Book of Common Prayer
Betrayal by a Friend
Psalm 55
1 For the music director, on stringed instruments, a contemplative song of David.
2 Give ear, O God, to my prayer
and do not ignore my plea for help.
3 Listen to me and answer me.
I am restless in my complaint and moan—
4 because of the voice of the enemy,
because of the pressure of the wicked.
For they thrust trouble on me,
and in anger bear a grudge against me.
5 My heart shudders within me
and the terrors of death sweep over me.
6 Fear and trembling come upon me
and horror has overwhelmed me.
7 So I said, “Oh that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and find rest.
8 Surely I would flee far away.
I would stay in the wilderness. Selah
9 I would hurry to my shelter
from the rushing wind of the storm.”
10 Lord, confuse and confound their speech,
for I see violence and strife in the city.
11 Day and night they make the rounds on her walls.
Iniquity and mischief are within her.
12 Ruins are in her midst.
Oppression and deceit never leave her square.
13 For if it were an enemy taunting me,
I could endure it.
If my foe was exalting himself over me,
I could hide from him.
14 But it is you, a man like me—
my companion and my close friend!
15 Together we enjoyed great fellowship.
We used to walk with the throng in the House of God.
16 Let desolation come upon them,
let them go down alive into Sheol—
for evil is in their dwelling, among them.
17 As for me, I will call on God,
and Adonai will save me.
18 Evening, morning and noon, I complain and moan,
then He hears my voice.
19 He will redeem my soul in shalom from the battle against me.
For many are striving with me.
20 God will hear and humble them
—yes, the One enthroned of old. Selah
Nothing changes—they do not fear God.
21 My companion put forth his hands against those at peace with him,
as he violates his covenant.
22 Smoother than butter was his speech,
yet war was in his heart.
His words were softer than oil,
yet they were drawn swords.
23 Cast your burden on Adonai, and He will sustain you.[a]
He will never let the righteous be shaken.
24 But You, O God, will bring them down to the Pit of destruction.
Bloodthirsty, deceitful men will not live out half their days.
But I—I will trust in You.
Your Right Hand Delivers Me
Psalm 138
1 Of David.
I praise You with all my heart.
In the presence of the mighty I will sing praises to You.
2 I bow down toward Your holy Temple
and praise Your Name for Your love and Your faithfulness.
For You—magnified above all Your Name and Your word.
3 On the day I called, You answered me.
You made me bold with strength in my soul.
4 All the kings of the earth will praise You, Adonai,
when they hear Your mouth’s speech.
5 So they will sing of the ways of Adonai,
for great is the glory of Adonai.
6 For though Adonai is exalted,
yet He looks upon the lowly,
but the haughty He knows from afar.
7 Though I walk amid trouble,
You revive me.
You stretch out Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and Your right hand delivers me.
8 Adonai will fulfill His purpose for me.
Your lovingkindness, Adonai, endures forever.
Do not abandon the work of Your hands.
How Precious Your Thoughts!
Psalm 139
1 For the music director: a psalm of David.
Adonai, You searched me and know me.
2 Whenever I sit down or stand up, You know it.
You discern my thinking from afar.
3 You observe my journeying and my resting
and You are familiar with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, Adonai, You know all about it.
5 You hemmed me in behind and before,
and laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from Your Ruach?
Where can I flee from Your presence?
8 If I go up to heaven, You are there,
and if I make my bed in Sheol,
look, You are there too.
9 If I take the wings of the dawn
and settle on the other side of the sea,
10 even there Your hand will lead me,
and Your right hand will lay hold of me.
11 If I say: “Surely darkness covers me,
night keeps light at a distance from me,”
12 even darkness is not dark for You,
and night is as bright as day—
darkness and light are alike.
13 For You have created my conscience.
You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise You, for I am awesomely, wonderfully made!
Wonderful are Your works—
and my soul knows that very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw me when I was unformed,
and in Your book were written the days that were formed—
when not one of them had come to be.
17 How precious are Your thoughts, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand!
When I awake, I am still with You.
19 If only You would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloody men!
20 For they speak about You with wicked intent.
Your enemies reproach You in vain.
21 Do I not hate those who hate You, Adonai?
Do I not loathe those who rise against You?
22 I hate them with total hatred—
I consider them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart.
Examine me, and know my anxious thoughts,
4 Now when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabians, the Ammonites, and the people of Ashdod heard that restoration of the walls of Jerusalem was proceeding and that the breaches had begun to be closed, they became extremely angry. 2 They all conspired together to come and fight against Jerusalem, and to stir up trouble against it. 3 But we prayed to our God and stationed a guard against them day and night.
4 Meanwhile the people of Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is failing. There is so much rubble that we are unable to rebuild the wall.”
5 Our adversaries also said, “They will not know or perceive anything, until we come among them and kill them, and put an end to the work!”
6 So it happened that the Jews living near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us!”
Working and Watching
7 So I stationed people in the lower places behind the wall in the exposed places. I stationed the people by families with their swords, spears and bows. 8 When I looked things over, I rose up and said to the nobles, the rulers and the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the great and awesome Lord, and fight on behalf of your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”
9 Now when our enemies heard that their plan was known to us, and that God had frustrated it, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. 10 From that day on, half of my men were doing the work, while half of them took hold of the spears, shields, bows and breastplates, and the leaders were behind the entire house of Judah. 11 Those building the wall and those bearing heavy burdens kept one hand on the work and the other holding a weapon. 12 So each of the builders had his sword strapped to his side while they were building, and the shofar blower was beside me.
13 Then I said to the nobles, the rulers and the rest of the people, “The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from one another on the wall. 14 Wherever you hear the sound of the shofar, join us there. Our God will fight for us!”
15 So we continued the work with half the men holding spears, from dawn until the stars came out. 16 Also at that time I said to the people, “Let every man and his helper lodge inside Jerusalem, so they can be guards for us by night and workers by day.” 17 So neither I, nor my brothers, nor my workers, nor the guards who were with me took off our clothes; each man even had his weapon at the water.
4 Now I heard the number of those marked with the seal:
144,000 from every tribe of Bnei-Yisrael—
5 12,000 from the tribe of Judah;
12,000 from the tribe of Reuben;
12,000 from the tribe of Gad;
6 12,000 from the tribe of Asher;
12,000 from the tribe of Naphtali;
12,000 from the tribe of Manasseh;
7 12,000 from the tribe of Simeon;
12,000 from the tribe of Levi;
12,000 from the tribe of Issachar;
8 12,000 from the tribe of Zebulun;
12,000 from the tribe of Joseph;
12,000 from the tribe of Benjamin.
Countless Worshipers Before the Throne
9 After these things I looked, and behold, a vast multitude that no one could count—from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues—was standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes, with palm branches[a] in their hands 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying,
“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb!”
11 And all the angels were standing around the throne, along with the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying,
“Amen, blessing and glory
and wisdom and thanksgiving
and honor and power and might
belong to our God forever and ever. Amen!”
13 Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these dressed in white robes, and where have they come from?”
I said to him, “Sir, you know.”
14 Then he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.[b] They have washed their robes and made them white[c] in the blood of the Lamb. 15 For this reason, they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His Temple. The One seated on the throne will shelter them. [d] 16 They shall never again go hungry, nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat. [e] 17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne shall shepherd them and guide them to springs of living water, and God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes.”[f]
31 He presented to them another parable, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 It’s the smallest of all seeds; yet when it’s full grown, it’s greater than the other herbs. It becomes like a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”[a]
33 He told them another parable, “The kingdom of heaven is like hametz, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”
34 All these things Yeshua spoke to the crowds in parables. And apart from a parable, He wasn’t speaking to them, 35 in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying,
“I will open My mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”[b]
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.