Book of Common Prayer
Let All the Earth Praise the Lord
148 Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord from heaven;
praise him in the highest places.
2 Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his armies!
3 Praise him, sun and moon;
praise him, all you shining stars.[a]
4 Praise him, you heaven of heavens,
and you waters above the heavens.
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he himself gave the command that they be created.
6 He set them in place to last forever and ever;
he gave the command and will not rescind it.
7 Praise the Lord, you from the earth,
you creatures of the sea
and all you depths,
8 fire, hail, snow, fog, and wind storm
that carry out his command,[b]
9 mountains and every hill,
fruit trees and cedars,
10 living creatures and livestock,
insects and flying birds,
11 earthly kings and all peoples,
nobles and all court officials of the earth,
12 young men and young women alike,
along with older people and children.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is lifted up;
his majesty transcends earth and heaven.
14 He has raised up a source of strength[c] for his people,
an object of praise for all of his holy ones,
that is, for the people of Israel who are near him.
Hallelujah!
A Song About Rejoicing in God
149 Hallelujah!
Sing a new song to the Lord,
praising him where the godly gather together.
2 May Israel rejoice in its Maker,
and Zion’s descendants in their King!
3 May they praise his name with dancing,
chanting songs to him with tambourines and lyres.
4 For the Lord is pleased with his people;
he beautifies the afflicted with salvation.
5 May those he loves be exalted,
singing for joy on their couches.
6 Let high praises to God be heard[d] in their throats,
while they wield two-edged swords in their hands
7 as they bring retribution to nations
and punishment to peoples,
8 binding their kings with chains,
their officials with iron bands,
9 and executing the judgment written against them.
This is honor for all the ones he loves.
Hallelujah!
A Psalm of Praise
150 Hallelujah!
Praise God in his Holy Place.
Praise him in his great expanse.
2 Praise him for his mighty works.
Praise him according to his excellent greatness.
3 Praise him with trumpet sounding.
Praise him with stringed instrument and harp.
4 Praise him with tambourine and dancing.
Praise him with stringed and wind instruments.
5 Praise him with loud cymbals.
Praise him with reverberating cymbals.
6 Let everyone who breathes praise the Lord.
Hallelujah!
Deliverance of Israel from Egypt
114 When Israel came out of Egypt—
the household of Jacob from a people of foreign speech—
2 Judah became his sanctuary
and Israel his place of dominion.
3 The sea saw this[a] and fled,
the Jordan River[b] ran backwards,
4 the mountains skipped like rams,
and the hills like lambs.
5 What happened to you, sea, that you fled?
Jordan, that you ran backwards?
6 Mountains, that you skipped like rams?
And you hills, that you skipped[c] like lambs?
7 Tremble then, earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,
8 who turned the rock into a pool of water,
the flinty rock into flowing springs.
The Impotence of Idols
115 Not to us, Lord, not to us,
but to your name be given glory
on account of your gracious love and faithfulness.
2 Why should the nations ask
“Where now is their God?”
3 when our God is in the heavens
and he does whatever he desires?
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
crafted by human hands.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak;
they have eyes, but cannot see.
6 They have ears, but cannot hear;
they have noses, but cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but cannot touch;
feet, but cannot walk;
they cannot even groan with their throats.
8 Those who craft them will become like them,
as will all those who trust in them.
9 Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
12 The Lord remembers and blesses us.
He will indeed bless the house of Israel;
he will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord,
both the important and the insignificant together.
14 May the Lord add to your numbers—
to you and to your descendants.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
who made the heavens and the earth.
16 The highest heavens[d] belong to the Lord,
but he gave the earth to human beings.
17 Neither can the dead praise the Lord,
nor those who go down into the silence of death.[e]
18 But we will bless the Lord
from now to eternity.
Hallelujah!
God’s Instructions to Joshua
1 After Moses, the servant of the Lord, had died, the Lord spoke to Nun’s son Joshua, announcing to him, 2 “My servant Moses is dead. Now get ready to cross the Jordan River[a]—you and all the people—to the land that I’m giving the Israelis. 3 I’m giving you every place where the sole of your foot falls, just as I promised Moses. 4 Your territorial border will extend from the wilderness to the Lebanon Mountains,[b] to the river—that great River Euphrates—all the land of the Hittites—as far as the Mediterranean[c] Sea where the sun sets. 5 No one will be victorious[d] against you for the rest of your life. I’ll be with you just like I was with Moses—I’ll neither fail you nor abandon you.
6 “Be strong and courageous, because you’ll be leading this people to inherit the land that I promised to give their ancestors. 7 Only be strong and very courageous to ensure that you obey all the instructions[e] that my servant Moses gave you—turn neither to the right nor to the left from it—so that you may succeed wherever you go. 8 This set of instructions[f] is not to cease being a part of your conversations.[g] Meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to carry out everything that’s written in it, for then you’ll prosper and succeed. 9 I’ve commanded you, haven’t I? Be strong and courageous. Don’t be fearful or discouraged, because the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua Gives Orders to His Leaders
10 Then Joshua gave orders to the officials of the people. 11 “Go through the camp,” he said, “and command the people, ‘Prepare provisions for yourselves, because within three days you’ll be crossing the Jordan River to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you—so go get it!’”
12 Joshua told the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, 13 “Remember what[h] Moses commanded you when he said, ‘The Lord your God will provide you rest, as well as this land.’ 14 Your wives, your young children, and your livestock will remain in the land that Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan River, but you and all your warriors will cross, ready for battle, in full view of your relatives, and you will help them 15 until the Lord gives relief to your relatives, as he did to you. Then they’ll take the land that the Lord your God is giving them as their inheritance. You’ll return to the land of your heritage and receive the inheritance that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you on the east side of the Jordan River, in the direction of the sunrise.”
The People Reaffirm Their Commitment
16 “We’ll do everything that you commanded,” they replied. “We’ll go wherever you send us. 17 We’ll listen and obey you in everything, just like we did with Moses. Only may the Lord your God be with you, just as he was with Moses. 18 Anyone who rebels against what you say and doesn’t listen to your words regarding everything that you command will be executed. Only be strong and courageous.”
3 We came in sight of Cyprus, and leaving it on our left, we sailed on to Syria and landed at Tyre because the ship was to unload its cargo there. 4 So we located some disciples and stayed there for seven days. Through the Spirit, they kept telling Paul not to go to Jerusalem, 5 but when our time there came to an end, we left and proceeded on our journey. All of them accompanied us with their wives and children out of the city. We knelt on the beach, prayed, 6 and said goodbye to each other. Then we reboarded the ship, and they went back home.
Paul in Caesarea
7 When we completed our voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, greeted the brothers there, and stayed with them for one day. 8 The next day, we left and came to Caesarea. We went to the home of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven, and stayed with him. 9 He had four unmarried daughters who could prophesy. 10 After we had been there for a number of days, a prophet named Agabus arrived from Judea. 11 He came to us, took Paul’s belt, and tied his own feet and hands with it. Then he said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘This is how the Jewish leaders[a] in Jerusalem will tie up the man who owns this belt. Then they will hand him over to the gentiles.’” 12 When we heard this, we and the people who lived there begged Paul[b] not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 At this Paul replied, “What do you mean by crying and breaking my heart? I’m ready not only to be tied up in Jerusalem but even to die for the name of the Lord Jesus!”
14 When he could not be persuaded otherwise, we remained silent except to say, “May the Lord’s will be done.”
Paul in Jerusalem
15 When our time there ended,[c] we got ready to go up to Jerusalem.
Jesus Heals a Man with an Unclean Spirit(A)
21 Then they went to Capernaum. As soon as it was the Sabbaths, Jesus[a] went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people[b] were utterly amazed at his teaching, because he was teaching them like one with authority, and not like their scribes. 23 All of a sudden,[c] there was a man in their synagogue who had an unclean spirit! He screamed, 24 “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”
25 But Jesus rebuked him. “Be quiet,” he ordered, “and come out of him!” 26 At this, the unclean spirit shook the man,[d] cried out with a loud voice, and came out of him.
27 All the people were so stunned that they kept saying to each other, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He tells even the unclean spirits what to do, and they obey him!”
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.