Book of Common Prayer
The Lord Brings Justice
1 The Lord is King!
Tell the earth to celebrate
and all islands to shout.
2 Dark clouds surround him,
and his throne is supported
by justice and fairness.
3 Fire leaps from his throne,
destroying his enemies,
4 and his lightning is so bright
that the earth sees it
and trembles.
5 Mountains melt away like wax
in the presence of the Lord
of all the earth.
6 The heavens announce,
“The Lord brings justice!”
Everyone sees God's glory.
7 Those who brag about
the useless idols they worship
are terribly ashamed,
and all the false gods
bow down to the Lord.
8 When the people of Zion
and of the towns of Judah
hear that God brings justice,
they will celebrate.
9 The Lord rules the whole earth,
and he is more glorious
than all the false gods.
10 Love the Lord
and hate evil!
God protects his loyal people
and rescues them
from violence.
11 If you obey and do right,
a light will show you the way
and fill you with happiness.
12 You are the Lord's people!
So celebrate and praise
the only God.
Our Lord Is King
1 (A) Our Lord, you are King!
You rule from your throne
above the winged creatures,[a]
as people tremble
and the earth shakes.
2 You are praised in Zion,
and you control all nations.
3 Only you are God!
And your power alone,
so great and fearsome,
is worthy of praise.
4 You are our mighty King,[b]
a lover of fairness,
who sees that justice is done
everywhere in Israel.
5 Our Lord and our God,
we praise you
and kneel down to worship you,
the God of holiness!
6 Moses and Aaron were two
of your priests.
Samuel was also one of those
who prayed in your name,
and you, our Lord,
answered their prayers.
7 (B) You spoke to them
from a thick cloud,
and they obeyed your laws.
8 Our Lord and our God,
you answered their prayers
and forgave their sins,
but when they did wrong,
you punished them.
9 We praise you, Lord God,
and we worship you
at your sacred mountain.
Only you are God!
(A psalm of praise.)
The Lord Is God
1 Shout praises to the Lord,
everyone on this earth.
2 Be joyful and sing
as you come in
to worship the Lord!
3 You know the Lord is God!
He created us,
and we belong to him;
we are his people,
the sheep in his pasture.
4 Be thankful and praise the Lord
as you enter his temple.
5 (C) The Lord is good!
His love and faithfulness
will last forever.
The Lord Punishes the Guilty
1 Lord God, you punish
the guilty.
Show what you are like
and punish them now.
2 You judge the earth.
Come and help us!
Pay back those proud people
for what they have done.
3 How long will the wicked
celebrate and be glad?
4 All of those cruel people
strut and boast,
5 and they crush and wound
your chosen nation, Lord.
6 They murder widows,
foreigners, and orphans.
7 Then they say,
“The Lord God of Jacob
doesn't see or know.”
8 Can't you fools see?
Won't you ever learn?
9 God gave us ears and eyes!
Can't he hear and see?
10 God instructs the nations
and gives knowledge to us all.
Won't he also correct us?
11 (A) The Lord knows how useless
our plans really are.
12 Our Lord, you bless everyone
that you instruct and teach
by using your Law.
13 You give them rest
from their troubles,
until a pit can be dug
for the wicked.
14 You won't turn your back
on your chosen nation.
15 Justice and fairness
will go hand in hand,
and all who do right
will follow along.
16 Who will stand up for me
against those cruel people?
17 If you had not helped me, Lord,
I would soon have gone
to the land of silence.[a]
18 When I felt my feet slipping,
you came with your love
and kept me steady.
19 And when I was burdened
with worries,
you comforted me
and made me feel secure.
20 But you are opposed
to dishonest lawmakers
21 who gang up to murder
innocent victims.
22 You, Lord God, are my fortress,
that mighty rock[b]
where I am safe.
23 You will pay back my enemies,
and you will wipe them out
for the evil they did.
Worship and Obey the Lord
1 Sing joyful songs to the Lord!
Praise the mighty rock[c]
where we are safe.
2 Come to worship him
with thankful hearts
and songs of praise.
3 The Lord is the greatest God,
king over all other gods.
4 He holds the deepest part
of the earth in his hands,
and the mountain peaks
also belong to him.
5 The ocean is the Lord's
because he made it,
and with his own hands
he formed the dry land.
6 Bow down and worship
the Lord our Creator!
7 (B)(C) The Lord is our God,
and we are his people,
the sheep he takes care of
in his own pasture.
Listen to God's voice today!
8 (D) Don't be stubborn and rebel
as your ancestors did
at Meribah and Massah[d]
out in the desert.
9 For forty years
they tested God and saw
the things he did.
10 Then God got tired of them
and said,
“You never show good sense,
and you don't understand
what I want you to do.”
11 (E) In his anger, God told them,
“You people will never enter
my place of rest.”
Jacob Runs from Laban
31 Jacob heard that Laban's sons were complaining, “Jacob is now a rich man, and he got everything he owns from our father.” 2 Jacob also noticed that Laban was not as friendly as he had been before. 3 One day the Lord said, “Jacob, go back to your relatives in the land of your ancestors, and I will be with you.”
4 Jacob sent for Rachel and Leah to meet him in the pasture where he kept his sheep, 5 and he told them:
Your father isn't as friendly with me as he used to be, but the God my ancestors worshiped has been on my side. 6 You know that I have worked hard for your father 7 and that he keeps cheating me by changing my wages time after time. But God has protected me. 8 When your father said the speckled sheep would be my wages, all of them were speckled. And when he said the spotted ones would be mine, all of them were spotted. 9 That's how God has taken sheep and goats from your father and given them to me.
10 Once, when the flocks were mating, I dreamed that all the rams were either spotted or speckled. 11 Then God's angel called me by name. I answered, 12 and he said, “Notice that all the rams are either spotted or speckled. I know everything Laban is doing to you, 13 (A) and I am the God you worshiped at Bethel,[a] when you poured olive oil on a rock and made a promise to me. Leave here at once and return to the land where you were born.”
14 Rachel and Leah said to Jacob:
There's nothing left for us to inherit from our father. 15 He treats us like foreigners and has even cheated us out of the bride price[b] that should have been ours. 16 So do whatever God tells you to do. Even the property God took from our father and gave to you really belongs to us and our children.
17 Then Jacob, his wives, and his children got on camels and left 18 northern Syria[c] for the home of his father Isaac in Canaan. Jacob took along all his flocks, herds, and other property.
19 Before Rachel left, she stole the household idols[d] while Laban was out shearing his sheep.
20 Jacob tricked Laban the Aramean[e] by not saying that he intended to leave. 21 When Jacob crossed the Euphrates River and headed for the hill country of Gilead, he took with him everything he owned.
Laban Catches Up with Jacob
22 Three days later Laban found out that Jacob had gone. 23 So he took some of his relatives along and chased after Jacob for seven days, before catching up with him in the hill country of Gilead. 24 But God appeared to Laban in a dream that night and warned, “Don't say a word to Jacob. Don't make a threat or a promise.”
Christ Helps Us
2 My children, I am writing this so you won't sin. But if you do sin, Jesus Christ always does the right thing, and he will speak to the Father for us. 2 Christ is the sacrifice that takes away our sins and the sins of all the world's people.
3 When we obey God, we are sure we know him. 4 But if we claim to know him and don't obey him, we are lying and the truth isn't in our hearts. 5 We truly love God only when we obey him as we should, and then we know we belong to him. 6 If we say we are his, we must follow the example of Christ.
The New Commandment
7 (A) My dear friends, I am not writing to give you a new commandment. It is the same one you were first given, and it is the message you heard. 8 But it really is a new commandment, and you know its true meaning, just as Christ does. You can see the darkness fading away and the true light already shining.
9 If we claim to be in the light and hate someone, we are still in the dark. 10 But if we love others, we are in the light, and we don't cause problems for them.[a] 11 If we hate others, we are living and walking in the dark. We don't know where we are going, because we can't see in the dark.
18 But the Jewish leaders would not believe that the man had once been blind. They sent for his parents 19 and asked them, “Is this the son that you said was born blind? How can he now see?”
20 The man's parents answered, “We are certain that he is our son, and we know that he was born blind. 21 But we don't know how he got his sight or who gave it to him. Ask him! He is old enough to speak for himself.”
22-23 The man's parents said this because they were afraid of their leaders. The leaders had already agreed that no one was to have anything to do with anyone who said Jesus was the Messiah.
24 The leaders called the man back and said, “Swear by God to tell the truth! We know that Jesus is a sinner.”
25 The man replied, “I don't know if he is a sinner or not. All I know is that I used to be blind, but now I can see!”
26 “What did he do to you?” they asked. “How did he heal your eyes?”
27 The man answered, “I have already told you once, and you refused to listen. Why do you want me to tell you again? Do you also want to become his disciples?”
28 The leaders insulted the man and said, “You are his follower! We are followers of Moses. 29 We are sure God spoke to Moses, but we don't even know where Jesus comes from.”
30 “How strange!” the man replied. “He healed my eyes, and yet you don't know where he comes from. 31 We know that God listens only to people who love and obey him. God doesn't listen to sinners. 32 And this is the first time in history anyone has ever given sight to someone born blind. 33 Jesus could not do anything unless he came from God.”
34 The leaders told the man, “You have been a sinner since the day you were born! Do you think you can teach us anything?” Then they said, “You can never come back into any of our synagogues!”
35 When Jesus heard what had happened, he went and found the man. Then Jesus asked, “Do you have faith in the Son of Man?”
36 He replied, “Sir, if you will tell me who he is, I will put my faith in him.”
37 “You have already seen him,” Jesus answered, “and right now he is talking with you.”
38 The man said, “Lord, I put my faith in you!” Then he worshiped Jesus.
39 Jesus told him, “I came to judge the people of this world. I am here to give sight to the blind and to make blind everyone who can see.”
40 When the Pharisees heard Jesus say this, they asked, “Are we blind?”
41 Jesus answered, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty. But now that you claim to see, you will keep on being guilty.”
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.