Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 40
Thanksgiving and a Cry for Help
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.
1 I waited patiently for the Lord,
and He turned to me and heard my cry for help.(A)
2 He brought me up from a desolate[a] pit,
out of the muddy clay,(B)
and set my feet on a rock,
making my steps secure.(C)
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.(D)
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the Lord.(E)
4 How happy is the man
who has put his trust in the Lord
and has not turned to the proud
or to those who run after lies!(F)
5 Lord my God, You have done many things—
Your wonderful works and Your plans for us;
none can compare with You.
If I were to report and speak of them,
they are more than can be told.(G)
6 You do not delight in sacrifice and offering;
You open my ears to listen.[b]
You do not ask for a whole burnt offering or a sin offering.(H)
7 Then I said, “See, I have come;
it is written about me in the volume of the scroll.(I)
8 I delight to do Your will, my God;(J)
Your instruction lives within me.”[c](K)
9 I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
see, I do not keep my mouth closed[d]—
as You know, Lord.(L)
10 I did not hide Your righteousness in my heart;
I spoke about Your faithfulness and salvation;
I did not conceal Your constant love and truth
from the great assembly.(M)
11 Lord, do not withhold Your compassion from me;
Your constant love and truth will always guard me.(N)
12 For troubles without number have surrounded me;
my sins have overtaken me; I am unable to see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my courage leaves me.(O)
13 Lord, be pleased to deliver me;
hurry to help me, Lord.(P)
Psalm 54
Prayer for Deliverance
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A Davidic Maskil. When the Ziphites went and said to Saul, “Is David not hiding among us?”(A)
1 God, save me by Your name,
and vindicate me by Your might!(B)
2 God, hear my prayer;
listen to the words of my mouth.(C)
3 For strangers rise up against me,
and violent men seek my life.
They have no regard for God.[a](D)
Psalm 51
A Prayer for Restoration
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm, when Nathan the prophet came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba.(A)
1 Be gracious to me, God,
according to Your faithful love;
according to Your abundant compassion,
blot out my rebellion.(B)
2 Wash away my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.(C)
3 For I am conscious of my rebellion,
and my sin is always before me.(D)
4 Against You—You alone—I have sinned
and done this evil in Your sight.(E)
So You are right when You pass sentence;
You are blameless when You judge.(F)
5 Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;
I was sinful when my mother conceived me.(G)
6 Surely You desire integrity in the inner self,
and You teach me wisdom deep within.(H)
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.(I)
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones You have crushed rejoice.(J)
9 Turn Your face away[a] from my sins
and blot out all my guilt.(K)
10 God, create a clean heart for me
and renew a steadfast[b] spirit within me.(L)
11 Do not banish me from Your presence
or take Your Holy Spirit from me.(M)
12 Restore the joy of Your salvation to me,
and give me a willing spirit.[c](N)
13 Then I will teach the rebellious Your ways,
and sinners will return to You.(O)
14 Save me from the guilt of bloodshed, God,(P)
the God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness.(Q)
15 Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare Your praise.(R)
16 You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
You are not pleased with a burnt offering.(S)
17 The sacrifice pleasing to God is[d] a broken spirit.
God, You will not despise a broken and humbled heart.(T)
Giving the Firstfruits
26 “When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance,(A) and you take possession of it and live in it, 2 you must take some of the first of all the land’s produce that you harvest from the land Yahweh your God is giving you and put it in a container. Then go to the place where the Lord your God chooses to have His name dwell.(B) 3 When you come before the priest who is serving at that time, you must say to him, ‘Today I acknowledge to the Lord your[a] God that I have entered the land the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.’
4 “Then the priest will take the container from your hand and place it before the altar of the Lord your God. 5 You are to respond by saying in the presence of the Lord your God:
My father was a wandering Aramean.(C) He went down to Egypt with a few people and lived there.(D) There he became a great, powerful, and populous nation. 6 But the Egyptians mistreated and afflicted us, and forced us to do hard labor. 7 So we called out to Yahweh, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our cry and saw our misery, hardship, and oppression.(E) 8 Then the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, with terrifying power, and with signs and wonders. 9 He led us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey.(F) 10 I have now brought the first of the land’s produce that You, Lord, have given me.
You will then place the container before the Lord your God and bow down to Him. 11 You, the Levite, and the foreign resident among you will rejoice(G) in all the good things the Lord your God has given you and your household.
Administration of the Collection
16 Thanks be to God who put the same concern for you into the heart of Titus. 17 For he accepted our urging and, being very diligent, went out to you by his own choice. 18 We have sent with him the brother(A) who is praised throughout the churches for his gospel ministry.[a] 19 And not only that, but he was also appointed by the churches to accompany us with this gift[b] that is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself and to show our eagerness to help. 20 We are taking this precaution so no one can criticize us about this large sum administered by us. 21 For we are making provision(B) for what is right,(C) not only before the Lord but also before men. 22 We have also sent with them our brother. We have often tested him in many circumstances and found him to be diligent—and now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you. 23 As for Titus, he is my partner(D) and coworker(E) serving you; as for our brothers, they are the messengers(F) of the churches, the glory of Christ.(G) 24 Therefore, show them proof before the churches of your love and of our boasting(H) about you.
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 He(A) also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves(B) that they were righteous(C) and looked down(D) on everyone else: 10 “Two men went up to the temple complex to pray,(E) one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee took his stand[a](F) and was praying like this: ‘God, I thank You that I’m not like other people[b] —greedy,(G) unrighteous,(H) adulterers,(I) or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast(J) twice a week; I give a tenth[c](K) of everything I get.’
13 “But the tax collector, standing far off,(L) would not even raise his eyes to heaven(M) but kept striking his chest[d](N) and saying, ‘God, turn Your wrath from me[e](O)—a sinner!’(P) 14 I tell you, this one went down to his house justified(Q) rather than the other; because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”(R)
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