Book of Common Prayer
An Urgent Plea for Help in Trouble
To the Chief Musician. Set to [a]“The Lilies.” A Psalm of David.
69 Save me, O God!
For (A)the waters have come up to my [b]neck.
2 (B)I sink in deep mire,
Where there is no standing;
I have come into deep waters,
Where the floods overflow me.
3 (C)I am weary with my crying;
My throat is dry;
(D)My eyes fail while I wait for my God.
4 Those who (E)hate me without a cause
Are more than the hairs of my head;
They are mighty who would destroy me,
Being my enemies wrongfully;
Though I have stolen nothing,
I still must restore it.
5 O God, You know my foolishness;
And my sins are not hidden from You.
6 Let not those who [c]wait for You, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed because of me;
Let not those who seek You be [d]confounded because of me, O God of Israel.
7 Because for Your sake I have borne reproach;
Shame has covered my face.
8 (F)I have become a stranger to my brothers,
And an alien to my mother’s children;
9 (G)Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up,
(H)And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
10 When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting,
That became my reproach.
11 I also [e]made sackcloth my garment;
I became a byword to them.
12 Those who [f]sit in the gate speak against me,
And I am the song of the (I)drunkards.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to You,
O Lord, in the acceptable time;
O God, in the multitude of Your mercy,
Hear me in the truth of Your salvation.
14 Deliver me out of the mire,
And let me not sink;
Let me be delivered from those who hate me,
And out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the floodwater overflow me,
Nor let the deep swallow me up;
And let not the pit shut its mouth on me.
16 Hear me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is good;
Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies.
17 And do not hide Your face from Your servant,
For I am in trouble;
Hear me speedily.
18 Draw near to my soul, and redeem it;
Deliver me because of my enemies.
19 You know (J)my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor;
My adversaries are all before You.
20 Reproach has broken my heart,
And I am full of [g]heaviness;
(K)I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none;
And for (L)comforters, but I found none.
21 They also gave me gall for my food,
(M)And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
22 (N)Let their table become a snare before them,
And their well-being a trap.
23 (O)Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see;
And make their loins shake continually.
24 (P)Pour out Your indignation upon them,
And let Your wrathful anger take hold of them.
25 (Q)Let their dwelling place be desolate;
Let no one live in their tents.
26 For they persecute the ones (R)You have struck,
And talk of the grief of those You have wounded.
27 (S)Add iniquity to their iniquity,
(T)And let them not come into Your righteousness.
28 Let them (U)be blotted out of the book of the living,
(V)And not be written with the righteous.
29 But I am poor and sorrowful;
Let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high.
30 (W)I will praise the name of God with a song,
And will magnify Him with thanksgiving.
31 (X)This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bull,
Which has horns and hooves.
32 (Y)The humble shall see this and be glad;
And you who seek God, (Z)your hearts shall live.
33 For the Lord hears the poor,
And does not despise (AA)His prisoners.
BOOK THREE
Psalms 73–89
The Tragedy of the Wicked, and the Blessedness of Trust in God
A Psalm of (A)Asaph.
73 Truly God is good to Israel,
To such as are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
My steps had nearly (B)slipped.
3 (C)For I was envious of the boastful,
When I saw the prosperity of the (D)wicked.
4 For there are no [a]pangs in their death,
But their strength is firm.
5 (E)They are not in trouble as other men,
Nor are they plagued like other men.
6 Therefore pride serves as their necklace;
Violence covers them (F)like a garment.
7 (G)Their [b]eyes bulge with abundance;
They have more than heart could wish.
8 (H)They scoff and speak wickedly concerning oppression;
They (I)speak [c]loftily.
9 They set their mouth (J)against the heavens,
And their tongue walks through the earth.
10 Therefore his people return here,
(K)And waters of a full cup are drained by them.
11 And they say, (L)“How does God know?
And is there knowledge in the Most High?”
12 Behold, these are the ungodly,
Who are always at ease;
They increase in riches.
13 Surely I have [d]cleansed my heart in (M)vain,
And washed my hands in innocence.
14 For all day long I have been plagued,
And chastened every morning.
15 If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
Behold, I would have been untrue to the generation of Your children.
16 When I thought how to understand this,
It was [e]too painful for me—
17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God;
Then I understood their (N)end.
18 Surely (O)You set them in slippery places;
You cast them down to destruction.
19 Oh, how they are brought to desolation, as in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors.
20 As a dream when one awakes,
So, Lord, when You awake,
You shall despise their image.
21 Thus my heart was grieved,
And I was [f]vexed in my mind.
22 (P)I was so foolish and ignorant;
I was like a beast before You.
23 Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You hold me by my right hand.
24 (Q)You will guide me with Your counsel,
And afterward receive me to glory.
13 “Woe(A) to him who builds his house by unrighteousness
And his [a]chambers by injustice,
(B)Who uses his neighbor’s service without wages
And gives him nothing for his work,
14 Who says, ‘I will build myself a wide house with spacious [b]chambers,
And cut out windows for it,
Paneling it with cedar
And painting it with vermilion.’
15 “Shall you reign because you enclose yourself in cedar?
Did not your father eat and drink,
And do justice and righteousness?
Then (C)it was well with him.
16 He [c]judged the cause of the poor and needy;
Then it was well.
Was not this knowing Me?” says the Lord.
17 “Yet(D) your eyes and your heart are for nothing but your covetousness,
For shedding innocent blood,
And practicing oppression and violence.”
18 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
(E)“They shall not lament for him,
Saying, (F)‘Alas, my brother!’ or ‘Alas, my sister!’
They shall not lament for him,
Saying, ‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, his glory!’
19 (G)He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey,
Dragged and cast out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
20 “Go up to Lebanon, and cry out,
And lift up your voice in Bashan;
Cry from Abarim,
For all your lovers are destroyed.
21 I spoke to you in your prosperity,
But you said, ‘I will not hear.’
(H)This has been your manner from your youth,
That you did not obey My voice.
22 The wind shall eat up all (I)your [d]rulers,
And your lovers shall go into captivity;
Surely then you will be ashamed and humiliated
For all your wickedness.
23 O inhabitant of Lebanon,
Making your nest in the cedars,
How gracious will you be when pangs come upon you,
Like (J)the pain of a woman in [e]labor?
Sonship Through the Spirit
12 (A)Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For (B)if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you (C)put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For (D)as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For (E)you did not receive the spirit of bondage again (F)to fear, but you received the (G)Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, (H)“Abba,[a] Father.” 16 (I)The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then (J)heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, (K)if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
From Suffering to Glory
18 For I consider that (L)the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For (M)the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For (N)the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of [b]corruption into the glorious (O)liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation (P)groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have (Q)the firstfruits of the Spirit, (R)even we ourselves groan (S)within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the (T)redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but (U)hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For (V)we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but (W)the Spirit Himself makes intercession [c]for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now (X)He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints (Y)according to the will of God.
Rejected by His Own
41 The Jews then [a]complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 And they said, (A)“Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, [b]“Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 (B)No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me (C)draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, (D)‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ (E)Therefore everyone who [c]has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. 46 (F)Not that anyone has seen the Father, (G)except He who is from God; He has seen the Father. 47 Most assuredly, I say to you, (H)he who believes [d]in Me has everlasting life. 48 (I)I am the bread of life. 49 (J)Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 (K)This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread (L)which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and (M)the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.