Book of Common Prayer
A Sovereign’s Pledge of Integrity and Justice
A Psalm of David.
101 I will sing of loyalty and of justice;
to thee, O Lord, I will sing.
2 I will give heed to the way that is blameless.
Oh when wilt thou come to me?
I will walk with integrity of heart
within my house;
3 I will not set before my eyes
anything that is base.
I hate the work of those who fall away;
it shall not cleave to me.
4 Perverseness of heart shall be far from me;
I will know nothing of evil.
5 Him who slanders his neighbor secretly
I will destroy.
The man of haughty looks and arrogant heart
I will not endure.
6 I will look with favor on the faithful in the land,
that they may dwell with me;
he who walks in the way that is blameless
shall minster to me.
7 No man who practices deceit
shall dwell in my house;
no man who utters lies
shall continue in my presence.
8 Morning by morning I will destroy
all the wicked in the land,
cutting off all the evildoers
from the city of the Lord.
Prayer for Vindication and Vengeance
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
109 Be not silent, O God of my praise!
2 For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,
speaking against me with lying tongues.
3 They beset me with words of hate,
and attack me without cause.
4 In return for my love they accuse me,
even as I make prayer for them.[a]
5 So they reward me evil for good,
and hatred for my love.
6 Appoint a wicked man against him;
let an accuser bring him to trial.[b]
7 When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;
let his prayer be counted as sin!
8 May his days be few;
may another seize his goods!
9 May his children be fatherless,
and his wife a widow!
10 May his children wander about and beg;
may they be driven out of[c] the ruins they inhabit!
11 May the creditor seize all that he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!
12 Let there be none to extend kindness to him,
nor any to pity his fatherless children!
13 May his posterity be cut off;
may his name be blotted out in the second generation!
14 May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!
15 Let them be before the Lord continually;
and may his[d] memory be cut off from the earth!
16 For he did not remember to show kindness,
but pursued the poor and needy
and the brokenhearted to their death.
17 He loved to curse; let curses come on him!
He did not like blessing; may it be far from him!
18 He clothed himself with cursing as his coat,
may it soak into his body like water,
like oil into his bones!
19 May it be like a garment which he wraps round him,
like a belt with which he daily girds himself!
20 May this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,
of those who speak evil against my life!
21 But thou, O God my Lord,
deal on my behalf for thy name’s sake;
because thy steadfast love is good, deliver me!
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is stricken within me.
23 I am gone, like a shadow at evening;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees are weak through fasting;
my body has become gaunt.
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they wag their heads.
26 Help me, O Lord my God!
Save me according to thy steadfast love!
27 Let them know that this is thy hand;
thou, O Lord, hast done it!
28 Let them curse, but do thou bless!
Let my assailants be put to shame;[e] may thy servant be glad!
29 May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a mantle!
30 With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
121 I have done what is just and right;
do not leave me to my oppressors.
122 Be surety for thy servant for good;
let not the godless oppress me.
123 My eyes fail with watching for thy salvation,
and for the fulfilment of thy righteous promise.
124 Deal with thy servant according to thy steadfast love,
and teach me thy statutes.
125 I am thy servant; give me understanding,
that I may know thy testimonies!
126 It is time for the Lord to act,
for thy law has been broken.
127 Therefore I love thy commandments
above gold, above fine gold.
128 Therefore I direct my steps by all thy precepts;[a]
I hate every false way.
129 Thy testimonies are wonderful;
therefore my soul keeps them.
130 The unfolding of thy words gives light;
it imparts understanding to the simple.
131 With open mouth I pant,
because I long for thy commandments.
132 Turn to me and be gracious to me,
as is thy wont toward those who love thy name.
133 Keep steady my steps according to thy promise,
and let no iniquity get dominion over me.
134 Redeem me from man’s oppression,
that I may keep thy precepts.
135 Make thy face shine upon thy servant,
and teach me thy statutes.
136 My eyes shed streams of tears,
because men do not keep thy law.
137 Righteous art thou, O Lord,
and right are thy judgments.
138 Thou hast appointed thy testimonies in righteousness
and in all faithfulness.
139 My zeal consumes me,
because my foes forget thy words.
140 Thy promise is well tried,
and thy servant loves it.
141 I am small and despised,
yet I do not forget thy precepts.
142 Thy righteousness is righteous for ever,
and thy law is true.
143 Trouble and anguish have come upon me,
but thy commandments are my delight.
144 Thy testimonies are righteous for ever;
give me understanding that I may live.
The Future Glory of the Survivors in Zion
2 In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and glory of the survivors of Israel. 3 And he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy, every one who has been recorded for life in Jerusalem, 4 when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning. 5 Then the Lord will create over the whole site of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory there will be a canopy and a pavilion. 6 It will be for a shade by day from the heat, and for a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain.
Unity in the Body of Christ
4 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all lowliness and meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it is said,
“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men.”
9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is he who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipment of the saints, for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ; 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the cunning of men, by their craftiness in deceitful wiles. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied, when each part is working properly, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love.
Jesus Heals the Gadarene Demoniacs
28 And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes,[a] two demoniacs met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. 29 And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”[b] 30 Now a herd of many swine was feeding at some distance from them. 31 And the demons begged him, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of swine.” 32 And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the swine; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and perished in the waters. 33 The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, and what had happened to the demoniacs. 34 And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.