Book of Common Prayer
101 (0) A psalm of David:
(1) I am singing of grace and justice;
I am singing to you, Adonai.
2 I will follow the path of integrity;
when will you come to me?
I will run my life with a sincere heart
inside my own house.
3 I will not allow before my eyes
any shameful thing.
I hate those who act crookedly;
what they do does not attract me.
4 Deviousness will depart from me;
I will not tolerate evil.
5 If someone slanders another in secret,
I will cut him off.
Haughty eyes and proud hearts
I cannot abide.
6 I look to the faithful of the land,
so that they can be my companions;
those who live lives of integrity
can be servants of mine.
7 No deceitful person can live in my house;
no liar can be my advisor.
8 Every morning I will destroy
all the wicked of the land,
cutting off all evildoers
from the city of Adonai.
109 (0) For the leader. A psalm of David:
(1) God, whom I praise, don’t remain silent!
2 For wicked and deceitful men
have opened their mouths against me,
spoken against me with lying tongues,
3 surrounded me with hateful words,
and attacked me without cause.
4 In return for my love they became my accusers,
even though I prayed for them.
5 They repay me evil for good
and hatred for my love.
6 [They say,] “Appoint a wicked man over him,
may an accuser stand at his right.
7 When he is tried, let him be found guilty,
may even his plea be counted a sin.
8 May his days be few,
may someone else take his position.
9 May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow.
10 May his children be wandering beggars,
foraging for food from their ruined homes.
11 May creditors seize all he owns
and strangers make off with his earnings.
12 May no one treat him kindly,
and may no one take pity on his orphaned children.
13 May his posterity be cut off;
may his name be erased within a generation.
14 May the wrongs of his ancestors be remembered by Adonai,
and may the sin of his mother not be erased;
15 may they always be before Adonai,
so he can cut off all memory of them from the earth.
16 For he did not remember to show kindness
but hounded the downtrodden, the poor
and the brokenhearted to death.
17 He loved cursing; may it recoil on him!
He didn’t like blessing; may it stay far from him!
18 He clothed himself with cursing
as routinely as with his coat;
May it enter inside him as easily as water,
as easily as oil into his bones.
19 May it cling to him like the coat he wears,
like the belt he wraps around himself.”
20 This is what my adversaries want Adonai to do,
those who speak evil against me.
21 But you, God, Adonai,
treat me as your name demands;
rescue me, because your grace is good.
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart within me is wounded.
23 Like a lengthening evening shadow, I am gone;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees are weak from lack of food,
my flesh wastes away for lack of nourishment.
25 I have become the object of their taunts;
when they see me, they shake their heads.
26 Help me, Adonai, my God!
Save me, in keeping with your grace;
27 so that they will know that this comes from your hand,
that you, Adonai, have done it.
28 Let them go on cursing;
but you, bless!
When they attack, let them be put to shame;
but let your servant rejoice.
29 Let my adversaries be clothed with confusion,
let them wear their own shame like a robe.
30 I will eagerly thank Adonai with my mouth,
I will praise him right there in the crowd,
ע (‘Ayin)
121 I have done what is just and right;
don’t abandon me to my oppressors.
122 Guarantee your servant’s well-being;
don’t let the arrogant oppress me.
123 My eyes fail from watching for your salvation
and for [the fulfillment of] your righteous promise.
124 Deal with your servant in accordance with your grace,
and teach me your laws.
125 I am your servant; give me understanding,
so that I can know your instruction.
126 The time has come for Adonai to act,
because they are breaking your Torah.
127 Therefore I love your mitzvot
more than gold, more than fine gold.
128 Thus I direct my steps by [your] precepts;
every false way I hate.
פ (Peh)
129 Your instruction is a wonder;
this is why I follow it.
130 Your words are a doorway that lets in light,
giving understanding to the thoughtless.
131 My mouth is wide open, as I pant
with longing for your mitzvot.
132 Turn to me, and show me your favor;
in keeping with [your] judgment for those who love your name.
133 Guide my footsteps by your word;
don’t let any kind of sin rule me.
134 Redeem me from human oppression,
and I will observe your precepts.
135 Make your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your laws.
136 Rivers of tears flow down from my eyes,
because they don’t observe your Torah.
צ (Tzadeh)
137 You are righteous, Adonai;
and your rulings are upright.
138 You have commanded your instructions
in righteousness and great faithfulness.
139 My zeal is destroying me,
because my foes have forgotten your words.
140 Your word is refined to complete purity,
and your servant loves it.
141 I may be small and despised,
but I do not forget your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is eternal righteousness,
and your Torah is truth.
143 Trouble and distress have overtaken me,
but your mitzvot are my delight.
144 Your instruction is righteous forever;
give me understanding, and I will live.
2 On that day, Adonai’s plant will be beautiful and glorious; and the fruit of the land will be the pride and splendor of Isra’el’s survivors. 3 Those left in Tziyon and remaining in Yerushalayim will be called holy, and everyone in Yerushalayim written down for life.
4 When Adonai washes away the filth of the women of Tziyon and cleanses Yerushalayim from the blood shed in it with a blast of searing judgment, 5 Adonai will create over the whole site of Mount Tziyon and over those who assemble there a smoking cloud by day and a shining, flaming fire by night; for the Glory will be over everything like a hupah. 6 A sukkah will give shade by day from the heat; it will also provide refuge and cover from storm and rain.
4 Therefore I, the prisoner united with the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called.
2 Always be humble, gentle and patient, bearing with one another in love, 3 and making every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit gives through the binding power of shalom. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as when you were called you were called to one hope. 5 And there is one Lord, one trust, one immersion, 6 and one God, the Father of all, who rules over all, works through all and is in all.
7 Each one of us, however, has been given grace to be measured by the Messiah’s bounty. 8 This is why it says,
“After he went up into the heights,
he led captivity captive
and he gave gifts to mankind.”[a]
9 Now this phrase, “he went up,” what can it mean if not that he first went down into the lower parts, that is, the earth? 10 The one who went down is himself the one who also went up, far above all of heaven, in order to fill all things. 11 Furthermore, he gave some people as emissaries, some as prophets, some as proclaimers of the Good News, and some as shepherds and teachers. 12 Their task is to equip God’s people for the work of service that builds the body of the Messiah, 13 until we all arrive at the unity implied by trusting and knowing the Son of God, at full manhood, at the standard of maturity set by the Messiah’s perfection.
14 We will then no longer be infants tossed about by the waves and blown along by every wind of teaching, at the mercy of people clever in devising ways to deceive. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in every respect grow up into him who is the head, the Messiah. 16 Under his control, the whole body is being fitted and held together by the support of every joint, with each part working to fulfill its function; this is how the body grows and builds itself up in love.
28 When Yeshua arrived at the other side of the lake, in the Gadarenes’ territory, there came out of the burial caves two men controlled by demons, so violent that no one dared travel on that road. 29 They screamed, “What do you want with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?” 30 Now some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 The demons begged him, “If you are going to drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” 32 “All right, go!” he told them. So they came out and went into the pigs, whereupon the entire herd rushed down the hillside into the lake and drowned. 33 The swineherds fled, went off to the town and told the whole story, including what had happened to the demonized men. 34 At this, the whole town came out to meet Yeshua. When they saw him, they begged him to leave their district.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.