Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 87[a]
Zion, Home of All Nations
1 A psalm of the sons of Korah.[b] A song.
The Lord has founded a city[c]
on the holy mountains.
2 He loves the gates of Zion
more than[d] any dwelling in Jacob.
3 Glorious things are said of you,
O city of God. Selah
4 [e]“I number Rahab and Babylon
among those who acknowledge the Lord,
as well as Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia;
concerning them it can be said,
‘This one was born there.’ ”[f] Selah
5 However, of Zion it will be said,
“They were all born there,
for the Most High himself establishes her.”[g]
6 The Lord records in the register[h] of the peoples,
“This one was born there.” Selah
7 And as they play, they all sing,[i]
“In you are all my fountains.”
Book IV—Psalms 90–106[a]
Psalm 90[b]
Prayer To Use Time Wisely
1 A prayer of Moses, the man of God.[c]
Lord, you have been our refuge
from generation to generation.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth
or the earth and the world came into existence,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn men back to dust,
saying, “Return,[d] you children of men.”
4 For to you a thousand years
are like a yesterday that has passed
or one of the watches of the night.[e]
5 You snatch them away like a dream;
they are like the grass of the field,[f]
6 which at dawn flourishes and is green
but by nightfall is withered and dry.
7 [g]We have been brought low by your anger
and overwhelmed with terror by your wrath.
8 You have not forgotten our iniquities;
our secret sins are clearly visible in your sight.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
our years are consumed like a sigh.
10 The span of our life numbers seventy years,
or perhaps eighty, if we have enough strength.
Most of them are marked by toil and emptiness;[h]
they pass swiftly, and then we fly away.
11 [i]Who understands the might of your anger
and rightly fears the power of your wrath?
12 Teach us to comprehend how few our days are
so that our hearts may be filled with wisdom.
13 Return,[j] O Lord. How long must we wait?
Show compassion to your servants.
14 Fill us with your kindness in the morning[k]
so that we may exult and be glad all our days.
15 Grant us joy for as many days as you have afflicted us
and for as many years as we have known misfortune.
16 Manifest your works to your servants
and your glory to their children.
17 May the favor[l] of the Lord, our God, rest upon us.
And may the work of our hands prosper—
indeed, may the work of our hands prosper.
Psalm 136[a]
Thanksgiving for the Creation and Redemption
1 [b]Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his love endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his love endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his love endures forever.
4 He alone works great wonders,
for his love endures forever.
5 [c]In his wisdom he made the heavens,
for his love endures forever.
6 He spread out the earth upon the waters,[d]
for his love endures forever.
7 He made the great lights,
for his love endures forever.
8 He made the sun to rule over the day,
for his love endures forever.
9 He made the moon and stars to rule the night,
for his love endures forever.
10 [e]He struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
for his love endures forever.
11 He led forth Israel from among them,
for his love endures forever.
12 He did so with a strong hand and outstretched arm,
for his love endures forever.
13 [f]He divided the Red Sea in two,
for his love endures forever.
14 Then he led Israel through its midst,
for his love endures forever.
15 But he swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea,
for his love endures forever.
16 [g]Then he led his people through the wilderness,
for his love endures forever.
17 He struck down great kings,
for his love endures forever.
18 He slew powerful kings,
for his love endures forever.
19 Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his love endures forever.
20 Og, king of Bashan,
for his love endures forever.
21 [h]He gave their land as a heritage,
for his love endures forever.
22 The heritage was for his servant Israel,
for his love endures forever.
23 The Lord remembered us in our wretched state,
for his love endures forever.
24 He rescued us from our enemies,
for his love endures forever.
25 [i]He provides food to every creature,
for his love endures forever.
26 Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his love endures forever.
Chapter 2
Rich and Poor in the Christian Assembly.[a] 1 My brethren, since you are believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, you must never practice favoritism. 2 Suppose a man wearing a gold ring and expensive clothes comes into your assembly as well as a poor man dressed in shabby clothes. 3 If you lavish special attention on the one wearing the expensive clothes and say, “Please sit in this good seat,” while to the poor man you say, “Stand over there,” or “Sit on the floor at my feet,” 4 have you not shown favoritism among yourselves and judged by wrongful standards?
5 Listen to me, my beloved brethren. Did not God choose those who are poor[b] in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him? 6 But you have humiliated the poor man. Furthermore, is it not the rich who oppress you? Are they not the ones who drag you into court? 7 Is it not they who blaspheme the noble name that was invoked over you?
8 You will be doing well if you truly observe the sovereign law enjoined in Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 9 However, if you show partiality, you are committing a sin and stand convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever observes the whole Law but trips up on a single point is held guilty of breaking all of it.
11 The one who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not kill.” Now if you do not commit adultery but you do kill, you have become a lawbreaker. 12 Therefore, always speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of freedom. 13 For judgment will be without mercy to the one who has not shown mercy, but mercy triumphs over judgment.
10 “Whoever can be trusted in small matters can also be trusted in great ones, but whoever is dishonest in small matters will also be dishonest in great ones. 11 Therefore, if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will entrust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not shown yourself to be trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you anything of your own?
13 “No servant can serve two masters. For you will either hate the one and love the other or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
Teachings concerning Justice and the Judaic Law
14 A Saying against the Pharisees.[a] The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and they ridiculed him. 15 He said to them, “You people pretend to be upright when you wish to impress others, but God knows what is in your hearts. That which is highly esteemed in the eyes of men is detestable in the sight of God.
16 Sayings about the Law.“The Law and the Prophets were in effect until John. From that time the kingdom of God has been proclaimed, and everyone is trying to force his way in.[b] 17 It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one letter of the Law to be discarded.[c]
18 Sayings about Divorce.[d]“Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and anyone who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.
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