Book of Common Prayer
A cry of distress, and imprecation on adversaries.
For the Chief Musician; set to [a]Shoshannim. A Psalm of David.
69 Save me, O God;
For the waters are come in unto my soul.
2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing:
I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
3 I am weary with my crying; my throat is dried:
Mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.
4 They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head:
They that would cut me off, being mine enemies [b]wrongfully, are mighty:
That which I took not away I have to restore.
5 O God, thou knowest my foolishness;
And my [c]sins are not hid from thee.
6 Let not them that wait for thee be put to shame through me, O Lord Jehovah of hosts:
Let not those that seek thee be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel.
7 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach;
Shame hath covered my face.
8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren,
And an alien unto my mother’s children.
9 For the zeal of thy house hath eaten me up;
And the reproaches of them that reproach thee are fallen upon me.
10 When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting,
That was to my reproach.
11 When I made sackcloth my clothing,
I became a byword unto them.
12 They that sit in the gate talk of me;
And I am the song of the drunkards.
13 But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O Jehovah, in an acceptable time:
O God, in the abundance of thy lovingkindness,
Answer me in the truth of thy salvation.
14 Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink:
Let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the waterflood overwhelm me,
Neither let the deep swallow me up;
And let not the pit shut its mouth upon me.
16 Answer me, O Jehovah; for thy lovingkindness is good:
According to the multitude of thy tender mercies turn thou unto me.
17 And hide not thy face from thy servant;
For I am in distress; answer me speedily.
18 Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it:
Ransom me because of mine enemies.
19 Thou knowest my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonor:
Mine adversaries are all before thee.
20 Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am [d]full of heaviness:
And I looked for some to take pity, but there was none;
And for comforters, but I found none.
21 They gave me also gall for my food;
And in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
22 Let their table before them become a snare;
And when they are in peace, let it become a trap.
23 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see;
And make their loins continually to shake.
24 Pour out thine indignation upon them,
And let the fierceness of thine anger overtake them.
25 Let their [e]habitation be desolate;
Let none dwell in their tents.
26 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten;
And they tell of the [f]sorrow of those whom thou hast wounded.
27 Add iniquity unto their iniquity;
And let them not come into thy righteousness.
28 Let them be blotted out of the book of [g]life,
And not be written with the righteous.
29 But I am poor and [h]sorrowful:
Let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high.
30 I will praise the name of God with a song,
And will magnify him with thanksgiving.
31 And it will please Jehovah better than an ox,
Or a bullock that hath horns and hoofs.
32 The meek have seen it, and are glad:
Ye that seek after God, let your heart live.
33 For Jehovah heareth the needy,
And despiseth not his prisoners.
34 Let heaven and earth praise him,
The seas, and everything that moveth therein.
35 For God will save Zion, and build the cities of Judah;
And they shall abide there, and have it in possession.
36 The seed also of his servants shall inherit it;
And they that love his name shall dwell therein.
Book III
The end of the wicked contrasted with that of the righteous.
A Psalm of Asaph.
[a]73 Surely God is good to Israel,
Even to such as are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet were almost gone;
My steps had well nigh slipped.
3 For I was envious at the [b]arrogant,
When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 For there are no pangs in their death;
But their strength is firm.
5 They are not [c]in trouble as other men;
Neither are they plagued like other men.
6 Therefore pride is as a chain about their neck;
Violence covereth them as a garment.
7 Their eyes stand out with fatness:
[d]They have more than heart could wish.
8 They scoff, and in wickedness utter oppression:
They speak [e]loftily.
9 They have set their mouth [f]in the heavens,
And their tongue walketh through the earth.
10 Therefore [g]his people return hither:
And waters of a full cup are drained by them.
11 And they say, How doth God know?
And is there knowledge in the Most High?
12 Behold, these are the wicked;
And, being alway at ease, they increase in riches.
13 Surely in vain have I cleansed my heart,
And washed my hands in innocency;
14 For all the day long have I been plagued,
And [h]chastened every morning.
15 If I had said, I will speak thus;
Behold, I had dealt treacherously with the generation of thy children.
16 When I thought how I might know this,
It was [i]too painful for me;
17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God,
And considered their latter end.
18 Surely thou settest them in slippery places:
Thou castest them down to [j]destruction.
19 How are they become a desolation in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors.
20 As a dream when one awaketh,
So, O Lord, [k]when thou awakest, thou wilt despise their image.
21 For my soul [l]was grieved,
And I was pricked in my [m]heart:
22 So brutish [n]was I, and ignorant;
I was as a beast [o]before thee.
23 Nevertheless I am continually with thee:
Thou hast holden my right hand.
24 Thou wilt guide me with thy counsel,
And afterward receive me [p]to glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but thee?
And there is none upon earth that I desire [q]besides thee.
26 My flesh and my heart faileth;
But God is the [r]strength of my heart and my portion for ever.
27 For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish:
Thou hast destroyed all them that play the harlot, departing from thee.
28 But it is good for me to draw near unto God:
I have made the Lord Jehovah my refuge,
That I may tell of all thy works.
2 And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover of this sickness. 3 But the angel of Jehovah said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it because there is no God in Israel, that ye go to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? 4 Now therefore thus saith Jehovah, Thou shalt not come down from the bed whither thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed.
5 And the messengers returned unto him, and he said unto them, Why is it that ye are returned? 6 And they said unto him, There came up a man to meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith Jehovah, Is it because there is no God in Israel, that thou sendest to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed whither thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. 7 And he said unto them, What manner of man was he that came up to meet you, and told you these words? 8 And they answered him, He was a [a]hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
9 Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he was [b]sitting on the top of the hill. And he spake unto him, O man of God, the king hath said, Come down. 10 And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 11 And again he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly. 12 And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 13 And again he sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. 14 Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and consumed the two former captains of fifty with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in thy sight. 15 And the angel of Jehovah said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king. 16 And he said unto him, Thus saith Jehovah, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed whither thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.
17 So he died according to the word of Jehovah which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram began to reign in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son.
16 Know ye not that ye are a [a]temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man destroyeth the [b]temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the [c]temple of God is holy, [d]and such are ye.
18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man thinketh that he is wise among you in this [e]world, let him become a fool, that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, [f]He that taketh the wise in their craftiness: 20 and again, [g]The Lord knoweth the reasonings of the wise, that they are vain. 21 Wherefore let no one glory in men. For all things are yours; 22 whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; 23 and ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.
11 Blessed are ye when men shall reproach you, and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets that were before you.
13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men. 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under the bushel, but on the stand; and it shineth unto all that are in the house. 16 Even so let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
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