Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 56
When I Am Afraid
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For the choir director. “A Dove on Distant Oaks.”[a]
By David. A miktam.[b]
When the Philistines had seized him in Gath.[c]
The Enemies
1 Be merciful to me, O God, for a man pants as he pursues me.[d]
All day long an attacker presses against me.
2 Those who spy on me pant as they pursue me all day long.
Yes, many are attacking me boldly.[e]
David’s Trust
3 On the day when I am afraid, I will trust in you.
4 In God I praise his word.
In God I trust. I will not fear.
What can flesh do to me?
The Enemies
5 All day long they hurt my cause.[f]
All their thoughts against me are evil.
6 They gather together. They hide.
They try to trip me by grabbing my heels
while they wait to take my life.
David’s Trust
7 Because of their wickedness do not let them escape.[g]
In your anger bring down the peoples, O God.
8 You keep a record of my tossing and turning.[h]
Keep my tears in your bottle.
Aren’t they all listed in your book?
9 Then my enemies will turn back on the day when I call.
This is how I will know that God is for me.
10 In God I praise a word.[i]
In the Lord I praise a word.
11 In God I trust. I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?
David’s Promise
12 My vows to you are binding, O God.
I will complete my thank offerings to you,
13 because you have delivered my life from death.
Have you not delivered my feet from stumbling
so I can walk before God in the light of life?
Psalm 57
Refuge in the Shadow of Your Wings
(Psalm 57:7-11 parallels Psalm 108:1-5)
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For the choir director. “Do Not Destroy.”[j] By David. A miktam.
When he fled from Saul. In the cave.[k]
The Opening Plea
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
have mercy on me,
because my soul has taken refuge in you.
In the shadow of your wings I will take refuge
until destruction has passed by.
2 I call to God Most High,
to God, who completes his plans for me.[l]
3 He will send from heaven, and he will save me. Interlude
He puts to shame the one who pants as he pursues me.[m]
God will send his mercy and his faithfulness.
The Problem
4 My life is spent among lions.
I lie down among ferocious men,
whose teeth are spears and arrows,
whose tongue is a sharp sword.
5 Be exalted above the heavens, O God.
May your glory be over all the earth.
6 They spread a net for my steps.
My soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in front of me. Interlude
They have fallen into it.
David’s Confidence
7 My heart is steadfast, O God.
My heart is steadfast.
I will sing and I will make music.
8 Awake, my soul![n]
Awake, harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.
9 I will give thanks to you among the peoples, O Lord.
I will make music to you among the nations,[o]
10 because your great mercy reaches above the heavens,
and your faithfulness to the skies.
11 Be exalted above the heavens, O God.
Let your glory be over all the earth.
Psalm 58
Do You Rulers Speak Justly?
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For the choir director. “Do Not Destroy.”[p] By David. A miktam.
Unjust Rulers
1 Do you “gods” really speak righteously?[q]
Do you sons of Adam judge rightly?
2 No, in your heart you commit injustices.
On the earth your hands distribute violence.
3 The wicked go off course already from the womb.
From the belly they go astray. They speak lies.
4 Their venom is like the venom of a snake,
like a deaf cobra that has stopped its ears,
5 that will not listen to the sound of the charmers,
however skillful the spellbinder may be.
The Curse on Unjust Rulers
6 O God, break their teeth in their mouths.
Tear out the fangs of the young lions, Lord!
7 Let them vanish like water that flows away.
When he draws his bow, let his arrows be cut off.[r]
8 As a slug melts away as it crawls along, so let him disappear.
Like a stillborn child may they not see the sun.
9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns—
whether the thorns are green or dry—they will be swept away.[s]
The Joy of the Righteous
10 The righteous one will be glad when he sees vengeance.
He will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Then people will say, “Surely there is fruit for the righteous.
Surely there is a God judging on the earth.”
Psalm 64
Hide Me From the Conspiracy
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For the choir director. A psalm by David.
Opening Plea
1 Hear my voice, O God, when I complain.
Protect my life from the terror caused by the enemy.
2 Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked,
from the noisy mob of evildoers.
The Enemies’ Wickedness
3 They sharpen their tongues like a sword.
They shoot poison words like arrows.
4 They shoot at the innocent from hiding places.
Suddenly they shoot at him. They have no fear.
5 They strengthen each other in an evil plot.
They discuss where to hide snares.
They say, “Who will see them?”
6 They plot evil deeds and they say,
“We have come up with a perfect plot!”
The mind and heart of man are devious!
God’s Judgment
7 But God will shoot them.
Suddenly they are wounded with an arrow.
8 Their own tongues cause their downfall.[a]
Everyone who sees them will shake his head.
The Joy of the Godly
9 Then all people will be afraid.
They will proclaim the work of God.
They will consider what he has done.
10 Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord
and take refuge in him.
Let all the upright in heart be confident!
Psalm 65
A Thanksgiving Psalm: You Crown the Year With Goodness
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For the choir director. A psalm by David. A song.
Introduction
1 Praise waits for you,[b] O God, in Zion.
To you vows will be fulfilled.
2 You who hear prayer, to you all mortals[c] will come.
Spiritual Blessings
3 The record of my guilt overpowered me.
You atone for our rebellious acts.
4 How blessed is the one you choose and bring near!
He will dwell in your courtyards.
We will be satisfied by the goodness of your house,
by the holiness of your temple.
Blessings on the Nations
5 In righteousness you answer us with awesome deeds,
O God who saves us.
He is trusted by all the farthest ends of the earth and the sea.
6 He establishes the mountains by his power.
He has wrapped himself with strength.
7 He stills the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
and the turmoil of the peoples.
8 Those living at the ends of the earth fear your signs.
From sunrise to sunset you let them shout for joy.
Blessings of the Harvest
9 You visit the earth and water it.
You make it very rich.
God’s stream is filled with water.
You provide grain for them, just as you planned.
10 You drench the land’s furrows. You flatten its plowed ground.
You soften it with showers. You bless its crops.
11 You crown the year with your goodness.
The tracks made by your carts overflow with riches.[d]
12 The pastures of the wilderness drip.
The hills are wrapped with joy.
13 The meadows are clothed with flocks.
The valleys are dressed with grain.
They shout for joy. Yes! They sing.
David Reigns in Hebron
2 After this, David asked the Lord, “Should I go up into one of the cities of Judah?”
The Lord said to him, “Go up.”
David said, “Where shall I go up?”
The Lord said, “To Hebron.”
2 So David went there with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezre’el and Abigail of Carmel, who was Nabal’s widow. 3 David also brought along the men who were with him, each man together with his household, and they settled in the towns around Hebron.
4 The men of Judah came there and anointed David to be king over the house of Judah.
David was told, “The men of Jabesh Gilead are the ones who buried Saul.” 5 So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead and said to them, “You are blessed by the Lord because you performed this act of mercy and faithfulness for your master Saul by burying him. 6 Now may the Lord deal with you with mercy and faithfulness. I also will treat you well because you have done this. 7 Now let your hands be strong and courageous, for your master Saul is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me to be king over them.”
8 However, Abner son of Ner, the commander of Saul’s army, had taken Ishbosheth,[a] the son of Saul, to Mahanaim 9 and made him king over Gilead, Ashuri,[b] and Jezre’el, and over Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel. 10 Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he reigned for two years.
But the house of Judah followed David. 11 David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah for seven years and six months.
Paul and Barnabas Go Separate Ways
36 After a time Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s return and visit the[a] brothers[b] in every town where we have preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, who is called Mark, along with them. 38 But Paul did not think it was a good idea to take him along, since he had deserted them in Pamphylia and did not continue to travel with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and set out, after being entrusted to the grace of the Lord[c] by the brothers. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.
Timothy Joins Paul and Silas
16 Paul arrived in Derbe and in Lystra, where there was a disciple named Timothy, who was the son of a believing Jewish woman, but his father was a Greek. 2 The brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, so he took him and circumcised him on account of the Jews who lived in those places, because they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they traveled through the towns, they delivered the resolutions decided by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to keep. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and increased in number day by day.
Recalling the Death of John the Baptizer
14 King Herod heard about this because Jesus’ name had become well known. Herod was saying, “John the Baptizer has been raised from the dead! That is why these powers are at work in him.”
15 But others were saying, “He is Elijah.” Still others were saying, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.”
16 When Herod heard this, he said, “This is John, the man I beheaded. He was raised.” 17 For it was Herod who had sent men to arrest John. He had him bound in prison because Herod had married Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 18 Indeed, John had been telling him, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
19 Herodias held a grudge against John and wanted to put him to death, but she could not, 20 because Herod feared John. He knew that John was a righteous and holy man, so he kept him safe. When Herod listened to John, he was perplexed in many ways, yet he gladly kept listening to him.
21 An opportune day came when it was Herod’s birthday. He gave a banquet for his nobles, the military officers, and the prominent men of Galilee. 22 When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” 23 With an oath he promised her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.”
24 She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?”
Herodias said, “The head of John the Baptizer.”
25 The girl hurried right back to the king and made her request: “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter right now.”
26 The king was very sad. But because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27 The king sent an executioner at once and ordered him to bring John’s head. He went, beheaded John in prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother.
29 When John’s disciples heard about this, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.