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Book of Common Prayer

Daily Old and New Testament readings based on the Book of Common Prayer.

Duration: 861 days

Psalm 111-112

Psalm 111^[a]

111 Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the assembly of the godly and the congregation.
²The Lord’s deeds are great,
eagerly awaited^[b] by all who desire them.
³His work is majestic and glorious,^[c]
and his faithfulness endures^[d] forever.
⁴He does^[e] amazing things that will be remembered;^[f]
the Lord is merciful and compassionate.
⁵He gives^[g] food to his faithful followers;^[h]
he always remembers his covenant.^[i]
⁶He announced that he would do mighty deeds for his people,
giving them a land that belonged to other nations.^[j]
⁷His acts are characterized by^[k] faithfulness and justice;
all his precepts are reliable.^[l]
⁸They are forever firm,
and should be faithfully and properly carried out.^[m]
⁹He delivered his people;^[n]
he ordained that his covenant be observed forever.^[o]
His name is holy and awesome.
¹⁰To obey the Lord is the fundamental principle for wise living;^[p]
all who carry out his precepts acquire good moral insight.^[q]
He will receive praise forever.^[r]

Psalm 112^[s]

112 Praise the Lord!
How blessed is the one^[t] who obeys^[u] the Lord,
who takes great delight in keeping his commands.^[v]
²His descendants^[w] will be powerful on the earth;
the godly^[x] will be blessed.
³His house contains wealth and riches;
his integrity endures.^[y]
⁴In the darkness a light^[z] shines for the godly,
for each one who is merciful, compassionate, and just.^[aa]
⁵It goes well for the one^[ab] who generously lends money,
and conducts his business honestly.^[ac]
⁶For he will never be shaken;
others will always remember one who is just.^[ad]
⁷He does not fear bad news.
He^[ae] is confident; he trusts in the Lord.
⁸His resolve^[af] is firm; he will not succumb to fear
before he looks in triumph on his enemies.
⁹He generously gives^[ag] to the needy;
his integrity endures.^[ah]
He will be vindicated and honored.^[ai]
¹⁰When the wicked^[aj] see this, they will worry;
they will grind their teeth in frustration^[ak] and melt away.
The desire of the wicked will perish.^[al]

Footnotes

Psalm 111:1 sn Psalm 111. The psalmist praises God for his marvelous deeds, especially the way in which he provides for and delivers his people. The psalm is an acrostic. After the introductory call to praise, every poetic line (twenty-two in all) begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
Psalm 111:2 tn Heb “sought out.”
Psalm 111:3 tn For other uses of the Hebrew phrase וְהָדָרהוֹד (hod v^ehadar, “majesty and splendor”) see 1 Chr 16:27; Job 40:10; Pss 21:5; 96:6; 104:1.
Psalm 111:3 tn Or “stands.”
Psalm 111:4 tn Or “did,” if this refers primarily to the events of the exodus and conquest period (see vv. 6, 9).
Psalm 111:4 tn Heb “a memorial he had made for his amazing deeds.”
Psalm 111:5 tn Or “gave,” if the events of the exodus and conquest period (see v. 6, 9) are primarily in view.
Psalm 111:5 tn Heb “those who fear him.”
Psalm 111:5 tn Or “he remembers his covenant forever” (see Ps 105:8).
Psalm 111:6 tn Heb “the strength of his deeds he proclaimed to his people, to give to them an inheritance of nations.”
Psalm 111:7 tn Heb “the deeds of his hands [are].”
Psalm 111:7 tn That is, fair and for man’s good.
Psalm 111:8 tn Heb “done in faithfulness and uprightness.” The passive participle probably has the force of a gerund. See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 89.
Psalm 111:9 tn Heb “redemption he sent for his people.”
Psalm 111:9 tn Heb “he commanded forever his covenant.”
Psalm 111:10 tn Heb “the beginning of wisdom [is] the fear of the Lord.”
Psalm 111:10 tn Heb “good sense [is] to all who do them.” The third masculine plural pronominal suffix must refer back to the “precepts” mentioned in v. 7. In the translation the referent has been specified for clarity. The phrase שֵׂכֶל טוֹב (sekhel tov) also occurs in Prov 3:4; 13:15 and 2 Chr 30:22.
Psalm 111:10 tn Heb “his praise stands forever.”
Psalm 112:1 sn Psalm 112. This wisdom psalm lists some of the benefits of living a godly life. The psalm is an acrostic. After the introductory call to praise, every poetic line (twenty-two in all) begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
Psalm 112:1 tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The individual is representative of a larger group, called the “godly” in vv. 3-4. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender specific “man” with the more neutral “one.” The generic masculine pronoun is used in the following verses.
Psalm 112:1 tn Heb “fears.”
Psalm 112:1 tn Heb “in his commands he delights very much.” The words “in keeping” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Taking delight in the law is metonymic here for obeying God’s moral will. See Ps 1:2.
Psalm 112:2 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
Psalm 112:2 tn Heb “His seed will be mighty on the earth, the generation of the godly.” The Hebrew term דוֹר (dor, “generation”) could be taken as parallel to “offspring” and translated “posterity,” but the singular more likely refers to the godly as a class. See BDB 189-90 s.v. for other examples where “generation” refers to a class of people.
Psalm 112:3 tn Heb “stands forever.”
Psalm 112:4 tn In this context “light” symbolizes divine blessing in its various forms (see v. 2), including material prosperity and stability.
Psalm 112:4 tn Heb “merciful and compassionate and just.” The Hebrew text has three singular adjectives, which are probably substantival and in apposition to the “godly” (which is plural, however). By switching to the singular, the psalmist focuses on each individual member of the group known as the “godly.” Note how vv. 5-9, like vv. 1-2a, use the singular to describe the representative godly individual who typifies the whole group.
Psalm 112:5 tn Heb “man.”
Psalm 112:5 tn Heb “he sustains his matters with justice.”
Psalm 112:6 tn Heb “for an eternal memorial a just [one] will be.”
Psalm 112:7 tn Heb “his heart,” viewed here as the seat of the volition and emotions (see Ps 108:1).
Psalm 112:8 tn Heb “his heart,” viewed here as the seat of the volition.
Psalm 112:9 tn Heb “he scatters, he gives.”
Psalm 112:9 tn Heb “stands forever.”
Psalm 112:9 tn Heb “his horn will be lifted up in honor.” The horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt/lift up the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 89:17, 24; 92:10; Lam 2:17).
Psalm 112:10 tn The Hebrew text uses the singular; the representative wicked individual is in view as typifying the group (note the use of the plural form in v. 10).
Psalm 112:10 tn Heb “his teeth he will gnash.” In Pss 35:16 and 37:12 this action is associated with a vicious attack.
Psalm 112:10 tn This could mean that the desires of the wicked will go unfulfilled. Another possibility is that “desire” refers by metonymy to the object desired and acquired. In this case the point is that the wicked will lose what they desired so badly and acquired by evil means (see Ps 10:3).

Error: '2 Esdras 2:42-47' not found for the version: New English Translation

Hebrews 11:32-12:2

³²And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets. ³³Through faith they conquered kingdoms, administered justice,^[a] gained what was promised,^[b] shut the mouths of lions, ³⁴quenched raging fire,^[c] escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength in weakness,^[d] became mighty in battle, put foreign armies to flight, ³⁵and women received back their dead raised to life.^[e] But others were tortured, not accepting release, to obtain resurrection to a better life.^[f] ³⁶And others experienced mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. ³⁷They were stoned, sawed apart,^[g] murdered with the sword; they went about in sheepskins and goatskins; they were destitute, afflicted, ill-treated ³⁸(the world was not worthy of them); they wandered in deserts and mountains and caves and openings in the earth. ³⁹And these all were commended^[h] for their faith, yet they did not receive what was promised.^[i] ⁴⁰For God had provided something better for us, so that they would be made perfect together with us.^[j]

The Lord’s Discipline

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,^[k] we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us, ²keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For^[l] the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.^[m]

Footnotes

Hebrews 11:33 tn This probably refers to the righteous rule of David and others. But it could be more general and mean “did what was righteous.”
Hebrews 11:33 tn Grk “obtained promises,” referring to the things God promised, not to the pledges themselves. sn Gained what was promised. They saw some of God’s promises fulfilled, even though the central promise remained unfulfilled until Christ came (cf. vv. 39-40).
Hebrews 11:34 tn Grk “quenched the power of fire.”
Hebrews 11:34 tn Or “recovered from sickness.”
Hebrews 11:35 tn Grk “received back their dead from resurrection.”
Hebrews 11:35 tn Grk “to obtain a better resurrection.”
Hebrews 11:37 tc The reading ἐπρίσθησαν (epristhēsan, “they were sawed apart”) is found in some significant witnesses (P⁴⁶ [D* twice reads ἐπίρσθησαν, “they were burned”?] sy^p sa Or^pt Eus). Other mss have ἐπειράσθησαν (epeirasthēsan, “they were tempted”), either before “sawed apart” ([א] L P [048] 33 81 326 1505 sy^h), after “sawed apart” (P^13vid A D¹ Ψ 1739 1881 M lat bo Or^pt), or altogether in place of “sawed apart” (0150 vg^mss Cl). Since the two words ἐπρίσθησαν and ἐπειράσθησαν are so much alike in sight and sound, and since the position of “they were tempted” varies in the mss, it seems best to say that ἐπειράσθησαν is an accidental transcriptional error of ἐπρίσθησαν or an intentional change to a more common word (the root of ἐπρίσθησαν [πρίζω, prizō] occurs only here in the NT, while the root of ἐπειράσθησαν [πειράζω, peirazō] occurs 38 times). The best reading here seems to be “sawed apart” without any addition before or after. (See TCGNT 603-4, for a discussion of emendations that scholars have proposed for this difficult problem.)
Hebrews 11:39 sn The expression these all were commended forms an inclusio with Heb 11:2: The chapter begins and ends with references to commendation for faith.
Hebrews 11:39 tn Grk “the promise,” referring to the thing God promised, not to the pledge itself.
Hebrews 11:40 tn The Greek phrasing emphasizes this point by negating the opposite: “so that they would not be made perfect without us.”
Hebrews 12:1 tn Grk “having such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.”
Hebrews 12:2 tn Or “Because of”; or “Instead of.” The Greek prepostion can be understood either way. For discussion and sources see Wallace, ExSyn 367-68; cf. also BDAG 88 s.v. 1, “instead of, in place of” and s.v. 3 “(in exchange) for.”
Hebrews 12:2 sn An allusion to Ps 110:1.

Psalm 148

Psalm 148^[a]

148 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord from the sky.
Praise him in the heavens.
²Praise him, all his angels.^[b]
Praise him, all his heavenly assembly.^[c]
³Praise him, O sun and moon.
Praise him, all you shiny stars.^[d]
⁴Praise him, O highest heaven,
and you waters above the sky.^[e]
⁵Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he gave the command and they came into existence.
⁶He established them so they would endure;^[f]
he issued a decree that will not be revoked.^[g]
⁷Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea creatures and all you ocean depths,
⁸O fire and hail, snow and clouds,^[h]
O stormy wind that carries out his orders,^[i]
⁹you mountains and all you hills,
you fruit trees and all you cedars,
¹⁰you animals and all you cattle,
you creeping things and birds,
¹¹you kings of the earth and all you nations,
you princes and all you leaders^[j] on the earth,
¹²you young men and young women,
you elderly, along with you children.
¹³Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty extends over the earth and sky.
¹⁴He has made his people victorious,^[k]
and given all his loyal followers reason to praise—
the Israelites, the people who are close to him.^[l]
Praise the Lord!

Psalm 150

Psalm 150^[a]

150 Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in the sky, which testifies to his strength!^[b]
²Praise him for his mighty acts;
praise him for his surpassing greatness!
³Praise him with the blast of the horn;
praise him with the lyre and the harp!
⁴Praise him with the tambourine and with dancing;
praise him with stringed instruments and the flute!
⁵Praise him with loud cymbals;
praise him with clanging cymbals!
⁶Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

Revelation 21:1-4

A New Heaven and a New Earth

21 Then^[a] I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had ceased to exist,^[b] and the sea existed no more. ²And I saw the holy city—the new Jerusalem—descending out of heaven from God, made ready like a bride adorned for her husband. ³And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Look! The residence^[c] of God is among human beings.^[d] He^[e] will live among them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them.^[f] ⁴He^[g] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist any more—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.”^[h]

Footnotes

Revelation 21:1 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
Revelation 21:1 tn For the translation of ἀπέρχομαι (aperchomai; here ἀπῆλθαν [apēlthan]) L&N 13.93 has “to go out of existence—‘to cease to exist, to pass away, to cease.’”
Revelation 21:3 tn Or “dwelling place”; traditionally, “tabernacle”; literally “tent.”
Revelation 21:3 tn Or “people”; Grk “men” (ἀνθρώπων, anthrōpōn), a generic use of the term. In the translation “human beings” was used here because “people” occurs later in the verse and translates a different Greek word (λαοί, laoi).
Revelation 21:3 tn Grk “men, and he.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
Revelation 21:3 tc ‡ Most mss (א M^K) do not add the words “[as] their God” (αὐτῶν θεός, autōn theos) after “he will be with them.” The mss with these words include A 2030 2050 2329 al. The Andreas group (M^A) also has the words, but in a different arrangement with the preceding (ἔσται μετ᾿ αὐτῶν θεὸς αὐτῶν, estai met’ autōn theos autōn). Not only do the words float, but scribes may have been motivated to make a connection here more directly with Isa 7:14; 8:8; Jer 24:7; 31:33; Zech 8:8. In light of sufficient external evidence as well as the possibility that the longer reading is theologically motivated, the shorter reading is preferred. NA²⁸ places the words in brackets, indicating doubts as to their authenticity.
Revelation 21:4 tn Grk “God, and he.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
Revelation 21:4 tn For the translation of ἀπέρχομαι (aperchomai; here ἀπῆλθαν [apēlthan]) L&N 13.93 has “to go out of existence—‘to cease to exist, to pass away, to cease.’”

Revelation 21:22-22:5

²²Now^[a] I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God—the All-Powerful^[b]—and the Lamb are its temple. ²³The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God lights it up, and its lamp is the Lamb. ²⁴The nations^[c] will walk by its light and the kings of the earth will bring their grandeur^[d] into it. ²⁵Its gates will never be closed during the day^[e] (and^[f] there will be no night there).^[g] ²⁶They will bring the grandeur and the wealth^[h] of the nations^[i] into it, ²⁷but^[j] nothing ritually unclean^[k] will ever enter into it, nor anyone who does what is detestable^[l] or practices falsehood,^[m] but only those whose names^[n] are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

22 Then^[o] the angel^[p] showed me the river of the water of life—water as clear as crystal—pouring out^[q] from the throne of God and of the Lamb, ²flowing down the middle of the city’s^[r] main street.^[s] On each side^[t] of the river is the tree of life producing twelve kinds^[u] of fruit, yielding its fruit every month of the year.^[v] Its leaves are for the healing of the nations. ³And there will no longer be any curse,^[w] and the throne of God and the Lamb will be in the city.^[x] His^[y] servants^[z] will worship^[aa] him, ⁴and they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵Night will be no more, and they will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because the Lord God will shine on them, and they will reign forever and ever.

Footnotes

Revelation 21:22 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic. Every verse from here to the end of this chapter begins with καί in Greek, but due to differences between Greek and contemporary English style, these have not been translated.
Revelation 21:22 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π.…Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”
Revelation 21:24 tn Or “the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
Revelation 21:24 tn Or “splendor”; Grk “glory.”
Revelation 21:25 tn On the translation “during the day” see BDAG 436 s.v. ἡμέρα 1.a, “But also, as in Thu. et al., of time within which someth. occurs, ἡμέρας during the day Rv 21:25.”
Revelation 21:25 tn The Greek connective γάρ (gar) most often expresses some sort of causal connection. However, in this context there is no causal force to the second phrase; γάρ simply expresses continuation or connection. Because of this it has been translated as “and.” See BDAG 189-90 s.v. 2.
Revelation 21:25 tn The clause has virtually the force of a parenthetical comment.
Revelation 21:26 tn Grk “honor,” but BDAG 1005 s.v. τιμή 2.b states, “An outstanding feature of the use of τ., as already shown in several passages, is its combination w. δόξα…of earthly possessions τὴν δόξαν καὶ τὴν τιμὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν Rv 21:26 (τιμή concr.=an object of value: Ezk 22:25).”
Revelation 21:26 tn Or “the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
Revelation 21:27 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
Revelation 21:27 tn Here BDAG 552 s.v. κοινός 2 states, “pert. to being of little value because of being common, common, ordinary, profane…b. specifically, of that which is ceremonially impure: Rv 21:27.”
Revelation 21:27 tn Or “what is abhorrent”; Grk “who practices abominations.”
Revelation 21:27 tn Grk “practicing abomination or falsehood.” Because of the way βδέλυγμα (bdelugma) has been translated (“does what is detestable”) it was necessary to repeat the idea from the participle ποιῶν (poiōn, “practices”) before the term “falsehood.” On this term, BDAG 1097 s.v. ψεῦδος states, “ποιεῖν ψεῦδος practice (the things that go with) falsehood Rv 21:27; 22:15.” Cf. Rev 3:9.
Revelation 21:27 tn Grk “those who are written”; the word “names” is implied.
Revelation 22:1 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
Revelation 22:1 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the angel mentioned in 21:9, 15) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Revelation 22:1 tn Grk “proceeding.” Water is more naturally thought to pour out or flow out in English idiom.
Revelation 22:2 tn Grk “its”; the referent (the city, the new Jerusalem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Revelation 22:2 tn The Greek word πλατεῖα (plateia) refers to a major (broad) street (L&N 1.103).
Revelation 22:2 tn Grk “From here and from there.”
Revelation 22:2 tn Or “twelve crops” (one for each month of the year).
Revelation 22:2 tn The words “of the year” are implied.
Revelation 22:3 tn Or “be anything accursed” (L&N 33.474).
Revelation 22:3 tn Grk “in it”; the referent (the city, the new Jerusalem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Revelation 22:3 tn Grk “city, and his.” Although this is a continuation of the previous sentence in Greek, a new sentence was started here in the translation because of the introduction of the Lamb’s followers.
Revelation 22:3 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
Revelation 22:3 tn Or “will serve.”

New English Translation (NET)

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Book of Common Prayer

Psalm 111[a]

Psalm 112[s]

Footnotes

The Lord’s Discipline

Footnotes

Psalm 148[a]

Footnotes

Psalm 150[a]

Footnotes

A New Heaven and a New Earth

Footnotes

Footnotes

Psalm 111^[a]

Psalm 112^[s]

Psalm 148^[a]

Psalm 150^[a]