Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 146[a]
146 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist.
3 Do not trust in princes,
or in human beings, who cannot deliver.[b]
4 Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground.
On that day their plans die.[c]
5 How blessed is the one whose helper is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 the one who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who remains forever faithful,[d]
7 vindicates the oppressed,[e]
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord releases the imprisoned.
8 The Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord lifts up all who are bent over.[f]
The Lord loves the godly.
9 The Lord protects the resident foreigner.
He lifts up the fatherless and the widow,[g]
but he opposes the wicked.[h]
10 The Lord rules forever,
your God, O Zion, throughout the generations to come.[i]
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 147[j]
147 Praise the Lord,
for it is good to sing praises to our God.
Yes,[k] praise is pleasant and appropriate.
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem,
and gathers the exiles of Israel.
3 He heals[l] the brokenhearted,
and bandages their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
he names all of them.
5 Our Lord is great and has awesome power;[m]
there is no limit to his wisdom.[n]
6 The Lord lifts up the oppressed,
but knocks[o] the wicked to the ground.
7 Offer to the Lord a song of thanks.[p]
Sing praises to our God to the accompaniment of a harp.
8 He covers[q] the sky with clouds,
provides the earth with rain,
and causes grass to grow on the hillsides.[r]
9 He gives food to the animals,
and to the young ravens when they chirp.[s]
10 He is not enamored with the strength of a horse,
nor is he impressed by the warrior’s strong legs.[t]
11 The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers,[u]
and in those who wait for his loyal love.
12 Extol the Lord, O Jerusalem.
Praise your God, O Zion.
13 For he makes the bars of your gates strong.
He blesses your children[v] within you.
14 He[w] brings peace to your territory.[x]
He abundantly provides for you[y] the best grain.
15 He[z] sends his command through the earth;[aa]
swiftly his order reaches its destination.[ab]
16 He sends the snow that is white like wool;
he spreads the frost that is white like ashes.[ac]
17 He throws his hailstones[ad] like crumbs.
Who can withstand the cold wind he sends?[ae]
18 He then orders it all to melt;[af]
he breathes on it,[ag] and the water flows.
19 He proclaims his word to Jacob,
his statutes and regulations to Israel.
20 He has not done so with any other nation;
they are not aware of his regulations.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 111[a]
111 Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the assembly of the godly and the congregation.
2 The Lord’s deeds are great,
eagerly awaited[b] by all who desire them.
3 His work is majestic and glorious,[c]
and his faithfulness endures[d] forever.
4 He does[e] amazing things that will be remembered;[f]
the Lord is merciful and compassionate.
5 He gives[g] food to his faithful followers;[h]
he always remembers his covenant.[i]
6 He announced that he would do mighty deeds for his people,
giving them a land that belonged to other nations.[j]
7 His acts are characterized by[k] faithfulness and justice;
all his precepts are reliable.[l]
8 They are forever firm,
and should be faithfully and properly carried out.[m]
9 He delivered his people;[n]
he ordained that his covenant be observed forever.[o]
His name is holy and awesome.
10 To obey the Lord is the fundamental principle for wise living;[p]
all who carry out his precepts acquire good moral insight.[q]
He will receive praise forever.[r]
Psalm 112[s]
112 Praise the Lord!
How blessed is the one[t] who obeys[u] the Lord,
who takes great delight in keeping his commands.[v]
2 His descendants[w] will be powerful on the earth;
the godly[x] will be blessed.
3 His house contains wealth and riches;
his integrity endures.[y]
4 In the darkness a light[z] shines for the godly,
for each one who is merciful, compassionate, and just.[aa]
5 It goes well for the one[ab] who generously lends money,
and conducts his business honestly.[ac]
6 For he will never be shaken;
others will always remember one who is just.[ad]
7 He does not fear bad news.
He[ae] is confident; he trusts in the Lord.
8 His resolve[af] is firm; he will not succumb to fear
before he looks in triumph on his enemies.
9 He generously gives[ag] to the needy;
his integrity endures.[ah]
He will be vindicated and honored.[ai]
10 When the wicked[aj] see this, they will worry;
they will grind their teeth in frustration[ak] and melt away.
The desire of the wicked will perish.[al]
Psalm 113[am]
113 Praise the Lord.
Praise, you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
2 May the Lord’s name be praised
now and forevermore.
3 From east to west[an]
the Lord’s name is deserving of praise.
4 The Lord is exalted over all the nations;
his splendor reaches beyond the sky.[ao]
5 Who can compare to the Lord our God,
who sits on a high throne?[ap]
6 He bends down to look[aq]
at the sky and the earth.
7 He raises the poor from the dirt,
and lifts up the needy from the garbage pile,[ar]
8 that he might seat him with princes,
with the princes of his people.
9 He makes the barren woman of the family[as]
a happy mother of children.[at]
Praise the Lord.
Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll Containing the Lord’s Messages
36 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah in the fourth year[a] that Jehoiakim son of Josiah was ruling over Judah:[b] 2 “Get a scroll.[c] Write on it everything I have told you to say[d] about Israel, Judah, and all the other nations since I began to speak to you in the reign of Josiah until now.[e] 3 Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about all the disaster I intend to bring on them, they will all stop doing the evil things they have been doing.[f] If they do, I will forgive their sins and the wicked things they have done.”[g]
4 So Jeremiah summoned Baruch son of Neriah. Then, Baruch wrote down in a scroll all the Lord’s words that he had told to Jeremiah[h] as they came from his[i] mouth. 5 Then Jeremiah told Baruch, “I am no longer allowed to go[j] into the Lord’s temple. 6 So you go there the next time all the people of Judah come in from their towns to fast[k] in the Lord’s temple. Read out loud where all of them can hear you what I told you the Lord said, which you wrote in the scroll.[l] 7 Perhaps then they will ask the Lord for mercy and will all stop doing the evil things they have been doing.[m] For the Lord has threatened to bring great anger and wrath against these people.”[n]
8 So Baruch son of Neriah did exactly what the prophet Jeremiah told him to do. He read what the Lord had said from the scroll in the temple of the Lord.[o] 9 All the people living in Jerusalem and all the people who came into Jerusalem from the towns of Judah observed a fast before the Lord. The fast took place in the ninth month of the fifth year that Jehoiakim son of Josiah was ruling over Judah.[p] 10 At that time Baruch went into the temple of the Lord. He stood in the entrance of the room of Gemariah the son of Shaphan who had been the royal secretary.[q] That room was in the upper court[r] near the entrance of the New Gate.[s] There, where all the people could hear him, he read from the scroll what Jeremiah had said.[t]
Paul and Barnabas at Lystra
8 In[a] Lystra[b] sat a man who could not use his feet,[c] lame from birth,[d] who had never walked. 9 This man was listening to Paul as he was speaking. When Paul[e] stared[f] intently at him and saw he had faith to be healed, 10 he said with a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.”[g] And the man[h] leaped up and began walking.[i] 11 So when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted[j] in the Lycaonian language,[k] “The gods have come down to us in human form!”[l] 12 They began to call[m] Barnabas Zeus[n] and Paul Hermes,[o] because he was the chief speaker. 13 The priest of the temple[p] of Zeus,[q] located just outside the city, brought bulls[r] and garlands[s] to the city gates; he and the crowds wanted to offer sacrifices to them.[t] 14 But when the apostles[u] Barnabas and Paul heard about[v] it, they tore[w] their clothes and rushed out[x] into the crowd, shouting,[y] 15 “Men, why are you doing these things? We too are men, with human natures[z] just like you! We are proclaiming the good news to you, so that you should turn[aa] from these worthless[ab] things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth,[ac] the sea, and everything that is in them. 16 In[ad] past[ae] generations he allowed all the nations[af] to go their own ways, 17 yet he did not leave himself without a witness by doing good,[ag] by giving you rain from heaven[ah] and fruitful seasons, satisfying you[ai] with food and your hearts with joy.”[aj] 18 Even by saying[ak] these things, they scarcely persuaded[al] the crowds not to offer sacrifice to them.
Jesus’ Anointing
36 Now one of the Pharisees[a] asked Jesus[b] to have dinner with him, so[c] he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table.[d] 37 Then[e] when a woman of that town, who was a sinner, learned that Jesus[f] was dining[g] at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar[h] of perfumed oil.[i] 38 As[j] she stood[k] behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. She[l] wiped them with her hair,[m] kissed[n] them,[o] and anointed[p] them with the perfumed oil. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this,[q] he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet,[r] he would know who and what kind of woman[s] this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.” 40 So[t] Jesus answered him,[u] “Simon, I have something to say to you.” He replied,[v] “Say it, Teacher.” 41 “A certain creditor[w] had two debtors; one owed him[x] 500 silver coins,[y] and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he canceled[z] the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered,[aa] “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.”[ab] Jesus[ac] said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44 Then,[ad] turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house. You gave me no water for my feet,[ae] but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss of greeting,[af] but from the time I entered she has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet[ag] with perfumed oil. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which were many, are forgiven, thus she loved much;[ah] but the one who is forgiven little loves little.” 48 Then[ai] Jesus[aj] said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”[ak] 49 But[al] those who were at the table[am] with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 He[an] said to the woman, “Your faith[ao] has saved you;[ap] go in peace.”
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