Book of Common Prayer
The Protection of the Righteous and the Destruction of the Wicked
Of David.[a]
37 Do not fret because of evildoers;
do not be envious of doers of wickedness.
2 For like the grass they will dry up quickly,
and like green vegetation they will wither.
3 Trust Yahweh and do good.
Abide in the land and feed on faithfulness.[b]
4 Take pleasure in Yahweh as well,
and he will give to you the requests of your heart.
5 Commit to[c] Yahweh your way;
Trust also on him and he will act.
6 Then he will bring forth your righteousness like the light,
and your justice like the noonday.
7 Be quiet before Yahweh and wait for him.
Do not fret about one who succeeds in his way,
about a man making plots.
8 Refrain from anger and forsake wrath.
Do not fret; it only brings evil.
9 For evildoers will be cut off,
but those who wait for Yahweh—
they will possess the land.
10 And[d] yet a little while and the wicked will not be,
and you will look carefully upon his place, but he will not be.
11 But the afflicted will possess the land,
and they will take pleasure in an abundance of peace.
12 The wicked plans evil against the righteous,
and gnashes at him with his teeth.
13 The Lord laughs at him,
for he sees that his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn the sword and have bent their bow
to throw down the poor and the needy,
to kill those upright in their way.
15 Their sword will enter into their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.
16 The little belonging to the righteous is better
than the wealth of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but Yahweh supports the righteous.
18 Yahweh knows the days of the blameless,
and their inheritance will be forever.
19 They will not be put to shame in distressing times,[e]
and in the days of famine they will be satisfied.
20 But the wicked will perish,
and the enemies of Yahweh will be like the splendor of the pastures.
They vanish; in smoke they vanish.
21 The wicked borrows and does not repay,
but the righteous is gracious and gives.
22 For those blessed by him shall possess the land,
but those cursed by him shall be cut off.
23 The steps of a man are established by Yahweh,
and he takes pleasure in his way.
24 Though he fall, he will not be cast headlong,
for Yahweh supports him with his hand.
25 I was a youth, but I am now old;
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging for[f] bread.
26 All the day he is gracious and lends,
and his children are a blessing.
27 Turn aside from evil and do good
and so abide forever.
28 For Yahweh loves justice
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
They are protected forever.
But the children of the wicked will be cut off.
29 The righteous will possess the land
and abide in it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
31 The law of his God is in his heart.
His steps will not slip.
32 The wicked watches for the righteous
and seeks to kill him.
33 Yahweh will not abandon him into his hand,
and he will not let him be condemned when he is judged.
34 Wait for Yahweh and keep his way,
and he will exalt you to possess the land.
When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.
35 I have seen the wicked acting violently
and spreading himself out
like a luxuriant native tree.
36 Then he passed on[g] and behold, he was not.
And I sought him, but he could not be found.
37 Observe the blameless and look at the upright,
for there is a future for a man of peace.
38 But transgressors shall be destroyed altogether.
The future of the wicked shall be cut off.
39 And[h] the salvation of the righteous is from Yahweh,
their refuge in the time of trouble.
40 And Yahweh helps them and he rescues them.
He rescues them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
5 I am Yahweh, and there is none besides me;
besides me there is no god.
I gird you though[a] you do not know me,
6 so that they may know from the rising of the sun
and from the west that there is none besides me;
I am Yahweh and there is none besides me.
7 I form light and I create darkness;
I make peace and I create evil;
I am Yahweh; I do all these things.
8 Trickle, O heavens, from above,
and let clouds trickle with righteousness;
let the earth open so that[b] salvation may be fruitful,
and let it cause righteousness to sprout along with it.[c]
I myself, Yahweh, have created it.
9 Woe to the one who strives with his maker,[d]
a potsherd among[e] potsherds of earth!
Does the clay say to the one who fashions it,
‘What are you making?’
and ‘Your work has no hands’?
10 Woe to the one who says to a father, ‘What you are begetting?’
or[f] to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’”
11 Thus says Yahweh, the holy one of Israel,
and its maker:[g]
“Ask me of the things to come about[h] my children,
and you command me about the work of my hands.
12 I myself made the earth,
and I created humankind upon it.
I, my hands, stretched out the heavens,
and I commanded all their host.
13 I myself have stirred him up in righteousness,
and I will make all his paths smooth.
He himself shall build my city,
and he shall set my exiles free,
not for price or a gift,” says Yahweh of hosts.
Yahweh the Only Savior
14 Thus says Yahweh:
“The acquisition of Egypt
and the merchandise of Cush
and the Sabeans, tall men,
shall pass over to you;
they shall be yours,
and they shall walk behind you.
They shall pass over in chains,
and they shall bow down to you;
they will pray to you:
‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other.
Besides him there is no God.’”
15 Surely you are a God who keeps yourself hidden,
God of Israel, the savior.
16 All of them are ashamed and indeed humiliated;
the craftsmen of idols go together in insult.
17 Israel is saved by Yahweh with everlasting salvation;
you shall not be ashamed,
and you shall not be humiliated to all eternity.[i]
15 Therefore, consider carefully how you live, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of the time because the days are evil.
Being Filled by the Spirit
17 Because of this do not become foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not be drunk with wine (in which is dissipation), but be filled by the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and singing praise in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to the God and Father, 21 being subject to one another out of reverence for[a] Christ 22 —wives to their own husbands as to the Lord, 23 because the husband is the head of the wife, as also Christ is the head of the church (he himself being the Savior of the body). 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, thus also wives should be subject[b] to their husbands in everything.
Husbands and Wives
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for her; 26 in order that he might sanctify her by cleansing her[c] with the washing of water by the word; 27 in order that he might present to himself the church glorious, not having a spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she may be holy and blameless. 28 Thus also husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. The one who loves his own wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as also Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”[d] 32 (This mystery is great, but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.) 33 Only you also, each one of you, must thus love his own wife as himself, and the wife must respect[e] her husband.
The Parable of the Lamp
21 And he said to them, “Surely a lamp is not brought so that it may be put under a bushel basket or under a bed, is it?[a] Is it not[b] so that it may be put on a lampstand? 22 For nothing is secret except so that it may be revealed, nor has become hidden except so that it will come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!” 24 And he said to them, “Take care what you hear! With the measure by which you measure out, it will be measured out to you, and will be added to you. 25 For whoever has, more will be given to him, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”
The Parable of the Seed that Grows by Itself
26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is like this: like a man scatters seed on the ground. 27 And he sleeps and gets up, night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows—he does not know how.[c] 28 By itself the soil produces a crop: first the grass, then the head of grain, then the full grain in the head. 29 But when the crop permits, he sends in the sickle right away, because the harvest has come.”
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or by what parable can we present it? 31 It is like a mustard seed that when sown on the ground, although it[d] is the smallest of all the seeds that are on the ground, 32 but when it is sown it grows up and becomes the largest of all the garden herbs, and sends out large branches so that the birds of the sky are able to nest in its shade.” 33 And with many parables such as these he was speaking the word to them, as they were able to hear it.[e] 34 And he did not speak to them without a parable, but in private he explained everything to his own disciples.
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