Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 146
Praise Him for Protection
Praise for Protection
1 Praise the Lord.[a]
A Lifetime of Praise
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will make music to my God as long as I exist.
No Help in Humans
3 Do not trust in human helpers,[b]
in a mortal man who cannot save you.
4 His spirit departs.
He returns to the ground he came from.
On that day, his plans have perished.
Help in the Lord
5 Blessed is everyone who has the God of Jacob as his help.
His hope is in the Lord his God,
6 the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything which is in them.
He is the one who stays faithful forever.
7 He obtains justice for the oppressed.
He gives food to the hungry.
The Lord releases prisoners.
8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down.
The Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord watches over the aliens.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but he turns aside the way of the wicked.
An Eternity for Praise
10 The Lord reigns forever.
Your God, O Zion, rules for all generations.
Praise the Lord.
Psalm 147
Praise Him for Providing for His People
The Creator Restores His People
1 Praise the Lord.[c]
How good it is to make music to our God.
Yes, praise is pleasant and fitting!
2 The one who builds Jerusalem is the Lord.
He assembles the outcasts of Israel.
3 He is the one who heals the brokenhearted
and who bandages their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars.
He calls them all by name.
5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power.
To his understanding there is no limit.
6 The one who sustains the humble is the Lord.
He pushes the wicked down to the ground.
The Creator Loves His People
7 Respond to the Lord with thanksgiving.
Make music to our God on the lyre.
8 He is the one who covers the sky with clouds.
He determines rain for the earth.
He makes grass sprout on the mountains.
9 He gives their food to the cattle
and to the young ravens when they call.
10 He is not impressed by the strength of the horse.
He is not pleased with the legs of a man.
11 The Lord is pleased with those who fear him,
those who wait for his mercy.
The Creator Reveals His Word
12 Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem.
Praise your God, O Zion,
13 because he strengthens the bars on your gates.
He blesses your children within you.
14 He brings peace to your borders.
He satisfies you with the best wheat.
15 He sends his message to the earth.
His word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool.
He scatters frost like ashes.
17 He sends his hail like pieces of bread.
Who can stand in the face of his cold winds?
18 He sends his word, and the ice melts.
He breathes on the snow.[d] The waters flow.[e]
19 He reveals his words to Jacob,
his statutes and his judgments to Israel.
20 He has not done this for any other nation.
They do not know his judgments.
Praise the Lord.
Psalm 111
God’s Works and God’s Word
Opening Praise
1 Praise the Lord.[a]
I will thank the Lord with all my heart
in the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.
God’s Works
2 Great are the deeds of the Lord.
They are studied by all who delight in them.
3 Glorious and majestic is his work,
and his righteousness stands forever.
4 He has set up a memorial to his wonders.
Gracious and compassionate is the Lord.
5 He gives food to those who fear him.
He remembers his covenant forever.
6 He has declared the power of his deeds to his people,
to give them the nations as their possession.
7 The works of his hands are truth and justice.
God’s Word
All his precepts are trustworthy,
8 steadfast forever and ever,
done in truth and uprightness.
9 He sent redemption for his people.
He commanded his covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is his name.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning[b] of wisdom.
All who do his precepts have good understanding.
Closing Praise
His praise stands forever.
Psalm 112
The Man Who Fears the Lord
The Man Who Fears the Lord
1 Praise the Lord.[c]
How blessed is a man who fears the Lord.
In his commands he delights greatly.
2 His descendants will be mighty in the land.
The circle of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his righteousness stands forever.
4 In darkness, light dawns for the upright.
He is gracious and compassionate and righteous.
5 Good things will come to the man
who is gracious and lends,
who conducts his business with justice.
6 Surely he will never fall.
The righteous will be remembered forever.
7 He will not fear bad news.
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is secure.
He will have no fear, until he looks in triumph on his foes.
9 He scatters seed—he gives to the poor.
His righteousness stands forever.
His horn[d] will be lifted high in glory.
The End of the Wicked
10 The wicked person will see and be frustrated.
He will gnash his teeth and melt away.
The desire of the wicked will perish.
Psalm 113
The Mighty Deliverer
Invitation to Praise
1 Praise the Lord.[e]
Praise, you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
2 Let the name of the Lord be blessed, from now to eternity.
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting,
the name of the Lord is to be praised.
The Basis for Praise
4 High above all the nations is the Lord.
His glory towers above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God?
He is seated on high.
6 He bends down to look at the heavens and at the earth.
7 He raises the poor from the dust.
He lifts the needy from the garbage pile
8 to seat them with nobles,
with the nobles of his people.
9 He is the one who settles the barren woman in her home
as a joyful mother of children.
Praise the Lord.
Joshua Will Succeed Moses
12 The Lord said to Moses, “Go up onto this mountain in the Abarim range and see the land which I have given to the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you yourself will also be gathered to your people just as Aaron your brother was gathered. 14 For when the community quarreled in the Wilderness of Zin, you both rebelled against my command to honor me as holy in their sight at the waters.” (This refers to the waters of Meribah Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.)
15 Moses spoke to the Lord, 16 “May the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the community, 17 who will go out before them and come in before them, who will lead them out and bring them in, so that the community of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”
18 The Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and place your hand on him. 19 Have him stand in front of Eleazar the priest and the entire community. You will commission him in their sight. 20 You will give some of your authority to him so that the entire Israelite community will listen to him. 21 He will stand before Eleazar the priest, who will inquire for him before the Lord with the decision of the Urim. He and all the Israelites with him, the entire community, will go out at his command and come in at his command.”
22 Moses did just as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and had him stand in front of Eleazar the priest and the entire community. 23 He placed his hands on him and commissioned him, just as the Lord spoke through Moses.
11 God was doing extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick; their illnesses left them and the evil spirits went out of them.
The Seven Sons of Sceva
13 Then some Jewish exorcists who went from place to place tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits. They said, “I command you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches to come out!” 14 It was the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and I am acquainted with Paul, but who are you?” 16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them, overpowered them, and exercised such complete domination over all of them that they fled from that house naked and wounded.
17 This became known to everyone who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. They were all overcome with fear, and they held the name of the Lord Jesus in high honor. 18 Also many of those who had become believers came forward, confessing and admitting their actions. 19 And a large number of those who had practiced magic arts[a] collected their books and burned them in front of everyone. They added up the cost of the books and found it to be fifty thousand pieces of silver.[b] 20 In this way the word of the Lord was growing and gaining strength.
“Come, Follow Me”
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom[a] of God. 15 “The time is fulfilled,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near! Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
16 As Jesus was going along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea, since they were fishermen. 17 Jesus said to them, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 18 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19 Going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat mending the nets. 20 Immediately Jesus called them. They left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.