Book of Common Prayer
A song. A Psalm of Asaph
A Plea for Judgment
83 God, do not rest!
Don’t be silent!
Don’t stay inactive, God!
2 See! Your enemies rage;
those who hate you issue threats.[a]
3 They plot against[b] your people
and conspire against your cherished ones.
4 They say, “Let us go and erase them as a nation
so the name of Israel will not be remembered anymore.”
5 Indeed, they shrewdly planned together,
forming an alliance against you—
6 the tents of Edom, the Ishmaelites,
Moab, the Hagrites,
7 Gebal, Ammon, Amalek, Philistia,
and the inhabitants of Tyre.
8 Even Assyria joined them
to strengthen the descendants of Lot.
9 Deal with them as you did to Midian,[c]
Sisera, and Jabin at the Kishon Brook.[d]
10 They were destroyed at En-dor
and became as dung on the ground.
11 Punish their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,[e]
and all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,[f]
12 who said, “Let us possess the pastures of God.”
13 God, set them up like dried thistles,
like straw before the wind.
14 Like a fire burning a forest,
and a flame setting mountains ablaze.
15 Pursue them with your storm and
terrify them with your whirlwind.
16 Fill their faces with shame
until they seek your name, God.
17 Let them be humiliated and terrified permanently
until they die in shame.[g]
18 Then they will know that you alone—
whose name is Lord—
are the Most High over all the earth.
Praise to God the Help of Israel
146 Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord, my soul!
2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live,
singing praises to my God while I exist.
3 Do not look to nobles,
nor to mere human beings who cannot save.
4 When they stop breathing,
they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans evaporate!
5 Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
6 maker of heaven and earth,
the seas and everything in them,
forever the guardian of truth,
7 who brings justice for the oppressed,
and who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord frees the prisoners;
8 the Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down.
The Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord stands guard over the stranger;
he supports both widows and orphans,
but makes the path of the wicked slippery.[a]
10 The Lord will reign forever,
your God, Zion, for all generations!
Hallelujah!
Praise for God’s Provision
147 Hallelujah!
It is good to sing praise to our God,
and it is fitting to sing glorious praise.
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;
he gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted,
binding up their injuries.
4 He keeps track of the number of stars,
assigning names to all of them.
5 Our Lord is great,
and rich in power;
his understanding has no limitation.
6 The Lord supports the afflicted
while he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving,
and compose music to our God with the lyre.
8 He shields the heavens with clouds,
preparing rain for the earth
and making grass grow on the hills.
9 He gives wild animals their food,
including the young ravens when they cry.
10 He takes no delight in the strength of a horse,
and gains no pleasure in the runner’s swiftness.[b]
11 But the Lord is pleased with those who fear him,
with those who depend on his gracious love.
12 Glorify the Lord, Jerusalem!
Praise your God, Zion!
13 For he has strengthened the bars of your gates,
blessing your children within you.
14 He grants peace within your borders,
satisfying[c] you with the finest of wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth,
making[d] his word go forth quickly.
16 He supplies snow like wool,
scattering frost like ashes.
17 He casts down his ice crystals like bread[e] fragments.
Who can endure his freezing cold?
18 He sends out his word
and melts them.
He makes his wind blow
and the water flows.
19 He declares his words to Jacob,
his statutes and decrees to Israel.
20 He has not dealt with any other nation like this;
they never knew[f] his decrees.
Hallelujah!
To the Director: A Psalm by the descendants of Korah.
Restore Us, God
85 Lord you have favored your land
and restored the fortunes of Jacob.
2 You took away the iniquity of your people,
forgiving all their sins.
3 You withdrew all your wrath
and turned away from your burning anger.
4 Restore us, God of our salvation,
and stop being angry with us.
5 Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger from generation to generation?
6 Will you restore our lives again
so that your people may rejoice in you?
7 Lord, show your gracious love
and deliver us.
8 Let me listen to what God, the Lord, says;
for the Lord will promise peace
to his people, to his holy ones;
may they not return to foolishness.
9 Surely, he will soon deliver those who fear him,
for his glory will live in our land.
10 Gracious love and truth meet;
righteousness and peace kiss.
11 Truth sprouts up from the ground,
while righteousness looks down from the sky.
12 The Lord will also provide what is good,
and our land will yield its produce.
13 Righteousness will go before him
to prepare a path for his steps.
A Davidic prayer
Help Us, God
86 Lord, listen and answer me,
for I am afflicted and needy.
2 Protect me, for I am faithful;[a]
My God, deliver your servant who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me Lord,
for I call on you all day long.
4 Your servant rejoices,
because, Lord, I set my hope on[b] you.
5 Indeed you, Lord, are kind and forgiving,
overflowing with gracious love to everyone who calls on you.
6 Hear my prayer, Lord;
attend to my prayer of supplication.
7 In my troubled times I will call on you,
for you will answer me.
8 No one can compare with you among the gods, Lord;
No one can accomplish[c] your work.
9 All the nations that you have established will come
and worship you, my Lord.
They will honor your name.
10 For you are great,
and you are doing awesome things;
you alone are God.
11 Teach me your ways, Lord,
that I may walk in your truth;
let me wholeheartedly[d] revere your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with my whole being;
and I will honor your name continuously.
13 For great is your gracious love to me;
you’ve delivered me from the depths of Sheol.[e]
14 God, arrogant men rise up against me,
while a company of ruthless individuals want to kill me.
They do not have regard for you.[f]
15 But you, Lord, are a compassionate God,
merciful and patient,[g]
with unending gracious love and faithfulness.
16 Return to me and have mercy on me;
clothe your servant with your strength
and deliver the son of your maid servant.
17 Show me a sign of your goodness,
so that those who hate me will see it and be ashamed.
For you, Lord, will help and comfort me.
The Light of God’s Deliverance
60 “Arise, shine!
For your light has come;
the[a] glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
2 For look! Darkness will cover the earth
and thick darkness is over the people,[b]
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings before[c] your dawn.
4 “Lift up your eyes and look around:
They all gather together, they come to you;
your sons will come from far away,
and your daughters will be carried on the hip.”[d]
5 Then you will look and be radiant;
your heart will swell with joy,[e]
because the abundance of the seas will be diverted to you,
and the riches of the nations will come to you.
6 Throngs of camels will blanket you:
the young camels of Midian and Ephu;[f]
all those from Shebu[g] will come.
They’ll carry gold and frankincense,
and proclaim the praise of the Lord.
7 All Kedar’s flocks will be gathered to you,
the rams of Nebaioth will serve you.
and[h] they’ll come up with acceptance upon[i] my altar,
and I’ll glorify my glorious house.”
The Future Restoration of Zion
8 “Who are these that fly like clouds,
and like doves to their windows?[j]
9 For the coastlands will look to me,
with the ships of Tarshish in the lead,
to bring my[k] children from far away,
their silver and gold with them,
to the name of the Lord your God,
and to the Holy One of Israel,
because he has glorified you.
10 “Foreigners will rebuild your walls,
and their kings will serve you.
Though in my anger I struck you down,
in my favor I have shown you mercy.
11 Your gates will always stand open
by day or night, and[l] they will not be shut,
so that nations will bring you their wealth,
with their kings led in procession.
12 For the nation or kingdom
that will not serve you will perish;
those nations will be utterly ruined.
13 “He has given you[m] the glory of Lebanon,
and it will come[n] to you,
the cypress, and[o] the plane tree,[p] and the pine,
to adorn the place of my sanctuary;
and I will make the place of my feet glorious.
14 “All[q] the descendants of those who oppressed you
will come bending low before you,
and all those who despised you
will bow down at your feet.
They’ll call you ‘The City of the Lord,’
‘Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’”
Israel: the Joy of Generations
15 “Although you have been forsaken and despised,
with no one traveling through,
I will make you the everlasting pride,
the joy of all generations.
16 You’ll suck the milk of nations,
You’ll suck the breasts of kings.
Then you will realize that I, the Lord, am your Savior
and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17 “Instead of bronze, I’ll bring gold,
and instead of iron, I’ll bring silver;
instead of wood, bronze,
and instead of stones, iron.
I’ll appoint peace as your supervisor
and righteousness as your taskmaster.
14 Remind others about these things, and warn them before God[a] not to argue over words. Arguing[b] does not do any good but only destroys those who are listening. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as an approved worker who has nothing to be ashamed of, handling the word of truth with precision. 16 However, avoid pointless discussions. For people will become more and more ungodly, 17 and what they say will spread everywhere like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are like that. 18 They have abandoned the truth by claiming that the resurrection has already taken place, and so they destroy the faith of others.
19 However, God’s solid foundation still stands. It has this inscription on it: “The Lord[c] knows those who belong to him,”[d] and “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord[e] must turn away from evil.”[f] 20 In a large house there are not only utensils made of gold and silver, but also those made of wood and clay. Some are for special use, while others are for ordinary use. 21 Therefore, if anyone stops associating with[g] these people, he will become a special utensil, set apart for the owner’s use, prepared for every good action.
22 Flee from youthful passions. Instead, pursue righteousness, faithfulness,[h] love, and peace together with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart. 23 Do not have anything to do with foolish and stupid discussions, because you know they breed arguments. 24 A servant[i] of the Lord must not argue. Instead, he must be kind to everyone, teachable,[j] willing to suffer wrong, 25 and gentle when refuting opponents. After all, maybe God will allow them to repent and to come to a full knowledge of the truth, 26 so that they might escape from the Devil’s snare, even though they’ve been held captive by him to do his will.
A Rich Man Comes to Jesus(A)
17 As Jesus[a] was setting out again,[b] a man ran up to him, knelt down in front of him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “Nobody is good except for one—God. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Never murder.’[c] ‘Never commit adultery.’[d] ‘Never steal.’[e] ‘Never give false testimony.’[f] ‘Never cheat.’ ‘Honor your father and mother.’”[g]
20 The man[h] replied to him, “Teacher, I have obeyed all of these since I was a young man.”
21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. Then he told him, “You’re missing one thing. Go and sell everything you own, give the money[i] to the destitute, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come back and follow me.” 22 Shocked at this statement, the man[j] went away sad, because he had many possessions.
Salvation and Reward(B)
23 Then Jesus looked around and told his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 The disciples were startled by these words, but Jesus told them again, “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in their wealth[k] to get into the kingdom of God! 25 It’s easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into the kingdom of God.”
26 The disciples[l] were utterly amazed and asked one another,[m] “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “For humans it’s impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.”
28 Then Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “I tell all of you[n] with certainty, there is no one who has left his home, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or fields because of me and the gospel 30 who will not receive a hundred times as much here in this world—homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and fields, along with persecution—as well as eternal life in the age to come. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
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