Book of Common Prayer
Come Praise the Lord
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
Shout the Lord's praises
in the highest heavens.
2 All of you angels,
and all who serve him above,
come and offer praise.
3 Sun and moon,
and all of you bright stars,
come and offer praise.
4 Highest heavens, and the water
above the highest heavens,[a]
come and offer praise.
5 Let all things praise
the name of the Lord,
because they were created
at his command.
6 He made them to last forever,
and nothing can change
what he has done.[b]
7 All creatures on earth,
you obey his commands,
so come praise the Lord!
8 Sea monsters and the deep sea,
fire and hail, snow and frost,
and every stormy wind,
come praise the Lord!
9 All mountains and hills,
fruit trees and cedars,
10 every wild and tame animal,
all reptiles and birds,
come praise the Lord!
11 Every king and every ruler,
all nations on earth,
12 every man and every woman,
young people and old,
come praise the Lord!
13 All creation, come praise
the name of the Lord.
Praise his name alone.
The glory of God is greater
than heaven and earth.
14 Like a bull with mighty horns,
the Lord protects
his faithful nation Israel,
because they belong to him.
Shout praises to the Lord!
A New Song of Praise
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
Sing him a new song of praise
when his loyal people meet.
2 People of Israel, rejoice
because of your Creator.
People of Zion, celebrate
because of your King.
3 Praise his name by dancing
and playing music on harps
and tambourines.
4 The Lord is pleased
with his people,
and he gives victory
to those who are humble.
5 All of you faithful people,
praise our glorious Lord!
Celebrate and worship.
6 (A) Praise God with songs
on your lips
and a sword in your hand.
7 Take revenge and punish
the nations.
8 Put chains of iron
on their kings and rulers.
9 Punish them as they deserve;
this is the privilege
of God's faithful people.
Shout praises to the Lord!
The Lord Is Good to His People
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
Praise God in his temple.
Praise him in heaven,
his mighty fortress.
2 Praise our God!
His deeds are wonderful,
too marvelous to describe.
3 Praise God with trumpets
and all kinds of harps.
4 Praise him with tambourines
and dancing,
with stringed instruments
and woodwinds.
5 Praise God with cymbals,
with clashing cymbals.
6 Let every living creature
praise the Lord.
Shout praises to the Lord!
The Lord Works Wonders
1 (A) God brought his people
out of Egypt, that land
with a strange language.
2 He made Judah his holy place
and ruled over Israel.
3 (B) When the sea looked at God,
it ran away,
and the Jordan River
flowed upstream.
4 The mountains and the hills
skipped around like goats.
5 Ask the sea why it ran away
or ask the Jordan
why it flowed upstream.
6 Ask the mountains and the hills
why they skipped like goats!
7 Earth, you will tremble,
when the Lord God of Jacob
comes near,
8 (C) because he turns solid rock
into flowing streams
and pools of water.
The Lord Deserves To Be Praised
1 We don't deserve praise!
The Lord alone deserves
all of the praise,
because of his love
and faithfulness.
2 (D) Why should the nations ask,
“Where is your God?”
3 Our God is in the heavens,
doing as he chooses.
4 (E) The idols of the nations
are made of silver and gold.
5 They have a mouth and eyes,
but they can't speak or see.
6 Their ears can't hear,
and their noses can't smell.
7 Their hands have no feeling,
their legs don't move,
and they can't make a sound.
8 Everyone who made the idols
and all who trust them
are just as helpless
as those useless gods.
9 People of Israel,
you must trust the Lord
to help and protect you.
10 Family of Aaron the priest,
you must trust the Lord
to help and protect you.
11 All of you worship the Lord,
so you must trust him
to help and protect you.
12 The Lord will not forget
to give us his blessing;
he will bless all of Israel
and the family of Aaron.
13 (F) All who worship the Lord,
no matter who they are,
will receive his blessing.
14 I pray that the Lord
will let your family
and your descendants
always grow strong.
15 May the Lord who created
the heavens and the earth
give you his blessing.
16 The Lord has kept the heavens
for himself,
but he has given the earth
to us humans.
17 The dead are silent
and cannot praise the Lord,
18 but we will praise him
now and forevermore.
Shout praises to the Lord!
Zophar's First Speech
So Much Foolish Talk
11 Zophar from Naamah[a] said:
2 So much foolish talk
cannot go unanswered.
3 Your words have silenced others
and made them ashamed;
now it is only right for you
to be put to shame.
4 You claim to be innocent
and argue that your beliefs
are acceptable to God.
5 But I wish God would speak
6 and let you know that wisdom
has many different sides.
You would then discover
that God has punished you
less than you deserve.
7 Can you understand the mysteries
surrounding God All-Powerful?
8 They are higher than the heavens
and deeper than the grave.
So what can you do
when you know so little,
9 and these mysteries outreach
the earth and the ocean?
Surrender Your Heart to God
13 Surrender your heart to God,
turn to him in prayer,
14 and give up your sins—
even those you do in secret.
15 Then you won't be ashamed;
you will be confident
and fearless.
16 Your troubles will go away
like water beneath a bridge,
17 and your darkest night
will be brighter than noon.
18 You will rest safe and secure,
filled with hope
and emptied of worry.
19 You will sleep without fear
and be greatly respected.
20 But those who are evil
will go blind and lose their way.
Their only escape is death!
Job's Reply to Zophar
You Think You Are So Great
*
The Scroll and the Lamb
5 (A) In the right hand of the one sitting on the throne I saw a scroll[a] that had writing on the inside and on the outside. And it was sealed in seven places. 2 I saw a mighty angel ask with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 No one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or look inside it.
4 I cried hard because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or look inside it. 5 (B) Then one of the elders said to me, “Stop crying and look! The one who is called both the ‘Lion from the Tribe of Judah’[b] and ‘King David's Great Descendant’[c] has won the victory. He will open the scroll and its seven seals.”
6 (C) Then I looked and saw a Lamb standing in the center of the throne surrounded by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb looked as if it had once been killed. It had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits[d] of God, sent out to all the earth.
7 The Lamb went over and took the scroll from the right hand of the one who sat on the throne. 8 (D) After he had taken it, the four living creatures and the 24 elders knelt down before him. Each of them had a harp and a gold bowl full of incense,[e] which are the prayers of God's people. 9 (E) Then they sang a new song,
“You are worthy
to receive the scroll
and open its seals,
because you were killed.
And with your own blood
you bought for God
people from every tribe,
language, nation, and race.
10 (F) You let them become kings
and serve God as priests,
and they will rule on earth.”
11 (G) As I looked, I heard the voices of a large number of angels around the throne and the voices of the living creatures and of the elders. There were millions and millions of them, 12 and they were saying in a loud voice,
“The Lamb who was killed
is worthy to receive power,
riches, wisdom, strength,
honor, glory, and praise.”
13 Then I heard all beings in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and in the sea offer praise. Together, all of them were saying,
“Praise, honor, glory,
and strength
forever and ever
to the one who sits
on the throne
and to the Lamb!”
14 The four living creatures said “Amen,” while the elders knelt down and worshiped.
The Sermon on the Mount
5 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on the side of a mountain and sat down.[a]
Blessings
(Luke 6.20-23)
Jesus' disciples gathered around him, 2 and he taught them:
3 God blesses those people
who depend only on him.
They belong to the kingdom
of heaven![b]
4 (A) God blesses those people
who grieve.
They will find comfort!
5 (B) God blesses those people
who are humble.
The earth will belong
to them!
6 (C) God blesses those people
who want to obey him[c]
more than to eat or drink.
They will be given
what they want!
7 God blesses those people
who are merciful.
They will be treated
with mercy!
8 (D) God blesses those people
whose hearts are pure.
They will see him!
9 God blesses those people
who make peace.
They will be called
his children!
10 (E) God blesses those people
who are treated badly
for doing right.
They belong to the kingdom
of heaven.[d]
11 (F) God will bless you when people insult you, mistreat you, and tell all kinds of evil lies about you because of me. 12 (G) Be happy and excited! You will have a great reward in heaven. People did these same things to the prophets who lived long ago.
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