Book of Common Prayer
Shout Praises to the Lord
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
With all that I am,
I will shout his praises.
2 I will sing and praise
the Lord God
as long as I live.
3 You can't depend on anyone,
not even a great leader.
4 Once they die and are buried,
that will be the end
of all their plans.
5 The Lord God of Jacob blesses
everyone who trusts him
and depends on him.
6 (A) God made heaven and earth;
he created the sea
and everything else.
God always keeps his word.
7 He gives justice to the poor
and food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free
8 and heals blind eyes.
He gives a helping hand
to everyone who falls.
The Lord loves good people
9 and looks after strangers.
He defends the rights
of orphans and widows,
but destroys the wicked.
10 The Lord God of Zion
will rule forever!
Shout praises to the Lord!
Sing and Praise the Lord
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
Our God is kind,
and it is right and good
to sing praises to him.
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem
and brings the people of Israel
back home again.
3 He renews our hopes
and heals our bodies.
4 He decided how many stars
there would be in the sky
and gave each one a name.
5 Our Lord is great and powerful!
He understands everything.
6 The Lord helps the oppressed,
but he smears the wicked
in the dirt.
7 Celebrate and sing!
Play your harps
for the Lord our God.
8 He fills the sky with clouds
and sends rain to the earth,
so that the hills
will be green with grass.
9 He provides food for cattle
and for the young ravens,
when they cry out.
10 The Lord doesn't care about
the strength of horses
or powerful armies.
11 The Lord is pleased only
with those who worship him
and trust his love.
12 Everyone in Jerusalem,
come and praise
the Lord your God!
13 He makes your city gates strong
and blesses your people.
14 God lets you live in peace,
and he gives you
the very best wheat.
15 As soon as God speaks,
the earth obeys.
16 He covers the ground with snow
like a blanket of wool,
and he scatters frost
like ashes on the ground.
17 God sends down hailstones
like chips of rocks.
Who can stand the cold?
18 At his command the ice melts,
the wind blows,
and streams begin to flow.
19 God gave his laws and teachings
to the descendants of Jacob,
the nation of Israel.
20 But he has not given his laws
to any other nation.
Shout praises to the Lord!
Praise the Lord for All He Has Done
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
With all my heart
I will thank the Lord
when his people meet.
2 The Lord has done
many wonderful things!
Everyone who is pleased
with God's marvelous deeds
will keep them in mind.
3 Everything the Lord does
is glorious and majestic,
and his power to bring justice
will never end.
4 The Lord God is famous
for his wonderful deeds,
and he is kind and merciful.
5 He gives food to his worshipers
and always keeps his agreement
with them.
6 He has shown his mighty power
to his people
and has given them the lands
of other nations.
7 God is always honest and fair,
and his laws can be trusted.
8 They are true and right
and will stand forever.
9 God rescued his people,
and he will never break
his agreement with them.
He is fearsome and holy.
10 (A) Respect and obey the Lord!
This is the first step
to wisdom and good sense.[a]
God will always be respected.
God Blesses His Worshipers
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
The Lord blesses everyone
who worships him and gladly
obeys his teachings.
2 Their descendants will have
great power in the land,
because the Lord blesses
all who do right.
3 They will get rich and prosper
and will always be remembered
for their fairness.
4 They will be so kind
and merciful and good,
that they will be a light
in the dark for others
who do the right thing.
5 Life will go well for those
who freely lend
and are honest in business.
6 They won't ever be troubled,
and the kind things they do
will never be forgotten.
7 Bad news won't bother them;
they have decided
to trust the Lord.
8 They are dependable
and not afraid,
and they will live to see
their enemies defeated.
9 (B) They will always be remembered
and greatly praised,
because they were kind
and freely gave to the poor.
10 When evil people see this,
they angrily bite their tongues
and disappear.
They will never get
what they really want.
The Lord Helps People in Need
1 Shout praises to the Lord!
Everyone who serves him,
come and praise his name.
2 Let the name of the Lord
be praised now and forever.
3 From dawn until sunset
the name of the Lord
deserves to be praised.
4 The Lord is far above
all of the nations;
he is more glorious
than the heavens.
5 No one can compare
with the Lord our God.
His throne is high above,
6 and he looks down to see
the heavens and the earth.
7 God lifts the poor and needy
from dust and ashes,
8 and he lets them take part
in ruling his people.
9 When a wife has no children,
he blesses her with some,
and she is happy.
Shout praises to the Lord!
Joshua Is Appointed Israel's Leader
(Deuteronomy 31.1-8)
12 (A) The Lord said to Moses, “One day you will go up into the Abarim Mountains, and from there you will see the land I am giving the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you will die,[a] just like your brother Aaron, 14 because both of you disobeyed me at Meribah near the town of Kadesh in the Zin Desert. When the Israelites insulted me there, you didn't believe in my holy power.”[b]
15 Moses replied, 16 “You are the Lord God, and you know what is in everyone's heart. So I ask you to appoint a leader for Israel. 17 (B) Your people need someone to lead them into battle, or else they will be like sheep wandering around without a shepherd.”
18 (C) The Lord answered, “Joshua son of Nun can do the job. Place your hands on him to show that he is the one to take your place. 19 Then go with him and tell him to stand in front of Eleazar the priest and the Israelites. Appoint Joshua as their new leader 20 and tell them they must now obey him, just as they obey you. 21 (D) But Joshua must depend on Eleazar to find out from me[c] what I want him to do as he leads Israel into battle.”
22 Moses followed the Lord's instructions and took Joshua to Eleazar and the people, 23 (E) then he placed his hands on Joshua and appointed him Israel's leader.
The Sons of Sceva
11 God gave Paul the power to work great miracles. 12 People even took handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul's body, and they carried them to everyone who was sick. All of the sick people were healed, and the evil spirits went out.
13 Some Jewish men started going around trying to force out evil spirits by using the name of the Lord Jesus. They said to the spirits, “Come out in the name of that same Jesus that Paul preaches about!”
14 Seven sons of a high priest named Sceva were doing this, 15 when an evil spirit said to them, “I know Jesus! And I have heard about Paul. But who are you?” 16 Then the man with the evil spirit jumped on them and beat them up. They ran out of the house, naked and bruised.
17 When the Jews and Gentiles[a] in Ephesus heard about this, they were so frightened that they praised the name of the Lord Jesus. 18 Many who were followers now started telling everyone about the evil things they had been doing. 19 Some who had been practicing witchcraft even brought their books and burned them in public. These books were worth about 50,000 silver coins. 20 So the Lord's message spread and became even more powerful.
Jesus Begins His Work
(Matthew 4.12-17; Luke 4.14,15)
14 After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee and told the good news that comes from God.[a] 15 (A) He said, “The time has come! God's kingdom will soon be here.[b] Turn back to God and believe the good news!”
Jesus Chooses Four Fishermen
(Matthew 4.18-22; Luke 5.1-11)
16 As Jesus was walking along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were fishermen and were casting their nets into the lake. 17 Jesus said to them, “Follow me! I will teach you how to bring in people instead of fish.” 18 Right then the two brothers dropped their nets and went with him.
19 Jesus walked on and soon saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in a boat, mending their nets. 20 At once Jesus asked them to come with him. They left their father in the boat with the hired workers and went with him.
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