Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 131
My Heart Is Not Proud
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A song of the ascents. By David.
Like a Satisfied Baby
1 Lord, my heart is not haughty,
and my eyes are not proud.
So I do not intrude into great matters
or into things too wonderful for me.
2 Instead I have soothed and quieted my soul.
As a nursed child rests with its mother,
like a nursed[a] child my soul rests with me.
3 Wait confidently, O Israel, for the Lord
from now to eternity.
Psalm 132
Remember David and His Son
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A song of the ascents.
David’s Oath
1 Remember for David’s sake, O Lord, all his afflictions.
2 Remember how he swore to the Lord.
He made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:
3 “I will not enter my own house.[b]
I will not get into my own bed.[c]
4 I will not allow my eyes to sleep
or my eyelids to slumber,
5 until I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
Israel’s Response
6 Yes, we heard about it in Ephrathah.
We found it in the fields of Ja’ar.
7 Let us go to his dwelling place.
Let us bow down at his footstool.
8 Arise, O Lord, come to your resting place,
you and the ark of your strength.
9 May your priests be clothed with righteousness.
May your favored ones shout for joy.
10 For the sake of David your servant,
do not reject the face of your Anointed One.[d]
The Lord’s Oath
11 The Lord swore to David
a truth from which he will not turn back:
“From the fruit of your body
I will place kings on your throne.
12 If your sons keep my covenant
and my testimonies that I teach them,
then their sons will sit on your throne forever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Zion.
He has desired it for his dwelling.
14 “This is my resting place forever.
Here I will live, for I have desired it.
15 I will bless her greatly with food.
I will satisfy Zion’s poor with bread.
16 I will clothe her priests with salvation,
and her favored ones will shout for joy.
17 There I will make a horn shoot up for David.
I will set up a lamp for my Anointed One.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
but on him his crown will be beautiful.”
Psalm 133
Pleasant Unity
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A song of the ascents. By David.
Pleasant Unity
1 Look, how good and how pleasant it is
when brothers live together in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron,
running down on the collar of his robes.
3 It is like the dew from Hermon
running down on the mountains of Zion.
For there the Lord commands this blessing: life to eternity.
Psalm 134
The Pilgrims’ Blessing
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A song of the ascents.
The People
1 Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand in the house of the Lord at night.
2 Lift up your hands toward the sanctuary
and bless the Lord.
The Priests
3 May the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.
Psalm 135
Israel, Praise the Lord
Introduction
1 Praise the Lord.[e]
Praise the name of the Lord.
Praise him, you servants of the Lord,
2 who stand in the house of the Lord,
in the courtyards of the house of our God.
3 Praise the Lord,[f] for the Lord is good.
Make music to his name, for it is pleasant.
4 Yes, the Lord chose Jacob for himself.
He chose Israel as his special treasure.
The Superiority of the Lord
5 Yes, I know that the Lord is great.
Our Lord is greater than all gods.
6 The Lord does whatever he pleases
in the heavens and on the earth,
in the seas and in all the depths.
7 He makes clouds rise from the end of the earth.
He sends lightning for the rainstorm.
He releases the wind from his storehouses.
8 He is the one who struck down
the firstborn of Egypt, both men and animals.
9 Egypt! He sent warning signs into your midst,
against Pharaoh and against all his officials.
10 He is the one who struck down many nations.
He killed mighty kings—
11 Sihon king of the Amorites,
and Og king of Bashan,
and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
12 He gave their land as a possession,
a possession to Israel, his people.
13 Lord, your name stands forever.
Lord, your reputation remains through all generations.
14 For the Lord will judge in favor of his people.
He will have pity on his servants.
15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands.
16 They have a mouth, but they cannot speak.
They have eyes, but they cannot see.
17 They have ears, but cannot hear.
There is not even any breath in their mouths.
18 Those who make them will be like them.
So will all who trust in them.
Conclusion
19 House of Israel, bless the Lord.
House of Aaron, bless the Lord.
20 House of Levi, bless the Lord.
You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
21 The Lord, who dwells in Jerusalem, will be blessed from Zion.
Praise the Lord.
The Aftermath of the Battle
19 Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.”[a] 2 The victory that day became an occasion for mourning for all the people, because that day the people heard that the king was mourning for his son. 3 That day the people were sneaking into the city quietly, the way people who are ashamed of fleeing from the battle would sneak in quietly. 4 The king covered his face and cried with a loud voice, “My son Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son.”
5 Joab came to the king at the house and said, “Today you have put to shame all your followers, who today have saved your life, the lives of your sons and daughters, and the lives of your wives and concubines. 6 You love those who hate you and hate those who love you. You have demonstrated clearly today that your officers and followers are nothing to you. Today I have no doubt that if Absalom were alive and all of us were dead, you would be pleased. 7 Now get up. Go out. Speak to the hearts of your followers. For by the Lord, I swear that if you do not go out, not a man will remain with you tonight, and this disaster will be greater for you than all the disasters that have come upon you from your youth until now.”
8 So the king got up and took his seat by the gate. All the people were told, “Look! The king is sitting in the gate.” So all the people came into the presence of the king.
Israel had fled, every man to his own home. 9 All the people in all the tribes of Israel were quarreling and saying, “The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies. He saved us from the hand of the Philistines. Now he has fled out of the land from Absalom. 10 But Absalom, whom we anointed over us, has died in battle. Now why are you silent about bringing back the king?”
11 King David sent a message to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests. He said, “Speak to the elders of Judah. Ask them, ‘Why will you be the last to bring the king back to his palace?’ The plan that all Israel has been discussing has been reported to the king at his house. 12 You are my brothers. You are my flesh and blood.[b] Why will you be the last to bring back the king?”
13 He also said, “Say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my flesh and blood? May God punish me severely and double it,[c] if you are not the permanent commander of my army in place of Joab.’”
14 David turned the hearts of all the men of Judah as if they were one man. They sent to the king and said, “Return, you and all your servants.”
15 So the king returned and came to the Jordan. The men of Judah came out to Gilgal to meet the king and to bring the king across the Jordan.
16 Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, hurried and came down with the men of Judah to meet King David. 17 One thousand men from Benjamin were with him. Also, Ziba, the manager of the house of Saul, came, along with his fifteen sons and his twenty servants. They rushed down to the Jordan ahead of the king. 18 They crossed over the ford to escort the household of the king across and to make a good impression on the king.
Shimei son of Gera bowed down before the king when he was crossing over the Jordan. 19 He spoke to the king: “My lord, do not consider me guilty. Do not remember the wrong your servant did on the day that my lord the king went out from Jerusalem, and do not take it to heart, 20 for I, your servant, know that I have sinned. Look! I have come today, the first one from the whole house of Joseph to come down to welcome my lord the king.”
21 Abishai son of Zeruiah answered, “Shouldn’t Shimei be put to death because he cursed the anointed of the Lord?”
22 But David said, “What do we have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? For today you are my adversaries. Should any man in Israel be put to death today? Do I not know that today I am king over Israel?” 23 The king said to Shimei, “You will not die.” The king took an oath concerning him.
Paul on Trial Before Felix
24 Five days later the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and a lawyer named Tertullus. They brought formal charges against Paul to the governor.
2 When Paul was called in, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying, “We are enjoying a long period of peace because of you, most excellent Felix, and reforms are coming to this nation because of your foresight. 3 In every way and in every place, we acknowledge this with all gratitude. 4 But in order not to detain you any longer, I beg you in your kindness to give us a brief hearing. 5 For we have found this man to be a public menace, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the Nazarene sect. 6 He even tried to desecrate the temple, so we arrested him.[a] 8 By examining him yourself, you will be able to learn from him about all these accusations we are bringing against him.”
9 The Jews also joined in the attack, asserting that these things were so.
10 When the governor motioned to him to speak, Paul replied, “Because I know that you have been a judge over this nation for many years, I gladly make my defense. 11 You can verify for yourself that it was no more than twelve days ago when I went up to worship at Jerusalem. 12 They did not find me arguing with anyone in the temple or stirring up a crowd in the synagogues or anywhere else in the city. 13 And they cannot prove to you the accusations they are now making against me.
14 “But I do confess to you that I worship the God of our fathers according to the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything written throughout the Law and in the Prophets; 15 and I have the same hope in God that these men have, that there is going to be a resurrection[b] of both the righteous and the unrighteous. 16 This is the reason I continue to do my best to have a clear conscience toward both God and people.
17 “After several years, I came to bring my people gifts for the poor and to present offerings. 18 While I was doing these things, they found me ceremonially purified in the temple, without a crowd or disturbance. 19 But there are some Jews from the province of Asia who ought to be here before you and bring charges, if they have anything against me. 20 Or let these men here state what crime they found in me when I stood before the Sanhedrin, 21 unless this is about the one thing I shouted while standing in their presence: ‘It is concerning the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you today.’”
22 Then Felix,[c] because he was rather well informed about the Way, adjourned the proceedings. He said, “When Lysias the commander comes down, I will decide your case.” 23 He ordered the centurion to guard Paul, but to let him have some freedom and not to prevent any of his friends from taking care of his needs.
Love God and Your Neighbor
28 One of the experts in the law approached after he heard their discussion. When he saw that Jesus had answered them well, he asked Jesus, “Which commandment is the greatest of all?”
29 Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord, our God, the Lord is one. 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’[a] 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] There is no other commandment greater than these.”
32 The expert in the law said to him, “Well said, teacher. You have spoken correctly on the basis of the truth that he is one, and there is no other besides him.[c] 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself, is more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”[d]
34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.