Book of Common Prayer
Betrayal of a Friend and Trust in God
For the music director, with stringed instruments.
A maskil of David.[a]
55 Give ear, O God, to my prayer,
and do not hide yourself from my plea.
2 Attend to me and answer me.
I am restless in my lamenting and I groan,
3 because of the voice of an enemy,
because of the oppression of the wicked,
because they bring down evil on me,
and in anger they hold a grudge against me.
4 My heart trembles within me,
and deathly terrors fall on me.
5 Fear and trembling come on me,
and horror overwhelms me.
6 So I say, “Oh, that[b] I had wings like a dove.
I would fly away and be at rest.
7 Look, I would flee far away.
I would dwell in the wilderness. Selah
8 I would hurry to my refuge
from the raging wind and storm.”
9 Confuse, O Lord; divide their speech,
because I see violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go around it on its walls,
and iniquity and trouble are in its midst.
11 Destruction is within it,
and oppression and deceit
do not depart from its public square.
12 For it is not an enemy that taunts me,
or I could bear it.
It is not one who hates me that magnifies himself over me,
or I could hide myself from him.
13 But it is you, a man my equal,
my friend and confidant.
14 We who would take sweet counsel together;
in the house[c] of God
we would walk with the throng.
15 Let death deceive them. May they descend to Sheol alive,
because evil is in their home and heart.[d]
16 As for me, I will call to God,
and Yahweh will save me.
17 Morning, noon and night[e] I will lament and groan loudly,
and he will hear my voice.
18 He safely redeems my life from the battle against me,[f]
because those standing against me are among many.
19 God will hear and answer them,[g]
he who is enthroned from of old, Selah
Because they do not change,
and they do not fear God.
20 He has put forth his hands against his friends;[h]
he has defiled his covenant.
21 The buttery words[i] of his mouth were smooth,
but there was battle in his heart.
His words were smoother than oil,
but they were drawn swords.
22 Cast your burden on Yahweh,
and he will sustain you.
He will never allow the righteous to be moved.[j]
23 But you, O God, you will bring them down to the pit of corruption.
The men of bloodshed and deceit will not live half their days,
but I will trust you.
Thanksgiving for Yahweh’s Goodness
Of David.[a]
138 I give you thanks with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise.
2 I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name,
because of your loyal love and faithfulness,
for you have magnified your word[b] according to all your name.[c]
3 When[d] I called and you answered me,
you emboldened me in my soul with strength.
4 All the kings of the earth
will praise you, O Yahweh,
when they have heard the words[e] of your mouth,
5 and they will sing of the ways of Yahweh,
because Yahweh’s glory is great.
6 Though Yahweh is high, yet he sees the lowly,
but the proud he perceives[f] at a distance.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve me alive.
You stretch out your hand against the anger of my enemies,
and you save me with your right hand.
8 Yahweh accomplishes things for my benefit.
O Yahweh, your loyal love endures forever;
do not abandon the works of your hands.
The Knowledge of God
For the music director. Of David. A psalm.[g]
139 O Yahweh, you have searched me, and you know me.
2 You know my sitting down and my rising up.
You understand my thought from afar.
3 You search out[h] my wandering and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word yet on my tongue,
but behold, O Yahweh, you know it completely.
5 You barricade me behind and in front,
and set your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me.
It is set high; I cannot prevail against it.
7 Where I can go from your Spirit,
or where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, there you are,
and if I make my bed in Sheol, look! There you are.
9 If I lift up the wings of the dawn,
and I alight on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand would lead me,
and your right hand would hold me fast.
11 And if I should say, “Surely darkness will cover me,
and the light around me will be as night,”
12 even the darkness is not too dark for you,[i]
and the night shines as the day—
the darkness and the light are alike for you.
13 Indeed you created my inward parts;[j]
you wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, because I am fearfully
and wonderfully made.[k]
Wonderful are your works,
and my soul knows it well.
15 My frame[l] was not hidden from you,
when I was created secretly,[m]
and intricately woven
in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my embryo,[n]
and in your book they all were written—
days fashioned for me when there was not one of them.
17 And to me, how precious[o] are your thoughts, O God;
how vast is their sum.
18 If I should count them,
they would outnumber the sand.
I awaken, and I am still with you.
19 If only you would kill the wicked, O God—
so get away from me, you bloodthirsty men—[p]
20 who speak against you deceitfully.
Your enemies take your name in vain.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Yahweh?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
22 I hate them with a complete hatred;
they have become my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
9 “Thus says Yahweh of hosts: ‘Let your hands be strong, you[a] who are hearing in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets who were present on the day the foundation was laid for the rebuilding of the temple, the house of Yahweh of hosts.[b] 10 For before those days there was no wage for people or for animals, and there was no safety from the enemy for those who went out or those who came in, and I sent each person against one another.[c] 11 But now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as in the former days,’[d] declares[e] Yahweh of hosts. 12 ‘For there will be a sowing of peace; the vine will give its fruit, and the soil will give its produce, and the heavens will give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things. 13 And then,[f] just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you will be a blessing. You must not be afraid; let your hands be strong!’”
14 For thus says Yahweh of hosts: “Just as I planned to bring disaster[g] on you when your ancestors[h] provoked me to anger,” says Yahweh of hosts, “and I did not regret it, 15 so again I have planned[i] in these days to do good to Jerusalem and the house of Judah. Do not be afraid! 16 These are the things that you must do: speak truth, each of you, with his neighbor; practice trustworthy judgment and peace in your gates. 17 Do not devise evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and do not love a false oath,[j] because all these are things I hate,” declares[k] Yahweh.
The Opening of the First Six Seals
6 And I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying like the sound of thunder, “Come!” 2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse, and the one seated on it had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and in order that he might conquer.
3 And when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come!” 4 And another horse came out, fiery red, and it was granted to the one seated on it to take peace from the earth, and that they would slaughter one another, and a large sword was given to him.
5 And when he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a black horse, and the one seated on it had a balance scale in his hand. 6 And I heard something like a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and do not damage the olive oil and the wine!”
7 And when he opened the fourth seal, I heard a voice from the fourth living creature saying, “Come!” 8 And I looked, and behold, a pale green horse, and the one seated on it was named[a] Death, and Hades followed after him. And authority was granted to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill by the sword and by famine and by pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth.
9 And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slaughtered because of the word of God and because of the testimony which they had, 10 and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long[b], holy and true Lord, will you not judge and avenge our blood from those who live on the earth?” 11 And to each one of them a white robe was given, and it was said to them that they should rest yet a short time, until the number of their fellow slaves and their brothers who were about to be killed as they had been were completed also.
12 And I watched when he opened the sixth seal, and a great earthquake took place, and the sun became black like sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood, 13 and the stars of heaven[c] fell to the earth like a fig tree throws down its unripe figs when[d] shaken by a great wind. 14 And the sky was split apart like a scroll that is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved from their place. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the most important people, and the military leaders, and the rich, and the powerful, and every slave and free person hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, 16 And they said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the one who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 because the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
The Judgment of the Sheep and the Goats
31 Now when the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 And all the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them from one another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right and the goats on the left. 34 Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world! 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something[a] to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something[b] to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me as a guest, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you cared for me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,[c] or thirsty and give you something[d] to drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you[e] as a guest, or naked and clothe you?[f] 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and come to you?’ 40 And the king will answer and[g] say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, in as much as you did it[h] to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it[i] to me.’ 41 Then he will also say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed ones, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels! 42 For I was hungry and you did not give me anything[j] to eat, I was thirsty and you did not give me anything[k] to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not care for me.’ 44 Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and not serve you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly I say to you, in as much as you did not do it[l] to one of the least of these, you did not do it[m] to me.’ 46 And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
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