Book of Common Prayer
(A psalm by David for the music leader.)
A Prayer for Victory
1 I pray that the Lord
will listen when you
are in trouble,
and that the God of Jacob
will keep you safe.
2 May the Lord send help
from his temple
and come to your rescue
from Mount Zion.
3 May he remember your gifts
and be pleased
with what you bring.
4 May God do what you want most
and let all go well for you.
5 Then you will win victories,
and we will celebrate,
while raising our banners
in the name of our God.
May the Lord answer
all your prayers!
6 I am certain, Lord,
that you will help
your chosen king.
You will answer my prayers
from your holy place
in heaven,
and you will save me
with your mighty arm.
7 Some people trust the power
of chariots or horses,
but we trust you, Lord God.
8 Others will stumble and fall,
but we will be strong
and stand firm.
9 Give the king victory, Lord,
and answer our prayers.[a]
(A psalm by David for the music leader.)
Thanking the Lord for Victory
1 Our Lord, your mighty power
makes the king glad,
and he celebrates victories
that you have given him.
2 You did what he wanted most
and never told him “No.”
3 You truly blessed the king,
and you placed on him
a crown of finest gold.
4 He asked to live a long time,
and you promised him life
that never ends.
5 The king is highly honored.
You have let him win victories
that have made him famous.
6 You have given him blessings
that will last forever,
and you have made him glad
by being so near to him.
7 Lord Most High,
the king trusts you,
and your kindness
keeps him from defeat.
8 With your mighty arm, Lord,
you will strike down all
of your hateful enemies.
9 They will be destroyed by fire
once you are here,
and because of your anger,
flames will swallow them.
10 You will wipe their families
from the earth,
and they will disappear.
11 All their plans to harm you
will come to nothing.
12 You will make them run away
by shooting your arrows
at their faces.
13 Show your strength, Lord,
so that we may sing
and praise your power.
(A psalm by David.)
The Lord Gives Victory
1 (A) The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right side,[a]
until I make your enemies
into a footstool for you.”
2 The Lord will let your power
reach out from Zion,
and you will rule
over your enemies.
3 Your glorious power
will be seen on the day
you begin to rule.
You will wear the sacred robes
and shine like the morning sun
in all of your strength.[b]
4 (B) The Lord has made a promise
that will never be broken:
“You will be a priest forever,
just like Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right side,
and when he gets angry
he will crush
the other kings.
6 He will judge the nations
and crack their skulls,
leaving piles of dead bodies
all over the earth.
7 He will drink from any stream
that he chooses, while winning
victory after victory.[c]
When the Lord Saves You from Death
1 I love you, Lord!
You answered my prayers.
2 You paid attention to me,
and so I will pray to you
as long as I live.
3 Death attacked from all sides,
and I was captured
by its painful chains.
But when I was really hurting,
4 I prayed and said, “Lord,
please don't let me die!”
5 You are kind, Lord,
so good and merciful.
6 You protect ordinary people,
and when I was helpless,
you saved me
7 and treated me so kindly
that I don't need
to worry anymore.
8 You, Lord, have saved
my life from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.
9 Now I will walk at your side
in this land of the living.
10 (A) I was faithful to you
when I was suffering,
11 though in my confusion I said,
“I can't trust anyone!”
12 What must I give you, Lord,
for being so good to me?
13 I will pour out an offering
of wine to you,
and I will pray in your name
because you
have saved me.
14 I will keep my promise to you
when your people meet.
15 You are deeply concerned
when one of your loyal people
faces death.
16 I worship you, Lord,
just as my mother did,
and you have rescued me
from the chains of death.
17 I will offer you a sacrifice
to show how grateful I am,
and I will pray.
18 I will keep my promise to you
when your people
19 gather at your temple
in Jerusalem.
Shout praises to the Lord!
Come Praise the Lord
1 (B) All of you nations,
come praise the Lord!
Let everyone praise him.
2 God's love for us is wonderful;
his faithfulness never ends.
Shout praises to the Lord!
17 Three days after we got there, Paul called together some of the Jewish leaders and said:
My friends, I have never done anything to hurt our people, and I have never gone against the customs of our ancestors. But in Jerusalem I was handed over as a prisoner to the Romans. 18 They looked into the charges against me and wanted to release me. They found that I had not done anything deserving death. 19 (A) The Jewish leaders disagreed, so I asked to be tried by the Emperor.
But I don't have anything to say against my own nation. 20 I am bound by these chains because of what we people of Israel hope for. This is why I have called you here to talk about this hope of ours.
21 The leaders replied, “No one from Judea has written us a letter about you. And not one of them has come here to report on you or to say anything against you. 22 But we would like to hear what you have to say. We understand that people everywhere are against this new group.”
23 They agreed on a time to meet with Paul, and many of them came to his house. From early morning until late in the afternoon, Paul talked to them about God's kingdom. He used the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets[a] to try to win them over to Jesus.
24 Some of the leaders agreed with what Paul said, but others did not. 25 Since they could not agree among themselves, they started leaving. But Paul said, “The Holy Spirit said the right thing when he sent Isaiah the prophet 26 (B) to tell our ancestors,
‘Go to these people
and tell them:
You will listen and listen,
but never understand.
You will look and look,
but never see.
27 All of you
have stubborn hearts.
Your ears are stopped up,
and your eyes are covered.
You cannot see or hear
or understand.
If you could,
you would turn to me,
and I would heal you.’ ”
28-29 Paul said, “You may be sure that God wants to save the Gentiles! And they will listen.”[b]
30 For two years Paul stayed in a rented house and welcomed everyone who came to see him. 31 He bravely preached about God's kingdom and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ, and no one tried to stop him.
Jesus Heals a Boy
(Matthew 17.14-18; Mark 9.14-27)
37 The next day Jesus and his three disciples came down from the mountain and were met by a large crowd. 38 Just then someone in the crowd shouted, “Teacher, please do something for my son! He is my only child! 39 A demon often attacks him and makes him scream. It shakes him until he foams at the mouth, and it won't leave him until it has completely worn the boy out. 40 I begged your disciples to force out the demon, but they couldn't do it.”
41 Jesus said to them, “You people are stubborn and don't have any faith! How much longer must I be with you? Why do I have to put up with you?”
Then Jesus said to the man, “Bring your son to me.” 42 While the boy was being brought, the demon attacked him and made him shake all over. Jesus ordered the demon to stop. Then he healed the boy and gave him back to his father. 43 Everyone was amazed at God's great power.
Jesus Again Speaks about His Death
(Matthew 17.22,23; Mark 9.30-32)
While everyone was still amazed at what Jesus was doing, he said to his disciples, 44 “Pay close attention to what I am telling you! The Son of Man will be handed over to his enemies.” 45 But the disciples did not know what he meant. The meaning was hidden from them. They could not understand it, and they were afraid to ask.
Who Is the Greatest?
(Matthew 18.1-5; Mark 9.33-37)
46 (A) Jesus' disciples were arguing about which one of them was the greatest. 47 Jesus knew what they were thinking, and he had a child stand there beside him. 48 (B) Then he said to his disciples, “When you welcome even a child because of me, you welcome me. And when you welcome me, you welcome the one who sent me. Whichever one of you is the most humble is the greatest.”
For or against Jesus
(Mark 9.38-40)
49 John said, “Master, we saw a man using your name to force demons out of people. But we told him to stop, because he isn't one of us.”
50 “Don't stop him!” Jesus said. “Anyone who isn't against you is for you.”
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