abimelech his brother.
Peter and John Threatened and Released
13 Now as they observed the (A)confidence of (B)Peter and John and comprehended that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were marveling, and (C)began to recognize them [a]as having been with Jesus. 14 And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. 15 But when they had ordered them to leave the [b](D)Sanhedrin, they began to confer with one another, 16 saying, “(E)What should we do with these men? For the fact that a (F)noteworthy [c]sign has happened through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But lest it spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man (G)in this name.” 18 And when they had summoned them, they (H)commanded them not to speak or teach at all [d]in the name of Jesus. 19 But (I)Peter and John answered and said to them, “(J)Whether it is right in the sight of God to hear you rather than God, you be the judge; 20 for (K)we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” 21 And when they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them) (L)on account of the people, because they were all (M)glorifying God for what had happened; 22 for the man was more than forty years old on whom this sign of healing had occurred.
23 So when they were released, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God with one accord and said, “O Master, it is You who (N)made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that is in them, 25 who (O)by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Your servant, said,
‘(P)Why did the [e]Gentiles rage,
And the peoples devise vain things?
26 (Q)The kings of the earth [f]took their stand,
And the rulers were gathered together
Against the Lord and against His [g](R)Christ.’
27 For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy [h](S)Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both (T)Herod and (U)Pontius Pilate, along with (V)the [i]Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28 to do whatever Your hand and (W)Your purpose predestined to occur. 29 And [j]now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your slaves may (X)speak Your word with all (Y)confidence, 30 while You extend Your hand to heal, and [k](Z)signs and wonders happen through the name of Your holy [l](AA)Servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed earnestly, the (AB)place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all (AC)filled with the Holy Spirit and began to (AD)speak the word of God with (AE)confidence.
The Wedding at Cana
2 And on (A)the third day there was a wedding in (B)Cana of Galilee, and the (C)mother of Jesus was there; 2 and both Jesus and His (D)disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 And when the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus *said to Him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus *said to her, “(E)Woman, [a](F)what do I have to do with you? (G)My hour has not yet come.” 5 His (H)mother *said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” 6 Now there were six stone water jars set there (I)for the Jewish custom of purification, containing [b]two or three measures each. 7 Jesus *said to them, “Fill the water jars with water.” So they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He *said to them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it to him. 9 Now when the headwaiter tasted the water (J)which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter *called the bridegroom, 10 and *said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people (K)have [c]drunk freely, then the inferior wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 Jesus did this in Cana of (L)Galilee as the beginning of His [d](M)signs, and manifested His (N)glory, and His disciples believed in Him.
12 After this He went down to (O)Capernaum, He and His (P)mother and His (Q)brothers and His (R)disciples; and they stayed there a few days.
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