Book of Common Prayer
The Psalmist’s Profession of Uprightness.
A Psalm of David.
101 I will sing of [steadfast] lovingkindness and justice;
To You, O Lord, I will sing praises.
2
I will behave wisely and follow the way of integrity.
When will You come to me?
I will walk in my house in integrity and with a blameless heart.
3
I will set no worthless or wicked thing before my eyes.
I hate the practice of those who fall away [from the right path];
It will not grasp hold of me.
4
A perverse heart shall depart from me;
I will not tolerate evil.
5
Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will silence;
The one who has a haughty look and a proud (arrogant) heart I will not tolerate.
6
My eyes will be on the faithful (honorable) of the land, that they may dwell with me;
He who walks blamelessly is the one who will minister to and serve me.
7
He who practices deceit will not dwell in my house;
He who tells lies and half-truths will not continue [to remain] in my presence.
8
Morning after morning I will destroy all the wicked in the land,
That I may cut off from the city of the Lord all those who do evil.
Vengeance Invoked upon Adversaries.
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
109 O God of my praise!
Do not keep silent,
2
For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me;
They have spoken against me with a lying tongue.
3
They have also surrounded me with words of hatred,
And have fought against me without a cause.
4
In return for my love, they attack me,
But I am in prayer.
5
They have repaid me evil for good,
And hatred for my love.
6
Appoint a wicked man against him,
And let an attacker stand at his right hand [to kill him].
7
When he enters into dispute, let wickedness come about.
Let his prayer [for help] result [only] in sin.
8
Let his days be few;
And let another take his office.(A)
9
Let his children be fatherless
And his wife a widow.
10
Let his children wander and beg;
Let them seek their food and be driven far from their ruined homes.(B)
11
Let the creditor seize all that he has,
And let strangers plunder the product of his labor.
12
Let there be no one to extend kindness to him,
Nor let anyone be gracious to his fatherless children.
13
Let his descendants be cut off,
And in the following generation let their name be blotted out.
14
Let the wickedness of his fathers be remembered by the Lord;
And do not let the sin of his mother be blotted out.
15
Let them be before the Lord continually,
That He may cut off their memory from the earth;
16
Because the man did not remember to show kindness,
But persecuted the suffering and needy man,
And the brokenhearted, to put them to death.
17
He also loved cursing, and it came [back] to him;
He did not delight in blessing, so it was far from him.
18
He clothed himself with cursing as with his garment,
And it seeped into his inner self like water
And like [anointing] oil into his bones.
19
Let it be to him as a robe with which he covers himself,
And as a sash with which he is constantly bound.
20
Let this be the reward of my attackers from the Lord,
And of those who speak evil against my life.
21
But You, O God, the Lord, show kindness to me, for Your name’s sake;
Because Your lovingkindness (faithfulness, compassion) is good, O rescue me;
22
For I am suffering and needy,
And my heart is wounded within me.
23
I am vanishing like a shadow when it lengthens and fades;
I am shaken off like the locust.
24
My knees are unsteady from fasting;
And my flesh is gaunt and without fatness.
25
I also have become a reproach and an object of taunting to others;
When they see me, they shake their heads [in derision].(C)
26
Help me, O Lord my God;
Save me according to Your lovingkindness—
27
And let them know that this is Your hand;
You, Lord, have done it.
28
Let them curse, but You bless.
When adversaries arise, let them be ashamed,
But let Your servant rejoice.
29
Let my attackers be clothed with dishonor,
And let them cover themselves with their own shame as with a robe.
30
I will give great praise and thanks to the Lord with my mouth;
And in the midst of many I will praise Him.
Ayin.
121
I have done justice and righteousness;
Do not leave me to those who oppress me.
122
Be the guarantee for Your servant for good [as Judah was the guarantee for Benjamin];
Do not let the arrogant oppress me.(A)
123
My eyes fail [with longing, watching] for [the fulfillment of] Your salvation,
And for [the fulfillment of] Your righteous word.
124
Deal with Your servant according to Your [gracious] lovingkindness,
And teach me Your statutes.
125
I am Your servant; give me understanding [the ability to learn and a teachable heart]
That I may know Your testimonies.
126
It is time for the Lord to act;
They have broken Your law.
127
Therefore I love Your commandments more than gold,
Yes, more than refined gold.
128
Therefore I esteem as right all Your precepts concerning everything;
I hate every false way.
Pe.
129
Your testimonies are wonderful;
Therefore my soul keeps them.
130
The unfolding of Your [glorious] words give light;
Their unfolding gives understanding to the simple (childlike).
131
I opened my mouth and panted [with anticipation],
Because I longed for Your commandments.
132
Turn to me and be gracious to me and show me favor,
As is Your way to those who love Your name.
133
Establish my footsteps in [the way of] Your word;
Do not let any human weakness have power over me [causing me to be separated from You].
134
Redeem me from the oppression of man;
That I may keep Your precepts.(B)
135
Make Your face shine [with pleasure] upon Your servant,
And teach me Your statutes.(C)
136
My eyes weep streams of water
Because people do not keep Your law.
Tsadhe.
137
Righteous are You, O Lord,
And upright are Your judgments.
138
You have commanded Your testimonies in righteousness
And in great faithfulness.
139
My zeal has [completely] consumed me,
Because my enemies have forgotten Your words.
140
Your word is very pure (refined);
Therefore Your servant loves it.
141
I am small and despised,
But I do not forget Your precepts.
142
Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness,
And Your law is truth.(D)
143
Trouble and anguish have found me,
Yet Your commandments are my delight and my joy.
144
Your righteous testimonies are everlasting;
Give me understanding [the ability to learn and a teachable heart] that I may live.
Promise of Restoration
14 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 15 “Son of man, your brothers, your relatives, your fellow exiles and the whole house of Israel, all of them, are those to whom the [present] inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘Go far away from the Lord; this land has been given to us as a possession.’ 16 Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Though I had removed Israel far away among the nations and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I have been a sanctuary for them for a little while in the countries to which they had gone.”’ 17 Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give [back] to you the land of Israel.”’ 18 When they return there, they will remove from it all [traces of] its detestable things and all its repulsive things (remnants of paganism). 19 And I will give them one heart [a new heart], and put a new spirit within them. I will take from them the heart of stone, and will give them a heart of flesh [that is responsive to My touch],(A) 20 that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they shall be My people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for those whose heart longs for and follows after their detestable things and their repulsive things [associated with idolatry], on their own head I will repay [them in full for] their [vile] conduct,” says the Lord God.
22 Then the cherubim lifted up their wings with the wheels beside them, and the [Shekinah] glory of the God of Israel hovered over them. 23 Then the glory and brilliance of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and paused over the mountain, [the Mount of Olives] which is east of the city. 24 And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God to the exiles in Chaldea (Babylonia). Then the vision that I had seen left me. 25 Then I told the exiles everything that the Lord had shown me.
Melchizedek’s Priesthood Like Christ’s
7 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham as he returned from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of all [the spoil]. He is, first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, which means king of peace. 3 Without [[a]any record of] father or mother, nor ancestral line, without [any record of] beginning of days (birth) nor ending of life (death), but having been made like the Son of God, he remains a priest without interruption and without successor.
4 Now pause and consider how great this man was to whom Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth of the spoils. 5 It is true that those descendants of Levi who are charged with the priestly office are commanded in the Law to collect tithes from the people—which means, from their kinsmen—though these have descended from Abraham. 6 But this person [Melchizedek] who is not from their Levitical ancestry received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who possessed the promises [of God]. 7 Yet it is beyond all dispute that the lesser person is always blessed by the greater one. 8 Furthermore, here [in the Levitical priesthood] tithes are received by men who are subject to death; but in that case [concerning Melchizedek], they are received by one of whom it is testified that he [b]lives on [perpetually]. 9 A person might even say that Levi [the father of the priestly tribe] himself, who received tithes, paid tithes through Abraham [the father of all Israel and of all who believe], 10 for Levi was still in the loins (unborn) of his forefather [Abraham] when Melchizedek met him (Abraham).
11 Now if perfection [a perfect fellowship between God and the worshiper] had been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people were given the Law) what further need was there for another and different kind of priest to arise, one in the manner of Melchizedek, rather than one appointed to the order of Aaron? 12 For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is of necessity a change of the law [concerning the priesthood] as well. 13 For the One of whom these things are said belonged [not to the priestly line of Levi but] to another tribe, from which no one has officiated or served at the altar. 14 For it is evident that our Lord descended from [the tribe of] Judah, and Moses mentioned nothing about priests in connection with that tribe. 15 And this becomes even more evident if another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek,(A) 16 who has become a priest, not on the basis of a [c]physical and legal requirement in the Law [concerning his ancestry as a descendant of Levi], but on the basis of the power of an indestructible and endless life. 17 For it is attested [by God] of Him,
“You (Christ) are a Priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek.”(B)
The Joyous Results
17 The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” 18 He said to them, “I watched Satan fall from heaven like [a flash of] lightning. 19 Listen carefully: I have given you authority [that you now possess] to tread on [a]serpents and scorpions, and [the ability to exercise authority] over all the power of the enemy (Satan); and nothing will [in any way] harm you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice at this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”(A)
21 In that very hour He was overjoyed and rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and He said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things [relating to salvation] from the [b]wise and intelligent, and have revealed them to infants [the childlike and untaught]. Yes, Father, for this way was [Your gracious will and choice, and was] well-pleasing in Your sight. 22 All things have been transferred and turned over to Me by My Father and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal Him.”
23 Then turning to His disciples, Jesus said privately, “Blessed [joyful, spiritually enlightened, and favored by God] are the eyes which see what you see,(B) 24 for I say to you that many prophets and kings longed to see what you see, and they did not see it; and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
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