Book of Common Prayer
ק (Qof)
145 I cried out with all my heart, “Answer me, O Lord!
I will observe your statutes.”
146 I cried out to you, “Deliver me,
so that I can keep[a] your rules.”
147 I am up before dawn crying for help.
I find hope in your word.
148 My eyes anticipate the nighttime hours,
so that I can meditate on your word.
149 Listen to me[b] because of[c] your loyal love.
O Lord, revive me, as you typically do.[d]
150 Those who are eager to do[e] wrong draw near;
they are far from your law.
151 You are near, O Lord,
and all your commands are reliable.[f]
152 I learned long ago that
you ordained your rules to last.[g]
ר (Resh)
153 See my pain and rescue me.
For I do not forget your law.
154 Fight for me[h] and defend me.[i]
Revive me with your word.
155 The wicked have no chance for deliverance,[j]
for they do not seek your statutes.
156 Your compassion is great, O Lord.
Revive me, as you typically do.[k]
157 The enemies who chase me are numerous.[l]
Yet I do not turn aside from your rules.
158 I take note of the treacherous and despise them,
because they do not keep your instructions.[m]
159 See how I love your precepts.
O Lord, revive me with your loyal love.
160 Your instructions are totally reliable;
all your just regulations endure.[n]
שׂ/שׁ (Sin/Shin)
161 Rulers pursue me for no reason,
yet I am more afraid of disobeying your instructions.[o]
162 I rejoice in your instructions,
like one who finds much plunder.[p]
163 I hate and despise deceit;
I love your law.
164 Seven times[q] a day I praise you
because of your just regulations.
165 Those who love your law are completely secure;[r]
nothing causes them to stumble.[s]
166 I hope for your deliverance, O Lord,
and I obey[t] your commands.
167 I keep your rules;
I love them greatly.
168 I keep your precepts and rules,
for you are aware of everything I do.[u]
ת (Tav)
169 Listen to my cry for help,[v] O Lord.
Give me insight by your word.
170 Listen to my appeal for mercy.[w]
Deliver me, as you promised.[x]
171 May praise flow freely from my lips,
for you teach me your statutes.
172 May my tongue sing about your instructions,[y]
for all your commands are just.
173 May your hand help me,
for I choose to obey[z] your precepts.
174 I long for your deliverance, O Lord;
I find delight in your law.
175 May I[aa] live and praise you.
May your regulations help me.[ab]
176 I have wandered off like a lost sheep.[ac]
Come looking for your servant,
for I do not forget your commands.
Psalm 128[a]
A song of ascents.[b]
128 How blessed is every one of the Lord’s loyal followers,[c]
each one who keeps his commands.[d]
2 You[e] will eat what you worked so hard to grow.[f]
You will be blessed and secure.[g]
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine[h]
in the inner rooms of your house;
your children[i] will be like olive branches,
as they sit all around your table.
4 Yes indeed, the man who fears the Lord
will be blessed in this way.[j]
5 May the Lord bless you[k] from Zion,
that you might see[l] Jerusalem prosper
all the days of your life,
6 and that you might see[m] your grandchildren.[n]
May Israel experience peace.[o]
Psalm 129[p]
A song of ascents.[q]
129 “Since my youth they have often attacked me,”
let Israel say.
2 “Since my youth they have often attacked me,
but they have not defeated me.
3 The plowers plowed my back;
they made their furrows long.
4 The Lord is just;
he cut the ropes of the wicked.”[r]
5 May all who hate Zion
be humiliated and turned back.
6 May they be like the grass on the rooftops,
which withers before one can even pull it up,[s]
7 which cannot fill the reaper’s hand,
or the lap of the one who gathers the grain.
8 Those who pass by will not say,[t]
“May you experience the Lord’s blessing!
We pronounce a blessing on you in the name of the Lord.”
Psalm 130[u]
A song of ascents.[v]
130 From the deep water[w] I cry out to you, O Lord.
2 O Lord, listen to me.[x]
Pay attention to[y] my plea for mercy.
3 If you, O Lord, were to keep track of[z] sins,
O Lord, who could stand before you?[aa]
4 But[ab] you are willing to forgive,[ac]
so that you might[ad] be honored.[ae]
5 I rely on[af] the Lord.
I rely on him with my whole being;[ag]
I wait for his assuring word.[ah]
6 I yearn for the Lord,[ai]
more than watchmen do for the morning,
yes, more than watchmen do for the morning.[aj]
7 O Israel, hope in the Lord,
for the Lord exhibits loyal love,[ak]
and is more than willing to deliver.[al]
8 He will deliver[am] Israel
from all their sins.[an]
Admonitions and Warnings against Dangerous and Destructive Acts[a]
6 My child,[b] if you have made a pledge[c] for your neighbor,[d]
if[e] you have become a guarantor[f] for a stranger,[g]
2 if[h] you have been ensnared[i] by the words you have uttered,[j]
and have been caught by the words you have spoken,
3 then, my child, do this in order to deliver yourself,[k]
because you have fallen into your neighbor’s power:[l]
Go, humble yourself,[m]
and appeal firmly to[n] your neighbor.
4 Permit no sleep to your eyes[o]
or slumber to your eyelids.
5 Deliver yourself like a gazelle from a snare,[p]
and like a bird from the trap[q] of the fowler.
6 Go to the ant, you sluggard;[r]
observe her[s] ways and be wise!
7 It has no commander,
overseer, or[t] ruler,
8 yet it would prepare[u] its food in the summer;
it gathered at the harvest what it will eat.[v]
9 How long, you sluggard, will you lie there?
When will you rise from your sleep?[w]
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to relax,[x]
11 and your poverty will come like a robber,[y]
and your need like an armed man.[z]
12 A worthless and wicked person[aa]
walks around saying perverse things;[ab] [ac]
13 he winks with his eyes,
signals with his feet,
and points with his fingers;[ad]
14 he plots evil with perverse thoughts[ae] in his heart,
he spreads contention[af] at all times.
15 Therefore, his disaster will come suddenly;
in an instant[ag] he will be broken, and there will be no remedy.
16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
even[ah] seven[ai] things that are an abomination to him:[aj]
17 haughty eyes,[ak] a lying tongue,[al]
and hands that shed innocent blood,[am]
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,[an]
feet that are swift to run[ao] to evil,
19 a false witness who pours out lies,[ap]
and a person who spreads discord[aq] among family members.[ar]
5 1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ[a] has been fathered[b] by God, and everyone who loves the father[c] loves the child fathered by him.[d] 2 By this[e] we know that we love the children of God: whenever we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For[f] this is the love of God:[g] that we keep his commandments.[h] And his commandments do not weigh us down, 4 because[i] everyone[j] who has been fathered by God[k] conquers[l] the world.[m]
Testimony About the Son
This[n] is the conquering power[o] that has conquered[p] the world: our faith. 5 Now who is the person who has conquered the world except the one who believes that[q] Jesus is the Son of God? 6 Jesus Christ is the one who came by water and blood—not by the water only, but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because[r] the Spirit is the truth. 7 For[s] there are three that testify,[t] 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood, and these three are in agreement.
9 If we accept the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, because[u] this[v] is the testimony of God that[w] he has testified concerning his Son. 10 (The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has testified concerning his Son.)[x] 11 And this is the testimony: God[y] has given us eternal life,[z] and this life is in his Son. 12 The one who has the Son[aa] has this[ab] eternal[ac] life; the one who does not have the Son of God does not have this[ad] eternal[ae] life.
The Response of the Jewish Leaders
45 Then many of the people,[a] who had come with Mary and had seen the things Jesus[b] did, believed in him. 46 But some of them went to the Pharisees[c] and reported to them[d] what Jesus had done. 47 So the chief priests and the Pharisees[e] called the council[f] together and said, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many miraculous signs. 48 If we allow him to go on in this way,[g] everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away our sanctuary[h] and our nation.”
49 Then one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said,[i] “You know nothing at all! 50 You do not realize[j] that it is more to your advantage to have one man[k] die for the people than for the whole nation to perish.”[l] 51 (Now he did not say this on his own,[m] but because he was high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the Jewish nation,[n] 52 and not for the Jewish nation[o] only,[p] but to gather together[q] into one the children of God who are scattered.)[r] 53 So from that day they planned together to kill him.
54 Thus Jesus no longer went[s] around publicly[t] among the Judeans,[u] but went away from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim,[v] and stayed there with his disciples.
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.