Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 37[a]
The Fate of Sinners and the Reward of the Just
1 Of David.
Aleph
Do not be provoked by evildoers;
do not envy those who do wrong.(A)
2 Like grass they wither quickly;
like green plants they wilt away.(B)
Beth
3 Trust in the Lord and do good
that you may dwell in the land[b] and live secure.(C)
4 Find your delight in the Lord
who will give you your heart’s desire.(D)
Gimel
5 Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him and he will act(E)
6 And make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
your justice like noonday.(F)
Daleth
7 Be still before the Lord;
wait for him.
Do not be provoked by the prosperous,
nor by malicious schemers.
He
8 Refrain from anger; abandon wrath;
do not be provoked; it brings only harm.
9 Those who do evil will be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord will inherit the earth.(G)
Waw
10 Wait a little, and the wicked will be no more;
look for them and they will not be there.
11 But the poor will inherit the earth,(H)
will delight in great prosperity.
Zayin
12 The wicked plot against the righteous
and gnash their teeth at them;
13 But my Lord laughs at them,(I)
because he sees that their day is coming.
Heth
14 The wicked unsheath their swords;
they string their bows
To fell the poor and oppressed,
to slaughter those whose way is upright.(J)
15 Their swords will pierce their own hearts;
their bows will be broken.
Teth
16 Better the meagerness of the righteous one
than the plenty of the wicked.(K)
17 The arms of the wicked will be broken,
while the Lord will sustain the righteous.
Yodh
18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless;
their heritage lasts forever.
19 They will not be ashamed when times are bad;
in days of famine they will be satisfied.
Kaph
20 The wicked perish,
enemies of the Lord;
They shall be consumed like fattened lambs;
like smoke they disappear.(L)
Lamedh
21 The wicked one borrows but does not repay;
the righteous one is generous and gives.
22 For those blessed by the Lord will inherit the earth,
but those accursed will be cut off.
Mem
23 The valiant one whose steps are guided by the Lord,
who will delight in his way,(M)
24 May stumble, but he will never fall,
for the Lord holds his hand.
Nun
25 Neither in my youth, nor now in old age
have I seen the righteous one abandoned(N)
or his offspring begging for bread.
26 All day long he is gracious and lends,
and his offspring become a blessing.
Samekh
27 Turn from evil and do good,
that you may be settled forever.(O)
28 For the Lord loves justice
and does not abandon the faithful.
Ayin
When the unjust are destroyed,
and the offspring of the wicked cut off,
29 The righteous will inherit the earth
and dwell in it forever.(P)
Pe
30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom;(Q)
his tongue speaks what is right.
31 God’s teaching is in his heart;(R)
his steps do not falter.
Sadhe
32 The wicked spies on the righteous
and seeks to kill him.
33 But the Lord does not abandon him in his power,
nor let him be condemned when tried.
Qoph
34 Wait eagerly for the Lord,
and keep his way;(S)
He will raise you up to inherit the earth;
you will see when the wicked are cut off.
Resh
35 I have seen a ruthless scoundrel,
spreading out like a green cedar.(T)
36 When I passed by again, he was gone;
though I searched, he could not be found.
Shin
37 Observe the person of integrity and mark the upright;
Because there is a future for a man of peace.(U)
38 Sinners will be destroyed together;
the future of the wicked will be cut off.
Taw
39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord,
their refuge in a time of distress.(V)
40 The Lord helps and rescues them,
rescues and saves them from the wicked,
because they take refuge in him.
Chapter 3
Hymn About God’s Reign
1 Prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet. According to Shigyonot.[a]
2 O Lord, I have heard your renown,
and am in awe, O Lord, of your work.
In the course of years revive it,[b]
in the course of years make yourself known;
in your wrath remember compassion!
His glory covered the heavens,
and his praise filled the earth;
4 his splendor spread like the light.
He raised his horns high,(B)
he rejoiced on the day of his strength.
5 Before him went pestilence,
and plague[e] followed in his steps.
6 He stood and shook the earth;
he looked and made the nations tremble.
Ancient mountains were shattered,
the age-old hills bowed low,
age-old orbits[f] collapsed.
7 The tents of Cushan trembled,
the pavilions of the land of Midian.[g]
8 Was your anger against the rivers, O Lord?
your wrath against the rivers,
your rage against the sea,[h](C)
That you mounted your steeds,
your victorious chariot?
9 You readied your bow,
you filled your bowstring with arrows.
Selah
You split the earth with rivers;
10 at the sight of you the mountains writhed.
The clouds poured down water;
the deep roared loudly.
The sun[i] forgot to rise,
11 the moon left its lofty station,(D)
At the light of your flying arrows,
at the gleam of your flashing spear.
12 In wrath you marched on the earth,
in fury you trampled the nations.
13 You came forth to save your people,
to save your anointed one.[j]
You crushed the back of the wicked,
you laid him bare, bottom to neck.
Selah
14 [k]You pierced his head with your shafts;
his princes you scattered with your stormwind,
as food for the poor in unknown places.
15 You trampled the sea with your horses
amid the churning of the deep waters.
16 I hear, and my body trembles;
at the sound, my lips quiver.
Decay invades my bones,
my legs tremble beneath me.
I await the day of distress
that will come upon the people who attack us.
17 For though the fig tree does not blossom,
and no fruit appears on the vine,
Though the yield of the olive fails
and the terraces produce no nourishment,
Though the flocks disappear from the fold
and there is no herd in the stalls,
18 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord
and exult in my saving God.
12 (A)It is not that I have already taken hold of it or have already attained perfect maturity,[a] but I continue my pursuit in hope that I may possess it, since I have indeed been taken possession of by Christ [Jesus]. 13 Brothers, I for my part do not consider myself to have taken possession. Just one thing: forgetting what lies behind but straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I continue my pursuit toward the goal, the prize of God’s upward calling, in Christ Jesus.(B) 15 Let us, then, who are “perfectly mature” adopt this attitude. And if you have a different attitude, this too God will reveal to you. 16 Only, with regard to what we have attained, continue on the same course.[b]
Wrong Conduct and Our Goal.[c] 17 Join with others in being imitators of me,[d] brothers, and observe those who thus conduct themselves according to the model you have in us.(C) 18 For many, as I have often told you and now tell you even in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ.(D) 19 Their end is destruction. Their God is their stomach; their glory is in their “shame.” Their minds are occupied with earthly things.(E) 20 But our citizenship[e] is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.(F) 21 He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.(G)
Chapter 17
The Prayer of Jesus.[a] 1 When Jesus had said this, he raised his eyes to heaven[b] and said, “Father, the hour has come. Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,(A) 2 [c]just as you gave him authority over all people,(B) so that he may give eternal life to all you gave him. 3 [d]Now this is eternal life,(C) that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ. 4 I glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do. 5 Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had with you before the world began.(D)
6 “I revealed your name[e] to those whom you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything you gave me is from you, 8 because the words you gave to me I have given to them, and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you, and they have believed that you sent me.
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