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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 93

Psalm 93^[a]

Glory of the Lord’s Kingdom

¹The Lord is King,^[b] adorned in splendor;
    the Lord has clothed and girded himself with strength.
^[c]He has made the world firm,
    never to be moved.
²Your throne has stood firm from the beginning;
    you have existed throughout eternity, O Lord.
³The waters^[d] have lifted up, O Lord;
    the waters have lifted up their voice;
    the waters have lifted up their roar.
⁴More powerful than the roar of mighty waters,
    more powerful than the crashing waves of the sea,
    mighty on high is the Lord.^[e]
⁵Your decrees^[f] are firmly established;
    holiness adorns your house,
    O Lord, throughout the ages.

Footnotes

Psalm 93:1 This is one of the nine psalms of the kingdom (Pss 47; 93–100), most of which feature the liturgical acclamation “The Lord is King,” in which is centered the whole faith of Israel. All these hymns exalt the kingdom of God that extends over the entire universe and dominates the course of time. God reveals his kingship when he brings forth the world; he does so even more when he chooses Israel. Nonetheless, creation and history are still only the beginning and promise; the kingdom of God will be manifested in all its glory at the end of time (see Rev 4:11; 11:15-17): a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem—such are the images that allow us to glimpse the joy of a new humanity gathered together in the glory of God (see Rev 21:1—22:5). The acclamation of the psalms of the kingdom already vibrates with this ineffable hope.
Psalm 93 exalts the Lord who reigns, robed in majesty. He affirms his greatness by the forces of creation that he rules, by the law—or “decrees”—that he gives to his people, and by the temple of Jerusalem that he consecrates to his mysterious presence. From his earthly experience, the believer acclaims the splendor of a kingdom that can have no end.
In all truth, we can regard this psalm as applicable to Christ’s kingship and sing: “Christ is King.” For he vanquishes in himself and in his followers all hostile powers (Satan, death, and sin), delivering believers from the reign of death and transferring them into his kingdom (see Eph 1:2). This is the extraordinary wonder that he continues across the centuries until the full deliverance of his Church and the definitive destruction of his enemies will occur (see Rev 20–22).
Psalm 93:1 The Lord is King: a liturgical acclamation that sums up the entire faith of Israel (see Pss 96:10; 97:1; 99:1; see also Zec 14:9).
Psalm 93:1 The Lord established his kingdom on earth when he created the world and everything in it (see Ps 24:1). Hence, the world will not be moved no matter what pressure is brought to bear on it by hostile forces (see Pss 10:6; 104:5), because the Lord has established his rule over it. Indeed, the Lord is eternal (see Ps 90:2), but his rule was established when his throne was set up at the beginning of history with the creation (“from the beginning”; see Isa 44:8; 45:21; 48:3-8).
Psalm 93:3 Waters: the waters of the primeval chaos that the Lord mastered through his creative word (see Pss 33:7; 104:7-9; Gen 1:6-10; Job 38:8-11; see also note on Ps 65:8). They can also stand for the enemies of God and his people (see Job 7:12; Isa 8:7; 17:12; Jer 46:8; Dan 7:2; Rev 17:15) as well as the ocean currents, whose powers were feared by the pagan nations as indicated in the mythical account of Baal’s victory over the sea god Yamm.
Psalm 93:4 The Lord is the Master of the thundering storms and surging waves by his simple word (see Christ’s calming of the storm by a single word in Mk 4:39).
Psalm 93:5 Decrees: these divine judgments constitute revelation in the wide sense insofar as they are the norm of human life (see Ps 119). As stable (see Ps 19:8) as the physical universe and as inviolable (see Ps 95:8-11) as the sanctuary of Jerusalem, this revelation will be the foundation of the Lord’s definitive kingdom, inaugurated from the creation and already effective in Israel (see Isa 51:9f, 13; 52:7). Holiness adorns your house . . . throughout the ages: the temple, home of the King of Israel, is consecrated forever (1 Ki 8:13; 9:3; Jud 9:1-8; Ezek 42:13f; Rev 21:27). Those who approach the most holy God (see Ps 99) are also consecrated (see Ex 19:6; Lev 10:3; 19:2).

Psalm 96

Psalm 96^[a]

God, Sovereign and Judge of the Universe

¹Sing to the Lord a new song;^[b]
    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
²Sing to the Lord and bless his name;
    proclaim his salvation^[c] day after day.
³Declare his glory^[d] among the nations,
    his wondrous deeds to every people.
⁴For great is the Lord and worthy of all praise;
    he is more to be feared^[e] than all other gods.
⁵The gods of the nations are merely idols,
    but it was the Lord who made the heavens.^[f]
⁶Majesty and splendor surround him;
    power and beauty^[g] are in his sanctuary.
⁷Render to the Lord, you families of nations,
    render to the Lord glory and power.^[h]
⁸Render to the Lord the glory due to his name;
    bring an offering and enter his courts.^[i]
⁹Worship^[j] the Lord in the splendor of his holiness;
    tremble before him, all the earth.
¹⁰Say among the nations, “The Lord is King.^[k]
    The world is firmly established, never to be moved.
    He will judge the peoples fairly.”
¹¹Let the heavens exult and the earth be glad;
    let the sea resound and all that fills it.
¹²Let the fields rejoice and all that is in them;
    let all the trees^[l] of the forest shout for joy
¹³before the Lord, for he is coming,
    coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice
    and the nations with equity.^[m]

Footnotes

Psalm 96:1 Partially cited in 1 Chr 16:23-33, this hymn is comprised of Old Testament reminiscences, especially from the Psalter and Isaiah (e.g., Ps 42:10; Isa 55:12). The peoples and nations of which it speaks were originally the neighbors who attempted to prevent Israel from becoming established in Canaan; later, they were all the peoples of the world who failed to recognize the one true God. Israel, which had been saved at the time of the Judges and brought back from an exile through which she had suffered a kind of annihilation, had experienced the Lord’s deliverance more than once. She could well bear witness before the whole world of the power and superiority of the one sole God: the Lord had created the world and had given his people new life.
All peoples are invited to acknowledge him as the sovereign Master; all are summoned to the liturgy, to adoration. Deep emotion will grip the entire universe when God comes as Judge; he who has brought into being an unshakable world will establish all human beings in justice and righteousness.
This song of universal joy is always new with the newness of God himself; the New Testament (see Acts 17:31; Rev 19:11) refers to verse 13 in announcing the final coming of Christ on the day of judgment, when he will make all things new. Thus, by means of it, Christians call upon the whole universe to praise God the Father as well as the risen Jesus, whom the Father has made “Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36), “leader and Savior” (Acts 5:31), and “ruler of the kings of the earth” (Rev 1:5).
According to the superscription in the Septuagint and Vulgate, this psalm was sung at the dedication of the post-Exilic temple. Its Messianic content made it suitable for that occasion.
Psalm 96:1 New song: see note on Ps 33:3. All the earth: see note on Ps 9:2; see also Pss 97:1; 100:1.
Psalm 96:2 Salvation: the psalmist does not specify the precise nature of the “salvation” he mentions (see note on Ps 67:3-4). Most likely, it included all God’s acts in redemptive history: creation and redemption (vv. 2, 11-12; see Ps 136:4-25). The People of God must assume the lead by praising the Lord (bless his name—see note on Ps 5:12) every day.
Psalm 96:3 Glory: see note on Ps 85:10. Wondrous deeds: see note on Ps 9:2.
Psalm 96:4 The Lord is great and worthy to receive praise and reverence (to be feared) because he alone is God and there is no other (see Ps 115).
Psalm 96:5 Made the heavens: since the Lord made the heavens, which were supposedly the home of the gods, it follows that he is far greater than all the gods; but he is also greater because they are nothing more than idols.
Psalm 96:6 The Lord is surrounded by personifications of divine attributes (majesty and splendor . . . power and beauty) that extol his universal kingship.
Psalm 96:7 The psalmist makes use of Ps 29:1f, eliminating any allusion to the theme of “heavenly beings” (i.e., “sons of God”) and accentuating the universalist tone (see Ps 47:10; Zec 14:17). All peoples are specifically summoned to pledge their obedience to the Lord.
Psalm 96:8 Courts: i.e., of the temple where the Lord dwells (see Ps 84:3, 11; 2 Ki 21:5; 23:11f). The psalmist may have been thinking of the outermost court of the temple, which was the court of the Gentiles.
Psalm 96:9 The psalmist calls for the people to worship the Lord, i.e., give him their reverence, submission, and awe because of the splendor of his holiness (see Pss 29:2; 99; 110:3; 1 Chr 16:29).
Psalm 96:10 The Lord is King: see note on Ps 93:1a-b. The Lord is not only the Creator of all (as well as the Redeemer of all) but also the Judge of all. Greek and Latin manuscripts have a Christian addition: “from the wood” [of the cross]—a splendid expression of the theology of the cross found in the Gospel of John.
Psalm 96:12 Heavens . . . sea . . . fields . . . trees: i.e., the whole world. By being what it is, God’s creation gives him glory. However, it will rejoice even more when the fullness of redemption is attained, which it is presently awaiting together with all humanity (see Rom 8:21f).
Psalm 96:13 The psalmist may have been thinking of the Lord’s coming as the one in which he led the exiles back to Jerusalem. But the Lord comes in many ways. In Christ, the Lord came to fulfill the words of this psalm, bringing all peoples back to God, and he will come again at the end of time to judge the living and the dead (Acts 10:42; 17:31). His judgment is righteousness and truth.

Psalm 34

Psalm 34^[a]

Presence of God, Protector of the Righteous

¹Of David. When he pretended to be mad before Abimelech, who forced him to depart.^[b]

²^[c]I will bless the Lord at all times;
    his praise will be continually on my lips.
³My soul^[d] will glory in the Lord;
    let the lowly hear and be glad.
⁴Magnify the Lord with me;
    let us exalt his name together.
⁵I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
    he set me free from all my fears.
⁶Look to him and you will be radiant;
    your faces will never be covered with shame.
⁷In my anguish^[e] I cried out;
    the Lord heard my plea,
    and I was saved from all my troubles.
⁸The angel of the Lord^[f] encamps around those who fear God,
    and he delivers them.
⁹Taste and see that the Lord is good;
    blessed^[g] is the man who takes refuge in him.
¹⁰Fear the Lord,^[h] you his saints;
    nothing is lacking for those who fear him.
¹¹The powerful^[i] suffer want and go hungry,
    but those who seek the Lord want for no good thing.
¹²^[j]Come, my children,^[k] and listen to me;
    I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
¹³Who among you delights in life
    and desires many years to enjoy prosperity?^[l]
¹⁴Then keep your tongue^[m] from evil
    and your lips from telling lies.
¹⁵Shun evil and do good;
    seek peace and pursue it.
¹⁶^[n]The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
    and his ears are open to their cry.
¹⁷The face of the Lord is turned against those who do evil,
    to erase all memory of them from the earth.
¹⁸^[o]The righteous call out, and the Lord hears them;
    he rescues them from all their troubles.
¹⁹The Lord remains close to the brokenhearted,
    and he saves those whose spirit is crushed.
²⁰^[p]The misfortunes of the righteous man are many,
    but the Lord delivers him,^[q] from all of them.
²¹He watches with care over all his bones;
    not a single one will be broken.
²²^[r]Evil will bring death to the wicked,
    and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
²³The Lord redeems the lives of those who serve him;
    no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.

Footnotes

Psalm 34:1 This alphabetical psalm has two parts. The first voices thanksgiving for the solicitude with which God surrounds the righteous and the poor to deliver them from their anguish. Doubtless the psalmist has experienced this in life and gives his disciples the fruit of his experience. The second part takes the tone of an instruction (vv. 13-23): a sage invites the listeners to discover the path to happiness in the fear of the Lord.
The poorest of the poor and the wisest of the sages is Christ, and it is upon his lips that we can place this psalm after the example of John (Jn 19:36), numbering ourselves—in accord with the express indication of Peter (see 1 Pet 3:10-12)—among the children to whom he teaches the way of life and happiness. From the early days of Christianity this psalm served to teach those who were preparing for the Christian life and for Baptism (1 Pet 2:3).
Psalm 34:1 The superscription refers to 1 Sam 21:11-15, but (probably as the result of a scribal error) erroneously substitutes Abimelech for Achish, King of Gath.
Psalm 34:2 The praise of the Lord is continual, God-centered, and the response of a grateful heart—an offering that the Lord will never reject (see Ps 50:14-23; Hos 14:2; Heb 13:15). Its purpose is to acknowledge the Lord’s greatness (see Pss 30:2; 69:31; 99:5; 107:32; 145:1). Name: see note on Ps 5:12.
Psalm 34:3 Soul: see note on Ps 6:4.
Psalm 34:7 In my anguish: literally, “this poor man.” The word “poor” is usually applied to one who depends completely on God for his deliverance and his very life. See also note on Ps 22:27.
Psalm 34:8 Angel of the Lord: i.e., the Lord’s protection or the presence of God. However, such protection, although promised by the Lord (see Ps 91:11; Gen 32:2; 2 Ki 6:17; Mt 4:5f), is not automatic; it depends on one’s allegiance to the covenant—the “fear of the Lord”—entailing the practices mentioned in verses 12-15.
Psalm 34:9 This verse is applied to the Holy Eucharist by the Fathers of the Church and the Liturgy (see 1 Pet 2:3). Blessed: see note on Ps 1:1.
Psalm 34:10 Fear the Lord: see note on Ps 15:2-5. Saints: that is, those consecrated to God and sharing in his holiness (see Ex 19:6; Lev 19:2; Num 16:3; Isa 4:3; Dan 8:24). See also notes on Pss 4:4; 16:3.
Psalm 34:11 Powerful: literally, “lions”—fierce animals were symbols of people with power.
Psalm 34:12 To gain wisdom entails two things: fearing the Lord and doing his will. The latter calls for integrity of language rather than deception (v. 14; see Jer 4:2), practicing good rather than evil (v. 15; see Ps 37:3, 27), and working for rather than against peace (vv. 15-16; see Ps 37:37; Mt 5:9; Rom 12:18; 14:19; Heb 12:14).
Psalm 34:12 Children: a term (also translated as “simple” or “sons”) for students in Wisdom literature (see Prov 1:22; 4:1; 8:32; Sir 3:1; 23:7).
Psalm 34:13 This verse is found word for word in an Egyptian text of the 18th dynasty (tomb of Ai) (see 1 Pet 3:10f).
Psalm 34:14 Tongue: see note on Ps 5:10.
Psalm 34:16 The eyes and ears of the Lord are attuned to the righteous (see Ps 33:18), but the face of the Lord (see note on Ps 13:2) is against evildoers (see Lev 17:10; Jer 23:30; 1 Pet 3:10-12).
Psalm 34:18 Compunction and humility are requirements for benefiting from the grace of salvation (see Ps 51:19; Mt 11:29f). The Lord hears the cry of the righteous (see Ps 145:19) and the brokenhearted (see Ps 147:3) and saves them from their afflictions.
Psalm 34:20 No matter how many are the troubles of the righteous man, the Lord will deliver him (see Job 5:19; 2 Tim 3:11), protecting all his bones, a phrase representative of his whole being. Not a single one will be broken: John applies this text to Jesus on the cross as the righteous man par excellence. Hence, this text is regarded as a prophecy about Christ when he was crucified. Although it was the custom of the Romans to break the legs of a person they had crucified so that death would come more quickly, it was not carried out in this case and not one of Christ’s bones was broken.
Psalm 34:20 Delivers him: God promises to be our source of power, courage, and wisdom to help us through our troubles; at times he even chooses to take them away from us.
Psalm 34:22 The wicked will perish in their own evil and be condemned (see Ps 9:16), but the righteous will be saved by the Lord (see Ex 6:6; Lk 1:68; Rev 14:3).

Isaiah 57:14-21

Compassion for the Afflicted

¹⁴Then the Lord will say:
    Build up, build up! Prepare the way!
    Remove every obstruction from my people’s path.
¹⁵For thus says the One who is high and exalted,
    who lives eternally
    and whose name is holy:
I dwell in a high and holy place
    but I am with the contrite and the humble,
to revive the spirit of the humble
    and to revive the heart of the contrite.
¹⁶I will not accuse forever,
    nor will I always be angry.
For then the spirits of the souls that I have made
    would grow faint because of me.
¹⁷Because of their wicked avarice I was angry,
    and I struck them, keeping myself hidden,
    but they continued on their rebellious path.
¹⁸I saw how they behaved, but I will heal them;
    I will lead them and fill them with consolation,
    both them and those who mourn for them.
¹⁹Peace, peace to all, both far and near,
    and I will heal them, says the Lord.
²⁰But the wicked are like the restless sea that cannot be still;
    its waters cast up mud and dirt.
²¹There is no peace for the wicked,
    says my God.

Hebrews 12:1-6

Let Us Run with Eyes Fixed on Jesus^[a]

Chapter 12

You Have Not Yet Resisted to the Point of Bloodshed. ¹Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,^[b] let us throw off everything that weighs us down and the sins that so easily distract us and with perseverance run the race that lies ahead of us, ²with our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. For the sake of the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, ignoring its shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

³Reflect on how he endured such great hostility from sinners so that you may not grow weary and lose heart. ⁴In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

God Is Treating You as His Children.^[c] ⁵You have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children:

“My son, do not scorn the discipline of the Lord
or lose heart when you are punished by him.
⁶For the Lord disciplines those whom he loves,
and he chastises every son whom he acknowledges.”

John 7:37-46

³⁷Streams of Living Water.^[a]^[b]On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and cried out,

“If anyone is thirsty,
let him come to me and drink.
³⁸Whoever believes in me,
as Scripture has said,
‘Streams of living water
shall flow from within him.’ ”

³⁹Now he was referring here to the Spirit whom those who believed in him were to receive. As yet the Spirit had not been bestowed because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

⁴⁰People Are Divided concerning Jesus.^[c] On hearing these words, some in the crowd said, “This must truly be the Prophet.” ⁴¹Others thought, “This is the Christ.” But still others retorted, “How can the Christ come from Galilee? ⁴²Does not Scripture assert that the Christ will be of the seed of David and come from Bethlehem, the city where David lived?” ⁴³As a result, the crowd was sharply divided because of him. ⁴⁴Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him.

⁴⁵Then the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not arrest him?” ⁴⁶The guards answered, “No one has ever spoken as this man has.”

New Catholic Bible (NCB)

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Book of Common Prayer

Psalm 93[a]

Glory of the Lord’s Kingdom

Footnotes

Psalm 96[a]

God, Sovereign and Judge of the Universe

Footnotes

Psalm 34[a]

Presence of God, Protector of the Righteous

Footnotes

Compassion for the Afflicted

Let Us Run with Eyes Fixed on Jesus[a]

Chapter 12

Footnotes

Footnotes

Psalm 93^[a]

Psalm 96^[a]

Psalm 34^[a]

Let Us Run with Eyes Fixed on Jesus^[a]