Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 93
1 The Eternal reigns, clothed in majesty;
He is dressed in power;
He has surrounded Himself with strength.
He has established the world, and it will never be toppled.
2 Your throne was established from the beginning of the world, O God,
and You are everlasting.
3 The waters have risen, O Eternal One;
the sound of pounding waves is deafening.
The waters have roared with power.
4 More powerful than the thunder of mighty rivers,
more powerful than the mighty waves in the ocean
is the Eternal on high!
5 Your teachings are true;
Your decrees sure.
Sacredness adorns Your house, O Eternal One, forevermore.
Psalm 98
A song.
1 Compose a new song, and sing it to the Eternal
because of the unbelievable things He has done;
He has won the victory
with the skill of His right hand and strength of His holy arm.
2 The Eternal has made it clear that He saves,
and He has shown the nations that He does what is right.
3 He has been true to His promises;
fresh in His mind is His unfailing love
for all of Israel.
Even the ends of the earth have witnessed how our God saves.
This hymn invites all the people on earth and creation itself to join in singing a new song of “beautiful noise” celebrating God’s justice and victories.
4 Raise your voices; make a beautiful noise to the Eternal, all the earth.
Let your joy explode into song and praise;
5 Make music to the Eternal with the harp;
sing a beautiful melody with the harp and chorus.
6 With trumpets and horns,
fill the air with joyful sounds to the King, the Eternal.
7 Let the sea rumble and roar, and all the creatures it holds shout praise;
let the whole world and all those who live in it join the celebration.
8 Let the rivers applaud
and the mountains join in joyful song
9 In the presence of the Eternal because He is coming
to judge the earth.
He is coming,
and His judgment will be what is right for the world
and just to all people.
Psalm 66
For the worship leader. A song.
1 Shout out to God, all the earth.
Erupt with joy to the one True God!
2 Sing of the glory due His name!
Offer Him the most magnificent praises!
3 Say to God, “All You have done is wondrous and causes fear!
Your power is mighty, and Your enemies pretend to submit to You.
4 The entire earth will bow down to worship You
and will sing glory-songs to You;
they will sing praises to Your name!
[pause][a]
5 Come and witness the True God’s endless works.
His miraculous deeds done on behalf of humanity inspire fear.
6 He transformed the sea into dry land;
our people passed through the river on foot!
Rejoice in Him; celebrate what He did there!
7 By His great might, He rules forever;
His eyes watch over all the nations,
so no one should go up against Him.
[pause]
8 Everyone, bless our True God!
Let praise-filled voices be heard near and far—at home and on foreign soil!
9 Praise the One who gives us life and keeps us safe,
who does not allow us to stumble in the darkness.
10 For You have put us to the test, O God;
You have refined us as silver is refined.
11 You trapped us with a snare;
You have laid upon our backs a heavy burden.
12 You allowed us to be conquered and let our enemies run over us.
We journeyed through dangers, through fire and flood,
But You led us finally to a safe place, a land rich and abundant.
13 I will come into Your temple with burnt offerings;
I will fulfill my promises to You—
14 The oaths that parted my lips
and were promises my mouth freely made when I was suffering and in anguish.
15 I will bring You my sacrifices—plump beasts
and the sweet smoke of consecrated rams—
I will also offer You bulls and goats.
[pause]
16 Come and listen, everyone who reveres the True God,
and I will tell you what He has done for me.
17 I cried out to Him with my mouth,
and I praised Him with my tongue.
18 If I entertain evil in my heart,
the Lord will not hear me.
19 But surely God has heard me;
He has paid attention to the urgency of my request.
20 May the True God be blessed,
for He did not turn away from my prayer
nor did He hold back His loyal love from me.
2 To his God, the Eternal, Jonah prayed from inside this great fish.
Jonah reveals in his prayer a change of heart: he thanks God for saving him from the angry sea.
2 Jonah: With desperate cries
I beckoned the Eternal to hear, and He answered me.
From the belly, the place of death, I cried out to You,
and You have responded to my voice.
3 You threw me into the watery depths
and cast me into the middle of the chaotic seas.
The waters closed in around me;
Your waves broke over me;
Your surf swelled as I sank into the depths.
4 But then I said to You,
“I have been driven out from before Your very eyes.
Still, I know I will gaze again on Your holy temple.”
5 The waters swallowed me;
the deep abyss was covering over me.
Seaweeds were wrapped around my head, trapping me
6 as I sank down to where the mountains are rooted to the earth.
I went down to the place where death’s gate would lock me in forever.
Yet You lifted me up from the pit.
Eternal One, You are my God!
7 Only as my life was fading way
did I remember the Eternal;
To Your sacred dwelling, Your holy temple,
my cries did rise to You.
8 Those who worship worthless idols
turn their backs on God and renounce their loyal love.
9 But I will sing to You and sacrifice to You
with a voice filled with thanksgiving;
Whatever I promised, I will certainly pay it
because deliverance is from the Eternal alone.
This miraculous sign of God’s kingdom is astounding. The followers of Jesus are not known as people who drink too much wine with breakfast, so this fantastic episode requires some other kind of explanation. Unfortunately it is impossible to comprehend or explain what transpires on Pentecost. But this is not a novelty performance; rather, it is the foundation of the kingdom of God in that it establishes the church as the place where God moves on the earth through His Spirit. They expect a political kingdom, but God moves in people’s hearts to transform individuals and communities.
14 As the twelve stood together, Peter shouted to the crowd,
Peter: Men of Judea and all who are staying here in Jerusalem, listen. I want you to understand:
22 All of you Israelites, listen to my message: it’s about Jesus of Nazareth, a man whom God authenticated for you by performing in your presence powerful deeds, wonders, and signs through Him, just as you yourselves know. 23 This man, Jesus, who came into your hands by God’s sure plan and advanced knowledge, you nailed to a cross and killed in collaboration with lawless outsiders. 24 But God raised Jesus and unleashed Him from the agonizing birth pangs of death, for death could not possibly keep Jesus in its power. 25 David spoke of Jesus’ resurrection, saying:
I see the Lord is ever present with me.
I will not live in fear or abandon my calling because He guides my right hand.
26 My heart is glad; my soul rejoices;
my body is safe.
27 You will not abandon me to experience the suffering of a miserable afterlife,
nor leave Your Holy One to rot alone.
28 Instead, You direct me on a path that leads to a beautiful life.
As I walk with You, the pleasures are never-ending, and I know true joy and contentment.[a]
29 My fellow Israelites, I can say without question that David our ancestor died and was buried, and his tomb is with us today. 30 David wasn’t speaking of himself; he was speaking as a prophet. He saw with prophetic insight that God had made a solemn promise to him: God would put one of his descendants on His throne. 31 Here’s what David was seeing in advance; here’s what David was talking about—the Anointed One would be resurrected. Think of David’s words about Him not being abandoned to the place of the dead nor being left to decay in the grave. 32 He was talking about Jesus, the One God has raised, whom all of us have seen with our own eyes and announce to you today.
Ultimately Peter is telling the truth. He is more than willing to lay down his life. But none of His disciples understand the magnitude of the persecution and hatred that is about to be unleashed.
Even Peter, Jesus’ dear Peter, is afraid. He protests any inference to Jesus’ impending departure. Each of the twelve would do the same. Jesus calms their fears over and over again with stories, metaphors, and outright promises, saying, “I will never abandon you like orphans; I will return to be with you” (14:18).
14 Jesus: Don’t get lost in despair; believe in God, and keep on believing in Me. 2 My Father’s home is designed to accommodate all of you. If there were not room for everyone, I would have told you that. I am going to make arrangements for your arrival. 3 I will be there to greet you personally and welcome you home, where we will be together. 4 You know where I am going and how to get there.
Thomas: 5 Lord, we don’t know where You are going, so how can we know the path?
Jesus: 6 I am the path, the truth, and the energy of life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. 7 If you know Me, you know the Father. Rest assured now; you know Him and have seen Him.
Philip: 8 Lord, all I am asking is that You show us the Father.
Jesus (to Philip): 9 I have lived with you all this time, and you still don’t know who I am? If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father. How can you keep asking to see the Father? 10 Don’t you believe Me when I say I abide in the Father and the Father dwells in Me? I’m not making this up as I go along. The Father has given Me these truths that I have been speaking to you, and He empowers all My actions. 11 Accept these truths: I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me. If you have trouble believing based on My words, believe because of the things I have done. 12 I tell you the truth: whoever believes in Me will be able to do what I have done, but they will do even greater things, because I will return to be with the Father. 13 Whatever you ask for in My name, I will do it so that the Father will get glory from the Son. 14 Let Me say it again: if you ask for anything in My name, I will do it.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.