Book of Common Prayer
ז (Zayin)
49 Remember your word to your servant,
for you have given me hope.
50 This[a] is what comforts me in my trouble,
for your promise revives me.[b]
51 Arrogant people do nothing but scoff at me.[c]
Yet I do not turn aside from your law.
52 I remember your ancient regulations,[d]
O Lord, and console myself.[e]
53 Rage takes hold of me because of the wicked,
those who reject your law.
54 Your statutes have been my songs[f]
in the house where I live.[g]
55 I remember your name during the night, O Lord,
and I will keep[h] your law.
56 This[i] has been my practice,
for I observe your precepts.
ח (Khet)
57 The Lord is my source of security.[j]
I have determined[k] to follow your instructions.[l]
58 I seek your favor[m] with all my heart.
Have mercy on me as you promised.[n]
59 I consider my actions[o]
and follow[p] your rules.
60 I keep your commands eagerly
and without delay.[q]
61 The ropes of the wicked tighten around[r] me,
but I do not forget your law.
62 In the middle of the night I arise[s] to thank you
for your just regulations.
63 I am a friend to all your loyal followers,[t]
and to those who keep your precepts.
64 O Lord, your loyal love fills the earth.
Teach me your statutes!
ט (Tet)
65 You are good[u] to your servant,
O Lord, just as you promised.[v]
66 Teach me proper discernment[w] and understanding.
For I consider your commands to be reliable.[x]
67 Before I was afflicted I used to stray off,[y]
but now I keep your instructions.[z]
68 You are good and you do good.
Teach me your statutes.
69 Arrogant people smear my reputation with lies,[aa]
but I observe your precepts with all my heart.
70 Their hearts are calloused,[ab]
but I find delight in your law.
71 It was good for me to suffer,
so that I might learn your statutes.
72 The law you have revealed is more important to me
than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.[ac]
Psalm 49[a]
For the music director, a psalm by the Korahites.
49 Listen to this, all you nations.
Pay attention, all you inhabitants of the world.[b]
2 Pay attention, all you people,[c]
both rich and poor.
3 I will declare a wise saying;[d]
I will share my profound thoughts.[e]
4 I will learn a song that imparts wisdom;
I will then sing my insightful song to the accompaniment of a harp.[f]
5 Why should I be afraid in times of trouble,[g]
when the sinful deeds of deceptive men threaten to overwhelm me?[h]
6 They trust[i] in their wealth
and boast[j] in their great riches.
7 Certainly a man cannot rescue his brother;[k]
he cannot pay God an adequate ransom price[l]
8 (the ransom price for a human life[m] is too high,
and people go to their final destiny),[n]
9 so that he might continue to live[o] forever
and not experience death.[p]
10 Surely[q] one sees[r] that even wise people die;[s]
fools and spiritually insensitive people all pass away[t]
and leave their wealth to others.[u]
11 Their grave becomes their permanent residence,
their eternal dwelling place.[v]
They name their lands after themselves,[w]
12 but, despite their wealth, people do not last.[x]
They are like animals[y] that perish.[z]
13 This is the destiny of fools,[aa]
and of those who approve of their philosophy.[ab] (Selah)
14 They will travel to Sheol like sheep,[ac]
with death as their shepherd.[ad]
The godly will rule[ae] over them when the day of vindication dawns.[af]
Sheol will consume their bodies, and they will no longer live in impressive houses.[ag]
15 But[ah] God will rescue[ai] my life[aj] from the power[ak] of Sheol;
certainly[al] he will pull me to safety.[am] (Selah)
16 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich[an]
and his wealth multiplies.[ao]
17 For he will take nothing with him when he dies;
his wealth will not follow him down into the grave.[ap]
18 He pronounces this blessing on himself while he is alive:
“May men praise you, for you have done well.”
19 But he will join his ancestors;[aq]
they will never again see the light of day.[ar]
20 Wealthy people do not understand;[as]
they are like animals[at] that perish.[au]
Psalm 53[a]
For the music director, according to the machalath style;[b] a well-written song[c] by David.
53 Fools say to themselves,[d] “There is no God.”[e]
They sin and commit evil deeds;[f]
none of them does what is right.[g]
2 God looks down from heaven[h] at the human race,[i]
to see if there is anyone who is wise[j] and seeks God.[k]
3 Everyone rejects God;[l]
they are all morally corrupt.[m]
None of them does what is right,[n]
not even one!
4 All those who behave wickedly[o] do not understand[p]—
those who devour my people as if they were eating bread,
and do not call out to God.
5 They are absolutely terrified,[q]
even by things that do not normally cause fear.[r]
For God annihilates[s] those who attack you.[t]
You are able to humiliate them because God has rejected them.[u]
6 I wish the deliverance[v] of Israel would come from Zion!
When God restores the well-being of his people,[w]
may Jacob rejoice,[x]
may Israel be happy![y]
Elijah Visits a Widow in Sidonian Territory
17 Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As certainly as the Lord God of Israel lives (whom I serve),[a] there will be no dew or rain in the years ahead unless I give the command.”[b] 2 The Lord’s message came to him: 3 “Leave here and travel eastward. Hide out in the Kerith Valley near the Jordan. 4 Drink from the stream; I have already told[c] the ravens to bring you food[d] there.” 5 So he carried out[e] the Lord’s message; he went and lived in the Kerith Valley near the Jordan. 6 The ravens would bring him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he would drink from the stream.
7 After a while,[f] the stream dried up because there had been no rain in the land. 8 The Lord’s message came to him, 9 “Get up, go to Zarephath in Sidonian territory, and live there. I have already told[g] a widow who lives there to provide for you.” 10 So he got up and went to Zarephath. When he went through the city gate, there was a widow gathering wood. He called out to her, “Please give me a little water in a cup, so I can take a drink.” 11 As she went to get it, he called out to her, “Please bring me a piece of bread.”[h] 12 She said, “As certainly as the Lord your God lives, I have no food, except for a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. Right now I am gathering a couple of sticks for a fire. Then I’m going home to make one final meal for my son and myself. After we have eaten that, we will die of starvation.”[i] 13 Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go and do as you planned.[j] But first make me a small cake[k] and bring it to me; then make something for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the Lord God of Israel has said: ‘The jar of flour will not be empty and the jug of oil will not run out until the day the Lord makes it rain on the surface of the ground.’” 15 She went and did as Elijah told her; there was always enough food for Elijah and for her and her family.[l] 16 The jar of flour was never empty and the jug of oil never ran out, in keeping with the Lord’s message that he had spoken through Elijah.
17 After this[m] the son of the woman who owned the house got sick. His illness was so severe he could no longer breathe. 18 She asked Elijah, “Why, prophet, have you come[n] to me to confront me with[o] my sin and kill my son?” 19 He said to her, “Hand me your son.” He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him down on his bed. 20 Then he called out to the Lord, “O Lord, my God, are you also bringing disaster on this widow I am staying with by killing her son?” 21 He stretched out over the boy three times and called out to the Lord, “O Lord, my God, please let this boy’s breath return to him.” 22 The Lord answered Elijah’s prayer; the boy’s breath returned to him and he lived. 23 Elijah took the boy, brought him down from the upper room to the house, and handed him to his mother. Elijah then said, “See, your son is alive!” 24 The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a prophet[p] and that the Lord’s message really does come through you.”[q]
Christian Unity and Christ’s Humility
2 Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit,[a] any affection or mercy,[b] 2 complete my joy and be of the same mind,[c] by having the same love, being united in spirit,[d] and having one purpose. 3 Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition[e] or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. 4 Each of you should be concerned[f] not only[g] about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well.[h] 5 You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had,[i]
6 [j] who though he existed in the form of God[k]
did not regard equality with God
as something to be grasped,
7 but emptied himself
by taking on the form of a slave,[l]
by looking like other men,[m]
and by sharing in human nature.[n]
8 He humbled himself,
by becoming obedient to the point of death
—even death on a cross!
9 As a result God highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow
—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—
11 and every tongue confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.
The Visit of the Wise Men
2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, in the time[a] of King Herod,[b] wise men[c] from the East came to Jerusalem 2 saying, “Where is the one who is born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose[d] and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod[e] heard this he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem[f] with him. 4 After assembling all the chief priests and experts in the law,[g] he asked them where the Christ[h] was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they said, “for it is written this way by the prophet:
6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are in no way least among the rulers of Judah,
for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”[i]
7 Then Herod[j] privately summoned the wise men and determined from them when the star had appeared. 8 He[k] sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and look carefully for the child. When you find him, inform me so that I can go and worship him as well.” 9 After listening to the king they left, and once again[l] the star they saw when it rose[m] led them until it stopped above the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star they shouted joyfully.[n] 11 As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down[o] and worshiped him. They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense,[p] and myrrh.[q] 12 After being warned in a dream not to return to Herod,[r] they went back by another route to their own country.
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