Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer for the King
Of Solomon.
72 God, give the king your good judgment
and the king’s son your ·goodness [righteousness].
2 Help him judge your people ·fairly [rightly]
and decide what is ·right [just] for the poor.
3 Let there be ·peace [or prosperity] on the mountains
and ·goodness [righteousness] on the hills for the people.
4 Help him be ·fair [just] to the poor
and ·save [give victory to] the ·needy [or children of the needy]
and ·punish [crush] those who ·hurt [oppress; exploit] them.
5 May they ·respect [fear] you as long as the sun
and as long as the moon, throughout the generations.
6 Let him ·be [L come down] like rain on the mown grass,
like showers that water the earth.
7 Let ·goodness [righteousness] ·be plentiful [bloom forth] while he lives.
Let ·peace [or prosperity] continue ·as long as there is a [L until there is no] moon.
8 ·Let his kingdom go [L May he have dominion/rule] from sea to sea,
and from the ·Euphrates River [L river] to the ends of the earth.
9 Let the people of the ·desert [wilderness] ·bow down to [cringe/cower before] him,
and make his enemies lick the dust.
10 Let the kings of Tarshish [48:7] and the ·faraway lands [L islands]
bring him ·gifts [tribute].
Let the kings of Sheba [C an unknown location, perhaps present-day Yemen, Eritrea, or Ethiopia; see 1 Kin. 10:1–13] and Seba [C either in southern Egypt or further south; Gen. 10:7; Is. 43:3; 45:14]
bring their ·presents [tribute] to him.
11 Let all kings ·bow down [bend the knee] to him
and all nations serve him [Ps. 2].
12 He will ·help [protect] the poor when they cry out
and the needy when no one else will help.
13 He will ·be kind to [take pity on] the poor and the needy,
and he will ·save their lives [give victory to the needy].
14 He will ·save [redeem] them from ·cruel people who try to hurt them [L violence and oppression],
because their ·lives [L blood] are precious to ·him [L his eyes].
15 Long live the king!
Let him receive gold from Sheba [v. 10].
Let people always pray for him
and ·bless [praise] him all day long.
16 Let ·the fields grow plenty of grain [L there be much grain in the land/earth]
and ·the hills be covered with crops [L let there be abundance on the top of the mountains; or let it wave on the top of the mountains].
·Let the land be as fertile as Lebanon [L May its fruit be like that of Lebanon],
and let the cities grow like the grass in a field.
17 Let ·the king be famous [L his name/fame be] forever;
let ·him be remembered as long as the sun shines [L his name/fame continue as long as the sun].
Let the nations be ·blessed [praised] because of him,
and may they all ·bless [praise] him [Gen. 12:3].
18 ·Praise [Blessed be] the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does such ·miracles [wonderful things].
19 Praise his glorious name forever.
Let his glory [C manifest presence] fill the whole world.
Amen and amen.
20 This ends the prayers of David son of Jesse [C at one time it did, but see other Davidic psalms at Ps. 101, 103, 108–110, and others].
73 You made me and ·formed [fashioned; or established] me with your hands.
Give me understanding so I can learn your commands.
74 Let those who ·respect [fear; Prov. 1:7] you rejoice when they see me,
because I put my hope in your word.
75 Lord, I know that your ·laws [judgments] are ·right [righteous]
and that it was ·right [faithful] for you to ·punish [humble] me.
76 Comfort me with your ·love [loyalty],
as you promised me, your servant.
77 ·Have mercy [L Let your mercy/compassion come] on me so that I may live.
I ·love [delight in] your ·teachings [laws; instructions].
78 Make ·proud [arrogant] people ashamed because they ·lied about me [perverted me with lies].
But I will ·think about [meditate on] your ·orders [precepts].
79 Let those who ·respect [fear; Prov. 1:7] you return to me,
those who know your ·rules [decrees; testimonies].
80 ·Let me obey your demands perfectly [L May my heart be blameless in regard to your statutes/ordinances/requirements]
so I will not be ashamed.
81 I ·am weak from waiting for you to save me [grow weak for your salvation/victory],
but I hope in your word.
82 My eyes ·are tired from looking [grow weak] for your promise.
I ask, “When will you comfort me?”
83 Even though I am like a wine bag in smoke [C shrunken and dried out],
I do not forget your ·demands [statutes; ordinances; requirements].
84 ·How long will I live [L Like what are the days of your servant]?
When will you ·judge [perform judgment on] those who are ·hurting [pursuing] me?
85 ·Proud [Arrogant] people have dug pits [C to trap him].
They ·have nothing to do with your teachings [L are not according to your teachings/instructions/laws].
86 All of your commands ·can be trusted [are reliable].
Liars are ·hurting [pursuing] me. Help me!
87 They have almost put me in the ·grave [L earth],
but I have not ·rejected [abandoned; forsaken] your ·orders [precepts].
88 Give me life ·by your love [L according to your loyalty]
so I can ·obey [keep; guard] your ·rules [decrees; testimonies].
89 ·Lord, your word is everlasting [or The Lord is everlasting];
·it [L your word] ·continues forever [L is firm] in heaven.
90 Your ·loyalty [faithfulness; truth] will go on and on;
you ·made [established] the earth, and it ·still stands [endures].
91 All things ·continue [endure] to this day because of your ·laws [judgments],
because all things ·serve you [L are your servants].
92 If I had not ·loved [delighted in] your ·teachings [instructions; laws],
I would have ·died [perished] ·from my sufferings [in my afflictions].
93 I will never forget your ·orders [precepts],
because you have given me life by them.
94 I am yours. ·Save me [Give me victory].
I ·want to obey [seek] your ·orders [precepts].
95 Wicked people ·are waiting [hope] to ·destroy me [make me perish],
but I will ·think about [consider] your ·rules [decrees; testimonies].
96 Everything I see has its limits,
but your commands ·have none [L are very broad].
Moses’ Song
30 And Moses spoke this whole song ·for all the people of Israel to hear [L in the ears of the whole assembly of Israel]:
32 ·Hear [L Give ear], heavens, and I will speak. Listen, earth, to ·what I say [L the words of my mouth].
2 My teaching will drop like rain;
my words will ·fall [distill] like dew.
They will be like showers on the grass;
they will pour down like rain on young plants.
3 I will announce the name of the Lord.
·Praise God because he is great [L Ascribe greatness to our God]!
4 He is like a rock; what he does is perfect,
and ·he is always [L all his ways are] fair.
He is a faithful God who does no wrong,
who is ·right [righteous] and ·fair [virtuous].
5 They ·have done evil against him [are corrupt].
·To their shame [or Their faults show] they are no longer his children [Is. 1:2–4; Hos. 1:9];
they are an ·evil [perverted] and ·lying [crooked] people.
6 This is not the way to repay the Lord,
you foolish and unwise people.
·He is [L Is he not…?] your Father and Maker,
who made you and formed you.
7 Remember the old days.
Think of the years already passed.
Ask your father and he will tell you;
ask your elders and they will inform you.
8 God Most High gave ·the nations their lands [L each nation its inheritance],
dividing up the ·human race [L sons of man].
He set up borders for the people
·and even numbered the Israelites[a] [L according to the number of the sons/T children of Israel].
9 The Lord took his people as his ·share [portion],
the people of Jacob as his ·very own [L special inheritance].
10 He found them in a ·desert [wilderness],
a windy, ·empty [unformed; Gen. 1:2] land.
He surrounded them and brought them up,
guarding them as ·those he loved very much [L the apple/pupil of his eye].
11 He was like an eagle ·building [watching; stirring up] its nest
that ·flutters [hovers] over its young.
It spreads its wings to catch them
and carries them on its feathers.
12 The Lord alone led them,
and there was no foreign god ·helping [L with] him.
13 The Lord ·brought them to [or made them ride over] the heights of the land
and fed them the fruit of the fields.
He ·gave them [suckled them with] honey from the rocks,
bringing oil from the ·solid [flint] rock.
14 There were milk curds from the cows and milk from the flock;
there were fat sheep and goats.
There were sheep and goats from Bashan [C a particularly fertile area east of the Sea of Galilee]
and the best of the wheat.
You drank the ·juice [L fermenting/foaming blood] of grapes [C wine].
21 It is shameful to me to say this, but we were too “weak” to do those things to you!
But if anyone else ·is brave enough [dares] to ·brag [boast], then I also will ·be brave and brag [dare to boast]. (I am talking as a fool.) 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they from Abraham’s ·family [descendants; L seed]? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am serving him more. (I am crazy to talk like this.) I have worked much harder than they. I have been in prison more often [Acts 16:23–40]. I have been ·hurt more in beatings [flogged more severely; Acts 16:22]. I have been near death many times. 24 Five times the Jews have given me ·their punishment of thirty-nine lashes with a whip [L forty minus one; C a shorthand phrase for the standard Jewish punishment; Deut. 25:1–3 allowed a maximum of forty lashes; the Jews gave thirty-nine to avoid breaking the law]. 25 Three different times I was beaten with rods [C a Roman punishment]. One time I was almost stoned to death [Acts 14:19]. Three times I was in ships that wrecked, and one of those times I spent a night and a day in the sea [C Paul’s shipwreck in Acts 27 occurred after writing this (c. ad 60), so he experienced at least four shipwrecks]. 26 I have gone on many travels and have been in danger from rivers, from ·thieves [bandits], from my own people [C the Jews], and from the Gentiles. I have been in danger in cities, in ·places where no one lives [the desert/wilderness], and on the sea. And I have been in danger with false ·Christians [L brothers]. 27 I have done hard and tiring work, and many times I did not sleep. I have been hungry and thirsty, and many times I have been without food. I have been cold and ·without clothes [or destitute; L naked]. 28 Besides all this, there is on me every day the ·load [pressure] of my ·concern [anxiety] for all the churches. 29 I feel weak every time someone is weak [L Who is weak, and I am not weak?], and ·I feel upset every time someone is led into sin [L Who is led into sin, and I am not indignant/L burning (with anger)?].
30 If I must ·brag [boast], I will ·brag [boast] about the things that show I am weak. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is to be praised forever, knows I am not lying. 32 When I was in Damascus, the ·governor [L ethnarch; C a title for a minor ruler] under King Aretas wanted to arrest me, so he put guards around the city. 33 But ·my friends lowered me [L I was lowered] in a basket through ·a hole [or window] in the city wall. So I escaped from ·the governor [L his hands].
A Story About Three Servants(A)
11 As ·the people [L they; C either the disciples, the guests of Zacchaeus, or the larger crowd] were listening to this, Jesus told them a ·story [parable] because he was near Jerusalem and ·they thought [it seemed to them] God’s kingdom would appear immediately. 12 He said: “A ·very important man [nobleman] went to a country far away to ·be made a king [L receive a kingdom] and then to return home [C Judean kings, like Herod the Great and his son Archelaus, received their authority to rule from the emperor in Rome]. 13 So he called ten of his ·servants [slaves] and gave a coin [C Greek: mina; worth 100 denarii, or about 3 months’ wages] to each servant. He said, ‘·Do business with [Invest; Trade with] this money until I get back.’ 14 But ·the people in the kingdom [L his citizens/subjects] hated the man. So they sent a ·group [delegation; embassy] to follow him and say, ‘We don’t want this man to ·be our king [L rule/reign over us].’
15 “But the man ·became king [L received the kingdom]. When he returned home, he said, ‘Call those ·servants [slaves] who have my money so I can know how much they earned with it.’
16 “The first servant came and said, ‘Sir, ·I earned ten coins with the one you gave me [L your mina has earned ten minas].’ 17 The king said to the servant, ‘Excellent! ·You are a good servant [Good servant/slave!]. Since ·I can trust you [you have been faithful] with small things, I will let you ·rule [govern; L have authority] over ten of my cities.’
18 “The second servant said, ‘Sir, ·I earned five coins with your one [L your mina earned five minas].’ 19 The king said to this servant, ‘You can ·rule [be; take charge] over five cities.’
20 “Then another servant came in and said to the king, ‘Sir, here is your ·coin [mina] which I ·wrapped [stored away] in a ·piece of cloth [handkerchief] and hid. 21 [L For; Because] I was afraid of you, because you are a ·hard [harsh; demanding; severe] man. You even take ·money that [L out what] you didn’t ·earn [L put in] and ·gather food that [harvest what] you didn’t ·plant [sow].’ 22 Then the king said to the servant, ‘I will ·condemn [judge] you ·by your own words [L from your mouth], you ·evil [wicked; or worthless] servant. You knew that I am a ·hard [harsh; demanding; severe] man, taking ·money that [L out what] I didn’t ·earn [L put in]and ·gathering food that [L harvesting what] I didn’t ·plant [sow]. 23 Why then didn’t you put my money ·in the bank [L on the table; C referring to the banker’s table]? Then when I came back, my money would have earned some interest.’
24 “·The king [He] said to the men who were standing by, ‘Take the ·coin [L mina] away from this servant and give it to the servant who earned ten ·coins [L minas].’ 25 They said, ‘But sir, that servant already has ten ·coins [L minas].’ 26 ·The king said [L I say to you], ‘Those who have will be given more, but those who do not have anything ·will have everything [L even what they have will be] taken away from them. 27 Now ·where are my enemies [or concerning those enemies] who didn’t want me to ·be king [rule/reign over them]? Bring them here and ·kill [slay; slaughter] them before me.’”
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