Book of Common Prayer
Praise God for What He Has Done
For the director of music. A song. A psalm.
66 Everything on earth, shout with joy to God!
2 ·Sing [Make a psalm] about ·his glory [L the glory of his name]!
Make his praise glorious!
3 Say to God, “Your works are ·amazing [majestic]!
Because your power is great,
your enemies ·fall [cringe; cower] before you.
4 All the earth ·worships [bows down to] you
and ·sings praises to [makes a psalm for] you.
They ·sing praises to [make a psalm for] your name [Phil. 2:10–12].” ·
5 Come and see what God has done,
the ·amazing [majestic] things he has done for people.
6 He turned the sea into dry land [Ex. 14–15].
The people crossed the river on foot [Josh. 3].
So let us rejoice because of what he did.
7 He rules forever with his power.
·He keeps his eye [L His eyes keep watch] on the nations,
so ·people should not turn [the rebellious might not rise] against him. ·
8 You people, ·praise [bless] our God;
·loudly sing his praise [L let the sound of his praise be heard].
9 He ·protects our lives [L sets our lives among the living]
and does not let ·us be defeated [L our feet be moved].
10 God, you have ·tested [examined] us;
you have ·purified [refined] us like silver [C removing the dross].
11 You ·let us be trapped [brought us into the net]
and put ·a heavy load on us [L misery on our backs].
12 You let our enemies ·walk on [L ride over] our heads.
We went through fire and ·flood [L water],
but you brought us to a place with ·good things [abundance].
13 I will come to your ·Temple [L house] with burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17].
I will ·give you what I promised [repay my vows],
14 ·things I promised when I was in trouble [L which my lips poured out and my mouth said when I was in distress].
15 I will bring you burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17] of fat animals,
and ·I will offer sheep, bulls, and goats [L with the smoke of rams, I will offer bulls and goats]. ·
16 All of you who fear God [Prov. 1:7], come and listen,
and I will tell you what he has done for me.
17 I ·cried out [called] to him with my mouth
and ·praised [exalted] him with my tongue.
18 If I had ·known of [L seen] any sin in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened to me.
19 But God has listened;
he has ·heard [L paid attention to the sound of] my prayer.
20 ·Praise [Blessed be] God,
who did not ·ignore [turn aside from] my prayer
or hold back his ·love [loyalty] from me.
The Lord Speaks to Ezekiel
2 He said to me, “·Human [T Son of man; C used 93 times in the book to address the prophet; it means “human being” and stresses the frailty of humanity in contrast to the sovereignty of God], stand up on your feet so I may speak with you.” 2 While he spoke to me, ·the Spirit [or a spirit; or a wind] entered me and put me on my feet. Then I heard ·the Lord [L him] speaking to me.
3 He said, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], I am sending you to the ·people [L sons; T children] of Israel, that nation of rebels who have ·turned [rebelled] against me. They and their ·ancestors [fathers] have ·sinned [revolted; transgressed] against me ·until [to] this very day. 4 I am sending you to people who are ·stubborn [impudent] and ·who do not obey [stubborn; obstinate]. You will say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says.’ 5 They may listen, or they may not, since they are a ·people who have turned against me [L rebellious house]. But they will know that a prophet has been among them. 6 You, ·human [T son of man; 2:1], don’t be afraid of ·the people [L them] or their words. Even though ·they may be like thorny branches and stickers [L briars and thorns are] all around you, and though you ·may feel like you live with stinging [L sit among; or dwell among] scorpions, don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid of their words or terrified by their looks, because they are a ·people who turn against me [L rebellious house]. 7 But speak my words to them. They may listen, or they may not, because they ·turn against me [are rebellious].
Peter Returns to Jerusalem
11 The apostles and the ·believers [L brothers] in Judea heard that some Gentiles had accepted ·God’s teaching [L the word of God] too. 2 But when Peter ·came [went up] to Jerusalem, ·some people [L the circumcised; C Jewish Christians who believed that they should continue to obey certain Jewish regulations] ·argued with [criticized] him. 3 They said, “You went into the homes of people who are not circumcised and ate with them!”
4 So Peter ·started from the beginning [or began speaking] and explained ·the whole story [it in order/step by step] to them. 5 He said, “I was in the city of Joppa [9:36], and as I was praying, I had a vision while in a trance [10:10]. I saw ·something [L an object] that looked like a big sheet being lowered from heaven by its four corners. It came very close to me. 6 I looked [intently] inside it and saw ·animals [L four-footed creatures], wild beasts, reptiles, and birds [L of the sky/air]. 7 I heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’ 8 But I said, ‘·No [Absolutely not], Lord! I have never eaten anything that is unholy [profane; common] or ·unclean [ritually defiled; 10:14].’ 9 But the voice from heaven spoke again, ‘God has made these things clean, so don’t call them ·unholy [profane; common].’ 10 This happened three times. Then the whole thing was ·taken back [or pulled up] to heaven. 11 Right then [L look; T behold] three men who were sent to me from Caesarea came to the house where I was staying [10:17–19]. 12 The Spirit told me to go with them without ·doubting [or hesitation]. These six ·believers [L brothers] here also ·went with [accompanied] me, and we entered the house of ·Cornelius [L the man]. 13 He told us about the angel he saw standing in his house. The angel said to him, ‘Send some men to Joppa and ·invite [summon; send for] Simon [L who is also called] Peter to come. 14 By the ·words [message] he will say to you, you and all your ·family [or household] will be saved.’ 15 When I began ·my speech [L to speak], the Holy Spirit ·came [L fell] on them just as he came on us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered the words of the Lord. He said, ‘John baptized ·with [or in] water, but you will be baptized ·with [or in; or by] the Holy Spirit [1:5; Matt. 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16].’ 17 [L Therefore] Since God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, how could I ·stop [prevent; hinder] the work of God?”
18 When ·the believers [L they] heard this, they ·stopped arguing [ceased their objections; remained silent]. They ·praised [glorified] God and said, “So God ·is allowing [has given] even ·other nations [the Gentiles] ·to turn to him and live [L repentance (leading) to life].”
A Hymn About the Lord’s Power
97 The Lord ·is king [reigns; 47:2; 93:1; 96:10; 98:6; 99:1; Rev. 19:6]. Let the earth rejoice;
·faraway lands [or islands; or coastlands] should be glad.
2 Thick, dark clouds surround him.
His ·kingdom [L throne] is ·built [established] on ·what is right [righteousness] and ·fair [justice].
3 A fire goes before him
and ·burns up [flames] his enemies all around.
4 His lightning ·lights up [illuminates] the world;
when the ·people [earth] see it, they ·tremble [writhe].
5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
6 The heavens ·tell about [declare] his ·goodness [righteousness],
and all the people see his glory [C his manifest presence].
7 Those who ·worship [serve] idols should be ·ashamed [embarrassed; Is. 42:17; 45:16];
they brag about their ·gods [worthless things].
All the gods should ·worship [bow down to] the Lord.
8 When ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple] hears this, she is glad,
and the ·towns [L daughters] of Judah rejoice.
They are happy because of your judgments, Lord.
9 You are the Lord Most High over all the earth;
you are ·supreme [exalted] over all gods.
10 People who love the Lord hate evil.
The Lord ·watches over [keeps; guards] ·those who follow him [his loyal ones/saints]
and ·frees [rescues] them from the ·power [L hand] of the wicked.
11 Light ·shines [L is sown] on ·those who do right [the righteous];
joy belongs to those who are ·honest [L virtuous/upright in heart].
12 Rejoice in the Lord, you who ·do right [are righteous].
Praise his ·holy name [or unforgettable holiness].
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].
Other Apostles Accepted Paul
2 [L Then] After fourteen years I went to Jerusalem again, this time with Barnabas [Acts 4:36; 9:26–27; 11:22, 25, 30; 13:2–4; 15:36–39]. I also took Titus [2 Cor. 2:13; Titus 1:4–5] with me. 2 I went because ·God showed me I should go [L of a revelation]. There I met in private with ·the leaders of the church [or those who seemed to be leaders; or the prominent/influential ones] and I ·told [presented to; set before] them the ·Good News [Gospel] that I preach to the Gentiles. ·I did not want my past work and the work I am now doing to be wasted [L …to make sure I was not running or had run in vain]. 3 Titus was with me, but he was not ·forced [compelled] to be circumcised [Gen. 17], even though he was a Greek. 4 ·We talked about this problem [This issue arose] because some false ·believers [L brothers] had come into our group secretly. They came in ·like spies to overturn [to sabotage; L to spy on] the freedom we have in Christ Jesus. They wanted to make us slaves. 5 But we did not give in to ·those false believers [L them] for a minute, so that the truth of the ·Good News [Gospel] would ·continue [be preserved; not be compromised] for you.
6 Those leaders who ·seemed to be important [or were prominent/influential] did not ·change the Good News that I preach [or add anything to my message]. (It doesn’t matter to me if they were ·“important” [prominent; influential] or not. To God everyone is the same.) 7 But these leaders saw that I had been ·given the work of telling the Good News [L entrusted with the Gospel] to the ·Gentiles [non-Jewish people; L uncircumcised], just as Peter ·had the work of telling the Jews [L to the circumcised]. 8 [L For] ·God [L The one] who gave Peter the power to work as an apostle for the ·Jewish people [L circumcised] also gave me the power to work as an apostle for the Gentiles. 9 James, Peter, and John, who seemed to be ·the leaders [L pillars], ·understood [recognized; acknowledged] that God had given me this special grace, so they ·accepted [shook hands in partnership with; L gave the right hand of fellowship/partnership to] Barnabas and me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles and they would go to the ·Jewish people [L circumcised].
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.