Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 106[a]
106 Praise the Lord.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
and his loyal love endures.[b]
2 Who can adequately recount the Lord’s mighty acts,
or relate all his praiseworthy deeds?[c]
3 How blessed are those who promote justice,
and do what is right all the time.
4 Remember me, O Lord, when you show favor to your people.
Pay attention to me, when you deliver,
5 so I may see the prosperity[d] of your chosen ones,
rejoice along with your nation,[e]
and boast along with the people who belong to you.[f]
6 We have sinned like[g] our ancestors;[h]
we have done wrong, we have done evil.
7 Our ancestors in Egypt failed to appreciate your miraculous deeds.
They failed to remember your many acts of loyal love,
and they rebelled at the sea, by the Red Sea.[i]
8 Yet he delivered them for the sake of his reputation,[j]
that he might reveal his power.
9 He shouted at[k] the Red Sea and it dried up;
he led them through the deep water as if it were a desert.
10 He delivered them from the power[l] of the one who hated them,
and rescued[m] them from the power[n] of the enemy.
11 The water covered their enemies;
not even one of them survived.[o]
12 They believed his promises;[p]
they sang praises to him.
13 They quickly forgot what he had done;[q]
they did not wait for his instructions.[r]
14 In the wilderness they had an insatiable craving[s] for meat;[t]
they challenged God[u] in the wastelands.
15 He granted their request,
then struck them with a disease.[v]
16 In the camp they resented[w] Moses,
and Aaron, the Lord’s holy priest.[x]
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it engulfed[y] the group led by Abiram.[z]
18 Fire burned their group;
the flames scorched the wicked.[aa]
19 They made an image of a calf at Horeb,
and worshiped a metal idol.
20 They traded their majestic God[ab]
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They rejected[ac] the God who delivered them,
the one who performed great deeds in Egypt,
22 amazing feats in the land of Ham,
mighty acts[ad] by the Red Sea.
23 He threatened[ae] to destroy them,
but[af] Moses, his chosen one, interceded with him[ag]
and turned back his destructive anger.[ah]
24 They rejected the fruitful land;[ai]
they did not believe his promise.[aj]
25 They grumbled in their tents;[ak]
they did not obey[al] the Lord.
26 So he made a solemn vow[am]
that he would make them die[an] in the wilderness,
27 make their descendants[ao] die[ap] among the nations,
and scatter them among foreign lands.[aq]
28 They worshiped[ar] Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead.[as]
29 They made the Lord angry[at] by their actions,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 Phinehas took a stand and intervened,[au]
and the plague subsided.
31 This was credited to Phinehas as a righteous act
for all generations to come.[av]
32 They made him angry by the waters of Meribah,
and Moses suffered[aw] because of them,
33 for they aroused[ax] his temper,[ay]
and he spoke rashly.[az]
34 They did not destroy the nations,[ba]
as the Lord had commanded them to do.
35 They mixed in with the nations
and learned their ways.[bb]
36 They worshiped[bc] their idols,
which became a snare to them.[bd]
37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons.[be]
38 They shed innocent blood—
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan.
The land was polluted by bloodshed.[bf]
39 They were defiled by their deeds,
and unfaithful in their actions.[bg]
40 So the Lord was angry with his people[bh]
and despised the people who belonged to him.[bi]
41 He handed them over to[bj] the nations,
and those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them;
they were subject to their authority.[bk]
43 Many times he delivered[bl] them,
but they had a rebellious attitude,[bm]
and degraded themselves[bn] by their sin.
44 Yet he took notice of their distress,
when he heard their cry for help.
45 He remembered his covenant with them,
and relented[bo] because of his great loyal love.
46 He caused all their conquerors[bp]
to have pity on them.
47 Deliver us, O Lord, our God.
Gather us from among the nations.
Then we will give thanks[bq] to your holy name,
and boast about your praiseworthy deeds.[br]
48 The Lord God of Israel deserves praise,[bs]
in the future and forevermore.[bt]
Let all the people say, “We agree![bu] Praise the Lord!”[bv]
The Restoration of the True People
10 Ask the Lord for rain in the season of the late spring rains[a]—the Lord who causes thunderstorms—and he will give everyone showers of rain and green growth in the field. 2 For the household gods[b] have spoken wickedness, the soothsayers have seen a lie, and the dreamers have disclosed emptiness and give comfort in vain. Therefore the people set out like sheep and become scattered because they have no shepherd.[c] 3 “I am enraged at the shepherds and will punish the lead goats.
“For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has brought blessing to his flock, the house of Judah, and will transform them into his majestic warhorse. 4 From him will come the cornerstone,[d] the wall peg,[e] the battle bow, and every ruler.[f] 5 And they will be like warriors trampling the mud of the streets in battle. They will fight, for the Lord will be with them, and will defeat the enemy cavalry.[g]
6 “I (says the Lord) will strengthen the kingdom[h] of Judah and deliver the people of Joseph[i] and will bring them back[j] because of my compassion for them. They will be as though I had never rejected them, for I am the Lord their God, and therefore I will hear them. 7 The Ephraimites will be like warriors and will rejoice as if they had drunk wine. Their children will see it and rejoice; they will celebrate in the things of the Lord. 8 I will signal for them and gather them, for I have already redeemed them; then they will become as numerous as they were before. 9 Though I scatter[k] them among the nations, they will remember in far-off places—they and their children will survive and return. 10 I will bring them back from Egypt and gather them from Assyria.[l] I will bring them to the lands of Gilead and Lebanon, and there will not be enough room for them. 11 The Lord[m] will cross the sea of storms and will calm its turbulence. The depths of the Nile will dry up, the pride of Assyria will be humbled, and the domination[n] of Egypt will be no more. 12 Thus I will strengthen them by my power,[o] and they will walk about[p] in my name,” says the Lord.
Support One Another
6 Brothers and sisters,[a] if a person[b] is discovered in some sin,[c] you who are spiritual[d] restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness.[e] Pay close attention[f] to yourselves, so that you are not tempted too. 2 Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Let each one examine[g] his own work. Then he can take pride[h] in himself and not compare himself with[i] someone else. 5 For each one will carry[j] his own load.
6 Now the one who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with the one who teaches[k] it. 7 Do not be deceived. God will not be made a fool.[l] For a person[m] will reap what he sows, 8 because the person who sows to his own flesh[n] will reap corruption[o] from the flesh,[p] but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. 9 So we must not grow weary[q] in doing good, for in due time we will reap, if we do not give up.[r] 10 So then,[s] whenever we have an opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who belong to the family of faith.[t]
Jesus and Little Children
15 Now people[a] were even bringing their babies[b] to him for him to touch.[c] But when the disciples saw it, they began to scold those who brought them.[d] 16 But Jesus called for the children,[e] saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God[f] belongs to such as these.[g] 17 I tell you the truth,[h] whoever does not receive[i] the kingdom of God like a child[j] will never[k] enter it.”
The Wealthy Ruler
18 Now[l] a certain leader[m] asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”[n] 19 Jesus[o] said to him, “Why do you call me good?[p] No one is good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”[q] 21 The man[r] replied, “I have wholeheartedly obeyed[s] all these laws[t] since my youth.”[u] 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have[v] and give the money[w] to the poor,[x] and you will have treasure[y] in heaven. Then[z] come, follow me.” 23 But when the man[aa] heard this he became very sad,[ab] for he was extremely wealthy. 24 When Jesus noticed this,[ac] he said, “How hard[ad] it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God![ae] 25 In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle[af] than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 Those who heard this said, “Then[ag] who can be saved?”[ah] 27 He replied, “What is impossible[ai] for mere humans[aj] is possible for God.” 28 And Peter said, “Look, we have left everything we own[ak] to follow you! 29 Then[al] Jesus[am] said to them, “I tell you the truth,[an] there is no one who has left home or wife or brothers[ao] or parents or children for the sake of God’s kingdom 30 who will not receive many times more[ap] in this age[aq]—and in the age to come, eternal life.”[ar]
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