Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 102[a]
The prayer of an oppressed man, as he grows faint and pours out his lament before the Lord.
102 O Lord, hear my prayer.
Pay attention to my cry for help.[b]
2 Do not ignore me in my time of trouble.[c]
Listen to me.[d]
When I call out to you, quickly answer me.
3 For my days go up in smoke,[e]
and my bones are charred as in a fireplace.[f]
4 My heart is parched[g] and withered like grass,
for I am unable[h] to eat food.[i]
5 Because of the anxiety that makes me groan,
my bones protrude from my skin.[j]
6 I am like an owl[k] in the wilderness;
I am like a screech owl[l] among the ruins.[m]
7 I stay awake;[n]
I am like a solitary bird on a roof.
8 All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who mock me use my name in their curses.[o]
9 For I eat ashes as if they were bread,[p]
and mix my drink with my tears,[q]
10 because of your anger and raging fury.
Indeed,[r] you pick me up and throw me away.
11 My days are coming to an end,[s]
and I am withered like grass.
12 But you, O Lord, rule forever,[t]
and your reputation endures.[u]
13 You will rise up and have compassion on Zion.[v]
For it is time to have mercy on her,
for the appointed time has come.
14 Indeed,[w] your servants take delight in her stones,
and feel compassion for[x] the dust of her ruins.[y]
15 The nations will respect the reputation of the Lord,[z]
and all the kings of the earth will respect[aa] his splendor,
16 when the Lord rebuilds Zion,
and reveals his splendor,
17 when he responds to the prayer of the destitute,[ab]
and does not reject[ac] their request.[ad]
18 The account of his intervention[ae] will be recorded for future generations;
people yet to be born[af] will praise the Lord.
19 For he will look down from his sanctuary above;[ag]
from heaven the Lord will look toward earth,[ah]
20 in order to hear the painful cries of the prisoners,
and to set free those condemned to die,[ai]
21 so they may proclaim the name of the Lord in Zion,
and praise him[aj] in Jerusalem,
22 when the nations gather together,
and the kingdoms pay tribute to the Lord.[ak]
23 He has taken away my strength in the middle of life;[al]
he has cut short my days.
24 I say, “O my God, please do not take me away in the middle of my life.[am]
You endure through all generations.[an]
25 In earlier times you established the earth;
the skies are your handiwork.
26 They will perish,
but you will endure.[ao]
They will wear out like a garment;
like clothes you will remove them and they will disappear.[ap]
27 But you remain;[aq]
your years do not come to an end.
28 The children of your servants will settle down here,
and their descendants[ar] will live securely in your presence.”[as]
Book 5 (Psalms 107-150)
Psalm 107[a]
107 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
and his loyal love endures.[b]
2 Let those delivered by the Lord speak out,[c]
those whom he delivered[d] from the power[e] of the enemy,
3 and gathered from foreign lands,[f]
from east and west,
from north and south.
4 They wandered through the wilderness, in a wasteland;[g]
they found no road to a city in which to live.
5 They were hungry and thirsty;
they fainted from exhaustion.[h]
6 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles.
7 He led them on a level road,[i]
that they might find a city in which to live.
8 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,
and for the amazing things he has done for people.[j]
9 For he has satisfied those who thirst,[k]
and those who hunger he has filled with food.[l]
10 They sat in utter darkness,[m]
bound in painful iron chains,[n]
11 because they had rebelled against God’s commands,[o]
and rejected the instructions of the Most High.[p]
12 So he used suffering to humble them;[q]
they stumbled and no one helped them up.
13 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles.
14 He brought them out of the utter darkness,[r]
and tore off their shackles.
15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,
and for the amazing things he has done for people.[s]
16 For he shattered the bronze gates,
and hacked through the iron bars.[t]
17 They acted like fools in their rebellious ways,[u]
and suffered because of their sins.
18 They lost their appetite for all food,[v]
and they drew near the gates of death.
19 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles.
20 He sent them an assuring word[w] and healed them;
he rescued them from the pits where they were trapped.[x]
21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,
and for the amazing things he has done for people.[y]
22 Let them present thank offerings,
and loudly proclaim what he has done.[z]
23 [aa] Some traveled on[ab] the sea in ships,
and carried cargo over the vast waters.[ac]
24 They witnessed the acts of the Lord,
his amazing feats on the deep water.
25 He gave the order for a windstorm,[ad]
and it stirred up the waves of the sea.[ae]
26 They[af] reached up to the sky,
then dropped into the depths.
The sailors’ strength[ag] left them[ah] because the danger was so great.[ai]
27 They swayed[aj] and staggered like drunks,
and all their skill proved ineffective.[ak]
28 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles.
29 He calmed the storm,[al]
and the waves[am] grew silent.
30 The sailors[an] rejoiced because the waves[ao] grew quiet,
and he led them to the harbor[ap] they desired.
31 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,
and for the amazing things he has done for people.[aq]
32 Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people.
Let them praise him in the place where the leaders preside.[ar]
Israel and Judah Will Be Repopulated
27 “Indeed, a time is coming,”[a] says the Lord,[b] “when I will cause people and animals to sprout up in the lands of Israel and Judah.[c] 28 In the past I saw to it that they were uprooted and torn down, that they were destroyed and demolished and brought disaster. But now I will see to it that they are built up and firmly planted.[d] I, the Lord, affirm it![e]
The Lord Will Make a New Covenant with Israel and Judah
29 “When that time comes, people will no longer say, ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes, but the children’s teeth have grown numb.’[f] 30 Rather, each person will die for his own sins. The teeth of the person who eats the sour grapes will themselves grow numb.[g]
31 “Indeed, a time is coming,” says the Lord,[h] “when I will make a new covenant[i] with the people of Israel and Judah.[j] 32 It will not be like the old[k] covenant that I made with their ancestors[l] when I delivered them[m] from Egypt. For they violated that covenant, even though I was like a faithful husband to them,”[n] says the Lord.[o] 33 “But I will make a new covenant with the whole nation of Israel[p] after I plant them back in the land,”[q] says the Lord.[r] “I will[s] put my law within them[t] and write it on their hearts and minds.[u] I will be their God and they will be my people.[v]
34 “People will no longer need to teach their neighbors and relatives to know me.[w] For all of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,”[x] says the Lord. “For[y] I will forgive their sin and will no longer call to mind the wrong they have done.”
Live in Love
5 Therefore, be[a] imitators of God as dearly loved children 2 and live[b] in love, just as Christ also loved us[c] and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering[d] to God. 3 But[e] among you there must not be either sexual immorality, impurity of any kind,[f] or greed, as these are not fitting for the saints.[g] 4 Neither should there be vulgar speech, foolish talk, or coarse jesting—all of which are out of character—but rather thanksgiving. 5 For you can be confident of this one thing:[h] that no person who is immoral, impure, or greedy (such a person is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
Live in the Light
6 Let nobody deceive you with empty words, for because of these things God’s wrath comes on the sons of disobedience.[i] 7 Therefore do not be sharers with them,[j] 8 for you were at one time darkness, but now you are[k] light in the Lord. Live[l] like children of light— 9 for the fruit of the light[m] consists in[n] all goodness, righteousness, and truth— 10 trying to learn[o] what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather[p] expose them.[q] 12 For the things they do[r] in secret are shameful even to mention. 13 But all things being exposed by the light are made visible. 14 For everything made visible is light, and for this reason it says:[s]
Live Wisely
15 Therefore consider carefully how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 taking advantage of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 For this reason do not be foolish, but be wise[w] by understanding[x] what the Lord’s will is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, which[y] is debauchery,[z] but be filled by the Spirit,[aa] 19 speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music[ab] in[ac] your hearts to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for all things[ad] in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
The Call of Matthew; Eating with Sinners
9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax booth.[a] “Follow me,” he said to him. So[b] he got up and followed him. 10 As[c] Jesus[d] was having a meal[e] in Matthew’s[f] house, many tax collectors[g] and sinners came and ate with Jesus and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees[h] saw this they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”[i] 12 When[j] Jesus heard this he said, “Those who are healthy don’t need a physician, but those who are sick do.[k] 13 Go and learn what this saying means: ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice.’[l] For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
The Superiority of the New
14 Then John’s[m] disciples came to Jesus[n] and asked, “Why do we and the Pharisees[o] fast often,[p] but your disciples don’t fast?” 15 Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests[q] cannot mourn while the bridegroom[r] is with them, can they? But the days[s] are coming when the bridegroom will be taken from them,[t] and then they will fast. 16 No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, because the patch will pull away from the garment and the tear will be worse.[u] 17 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins;[v] otherwise the skins burst and the wine is spilled out and the skins are destroyed. Instead they put new wine into new wineskins[w] and both are preserved.”
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