Book of Common Prayer
Solomonic
A Prayer for the King
72 God, endow the king with ability to render[a] your justice,
and the king’s son to render your right decisions.
2 May he rule your people with right decisions
and your oppressed ones with justice.
3 May the mountains bring prosperity to the people
and the hills bring righteousness.
4 May he defend the afflicted of the people
and deliver the children of the poor,
but crush the oppressor.
5 May they fear you as long as the sun and moon shine[b]—
from generation to generation.
6 May he be like the rain that descends on mown grass,
like showers sprinkling on the ground.
7 The righteous will flourish at the proper time
and peace will prevail until the moon is no more.
8 May he rule from sea to sea,
from the Euphrates River[c] to the ends of the earth.
9 May the nomads bow down before him,
and his enemies lick the dust.
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores bring gifts,
and may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer tribute.
11 May all kings bow down to him,
and all nations serve him.
12 For he will deliver the needy when they cry out for help,
and the poor when there is no deliverer.
13 He will have compassion on the poor and the needy,
and he will save the lives of the needy.
14 He will redeem them[d] from oppression and violence,
since their lives are[e] precious in his sight.
Prayer for the King
15 May he live long and be given gold from Sheba,
and may prayer be offered for him continuously,
and may he be blessed every day.
16 May grain be abundant in the land
all the way[f] to the mountain tops;
may its fruits flourish
like the forests of Lebanon,
and may the cities sprout
like the grass of the earth.
Praising the God of Israel
17 May his fame[g] be eternal—
as long as the sun—
may his name endure,
and may they be blessed through him,
and may all nations call him blessed.
18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does awesome deeds.
19 And blessed be his glorious name forever,
and may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and amen!
20 This ends the prayers of Jesse’s son David.
Yod
Prayer for God’s Grace
73 Your hands made and formed me;
give me understanding,
that I may learn your commands.
74 May those who fear you see me and be glad,
for I have hoped in your word.
75 I know, Lord, that your decrees are just,
and that you have rightfully humbled me.
76 May your gracious love comfort me
in accordance with your promise to your servant.
77 May your mercies come to me that I may live,
for your instruction[a] is my delight.
78 May the arrogant become ashamed,
because they have subverted me with deceit;
as for me, I will meditate on your precepts.
79 May those who fear you turn to me,
along with those who know your decrees.
80 May my heart be blameless with respect to your statutes
so that I may not become ashamed.
Kaf
On Obeying God’s Word
81 I long for your deliverance;
I have looked to your word,
placing my hope in it.
82 My eyes grow weary
with respect to what you have promised—
I keep asking, “When will you comfort me?”
83 Though I have become like a water skin dried by[b] smoke,
I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How many days must your servant endure this?[c]
When will you judge those who persecute me?
85 The arrogant have dug pitfalls for me,
disobeying your instruction.[d]
86 All of your commands are reliable.
I am persecuted without cause—help me!
87 Though the arrogant[e] nearly destroyed me on earth,
I did not abandon your precepts.
88 Revive me according to your gracious love;
and I will keep the decrees that you have proclaimed.
Lamed
Pay Attention to God’s Word
89 Your word is forever, Lord;
it is firmly established in heaven.
90 Your faithfulness continues from generation to generation.
You established the earth, and it stands firm.
91 To this day they stand by means of your rulings,
for all things serve you.
92 Had your instruction[f] not been my pleasure,
I would have died in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts,
for you have revived me with them.
94 I am yours, so save me,
since I have sought your precepts.
95 The wicked lay in wait to destroy me,
while I ponder your decrees.
96 I have observed that all things have their limit,
but your commandment is very broad.
The Command to Offer Isaac
22 Sometime later, God tested Abraham. He called out to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am!” he answered.
2 God[a] said, “Please take your son, your unique son whom you love—Isaac—and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him as a burnt offering there on one of the mountains that I will point out to you.”
3 So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his male servants[b] with him, along with his son Isaac. He cut the wood for the burnt offering and set out to go to the place about which God had spoken to him. 4 On the third day he looked ahead and saw the place from a distance.
5 Abraham ordered his two servants,[c] “Both of you are to stay here with the donkey. Now as for the youth and me, we’ll go up there, we’ll worship, and then we’ll return to you.” 6 Then Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac. Abraham[d] carried the fire and the knife. And so the two of them went on together.
Abraham Answers Isaac’s Question
7 Isaac addressed his father Abraham: “My father!”
“I’m here, my son,” Abraham replied.
Isaac asked, “The fire and the wood are here, but where’s the lamb for the burnt offering?”
8 Abraham answered, “God will provide[e] himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.”
The two of them went on together 9 and came to the place about which God had spoken. Abraham built an altar there, arranged the wood, tied up his son Isaac, and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 Then he stretched out his hand and grabbed the knife to slaughter his son.
The Angel of the Lord Intervenes
11 Just then, an angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven and said, “Abraham! Abraham!”
“Here I am,” he answered.
12 “Don’t lay your hand on the youth!” he said. “Don’t do anything to him, because I’ve just demonstrated[f] that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only unique one, from me.”
13 Then Abraham looked up and behind him to see a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So Abraham went over, grabbed the ram, and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14 Abraham named that place, “The Lord Will Provide,”[g] as it is told this day, “On the Lord’s mountain, he will provide.”[h]
15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16 and said, “I have taken an oath to swear by myself,” declares the Lord, “that since you have carried this out and have not withheld your only unique[i] son, 17 I will certainly bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in heaven and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the gates[j] of their enemies. 18 Furthermore, through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed,[k] because you have obeyed my command.”
23 By faith Moses was hidden by his parents for three months after he was born, because they saw that he was a beautiful child and were not afraid of the king’s order.
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 because he preferred being mistreated with God’s people to enjoying the pleasures of sin for a short time. 26 He thought that being insulted for the sake of the Messiah[a] was of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
27 By faith he left Egypt, without being afraid of the king’s anger, and he persevered because he saw the one who is invisible.
28 By faith he established the Passover and the sprinkling of blood to keep the destroyer of the firstborn from touching the people.[b]
29 By faith they went through the Red Sea as if it were dry land. When the Egyptians tried to do this, they were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.
31 By faith Rahab the prostitute did not die with those who were disobedient, because she had welcomed the spies with a greeting of[c] peace.
52 Then the Jewish leaders[a] debated angrily with each other, asking, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
53 So Jesus told them, “Truly, I tell all of you[b] emphatically, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t have life in yourselves. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I’ll raise him to life on the last day, 55 because my flesh is real[c] food, and my blood is real[d] drink. 56 The person who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will also live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not the kind that your ancestors ate. They died, but the one who eats this bread will live forever.” 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.
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