Book of Common Prayer
BOOK 1
The Righteous and the Wicked Contrasted.
1 Blessed is the person who (A)does not walk in the (B)counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the [a](C)path of sinners,
Nor (D)sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his (E)delight is (F)in the Law of the Lord,
And on His Law he meditates (G)day and (H)night.
3 He will be like (I)a tree planted by [b]streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season,
And its [c]leaf does not wither;
And [d]in whatever he does, (J)he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like (K)chaff which the wind blows away.
5 Therefore (L)the wicked will not stand in the (M)judgment,
Nor sinners in (N)the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord [e](O)knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of (P)the wicked will perish.
The Reign of the Lord’s Anointed.
2 Why are (Q)the [f]nations restless
And the peoples (R)plotting in vain?
2 The (S)kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers conspire together
(T)Against the Lord and against His [g](U)Anointed, saying,
3 “Let’s (V)tear their shackles apart
And throw their ropes away from us!”
4 He who [h]sits in the heavens (W)laughs,
The Lord (X)scoffs at them.
5 Then He will speak to them in His (Y)anger
And (Z)terrify them in His fury, saying,
6 “But as for Me, I have installed (AA)My King
Upon Zion, (AB)My holy mountain.”
7 “I will announce the [i]decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are (AC)My Son,
Today I have fathered You.
8 Ask it of Me, and (AD)I will certainly give (AE)the [j]nations as Your inheritance,
And the (AF)ends of the earth as Your possession.
9 You shall [k](AG)break them with a [l]rod of iron,
You shall (AH)shatter them like [m]earthenware.’”
10 Now then, you kings, (AI)use insight;
Let yourselves be instructed, you [n]judges of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with [o](AJ)reverence
And rejoice with (AK)trembling.
12 [p]Kiss (AL)the Son, that He not be angry and you perish on the way,
For (AM)His wrath may be kindled quickly.
How blessed are all who (AN)take refuge in Him!
Morning Prayer of Trust in God.
A Psalm of David, when [q]he fled from his son Absalom.
3 Lord, how (AO)my enemies have increased!
Many are rising up against me.
2 Many are saying of my soul,
“There is no (AP)salvation for him in God.” Selah
3 But You, Lord, are (AQ)a shield around me,
My (AR)glory, and the One who (AS)lifts my head.
4 I was crying out to the Lord with my voice,
And He (AT)answered me from (AU)His holy [r]mountain. Selah
5 [s]I (AV)lay down and slept;
I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.
6 I will (AW)not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who have (AX)set themselves against me all around.
7 (AY)Arise, Lord; (AZ)save me, my God!
For You [t]have (BA)struck all my enemies on the [u]cheek;
You [v]have (BB)shattered the teeth of the wicked.
8 [w](BC)Salvation belongs to the Lord;
May Your (BD)blessing [x]be upon Your people! Selah
Evening Prayer of Trust in God.
[y]For the music director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.
4 (BE)Answer me when (BF)I call, God [z]of my righteousness!
You have [aa](BG)relieved me in my distress;
Be (BH)gracious to me and (BI)hear my prayer.
2 You sons of man, how long will (BJ)my [ab]honor be treated as (BK)an insult?
How long will you love (BL)what is worthless and strive for a (BM)lie? Selah
3 But know that the Lord has [ac](BN)set apart the (BO)godly person for Himself;
The Lord (BP)hears when I call to Him.
The Lord Implored to Defend the Psalmist against the Wicked.
A [a]Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord [b]concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.
7 O Lord my God, (A)in You I have taken refuge;
Save me from all those who pursue me, and (B)rescue me,
2 Or he will tear [c]my soul (C)like a lion,
Dragging me away, while there is no one to rescue me.
3 O Lord my God, if I have done this,
If there is (D)injustice in my hands,
4 If I have (E)done evil to [d]my friend,
Or have (F)plundered [e]my enemy for no reason,
5 Let the enemy pursue [f]my soul and overtake [g]it;
And let him trample my life to the ground
And lay my glory in the dust. Selah
6 (G)Arise, Lord, in Your anger;
(H)Raise Yourself against (I)the rage of my enemies,
And (J)stir Yourself [h]for me; You have ordered judgment.
7 Let the assembly of the (K)peoples encompass You,
And return on high over it.
8 The Lord (L)judges the peoples;
[i](M)Vindicate me, Lord, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me.
9 Please let (N)the evil of the wicked come to an end, but (O)establish the righteous;
For the righteous God (P)puts hearts and [j]minds to the test.
10 My (Q)shield is [k]with God,
Who (R)saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a (S)righteous judge,
And a God who (T)shows indignation every day.
12 If one (U)does not repent, He will (V)sharpen His sword;
He has (W)bent His bow and taken aim.
13 He has also prepared deadly weapons for Himself;
He makes His (X)arrows fiery shafts.
14 Behold, an evil person is pregnant with injustice,
And he (Y)conceives harm and gives birth to lies.
15 He has dug a pit and hollowed it out,
And has (Z)fallen into the hole which he made.
16 His (AA)harm will return on his own head,
And his (AB)violence will descend on the top of his own head.
Judgment on Israel
6 This is what the Lord says:
“For three offenses of (A)Israel, and for four,
I will not revoke its punishment,
Because they (B)sell the righteous for [a]money,
And the needy for a pair of sandals.
7 These who [b]trample the head of the (C)helpless to the dust of the earth
Also (D)divert the way of the humble;
And a (E)man and his father [c]resort to the same [d]girl
So as to profane My holy name.
8 And on garments (F)seized as pledges they stretch out beside (G)every altar,
And in the house of their God they (H)drink the wine of those who have been fined.
9 “Yet it was I who destroyed the (I)Amorite before them,
[e]Though his (J)height was like the height of cedars
And he was as strong as the oaks;
I also destroyed his (K)fruit above and his roots below.
10 And it was I who (L)brought you up from the land of Egypt,
And led you in the wilderness for (M)forty years
So that you might take possession of the land of the (N)Amorite.
11 Then I (O)raised up some of your sons to be prophets,
And some of your young men to be (P)Nazirites.
Is this not so, you sons of Israel?” declares the Lord.
12 “But you made the Nazirites drink wine,
And you commanded the prophets, saying, ‘You (Q)shall not prophesy!’
13 Behold, I am (R)making a rut in the ground beneath you,
Just as a wagon makes a rut when filled with sheaves.
14 (S)Refuge will be lost from the swift,
And the strong will not strengthen his power,
Nor the (T)warrior save his [f]life.
15 The one who (U)grasps the bow will not stand his ground,
The swift of foot will not escape,
Nor will the one who rides the (V)horse save his [g]life.
16 Even the [h]bravest among the warriors will (W)flee naked on that day,” declares the Lord.
Growth in Christian Virtue
1 [a]Simon Peter, a (A)bond-servant and (B)apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received (C)a faith of the same [b]kind as ours, [c]by (D)the righteousness of (E)our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: 2 (F)Grace and peace be multiplied to you in (G)the knowledge of God and of Jesus [d]our Lord, 3 for His (H)divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true (I)knowledge of Him who (J)called us [e]by His own glory and [f]excellence. 4 Through [g]these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent (K)promises, so that by them you may become (L)partakers of the divine nature, having (M)escaped the (N)corruption that is in (O)the world on account of lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith (P)supply (Q)moral [h]excellence, and in your moral excellence, (R)knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, (S)self-control, and in your self-control, (T)perseverance, and in your perseverance, (U)godliness, 7 and in your godliness, (V)brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they do not make you useless nor (W)unproductive in the true (X)knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For the one who lacks these qualities is (Y)blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his (Z)purification from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more diligent to make certain about His (AA)calling and (AB)choice of you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never (AC)stumble; 11 for in this way the entrance into (AD)the eternal kingdom of our (AE)Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be (AF)abundantly (AG)supplied to you.
The Triumphal Entry
21 (A)When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at (B)the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with it. Untie them and bring them to Me. 3 And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them on immediately.” 4 Now (C)this [a]took place so that what was spoken through [b]the prophet would be fulfilled:
5 “(D)Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold your King is coming to you,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
6 The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, 7 and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their cloaks on them; and He sat on [c]the cloaks. 8 Most of the crowd (E)spread their cloaks on the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. 9 Now the crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,
“[d]Hosanna to the (F)Son of David;
(G)Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord;
[e]Hosanna (H)in the highest!”
10 When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds were saying, “This is (I)Jesus the prophet, from (J)Nazareth in Galilee.”
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