Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 69
For the choir director; according to shoshannim; by David.
1 Save me, O Elohim!
The water is already up to my neck!
2 I am sinking in deep mud.
There is nothing to stand on.
I am in deep water.
A flood is sweeping me away.
3 I am exhausted from crying for help.
My throat is hoarse.
My eyes are strained from looking for my Elohim.
4 Those who hate me for no reason
outnumber the hairs on my head.
Those who want to destroy me are mighty.
They have no reason to be my enemies.
I am forced to pay back what I did not steal.
5 O Elohim, you know my stupidity,
and the things of which I am guilty are not hidden from you.
6 Do not let those who wait with hope for you
be put to shame because of me, O Adonay Yahweh Tsebaoth.
Do not let those who come to you for help
be humiliated because of me, O Elohim of Israel.
7 Indeed, for your sake I have endured insults.
Humiliation has covered my face.
8 I have become a stranger to my own brothers,
a foreigner to my mother’s sons.
9 Indeed, devotion for your house has consumed me,
and the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
10 I cried and fasted, but I was insulted for it.
11 I dressed myself in sackcloth, but I became the object of ridicule.
12 Those who sit at the gate gossip about me,
and drunkards make up songs about me.
13 May my prayer come to you at an acceptable time, O Yahweh.
O Elohim, out of the greatness of your mercy,
answer me with the truth of your salvation.
14 Rescue me from the mud.
Do not let me sink into it.
I want to be rescued from those who hate me
and from the deep water.
15 Do not let floodwaters sweep me away.
Do not let the ocean swallow me up,
or the pit close its mouth over me.
16 Answer me, O Yahweh, because your mercy is good.
Out of your unlimited compassion, turn to me.
17 I am in trouble, so do not hide your face from me.
Answer me quickly!
18 Come close, and defend my soul.
Set me free because of my enemies.
19 You know that I have been insulted, put to shame, and humiliated.
All my opponents are in front of you.
20 Insults have broken my heart, and I am sick.
I looked for sympathy, but there was none.
I looked for people to comfort me, but I found no one.
21 They poisoned my food,
and when I was thirsty, they gave me vinegar to drink.
22 Let the table set for them become a trap
and a snare for their friends.
23 Let their vision become clouded so that they cannot see.
Let their thighs continually shake.
24 Pour your rage on them.
Let your burning anger catch up with them.
25 Let their camp be deserted
and their tents empty.
26 They persecute the one you have struck,
and they talk about the pain of those you have wounded.
27 Charge them with one crime after another.
Do not let them be found innocent.
28 Let their names be erased from the Book of Life.
Do not let them be listed with righteous people.
29 I am suffering and in pain.
Let your saving power protect me, O Elohim.
30 I want to praise the name of Elohim with a song.
I want to praise its greatness with a song of thanksgiving.
31 This will please Yahweh more than sacrificing an ox
or a bull with horns and hoofs.
32 Oppressed people will see this and rejoice.
May the hearts of those who look to Elohim for help be refreshed.
33 Yahweh listens to needy people.
He does not despise his own who are in prison.
34 Let heaven and earth, the seas, and everything that moves in them, praise him.
35 When Elohim saves Zion, he will rebuild the cities of Judah.
His servants will live there and take possession of it.
36 The descendants of his servants will inherit it.
Those who love him will live there.
BOOK THREE
(Psalms 73–89)
Psalm 73
A psalm by Asaph.
1 Elohim is truly good to Israel,
to those whose lives are pure.
2 But my feet had almost stumbled.
They had almost slipped
3 because I was envious of arrogant people
when I saw the prosperity that wicked people enjoy.
4 They suffer no pain.
Their bodies are healthy.
5 They have no drudgery in their lives like ordinary people.
They are not plagued with problems like others.
6 That is why they wear arrogance like a necklace
and acts of violence like clothing.
7 Their eyes peer out from their fat faces,[a]
and their imaginations run wild.
8 They ridicule.
They speak maliciously.
They speak arrogantly about oppression.
9 They verbally attack heaven,
and they order people around on earth.
10 That is why Elohim’s people turn to wickedness[b]
and swallow their words.
11 Then wicked people ask, “What does Elohim know?”
“Does Elyon know anything?”
12 Look how wicked they are!
They never have a worry.
They grow more and more wealthy.
13 I’ve received no reward for keeping my life pure
and washing my hands of any blame.
14 I’m plagued with problems all day long,
and every morning my punishment begins again.
15 If I had said, “I will continue to talk like that,”
I would have betrayed Elohim’s people.
16 But when I tried to understand this,
it was too difficult for me.
17 Only when I came into Elohim’s holy place
did I finally understand what would happen to them.
18 You put them in slippery places
and make them fall into ruin.
19 They are suddenly destroyed.
They are completely swept away by terror!
20 As someone gets rid of a dream when he wakes up,
so you, O Adonay, get rid of the thought of them
when you wake up.
21 When my heart was filled with bitterness
and my mind was seized with envy,
22 I was stupid, and I did not understand.
I was like a dumb animal in your presence.
23 Yet, I am always with you.
You hold on to my right hand.
24 With your advice you guide me,
and in the end you will take me to glory.
25 As long as I have you,
I don’t need anyone else in heaven or on earth.
26 My body and mind may waste away,
but Elohim remains the foundation of my life
and my inheritance forever.
27 Without a doubt, those who are far from you will die.
You destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
28 Being united with Elohim is my highest good.
I have made Adonay Yahweh my Machseh
so that I may report everything that he has done.
Babylon the Great
17 One of the seven angels who held the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of that notorious prostitute who sits on raging waters. 2 The kings of the earth had sex with her, and those living on earth became drunk on the wine of her sexual sins.” 3 Then the angel carried me by his power into the wilderness.
I saw a woman sitting on a bright red beast covered with insulting names. It had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman wore purple clothes, bright red clothes, gold jewelry, gems, and pearls. In her hand she was holding a gold cup filled with detestable and evil things from her sexual sins. 5 A name was written on her forehead. The name was Mystery: Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes and Detestable Things of the Earth. 6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people and of those who testify about Yeshua. I was very surprised when I saw her.
7 The angel asked me, “Why are you surprised? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and the beast with the seven heads and the ten horns that carries her.
8 “You saw the beast which once was, is no longer, and will come from the bottomless pit and go to its destruction. Those living on earth, whose names were not written in the Book of Life when the world was created, will be surprised when they see the beast because it was, is no longer, and will come again.
9 “In this situation a wise mind is needed. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is sitting. 10 They are also seven kings. Five of them have fallen, one is ruling now, and the other has not yet come. When he comes, he must remain for a little while. 11 The beast that was and is no longer is the eighth king. It belongs with the seven kings and goes to its destruction.
12 “The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet started to rule. They will receive authority to rule as kings with the beast for one hour. 13 They have one purpose—to give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will go to war against the lamb. The lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. Those who are called, chosen, and faithful are with him.”
15 The angel also said to me, “The waters you saw, on which the prostitute is sitting, are people, crowds, nations, and languages. 16 The ten horns and the beast you saw will hate the prostitute. They will leave her abandoned and naked. They will eat her flesh and burn her up in a fire. 17 God has made them do what he wants them to do. So they will give their kingdom to the beast until God’s words are carried out. 18 The woman you saw is the important city which dominates the kings of the earth.”
Jesus Warns Jerusalem
31 At that time some Pharisees told Yeshua, “Get out of here, and go somewhere else! Herod wants to kill you.”
32 Yeshua said to them, “Tell that fox that I will force demons out of people and heal people today and tomorrow. I will finish my work on the third day. 33 But I must be on my way today, tomorrow, and the next day. It’s not possible for a prophet to die outside Jerusalem.
34 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you kill the prophets and stone to death those sent to you! How often I wanted to gather your children together the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings! But you were not willing! 35 Your house will be abandoned. I can guarantee that you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.