Book of Common Prayer
(A psalm and a song by Asaph for the music leader. To the tune “Don't Destroy.”[a])
Praise God for All He Has Done
1 Our God, we thank you
for being so near to us!
Everyone celebrates
your wonderful deeds.
2 You have set a time
to judge with fairness.
3 The earth trembles,
and its people shake;
you alone keep
its foundations firm.
4 You tell every bragger,
“Stop bragging!”
And to the wicked you say,
“Don't boast of your power!
5 Stop bragging! Quit telling me
how great you are.”
6 Our Lord and our God,
victory doesn't come
from the east or the west
or from the desert.
7 You are the one who judges.
You can take away power
and give it to others.
8 You hold in your hand
a cup filled with wine,[b]
strong and foaming.
You will pour out some
for every sinful person
on this earth,
and they will have to drink
until it is gone.
9 But I will always tell about
you, the God of Jacob,
and I will sing your praise.
10 Our Lord, you will destroy
the power of evil people,
but you will give strength
to those who are good.
(A song and a psalm by Asaph for the music leader. Use stringed instruments.)
God Always Wins
1 You, our God,
are famous in Judah
and honored in Israel.
2 Your home is on Mount Zion,
the city of peace.
3 There you destroyed
fiery arrows, shields, swords,
and all the other weapons.
4 You are more glorious than
the eternal mountains.[c]
5 Brave warriors were robbed
of what they had taken,
and now they lie dead,
unable to lift an arm.
6 God of Jacob, when you roar,
enemy chariots and horses
drop dead in their tracks.
7 Our God, you are fearsome,
and no one can oppose you
when you are angry.
8 From heaven you announced
your decisions as judge!
And all who live on this earth
were terrified and silent
9 when you took over as judge,
ready to rescue
everyone in need.
10 Even the most angry people
will praise you
when you are furious.[d]
11 Everyone, make your promises
to the Lord your God
and do what you promise.
The Lord is fearsome,
and all his servants
should bring him gifts.
12 God destroys the courage
of rulers and kings
and makes cowards of them.
(A psalm by David.)
The Good Shepherd
1 You, Lord, are my shepherd.
I will never be in need.
2 (A) You let me rest in fields
of green grass.
You lead me to streams
of peaceful water,
3 and you refresh my life.
You are true to your name,
and you lead me
along the right paths.
4 I may walk through valleys
as dark as death,
but I won't be afraid.
You are with me,
and your shepherd's rod[a]
makes me feel safe.
5 You treat me to a feast,
while my enemies watch.
You honor me as your guest,
and you fill my cup
until it overflows.
6 Your kindness and love
will always be with me
each day of my life,
and I will live forever
in your house, Lord.
(By David.)
A Prayer of Praise
1 You, Lord, are the light
that keeps me safe.
I am not afraid of anyone.
You protect me,
and I have no fears.
2 Brutal people may attack
and try to kill me,
but they will stumble.
Fierce enemies may attack,
but they will fall.
3 Armies may surround me,
but I won't be afraid;
war may break out,
but I will trust you.
4 I ask only one thing, Lord:
Let me live in your house
every day of my life
to see how wonderful you are
and to pray in your temple.
5 In times of trouble, Lord,
you will protect me.
You will hide me in your tent
and keep me safe
on top of a mighty rock.[a]
6 You will let me defeat
all my enemies.
Then I will celebrate,
as I enter your tent
with animal sacrifices
and songs of praise.
7 Please listen when I pray!
Have pity. Answer my prayer.
8 My heart tells me to pray.
I am eager to see your face,
9 so don't hide from me.
I am your servant, Lord,
and you have helped me.
Don't turn from me in anger.
You alone keep me safe.
Don't reject or desert me.
10 Even if my father and mother
should desert me,
you will take care of me.
11 Teach me to follow, Lord,
and lead me on the right path
because of my enemies.
12 Don't let them do to me
what they want.
People tell lies about me
and make violent threats,
13 but I know I will live
to see how kind you are.
14 Trust the Lord!
Be brave and strong
and trust the Lord.
Final Warnings and Greetings
13 (A) I am on my way to visit you for the third time. And as the Scriptures say, “Any charges must be proved true by at least two or three witnesses.” 2 During my second visit I warned you that I would punish you and anyone else who doesn't stop sinning. I am far away from you now, but I give you the same warning. 3 This should prove to you that I am speaking for Christ. When he corrects you, he won't be weak. He will be powerful! 4 Although he was weak when he was nailed to the cross, he now lives by the power of God. We are weak, just as Christ was. But you will see that we will live by the power of God, just as Christ does.
5 Test yourselves and find out if you really are true to your faith. If you pass the test, you will discover that Christ is living in you. But if Christ isn't living in you, you have failed. 6 I hope you will discover we have not failed. 7 We pray you will stop doing evil things. We don't pray like this to make ourselves look good, but to get you to do right, even if we are failures.
8 All we can do is to follow the truth and not fight against it. 9 Even though we are weak, we are glad that you are strong, and we pray you will do even better. 10 I am writing these things to you before I arrive. This way I won't have to be hard on you when I use the authority the Lord has given me. I was given this authority, so I could help you and not destroy you.
11 Goodbye, my friends. Do better and pay attention to what I have said. Try to get along and live peacefully with each other.
Now I pray that God, who gives love and peace, will be with you. 12 Give each other a warm greeting. All God's people send their greetings.
13 I pray that the Lord Jesus Christ will bless you and be kind to you! May God bless you with his love, and may the Holy Spirit join all your hearts together.
A Question about Jesus' Authority
(Matthew 21.23-27; Mark 11.27-33)
20 One day, Jesus was teaching in the temple and telling the good news. So the chief priests, the teachers, and the nation's leaders 2 asked him, “What right do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?”
3 Jesus replied, “I want to ask you a question. 4 Who gave John the right to baptize? Was it God in heaven or merely some human being?”
5 They talked this over and said to each other, “We can't say God gave John this right. Jesus will ask us why we didn't believe John. 6 And we can't say it was merely some human who gave John the right to baptize. The crowd will stone us to death, because they think John was a prophet.”
7 So they told Jesus, “We don't know who gave John the right to baptize.”
8 Jesus replied, “Then I won't tell you who gave me the right to do what I do.”
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