Book of Common Prayer
38 O Lord, don’t punish me while you are angry! 2 Your arrows have struck deep; your blows are crushing me. 3-4 Because of your anger, my body is sick, my health is broken beneath my sins. They are like a flood, higher than my head; they are a burden too heavy to bear. 5-6 My wounds are festering and full of pus. Because of my sins, I am bent and racked with pain. My days are filled with anguish. 7 My loins burn with inflammation,[a] and my whole body is diseased. 8 I am exhausted and crushed; I groan in despair.[b]
9 Lord, you know how I long for my health once more. You hear my every sigh. 10 My heart beats wildly, my strength fails, and I am going blind. 11 My loved ones and friends stay away, fearing my disease. Even my own family stands at a distance.
12 Meanwhile my enemies are trying to kill me. They plot my ruin and spend all their waking hours planning treachery. 13-14 But I am deaf to all their threats; I am silent before them as a man who cannot speak. I have nothing to say. 15 For I am waiting for you, O Lord my God. Come and protect me. 16 Put an end to their arrogance, these who gloat when I am cast down!
17 How constantly I find myself upon the verge of sin;[c] this source of sorrow always stares me in the face. 18 I confess my sins; I am sorry for what I have done. 19 But my enemies persecute with vigor and continue to hate me—though I have done nothing against them to deserve it. 20 They repay me evil for good and hate me for standing for the right.
21 Don’t leave me, Lord; don’t go away! 22 Come quickly! Help me, O my Savior.
25 I am completely discouraged—I lie in the dust. Revive me by your Word. 26 I told you my plans and you replied. Now give me your instructions. 27 Make me understand what you want; for then I shall see your miracles.
28 I weep with grief; my heart is heavy with sorrow; encourage and cheer me with your words. 29-30 Keep me far from every wrong; help me, undeserving as I am, to obey your laws, for I have chosen to do right. 31 I cling to your commands and follow them as closely as I can. Lord, don’t let me make a mess of things. 32 If you will only help me to want your will, then I will follow your laws even more closely.
33-34 Just tell me what to do and I will do it, Lord. As long as I live I’ll wholeheartedly obey. 35 Make me walk along the right paths, for I know how delightful they really are.
36 Help me to prefer obedience to making money! 37 Turn me away from wanting any other plan than yours.[a] Revive my heart toward you. 38 Reassure me that your promises are for me, for I trust and revere you.
39 How I dread being mocked for obeying, for your laws are right and good. 40-42 I long to obey them! Therefore in fairness renew my life, for this was your promise—yes, Lord, to save me! Now spare me by your kindness and your love. Then I will have an answer for those who taunt me, for I trust your promises.
43 May I never forget your words, for they are my only hope. 44-46 Therefore I will keep on obeying you forever and forever, free within the limits of your laws. I will speak to kings about their value, and they will listen with interest and respect.
47 How I love your laws! How I enjoy your commands! 48 “Come, come to me,” I call to them, for I love them and will let them fill my life.
3 Early the next morning Joshua and all the people of Israel left Acacia and arrived that evening at the banks of the Jordan River, where they camped for a few days before crossing.
2-4 On the third day officers went through the camp giving these instructions: “When you see the priests carrying the Ark of God,[a] follow them. You have never before been where we are going now, so they will guide you. However, stay about a half mile behind, with a clear space between you and the Ark; be sure that you don’t get any closer.”
5 Then Joshua told the people to purify themselves. “For tomorrow,” he said, “the Lord will do a great miracle.”
6 In the morning Joshua ordered the priests, “Take up the Ark and lead us across the river!” And so they started out.
7 “Today,” the Lord told Joshua, “I will give you great honor, so that all Israel will know that I am with you just as I was with Moses. 8 Instruct the priests who are carrying the Ark to stop at the edge of the river.”
9 Then Joshua summoned all the people and told them, “Come and listen to what the Lord your God has said. 10 Today you are going to know for sure that the living God is among you and that he will, without fail, drive out the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites—all the people who now live in the land you will soon occupy. 11 Think of it! The Ark of God, who is Lord of the whole earth, will lead you across the river!
12 “Now select twelve men, one from each tribe, for a special task.[b] 13-14 When the priests who are carrying the Ark touch the water with their feet, the river will stop flowing as though held back by a dam, and will pile up as though against an invisible wall!” Now it was the harvest season and the Jordan was overflowing all its banks; but as the people set out to cross the river and as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river’s edge,
25 I want you to know about this truth from God, dear brothers, so that you will not feel proud and start bragging. Yes, it is true that some of the Jews have set themselves against the Gospel now, but this will last only until all of you Gentiles have come to Christ—those of you who will. 26 And then all Israel will be saved.
Do you remember what the prophets said about this? “There shall come out of Zion a Deliverer, and he shall turn the Jews from all ungodliness. 27 At that time I will take away their sins, just as I promised.”
28 Now many of the Jews are enemies of the Gospel. They hate it. But this has been a benefit to you, for it has resulted in God’s giving his gifts to you Gentiles. Yet the Jews are still beloved of God because of his promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 29 For God’s gifts and his call can never be withdrawn; he will never go back on his promises. 30 Once you were rebels against God, but when the Jews refused his gifts God was merciful to you instead. 31 And now the Jews are the rebels, but some day they, too, will share in God’s mercy upon you. 32 For God has given them all up to sin[a] so that he could have mercy upon all alike.
33 Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his wisdom and knowledge and riches! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods! 34 For who among us can know the mind of the Lord? Who knows enough to be his counselor and guide? 35 And who could ever offer to the Lord enough to induce him to act? 36 For everything comes from God alone. Everything lives by his power, and everything is for his glory. To him be glory evermore.
31 “But when I, the Messiah,[a] shall come in my glory, and all the angels with me, then I shall sit upon my throne of glory. 32 And all the nations shall be gathered before me. And I will separate the people[b] as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and place the sheep at my right hand, and the goats at my left.
34 “Then I, the King, shall say to those at my right, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, into the Kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you fed me; I was thirsty and you gave me water; I was a stranger and you invited me into your homes; 36 naked and you clothed me; sick and in prison, and you visited me.’
37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Sir, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you anything to drink? 38 Or a stranger, and help you? Or naked, and clothe you? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’
40 “And I, the King, will tell them, ‘When you did it to these my brothers, you were doing it to me!’ 41 Then I will turn to those on my left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry and you wouldn’t feed me; thirsty, and you wouldn’t give me anything to drink; 43 a stranger, and you refused me hospitality; naked, and you wouldn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
45 “And I will answer, ‘When you refused to help the least of these my brothers, you were refusing help to me.’
46 “And they shall go away into eternal punishment; but the righteous into everlasting life.”
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.