Book of Common Prayer
Praise for God’s Mighty Deeds and for His Answer to Prayer.
To the Chief Musician. A Song. A Psalm.
66 Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;
2
Sing of the honor and glory and magnificence of His name;
Make His praise glorious.
3
Say to God, “How awesome and fearfully glorious are Your works!
Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will pretend to be obedient to You.
4
“All the earth will [bow down to] worship You [in submissive wonder],
And will sing praises to You;
They will praise Your name in song.” Selah.
5
Come and see the works of God,
He is awesome in His deeds toward the children of men.
6
He turned the sea into dry land;
They crossed through the river on foot;
There we rejoiced in Him.(A)
7
Who rules by His might forever,
His eyes keep watch on the nations;
Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah.
8
Bless our God, O peoples,
And make the sound of His praise be heard abroad,
9
Who keeps us among the living,
And does not allow our feet to slip or stumble.
10
For You have tested us, O God;
You have refined us as silver is refined.
11
You brought us into the net;
You laid a heavy burden [of servitude] on [a]us.
12
You made men (charioteers) [b]ride over our heads [in defeat];
We went through fire and through water,
Yet You brought us out into a [broad] place of abundance [to be refreshed].
13
I shall come into Your house with burnt offerings;
I shall pay You my vows,
14
Which my lips uttered
And my mouth spoke as a promise when I was in distress.
15
I shall offer to You burnt offerings of fat lambs,
With the [sweet] smoke of rams;
I will offer bulls with male goats. Selah.
16
Come and hear, all who fear God [and worship Him with awe-inspired reverence and obedience],
And I will tell what He has done for me.
17
I cried aloud to Him;
He was highly praised with my tongue.
18
If I regard sin and baseness in my heart [that is, if I know it is there and do nothing about it],
The Lord will not hear [me];(B)
19
But certainly God has heard [me];
He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.
20
Blessed be God,
Who has not turned away my prayer
Nor His lovingkindness from me.
The Nations Exhorted to Praise God.
To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.
67 God be gracious and kind-hearted to us and bless us,
And make His face shine [with favor] on us— Selah.
2
That Your way may be known on earth,
Your salvation and deliverance among all nations.
3
Let the [c]peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
4
Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
For You will judge the people fairly
And guide the nations on earth. Selah.
5
Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
6
The earth has yielded its harvest [as evidence of His approval];
God, our God, blesses us.
7
God blesses us,
And all the ends of the earth shall fear Him [with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder].
The Works and the Word of God.
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
19 The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And the expanse [of heaven] is declaring the work of His hands.(A)
2
Day after day pours forth speech,
And night after night reveals knowledge.
3
There is no speech, nor are there [spoken] words [from the stars];
Their voice is not heard.
4
Yet their voice [in quiet evidence] has gone out through all the earth,
Their words to the end of the world.
In them and in the heavens He has made a tent for the sun,(B)
5
Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber;
It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6
The sun’s rising is from one end of the heavens,
And its circuit to the other end of them;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7
The law of the Lord is perfect (flawless), restoring and refreshing the soul;
The statutes of the Lord are reliable and trustworthy, making wise the simple.
8
The precepts of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
9
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true, they are righteous altogether.
10
They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
11
Moreover, by them Your servant is warned [reminded, illuminated, and instructed];
In keeping them there is great reward.
12
Who can understand his errors or omissions? Acquit me of hidden (unconscious, unintended) faults.
13
Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous (deliberate, willful) sins;
Let them not rule and have control over me.
Then I will be blameless (complete),
And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.
14
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable and pleasing in Your sight,
O Lord, my [firm, immovable] rock and my Redeemer.
God the Refuge of His People.
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah, set to soprano voices. A Song.
46 God is our refuge and strength [mighty and impenetrable],
A very present and well-proved help in trouble.
2
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change
And though the mountains be shaken and slip into the heart of the seas,
3
Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains tremble at its roaring. Selah.
4
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
The holy dwelling places of the Most High.
5
God is in the midst of her [His city], she will not be moved;
God will help her when the morning dawns.
6
The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered and were moved;
He raised His voice, the earth melted.
7
The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold [our refuge, our high tower]. Selah.
8
Come, behold the works of the Lord,
Who has brought desolations and wonders on the earth.
9
He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth;
He breaks the bow into pieces and snaps the spear in two;
He burns the chariots with fire.
10
“Be still and know (recognize, understand) that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations! I will be exalted in the earth.”
11
The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold [our refuge, our high tower]. Selah.
6
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed and stationed watchmen (prophets),
Who will never keep silent day or night;
You who profess the Lord, take no rest for yourselves,
7
And give Him no rest [from your prayers] until He establishes Jerusalem
And makes her a praise on the earth.
8
The Lord has sworn [an oath] by His right hand and by His mighty arm,
“I will never again give your grain as food for your enemies,
Nor will [the invading] foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”
9
But they who have harvested it will eat it and praise the Lord,
And they who have gathered it will drink it [at the feasts celebrated] in the courtyards of My sanctuary.
10
Go through, go through the gates,
Clear the way for the people;
Build up, build up the highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a banner over the peoples.
11
Listen carefully, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth,
Say to the Daughter of Zion, “Look now, your salvation is coming [in the Lord];
Indeed, His reward is with Him, and His restitution accompanies Him.”(A)
12
And they will call them “The Holy People,
The Redeemed of the Lord”;
And you will be called “Sought Out, A City Not Deserted.”
3 And this is how we know [daily, by experience] that we have come to know Him [to understand Him and be more deeply acquainted with Him]: if we habitually keep [focused on His precepts and obey] His commandments (teachings). 4 Whoever says, “I have come to know Him,” but does not habitually keep [focused on His precepts and obey] His commandments (teachings), is a liar, and the truth [of the divine word] is not in him. 5 But whoever habitually keeps His word and obeys His precepts [and treasures His message in its entirety], in him the love of God has truly been perfected [it is completed and has reached maturity]. By this we know [for certain] that we are in Him: 6 whoever says he lives in Christ [that is, whoever says he has accepted Him as God and Savior] ought [as a moral obligation] to walk and conduct himself just as He walked and conducted Himself.
7 Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the message which you have heard [before from us].(A) 8 On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true and realized in Christ and in you, because the darkness [of moral blindness] is clearing away and the true Light [the revelation of God in Christ] is already shining. 9 The one who says he is in the Light [in consistent fellowship with Christ] and yet [a]habitually hates (works against) his brother [in Christ] is in the darkness until now. 10 The one who [b]loves and unselfishly seeks the best for his [believing] brother lives in the Light, and in him there is no occasion for stumbling or offense [he does not hurt the cause of Christ or lead others to sin]. 11 But the one who habitually hates (works against) his brother [in Christ] is in [spiritual] darkness and is walking in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
Jesus Is the Light of the World
12 Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, “[a]I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” 13 Then the Pharisees told Him, “You are testifying on Your own behalf; Your testimony is not valid.” 14 Jesus replied, “Even if I do testify on My own behalf, My testimony is valid, because I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge according to [b]human standards [just by what you see]. I do not judge anyone. 16 But even if I do judge, My judgment is true and My decision is right; for I am not alone [in making it], but I and the Father who sent Me [make the same judgment]. 17 Even in your own law it is written that the testimony of two persons is true [valid and admissible].(A) 18 I am One [of the Two] who testifies about Myself, and My Father who sent Me testifies about Me.” 19 Then the Pharisees said to Him, “Where is this Father of Yours?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.”
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