Book of Common Prayer
The Reign of the Righteous King.
A Psalm of Solomon.
72 Give the king (A)Your judgments, God,
And (B)Your righteousness to the king’s son.
2 [a]May [b]he (C)judge Your people with righteousness
And [c](D)Your afflicted with justice.
3 [d]May the mountains bring [e](E)peace to the people,
And the hills, in righteousness.
4 [f]May he (F)vindicate the [g]afflicted of the people,
Save the children of the needy,
And crush the oppressor.
5 [h]May they fear You (G)while the sun shines,
And [i]as long as the moon shines, throughout all generations.
6 [j]May he come down (H)like rain upon the mown grass,
Like (I)showers that water the earth.
7 [k]May the (J)righteous flourish in his days,
As well as an (K)abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.
8 May he also rule (L)from sea to sea,
And from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9 [l]May (M)the nomads of the desert (N)bow before him,
And his enemies (O)lick the dust.
10 [m]May the kings of (P)Tarshish and of the [n](Q)islands bring gifts;
May the kings of (R)Sheba and (S)Seba (T)offer tributes.
11 [o]And may all (U)kings bow down before him,
All (V)nations serve him.
12 For he will (W)save the needy when he cries for help,
The [p]afflicted also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will have (X)compassion on the poor and needy,
And he will save the [q]lives of the needy.
14 He will [r](Y)rescue their [s]life from oppression and violence,
And their blood will be (Z)precious in his sight;
15 So may he live, and may the (AA)gold of Sheba be given to him;
And [t]they are to pray for him continually;
[u]They are to bless him all day long.
16 May there be abundance of grain on the earth on top of the mountains;
Its fruit will wave like the cedars of (AB)Lebanon;
And may those from the city flourish like the (AC)vegetation of the earth.
17 May his (AD)name endure forever;
May his name produce descendants [v](AE)as long as the sun shines;
And may people (AF)wish blessings on themselves by him;
(AG)May all nations call him blessed.
18 (AH)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone (AI)works wonders.
19 And blessed be His (AJ)glorious name forever;
And may the whole (AK)earth be filled with His glory.
(AL)Amen and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
The Lord Praised for His Goodness.
111 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!
I (A)will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart,
In the (B)company of the upright and in the assembly.
2 (C)Great are the works of the Lord;
They are [c](D)studied by all who delight in them.
3 [d](E)Splendid and majestic is His work,
And (F)His righteousness endures forever.
4 He has caused His [e]wonders [f]to be remembered;
The Lord is (G)gracious and compassionate.
5 He has (H)given [g]food to those who [h]fear Him;
He will (I)remember His covenant forever.
6 He has made known to His people the power of His works,
In giving them the inheritance of the nations.
7 The works of His hands are [i](J)truth and justice;
All His precepts (K)are trustworthy.
8 They are (L)upheld forever and ever;
They are performed in [j](M)truth and uprightness.
9 He has sent (N)redemption to His people;
He has [k]ordained His covenant forever;
(O)Holy and [l]awesome is His name.
10 The [m](P)fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
All those who [n]follow (Q)His commandments have a good understanding;
His (R)praise endures forever.
The Lord Exalts the Humble.
113 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!
(A)Praise Him, you (B)servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord.
2 (C)Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time on and forever.
3 (D)From [c]the rising of the sun to its setting,
The (E)name of the Lord is to be praised.
4 The Lord is (F)high above all nations;
His (G)glory is above the heavens.
5 (H)Who is like the Lord our God,
Who (I)is enthroned on high,
6 Who (J)looks far down to
The heavens and the earth?
7 He (K)raises the poor from the dust,
He lifts the needy from the garbage heap,
8 To (L)seat them with noblemen,
With the noblemen of His people.
9 He (M)has the infertile woman live in the house
As a joyful mother of children.
[d]Praise [e]the Lord!
David Plans to Build a Temple
7 (A)Now it came about, when the king lived in his house, and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies, 2 that the king said to (B)Nathan the prophet, “See now, I live in (C)a house of cedar, but the ark of God (D)remains within the tent.” 3 Nathan said to the king, “(E)Go, do all that is in your mind, for the Lord is with you.”
4 But in the same night, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and say to My servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: “(F)Should you build Me a house for My dwelling? 6 For (G)I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the sons of Israel from Egypt, even to this day; rather, I have been moving about (H)in a tent, that is, in a dwelling place. 7 (I)Wherever I have gone with all the sons of Israel, did I speak a word with one of the tribes of Israel, (J)whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’”’
God’s Covenant with David
8 Now then, this is what you shall say to My servant David: ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “(K)I Myself took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, (L)to be leader over My people Israel. 9 And (M)I have been with you wherever you have gone, and (N)have eliminated all your enemies from you; I will also make a great name for you, like the names of the great men who [a]are on the earth. 10 And I will establish a place for My people Israel, and (O)will plant them, so that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, (P)nor will [b]malicious people oppress them anymore as previously, 11 even (Q)from the day that I appointed judges over My people Israel; and (R)I will give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord also declares to you that (S)the Lord will make a house for you. 12 (T)When your days are finished and you [c](U)lie down with your fathers, (V)I will raise up your [d]descendant after you, who will come from [e]you, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 (W)He shall build a house for My name, and (X)I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 (Y)I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; (Z)when he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and with strokes of sons of mankind, 15 but My favor shall not depart from him, (AA)as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from you. 16 (AB)Your house and your kingdom shall endure before [f]Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.”’” 17 In accordance with all these words and all of this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
11 For the grace of God has (A)appeared, [a](B)bringing salvation to all people, 12 [b]instructing us to deny ungodliness and (C)worldly desires and (D)to live sensibly, righteously, and in a godly manner (E)in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and the (F)appearing of the glory of [c](G)our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, 14 who (H)gave Himself for us (I)to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to (J)purify for Himself a (K)people for His own possession, (L)eager for good deeds.
15 These things speak and [d](M)exhort, and (N)rebuke with all authority. (O)No one is to disregard you.
Godly Living
3 (P)Remind them (Q)to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be (R)ready for every good deed, 2 to slander no one, (S)not to be contentious, to be (T)gentle, (U)showing every consideration for all people. 3 (V)For we too were once foolish, (W)disobedient, (X)deceived, (Y)enslaved to (Z)various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in (AA)malice and (AB)envy, hateful, hating one another. 4 But when the (AC)kindness of (AD)God our Savior and His love for mankind (AE)appeared, 5 (AF)He saved us, (AG)not on the basis of deeds which we did in righteousness, but (AH)in accordance with His mercy, by the (AI)washing of regeneration and (AJ)renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 (AK)whom He (AL)richly poured out upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by His grace we would be made (AM)heirs [e]according to the hope of eternal life. 8 (AN)This statement is trustworthy; and concerning these things I (AO)want you to speak confidently, so that those who have (AP)believed God will be careful to (AQ)engage in good deeds. These things are good and beneficial for people.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39 Now [a]at this time Mary set out and went in a hurry to (A)the hill country, to a city of Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was (B)filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 And she cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And [b]how has it happened to me that the mother of (C)my Lord would come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. 45 And (D)blessed is she who [c]believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her [d]by the Lord.”
Mary’s Song: The Magnificat
46 And Mary said:
48 For (A)He has had regard for the humble state of His bond-servant;
For behold, from now on all generations will [a]call me (B)blessed.
49 For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
50 (C)And His mercy is to generation [b]after generation
Toward those who fear Him.
51 (D)He has done [c]mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the [d]thoughts of their hearts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has (E)exalted those who were humble.
53 (F)He has filled the hungry with good things,
And sent the rich away empty-handed.
54 He has given help to His servant Israel,
[e]In remembrance of His mercy,
55 (G)Just as He spoke to our fathers,
(H)To Abraham and his [f]descendants forever.”
56 Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.
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