Book of Common Prayer
Thanksgiving for deliverance from death.
A Psalm; a Song at the Dedication of the House. A Psalm of David.
30 I will extol thee, O Jehovah; for thou hast [a]raised me up,
And hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
2 O Jehovah my God,
I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.
3 O Jehovah, thou hast brought up my soul from Sheol;
Thou hast kept me alive, [b]that I should not go down to the pit.
4 Sing praise unto Jehovah, O ye saints of his,
And give thanks to his holy memorial name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment;
[c]His favor is for a life-time:
Weeping [d]may tarry for the night,
But joy cometh in the morning.
6 As for me, I said in my prosperity,
I shall never be moved.
7 Thou, Jehovah, of thy favor hadst made my mountain to stand strong:
Thou didst hide thy face; I was troubled.
8 I cried to thee, O Jehovah;
And unto Jehovah I made supplication:
9 What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit?
Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?
10 Hear, O Jehovah, and have mercy upon me:
Jehovah, be thou my helper.
11 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing;
Thou hast loosed my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent.
O Jehovah my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
Blessedness of forgiveness and of trust in God.
A Psalm of David. Maschil.
32 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man unto whom Jehovah imputeth not iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no guile.
3 When I kept silence, my bones wasted away
Through my [a]groaning all the day long.
4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me:
My moisture was changed [b]as with the drought of summer. Selah
5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee,
And mine iniquity did I not hide:
I said, I will confess my transgressions unto Jehovah;
And thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah
6 For this let every one that is godly pray unto thee [c]in a time when thou mayest be found:
Surely when the great waters overflow they shall not reach unto him.
7 Thou art my hiding-place; thou wilt preserve me from trouble;
Thou wilt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah
8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go:
I will counsel thee with mine eye upon thee.
9 Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding;
Whose trappings must be bit and bridle to hold them in,
[d]Else they will not come near unto thee.
10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked;
But he that trusteth in Jehovah, lovingkindness shall compass him about.
11 Be glad in Jehovah, and rejoice, ye righteous;
And shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
Book II
Thirsting for God in trouble and exile.
For the Chief Musician. Maschil of the sons of Korah.
42 As the hart panteth after the water brooks,
So panteth my soul after thee, O God.
2 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God:
When shall I come and appear before God?
3 My tears have been my food day and night,
While they [a]continually say unto me, Where is thy God?
4 These things I remember, and pour out my soul [b]within me,
How I went with the throng, and [c]led them to the house of God,
With the voice of joy and praise, a multitude keeping holyday.
5 Why art thou [d]cast down, O my soul?
And why art thou disquieted within me?
Hope thou in God; for I shall yet praise him
For the help of his countenance.
6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me:
Therefore do I remember thee from the land of the Jordan,
And the Hermons, from [e]the hill Mizar.
7 Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterfalls:
All thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
8 Yet Jehovah will command his lovingkindness in the day-time;
And in the night his song shall be with me,
Even a prayer unto the God of my life.
9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me?
Why go I mourning [f]because of the oppression of the enemy?
10 As with [g]a sword in my bones, mine adversaries reproach me,
While they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?
11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul?
And why art thou disquieted within me?
Hope thou in God; for I shall yet praise him,
Who is the help of my countenance, and my God.
Prayer for deliverance.
43 Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation:
Oh deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man.
2 For thou art the God of my strength; why hast thou cast me off?
Why go I mourning [h]because of the oppression of the enemy?
3 Oh send out thy light and thy truth; let them lead me:
Let them bring me unto thy holy hill,
And to thy tabernacles.
4 Then will I go unto the altar of God,
Unto God [i]my exceeding joy;
And upon the harp will I praise thee, O God, my God.
5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul?
And why art thou disquieted within me?
Hope thou in God; for I shall yet praise him,
Who is the help of my countenance, and my God.
11 This is the copy of the letter that they sent unto Artaxerxes the king: Thy servants the men beyond the River, and so forth. 12 Be it known unto the king, that the Jews that came up from thee are come to us unto Jerusalem; they are building the rebellious and the bad city, and have finished the walls, and repaired the foundations. 13 Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and in the end it will be hurtful unto the kings. 14 Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not meet for us to see the king’s dishonor, therefore have we sent and certified the king; 15 that search may be made in the book of the records of thy fathers: so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces, and that they have moved sedition within the same of old time; for which cause was this city laid waste. 16 We certify the king that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, by this means thou shalt have no portion beyond the River.
17 Then sent the king an answer unto Rehum the chancellor, and to Shimshai the scribe, and to the rest of their companions that dwell in Samaria, and [a]in the rest of the country beyond the River: Peace, and so forth. 18 The letter which ye sent unto us hath been [b]plainly read before me. 19 And I decreed, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein. 20 There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all the country beyond the River; and tribute, custom, and toll, was paid unto them. 21 Make ye now a decree to cause these men to cease, and that this city be not builded, until a decree shall be made by me. 22 And take heed that ye be not slack herein: why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings?
23 Then when the copy of king Artaxerxes’ letter was read before Rehum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went in haste to Jerusalem unto the Jews, and made them to cease by force and power. 24 Then ceased the work of the house of God which is at Jerusalem; and it ceased until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
1 Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy [a]our brother, to Philemon our beloved and fellow-worker, 2 and to Apphia [b]our sister, and to Archippus our fellow-soldier, and to the church in thy house: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God always, making mention of thee in my prayers, 5 hearing of [c]thy love, and of the faith which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all the saints; 6 that the fellowship of thy faith may become effectual, in the knowledge of every good thing which is in [d]you, unto Christ. 7 For I had much joy and comfort in thy love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through thee, brother.
8 Wherefore, though I have all boldness in Christ to enjoin thee that which is befitting, 9 yet for love’s sake I rather beseech, being such a one as Paul [e]the aged, and now a prisoner also of Christ Jesus: 10 I beseech thee for my child, whom I have begotten in my bonds, [f]Onesimus, 11 who once was unprofitable to thee, but now is profitable to thee and to me: 12 whom I have sent back to thee in his own person, that is, my very heart: 13 whom I would fain have kept with me, that in thy behalf he might minister unto me in the bonds of the [g]gospel: 14 but without thy mind I would do nothing; that thy goodness should not be as of necessity, but of free will. 15 For perhaps he was therefore parted from thee for a season, that thou shouldest have him for ever; 16 no longer as a [h]servant, but more than a [i]servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much rather to thee, both in the flesh and in the Lord. 17 If then thou countest me a partner, receive him as myself. 18 But if he hath wronged thee at all, or oweth thee aught, put that to mine account; 19 I Paul write it with mine own hand, I will repay it: that I say not unto thee that thou owest to me even thine own self besides. 20 Yea, brother, let me have [j]joy of thee in the Lord: refresh my heart in Christ.
21 Having confidence in thine obedience I write unto thee, knowing that thou wilt do even beyond what I say. 22 But withal prepare me also a lodging: for I hope that through your prayers I shall be granted unto you.
23 Epaphras, my fellow-prisoner in Christ Jesus, saluteth thee; 24 and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow-workers.
25 The grace of [k]our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. [l]Amen.
33 Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree corrupt, and its fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 Ye offspring of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 35 The good man out of his good treasure bringeth forth good things: and the evil man out of his evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. 36 And I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. 37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
38 Then certain of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, Teacher, we would see a sign from thee. 39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet: 40 for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the [a]whale; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh shall stand up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, [b]a greater than Jonah is here. 42 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, [c]a greater than Solomon is here.
Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)