Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 140
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
1 Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men; preserve me from violent men;
2 They devise mischiefs in their heart; continually they gather together and stir up wars.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a serpent’s; adders’ poison is under their lips. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!(A)
4 Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent men who have purposed to thrust aside my steps.
5 The proud have hidden a snare for me; they have spread cords as a net by the wayside, they have set traps for me. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
6 I said to the Lord, You are my God; give ear to the voice of my supplications, O Lord.
7 O God the Lord, the Strength of my salvation, You have covered my head in the day of battle.
8 Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked; further not their wicked plot and device, lest they exalt themselves. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
9 Those who are fencing me in raise their heads; may the mischief of their own lips and the very things they desire for me come upon them.
10 Let burning coals fall upon them; let them be cast into the fire, into floods of water or deep water pits, from which they shall not rise.
11 Let not a man of slanderous tongue be established in the earth; let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him [let calamity follow his evildoings].
12 I know and rest in confidence upon it that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and will secure justice for the poor and needy [of His believing children].
13 Surely the [uncompromisingly] righteous shall give thanks to Your name; the upright shall dwell in Your presence (before Your very face).
Psalm 142
A skillful song, or a didactic or reflective poem, of David; when he was in the cave. A Prayer.
1 I cry to the Lord with my voice; with my voice to the Lord do I make supplication.
2 I pour out my complaint before Him; I tell before Him my trouble.
3 When my spirit was overwhelmed and fainted [throwing all its weight] upon me, then You knew my path. In the way where I walk they have hidden a snare for me.
4 Look on the right hand [the point of attack] and see; for there is no man who knows me [to appear for me]. Refuge has failed me and I have no way to flee; no man cares for my life or my welfare.
5 I cried to You, O Lord; I said, You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.
6 Attend to my loud cry, for I am brought very low; deliver me from my persecutors, for they are stronger than I.
7 Bring my life out of prison, that I may confess, praise, and give thanks to Your name; the righteous will surround me and crown themselves because of me, for You will deal bountifully with me.
Psalm 141
A Psalm of David.
1 Lord, I call upon You; hasten to me. Give ear to my voice when I cry to You.
2 Let my prayer be set forth as incense before You, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.(A)
3 Set a guard, O Lord, before my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips.
4 Incline my heart not to submit or consent to any evil thing or to be occupied in deeds of wickedness with men who work iniquity; and let me not eat of their dainties.
5 Let the righteous man smite and correct me—it is a kindness. Oil so choice let not my head refuse or discourage; for even in their evils or calamities shall my prayer continue.(B)
6 When their rulers are overthrown in stony places, [their followers] shall hear my words, that they are sweet (pleasant, mild, and just).
7 The unburied bones [of slaughtered rulers] shall lie scattered at the mouth of Sheol, [as unregarded] as the lumps of soil behind the plowman when he breaks open the ground.(C)
8 But my eyes are toward You, O God the Lord; in You do I trust and take refuge; pour not out my life nor leave it destitute and bare.
9 Keep me from the trap which they have laid for me, and the snares of evildoers.
10 Let the wicked fall together into their own nets, while I pass over them and escape.
Psalm 143
A Psalm of David.
1 Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications! In Your faithfulness answer me, and in Your righteousness.
2 And enter not into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no man living is [in himself] righteous or justified.(A)
3 For the enemy has pursued and persecuted my soul, he has crushed my life down to the ground; he has made me to dwell in dark places as those who have been long dead.
4 Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed and faints within me [wrapped in gloom]; my heart within my bosom grows numb.
5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your doings; I ponder the work of Your hands.
6 I spread forth my hands to You; my soul thirsts after You like a thirsty land [for water]. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
7 Answer me speedily, O Lord, for my spirit fails; hide not Your face from me, lest I become like those who go down into the pit (the grave).
8 Cause me to hear Your loving-kindness in the morning, for on You do I lean and in You do I trust. Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk, for I lift up my inner self to You.
9 Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies; I flee to You to hide me.
10 Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; let Your good Spirit lead me into a level country and into the land of uprightness.
11 Save my life, O Lord, for Your name’s sake; in Your righteousness, bring my life out of trouble and free me from distress.
12 And in your mercy and loving-kindness, cut off my enemies and destroy all those who afflict my inner self, for I am Your servant.
14 Behold, a day of the Lord is coming when the spoil [taken from you] shall be divided [among the victors] in the midst of you.
2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses rifled and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
3 Then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle.
4 And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, which lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from the east to the west by a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north and half of it toward the south.(A)
5 And you shall flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal, and you shall flee as you fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah; and the Lord my [Zechariah’s] [a]God shall come, and all the holy ones [saints and angels] with Him.(B)
6 And it shall come to pass in that day that there shall not be light; the glorious and bright ones [the heavenly bodies] shall be darkened.
7 But it shall be one continuous day, known to the Lord—not day and not night, but at evening time there shall be light.
8 And it shall be in that day that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern [Dead] Sea and half of them to the western [Mediterranean] Sea; in summer and in winter shall it be.
9 And the Lord shall be King over all the earth; in that day the Lord shall be one [in the recognition and worship of men] and His name one.
10 All the land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon, [the Rimmon that is] south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain lifted up on its site and dwell in its place, from Benjamin’s gate to the place of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses.
11 And it shall be inhabited, for there shall be no more curse or ban of utter destruction, but Jerusalem shall dwell securely.(C)
7 Welcome and receive [to your hearts] one another, then, even as Christ has welcomed and received you, for the glory of God.
8 For I tell you that Christ (the Messiah) became a servant and a minister to the circumcised (the Jews) in order to show God’s truthfulness and honesty by confirming (verifying) the promises [given] to our fathers,
9 And [also in order] that the Gentiles (nations) might glorify God for His mercy [not covenanted] to them. As it is written, Therefore I will praise You among the Gentiles and sing praises to Your name.(A)
10 Again it is said, Rejoice (exult), O Gentiles, along with His [own] people;(B)
11 And again, Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise Him!(C)
12 And further Isaiah says, There shall be a [a]Sprout from the Root of Jesse, He Who rises to rule over the Gentiles; in Him shall the Gentiles hope.(D)
13 May the God of your hope so fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound and be overflowing (bubbling over) with hope.
28 And after saying these things, Jesus went on ahead of them, going up to Jerusalem.
29 When He came near Bethphage and Bethany at the mount called [the Mount of] Olives, He sent two of His disciples,
30 Telling [them], Go into the village yonder; there, as you go in, you will find a donkey’s colt tied, on which no man has ever yet sat. Loose it and bring [it here].
31 If anybody asks you, Why are you untying [it]? you shall say this: Because the Lord has need of it.
32 So those who were sent went away and found it [just] as He had told them.
33 And as they were loosening the colt, its owners said to them, Why are you untying the colt?
34 And they said, The Lord has need of it.
35 And they brought it to Jesus; then they threw their garments over the colt and set Jesus upon it.(A)
36 And as He rode along, the people kept spreading their garments on the road.(B)
37 As He was approaching [the city], at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to rejoice and to praise God [extolling Him exultantly and] loudly for all the mighty miracles and works of power that they had witnessed,
38 Crying, Blessed (celebrated with praises) is the King Who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven [[a]freedom there from all the distresses that are experienced as the result of sin] and glory (majesty and splendor) in the highest [heaven]!(C)
39 And some of the Pharisees from the throng said to Jesus, Teacher, reprove Your disciples!
40 He replied, I tell you that if these keep silent, the very stones will cry out.(D)
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