Book of Common Prayer
Put Not Your Trust in Princes
146 (A)Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
2 I will praise the Lord (B)as long as I live;
(C)I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
3 (D)Put not your trust in princes,
(E)in a son of man, in whom there is (F)no salvation.
4 When (G)his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.
5 (H)Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose (I)hope is in the Lord his God,
6 (J)who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
(K)who keeps faith forever;
7 (L)who executes justice for the oppressed,
(M)who gives food to the hungry.
(N)The Lord sets the prisoners free;
8 (O)the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
(P)The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
(Q)the Lord loves the righteous.
9 (R)The Lord watches over the sojourners;
(S)he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
but (T)the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
He Heals the Brokenhearted
147 (W)Praise the Lord!
For (X)it is good to sing praises to our God;
for (Y)it is pleasant,[a] and (Z)a song of praise is fitting.
2 The Lord (AA)builds up Jerusalem;
he (AB)gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals (AC)the brokenhearted
and (AD)binds up their wounds.
4 He (AE)determines the number of the stars;
he (AF)gives to all of them their names.
5 (AG)Great is our Lord, and (AH)abundant in power;
(AI)his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The Lord (AJ)lifts up the humble;[b]
he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 (AK)Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God on (AL)the lyre!
8 He covers the heavens with clouds;
he prepares (AM)rain for the earth;
he makes (AN)grass grow on the hills.
9 He (AO)gives to the beasts their food,
and to (AP)the young ravens that cry.
10 His delight is not in (AQ)the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the legs of a man,
11 but the Lord (AR)takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who (AS)hope in his steadfast love.
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens (AT)the bars of your gates;
he blesses your children within you.
14 He (AU)makes peace in your borders;
he (AV)fills you with the (AW)finest of the wheat.
15 He (AX)sends out his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives (AY)snow like wool;
he scatters (AZ)frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down his crystals of (BA)ice like crumbs;
who can stand before his (BB)cold?
18 He (BC)sends out his word, and melts them;
he makes his wind blow and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob,
his (BD)statutes and rules[c] to Israel.
20 He (BE)has not dealt thus with any other nation;
they do not know his rules.[d]
(BF)Praise the Lord!
Great Are the Lord's Works
111 [a] (A)Praise the Lord!
I (B)will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the company of (C)the upright, in the congregation.
2 Great are the (D)works of the Lord,
(E)studied by all who delight in them.
3 (F)Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
and his (G)righteousness endures forever.
4 He has (H)caused his wondrous works to be remembered;
the Lord is gracious and merciful.
5 He provides food for those who fear him;
he (I)remembers his covenant forever.
6 He has shown his people the power of his works,
in giving them the inheritance of the nations.
7 The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are (J)trustworthy;
8 they are (K)established forever and ever,
to be performed with (L)faithfulness and uprightness.
9 He sent (M)redemption to his people;
he has (N)commanded his covenant forever.
(O)Holy and awesome is his name!
10 (P)The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have (Q)a good understanding.
His (R)praise endures forever!
The Righteous Will Never Be Moved
112 [b] (S)Praise the Lord!
(T)Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
who (U)greatly delights in his commandments!
2 His (V)offspring will be mighty in the land;
(W)the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 (X)Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his (Y)righteousness endures forever.
4 Light dawns in the darkness (Z)for the upright;
he is gracious, merciful, and (AA)righteous.
5 It is well with the man who (AB)deals generously and lends;
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 For the righteous will (AC)never be moved;
(AD)he will be remembered forever.
7 He is not (AE)afraid of bad news;
his (AF)heart is firm, (AG)trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is steady;[c] he will not be afraid,
until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
9 He has (AH)distributed freely; he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever;
his (AI)horn is exalted in honor.
10 The wicked man sees it and is angry;
he (AJ)gnashes his teeth and (AK)melts away;
(AL)the desire of the wicked will perish!
Who Is like the Lord Our God?
2 (AP)Blessed be the name of the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore!
3 (AQ)From the rising of the sun to its setting,
(AR)the name of the Lord is (AS)to be praised!
4 The Lord is (AT)high above all nations,
and his (AU)glory above the heavens!
5 (AV)Who is like the Lord our God,
who is seated on high,
6 who (AW)looks far down
on the heavens and the earth?
7 He (AX)raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
8 to make them (AY)sit with princes,
with the princes of his people.
9 He (AZ)gives the barren woman a home,
making her the joyous mother of children.
(BA)Praise the Lord!
Unity in the Body of Christ
4 I therefore, (A)a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to (B)walk in a manner worthy of (C)the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all (D)humility and (E)gentleness, with (F)patience, (G)bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in (H)the bond of peace. 4 There is (I)one body and (J)one Spirit—just as you were called to the one (K)hope that belongs to your call— 5 (L)one Lord, (M)one faith, (N)one baptism, 6 (O)one God and Father of all, (P)who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But (Q)grace was given (R)to each one of us (S)according to the measure of Christ's gift. 8 Therefore it says,
9 ((V)In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into (W)the lower regions, the earth?[b] 10 He who descended is the one who also (X)ascended (Y)far above all the heavens, that he might (Z)fill all things.) 11 And (AA)he gave the (AB)apostles, the prophets, the (AC)evangelists, the (AD)shepherds[c] and teachers,[d] 12 (AE)to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for (AF)building up (AG)the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to (AH)the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, (AI)to mature manhood,[e] to the measure of the stature of (AJ)the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, (AK)tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in (AL)deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, (AM)speaking the truth in love, we are to (AN)grow up in every way into him who is (AO)the head, into Christ, 16 (AP)from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, (AQ)when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
The Word Became Flesh
1 (A)In the beginning was (B)the Word, and (C)the Word was with God, and (D)the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 (E)All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 (F)In him was life,[a] and (G)the life was the light of men. 5 (H)The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man (I)sent from God, whose name was (J)John. 7 He came as a (K)witness, to bear witness about the light, (L)that all might believe through him. 8 (M)He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
9 (N)The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet (O)the world did not know him. 11 He came to (P)his own,[b] and (Q)his own people[c] (R)did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, (S)who believed in his name, (T)he gave the right (U)to become (V)children of God, 13 who (W)were born, (X)not of blood (Y)nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And (Z)the Word (AA)became flesh and (AB)dwelt among us, (AC)and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son[d] from the Father, full of (AD)grace and (AE)truth. 15 ((AF)John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, (AG)‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from (AH)his fullness we have all received, (AI)grace upon grace.[e] 17 For (AJ)the law was given through Moses; (AK)grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 (AL)No one has ever seen God; (AM)the only God,[f] who is at the Father's side,[g] (AN)he has made him known.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.