Book of Common Prayer
TSADHE
137 Lord, you are righteous
and your laws are completely fair.
138 The rules that you have given to us are good and right.
We can trust them completely.
139 I am so upset that it almost kills me,
because my enemies do not accept your message.
140 I know that your promises are completely true.
I love them more than anything.
141 I am not important enough for people to respect me,
but I do not forget your teaching.
142 You will always do what is right
and your law is completely true.
143 I have much trouble and it makes me afraid,
but your commands make me happy.
144 Your rules are always fair.
Help me to understand them,
so that I may find true life.
QOPH
145 With my whole being, I call to you,
‘Answer me, Lord!
I will obey your commands.’
146 I say to you, ‘Save me,
so that I can obey your rules.’
147 I wake up before dawn
and I cry to you for help.
I trust your promises to be true.
148 I am awake during each night,
and I think carefully about your message.
149 You love me with a faithful love,
so please listen to me!
Lord, do what is right,
and keep my life safe.
150 People who love to do evil things
are ready to attack me.
They have no interest in your Law.
151 Lord, you are near to me,
and I can trust all your commands.
152 I have studied your teaching since long ago.
I know that you have made it to remain for ever.
RESH
153 Look at my pain and trouble!
Please save me,
because I do not forget your Law.
154 Stand with me and make me free.
Keep me safe,
as you have promised to do.
155 Wicked people do not obey your rules,
so their lives will never be safe.
156 Lord, you are very kind.
Please do what is right,
and keep my life safe!
157 I have many enemies
who are ready to hurt me.
But I do not turn away from your teaching.
158 When I see people who have turned against you,
they make me very upset.
They do not obey your commands.
159 See how I love your teaching, Lord!
Please keep my life safe,
because of your faithful love for your people.
160 I can trust that your message is true.
All your righteous rules will continue for ever.
Job replies to Eliphaz[a]
23 Then Job replied. This is what he said:
2 ‘I continue to complain against God
because I am still angry today.
God continues to punish me
even when I cry in pain.
3 I would like to know where to find him.
Then I could go to the place where he lives.
4 I would tell him why I am not guilty.
I would say many things to explain this to him.
5 Then I would know how he would answer me.
I would understand what he would say to me.
6 Would God use his great power to argue against me?
No! He would listen carefully to me.
7 Honest people can explain things to him.
So he would judge me in a fair way.
He would let me go free.
8 I look for God in the east, but he is not there.
I do not find him in the west either.
9 When he does his work in the north,
I do not see him.
When he moves to the south,
I still cannot find him anywhere.
10 But he knows the way that I live.
When he has finished testing me,
he will see that I am pure.
I will be as pure as gold.
11 I have always lived in the way that God showed me.
I have obeyed him faithfully.
I have not turned away from his teaching.
12 I have been careful to obey his commands.
His words are more important to me than my food.
43 The next day, Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He met Philip, and Jesus said to Philip, ‘Follow me.’ 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, came from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip went to find Nathanael. He told Nathanael, ‘We have found the man that Moses wrote about in the book of God's Law. The prophets also wrote about him. He is Jesus, who is Joseph's son, from Nazareth.’ 46 Nathanael said, ‘I did not think that anything good could come from Nazareth!’ Philip replied, ‘Come and see.’
47 Jesus saw Nathanael, who was coming towards him. Jesus said, ‘Here is a completely honest man. That is what a person from Israel should really be like.’ 48 Nathanael asked, ‘How do you know me?’ Jesus answered, ‘I saw you before Philip asked you to come. I saw you when you were under the fig tree.’ 49 Nathanael said, ‘Teacher, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.’ 50 Jesus said to him, ‘I told you that I saw you under the fig tree. Now you believe me because I told you that. But you will see much greater things than that.’ 51 And Jesus said to him, ‘I tell you this: You will see heaven open. You will see God's angels. They will be going up and they will be coming down on the Son of Man.’[a]
This is a song that David wrote.
It is for the music leader.
God understands me[a]
139 Lord, you look deep inside me,
and you know all about me.
2 You know when I sit down,
and you know when I get up.
Even when you are far away,
you understand what I am thinking about.
3 You see me when I go out,
and you see me when I stay at home.
You know everything that I do!
4 Yes Lord, before I open my mouth to speak,
you know what I will say.
5 You are all around me, in front of me and behind me.
You put your hand on me to help me.
6 You know so much about me, it is wonderful.
I cannot understand it.
My thoughts cannot reach as high as that!
7 Is there anywhere that I can go
to run away from your Spirit?
Anywhere that I go, you are already there!
8 If I go up to heaven,
you would be there.
If I dig deep down into the ground to reach Sheol,
you would be there too.
9 If I fly away to where the sun rises in the east,
or to the other side of the sea in the west,
you would be there.
10 You would use your hand to lead me.
Your strong right hand would keep me safe.
11 I might say, ‘I will hide myself in the dark,
and the light round me will change into night.’
12 But it is never too dark for you to see.
For you, the night has as much light as the day.
Darkness and light are the same to you!
13 You made every part of me.
You made me grow inside my mother before I was born.
14 I thank you for the wonderful way that you have made me.
Everything that you do is wonderful!
I know it is true.
15 While you caused me to grow in a secret place,
none of my body was hidden from you.
You made me deep in the earth.[b]
16 Your eyes watched me before I was born.
Before I had seen the light of day,
you decided how many days I would live!
You wrote it down in your book.
17 You have so many thoughts about me, God,
that I cannot understand them all.
18 They are too many for me to count,
more than the sand on the shore of the sea.
Even if I finished counting them,
you would still be there!
19 God, you should surely destroy the wicked people!
Yes, you murderers, leave me alone!
20 Those people say bad things against you, God.
Your enemies always tell lies.
21 Lord, I hate those people who hate you.
I have no time for those who turn against you.
22 Yes, I really hate them.
Your enemies are my enemies too.
23 Please God, look deep inside me.
See what is there in my thoughts.
24 Show me if I am following any evil way.
Lead me in the right way that has always been true.
Jesus says that he will soon die
20 There were some Greek people among the people at the festival. They also had come to worship God. 21 These Greek people came to Philip, who was from a town in Galilee called Bethsaida. They said to him, ‘Please sir, we want to meet Jesus.’ 22 Philip went and he told Andrew this. Then Philip and Andrew went to Jesus and they told him.
23 Jesus said to them, ‘God will show how great the Son of Man is. It is now time for that to happen. 24 I tell you this: A seed of wheat continues to be only a single seed unless it falls into the ground. It must fall into the ground and then it must die. If it dies like that, it will grow to give a lot of seeds.
25 Anyone who loves his own life will lose it. But anyone who hates his life in this world will have true life for ever with God. 26 Anyone who wants to be my servant must follow me. Then he will be with me, where I am. My Father will praise anyone who is my servant.
EasyEnglish Bible Copyright © MissionAssist 2019 - Charitable Incorporated Organisation 1162807. Used by permission. All rights reserved.