Book of Common Prayer
Your Word Is a Lamp to My Feet
Aleph
119 [a] Blessed are those whose (A)way is blameless,
who (B)walk in the law of the Lord!
2 Blessed are those who (C)keep his (D)testimonies,
who (E)seek him with their whole heart,
3 who also (F)do no wrong,
but walk in his ways!
4 You have commanded your (G)precepts
to be kept diligently.
5 Oh that my ways may (H)be steadfast
in keeping your statutes!
6 (I)Then I shall not be put to shame,
having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.
7 I will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn (J)your righteous rules.[b]
8 I will keep your statutes;
(K)do not utterly forsake me!
Beth
9 How can (L)a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
10 (M)With my whole heart I seek you;
let me not (N)wander from your commandments!
11 I have (O)stored up your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
12 Blessed are you, O Lord;
(P)teach me your statutes!
13 With my lips I (Q)declare
all the rules[c] of your mouth.
14 In the way of your testimonies I (R)delight
as much as in all (S)riches.
15 I will (T)meditate on your precepts
and fix my eyes on your (U)ways.
16 I will (V)delight in your statutes;
I will not forget your word.
Gimel
17 (W)Deal bountifully with your servant,
(X)that I may live and keep your word.
18 Open my eyes, that I may behold
wondrous things out of your law.
19 I am (Y)a sojourner on the earth;
(Z)hide not your commandments from me!
20 My soul is consumed with (AA)longing
for your rules[d] at all times.
21 You rebuke (AB)the insolent, (AC)accursed ones,
who (AD)wander from your commandments.
22 Take away from me (AE)scorn and contempt,
(AF)for I have kept your testimonies.
23 Even though (AG)princes sit plotting against me,
your servant will (AH)meditate on your statutes.
24 Your testimonies are my (AI)delight;
they are my (AJ)counselors.
The Faithful Have Vanished
To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.[a] A Psalm of David.
12 Save, O Lord, for (A)the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2 Everyone (B)utters lies to his neighbor;
with (C)flattering lips and (D)a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all (E)flattering lips,
the tongue that makes (F)great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
5 “Because (G)the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
(H)I will now arise,” says the Lord;
“I will place him in the (I)safety for which he longs.”
6 (J)The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
you will guard us[b] from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.
How Long, O Lord?
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
13 (K)How long, O Lord? Will you (L)forget me forever?
How long will you (M)hide your face from me?
2 How long must I take (N)counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
3 (O)Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
(P)light up my eyes, lest (Q)I sleep the sleep of death,
4 (R)lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
lest my foes rejoice because I am (S)shaken.
5 But I have (T)trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall (U)rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.
The Fool Says, There Is No God
To the choirmaster. Of David.
14 (V)The (W)fool says in his heart, (X)“There is no God.”
They are (Y)corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
(Z)there is none who does good.
2 The Lord (AA)looks down from heaven on the children of man,
to see if there are any who understand,[c]
who (AB)seek after God.
3 They have all turned aside; together they have become (AC)corrupt;
there is none who does good,
not even one.
4 Have they no (AD)knowledge, all the evildoers
who (AE)eat up my people as they eat bread
and (AF)do not call upon the Lord?
5 There they are in great terror,
for God is with (AG)the generation of the righteous.
6 You would shame the plans of the poor,
but[d] the Lord is his (AH)refuge.
7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the Lord (AI)restores the fortunes of his people,
let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.
God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar's Dream
17 Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to (A)Hananiah, (B)Mishael, and (C)Azariah, his companions, 18 (D)and told them to seek mercy from the (E)God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not (F)be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 19 Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in (G)a vision of the night. Then Daniel (H)blessed the (I)God of heaven. 20 Daniel answered and said:
(J)“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
(K)to whom belong wisdom and might.
21 (L)He changes times and seasons;
(M)he removes kings and sets up kings;
(N)he gives wisdom to the wise
(O)and knowledge to those who have understanding;
22 (P)he reveals deep and hidden things;
(Q)he knows what is in the darkness,
(R)and the light dwells with him.
23 To you, O (S)God of my fathers,
(T)I give thanks and praise,
for (U)you have given me wisdom and might,
and have now made known to me what (V)we asked of you,
for you have made known to us the king's matter.”
24 Therefore Daniel went in to (W)Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will show the king the interpretation.”
25 Then (X)Arioch brought in Daniel before the king (Y)in haste and said thus to him: “I have found (Z)among the exiles from Judah a man who will make known to the king the interpretation.” 26 The king declared to Daniel, (AA)whose name was Belteshazzar, (AB)“Are you able to make known to me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” 27 Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, (AC)enchanters, (AD)magicians, or (AE)astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, 28 but (AF)there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar (AG)what will be in the latter days. Your dream and (AH)the visions of your head as you lay in bed are these: 29 To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would be after this, (AI)and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be. 30 But (AJ)as for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living, but in order that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that (AK)you may know the thoughts of your mind.
12 I am writing to you, little children,
because (A)your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.
13 I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know (B)him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because (C)you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, children,
because (D)you know the Father.
14 I write to you, fathers,
because you know (E)him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because (F)you are strong,
and the word of God abides in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
Do Not Love the World
15 (G)Do not love the world or the things in the world. (H)If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—(I)the desires of the flesh and (J)the desires of the eyes and pride of life[a]—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And (K)the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
20 “I do not (A)ask for these only, but also for those (B)who will believe in me through their word, 21 (C)that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that (D)they also may be in (E)us, so that the world (F)may believe that you have sent me. 22 (G)The glory that you have given me (H)I have given to them, (I)that they may be one even as we are one, 23 (J)I in them and you in me, (K)that they may become perfectly one, (L)so that the world may know that you sent me and (M)loved them even as (N)you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be (O)with me (P)where I am, (Q)to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me (R)before the foundation of the world. 25 (S)O righteous Father, even though (T)the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 (U)I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love (V)with which you have loved me may be in them, and (W)I in them.”
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.