Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 93
The Lord Rules the World
1 The Lord reigns. He is clothed in majesty.
The Lord is clothed—he wears strength like a belt.
Yes, the world stands firm. It will not be moved.
2 Your throne was established long ago.
You are from eternity.
3 The waves[a] have lifted up, O Lord,
the waves have lifted up their voice.
The waves roar loudly.
4 Mightier than the thundering of the great waters,
mightier than the breakers of the sea,
the Lord on high is mighty.
5 Your testimonies stand very firm.
Holiness beautifies your house for endless days, O Lord.
Psalm 96
Sing to the Lord a New Song
Call to Worship
1 Sing to the Lord a new song.
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord. Praise his name.
Proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.
3 Tell about his glory among the nations,
about his marvelous deeds among all peoples.
Praise Him Alone
4 For great is the Lord and worthy of great praise.
He is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the peoples are “nothings,”[a]
but the Lord made the heavens.
6 Splendor and majesty are before him.
Power and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7 Ascribe to the Lord, families of peoples,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and power.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name.
Bring a gift and come into his courtyards.
9 Bow down to the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.[b]
Look away from his face,[c] all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
The world is firmly established.
It will not be moved.
He will judge the peoples with fairness.
Let Nature Praise Him
11 Let the heavens rejoice.
Let the earth celebrate.
Let the sea roar,
and all that fills it.
12 Let the fields be overjoyed,
and everything that is in them.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy
13 before the Lord, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Psalm 34
Blessed Is the Person Who Takes Refuge in God
Heading
By David. When he pretended to be insane in the presence of Abimelek, who drove him away, and David left.[a]
David’s Thanks for Deliverance
1 I will bless the Lord at all times.
His praise will always be in my mouth.
2 In the Lord my soul will boast.
The humble will hear and rejoice.
An Invitation to Join David in Praise
3 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord with me,
and let us exalt his name together.
The Story of David’s Deliverance
4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me.
From all my terrors he delivered me.
5 His people look to him and are radiant,
and their faces will never blush.
6 This poor man called, and the Lord heard.
From all his distress the Lord saved him.
7 The Angel of the Lord[b] camps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.
The Application of This Truth to All Believers
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Blessed is everyone who takes refuge in him.
9 Fear the Lord, you his saints,
since those who fear him lack nothing.
10 Young lions may lack food and be hungry,
but those who seek the Lord do not lack any good thing.
11 Come, children, listen to me.
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 Who wants to find pleasure in life?
Who would love to experience many good days?
13 Guard your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking deceit.
14 Turn from evil and do good.
Seek peace and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the Lord watch over the righteous.
His ears listen to their cry.
16 The face of the Lord is set against those who do evil,
to cut off memory of them from the earth.
17 The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears.
From all their distress he delivers them.
18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
He saves those whose spirits have been crushed.
19 Many are the troubles of the righteous,
but the Lord delivers him from them all.
20 He watches over all his bones;
not one of them will be broken.
21 Evil will slay the wicked.
Those who hate the righteous will be found guilty.
22 The Lord redeems the soul[c] of his servants.
Anyone who takes refuge in him will not be found guilty.
14 I will say,[a]
“Build up, build up the highway.
Prepare the way.
Remove the stumbling block from the way of my people.”
15 Certainly this is what the High and Lofty One says,
the one who dwells with his people forever,
and whose name is holy:
I dwell in a high and holy place,
yet also with the one who is crushed and lowly in spirit,
in order to revive the spirit of those who have been pushed down,
and to revive the hearts of those who have been crushed.
16 Surely I will not accuse forever,
and I will not always be angry,
because every spirit would grow weak in my presence,
and every breath of life, which I made, would fail.
17 Because of the guilt from their selfish gain, I was angry,
and I struck them and hid my face.
I was angry,
but the deserter[b] kept walking in the way his heart desired.
18 I saw his ways,
but I will heal him, and I will lead him,
and I will restore comfort to him
and to all who mourn with him.
19 I am the one who creates praise as the fruit of their lips.[c]
Peace, peace to the one far off and to the one nearby,
says the Lord,
and I will heal him.
20 But the wicked are like the tossing sea,
which is not able to rest.
Its waters toss up dirt and mud.
21 There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.
Run the Race
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us get rid of every burden and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and let us run with patient endurance the race that is laid out for us. 2 Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who is the author of our faith and the one who brings it to its goal. In view of the joy set before him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of God’s throne. 3 Carefully consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinful people, so that you do not grow weary and lose heart.
The Lord’s Discipline
4 You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood in your fight against sin. 5 Have you also forgotten the encouragement that addresses you as sons?
My son, do not regard the Lord’s discipline lightly,
and do not become weary of his correction.
6 For the Lord disciplines the one whom he loves,
and he corrects every son he accepts.[a]
37 On the last and most important day of the festival, Jesus stood up and called out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink! 38 As the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from deep within the person who believes in me.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive. For the Holy[a] Spirit had not yet come, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
40 After hearing his words, some of the people said, “This is truly the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Surely the Christ does not come from Galilee, does he? 42 Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Christ comes from David’s descendants and from the little town of Bethlehem where David lived?” 43 So the people were divided because of him. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
45 Then the guards came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”
46 The guards answered, “No one ever spoke the way this man does!”
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.