Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 26[a]
By David.
26 Vindicate me, O Lord,
for I have integrity,[b]
and I trust in the Lord without wavering.
2 Examine me, O Lord, and test me.
Evaluate my inner thoughts and motives.[c]
3 For I am ever aware of your faithfulness,[d]
and your loyalty continually motivates me.[e]
4 I do not associate[f] with deceitful men,
or consort[g] with those who are dishonest.[h]
5 I hate the mob[i] of evil men,
and do not associate[j] with the wicked.
6 I maintain a pure lifestyle,[k]
so I can appear before your altar,[l] O Lord,
7 to give you thanks,[m]
and to tell about all your amazing deeds.[n]
8 O Lord, I love the temple where you live,[o]
the place where your splendor is revealed.[p]
9 Do not sweep me away[q] with sinners,
or execute me along with violent people,[r]
10 who are always ready to do wrong[s]
or offer a bribe.[t]
11 But I have integrity.[u]
Rescue me[v] and have mercy on me!
12 I am safe,[w]
and among the worshipers I will praise the Lord.
Psalm 28[a]
By David.
28 To you, O Lord, I cry out!
My Protector,[b] do not ignore me.[c]
If you do not respond to me,[d]
I will join[e] those who are descending into the grave.[f]
2 Hear my plea for mercy when I cry out to you for help,
when I lift my hands[g] toward your holy temple.[h]
3 Do not drag me away with evil men,
with those who behave wickedly,[i]
who talk so friendly to their neighbors,[j]
while they plan to harm them.[k]
4 Pay them back for their evil deeds.
Pay them back for what they do.
Punish them.[l]
5 For they do not understand the Lord’s actions,
or the way he carries out justice.[m]
The Lord[n] will permanently demolish them.[o]
6 The Lord deserves praise,[p]
for he has heard my plea for mercy.[q]
7 The Lord strengthens and protects me;[r]
I trust in him with all my heart.[s]
I am rescued[t] and my heart is full of joy;[u]
I will sing to him in gratitude.[v]
8 The Lord strengthens his people;[w]
he protects and delivers his chosen king.[x]
9 Deliver your people.
Empower[y] the nation that belongs to you.[z]
Care for them like a shepherd and carry them in your arms[aa] at all times![ab]
Psalm 36[a]
For the music director, an oracle, written by the Lord’s servant David.[b]
36 An evil man is rebellious to the core.[c]
He does not fear God,[d]
2 for he is too proud
to recognize and give up his sin.[e]
3 The words he speaks are sinful and deceitful;
he does not care about doing what is wise and right.[f]
4 While he lies in bed he plans ways to sin.
He is committed to a sinful lifestyle;[g]
he does not reject what is evil.[h]
5 O Lord, your loyal love reaches to the sky,[i]
your faithfulness to the clouds.[j]
6 Your justice is like the highest mountains,[k]
your fairness like the deepest sea;
you, Lord, preserve[l] mankind and the animal kingdom.[m]
7 How precious[n] is your loyal love, O God!
The human race finds shelter under your wings.[o]
8 They are filled with food from your house,
and you allow them to drink from the river of your delicacies.
9 For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light.[p]
10 Extend[q] your loyal love to your faithful followers,[r]
and vindicate[s] the morally upright.[t]
11 Do not let arrogant men overtake me,
or let evil men make me homeless.[u]
12 I can see the evildoers! They have fallen.[v]
They have been knocked down and are unable to get up.[w]
Psalm 39[a]
For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David.
39 I decided,[b] “I will watch what I say
and make sure I do not sin with my tongue.[c]
I will put a muzzle over my mouth
while in the presence of an evil person.”[d]
2 I was stone silent;[e]
I held back the urge to speak.[f]
My frustration grew;[g]
3 my anxiety intensified.[h]
As I thought about it, I became impatient.[i]
Finally I spoke these words:[j]
4 “O Lord, help me understand my mortality
and the brevity of life.[k]
Let me realize how quickly my life will pass.[l]
5 Look, you make my days short-lived,[m]
and my life span is nothing from your perspective.[n]
Surely all people, even those who seem secure, are nothing but vapor.[o] (Selah)
6 Surely people go through life as mere ghosts.[p]
Surely they accumulate worthless wealth
without knowing who will eventually haul it away.”[q]
7 But now, O Lord, upon what am I relying?
You are my only hope![r]
8 Deliver me from all my sins of rebellion.
Do not make me the object of fools’ insults.
9 I am silent and cannot open my mouth
because of what you have done.[s]
10 Please stop wounding me.[t]
You have almost beaten me to death.[u]
11 You severely discipline people for their sins;[v]
like a moth you slowly devour their strength.[w]
Surely all people are a mere vapor. (Selah)
12 Hear my prayer, O Lord.
Listen to my cry for help.
Do not ignore my sobbing.[x]
For I am a resident foreigner with you,
a temporary settler,[y] just as all my ancestors were.
13 Turn your angry gaze away from me, so I can be happy
before I pass away.[z]
Exhortation to Obey the Lord Exclusively
16 You must not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah.[a] 17 Keep his[b] commandments very carefully,[c] as well as the stipulations and statutes he commanded you to observe. 18 Do whatever is proper[d] and good before the Lord so that it may go well with you and that you may enter and occupy the good land that he[e] promised your ancestors, 19 and that you may drive out all your enemies just as the Lord said.
Exhortation to Remember the Past
20 When your children[f] ask you later on, “What are the stipulations, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God commanded you?” 21 you must say to them,[g] “We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt in a powerful way.[h] 22 And he[i] brought signs and great, devastating wonders on Egypt, on Pharaoh, and on his whole family[j] before our very eyes. 23 He delivered us from there so that he could give us the land he had promised our ancestors. 24 The Lord commanded us to obey all these statutes and to revere him[k] so that it may always go well for us and he may preserve us, as he has to this day. 25 We will be innocent if we carefully keep all these commandments[l] before the Lord our God, just as he demands.”[m]
Warning Against Drifting Away
2 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2 For if the message spoken through angels[a] proved to be so firm that every violation[b] or disobedience received its just penalty, 3 how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was first communicated through the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard him, 4 while God confirmed their witness[c] with signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed[d] according to his will.
Exposition of Psalm 8: Jesus and the Destiny of Humanity
5 For he did not put the world to come,[e] about which we are speaking,[f] under the control of angels. 6 Instead someone testified somewhere:
“What is man that you think of him[g] or the son of man that you care for him?
7 You made him lower than the angels for a little while.
You crowned him with glory and honor.[h]
8 You put all things under his control.”[i]
For when he put all things under his control, he left nothing outside of his control. At present we do not yet see all things under his control,[j] 9 but we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while,[k] now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death,[l] so that by God’s grace he would experience[m] death on behalf of everyone. 10 For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist,[n] in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer[o] of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
The Testimony of John the Baptist
19 Now[a] this was[b] John’s[c] testimony[d] when the Jewish leaders[e] sent[f] priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”[g] 20 He confessed—he did not deny but confessed—“I am not the Christ!”[h] 21 So they asked him, “Then who are you?[i] Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not!”[j] “Are you the Prophet?”[k] He answered, “No!” 22 Then they said to him, “Who are you? Tell us[l] so that we can give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”
23 John[m] said, “I am the voice of one shouting in the wilderness, ‘Make straight[n] the way for the Lord,’[o] as the prophet Isaiah said.” 24 (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.[p])[q] 25 So they asked John,[r] “Why then are you baptizing if you are not the Christ,[s] nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
26 John answered them,[t] “I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not recognize,[u] 27 who is coming after me. I am not worthy[v] to untie the strap[w] of his sandal!” 28 These things happened in Bethany[x] across the Jordan River[y] where John was baptizing.
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