Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 72
Of Solomon.
1 Endow the king with your justice,(A) O God,
the royal son with your righteousness.
2 May he judge your people in righteousness,(B)
your afflicted ones with justice.
3 May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
the hills the fruit of righteousness.
4 May he defend the afflicted(C) among the people
and save the children of the needy;(D)
may he crush the oppressor.(E)
5 May he endure[a](F) as long as the sun,
as long as the moon, through all generations.(G)
6 May he be like rain(H) falling on a mown field,
like showers watering the earth.
7 In his days may the righteous flourish(I)
and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.
8 May he rule from sea to sea
and from the River[b](J) to the ends of the earth.(K)
9 May the desert tribes bow before him
and his enemies lick the dust.
10 May the kings of Tarshish(L) and of distant shores(M)
bring tribute to him.
May the kings of Sheba(N) and Seba
present him gifts.(O)
11 May all kings bow down(P) to him
and all nations serve(Q) him.
12 For he will deliver the needy who cry out,
the afflicted who have no one to help.
13 He will take pity(R) on the weak and the needy
and save the needy from death.
14 He will rescue(S) them from oppression and violence,
for precious(T) is their blood in his sight.
15 Long may he live!
May gold from Sheba(U) be given him.
May people ever pray for him
and bless him all day long.(V)
16 May grain(W) abound throughout the land;
on the tops of the hills may it sway.
May the crops(X) flourish like Lebanon(Y)
and thrive[c] like the grass of the field.(Z)
17 May his name endure forever;(AA)
may it continue as long as the sun.(AB)
18 Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,(AD)
who alone does marvelous deeds.(AE)
19 Praise be to his glorious name(AF) forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory.(AG)
Amen and Amen.(AH)
20 This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.(AI)
י Yodh
73 Your hands made me(A) and formed me;
give me understanding to learn your commands.
74 May those who fear you rejoice(B) when they see me,
for I have put my hope in your word.(C)
75 I know, Lord, that your laws are righteous,(D)
and that in faithfulness(E) you have afflicted me.
76 May your unfailing love(F) be my comfort,
according to your promise(G) to your servant.
77 Let your compassion(H) come to me that I may live,
for your law is my delight.(I)
78 May the arrogant(J) be put to shame for wronging me without cause;(K)
but I will meditate on your precepts.
79 May those who fear you turn to me,
those who understand your statutes.(L)
80 May I wholeheartedly follow(M) your decrees,(N)
that I may not be put to shame.(O)
כ Kaph
81 My soul faints(P) with longing for your salvation,(Q)
but I have put my hope(R) in your word.
82 My eyes fail,(S) looking for your promise;(T)
I say, “When will you comfort me?”
83 Though I am like a wineskin in the smoke,
I do not forget(U) your decrees.
84 How long(V) must your servant wait?
When will you punish my persecutors?(W)
85 The arrogant(X) dig pits(Y) to trap me,
contrary to your law.
86 All your commands are trustworthy;(Z)
help me,(AA) for I am being persecuted(AB) without cause.(AC)
87 They almost wiped me from the earth,
but I have not forsaken(AD) your precepts.
88 In your unfailing love(AE) preserve my life,(AF)
that I may obey the statutes(AG) of your mouth.
ל Lamedh
89 Your word, Lord, is eternal;(AH)
it stands firm in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness(AI) continues through all generations;(AJ)
you established the earth, and it endures.(AK)
91 Your laws endure(AL) to this day,
for all things serve you.(AM)
92 If your law had not been my delight,(AN)
I would have perished in my affliction.(AO)
93 I will never forget(AP) your precepts,
for by them you have preserved my life.(AQ)
94 Save me,(AR) for I am yours;
I have sought out your precepts.(AS)
95 The wicked are waiting to destroy me,(AT)
but I will ponder your statutes.(AU)
96 To all perfection I see a limit,
but your commands are boundless.(AV)
Job
42 Then Job replied to the Lord:
2 “I know that you can do all things;(A)
no purpose of yours can be thwarted.(B)
3 You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’(C)
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.(D)
4 “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.’(E)
5 My ears had heard of you(F)
but now my eyes have seen you.(G)
6 Therefore I despise myself(H)
and repent(I) in dust and ashes.”(J)
Epilogue
7 After the Lord had said these things to Job(K), he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends,(L) because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.(M) 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams(N) and go to my servant Job(O) and sacrifice a burnt offering(P) for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer(Q) and not deal with you according to your folly.(R) You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.”(S) 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite(T) did what the Lord told them; and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer.(U)
10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes(V) and gave him twice as much as he had before.(W) 11 All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before(X) came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought on him,(Y) and each one gave him a piece of silver[a] and a gold ring.
12 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. 13 And he also had seven sons and three daughters. 14 The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. 15 Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
16 After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. 17 And so Job died, an old man and full of years.(Z)
Paul and Silas in Prison
16 Once when we were going to the place of prayer,(A) we were met by a female slave who had a spirit(B) by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God,(C) who are telling you the way to be saved.” 18 She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.(D)
19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money(E) was gone, they seized Paul and Silas(F) and dragged(G) them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar(H) 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans(I) to accept or practice.”(J)
22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods.(K) 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer(L) was commanded to guard them carefully. 24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.(M)
Jesus Predicts His Death
20 Now there were some Greeks(A) among those who went up to worship at the festival. 21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida(B) in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.
23 Jesus replied, “The hour(C) has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.(D) 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies,(E) it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it(F) for eternal life.(G) 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be.(H) My Father will honor the one who serves me.
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