Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 93[a]
God Is a Mighty King
1 The Lord is king,[b] robed with majesty;
the Lord is robed, girded with might.(A)
The world will surely stand in place,
never to be moved.(B)
2 Your throne stands firm from of old;
you are from everlasting.(C)
3 [c]The flood has raised up, Lord;
the flood has raised up its roar;
the flood has raised its pounding waves.
4 More powerful than the roar of many waters,
more powerful than the breakers of the sea,
powerful in the heavens is the Lord.
5 Your decrees are firmly established;
holiness befits your house, Lord,
for all the length of days.
Psalm 96[a]
God of the Universe
I
1 Sing to the Lord a new song;(A)
sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name;
proclaim his salvation day after day.
3 Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his marvelous deeds.(B)
II
4 [b]For great is the Lord and highly to be praised,
to be feared above all gods.(C)
5 For the gods of the nations are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.(D)
6 Splendor and power go before him;
power and grandeur are in his holy place.
III
7 Give to the Lord, you families of nations,
give to the Lord glory and might;
8 give to the Lord the glory due his name!(E)
Bring gifts and enter his courts;
9 bow down to the Lord, splendid in holiness.
Tremble before him, all the earth;
10 (F)declare among the nations: The Lord is king.
The world will surely stand fast, never to be shaken.
He rules the peoples with fairness.
IV
11 Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;(G)
12 let the plains be joyful and all that is in them.
Then let all the trees of the forest rejoice
13 before the Lord who comes,
who comes to govern the earth,(H)
To govern the world with justice
and the peoples with faithfulness.
Psalm 34[a]
Thanksgiving to God Who Delivers the Just
1 Of David, when he feigned madness before Abimelech,[b] who drove him out and he went away.
I
2 I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise shall be always in my mouth.(A)
3 My soul will glory in the Lord;
let the poor hear and be glad.
4 Magnify the Lord with me;
and let us exalt his name together.
II
5 I sought the Lord, and he answered me,
delivered me from all my fears.
6 Look to him and be radiant,
and your faces may not blush for shame.
7 This poor one cried out and the Lord heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
8 The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him, and he saves them.(B)
9 Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the stalwart one who takes refuge in him.(C)
10 Fear the Lord, you his holy ones;
nothing is lacking to those who fear him.(D)
11 The rich grow poor and go hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
III
12 Come, children,[c] listen to me;(E)
I will teach you fear of the Lord.
13 Who is the man who delights in life,(F)
who loves to see the good days?
14 Keep your tongue from evil,
your lips from speaking lies.
15 Turn from evil and do good;(G)
seek peace and pursue it.
16 The eyes of the Lord are directed toward the righteous(H)
and his ears toward their cry.
17 The Lord’s face is against evildoers
to wipe out their memory from the earth.
18 The righteous cry out, the Lord hears
and he rescues them from all their afflictions.
19 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted,
saves those whose spirit is crushed.
20 Many are the troubles of the righteous,
but the Lord delivers him from them all.
21 He watches over all his bones;
not one of them shall be broken.(I)
22 Evil will slay the wicked;
those who hate the righteous are condemned.
23 The Lord is the redeemer of the souls of his servants;
and none are condemned who take refuge in him.
I. The Last Judges, Eli and Samuel
Chapter 1
Elkanah and His Family at Shiloh. 1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim. His name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.(A) 2 He had two wives, one named Hannah, the other Peninnah; Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
7 Year after year, when she went up to the house of the Lord, Peninnah would provoke her, and Hannah would weep and refuse to eat.[a] 8 Elkanah, her husband, would say to her: “Hannah, why are you weeping? Why are you not eating? Why are you so miserable? Am I not better for you than ten sons?”(A)
Hannah’s Prayer. 9 Hannah rose after one such meal at Shiloh, and presented herself before the Lord; at the time Eli the priest was sitting on a chair near the doorpost of the Lord’s temple. 10 In her bitterness she prayed to the Lord, weeping freely, 11 and made this vow: “O Lord of hosts, if you look with pity on the hardship of your servant, if you remember me and do not forget me, if you give your handmaid a male child, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life. No razor shall ever touch his head.”[b](B) 12 As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli watched her mouth, 13 for Hannah was praying silently; though her lips were moving, her voice could not be heard. Eli, thinking she was drunk, 14 said to her, “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Sober up from your wine!” 15 “No, my lord!” Hannah answered. “I am an unhappy woman. I have had neither wine nor liquor; I was only pouring out my heart to the Lord. 16 Do not think your servant a worthless woman; my prayer has been prompted by my deep sorrow and misery.” 17 Eli said, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have requested.” 18 She replied, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes,” and left. She went to her quarters, ate and drank with her husband, and no longer appeared downhearted. 19 Early the next morning they worshiped before the Lord, and then returned to their home in Ramah. When they returned Elkanah had intercourse with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her.
Hannah Bears a Son. 20 She conceived and, at the end of her pregnancy, bore a son whom she named Samuel.[c] “Because I asked the Lord for him.” 21 The next time her husband Elkanah was going up with the rest of his household to offer the customary sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfill his vows, 22 Hannah did not go, explaining to her husband, “Once the child is weaned, I will take him to appear before the Lord and leave him there forever.”[d] 23 Her husband Elkanah answered her: “Do what you think best; wait until you have weaned him. Only may the Lord fulfill his word!” And so she remained at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him.(C)
Hannah Presents Samuel to the Lord. 24 Once he was weaned, she brought him up with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah[e] of flour, and a skin of wine, and presented him at the house of the Lord in Shiloh. 25 After they had slaughtered the bull, they brought the child to Eli. 26 Then Hannah spoke up: “Excuse me, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here near you, praying to the Lord. 27 I prayed for this child, and the Lord granted my request. 28 Now I, in turn, give him to the Lord; as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the Lord.” Then they worshiped there before the Lord.
9 Therefore, from the day we heard this, we do not cease praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding(A) 10 to live in a manner worthy of the Lord, so as to be fully pleasing, in every good work bearing fruit and growing in the knowledge of God, 11 strengthened with every power, in accord with his glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy 12 [a]giving thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to share in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.(B) 13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.(C)
II. The Preeminence of Christ
His Person and Work
15 [b]He is the image[c] of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.(D)
16 For in him[d] were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers;
all things were created through him and for him.(E)
17 He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
18 He is the head of the body, the church.[e]
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.(F)
19 For in him all the fullness[f] was pleased to dwell,
20 and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the blood of his cross[g]
[through him], whether those on earth or those in heaven.(G)
The Presentation in the Temple. 22 [a]When the days were completed for their purification[b] according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord,(A) 23 just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,”(B) 24 and to offer the sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,” in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel,[c] and the holy Spirit was upon him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. 27 He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, 28 he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:
29 “Now, Master, you may let your servant go
in peace, according to your word,
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation,(C)
31 which you prepared in sight of all the peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and glory for your people Israel.”(D)
33 The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; 34 and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted(E) 35 (and you yourself a sword will pierce)[d] so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” 36 There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. 38 And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.(F)
The Return to Nazareth. 39 When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.(G) 40 The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.(H)
The Boy Jesus in the Temple.[e]
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.