Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 78[a]
A well-written song[b] by Asaph.
78 Pay attention, my people, to my instruction.
Listen to the words I speak.[c]
2 I will sing a song that imparts wisdom;
I will make insightful observations about the past.[d]
3 What we have heard and learned[e]—
that which our ancestors[f] have told us—
4 we will not hide from their[g] descendants.
We will tell the next generation
about the Lord’s praiseworthy acts,[h]
about his strength and the amazing things he has done.
5 He established a rule[i] in Jacob;
he set up a law in Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to make his deeds known to their descendants,[j]
6 so that the next generation, children yet to be born,
might know about them.
They will grow up and tell their descendants about them.[k]
7 Then they will place their confidence in God.
They will not forget the works of God,
and they will obey[l] his commands.
8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,
who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation that was not committed
and faithful to God.[m]
9 The Ephraimites[n] were armed with bows,[o]
but they retreated in the day of battle.[p]
10 They did not keep their covenant with God,[q]
and they refused to obey[r] his law.
11 They forgot what he had done,[s]
the amazing things he had shown them.
12 He did amazing things in the sight of their ancestors,
in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.[t]
13 He divided the sea and led them across it;
he made the water stand in a heap.
14 He led them with a cloud by day,
and with the light of a fire all night long.
15 He broke open rocks in the wilderness,
and gave them enough water to fill the depths of the sea.[u]
16 He caused streams to flow from the rock,
and made the water flow like rivers.
17 Yet they continued to sin against him,
and rebelled against the Most High[v] in the desert.
18 They willfully challenged God[w]
by asking for food to satisfy their appetite.
19 They insulted God, saying,[x]
“Is God really able to give us food[y] in the wilderness?
20 Yes,[z] he struck a rock and water flowed out;
streams gushed forth.
But can he also give us food?
Will he provide meat for his people?”
21 When[aa] the Lord heard this, he was furious.
A fire broke out against Jacob,
and his anger flared up[ab] against Israel,
22 because they did not have faith in God,
and did not trust his ability to deliver them.[ac]
23 He gave a command to the clouds above,
and opened the doors in the sky.
24 He rained down manna for them to eat;
he gave them the grain of heaven.[ad]
25 Man ate the food of the mighty ones.[ae]
He sent them more than enough to eat.[af]
26 He brought the east wind through the sky,
and by his strength led forth the south wind.
27 He rained down meat on them like dust,
birds as numerous as the sand on the seashores.[ag]
28 He caused them to fall right in the middle of their camp,
all around their homes.
29 They ate until they were beyond full;[ah]
he gave them what they desired.
30 They were not yet filled up;[ai]
their food was still in their mouths,
31 when the anger of God flared up against them.
He killed some of the strongest of them;
he brought the young men of Israel to their knees.
32 Despite all this, they continued to sin,
and did not trust him to do amazing things.[aj]
33 So he caused them to die unsatisfied[ak]
and filled with terror.[al]
34 When he struck them down,[am] they sought his favor;[an]
they turned back and longed for God.
35 They remembered that God was their protector,[ao]
and that God Most High[ap] was their deliverer.[aq]
36 But they deceived him with their words,[ar]
and lied to him.[as]
37 They were not really committed to him,[at]
and they were unfaithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he is compassionate.
He forgives sin and does not destroy.
He often holds back his anger,
and does not stir up his fury.[au]
39 He remembered[av] that they were made of flesh,
and were like a wind that blows past and does not return.[aw]
40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness,
and insulted him[ax] in the wastelands.
41 They again challenged God,[ay]
and offended[az] the Holy One of Israel.[ba]
42 They did not remember what he had done,[bb]
how he delivered them from the enemy,[bc]
43 when he performed his awesome deeds[bd] in Egypt,
and his acts of judgment[be] in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their rivers into blood,
and they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of biting insects against them,[bf]
as well as frogs that overran their land.[bg]
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,
the fruit of their labor to the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail,
and their sycamore-fig trees with driving rain.
48 He rained hail down on their cattle,[bh]
and hurled lightning bolts down on their livestock.[bi]
49 His raging anger lashed out against them.[bj]
He sent fury, rage, and trouble
as messengers who bring disaster.[bk]
50 He sent his anger in full force.[bl]
He did not spare them from death;
he handed their lives over to destruction.[bm]
51 He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power[bn] in the tents of Ham.
52 Yet he brought out his people like sheep;
he led them through the wilderness like a flock.
53 He guided them safely along, and they were not afraid;
but the sea covered their enemies.
54 He brought them to the border of his holy land,
to this mountainous land[bo] that his right hand[bp] acquired.
55 He drove the nations out from before them;
he assigned them their tribal allotments[bq]
and allowed the tribes of Israel to settle down.[br]
56 Yet they challenged and defied[bs] God Most High,[bt]
and did not obey[bu] his commands.[bv]
57 They were unfaithful[bw] and acted as treacherously as[bx] their ancestors;
they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow.[by]
58 They made him angry with their pagan shrines,[bz]
and made him jealous with their idols.
59 God heard and was angry;
he completely rejected Israel.
60 He abandoned[ca] the sanctuary at Shiloh,
the tent where he lived among men.
61 He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured;[cb]
he gave the symbol of his splendor[cc] into the hand of the enemy.[cd]
62 He delivered his people over to the sword,
and was angry with his chosen nation.[ce]
63 Fire consumed their[cf] young men,
and their[cg] virgins remained unmarried.[ch]
64 Their[ci] priests fell by the sword,
but their[cj] widows did not weep.[ck]
65 But then the Lord awoke from his sleep;[cl]
he was like a warrior in a drunken rage.[cm]
66 He drove his enemies back;
he made them a permanent target for insults.[cn]
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 He chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above,[co]
as secure as the earth, which he established permanently.[cp]
70 He chose David, his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds.
71 He took him away from following the mother sheep,[cq]
and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,
and of Israel, his chosen nation.[cr]
72 David[cs] cared for them with pure motives;[ct]
he led them with skill.[cu]
Esther Appeals to the King for Help
5 It so happened that on the third day Esther put on her royal attire and stood in the inner court of the palace,[a] opposite the king’s quarters.[b] The king was sitting on his royal throne in the palace, opposite the entrance.[c] 2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she met with his approval.[d] The king extended to Esther the gold scepter that was in his hand, and Esther approached and touched the end of the scepter.
3 The king said to her, “What is on your mind,[e] Queen Esther? What is your request? Even as much as half the kingdom will be given to you.”
4 Esther replied, “If the king is so inclined,[f] let the king and Haman come today to the banquet that I have prepared for the king.” 5 The king replied, “Find Haman quickly so that we can do as Esther requests.”
So the king and Haman went to the banquet that Esther had prepared. 6 While at the banquet of wine, the king said to Esther, “What is your request? It shall be given to you. What is your petition? Ask for as much as half the kingdom,[g] and it shall be done.”
7 Esther responded,[h] “My request and my petition is this: 8 If I have found favor in the king’s sight and if the king is inclined[i] to grant my request and approve my petition, let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet that I will prepare for them. At that time[j] I will do as the king wishes.”[k]
Haman Expresses His Hatred of Mordecai
9 Now Haman went forth that day pleased and very much encouraged.[l] But when Haman saw Mordecai at the king’s gate, and he did not rise or tremble in his presence,[m] Haman was filled with rage toward Mordecai. 10 But Haman restrained himself and went on to his home.
He then sent for his friends to join him,[n] along with his wife Zeresh. 11 Haman then recounted to them his fabulous wealth,[o] his many sons,[p] and how the king had magnified him and exalted him over the king’s other officials and servants. 12 Haman said, “Furthermore, Queen Esther invited[q] only me to accompany the king to the banquet that she prepared. And also tomorrow I am invited[r] along with the king. 13 Yet all this fails to satisfy me so long as I have to see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king’s gate.”
14 Haman’s[s] wife Zeresh and all his friends said to him, “Have a gallows 75 feet[t] high built, and in the morning tell the king that Mordecai should be hanged on it. Then go with the king to the banquet contented.”[u]
It seemed like a good idea to Haman, so he had the gallows built.
Paul Before the Proconsul Gallio
12 Now while Gallio[a] was proconsul[b] of Achaia,[c] the Jews attacked Paul together[d] and brought him before the judgment seat,[e] 13 saying, “This man is persuading[f] people to worship God in a way contrary to[g] the law!” 14 But just as Paul was about to speak,[h] Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of some crime or serious piece of villainy,[i] I would have been justified in accepting the complaint[j] of you Jews,[k] 15 but since it concerns points of disagreement[l] about words and names and your own law, settle[m] it yourselves. I will not be[n] a judge of these things!” 16 Then he had them forced away[o] from the judgment seat.[p] 17 So they all seized Sosthenes, the president of the synagogue,[q] and began to beat[r] him in front of the judgment seat.[s] Yet none of these things were of any concern[t] to Gallio.
Paul Returns to Antioch in Syria
18 Paul, after staying[u] many more days in Corinth, said farewell to[v] the brothers and sailed away to Syria accompanied by[w] Priscilla and Aquila.[x] He[y] had his hair cut off[z] at Cenchrea[aa] because he had made a vow.[ab] 19 When they reached Ephesus,[ac] Paul[ad] left Priscilla and Aquila[ae] behind there, but he himself went[af] into the synagogue[ag] and addressed[ah] the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay longer, he would not consent,[ai] 21 but said farewell to[aj] them and added,[ak] “I will come back[al] to you again if God wills.”[am] Then[an] he set sail from Ephesus, 22 and when he arrived[ao] at Caesarea,[ap] he went up and greeted[aq] the church at Jerusalem[ar] and then went down to Antioch.[as] 23 After he spent[at] some time there, Paul left and went through the region of Galatia[au] and Phrygia,[av] strengthening all the disciples.
Apollos Begins His Ministry
24 Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, arrived in Ephesus. He was an eloquent speaker,[aw] well-versed[ax] in the scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in[ay] the way of the Lord, and with great enthusiasm[az] he spoke and taught accurately the facts[ba] about Jesus, although he knew[bb] only the baptism of John. 26 He began to speak out fearlessly[bc] in the synagogue,[bd] but when Priscilla and Aquila[be] heard him, they took him aside[bf] and explained the way of God to him more accurately. 27 When Apollos[bg] wanted to cross over to Achaia,[bh] the brothers encouraged[bi] him[bj] and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he[bk] assisted greatly those who had believed by grace, 28 for he refuted the Jews vigorously[bl] in public debate,[bm] demonstrating from the scriptures that the Christ[bn] was Jesus.[bo]
15 While the people were filled with anticipation[a] and they all wondered[b] whether perhaps John[c] could be the Christ,[d] 16 John answered them all,[e] “I baptize you with water,[f] but one more powerful than I am is coming—I am not worthy[g] to untie the strap[h] of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.[i] 17 His winnowing fork[j] is in his hand to clean out his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his storehouse,[k] but the chaff he will burn up with inextinguishable fire.”[l]
18 And in this way,[m] with many other exhortations, John[n] proclaimed good news to the people. 19 But when John rebuked Herod[o] the tetrarch[p] because of Herodias, his brother’s wife,[q] and because of all the evil deeds[r] that he had done, 20 Herod added this to them all: He locked up John in prison.
The Baptism of Jesus
21 Now when[s] all the people were baptized, Jesus also was baptized. And while he was praying,[t] the heavens[u] opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove.[v] And a voice came from heaven, “You are my one dear Son;[w] in you I take great delight.”[x]
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