Book of Common Prayer
David Praises the Lord for Rescuing Him.
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who spoke the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord rescued him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said:
18 “I love You [fervently and devotedly], O Lord, my strength.”
2
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and the One who rescues me;
My God, my rock and strength in whom I trust and take refuge;
My shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower—my stronghold.(A)
3
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised;
And I am saved from my enemies.(B)
4
The cords of death surrounded me,
And the streams of ungodliness and torrents of destruction terrified me.
5
The cords of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
6
In my distress [when I seemed surrounded] I called upon the Lord
And cried to my God for help;
He heard my voice from His temple,
And my cry for help came before Him, into His very ears.
7
Then the earth shook and quaked,
The foundations of the mountains trembled;
They were shaken because He was indignant and angry.
8
Smoke went up from His nostrils,
And fire from His mouth devoured;
Coals were kindled by it.
9
He bowed the heavens also and came down;
And thick darkness was under His feet.
10
And He rode upon a cherub (storm) and flew;
And He sped on the wings of the wind.
11
He made darkness His hiding place (covering); His pavilion (canopy) around Him,
The darkness of the waters, the thick clouds of the skies.
12
Out of the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
13
The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14
He sent out His arrows and scattered them;
And He sent an abundance of lightning flashes and confused and routed them [in defeat].
15
Then the stream beds of the waters appeared,
And the foundations of the world were laid bare
At Your rebuke, O Lord,
At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.
16
He reached from on high, He took me;
He drew me out of many waters.
17
He rescued me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.
18
They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
But the Lord was my support.
19
He brought me out into a broad place;
He rescued me because He was pleased with me and delighted in me.
20
The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness (moral character, spiritual integrity);
According to the cleanness of my hands He has rewarded me.
21
For I have kept the ways of the Lord,
And have not wickedly departed from my God.
22
For all His ordinances were before me,
And I did not put away His statutes from me.
23
I was [a]blameless before Him,
And I kept myself free from my sin.
24
Therefore the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness (moral character, spiritual integrity),
According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.
25
With the kind (merciful, faithful, loyal) You show Yourself kind,
With the blameless You show Yourself blameless,
26
With the pure You show Yourself pure,
And with the crooked You show Yourself astute.
27
For You save an afflicted and humble people,
But bring down those [arrogant fools] with haughty eyes.
28
For You cause my lamp to be lighted and to shine;
The Lord my God illumines my darkness.
29
For by You I can crush a troop,
And by my God I can leap over a wall.
30
As for God, His way is [b]blameless.
The word of the Lord is tested [it is perfect, it is faultless];
He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
31
For who is God, but the Lord?
Or who is a rock, except our God,
32
The God who encircles me with strength
And makes my way blameless?
33
He makes my feet like [c]hinds’ feet [able to stand firmly and tread safely on paths of testing and trouble];
He sets me [securely] upon my high places.
34
He trains my hands for war,
So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35
You have also given me the shield of Your salvation,
And Your right hand upholds and sustains me;
Your gentleness [Your gracious response when I pray] makes me great.
36
You enlarge the path beneath me and make my steps secure,
So that my feet will not slip.
37
I pursued my enemies and overtook them;
And I did not turn back until they were consumed.
38
I shattered them so that they were not able to rise;
They fell [wounded] under my feet.
39
For You have encircled me with strength for the battle;
You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.
40
You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me [in defeat],
And I silenced and destroyed those who hated me.
41
They cried for help, but there was no one to save them—
Even to the Lord [they cried], but He did not answer them.
42
Then I beat them fine as the dust before the wind;
I emptied them out as the dirt of the streets.
43
You have rescued me from the contentions of the people;
You have placed me as the head of the nations;
A people whom I have not known serve me.
44
As soon as they hear me, they respond and obey me;
Foreigners feign obedience to me.
45
Foreigners lose heart,
And come trembling out of their strongholds.
46
The Lord lives, blessed be my rock;
And may the God of my salvation be exalted,
47
The God who avenges me,
And subdues peoples (nations) under me.
48
He rescues me from my enemies;
Yes, You lift me up above those who rise up against me;
You deliver me from the man of violence.
49
Therefore will I give thanks and praise You, O Lord, among the nations,
And sing praises to Your name.(C)
50
He gives great triumphs to His king,
And shows steadfast love and mercy to His anointed,
To David and his descendants forever.(D)
Bildad Says God Rewards the Good
8 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,
2
“How long will you say these things?
And will the words of your mouth be a mighty wind?
3
“Does God pervert justice?
Or does [a]the Almighty pervert righteousness?
4
“If your children have sinned against Him,
Then He has handed them over to the power of their transgression and punished them.
5
“If you would [diligently] seek God
And implore the compassion and favor of the Almighty,
6
Then, if you are pure and upright,
Surely now He will awaken for you
And restore your righteous place.
7
“Though your beginning was insignificant,
Yet your end will greatly increase.
8
“Inquire, please, of past generations,
And consider and apply yourself to the things searched out by their fathers.
9
“For we are only of yesterday and know nothing,
Because our days on earth are [like] a shadow [just a breath or a vapor].
10
“Will they (the fathers) not teach you and tell you,
And utter words from their hearts [the deepest part of their nature]?
20
“Behold, God will not reject a man of integrity,
Nor will He strengthen or support evildoers.
21
“He will yet fill your mouth with laughter
And your lips with joyful shouting [if you are found blameless].
22
“Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
And the tents of the wicked will be no longer.”
17 Now Peter was still perplexed and completely at a loss as to what his vision could mean when the men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions to Simon’s house, arrived at the gate. 18 And they called out to ask whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there. 19 While Peter was thoughtfully considering the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Now listen, three men are looking for you. 20 Get up, go downstairs and go with them without hesitating or doubting, because I have sent them Myself.” 21 Peter went down to the men and said, “I am the one you are looking for. For what reason have you come?” 22 They said, “Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and God-fearing man well spoken of by all the Jewish people, was divinely instructed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house and hear what you have to say.” 23 So Peter [a]invited them in and gave them lodging [for the night].
Peter at Caesarea
The next day Peter got up and left with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa went with him. 24 On the following day he [and the others] entered Caesarea. Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 When Peter arrived, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet and [b]worshiped him. 26 But Peter raised him up, saying, “Stand up; I too am only a man.” 27 As Peter talked with him, he entered [the house] and found a large group of people assembled. 28 He said to them, “You know that it is unlawful for a Jewish man to associate with or befriend a Gentile, or to visit him; and yet God has shown me that I am not to call anyone common or [ceremonially] unclean. 29 Therefore when I was sent for, I came without raising an objection. So I ask for what reason have you sent for me?”
30 Cornelius said, “Four days ago to this hour, I was praying in my house during the ninth hour (3:00-4:00 p.m.); and a man [dressed] in bright, dazzling clothing suddenly stood before me, 31 and he said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your acts of charity have been remembered before God [so that He is about to help you]. 32 Therefore send word to Joppa and invite Simon, who is also called Peter, to come to you. He is staying at the house of Simon the tanner by the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to listen to everything that you have been instructed by the Lord [to say].”
14 When the feast was already half over, Jesus went up into the temple [court] and began to teach. 15 Then the Jews were perplexed. They said, “How [a]did this man become learned [so versed in the Scriptures and theology] [b]without formal training?” 16 Jesus answered them by saying, “My teaching is not My own, but His who sent Me. 17 If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know whether the teaching is of God or whether I speak on My own accord and by My own authority. 18 He who speaks on his own accord seeks glory and honor for himself. But He who seeks the glory and the honor of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness or deception in Him.
19 “Did not Moses give you the Law? And yet not one of you keeps the Law. Why do you want to kill Me [for not keeping it]?” 20 The crowd answered, “You have a demon [You are out of Your mind]! Who wants to kill You?” 21 Jesus replied, “I did one [c]work, and you are all astounded.(A) 22 For this reason Moses has given you [God’s law regarding] circumcision (not that it originated with Moses, but with the patriarchs) and you circumcise a man [even] on the Sabbath. 23 If, to avoid breaking the Law of Moses, a man undergoes [d]circumcision on the Sabbath, why are you angry with Me for making a man’s whole body well on the Sabbath? 24 Do not judge by appearance [superficially and arrogantly], but judge fairly and righteously.”
25 Then some of the people of Jerusalem said, “Is this not the Man they want to kill? 26 Look, He is speaking publicly, and they say nothing to Him! Is it possible that the rulers really know that this is the Christ? 27 But we know where this Man is from; whenever the Christ comes, no one will know where He is from.” 28 Then Jesus called out as He taught in the temple, “You know Me and know where I am from; and I have not come on my own initiative [as self-appointed], but He who sent Me is true, and Him you do not know. 29 I know Him Myself because I am from Him [I came from His very presence] and it was He [personally] who sent Me.” 30 So they were eager to arrest Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His time had not yet come. 31 But many from the crowd believed in Him. And they kept saying, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs and exhibit more proofs than this Man?”
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things [under their breath] about Him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent [e]guards to arrest Him. 33 Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am [still] with you, and then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will look for Me, and will not [be able to] find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.” 35 Then the Jews said among themselves, “Where does this Man intend to go that we will not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion [of Jews scattered and living] among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36 What does this statement of His mean, ‘You will look for Me, and will not [be able to] find Me; and where I am, you cannot come’?”
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