Book of Common Prayer
148 Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord from the heavens.
Praise him in the heights above.
2 Praise him, all his angels.
Praise him, his entire heavenly army.
3 Praise him, sun and moon.
Praise him, all shining stars.
4 Praise him, you highest heaven
and the water above the sky.
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord
because they were created by his command.
6 He set them in their places forever and ever.
He made it a law that no one can break.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth.
Praise him, large sea creatures and all the ocean depths,
8 lightning and hail,
snow and fog,
strong winds that obey his commands,
9 mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedar trees,
10 wild animals and all domestic animals,
crawling animals and birds,
11 kings of the earth and all its people,
officials and all judges on the earth,
12 young men and women,
old and young together.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord
because his name is high above all others.
His glory is above heaven and earth.
14 He has given his people a strong leader,[a]
someone praiseworthy for his faithful ones,
for the people of Israel, the people who are close to him.
Hallelujah!
149 Hallelujah!
Sing a new song to the Lord.
Sing his praise in the assembly of godly people.
2 Let Israel find joy in their creator.
Let the people of Zion rejoice over their king.
3 Let them praise his name with dancing.
Let them make music to him with tambourines and lyres,
4 because the Lord takes pleasure in his people.
He crowns those who are oppressed with victory.
5 Let godly people triumph in glory.
Let them sing for joy on their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their throats
and two-edged swords in their hands
7 to take vengeance on the nations,
to punish the people of the world,
8 to put their kings in chains
and their leaders in iron shackles,
9 to carry out the judgment that is written against them.
This is an honor that belongs to all his godly ones.
Hallelujah!
150 Hallelujah!
Praise God in his holy place.
Praise him in his mighty heavens.
2 Praise him for his mighty acts.
Praise him for his immense greatness.
3 Praise him with sounds from horns.
Praise him with harps and lyres.
4 Praise him with tambourines and dancing.
Praise him with stringed instruments and flutes.
5 Praise him with loud cymbals.
Praise him with crashing cymbals.
6 Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Hallelujah!
114 When Israel left Egypt,
when Jacob’s family left people who spoke a foreign language,
2 Judah became his holy place and Israel became his kingdom.
3 The Red Sea looked at this and ran away.
The Jordan River turned back.
4 The mountains jumped like rams.
The hills jumped like lambs.
5 Red Sea, why did you run away?
Jordan River, what made you turn back?
6 Mountains, what made you jump like rams?
Hills, what made you jump like lambs?
7 Earth, tremble in the presence of the Lord,
in the presence of the God of Jacob.
8 He turns a rock into a pool filled with water
and turns flint into a spring flowing with water.
115 Don’t give glory to us, O Lord.
Don’t give glory to us.
Instead, give glory to your name
because of your mercy and faithfulness.
2 Why should other nations say, “Where is their God?”
3 Our God is in heaven.
He does whatever he wants.
4 Their idols are made of silver and gold.
They were made by human hands.[a]
5 They have mouths, but they cannot speak.
They have eyes, but they cannot see.
6 They have ears, but they cannot hear.
They have noses, but they cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but they cannot feel.
They have feet, but they cannot walk.
They cannot ⌞even⌟ make a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make idols end up like them.
So does everyone who trusts them.
9 Israel, trust the Lord.
He is your helper and your shield.
10 Descendants of Aaron, trust the Lord.
He is your helper and your shield.
11 If you fear the Lord, trust the Lord.
He is your helper and your shield.
12 The Lord, who is ⌞always⌟ thinking about us, will bless us.
He will bless the descendants of Israel.
He will bless the descendants of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord,
from the least important to the most important.
14 May the Lord continue to bless you and your children.
15 You will be blessed by the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.
16 The highest heaven belongs to the Lord,
but he has given the earth to the descendants of Adam.
17 Those who are dead do not praise the Lord,
nor do those who go into the silence ⌞of the grave⌟.
18 But we will thank the Lord now and forever.
Hallelujah!
Jeremiah Writes to the Captives in Babylon
29 The prophet Jeremiah sent a letter from Jerusalem to the rest of the leaders among the captives. He also sent it to the priests, the prophets, and all the people that Nebuchadnezzar took away as captives from Jerusalem to Babylon.
4 This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says to all those who were taken captive from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses, and live in them. Plant gardens, and eat what they produce. 6 Get married, and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons, and let your daughters get married so that they can have sons and daughters. Grow in number there; don’t decrease. 7 Work for the good of the city where I’ve taken you as captives, and pray to the Lord for that city. When it prospers, you will also prosper.
8 This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Don’t let the prophets or the mediums who are among you trick you. Don’t even listen to your own dreams. 9 These people are prophesying lies to you in my name. I didn’t send them, declares the Lord.
10 This is what the Lord says: When Babylon’s 70 years are over, I will come to you. I will keep my promise to you and bring you back to this place. 11 I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope. 12 Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 When you look for me, you will find me. When you wholeheartedly seek me, 14 I will let you find me, declares the Lord. I will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I’ve scattered you, declares the Lord. I will bring you back from the place where you are being held captive.
Paul Has a Vision
6 Paul and Silas went through the regions of Phrygia and Galatia because the Holy Spirit kept them from speaking the word in the province of Asia. 7 They went to the province of Mysia and tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn’t allow this. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went to the city of Troas.
9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia. The man urged Paul, “Come to Macedonia to help us.”
10 As soon as Paul had seen the vision, we immediately looked for a way to go to Macedonia. We concluded that God had called us to tell the people of Macedonia about the Good News.
Paul and Silas in Philippi
11 So we took a ship from Troas and sailed straight to the island of Samothrace. The next day we sailed to the city of Neapolis, 12 and from there we went to the city of Philippi. Philippi is a leading city in that part of Macedonia, and it is a Roman colony. We were in this city for a number of days.
13 On the day of rest—a holy day, we went out of the city to a place along the river where we thought Jewish people gathered for prayer. We sat down and began talking to the women who had gathered there. 14 A woman named Lydia was present. She was a convert to Judaism from the city of Thyatira and sold purple dye for a living. She was listening because the Lord made her willing to pay attention to what Paul said. 15 When Lydia and her family were baptized, she invited us to stay at her home. She said, “If you’re convinced that I believe in the Lord, then stay at my home.” She insisted. So we did.
Jesus Sends Disciples to Do Mission Work
10 After this, the Lord appointed 70 [a] other disciples to go ahead of him to every city and place that he intended to go. They were to travel in pairs.
2 He told them, “The harvest is large, but the workers are few. So ask the Lord who gives this harvest to send workers to harvest his crops. 3 Go! I’m sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Don’t carry a wallet, a traveling bag, or sandals, and don’t stop to greet anyone on the way. 5 Whenever you go into a house, greet the family right away with the words, ‘May there be peace in this house.’ 6 If a peaceful person lives there, your greeting will be accepted. But if that’s not the case, your greeting will be rejected. 7 Stay with the family that accepts you. Eat and drink whatever they offer you. After all, the worker deserves his pay. Do not move around from one house to another. 8 Whenever you go into a city and the people welcome you, eat whatever they serve you. 9 Heal the sick that are there, and tell the people, ‘God’s kingdom is near you!’
10 “But whenever you go into a city and people don’t welcome you, leave. Announce in its streets, 11 ‘We are wiping your city’s dust from our feet in protest against you! But realize that God’s kingdom is near you!’ 12 I can guarantee that judgment day will be easier for Sodom than for that city.
17 The 70 disciples came back very happy. They said, “Lord, even demons obey us when we use the power and authority of your name!”
18 Jesus said to them, “I watched Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19 I have given you the authority to trample snakes and scorpions and to destroy the enemy’s power. Nothing will hurt you. 20 However, don’t be happy that evil spirits obey you. Be happy that your names are written in heaven.”
Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.