Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 93[a]
93 The Lord reigns.
He is robed in majesty.
The Lord is robed;
he wears strength around his waist.[b]
Indeed, the world is established; it cannot be moved.
2 Your throne has been secure from ancient times;
you have always been king.[c]
3 The waves[d] roar, O Lord,
the waves roar,
the waves roar and crash.[e]
4 Above the sound of the surging water,[f]
and the mighty waves of the sea,
the Lord sits enthroned in majesty.[g]
5 The rules you set down[h] are completely reliable.[i]
Holiness[j] aptly adorns your house, O Lord, forever.[k]
Psalm 96[a]
96 Sing to the Lord a new song.[b]
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord. Praise his name.
Announce every day how he delivers.[c]
3 Tell the nations about his splendor.
Tell[d] all the nations about his amazing deeds.
4 For the Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise;
he is more awesome than all gods.[e]
5 For all the gods of the nations are worthless,[f]
but the Lord made the sky.
6 Majestic splendor emanates from him;[g]
his sanctuary is firmly established and beautiful.[h]
7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the nations,
ascribe to the Lord splendor and strength.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the splendor he deserves.[i]
Bring an offering and enter his courts.
9 Worship the Lord in holy attire.[j]
Tremble before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!
The world is established; it cannot be moved.
He judges the nations fairly.”
11 Let the sky rejoice, and the earth be happy.
Let the sea and everything in it shout.
12 Let the fields and everything in them celebrate.
Then let the trees of the forest shout with joy
13 before the Lord, for he comes.
For he comes to judge the earth.
He judges the world fairly,[k]
and the nations in accordance with his justice.[l]
Psalm 34[a]
By David, when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, causing the king to send him away.[b]
34 I will praise[c] the Lord at all times;
my mouth will continually praise him.[d]
2 I will boast[e] in the Lord;
let the oppressed hear and rejoice.[f]
3 Magnify the Lord with me.
Let us praise[g] his name together.
4 I sought the Lord’s help[h] and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
5 Look to him and be radiant;
do not let your faces be ashamed.[i]
6 This oppressed man cried out and the Lord heard;
he saved him[j] from all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord camps around
the Lord’s[k] loyal followers[l] and delivers them.[m]
8 Taste[n] and see that the Lord is good.
How blessed[o] is the one[p] who takes shelter in him.[q]
9 Fear the Lord, you chosen people of his,[r]
for those who fear him lack nothing.
10 Even young lions sometimes lack food and are hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
11 Come children. Listen to me.
I will teach you what it means to fear the Lord.[s]
12 Do you want to really live?[t]
Would you love to live a long, happy life?[u]
13 Then make sure you don’t speak evil words[v]
or use deceptive speech.[w]
14 Turn away from evil and do what is right.[x]
Strive for peace and promote it.[y]
15 The Lord pays attention to the godly
and hears their cry for help.[z]
16 But the Lord opposes evildoers
and wipes out all memory of them from the earth.[aa]
17 The godly[ab] cry out and the Lord hears;
he saves them from all their troubles.[ac]
18 The Lord is near the brokenhearted;
he delivers[ad] those who are discouraged.[ae]
19 The godly[af] face many dangers,[ag]
but the Lord saves[ah] them[ai] from each one of them.
20 He protects[aj] all his bones;[ak]
not one of them is broken.[al]
21 Evil people self-destruct;[am]
those who hate the godly are punished.[an]
22 The Lord rescues his servants;[ao]
all who take shelter in him escape punishment.[ap]
Hannah Is Childless
1 There was a man from Ramathaim Zophim,[a] from the hill country of Ephraim. His name was Elkanah. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 He had two wives;[b] the name of the first was Hannah and the name of the second was Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
7 This is how it would go[a] year after year. As often as she went up to the Lord’s house, Peninnah[b] would offend her in that way.)[c]
So she cried and refused to eat. 8 Then her husband Elkanah said to her, “Hannah, why are you crying and why won’t you eat? Why are you so upset?[d] Am I not better to you than ten[e] sons?” 9 So Hannah got up after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh.[f]
At the time[g] Eli the priest was sitting in his chair[h] by the doorpost of the Lord’s sanctuary.[i] 10 As for Hannah, she was very distressed.[j] She prayed to the Lord and was, in fact, weeping.[k] 11 She made a vow saying, “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you would truly look[l] on the suffering of your servant,[m] and would keep me in mind and not neglect[n] your servant, and give your servant a male child,[o] then I will dedicate him to the Lord all the days of his life. His hair will never be cut.”[p]
12 It turned out[q] that she did a great deal[r] of praying before the Lord. Meanwhile[s] Eli was watching her mouth. 13 As for Hannah, she was speaking in her mind.[t] Only her lips were moving; her voice could not be heard. So Eli thought she was a drunkard.[u]
14 Then he[v] said to her, “How much longer do you intend to get drunk? Put away your wine!”[w] 15 But Hannah replied, “Not so, my lord! I am a woman under a great deal of stress.[x] I haven’t drunk wine or beer. But I have poured out my soul before the Lord. 16 Don’t consider your servant a wicked woman.[y] It’s just that,[z] to this point, I have spoken from my deep pain[aa] and anguish.”[ab]
17 Eli replied, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant the request that you have asked of him.” 18 She said, “May I, your servant, find favor in your sight.”[ac] So the woman went her way and got something to eat.[ad] Her face no longer looked sad.[ae]
19 They got up early the next morning. Then they worshiped[af] the Lord and returned to their home at Ramathaim.[ag] Elkanah was intimate with[ah] his wife Hannah, and the Lord called her to mind.[ai] 20 Then Hannah became pregnant.
Hannah Dedicates Samuel to the Lord
In the course of time she gave birth to a son.[aj] And she named him Samuel, thinking, “I asked the Lord for him.”[ak] 21 Then the man Elkanah and all his family went up to make the yearly sacrifice[al] to the Lord and to keep his vow.[am] 22 But Hannah did not go up with them,[an] because she had told[ao] her husband, “Not[ap] until the boy is weaned. Then I will bring him so that he may appear before the Lord. And he will remain there from then on.”[aq]
23 Then her husband Elkanah said to her, “Do what you think best.[ar] Stay until you have weaned him. Only may the Lord fulfill his promise.”[as]
So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. 24 Then she took him up with her[at] as soon as she had weaned him, along with three bulls,[au] an ephah[av] of flour, and a container[aw] of wine. She came to the Lord’s house at Shiloh, and the boy was with them.[ax] 25 They slaughtered the bull, then brought the boy to Eli.[ay] 26 She said, “My lord. Just as surely as you are alive, my lord, I am the woman who previously stood here with you in order to pray to the Lord. 27 For this boy I prayed, and the Lord has given me the request that I asked of him. 28 So I also dedicate[az] him to the Lord. For all the days of his life[ba] he is dedicated to the Lord.” Then he[bb] bowed down there in worship[bc] to the Lord.
Paul’s Prayer for the Growth of the Church
9 For this reason we also, from the day we heard about you,[a] have not ceased praying for you and asking God[b] to fill[c] you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you may live[d] worthily of the Lord and please him in all respects[e]—bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display of[f] all patience and steadfastness, joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share[g] in the saints’[h] inheritance in the light. 13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves,[i] 14 in whom we have redemption,[j] the forgiveness of sins.
The Supremacy of Christ
15 [k] He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn[l] over all creation,[m]
16 for all things in heaven and on earth were created in him—all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions,[n] whether principalities or powers—all things were created through him and for him.
17 He himself is before all things and all things are held together[o] in him.
18 He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn[p] from the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things.[q]
19 For God[r] was pleased to have all his[s] fullness dwell[t] in the Son[u]
20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross—through him,[v] whether things on earth or things in heaven.
Jesus’ Presentation at the Temple
22 Now[a] when the time came for their[b] purification according to the law of Moses, Joseph and Mary[c] brought Jesus[d] up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male[e] will be set apart to the Lord”[f]), 24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is specified in the law of the Lord, a pair of doves[g] or two young pigeons.[h]
The Prophecy of Simeon
25 Now[i] there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon who was righteous[j] and devout, looking for the restoration[k] of Israel, and the Holy Spirit[l] was upon him. 26 It[m] had been revealed[n] to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die[o] before[p] he had seen the Lord’s Christ.[q] 27 So[r] Simeon,[s] directed by the Spirit,[t] came into the temple courts,[u] and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what was customary according to the law,[v] 28 Simeon[w] took him in his arms and blessed God, saying,[x]
29 “Now, according to your word,[y] Sovereign Lord,[z] permit[aa] your servant[ab] to depart[ac] in peace.
30 For my eyes have seen your salvation[ad]
31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples:[ae]
32 a light,[af]
for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory[ag] to your people Israel.”
33 So[ah] the child’s[ai] father[aj] and mother were amazed[ak] at what was said about him. 34 Then[al] Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “Listen carefully:[am] This child[an] is destined to be the cause of the falling and rising[ao] of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be rejected.[ap] 35 Indeed, as a result of him the thoughts[aq] of many hearts will be revealed[ar]—and a sword[as] will pierce your own soul as well!”[at]
The Testimony of Anna
36 There was also a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old,[au] having been married to her husband for seven years until his death. 37 She had lived as a widow since then for eighty-four years.[av] She never left the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day.[aw] 38 At that moment,[ax] she came up to them[ay] and began to give thanks to God and to speak[az] about the child[ba] to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.[bb]
39 So[bc] when Joseph and Mary[bd] had performed[be] everything according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town[bf] of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong,[bg] filled with wisdom,[bh] and the favor[bi] of God[bj] was upon him.
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