Book of Common Prayer
Confidence in God’s protection.
For the Chief Musician; on a stringed instrument. A Psalm of David.
61 Hear my cry, O God;
Attend unto my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth will I call unto thee, when my heart [a]is overwhelmed:
Lead me to [b]the rock that is higher than I.
3 For thou hast been a refuge for me,
A strong tower from the enemy.
4 I will dwell in thy [c]tabernacle for ever:
I will take refuge in the covert of thy wings. Selah
5 For thou, O God, hast heard my vows:
Thou hast [d]given me the heritage of those that fear thy name.
6 Thou wilt prolong the king’s life;
His years shall be as many generations.
7 He shall abide before God for ever:
Oh prepare lovingkindness and truth, that they may preserve him.
8 So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever,
That I may daily perform my vows.
God alone a refuge from treachery and oppression.
For the Chief Musician; after the manner of Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
62 My soul [e]waiteth in silence for God only:
From him cometh my salvation.
2 He only is my rock and my salvation:
He is my high tower; I shall not be greatly moved.
3 How long will ye set upon a man,
[f]That ye may slay him, all of you,
Like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence?
4 They only consult to thrust him down from his dignity;
They delight in lies;
They bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah
5 My soul, [g]wait thou in silence for God only;
For my expectation is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation:
He is my high tower; I shall not be moved.
7 With God is my salvation and my glory:
The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
8 Trust in him at all times, ye people;
Pour out your heart before him:
God is a refuge for us. Selah
9 Surely men of low degree are [h]vanity, and men of high degree are a lie:
In the balances they will go up;
They are together lighter than vanity.
10 Trust not in oppression,
And become not vain in robbery:
If riches increase, set not your heart thereon.
11 God hath spoken once,
Twice have I heard this,
That power belongeth unto God.
12 Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth lovingkindness;
For thou renderest to every man according to his work.
Prosperity of him that fears Jehovah.
[a]112 Praise ye Jehovah.
Blessed is the man that feareth Jehovah,
That delighteth greatly in his commandments.
2 His seed shall be mighty upon earth:
The generation of the upright shall be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in his house;
And his righteousness endureth for ever.
4 Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness:
He is gracious, and merciful, and righteous.
5 Well is it with the man that dealeth graciously and lendeth;
He shall maintain his cause in judgment.
6 For he shall never be moved;
The righteous shall be had in everlasting remembrance.
7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings:
His heart is fixed, trusting in Jehovah.
8 His heart is established, he shall not be afraid,
Until he see his desire upon his adversaries.
9 He hath dispersed, he hath given to the needy;
His righteousness endureth for ever:
His horn shall be exalted with honor.
10 The wicked shall see it, and be grieved;
He shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away:
The desire of the wicked shall perish.
Heathen idols contrasted with Jehovah.
115 Not unto us, O Jehovah, not unto us,
But unto thy name give glory,
For thy lovingkindness, and for thy truth’s sake.
2 Wherefore should the nations say,
Where is now their God?
3 But our God is in the heavens:
He hath done whatsoever he pleased.
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of men’s hands.
5 They have mouths, but they speak not;
Eyes have they, but they see not;
6 They have ears, but they hear not;
Noses have they, but they smell not;
7 They have hands, but they handle not;
Feet have they, but they walk not;
Neither speak they through their throat.
8 They that make them shall be like unto them;
Yea, every one that trusteth in them.
9 O Israel, trust thou in Jehovah:
He is their help and their shield.
10 O house of Aaron, trust ye in Jehovah:
He is their help and their shield.
11 Ye that fear Jehovah, trust in Jehovah:
He is their help and their shield.
12 Jehovah hath been mindful of us; he will bless us:
He will bless the house of Israel;
He will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless them that fear Jehovah,
Both small and great.
14 Jehovah increase you more and more,
You and your children.
15 Blessed are ye of Jehovah,
Who made heaven and earth.
16 The heavens are the heavens of Jehovah;
But the earth hath he given to the children of men.
17 The dead praise not [a]Jehovah,
Neither any that go down into silence;
18 But we will bless [b]Jehovah
From this time forth and for evermore.
[c]Praise ye Jehovah.
14 Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. 15 Jehovah hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the King of Israel, even Jehovah, is in the midst of thee; thou shalt not [a]fear evil any more. 16 In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not; [b]O Zion, let not thy hands be slack. 17 Jehovah thy God is in the midst of thee, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will [c]rest in his love; he will joy over thee with singing. 18 [d]I will gather them that sorrow for the solemn assembly, who were of thee; to whom the burden upon [e]her was a reproach. 19 Behold, at that time I will deal with all them that afflict thee; and I will save that which is lame, and gather that which was driven away; and I will make them a praise and a name, whose shame hath been in all the earth. 20 At that time will I bring you in, and at that time will I gather you; for I will make you a name and a praise among all the peoples of the earth, when I [f]bring back your captivity before your eyes, saith Jehovah.
1 Paul, a [a]servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, 2 in hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised [b]before times eternal; 3 but in [c]his own seasons manifested his word in the [d]message, wherewith I was intrusted according to the commandment of God our Saviour; 4 to Titus, my true child after a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Saviour.
5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that were wanting, and appoint elders in every city, as I gave thee charge; 6 if any man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having children that believe, who are not accused of riot or unruly. 7 For the [e]bishop must be blameless, as God’s steward; not self-willed, not soon angry, [f]no brawler, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; 8 but given to hospitality, a lover of good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled; 9 holding to the faithful word which is according to the teaching, that he may be able both to exhort in the [g]sound [h]doctrine, and to convict the gainsayers.
10 For there are many unruly men, vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision, 11 whose mouths must be stopped; men who overthrow whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre’s sake. 12 One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said,
Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, idle [i]gluttons.
13 This testimony is true. For which cause reprove them sharply, that they may be [j]sound in the faith, 14 not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men who turn away from the truth. 15 To the pure all things are pure: but to them that are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. 16 They profess that they know God; but by their works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to draw up a narrative concerning those matters which have been [a]fulfilled among us, 2 even as they delivered them unto us, who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word, 3 it seemed good to me also, having traced the course of all things accurately from the first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus; 4 that thou mightest know the certainty concerning the [b]things [c]wherein thou wast instructed.
5 There was in the days of Herod, king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now [d]well stricken in years.
8 Now it came to pass, while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, 9 according to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to enter into the [e]temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: because thy supplication is heard, and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. 14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor [f]strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn unto the Lord their God. 17 And he shall [g]go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just; to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him. 18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife [h]well stricken in years. 19 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak unto thee, and to bring thee these good tidings. 20 And behold, thou shalt be silent and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall come to pass, because thou believedst not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season. 21 And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and they marvelled [i]while he tarried in the [j]temple. 22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the [k]temple: and he continued making signs unto them, and remained dumb. 23 And it came to pass, when the days of his ministration were fulfilled, he departed unto his house.
24 And after these days Elisabeth his wife conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying, 25 Thus hath the Lord done unto me in the days wherein he looked upon me, to take away my reproach among men.
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