Book of Common Prayer
A Song About God’s Loyalty
A ·maskil [skillful psalm; meditation] of Ethan the Ezrahite [C a wise man; 1 Kin. 4:31].
89 I will always sing about the Lord’s ·love [loyalty];
I will ·tell of [L make known with my mouth] his ·loyalty [faithfulness] ·from now on [for generations].
2 I will say, “Your ·love [loyalty] ·continues [L is built] forever;
your ·loyalty [faithfulness] ·goes on and on [is established] like the ·sky [heavens].”
3 You said, “I ·made an agreement [L cut a covenant/treaty] with the man of my choice;
I made a promise to my servant David.
4 I told him, ‘I will ·make your family continue [L establish your seed] forever.
·Your kingdom will go on and on [L I will build your throne for generations; 2; 72; 78:70–72; 2 Sam. 7:11–16; 1 Chr. 17:10–14].’” ·
5 Lord, the heavens praise you for your ·miracles [wonderful acts]
and for your ·loyalty [faithfulness] in the ·meeting [assembly] of your holy ones.
6 Who in ·heaven [the skies] ·is equal to [ranks with] the Lord?
None of the ·angels [gods; divine council/assembly; L sons of God; 82:1] is like the Lord.
7 When the ·holy ones [L council of holy ones] meet, it is God they fear.
He is more ·frightening [awesome] than all who surround him.
8 Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], who is like you?
Lord, you are powerful and completely ·trustworthy [faithful].
9 You rule the ·mighty [raging; surging] sea
and ·calm [still] the ·stormy [rising] waves.
10 You crushed the Rahab [C a sea monster, representing chaos (Job 26:12; Is. 51:9) and in some contexts Egypt defeated at the Sea (87:4; Is. 30:7; Ezek. 29:3; 32:3)] like a corpse;
by your ·power [L strong arm] you scattered your enemies.
11 The ·skies [heavens] and the earth belong to you.
You ·made [founded] the world and ·everything in it [L its fullness].
12 You created the north and the south.
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon [C majestic mountains] sing for joy at your name.
13 Your arm has great power.
Your hand is strong; your right hand is lifted up.
14 Your ·kingdom [L throne] is ·built [established] on ·what is right and fair [righteousness and judgment/justice].
·Love [Loyalty] and ·truth [faithfulness] are ·in all you do [L before your face].
15 ·Happy [Blessed] are the people who know how to ·praise [shout to] you.
Lord, let them ·live [L walk] in the light of your ·presence [L face].
16 In your name they rejoice
and continually ·praise [exalt] your ·goodness [righteousness].
17 You are their ·glorious [beautiful] strength,
and in your ·kindness [favor] you ·honor our king [L lift up our horn; C symbol of power and here of the king].
18 Our shield [C the king] belongs to the Lord,
our king to the Holy One of Israel.
19 ·Once [Then], in a vision [2 Sam. 7:4], you spoke
to ·those who worship you [your faithful ones/saints].
You said, “I have ·given strength to [L set help on] a warrior;
I have raised up a ·young man [chosen one] from my people [1 Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22].
20 I have found my servant David;
I ·appointed him by pouring [L have anointed him with] holy oil on him [1 Sam. 16:1–13].
21 I will steady him with my hand
and strengthen him with my arm.
22 No enemy will ·make him give forced payments [make him pay tribute; or prevail over/or outwit him],
and wicked people will not ·defeat [afflict; humble] him.
23 I will ·crush [pound] his enemies in front of him;
I will ·defeat [strike down] those who hate him.
24 My ·loyalty [faithfulness] and ·love [loyalty] will be with him.
Through ·me [L my name] ·he will be strong [L his horn will be raised up; v. 17].
25 I will ·give him power [L set his hand] over the sea
·and control [L his right hand] over the rivers [C the waters represent chaos].
26 He will ·say [proclaim] to me, ‘You are my father,
my God, the Rock, my ·Savior [Victor].’
27 I will make him my firstborn son,
the ·greatest [highest] king on earth [2:7; 2 Sam. 7:14].
28 My ·love [loyalty] will ·watch over [keep; guard] him forever,
and my ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with him will ·never end [be faithful].
29 I will ·make his family continue [L set his seed forever],
and his ·kingdom [L throne] ·will last as long as the skies [L like the days of the skies/heavens].
30 “If his descendants ·reject [leave; abandon] my ·teachings [instructions; laws]
and do not ·follow [L walk in] my ·laws [judgments],
31 if they ·ignore [profane] my ·demands [statutes; ordinances; requirements]
and ·disobey [L do not keep/guard] my commands,
32 then I will punish their ·sins [transgressions] with a rod
and their ·wrongs [guilt] with ·a whip [lashes].
33 But I will not ·hold back [break; invalidate] my ·love [loyalty] from ·David [L him],
nor will I ·stop being loyal [L deal falsely with my faithfulness].
34 I will not ·break [profane; violate] my ·agreement [covenant; treaty]
nor ·change [alter] what ·I have said [L came out of my lips].
35 Once and for all I have ·promised [sworn] by my holiness,
I will not lie to David.
36 His ·family [L seed] will go on forever.
His ·kingdom [L throne] will last before me like the sun.
37 It will ·continue [be established] forever, like the moon,
like a ·dependable [reliable; faithful] witness in the sky.” ·
38 But now you have ·refused [spurned] and rejected him.
You have been angry with your ·appointed king [L anointed; v. 20].
39 You have ·abandoned [disavowed] the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with your servant
and ·thrown [profaned; defiled] his crown ·to [or in] the ground [Jer. 13:18–19].
40 You have ·torn down [broken up] all his city walls;
you have turned his strong cities into ruins.
41 Everyone who passes by ·steals from [plunders] him.
·His neighbors insult him [L He is scorned by/a reproach to his neighbors].
42 You have ·given strength of [L exalted the right hand of] his ·enemies [foes]
and have made ·them all [L all his enemies] happy.
43 You have ·made his sword useless [turned back the blade/L rock of his sword];
you did not help him stand in battle.
44 You have ·kept him from winning [or put aside his purity]
and have thrown his throne to the ground.
45 You have cut ·his life [L the days of his youth] short
and ·covered [wrapped] him with shame. ·
46 Lord, how long will this go on?
Will you ·ignore [hide from] us forever?
How long will your anger burn like a fire?
47 Remember how ·short [fleeting] my life is.
Why did you create us? For ·nothing [futility; vanity; no purpose]?
48 What person alive will not ·die [L see death]?
Who can escape ·the grave [L from the hand/power of Sheol; C the grave or the underworld]? ·
49 Lord, where is your ·love [loyalty] from times past,
which in your ·loyalty [faithfulness] you ·promised [swore] to David [2 Sam. 7:11–14]?
50 Lord, remember ·how they insulted [L the reproach/scorn of] your servant;
remember how I ·have suffered the insults of the nations [L carry in my bosom all of the many peoples].
51 Lord, remember how your enemies ·insulted [reproached; scorned] you
and how they ·insulted [reproached; scorned] ·your appointed king wherever he went [L the footsteps of your anointed; v. 20].
52 ·Praise [Blessed be] the Lord forever!
Amen and amen.
The Beginning of the Samaritan People
24 The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and ·put [settled] them in the cities of Samaria to replace the ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel]. These people took ·over [possession of] Samaria and lived in the cities. 25 At first they did not ·worship [revere; fear] the Lord, so he sent lions among them which killed some of them. 26 The king of Assyria was told, “You ·sent foreigners [deported/exiled/carried nations] into the cities of Samaria who do not know the ·law [custom] of the god of the land. This is why he has sent lions among them. The lions are killing them because they don’t know ·what the god wants [L the law/custom of the god of the land].”
27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, “Send back one of the priests you ·took away [carried into exile; deported]. Let him live there and teach the people ·what the god wants [L the law/custom of the god of the land].” 28 So one of the priests who had been carried ·away [into exile] from Samaria returned to live ·in [at] Bethel. And he taught the people how to ·honor [revere; fear] the Lord.
29 But each nation made gods of its own and put them in the cities where they lived and in the ·temples [L houses] ·where gods were worshiped [L of the high places; 12:3]. These ·temples [L houses] had been built by the Samaritans. 30 The people from Babylon made Succoth Benoth their god. The people from Cuthah ·worshiped [made] Nergal. The people of Hamath ·worshiped [made] Ashima. 31 The Avvites ·worshiped [made] Nibhaz and Tartak. The Sepharvites burned their children in the fire, sacrificing them to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. 32 They also ·honored [revered; feared] the Lord, but they chose priests for the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3]. The priests were chosen from among themselves, and they ·made sacrifices [L officiated at the temple/houses of the high places] for the people. 33 The people ·honored [revered; feared] the Lord but also ·served [followed] their own gods, ·just as [L in accordance with the customs of] the nations ·did from which they had been brought [from which they had been exiled]. 34 Even today they ·do as they did in the past [practice their former customs]. They do not ·worship [revere; fear] the Lord nor obey his ·rules [statutes; ordinances; requirements] and commands. They do not ·obey [worship nor observe] the ·teachings [law; L torah] or the commands of the Lord, which he gave to the ·children [descendants] of Jacob, whom he had named Israel [Gen. 32:28]. 35 The Lord had made an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with them and had commanded them, “Do not ·honor [revere; fear] other gods. Do not bow down to them or ·worship [serve] them or offer sacrifices to them. 36 ·Worship [Revere; Fear] the Lord who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and ·strength [L an outstretched arm]. Bow down to him and offer sacrifices to him. 37 Always obey the rules, orders, ·teachings [law; L torah], and commands he wrote for you. Do not ·honor [revere; fear] other gods. 38 Do not forget the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] I made with you, and do not ·honor [revere; fear] other gods. 39 Instead ·worship [revere; fear] the Lord your God, who will ·save [rescue; T deliver] you from all your enemies.”
40 But the Israelites did not listen. They ·kept on doing the same things they had done before [continued in their former practices/custom]. 41 So these nations ·honored [revered; feared] the Lord but also ·worshiped [served] their idols, and their children and grandchildren still do as their ·ancestors [fathers] did.
Questions About Getting Married
25 Now I write about ·people who are not married [or those never married; or betrothed women; L virgins]. I have no command from the Lord about this; I give my ·opinion [perspective; judgment]. But I can be trusted, because the Lord has shown me mercy. 26 Because ·the present time is a time of trouble [of the present crisis/distress/trouble], I think it is ·good [best] for you to stay the way you are. 27 If you ·have a wife [L are bound to a wife; or are pledged to a woman], do not try to ·become free from [or divorce] her. If you are not married, do not try to find a wife. 28 But if you decide to marry, you have not sinned. And if a ·girl who has never married [or betrothed woman; L virgin] decides to marry, she has not sinned. But those who marry will have ·trouble [trials; tribulation] in ·this life [this world; L the flesh], and I want ·you to be free [to spare you] from trouble [C during times of persecution, those with family obligations suffer the most].
29 Brothers and sisters, this is what I mean: ·We do not have much time left [The time is short/limited/coming to an end]. So starting now, those who have wives should live as if they had no wives. 30 Those who are ·crying [weeping; mourning] should live as if they were not ·crying [weeping; mourning]. Those who ·are happy [rejoice] should live as if they were not ·happy [rejoicing]. Those who buy things should live as if they ·own [or could keep/hold on to] nothing. 31 Those who use ·the things of the world [L the world] should live as if they were not ·using [engrossed in; dependent upon] them, because this world in its present form ·will soon be gone [is passing away].
Don’t Worry(A)
25 “So I tell you, don’t worry about the food or drink you need to live, or about the clothes you need for your body. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothes. 26 ·Look at [Consider; Think of] the birds in the air. They don’t ·plant [sow] or ·harvest [reap] or ·store food in [gather into] barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. And ·you know that you are [L aren’t you…?] worth much more than the birds. 27 ·You cannot [L Who of you can…?] add ·any time [or one step; L one cubit; C about eighteen inches] to your ·life [or height; C the Greek probably refers to time instead of stature] by worrying about it.
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? ·Look at [Consider; Think] how the lilies in the field grow. They don’t ·work [toil] or ·make clothes for themselves [L spin thread]. 29 But I tell you that even Solomon ·with his riches [L in all his glory] was not dressed as beautifully as one of these flowers. 30 ·God clothes [L If God clothes…?] the ·grass [wildflower] in the field, which is ·alive [here] today but tomorrow is thrown into the ·fire [L furnace; oven]. ·So you can be even more sure that God will [Will he not much more…?] clothe you. ·Don’t have so little faith [or How little faith you have; T You of little faith]! 31 Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 The ·people who don’t know God [Gentiles; pagans; unbelievers] ·keep trying to get [eagerly seek; run after] these things, and your Father in heaven knows you need them. 33 ·Seek first [Be concerned above all else with] God’s kingdom and ·what God wants [L his righteousness]. Then all ·your other needs will be met as well [L these things will be given to you]. 34 So don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will ·have its own worries [or worry about/take care of itself]. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
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