Book of Common Prayer
ז (Zayin)
49 Remember your word to your servant,
for you have given me hope.
50 This[a] is what comforts me in my trouble,
for your promise revives me.[b]
51 Arrogant people do nothing but scoff at me.[c]
Yet I do not turn aside from your law.
52 I remember your ancient regulations,[d]
O Lord, and console myself.[e]
53 Rage takes hold of me because of the wicked,
those who reject your law.
54 Your statutes have been my songs[f]
in the house where I live.[g]
55 I remember your name during the night, O Lord,
and I will keep[h] your law.
56 This[i] has been my practice,
for I observe your precepts.
ח (Khet)
57 The Lord is my source of security.[j]
I have determined[k] to follow your instructions.[l]
58 I seek your favor[m] with all my heart.
Have mercy on me as you promised.[n]
59 I consider my actions[o]
and follow[p] your rules.
60 I keep your commands eagerly
and without delay.[q]
61 The ropes of the wicked tighten around[r] me,
but I do not forget your law.
62 In the middle of the night I arise[s] to thank you
for your just regulations.
63 I am a friend to all your loyal followers,[t]
and to those who keep your precepts.
64 O Lord, your loyal love fills the earth.
Teach me your statutes!
ט (Tet)
65 You are good[u] to your servant,
O Lord, just as you promised.[v]
66 Teach me proper discernment[w] and understanding.
For I consider your commands to be reliable.[x]
67 Before I was afflicted I used to stray off,[y]
but now I keep your instructions.[z]
68 You are good and you do good.
Teach me your statutes.
69 Arrogant people smear my reputation with lies,[aa]
but I observe your precepts with all my heart.
70 Their hearts are calloused,[ab]
but I find delight in your law.
71 It was good for me to suffer,
so that I might learn your statutes.
72 The law you have revealed is more important to me
than thousands of pieces of gold and silver.[ac]
Psalm 49[a]
For the music director, a psalm by the Korahites.
49 Listen to this, all you nations.
Pay attention, all you inhabitants of the world.[b]
2 Pay attention, all you people,[c]
both rich and poor.
3 I will declare a wise saying;[d]
I will share my profound thoughts.[e]
4 I will learn a song that imparts wisdom;
I will then sing my insightful song to the accompaniment of a harp.[f]
5 Why should I be afraid in times of trouble,[g]
when the sinful deeds of deceptive men threaten to overwhelm me?[h]
6 They trust[i] in their wealth
and boast[j] in their great riches.
7 Certainly a man cannot rescue his brother;[k]
he cannot pay God an adequate ransom price[l]
8 (the ransom price for a human life[m] is too high,
and people go to their final destiny),[n]
9 so that he might continue to live[o] forever
and not experience death.[p]
10 Surely[q] one sees[r] that even wise people die;[s]
fools and spiritually insensitive people all pass away[t]
and leave their wealth to others.[u]
11 Their grave becomes their permanent residence,
their eternal dwelling place.[v]
They name their lands after themselves,[w]
12 but, despite their wealth, people do not last.[x]
They are like animals[y] that perish.[z]
13 This is the destiny of fools,[aa]
and of those who approve of their philosophy.[ab] (Selah)
14 They will travel to Sheol like sheep,[ac]
with death as their shepherd.[ad]
The godly will rule[ae] over them when the day of vindication dawns.[af]
Sheol will consume their bodies, and they will no longer live in impressive houses.[ag]
15 But[ah] God will rescue[ai] my life[aj] from the power[ak] of Sheol;
certainly[al] he will pull me to safety.[am] (Selah)
16 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich[an]
and his wealth multiplies.[ao]
17 For he will take nothing with him when he dies;
his wealth will not follow him down into the grave.[ap]
18 He pronounces this blessing on himself while he is alive:
“May men praise you, for you have done well.”
19 But he will join his ancestors;[aq]
they will never again see the light of day.[ar]
20 Wealthy people do not understand;[as]
they are like animals[at] that perish.[au]
Psalm 53[a]
For the music director, according to the machalath style;[b] a well-written song[c] by David.
53 Fools say to themselves,[d] “There is no God.”[e]
They sin and commit evil deeds;[f]
none of them does what is right.[g]
2 God looks down from heaven[h] at the human race,[i]
to see if there is anyone who is wise[j] and seeks God.[k]
3 Everyone rejects God;[l]
they are all morally corrupt.[m]
None of them does what is right,[n]
not even one!
4 All those who behave wickedly[o] do not understand[p]—
those who devour my people as if they were eating bread,
and do not call out to God.
5 They are absolutely terrified,[q]
even by things that do not normally cause fear.[r]
For God annihilates[s] those who attack you.[t]
You are able to humiliate them because God has rejected them.[u]
6 I wish the deliverance[v] of Israel would come from Zion!
When God restores the well-being of his people,[w]
may Jacob rejoice,[x]
may Israel be happy![y]
Darius Issues a Decree
6 So Darius the king issued orders, and they searched in the archives[a] of the treasury which were deposited there in Babylon. 2 A scroll was found in the citadel[b] of Ecbatana which is in the province of Media, and it was inscribed as follows:
“Memorandum: 3 In the first year of his reign,[c] King Cyrus gave orders concerning the temple of God in Jerusalem: ‘Let the temple be rebuilt as a place where sacrifices are offered. Let its foundations be set in place.[d] Its height is to be 90 feet and its width 90 feet,[e] 4 with three layers of large stones[f] and one[g] layer of timber. The expense is to be subsidized[h] by the royal treasury.[i] 5 Furthermore, let the gold and silver vessels of the temple of God, which Nebuchadnezzar brought from the temple in Jerusalem and carried to Babylon, be returned and brought to their proper place in the temple in Jerusalem. Let them be deposited in the temple of God.’
6 “Now Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues, the officials of Trans-Euphrates—all of you stay far away from there. 7 Leave the work on this temple of God alone.[j] Let the governor of the Jews and the elders of the Jews rebuild this temple of God in its proper place.
8 “I also hereby issue orders as to what you are to do with those elders of the Jews in order to rebuild this temple of God. From the royal treasury, from the taxes of Trans-Euphrates, the complete costs are to be given to these men so that there may be no interruption of the work.[k] 9 Whatever is needed—whether oxen or rams or lambs for burnt offerings for the God of heaven or wheat or salt or wine or oil, as required by[l] the priests who are in Jerusalem—must be given to them daily without any neglect, 10 so that they may be offering incense to the God of heaven and may be praying for the good fortune of the king and his family.[m]
11 “I hereby give orders that if anyone changes this directive a beam is to be pulled out from his house and he is to be raised up and impaled[n] on it, and his house is to be reduced[o] to a rubbish heap[p] for this indiscretion.[q] 12 May God who makes his name to reside there overthrow any king or nation[r] who reaches out[s] to cause such change so as to destroy this temple of God in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have given orders. Let them be carried out with precision!”
The Temple Is Finally Dedicated
13 Then Tattenai governor of Trans-Euphrates, Shethar-Bozenai, and their colleagues acted accordingly—with precision, just as Darius the king had given instructions.[t] 14 The elders of the Jews continued building and prospering, while at the same time[u] Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo continued prophesying. They built and brought it to completion by the command of the God of Israel and by the command of Cyrus and Darius and Artaxerxes king of Persia. 15 They finished this temple on the third day of the month Adar, which is the sixth[v] year of the reign of King Darius.
16 The people[w] of Israel—the priests, the Levites, and the rest of the exiles[x]—observed the dedication of this temple of God with joy. 17 For the dedication of this temple of God they offered 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 lambs, and 12 male goats for the sin of all Israel, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. 18 They appointed the priests by their divisions and the Levites by their divisions over the worship of God at Jerusalem, in accord with[y] the book of Moses. 19 [z] The exiles[aa] observed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month. 20 The priests and the Levites had purified themselves, every last one,[ab] and they all were ceremonially pure. They sacrificed the Passover lamb for all the exiles, for their colleagues[ac] the priests, and for themselves. 21 The Israelites who were returning from the exile ate it, along with all those who had joined them[ad] in separating themselves from the uncleanness of the nations of the land to seek the Lord God of Israel. 22 They observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, for the Lord had given them joy and had changed the opinion[ae] of the king of Assyria[af] toward them so that he assisted them[ag] in the work on the temple of God, the God of Israel.
The Opening of the Scroll
5 Then[a] I saw in the right hand of the one who was seated on the throne a scroll written on the front and back[b] and sealed with seven seals.[c] 2 And I saw a powerful angel proclaiming in a loud voice: “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” 3 But[d] no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or look into it. 4 So[e] I began weeping bitterly[f] because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5 Then[g] one of the elders said[h] to me, “Stop weeping![i] Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered;[j] thus he can open[k] the scroll and its seven seals.”
6 Then[l] I saw standing in the middle of the throne[m] and of the four living creatures, and in the middle of the elders, a Lamb that appeared to have been killed.[n] He had[o] seven horns and seven eyes, which[p] are the seven[q] spirits of God[r] sent out into all the earth. 7 Then[s] he came and took the scroll[t] from the right hand of the one who was seated on the throne, 8 and when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders threw themselves to the ground[u] before the Lamb. Each[v] of them had a harp and golden bowls full of incense (which are the prayers of the saints).[w] 9 They were singing a new song:[x]
“You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals
because you were killed,[y]
and at the cost of your own blood[z] you have purchased[aa] for God
persons[ab] from every tribe, language,[ac] people, and nation.
10 You have appointed[ad] them[ae] as a kingdom and priests[af] to serve[ag] our God, and they will reign[ah] on the earth.”
10 Then[a] the disciples came to him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 He replied,[b] “You have been given[c] the opportunity to know[d] the secrets[e] of the kingdom of heaven, but they have not. 12 For whoever has will be given more, and will have an abundance. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.[f] 13 For this reason I speak to them in parables: Although they see they do not see, and although they hear they do not hear nor do they understand. 14 And concerning them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:
‘You will listen carefully[g] yet will never understand,
you will look closely[h] yet will never comprehend.
15 For the heart of this people has become dull;
they are hard of hearing,
and they have shut their eyes,
so that they would not see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.’[i]
16 “But your eyes are blessed[j] because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For I tell you the truth,[k] many prophets and righteous people longed to see[l] what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
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