Book of Common Prayer
I Cry Out Day and Night Before You
A Song. A Psalm of (A)the Sons of Korah. To the choirmaster: according to (B)Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil[a] of (C)Heman the Ezrahite.
88 O Lord, (D)God of my salvation,
I (E)cry out day and night before you.
2 Let my prayer come before you;
(F)incline your ear to my cry!
3 For my soul is full of troubles,
and (G)my life draws near to (H)Sheol.
4 I am counted among those who (I)go down to the pit;
I am a man who has no strength,
5 like one set loose among the dead,
like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom (J)you remember no more,
for they are (K)cut off from your hand.
6 You have put me in (L)the depths of the pit,
in the (M)regions dark and (N)deep.
7 Your wrath (O)lies heavy upon me,
and you overwhelm me with (P)all your waves. Selah
8 You have caused (Q)my companions to shun me;
you have made me (R)a horror[b] to them.
I am (S)shut in so that I cannot escape;
9 (T)my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call upon you, O Lord;
I (U)spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you work wonders for the dead?
(V)Do the departed rise up to praise you? Selah
11 Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Are your (W)wonders known in (X)the darkness,
or your righteousness in the land of (Y)forgetfulness?
13 But I, O Lord, cry (Z)to you;
(AA)in the morning my prayer comes before you.
14 O Lord, why (AB)do you cast my soul away?
Why (AC)do you hide your face from me?
15 Afflicted and close to death from my youth up,
I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.[c]
16 Your wrath has swept over me;
your (AD)dreadful assaults destroy me.
17 They (AE)surround me like a flood (AF)all day long;
they (AG)close in on me together.
18 You have caused (AH)my beloved and my friend to shun me;
my companions have become darkness.[d]
My Refuge and My Fortress
91 He who dwells in (A)the shelter of the Most High
will abide in (B)the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say[a] to the Lord, “My (C)refuge and my (D)fortress,
my God, in whom I (E)trust.”
3 For he will deliver you from (F)the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will (G)cover you with his pinions,
and under his (H)wings you will (I)find refuge;
his (J)faithfulness is (K)a shield and buckler.
5 (L)You will not fear (M)the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes
and (N)see the recompense of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the Lord your (O)dwelling place—
the Most High, who is my (P)refuge[b]—
10 (Q)no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
(R)no plague come near your tent.
11 (S)For he will command his (T)angels concerning you
to (U)guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you (V)strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on (W)the lion and the (X)adder;
the young lion and (Y)the serpent you will (Z)trample underfoot.
14 “Because he (AA)holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he (AB)knows my name.
15 When he (AC)calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and (AD)honor him.
16 With (AE)long life I will satisfy him
and (AF)show him my salvation.”
How Great Are Your Works
A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath.
92 (AG)It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, (AH)O Most High;
2 to declare your (AI)steadfast love in (AJ)the morning,
and your (AK)faithfulness by (AL)night,
3 to the music of (AM)the lute and (AN)the harp,
to the melody of (AO)the lyre.
4 For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your (AP)work;
at (AQ)the works of your hands I sing for joy.
5 How (AR)great are your works, O Lord!
Your (AS)thoughts are very (AT)deep!
6 The stupid man cannot know;
the fool cannot understand this:
7 that though (AU)the wicked sprout like grass
and all (AV)evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever;
8 but you, O Lord, are (AW)on high forever.
9 For behold, your enemies, O Lord,
for behold, your enemies shall perish;
all evildoers shall be (AX)scattered.
10 But you have exalted my (AY)horn like that of (AZ)the wild ox;
you have (BA)poured over me[c] fresh oil.
11 My (BB)eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.
12 (BC)The righteous flourish like the palm tree
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 They are planted in the house of the Lord;
they flourish in (BD)the courts of our God.
14 They still bear fruit in old age;
they are ever full of sap and green,
15 (BE)to declare that the Lord is upright;
he is my (BF)rock, and there is (BG)no unrighteousness in him.
17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel, and he saw the company of Jehu as he came and said, “I see a company.” And Joram said, “Take a horseman and send to meet them, and let him say, ‘Is it peace?’” 18 So a man on horseback went to meet him and said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu said, “What do you have to do with peace? Turn around and ride behind me.” And the watchman reported, saying, “The messenger reached them, but he is not coming back.” 19 Then he sent out a second horseman, who came to them and said, “Thus the king has said, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu answered, “What do you have to do with peace? Turn around and ride behind me.” 20 Again the watchman reported, “He reached them, but he is not coming back. And the driving (A)is like the driving of Jehu (B)the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”
21 Joram said, (C)“Make ready.” And they made ready his chariot. (D)Then Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah set out, each in his chariot, and went to meet Jehu, and met him (E)at the property of Naboth the Jezreelite. 22 And when Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” He answered, “What peace can there be, so long as (F)the whorings and the sorceries of your mother Jezebel are so many?” 23 Then Joram reined about and fled, saying to Ahaziah, “Treachery, O Ahaziah!” 24 And Jehu drew his bow with his full strength, and shot Joram between the shoulders, so that the arrow pierced his heart, and he sank in his chariot. 25 Jehu said to Bidkar (G)his aide, “Take him up and throw him (H)on the plot of ground belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember, when you and I rode side by side behind Ahab his father, how (I)the Lord made this (J)pronouncement against him: 26 ‘As surely as I saw yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons—declares the Lord—I will repay you on this plot of ground.’ Now therefore take him up and throw him on the plot of ground, in accordance with the word of the Lord.”
27 (K)When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled in the direction of Beth-haggan. And Jehu pursued him and said, “Shoot him also.” And they shot him[a] in the chariot at the ascent of Gur, which is by (L)Ibleam. And he fled to (M)Megiddo and died there. 28 (N)His servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his tomb with his fathers in the city of David.
29 In the (O)eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab, Ahaziah began to reign over Judah.
Jehu Executes Jezebel
30 When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it. And (P)she painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out of the window. 31 And as Jehu entered the gate, she said, (Q)“Is it peace, you Zimri, murderer of your master?” 32 And he lifted up his face to the window and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked out at him. 33 He said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down. And some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and they trampled on her. 34 Then he went in and ate and drank. And he said, “See now to this cursed woman and bury her, (R)for she is a king's daughter.” 35 But when they went to bury her, they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. 36 When they came back and told him, he said, “This is the word of the Lord, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite: (S)‘In the territory of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel, 37 and the corpse of Jezebel shall be (T)as dung on the face of the field in the territory of Jezreel, so that no one can say, This is Jezebel.’”
Principles for Marriage
7 Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: (A)“It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” 2 But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. 3 (B)The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4 For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 5 (C)Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, (D)so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
6 Now as a concession, (E)not a command, I say this.[a] 7 (F)I wish that all were (G)as I myself am. But (H)each has his own gift from God, (I)one of one kind and one of another.
8 To the unmarried and the widows I say that (J)it is good for them to remain single, (K)as I am. 9 But if they cannot exercise self-control, (L)they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as (A)the Gentiles do, for (B)they think that they will be heard (C)for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, (D)for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 (E)Pray then like this:
(F)“Our Father in heaven,
(G)hallowed be (H)your name.[a]
10 (I)Your kingdom come,
(J)your will be done,[b]
(K)on earth as it is in heaven.
11 (L)Give us (M)this day our daily bread,[c]
12 and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And (N)lead us not into temptation,
but (O)deliver us from (P)evil.[d]
14 (Q)For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 (R)but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.