Book of Common Prayer
God Will Reward Fairly
Of David.
37 Don’t be upset because of evil people.
Don’t be jealous of those who do wrong.
2 Like the grass, they will soon dry up.
Like green plants, they will soon die away.
3 Trust the Lord and do good.
Live in the land and enjoy its safety.
4 Enjoy serving the Lord.
And he will give you what you want.
5 Depend on the Lord.
Trust him, and he will take care of you.
6 Then your goodness will shine like the sun.
Your fairness will shine like the noonday sun.
7 Wait and trust the Lord.
Don’t be upset when others get rich
or when someone else’s plans succeed.
8 Don’t get angry.
Don’t be upset; it only leads to trouble.
9 Evil people will be sent away.
But people who trust the Lord will inherit the land.
10 In a little while there will be no more wicked people.
You may look for them, but they will be gone.
11 People who are not proud will inherit the land.
They will enjoy complete peace.
12 The wicked make evil plans against good people.
They grind their teeth at them in anger.
13 But the Lord laughs at the wicked.
He sees that their day is coming.
14 The wicked draw their swords.
They bend their bows.
They try to kill the poor and helpless.
They want to kill those who are honest.
15 But their swords will stab their own hearts.
Their bows will break.
16 It’s better to have little and be right
than to have much and be wrong.
17 The power of the wicked will be broken.
But the Lord supports those who do right.
18 The Lord watches over the lives of the innocent.
Their reward will last forever.
19 They will not be ashamed when trouble comes.
They will be full in times of hunger.
20 But the wicked will die.
The Lord’s enemies will be like the flowers of the fields.
They will disappear like smoke.
21 The wicked people borrow but don’t pay back.
But those who do right give freely to others.
22 Those people the Lord blesses will inherit the land.
But those he curses will be sent away.
23 When a man’s steps follow the Lord,
God is pleased with his ways.
24 If he stumbles, he will not fall,
because the Lord holds his hand.
25 I was young, and now I am old.
But I have never seen the Lord leave good people helpless.
I have never seen their children begging for food.
26 Good people always lend freely to others.
And their children are a blessing.
27 Stop doing evil and do good.
Then you will live forever.
28 The Lord loves justice.
He will not leave those who worship him.
He will always protect them.
But the children of the wicked will die.
29 Good people will inherit the land.
They will live in it forever.
30 A good person speaks with wisdom.
He says what is fair.
31 The teachings of his God are in his heart.
He does not fail to keep them.
32 The wicked watch for good people.
They want to kill them.
33 The Lord will not take away his protection.
He will not judge good people guilty.
34 Wait for the Lord’s help
and follow him.
He will honor you and give you the land.
And you will see the wicked people sent away.
35 I saw a wicked and cruel man.
He looked strong like a healthy tree in good soil.
36 But he died and was gone.
I looked for him, but he couldn’t be found.
37 Think of the innocent person.
Watch the honest one.
The man who has peace
will have children to live after him.
38 But sinners will be destroyed.
In the end the wicked will die.
39 The Lord saves good people.
He is their strong city in times of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and saves them.
He saves them from the wicked
because they trust in him for protection.
Israel Will Be Destroyed
9 I saw the Lord standing by the altar. He said:
“Smash the top of the pillars
so that even the bottom of the doors will shake.
Make the pillars fall on the people’s heads.
Anyone left alive I will kill with a sword.
Not one person will get away.
No one will escape.
2 If they dig down as deep as where the dead are,
I will pull them up from there.
If they climb up into the skies,
I will bring them down from there.
3 If they hide at the top of Mount Carmel,
I will find them and take them away.
If they try to hide from me at the bottom of the sea,
I will command a snake to bite them.
4 If they are captured and taken away by their enemies,
I will command the sword to kill them.
I will keep watch over them.
But I will keep watch to give them trouble, not to do them good.”
5 The Master, the Lord of heaven’s armies, will touch the land.
And the land will shake.
Then everyone who lives in the land will cry for the dead.
The whole land will rise like the Nile River.
It will fall like the river of Egypt.
6 The Lord built his upper rooms above the skies.
He sets their foundations on the earth.
He calls for the waters of the sea.
He pours them out on the land.
The Lord is his name.
7 The Lord says this:
“Israel, you are no different to me than the people of Cush.
I brought Israel out of the land of Egypt.
I also brought the Philistines from Crete
and the Arameans from Kir.
8 I, the Lord God, am watching the sinful kingdom Israel.
I will destroy Israel
from the earth’s surface.
But I will not completely destroy
Jacob’s descendants,” says the Lord.
9 “I am giving the command
to scatter the nation of Israel among all nations.
It will be like someone sifting flour.
A person shakes flour through a sifter.
The good flour falls through, but not the bad clumps.
10 Sinners among my people
will die by the sword.
All of them say,
‘Nothing bad will happen to us.’
To the Church in Smyrna
8 “Write this to the angel of the church in Smyrna:
“The One who is the First and the Last says this to you. He is the One who died and came to life again. 9 I know your troubles. I know that you are poor, but really you are rich! I know the bad things that some people say about you. They say they are Jews, but they are not true Jews. They are a synagogue that belongs to Satan. 10 Do not be afraid of what will happen to you. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days. But be faithful, even if you have to die. If you are faithful, I will give you the crown of life.
11 “Everyone who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. He who wins the victory will not be hurt by the second death.
To the Church in Pergamum
12 “Write this to the angel of the church in Pergamum:
“The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this to you. 13 I know where you live. You live where Satan has his throne. But you are true to me. You did not refuse to tell about your faith in me even during the time of Antipas. Antipas was my faithful witness who was killed in your city. Your city is where Satan lives.
14 “But I have a few things against you: You have some there who follow the teaching of Balaam. Balaam taught Balak how to cause the people of Israel to sin. They sinned by eating food offered to idols and by taking part in sexual sins. 15 You also have some who follow the teaching of the Nicolaitans.[a] 16 So change your hearts and lives! If you do not, I will come to you quickly and fight against them with the sword that comes out of my mouth.
17 “Everyone who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches!
“I will give the hidden manna to everyone who wins the victory. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it. No one knows this new name except the one who receives it.
13 “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You close the door for people to enter the kingdom of heaven. You yourselves don’t enter, and you stop others who are trying to enter. 14 [How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees. You are hypocrites. You take away widows’ houses, and you make long prayers so that people can see you. So you will have a worse punishment.][a]
15 “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You travel across land and sea to find one person who will follow your ways. When you find that person, you make him more fit for hell than you are.
16 “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You guide the people, but you are blind. You say, ‘If anyone swears by the Temple when he makes a promise, that means nothing. But if anyone swears by the gold that is in the Temple, then he must keep that promise.’ 17 You are blind fools! Which is greater: the gold or the Temple? The Temple makes that gold holy. 18 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar when he makes a promise, that means nothing. But if he swears by the gift on the altar, then he must keep his promise.’ 19 You are blind! Which is greater: the gift or the altar? The altar makes the gift holy. 20 The person who swears by the altar is really using the altar and also everything on the altar. 21 And the person who uses the Temple to make a promise is really using the Temple and also everything in the Temple. 22 The person who uses heaven to make a promise is also using God’s throne and the One who sits on that throne.
23 “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You give to God one-tenth of everything you earn—even your mint, dill, and cummin.[b] But you don’t obey the really important teachings of the law—being fair, showing mercy, and being loyal. These are the things you should do, as well as those other things. 24 You guide the people, but you are blind! You are like a person who picks a fly out of his drink and then swallows a camel![c]
25 “How terrible for you, teachers of the law and Pharisees! You are hypocrites! You wash the outside of your cups and dishes. But inside they are full of things that you got by cheating others and pleasing only yourselves. 26 Pharisees, you are blind! First make the inside of the cup clean and good. Then the outside of the cup can be truly clean.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.