Book of Common Prayer
I Will Bless the Lord
Of David.
26 (A)Vindicate me, O Lord,
for I have (B)walked in my integrity,
and I have (C)trusted in the Lord without wavering.
2 (D)Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
test my heart and (E)my mind.[a]
3 For your (F)steadfast love is before my eyes,
and I (G)walk in your (H)faithfulness.
4 I do not (I)sit with men of (J)falsehood,
nor do I consort with hypocrites.
5 I (K)hate the assembly of evildoers,
and I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I (L)wash my hands in innocence
and go around your altar, O Lord,
7 proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,
and telling all your (M)wondrous deeds.
The Lord Is My Strength and My Shield
Of David.
28 To you, O Lord, I call;
(A)my rock, be not deaf to me,
lest, if you (B)be silent to me,
I become like those who (C)go down to the pit.
2 (D)Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy,
when I cry to you for help,
when I (E)lift up my hands
(F)toward your most holy sanctuary.[a]
3 Do not (G)drag me off with the wicked,
with the workers of evil,
(H)who speak peace with their neighbors
while evil is in their hearts.
4 (I)Give to them according to their work
and according to the evil of their deeds;
give to them according to the work of their hands;
(J)render them their due reward.
5 Because they (K)do not regard the works of the Lord
or the work of his hands,
he will tear them down and build them up no more.
How Precious Is Your Steadfast Love
To the choirmaster. Of David, the (A)servant of the Lord.
36 Transgression speaks to the wicked
deep in his heart;[a]
(B)there is no fear of God
before his eyes.
2 (C)For he flatters himself in his own eyes
that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
3 The words of his mouth are (D)trouble and deceit;
(E)he has ceased to act wisely and do good.
4 He (F)plots (G)trouble while on his bed;
he sets himself in (H)a way that is not good;
(I)he does not reject evil.
5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
6 (J)Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
(K)your judgments are like the great deep;
man and beast you (L)save, O Lord.
7 (M)How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge (N)in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on (O)the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from (P)the river of (Q)your delights.
9 For with you is (R)the fountain of life;
(S)in your light do we see light.
What Is the Measure of My Days?
To the choirmaster: to (A)Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (B)guard my ways,
that I (C)may not sin with my tongue;
I will (D)guard my mouth with a muzzle,
so long as the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was (E)mute and silent;
I held my peace to no avail,
and my distress grew worse.
3 My (F)heart became hot within me.
As I mused, the fire burned;
then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “O Lord, (G)make me know my end
and what is the measure of my days;
let me know how fleeting I am!
5 Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,
and (H)my lifetime is as nothing before you.
Surely (I)all mankind stands as a mere breath! Selah
6 Surely a man (J)goes about as a shadow!
Surely for nothing[a] they are in turmoil;
man (K)heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!
7 “And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?
(L)My hope is in you.
8 Deliver me from all my transgressions.
(M)Do not make me the scorn of the fool!
9 (N)I am mute; I do not open my mouth,
(O)for it is you who have done it.
10 (P)Remove your stroke from me;
I am spent by the hostility of your hand.
11 When you discipline a man
with (Q)rebukes for sin,
you (R)consume like a (S)moth what is dear to him;
(T)surely all mankind is a mere breath! Selah
How Lonely Sits the City
1 (A)How lonely sits the city
that was full of people!
How like (B)a widow has she become,
she who was great among the nations!
She who was (C)a princess among the provinces
has become (D)a slave.
2 (E)She weeps bitterly in the night,
with tears on her cheeks;
(F)among all her lovers
she has (G)none to comfort her;
(H)all her friends have dealt treacherously with her;
they have become her enemies.
3 (I)Judah has gone into exile because of affliction[a]
and hard servitude;
(J)she dwells now among the nations,
(K)but finds no resting place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
in the midst of her distress.[b]
4 The roads to Zion mourn,
for none come to (L)the festival;
(M)all her gates are desolate;
her priests (N)groan;
her virgins have been afflicted,[c]
and she herself suffers bitterly.
5 (O)Her foes have become the head;
her (P)enemies prosper,
because (Q)the Lord has afflicted her
(R)for the multitude of her transgressions;
(S)her children have gone away,
captives before the foe.
6 From the daughter of Zion
all her majesty has departed.
Her princes have become like deer
(T)that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
before the pursuer.
7 Jerusalem remembers
in the days of her affliction and wandering
(U)all the precious things
that were hers from (V)days of old.
When her people fell into the hand of the foe,
and there was none to help her,
her foes gloated over her;
they (W)mocked at her downfall.
8 (X)Jerusalem sinned grievously;
therefore she became filthy;
all who honored her despise her,
(Y)for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself (Z)groans
and turns her face away.
9 Her uncleanness was (AA)in her skirts;
(AB)she took no thought of her future;[d]
therefore her fall is terrible;
(AC)she has no comforter.
“O Lord, behold my affliction,
for the enemy has (AD)triumphed!”
10 The enemy has stretched out his hands
over all her (AE)precious things;
for she has seen (AF)the nations
enter her sanctuary,
those whom you (AG)forbade
to enter your congregation.
41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
42 (A)So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; (B)it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, (C)“The first man Adam became a living being”;[a] (D)the last Adam became a (E)life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 (F)The first man was from the earth, (G)a man of dust; (H)the second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, (I)so also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just (J)as we have borne the image of the man of dust, (K)we shall[b] also bear the image of the man of heaven.
Mystery and Victory
50 I tell you this, brothers: (L)flesh and blood (M)cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
Come to Me, and I Will Give You Rest
25 (A)At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, (B)Lord of heaven and earth, that (C)you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and (D)revealed them to little children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your (E)gracious will.[a] 27 (F)All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son (G)except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone (H)to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 (I)Come to (J)me, all who labor and are (K)heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and (L)learn from me, for I am (M)gentle and lowly in heart, and (N)you will find rest for your souls. 30 For (O)my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.