Book of Common Prayer
Lead Me to the Rock
To the choirmaster: with (A)stringed instruments. Of David.
61 Hear my cry, O God,
(B)listen to my prayer;
2 from the end of the earth I call to you
when my heart is (C)faint.
Lead me to (D)the rock
that is higher than I,
3 for you have been (E)my refuge,
a strong (F)tower against the enemy.
4 Let me (G)dwell in your tent forever!
Let me take refuge under (H)the shelter of your wings! Selah
5 For you, O God, have heard my vows;
you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6 (I)Prolong (J)the life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!
7 May he be enthroned forever before God;
appoint (K)steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!
8 So will I ever sing praises to your name,
as I (L)perform my vows day after day.
My Soul Waits for God Alone
To the choirmaster: according to (M)Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
62 For God alone (N)my soul (O)waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 (P)He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my (Q)fortress; (R)I shall not be greatly shaken.
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like (S)a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his (T)high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
(U)They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah
5 For God alone, O (V)my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 (W)He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my (X)salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, (Y)my refuge is God.
8 (Z)Trust in him at all times, O people;
(AA)pour out your heart before him;
God is (AB)a refuge for us. Selah
The Righteous Will Never Be Moved
112 [a] (A)Praise the Lord!
(B)Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
who (C)greatly delights in his commandments!
2 His (D)offspring will be mighty in the land;
(E)the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 (F)Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his (G)righteousness endures forever.
4 Light dawns in the darkness (H)for the upright;
he is gracious, merciful, and (I)righteous.
5 It is well with the man who (J)deals generously and lends;
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 For the righteous will (K)never be moved;
(L)he will be remembered forever.
7 He is not (M)afraid of bad news;
his (N)heart is firm, (O)trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is steady;[b] he will not be afraid,
until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
9 He has (P)distributed freely; he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever;
his (Q)horn is exalted in honor.
10 The wicked man sees it and is angry;
he (R)gnashes his teeth and (S)melts away;
(T)the desire of the wicked will perish!
To Your Name Give Glory
115 (A)Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,
(B)for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!
2 Why should the nations say,
(C)“Where is their God?”
3 (D)Our God is in the heavens;
(E)he does all that he pleases.
4 (F)Their idols are silver and gold,
(G)the work of human hands.
5 They have mouths, (H)but do not speak;
eyes, but do not see.
6 They have ears, but do not hear;
noses, but do not smell.
7 They have hands, but do not feel;
feet, but do not walk;
and they do not make a sound in their throat.
8 (I)Those who make them become like them;
so do all who trust in them.
9 O (J)Israel,[a] (K)trust in the Lord!
He is their (L)help and their shield.
10 O (M)house of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and (N)their shield.
11 You (O)who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their help and their shield.
12 The Lord has remembered us; he will bless us;
he will bless (P)the house of Israel;
he will bless (Q)the house of Aaron;
13 he will (R)bless those who fear the Lord,
(S)both the small and the great.
Israel's Joy and Restoration
14 (A)Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away the judgments against you;
he has cleared away your enemies.
(B)The King of Israel, (C)the Lord, is in your midst;
you shall never again fear evil.
16 (D)On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Fear not, O Zion;
(E)let not your hands grow weak.
17 (F)The Lord your God is in your midst,
(G)a mighty one who will save;
(H)he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
18 I will gather those of you who mourn (I)for the festival,
so that you will no longer suffer reproach.[a]
19 Behold, at that time (J)I will deal
with all your oppressors.
And (K)I will save the lame
and gather the outcast,
and I will change (L)their shame into (M)praise
and renown in all the earth.
20 (N)At that time I will bring you in,
at the time when I gather you together;
for I will make you renowned and praised
among all the peoples of the earth,
(O)when I restore your fortunes
before your eyes,” says the Lord.
Greeting
1 Paul, a servant[a] of God and (A)an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and (B)their knowledge of the truth, (C)which accords with godliness, 2 (D)in hope of eternal life, which God, (E)who never lies, (F)promised (G)before the ages began[b] 3 and (H)at the proper time manifested in his word[c] (I)through the preaching (J)with which I have been entrusted (K)by the command of God our Savior;
4 To Titus, (L)my true child in (M)a common faith:
(N)Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
Qualifications for Elders
5 (O)This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and (P)appoint elders in every town as I directed you— 6 (Q)if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife,[d] and his children are believers[e] and not open to the charge of (R)debauchery or insubordination. 7 For an overseer,[f] (S)as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not (T)be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent (U)or greedy for gain, 8 but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, (V)and disciplined. 9 He must (W)hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in (X)sound[g] doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
10 For there are many who are insubordinate, (Y)empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of (Z)the circumcision party.[h] 11 They must be silenced, since (AA)they are upsetting whole families by teaching (AB)for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. 12 (AC)One of the Cretans,[i] a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”[j] 13 This testimony is true. Therefore (AD)rebuke them (AE)sharply, that they (AF)may be sound in the faith, 14 (AG)not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and (AH)the commands of people (AI)who turn away from the truth. 15 (AJ)To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and (AK)unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both (AL)their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 (AM)They profess to know God, but they (AN)deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, (AO)unfit for any good work.
Dedication to Theophilus
1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that (A)have been accomplished among us, 2 (B)just as those who (C)from the beginning were (D)eyewitnesses and (E)ministers of (F)the word (G)have delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write (H)an orderly account for you, (I)most excellent (J)Theophilus, 4 that you may have (K)certainty concerning the things (L)you have been taught.
Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5 (M)In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah,[a] (N)of (O)the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both (P)righteous before God, walking (Q)blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because (R)Elizabeth was barren, and (S)both were advanced in years.
8 Now (T)while he was serving as priest before God when (U)his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot (V)to enter (W)the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people (X)were praying (Y)outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of (Z)the altar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and (AA)fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for (AB)your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and (AC)you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will (AD)rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be (AE)great before the Lord. And (AF)he must not drink wine or strong (AG)drink, and (AH)he will be (AI)filled with the Holy Spirit, (AJ)even from his mother's womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and (AK)he will go before him (AL)in the spirit and power of Elijah, (AM)to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and (AN)the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, (AO)to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
18 And Zechariah said to the angel, (AP)“How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered him, “I am (AQ)Gabriel. (AR)I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And behold, (AS)you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in (AT)the temple. 22 And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in (AU)the temple. And (AV)he kept making signs to them and remained mute. 23 And (AW)when his time of (AX)service was ended, he went to his home.
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, (AY)to take away my reproach among people.”
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.