Book of Common Prayer
Prayer and Praise for Deliverance from Enemies
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
31 In thee, O Lord, do I seek refuge;
let me never be put to shame;
in thy righteousness deliver me!
2 Incline thy ear to me,
rescue me speedily!
Be thou a rock of refuge for me,
a strong fortress to save me!
3 Yea, thou art my rock and my fortress;
for thy name’s sake lead me and guide me,
4 take me out of the net which is hidden for me,
for thou art my refuge.
5 Into thy hand I commit my spirit;
thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.
6 Thou hatest[a] those who pay regard to vain idols;
but I trust in the Lord.
7 I will rejoice and be glad for thy steadfast love,
because thou hast seen my affliction,
thou hast taken heed of my adversities,
8 and hast not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
thou hast set my feet in a broad place.
9 Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
my eye is wasted from grief,
my soul and my body also.
10 For my life is spent with sorrow,
and my years with sighing;
my strength fails because of my misery,[b]
and my bones waste away.
11 I am the scorn of all my adversaries,
a horror[c] to my neighbors,
an object of dread to my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street flee from me.
12 I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;
I have become like a broken vessel.
13 Yea, I hear the whispering of many—
terror on every side!—
as they scheme together against me,
as they plot to take my life.
14 But I trust in thee, O Lord,
I say, “Thou art my God.”
15 My times are in thy hand;
deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors!
16 Let thy face shine on thy servant;
save me in thy steadfast love!
17 Let me not be put to shame, O Lord,
for I call on thee;
let the wicked be put to shame,
let them go dumbfounded to Sheol.
18 Let the lying lips be dumb,
which speak insolently against the righteous
in pride and contempt.
19 O how abundant is thy goodness,
which thou hast laid up for those who fear thee,
and wrought for those who take refuge in thee,
in the sight of the sons of men!
20 In the covert of thy presence thou hidest them
from the plots of men;
thou holdest them safe under thy shelter
from the strife of tongues.
21 Blessed be the Lord,
for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me
when I was beset as in a besieged city.
22 I had said in my alarm,
“I am driven far[d] from thy sight.”
But thou didst hear my supplications,
when I cried to thee for help.
23 Love the Lord, all you his saints!
The Lord preserves the faithful,
but abundantly requites him who acts haughtily.
24 Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
all you who wait for the Lord!
Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies
A Psalm of David.
35 Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
fight against those who fight against me!
2 Take hold of shield and buckler,
and rise for my help!
3 Draw the spear and javelin
against my pursuers!
Say to my soul,
“I am your deliverance!”
4 Let them be put to shame and dishonor
who seek after my life!
Let them be turned back and confounded
who devise evil against me!
5 Let them be like chaff before the wind,
with the angel of the Lord driving them on!
6 Let their way be dark and slippery,
with the angel of the Lord pursuing them!
7 For without cause they hid their net for me;
without cause they dug a pit[a] for my life.
8 Let ruin come upon them unawares!
And let the net which they hid ensnare them;
let them fall therein to ruin!
9 Then my soul shall rejoice in the Lord,
exulting in his deliverance.
10 All my bones shall say,
“O Lord, who is like thee,
thou who deliverest the weak
from him who is too strong for him,
the weak and needy from him who despoils him?”
11 Malicious witnesses rise up;
they ask me of things that I know not.
12 They requite me evil for good;
my soul is forlorn.
13 But I, when they were sick—
I wore sackcloth,
I afflicted myself with fasting.
I prayed with head bowed[b] on my bosom,
14 as though I grieved for my friend or my brother;
I went about as one who laments his mother,
bowed down and in mourning.
15 But at my stumbling they gathered in glee,
they gathered together against me;
cripples whom I knew not
slandered me without ceasing;
16 they impiously mocked more and more,[c]
gnashing at me with their teeth.
17 How long, O Lord, wilt thou look on?
Rescue me from their ravages,
my life from the lions!
18 Then I will thank thee in the great congregation;
in the mighty throng I will praise thee.
19 Let not those rejoice over me
who are wrongfully my foes,
and let not those wink the eye
who hate me without cause.
20 For they do not speak peace,
but against those who are quiet in the land
they conceive words of deceit.
21 They open wide their mouths against me;
they say, “Aha, Aha!
our eyes have seen it!”
22 Thou hast seen, O Lord; be not silent!
O Lord, be not far from me!
23 Bestir thyself, and awake for my right,
for my cause, my God and my Lord!
24 Vindicate me, O Lord, my God, according to thy righteousness;
and let them not rejoice over me!
25 Let them not say to themselves,
“Aha, we have our heart’s desire!”
Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up.”
26 Let them be put to shame and confusion altogether
who rejoice at my calamity!
Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor
who magnify themselves against me!
27 Let those who desire my vindication
shout for joy and be glad,
and say evermore,
“Great is the Lord,
who delights in the welfare of his servant!”
28 Then my tongue shall tell of thy righteousness
and of thy praise all the day long.
2 Do not praise a man for his good looks,
nor loathe a man because of his appearance.
3 The bee is small among flying creatures,
but her product is the best of sweet things.
4 Do not boast about wearing fine clothes,
nor exalt yourself in the day that you are honored;
for the works of the Lord are wonderful,
and his works are concealed from men.
5 Many kings have had to sit on the ground,
but one who was never thought of has worn a crown.
6 Many rulers have been greatly disgraced,
and illustrious men have been handed over to others.
Deliberation and Caution
7 Do not find fault before you investigate;
first consider, and then reprove.
8 Do not answer before you have heard,
nor interrupt a speaker in the midst of his words.
9 Do not argue about a matter which does not concern you,
nor sit with sinners when they judge a case.
10 My son, do not busy yourself with many matters;
if you multiply activities you will not go unpunished,
and if you pursue you will not overtake,
and by fleeing you will not escape.
11 There is a man who works, and toils, and presses on,
but is so much the more in want.
12 There is another who is slow and needs help,
who lacks strength and abounds in poverty;
but the eyes of the Lord look upon him for his good;
he lifts him out of his low estate
13 and raises up his head,
so that many are amazed at him.
14 Good things and bad, life and death,
poverty and wealth, come from the Lord.[a]
17 The gift of the Lord endures for those who are godly,
and what he approves will have lasting success.
18 There is a man who is rich through his diligence and self-denial,
and this is the reward allotted to him:
19 when he says, “I have found rest,
and now I shall enjoy[b] my goods!”
he does not know how much time will pass
until he leaves them to others and dies.
20 Stand by your covenant[c] and attend to it,
and grow old in your work.
13 Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, 14 saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphra′tes.”[a] 15 So the four angels were released, who had been held ready for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, to kill a third of mankind. 16 The number of the troops of cavalry was twice ten thousand times ten thousand; I heard their number. 17 And this was how I saw the horses in my vision: the riders wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire[b] and of sulphur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulphur issued from their mouths. 18 By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulphur issuing from their mouths. 19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; their tails are like serpents, with heads, and by means of them they wound.
20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot either see or hear or walk; 21 nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their immorality[c] or their thefts.
Jesus Visits Martha and Mary
38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a village; and a woman named Martha received him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; 42 one thing is needful.[a] Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.”
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.