Book of Common Prayer
The Lord Takes Care of His People
A miktam of David.
16 Protect me, God,
because I trust in you.
2 I said to the Lord, “You are my Lord.
Every good thing I have comes from you.”
3 As for the godly people in the world,
they are the wonderful ones I enjoy.
4 But those who turn to idols
will have much pain.
I will not offer blood to those idols
or even speak their names.
5 No, the Lord is all I need.
He takes care of me.
6 My share in life has been pleasant;
my part has been beautiful.
7 I praise the Lord because he advises me.
Even at night, I feel his leading.
8 I keep the Lord before me always.
Because he is close by my side,
I will not be hurt.
9 So I rejoice and am glad.
Even my body has hope,
10 because you will not leave me in the grave.
You will not let your holy one rot.
11 You will teach me how to live a holy life.
Being with you will fill me with joy;
at your right hand I will find pleasure forever.
A Prayer for Protection
A prayer of David.
17 Lord, hear me begging for fairness;
listen to my cry for help.
Pay attention to my prayer,
because I speak the truth.
2 You will judge that I am right;
your eyes can see what is true.
3 You have examined my heart;
you have tested me all night.
You questioned me without finding anything wrong;
I have not sinned with my mouth.
4 I have obeyed your commands,
so I have not done what evil people do.
5 I have done what you told me;
I have not failed.
6 I call to you, God,
and you answer me.
Listen to me now,
and hear what I say.
7 Your love is wonderful.
By your power you save those who trust you
from their enemies.
8 Protect me as you would protect your own eye.
Hide me under the shadow of your wings.
9 Keep me from the wicked who attack me,
from my enemies who surround me.
10 They are selfish
and brag about themselves.
11 They have chased me until they have surrounded me.
They plan to throw me to the ground.
12 They are like lions ready to kill;
like lions, they sit in hiding.
13 Lord, rise up, face the enemy, and throw them down.
Save me from the wicked with your sword.
14 Lord, save me by your power
from those whose reward is in this life.
They have plenty of food.
They have many sons
and leave much money to their children.
15 Because I have lived right, I will see your face.
When I wake up, I will see your likeness and be satisfied.
The Prayer of a Suffering Man
For the director of music. To the tune of “The Doe of Dawn.” A psalm of David.
22 My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
You seem far from saving me,
far away from my groans.
2 My God, I call to you during the day,
but you do not answer.
I call at night;
I am not silent.
3 You sit as the Holy One.
The praises of Israel are your throne.
4 Our ancestors trusted you;
they trusted, and you saved them.
5 They called to you for help
and were rescued.
They trusted you
and were not disappointed.
6 But I am like a worm instead of a man.
People make fun of me and hate me.
7 Those who look at me laugh.
They stick out their tongues and shake their heads.
8 They say, “Turn to the Lord for help.
Maybe he will save you.
If he likes you,
maybe he will rescue you.”
9 You had my mother give birth to me.
You made me trust you
while I was just a baby.
10 I have leaned on you since the day I was born;
you have been my God since my mother gave me birth.
11 So don’t be far away from me.
Now trouble is near,
and there is no one to help.
12 People have surrounded me like angry bulls.
Like the strong bulls of Bashan, they are on every side.
13 Like hungry, roaring lions
they open their mouths at me.
14 My strength is gone,
like water poured out onto the ground,
and my bones are out of joint.
My heart is like wax;
it has melted inside me.
15 My strength has dried up like a clay pot,
and my tongue sticks to the top of my mouth.
You laid me in the dust of death.
16 Evil people have surrounded me;
like dogs they have trapped me.
They have bitten my arms and legs.
17 I can count all my bones;
people look and stare at me.
18 They divided my clothes among them,
and they threw lots for my clothing.
19 But, Lord, don’t be far away.
You are my strength; hurry to help me.
20 Save me from the sword;
save my life from the dogs.
21 Rescue me from the lion’s mouth;
save me from the horns of the bulls.
22 Then I will tell my brothers and sisters about you;
I will praise you in the public meeting.
23 Praise the Lord, all you who respect him.
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him;
fear him, all you Israelites.
24 He does not ignore those in trouble.
He doesn’t hide from them
but listens when they call out to him.
25 Lord, I praise you in the great meeting of your people;
these worshipers will see me do what I promised.
26 Poor people will eat until they are full;
those who look to the Lord will praise him.
May your hearts live forever!
27 People everywhere will remember
and will turn to the Lord.
All the families of the nations
will worship him
28 because the Lord is King,
and he rules the nations.
29 All the powerful people on earth will eat and worship.
Everyone will bow down to him,
all who will one day die.
30 The people in the future will serve him;
they will always be told about the Lord.
31 They will tell that he does what is right.
People who are not yet born
will hear what God has done.
Preparing to Build the Temple
5 Hiram, the king of Tyre, had always been David’s friend. When Hiram heard that Solomon had been made king in David’s place, he sent his messengers to Solomon. 2 Solomon sent this message back to King Hiram: 3 “You remember my father David had to fight many wars with the countries around him, so he was never able to build a temple for worshiping the Lord his God. David was waiting until the Lord allowed him to defeat all his enemies. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me peace on all sides of my country. I have no enemies now, and no danger threatens my people.
5 “The Lord promised my father David, ‘I will make your son king after you, and he will build a temple for worshiping me.’ Now, I plan to build that temple for worshiping the Lord my God. 6 So send your men to cut down cedar trees for me from Lebanon. My servants will work with yours, and I will pay them whatever wages you decide. We don’t have anyone who can cut down trees as well as the people of Sidon.”
7 When Hiram heard what Solomon asked, he was very happy. He said, “Praise the Lord today! He has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation!” 8 Then Hiram sent back this message to Solomon: “I received the message you sent, and I will give you all the cedar and pine trees you want. 9 My servants will bring them down from Lebanon to the sea. There I will tie them together and float them along the shore to the place you choose. Then I will separate the logs there, and you can take them away. In return it is my wish that you give food to all those who live with me.” 10 So Hiram gave Solomon as much cedar and pine as he wanted. 11 And Solomon gave Hiram about one hundred twenty-five thousand bushels of wheat each year to feed the people who lived with him. Solomon also gave him about one hundred fifteen thousand gallons of pure olive oil every year.
12 The Lord gave Solomon wisdom as he had promised. And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; these two kings made a treaty between themselves.
13 King Solomon forced thirty thousand men of Israel to help in this work. 14 He sent a group of ten thousand men each month to Lebanon. Each group worked in Lebanon one month, then went home for two months. A man named Adoniram was in charge. 15 Solomon forced eighty thousand men to work in the hill country, cutting stone, and he had seventy thousand men to carry the stones. 16 There were also thirty-three hundred men who directed the workers. 17 King Solomon commanded them to cut large blocks of fine stone to be used for the foundation of the Temple. 18 Solomon’s and Hiram’s builders and the men from Byblos carved the stones and prepared the stones and the logs for building the Temple.
Solomon Builds the Temple
6 Solomon began to build the Temple four hundred eighty years after the people of Israel had left Egypt. This was during the fourth year of King Solomon’s rule over Israel. It was the second month, the month of Ziv.
7 The stones were prepared at the same place where they were cut from the ground. Since these stones were the only ones used to build the Temple, there was no noise of hammers, axes, or any other iron tools at the Temple.
Paul on the Island of Malta
28 When we were safe on land, we learned that the island was called Malta. 2 The people who lived there were very good to us. Because it was raining and very cold, they made a fire and welcomed all of us. 3 Paul gathered a pile of sticks and was putting them on the fire when a poisonous snake came out because of the heat and bit him on the hand. 4 The people living on the island saw the snake hanging from Paul’s hand and said to each other, “This man must be a murderer! He did not die in the sea, but Justice[a] does not want him to live.” 5 But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and was not hurt. 6 The people thought that Paul would swell up or fall down dead. They waited and watched him for a long time, but nothing bad happened to him. So they changed their minds and said, “He is a god!”
7 There were some fields around there owned by Publius, an important man on the island. He welcomed us into his home and was very good to us for three days. 8 Publius’ father was sick with a fever and dysentery.[b] Paul went to him, prayed, and put his hands on the man and healed him. 9 After this, all the other sick people on the island came to Paul, and he healed them, too. 10-11 The people on the island gave us many honors. When we were ready to leave, three months later, they gave us the things we needed.
Paul Goes to Rome
We got on a ship from Alexandria that had stayed on the island during the winter. On the front of the ship was the sign of the twin gods.[c] 12 We stopped at Syracuse for three days. 13 From there we sailed to Rhegium. The next day a wind began to blow from the south, and a day later we came to Puteoli. 14 We found some believers there who asked us to stay with them for a week. Finally, we came to Rome. 15 The believers in Rome heard that we were there and came out as far as the Market of Appius[d] and the Three Inns[e] to meet us. When Paul saw them, he was encouraged and thanked God.
Paul in Rome
16 When we arrived at Rome, Paul was allowed to live alone, with the soldier who guarded him.
Jesus’ Followers Will Leave Him
27 Then Jesus told the followers, “You will all stumble in your faith, because it is written in the Scriptures:
‘I will kill the shepherd,
and the sheep will scatter.’ Zechariah 13:7
28 But after I rise from the dead, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
29 Peter said, “Everyone else may stumble in their faith, but I will not.”
30 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, tonight before the rooster crows twice you will say three times you don’t know me.”
31 But Peter insisted, “I will never say that I don’t know you! I will even die with you!” And all the other followers said the same thing.
Jesus Prays Alone
32 Jesus and his followers went to a place called Gethsemane. He said to them, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him, and he began to be very sad and troubled. 34 He said to them, “My heart is full of sorrow, to the point of death. Stay here and watch.”
35 After walking a little farther away from them, Jesus fell to the ground and prayed that, if possible, he would not have this time of suffering. 36 He prayed, “Abba,[a] Father! You can do all things. Take away this cup[b] of suffering. But do what you want, not what I want.”
37 Then Jesus went back to his followers and found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Couldn’t you stay awake with me for one hour? 38 Stay awake and pray for strength against temptation. The spirit wants to do what is right, but the body is weak.”
39 Again Jesus went away and prayed the same thing. 40 Then he went back to his followers, and again he found them asleep, because their eyes were very heavy. And they did not know what to say to him.
41 After Jesus prayed a third time, he went back to his followers and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? That’s enough. The time has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to sinful people. 42 Get up, we must go. Look, here comes the man who has turned against me.”
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.