Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer About a False Friend
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A ·maskil [skillful psalm; meditation] of David.
55 God, ·listen [L give ear] to my prayer
and do not ·ignore [hide from] my ·cry for help [supplication].
2 Pay attention to me and answer me.
·I am troubled and [My cares give me no peace and I am] upset
3 by ·what the enemy says [L the voice/sound of my enemy]
and ·how the wicked look at me [before the stares/or because of the afflictions of my enemy].
They bring troubles down on me,
and in anger they ·attack [persecute; or hate] me.
4 ·I am frightened inside [L My heart writhes inside me];
the terror of death has ·attacked [L fallen on] me.
5 ·I am scared and shaking [Fear and trembling come on me],
and ·terror [shuddering] ·grips [overwhelms] me.
6 I said, “·I wish [O that] I had wings like a dove.
Then I would fly away and rest.
7 I would ·wander [flee] far away
and stay in the ·desert [wilderness]. ·
8 I would hurry to my place of escape,
far away from the raging wind and ·storm [tempest].”
9 Lord, ·destroy [or frustrate; or check; or confuse; L swallow] and ·confuse [confound; L divide] their ·words [speech; or plans; L tongues; Gen. 11:1–9],
because I see violence and ·fighting [strife; contention; accusation] in the city.
10 Day and night they are all around its walls,
and evil and trouble are everywhere inside.
11 Destruction is ·everywhere in the city [L in its midst];
·trouble [oppression] and ·lying [deception] never leave its ·streets [public square].
12 It was not an enemy ·insulting [scorning; reproaching] me.
I could ·stand [bear] that.
It was not someone who hated me who insulted me.
I could hide from him.
13 But it is you, a person like me,
my companion and good friend.
14 We had ·a good friendship [sweet fellowship together]
and walked ·together [or noisily; or quietly; or with the crowd] to God’s ·Temple [L house].
15 Let death ·take away [L rise up on] ·my enemies [L them].
Let them ·die while they are still young [L go down to the grave/underworld/Sheol while they are living]
because evil ·lives with them [L is their home within them].
16 But I will call to God for help,
and the Lord will ·save me [give me victory].
17 Morning, noon, and ·night [L evening] I ·am troubled and upset [sigh and moan],
but he will listen to ·me [L my voice].
18 Many are against me,
but he ·keeps me safe [L redeems/ransoms me whole/in peace] in battle.
19 God who ·lives forever [or is enthroned from of old]
will hear me and ·punish [L humble] them. ·
But they will not change;
they do not fear God [Prov. 1:7].
20 ·The one who was my friend attacks his friends [L He sends his hand against his friend]
and ·breaks [violates; profanes] his ·promises [covenant; treaty].
21 His words are ·slippery like [L smoother than] butter,
but war is in his heart.
His words are ·smoother [softer] than oil,
but they cut like ·knives [unsheathed swords; Prov. 5:3–4].
22 ·Give [L Cast; Throw] your ·worries [burden; L that which he has given you] to the Lord,
and he will ·take care of [sustain] you.
He will never let ·good [righteous] people ·down [L be moved].
23 But, God, you will bring down
the wicked to the ·grave [deepest pit; L pit of corruption].
Murderers and ·liars [deceivers] will ·live
only half a lifetime [L not live half their days].
But I will ·trust [have confidence] in you.
A Hymn of Thanksgiving
A psalm of David.
138 Lord, I will ·thank [praise] you with all my heart;
I will ·sing [make a psalm] to you before the gods.
2 I will bow down facing your holy Temple,
and I will ·thank [praise] ·you [L your name] for your ·love [loyalty] and ·loyalty [faithfulness].
You have ·made your name and your word
greater than anything [L exalted your word above all your name].
3 On the day I ·called [prayed] to you, you answered me.
You ·made me strong and brave [L have emboldened/encouraged my soul with strength].
4 Lord, let all the kings of the earth ·praise [thank] you
when they hear the words ·you speak [L of your mouth].
5 They will sing about ·what the Lord has done [L the way of the Lord],
because the Lord’s glory [C his manifest presence] is great.
6 Though the Lord is ·supreme [exalted],
he ·takes care of [looks on] ·those who are humble [the lowly],
but he ·stays away from the proud [L perceives the proud from far away].
7 Lord, ·even when I have trouble all around me [L if I walk in the midst of distress],
you will keep me alive.
When my enemies are angry,
you will ·reach down [L send out your hand] and save me by your ·power [L right hand].
8 Lord, you ·do everything [fulfill/accomplish your plan] for me.
Lord, your ·love [loyalty] continues forever.
Do not ·leave [abandon; forsake] us, ·whom you made [L the work of your hands].
God Knows Everything
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
139 Lord, you have ·examined [investigated; searched] me
and know all about me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I ·get up [rise].
You ·know [understand] my thoughts ·before I think them [L from afar].
3 You ·know [L measure] ·where I go [L my path] and ·where I lie down [L my lying down].
You ·know [are familiar with] ·everything I do [L all my path].
4 Lord, even ·before I say a word [L when no word is on my tongue],
you already know ·it [L all of it].
5 You ·are all around me [L hem me in]—in front and in back—
and have put your hand on me.
6 Your knowledge is ·amazing [wonderful; or overwhelming] to me;
it is ·more than I can understand [too high/unattainable. I am not able to grasp it; Rom. 11:33].
7 Where can I go to get away from your Spirit?
Where can I ·run [flee] from you?
8 If I ·go [climb] up to the heavens, you are there.
If I ·lie down [spread out; make my bed] in ·the grave [L Sheol; C the grave or the underworld], you are there.
9 If I rise with the ·sun in the east [L wings of the dawn]
and settle in the ·west beyond [L back of] the sea,
10 even there ·you [L your hand] would guide me.
With your right hand you would ·hold [grab; seize] me.
11 I could say, “The darkness will ·hide [cover] me.
Let the light around me turn into night.”
12 But even the darkness is not dark to you.
The night ·is as light as [shines like] the day;
darkness and light are the same to you.
13 You ·made [created] my ·whole being [inward parts];
you ·formed [knitted] me in my mother’s ·body [belly; womb].
14 I ·praise [thank] you because you made me in an ·amazing [awesome] and wonderful way.
What you have done is wonderful.
I know this very well.
15 ·You saw my bones being formed [L My bones were not hidden from you]
as I ·took shape [was made] in ·my mother’s body [L secret].
When I was ·put together [L woven] ·there [L in the depths of the earth],
16 ·you [L your eyes] saw my ·body as it was formed [L embyro].
All the days ·planned [L formed] for me
were written in your book
·before I was one day old [not one of them existed].
17 God, your thoughts are precious to me.
·They are so many [L How vast are their sum; Job 42:3]!
18 If I could count them,
they would be more than all the grains of sand.
When I ·wake up [or come to the end],
I am still with you.
19 God, I wish you would kill the wicked!
Get away from me, you ·murderers [L people of blood]!
20 They ·say evil things about [make evil plans against] you.
Your enemies ·use your name thoughtlessly [L lift in vain; Ex. 20:7].
21 Lord, ·I hate [L Do I not hate…?] those who hate you;
·I hate [L Do I not abhor…?] those who rise up against you.
22 I ·feel only hate for them [L hate them with a perfect/complete hatred];
they are my enemies.
23 God, ·examine [investigate; search; v. 1] me and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
12 ·God loves you and has chosen you and made you his holy people. So [L As God’s chosen, holy and beloved ones; Ex. 19:6; 1 Pet. 2:9] you should always clothe yourselves with ·mercy [L a heart of compassion], kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 ·Bear with [Make allowances for; Be patient with] each other, and forgive each other. If someone ·does wrong to you [L has a grievance/complaint against someone], forgive that person because the Lord forgave you. 14 ·Even more than all this [Above all], clothe yourself in love, which ·holds you all together in perfect unity [or binds everything together; L is the bond of perfection/completeness]. 15 Let the peace ·that Christ gives [of Christ] ·control [rule; arbitrate] your ·thinking [hearts], because you were all called together in one body [C the church as the body of Christ] to have peace. Always be thankful. 16 Let the ·teaching [message; word] of Christ ·live in [or dwell among] you richly. Use all wisdom to teach and ·instruct [warn; admonish] each other by singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with ·thankfulness [gratitude; grace] in your hearts to God. 17 Everything you do or say should be done ·to obey [or as a representative of; L in the name of] the Lord Jesus. And in all you do, give thanks to God the Father through Jesus.
John Asks a Question(A)
18 John’s ·followers [disciples] told him about all these things. He called for two of his ·followers [disciples] 19 and sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the ·One who is to come [the Expected One; C the Messiah], or should we ·wait for [look for; expect] someone else?”
20 When the men came to Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to you with this question: ‘Are you the ·One who is to come [Expected One], or should we ·wait for [look for; expect] someone else?” 21 At that time, Jesus healed many people of their sicknesses, diseases, and ·evil [defiling; L unclean; 4:33] spirits, and he gave sight to many blind people. 22 Then Jesus answered John’s ·followers [disciples], “Go tell John what you saw and heard here. The blind can see, the ·crippled [lame] can walk, and ·people with skin diseases [T lepers; see 5:12] are ·healed [L cleansed]. The deaf can hear, the dead are raised to life, and the ·Good News [Gospel] is ·preached [announced; proclaimed] to the poor [C signs of God’s restoration of creation, predicted by the prophet Isaiah; Is. 29:18–19; 35:5–6; 61:1–2]. 23 Those who ·do not stumble in their faith [are not offended] because of me are blessed.”
Jesus Comments on John(B)
24 When John’s ·followers [L messengers] left, Jesus began talking to the ·people [crowds] about John: “What did you go out into the ·desert [wilderness] to see? A reed ·blown by [shaken by; swaying in] the wind [C something fragile and easily swept away]? 25 [L But] What did you go out to see? A man dressed in ·fine [expensive; L soft] clothes? No, people who have ·fine [glorious; splendid] clothes and much ·wealth [luxury] ·live [are] in ·kings’ palaces [royal courts]. 26 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, and I tell you, ·John is [L one who is] more than a prophet. 27 This was written about him:
‘[L Look; T Behold] I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare ·the [your] way ·for [before; in front of] you
[Mal. 3:1].’
28 I tell you, John is greater than any other person ·ever born [L born to women], but even the least important person in the kingdom of God is greater than John [C because John was part of the old age of preparation, those in the new kingdom age have greater blessings and status].”
29 (When the people, including the tax collectors, heard this, they all agreed that God’s ·teaching was good [way was right/just], because they had been baptized by John. 30 But the Pharisees and experts on the law ·refused to accept [rejected] God’s ·plan [purpose] for themselves; they did not let John baptize them.)
31 Then Jesus said, “·What shall I say about [L To what, therefore, shall I compare] the people of this ·time [L generation]? What are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace, calling to one another and saying,
‘We played ·music [L the pipe/flute] for you, but you did not dance;
we sang a ·sad song [funeral song; dirge], but you did not ·cry [weep].’ [C The religious leaders wanted John to “dance” (lighten up his severe message) and wanted Jesus to “mourn” (follow their restrictive lifestyle).]
33 [L For] John the Baptist came and did not eat bread or drink wine, and you say, ‘He ·has [is possessed by] a demon in him.’ 34 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! ·He eats too much and drinks too much wine [L A glutton and a drunkard], and he is a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35 But wisdom is ·proved to be right [vindicated] by ·what it does [or the behavior of her followers; L all her/its children; C Wisdom is personified as a woman (Prov. 8), her “children” being those who respond favorably to the message of John and Jesus].”
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.