Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 16
A Miktam of David.
1 Preserve me, O God,
for in You I take refuge.
2 I have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
my welfare has no existence outside of You.”
3 For the holy ones who are in the land,
they are the majestic ones; in them is all my delight.
4 Those who chase after other gods,
their sorrows will be multiplied;
their drink offerings of blood I will not offer,
nor lift their names on my lips.
5 The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup;
You support my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
yes, an inheritance is beautiful for me.
7 I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
my affections also instruct me in the night seasons.
8 I have set the Lord always before me;
because He is at my right hand,
I will not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
my flesh also will rest in security.
10 For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
nor will You suffer Your godly one to see corruption.
11 You will make known to me the path of life;
in Your presence is fullness of joy;
at Your right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
Psalm 17
A Prayer of David.
1 Hear a just cause, O Lord,
attend to my cry;
give ear to my prayer
that is not spoken from deceitful lips.
2 May my sentence go out from Your presence;
may Your eyes see rightly.
3 You have examined my heart; You have visited me in the night;
You have tried me and found nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men,
by the word of Your lips
I have avoided
the paths of the violent,
5 placing my steps in Your paths,
that my footsteps do not slip.
6 I called on You, for You will answer me, O God;
incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
7 Show marvelously Your lovingkindness,
O Deliverer of those who seek refuge
by Your right hand from those who arise in opposition.
8 Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
9 from the wicked who bring ruin to me,
from my deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They close their hard hearts;
with their mouth they speak proudly.
11 They have now encircled us in our steps;
they have set their eyes to bend down to the earth;
12 it is like a lion that is anxious to rip its prey,
and as a young lion lurking in secrecy.
13 Arise, O Lord! Confront him, cast him down!
Deliver my soul from the wicked by Your sword,
14 from men by Your hand, O Lord,
from men of the world whose portion is in this life.
You fill their belly with Your treasure;
they are satisfied with children,
and they leave their abundance to their infants.
15 As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I will be satisfied when I awake with Your likeness.
Psalm 22
For the Music Director. To the melody of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David.
1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
Why are You so far from delivering me,
and from my roaring words of distress?
2 O my God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not answer;
and at night, but I have no rest.
3 But You are holy,
O You who inhabits the praises of Israel.
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
they trusted, and You did deliver them.
5 They cried to You and were delivered;
they trusted in You and were not put to shame.
6 But I am a worm, and not a man;
a reproach of men and despised by the people.
7 All who see me laugh me to scorn;
they sneer with the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8 “Trust in the Lord,
let Him deliver him;
let Him rescue him,
seeing He delights in him.”
9 But You are He who took me out of the womb;
You caused me to trust
while I was on my mother’s breasts.
10 I was cast on You from birth;
You are my God from my mother’s womb.
11 Be not far from me
for trouble is near,
for there is none to help.
12 Many bulls encircle me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me.
13 They open their mouths against me,
as a preying and roaring lion.
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted inside my body.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue cleaves to my jaws;
and You have set me toward the dust of death.
16 For dogs have encompassed me;
the assembly of the wicked has enclosed me;
like a lion they pin my hands and my feet;
17 I can count all my bones;
they look and stare on me.
18 They part my garments among them
and cast lots for my clothes.
19 But do not be far from me, O Lord;
O my Help, hasten to my aid.
20 Rescue my soul from the sword,
my only life from the power of the dog.
21 Save me from the lion’s mouth,
and from the horns of the wild ox, answer me!
22 I will declare Your name to my community;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise You.
23 You who fear the Lord, praise Him;
all you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
and stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.
24 For He has not despised nor abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted;
nor has He hid His face from him;
but when he cried to Him, He heard.
25 From You my praise will be in the great congregation;
I will pay my vows before those who fear Him.
26 The meek will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek Him will praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever.
27 All the ends of the world
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will worship before You.
28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,
and He rules among the nations.
29 All the prosperous ones of the earth will eat and worship;
all who go down to the dust will bow before Him,
even he who cannot keep his own soul alive.
30 Posterity will serve Him;
it will be told to generations about the Lord;
31 they will come and declare His righteousness
to a people yet to be born,
that He has acted.
Plans to Build the Temple(A)
5 Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, for he had heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, and Hiram had always loved David. 2 And Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying,
3 “You know how David my father was unable to build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the wars all around him, until the Lord put his enemies under his feet. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me peace on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor misfortune. 5 So know that I plan to build a house to honor the name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord spoke to my father David, saying, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne after you, shall build a house to honor My name.’
6 “Now therefore command that cedar trees from Lebanon be cut down for me, and my servants shall be with your servants, and I will pay your servants whatever you command, for you know that there are none among my people who can cut timber like the Sidonians.”
7 When Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord this day, who has given David a wise son over this great people.”
8 Hiram sent to Solomon, saying,
“I have considered the things which you contacted me about, and I will do all you asked concerning timber of cedar and fir. 9 My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will send them by sea in floats to the place that you shall name and will cause them to be discharged into your care there, and in return you will meet my wishes by giving food for my household.”
10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees as he desired. 11 Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand kors[a] of wheat for his household and twenty baths[b] of pure oil. This is what Solomon gave to Hiram each year. 12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as He promised, and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon as they made a treaty together.
13 King Solomon drafted men from all Israel, totaling thirty thousand men. 14 He sent them to Lebanon in turns, ten thousand a month, with each spending a month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram administered the labor force. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand porters and eighty thousand stonecutters in the mountains, 16 not counting the chief of Solomon’s officers who were over the work, three thousand three hundred, who ruled over the people who did the work. 17 At the king’s command, they quarried out great, costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the house with dressed stones. 18 Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders, along with the stonemasons, cut them and prepared timber and stones to build the house.
Solomon Builds the Temple(B)
6 In the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month Ziv (which is the second month), he began to build the house of the Lord.
7 The house was built of stone prepared at the quarry, so that neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron was heard in the house while it was being built.
Paul in Malta
28 When they had escaped, they learned that the island was called Malta. 2 The natives showed extraordinary kindness, for they kindled a fire and welcomed us all, because of the rain and the cold. 3 When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, a viper driven out by the heat fastened on his hand. 4 When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “Surely this man is a murderer. Though he has escaped from the sea, justice does not allow him to live.” 5 But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. 6 They expected him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But while they waited and saw no harm befall him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.
7 In that area was an estate of the chief man of the island, named Publius, who had welcomed us and courteously housed us for three days. 8 It happened that the father of Publius lay sick with a fever and dysentery. Paul visited him and, placing his hands on him, prayed and healed him. 9 When this happened, the rest on the island who had diseases also came and were healed. 10 They honored us in many ways. And when we sailed, they provided us with necessary supplies.
Paul Arrives in Rome
11 After three months we sailed in an Alexandrian ship whose figurehead was the Twin Brothers, which had wintered at the island. 12 Landing at Syracuse, we waited there for three days. 13 From there we circled around and sailed to Rhegium. After one day the south wind blew, and the next day we arrived at Puteoli. 14 There we found brothers, and were invited to remain with them for seven days. And so we went to Rome. 15 From there, when the brothers heard of us, they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius[a] and the Three Taverns[b] to meet us. When Paul saw them, he thanked God and took courage. 16 When we arrived at Rome, the centurion handed the prisoners over to the captain of the guard. But Paul was allowed to remain by himself with the soldier who guarded him.
Peter’s Denial Foretold(A)
27 Jesus said to them, “All of you will fall away on account of Me this night, for it is written:
‘I will strike the shepherd,
and the sheep will be scattered.’[a]
28 But after I have risen, I will go before you to Galilee.”
29 Peter said to Him, “Even if all fall away, I will not.”
30 Jesus said to him, “Truly, I say to you that this day, during the night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.”
31 But he said more vehemently, “If I must die with You, I will not deny You.” They all said the same thing.
The Prayer in Gethsemane(B)
32 They came to a place which was named Gethsemane. And He said to His disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter and James and John with Him and began to be greatly distressed and very troubled. 34 And He said to them, “My soul is deeply sorrowful unto death. Remain here and keep watch.”
35 He went a little farther and fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. 36 He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.”
37 Then He came and found them sleeping and said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not keep watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
39 Again He went away and prayed the same words. 40 When He returned, He again found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. And they did not know what to answer Him.
41 When He returned a third time, He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise up, let us go. Look! He who betrays Me is at hand.”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.