Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 89
A maskil by Ethan the Ezrahite.
1 I will sing forever about the evidence of your mercy, O Yahweh.
I will tell about your faithfulness to every generation.
2 I said, “Your mercy will last forever.
Your faithfulness stands firm in the heavens.”
3 You said, “I have made a promise[a] to my chosen one.
I swore this oath to my servant David:
4 ‘I will make your dynasty continue forever.
I built your throne to last throughout every generation.’” Selah
5 O Yahweh, the heavens praise your miracles
and your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones.
6 Who in the skies can compare with Yahweh?
Who among the heavenly beings is like Yahweh?
7 El is terrifying in the council of the holy ones.
He is greater and more awe-inspiring than those who surround him.
8 O Yahweh Elohim Tsebaoth, who is like you?
Mighty Yah, even your faithfulness surrounds you.
9 You rule the raging sea.
When its waves rise, you quiet them.
10 You crushed Rahab;[b] it was like a corpse.
With your strong arm you scattered your enemies.
11 The heavens are yours.
The earth is also yours.
You made the world and everything in it.
12 You created north and south.
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon sing your name joyfully.
13 Your arm is mighty.
Your hand is strong.
Your right hand is lifted high.
14 Righteousness and justice are the foundations of your throne.
Mercy and truth stand in front of you.
15 Blessed are the people who know how to praise you.
They walk in the light of your presence, O Yahweh.
16 They find joy in your name all day long.
They are joyful in your righteousness
17 because you are the glory of their strength.
By your favor you give us victory.[c]
18 Our shield belongs to Yahweh.
Our king belongs to Qedosh Yisrael.
19 Once in a vision you said to your faithful ones:
“I set a boy above warriors.[d]
I have raised up one chosen from the people.
20 I found my servant David.
I anointed him with my holy oil.
21 My hand is ready to help him.
My arm will also give him strength.
22 No enemy will take him by surprise.
No wicked person will mistreat him.
23 I will crush his enemies in front of him
and defeat those who hate him.
24 My faithfulness and mercy will be with him,
and in my name he will be victorious.[e]
25 I will put his left hand on the sea
and his right hand on the rivers.
26 He will call out to me,
‘You are my Ab, my El, and the rock of my salvation.’
27 Yes, I will make him the firstborn.
He will be the Most High to the kings of the earth.
28 My mercy will stay with him forever.
My promise to him is unbreakable.
29 I will make his dynasty endure forever
and his throne like the days of heaven.
30 “If his descendants abandon my teachings
and do not live by my rules,
31 if they violate my laws
and do not obey my commandments,
32 then with a rod I will punish their rebellion
and their crimes with beatings.
33 But I will not take my mercy away from him
or allow my truth to become a lie.
34 I will not dishonor my promise
or alter my own agreement.
35 On my holiness I have taken an oath once and for all:
I will not lie to David.
36 His dynasty will last forever.
His throne will be in my presence like the sun.
37 Like the moon his throne will stand firm forever.
It will be like a faithful witness in heaven.”
38 But you have despised, rejected,
and become angry with your anointed one.
39 You have refused to recognize the promise to your servant
and have thrown his crown into the dirt.
40 You have broken through all his walls
and have laid his fortified cities in ruins.
41 (Everyone who passed by robbed him.
He has become the object of his neighbors’ scorn.)
42 You held the right hand of his enemies high
and made all of his adversaries rejoice.
43 You even took his sword out of his hand
and failed to support him in battle.
44 You put an end to his splendor
and hurled his throne to the ground.
45 You cut short the days of his youth
and covered him with shame. Selah
46 How long, O Yahweh? Will you hide yourself forever?
How long will your anger continue to burn like fire?
47 Remember how short my life is!
Have you created Adam’s descendants for no reason?
48 Can a mortal go on living and never see death?
Who can set himself free from the power of the grave? Selah
49 Where is the evidence of your mercy, Adonay?
You swore an oath to David
on the basis of your faithfulness.
50 Remember, O Yahweh,[f] how your servant[g] has been insulted.
Remember how I have carried in my heart the insults from so many people.
51 Your enemies insulted me.
They insulted your Mashiach[h] every step he took.
52 Thank Yahweh forever.
Amen and amen!
Habakkuk Waits for the Lord’s Answer
2 I will stand at my guard post.
I will station myself on the wall.
I will watch to see what he will say to me
and what answer I will get to my complaint.
The Lord’s Answer
2 Then Yahweh answered me,
“Write the vision.
Make it clear on tablets
so that anyone can read it quickly.
3 The vision will still happen at the appointed time.
It hurries toward its goal.
It won’t be a lie.
If it’s delayed, wait for it.
It will certainly happen.
It won’t be late.
4 “Look at the proud person. He is not right in himself.
But the righteous person will live because of his faithfulness.[a]
9 “‘How horrible it will be for the one who uses violence
to get things for his own household
in order to set his nest up high
and save himself from disaster.’
10 You have planned disgrace for your household
by cutting off many people and forfeiting your own life.
11 A stone in the wall will cry out.
A beam in the roof will answer it.
12 “‘How horrible it will be for the one who builds a city by slaughter
and founds a town by crime.’
13 Isn’t it from Yahweh Tsebaoth
that people grow tired only to feed the flames
and nations exhaust themselves for nothing?
14 But the earth will be filled with the knowledge of Yahweh’s glory
like the water covers the sea.
15 “‘How horrible it will be for the one who makes his neighbor drink
from the bowl of God’s rage,
making him drunk in order to stare at his nakedness.’
16 You are filled with disgrace rather than glory.
Drink! Yes you! And expose yourself as godless.
The cup in Yahweh’s right hand will come around to you,
and disgrace will cover your glory.
17 The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you,
and the destruction done to the animals will terrify you
because of the slaughter and violence done
to lands, cities, and all their inhabitants.
18 “What benefit is there in a carved idol
when its maker has carved it?
What benefit is there in a molded statue, a teacher of lies,
when its maker has molded it?
The one who formed it trusts himself
to make worthless idols that cannot speak.
19 ‘How horrible it will be for the one
who says to a piece of wood, “Wake up!”
and to a stone that cannot talk, “Get up!” ’
Can that thing teach anyone?
Just look at it!
It’s covered with gold and silver,
but there’s absolutely no life in it.”
20 Yahweh is in his holy temple.
All the earth should be silent in his presence.
We Show Our Faith by What We Do
14 My brothers and sisters, what good does it do if someone claims to have faith but doesn’t do any good things? Can this kind of faith save him? 15 Suppose a believer, whether a man or a woman, needs clothes or food 16 and one of you tells that person, “God be with you! Stay warm, and make sure you eat enough.” If you don’t provide for that person’s physical needs, what good does it do? 17 In the same way, faith by itself is dead if it doesn’t cause you to do any good things.
18 Another person might say, “You have faith, but I do good things.” Show me your faith apart from the good things you do. I will show you my faith by the good things I do. 19 You believe that there is one God. That’s fine! The demons also believe that, and they tremble with fear.
20 You fool! Do you have to be shown that faith which does nothing is useless? 21 Didn’t our ancestor Abraham receive God’s approval as a result of what he did when he offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice on the altar? 22 You see that Abraham’s faith and what he did worked together. His faith was shown to be genuine by what he did. 23 The Scripture passage came true. It says, “Abraham believed God, and that faith was regarded as the basis of Abraham’s approval by God.” So Abraham was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person receives God’s approval because of what he does, not only because of what he believes. 25 The same is true of the prostitute Rahab who welcomed the spies and sent them away on another road. She received God’s approval because of what she did.
26 A body that doesn’t breathe[a] is dead. In the same way faith that does nothing is dead.
A Rich Man and Lazarus
19 “There was a rich man who wore expensive clothes. Every day was like a party to him. 20 There was also a beggar named Lazarus who was regularly brought to the gate of the rich man’s house. 21 Lazarus would have eaten any scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Lazarus was covered with sores,[a] and dogs would lick them.
22 “One day the beggar died, and the angels carried him to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 He went to hell, where he was constantly tortured. As he looked up, in the distance he saw Abraham and Lazarus. 24 He yelled, ‘Father Abraham! Have mercy on me! Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water to cool off my tongue. I am suffering in this fire.’
25 “Abraham replied, ‘Remember, my child, that you had a life filled with good times, while Lazarus’ life was filled with misery. Now he has peace here, while you suffer. 26 Besides, a wide area separates us. People couldn’t cross it in either direction even if they wanted to.’
27 “The rich man responded, ‘Then I ask you, Father, to send Lazarus back to my father’s home. 28 I have five brothers. He can warn them so that they won’t end up in this place of torture.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses’ Teachings and the Prophets. Your brothers should listen to them!’
30 “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! If someone comes back to them from the dead, they will turn to God and change the way they think and act.’
31 “Abraham answered him, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses’ Teachings and the Prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone comes back to life.’”
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.