Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 45[a]
Nuptial Ode for the Messianic King
1 For the director.[b] According to “Lilies.” A maskil of the sons of Korah. A love song.
2 [c]My heart[d] is moved by a noble theme
as I sing my poem to the king;
my tongue is like the pen of a skillful scribe.
3 You are the most handsome of men;[e]
grace has anointed your lips,
for God has blessed you forever.
4 Gird your sword upon your thigh, O warrior,
and advance in splendor and majesty.
5 Ride on triumphantly in truth, humility, and justice;
may your right hand perform wondrous deeds.
6 Your arrows are sharp;
nations will lie beneath your feet;
the enemies of the king will lose heart.[f]
7 Your throne, O God,[g] will last forever and ever;
the scepter of your kingdom will be a scepter of justice.
8 You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has established you above your fellow kings
by anointing you with the oil of gladness.
9 [h]All your robes are fragrant
with myrrh and aloes and cassia;
from palaces of ivory
stringed instruments bring joy to your heart.
10 Daughters of kings[i] are among your women in waiting;
at your right hand is your queen
adorned in gold of Ophir.
11 My daughter, listen carefully to my words
and follow them diligently.
Forget your people and your father’s house;[j]
12 then the king will desire your beauty.
Since he is your lord,
13 bow down before him.
The Daughter of Tyre[k] will bring you gifts,
people of wealth will seek your favor.
14 Within the palace the king’s daughter is adorned
in robes threaded with gold.
15 In embroidered garments she is led to the king,
followed by her virgin companions,
who are also led to you.,[l]
16 They are brought in with joy and gladness
as they enter the palace of the king.
17 Your[m] sons will take the place of your ancestors;
you will make them princes in all the earth.
18 I will extol your name through all generations;
therefore, the nations will praise you forever and ever.[n]
Psalm 47[a]
The Lord, King of All Nations
1 For the director.[b] A psalm of the sons of Korah.
2 All you peoples, clap your hands,[c]
shout to God with cries of gladness.
3 For the Lord, the Most High, is awesome;
he is the great King over all the earth.
4 He subdued nations under us
and brought peoples under our feet.
5 He chose our inheritance for us,
the pride of Jacob,[d] whom he loved. Selah
6 [e]God has ascended amid shouts of joy;
the Lord, amid the sound of trumpets.
7 Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.
8 For God is the King of the entire earth;
sing hymns of praise to him.
9 God reigns over all the nations;
God is seated on his holy throne.
10 The princes of the nations assemble
with the people of the God of Abraham;
for the rulers[f] of the earth belong to God,
and he is exalted on high.
Psalm 48[g]
Thanksgiving for the Deliverance of God’s People
1 A psalm of the sons of Korah.[h] A song.
2 Great is the Lord and worthy of high praise
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain,[i] 3 towering in its beauty,
is the joy of the entire earth.
Mount Zion, the true heights of the north,[j]
is the city of the great King.
4 God is in her citadels
and has revealed himself as her fortress.[k]
5 [l]For the kings conspired together
and came onward in unison.
6 As soon as they beheld her, they were astounded;
filled with panic, they fled.
7 They were seized with trembling,
with pains like those of a woman in labor,
8 as though a wind from the east[m]
were breaking up the ships of Tarshish.
9 What we had heard,
we have now beheld for ourselves[n]
in the city of the Lord of hosts,
in the city of our God
that he established to endure forever. Selah
10 O God, as we stand in the midst of your temple,
we will meditate on your kindness.[o]
11 Like your name,[p] O God,
your praise extends to the ends of the earth.
Your right hand is filled with righteousness;
12 let Mount Zion rejoice.
Let the towns of Judah exult
in your saving judgments.[q]
13 [r]Walk around Zion; pass throughout her;
count the number of her towers.
14 Take careful note of her ramparts,
walk through her citadels,
so that you may recount for future generations
15 that such is God;
our God forever and ever,
he will be our guide eternally.[s]
Chapter 2
Vision of the Four Horns and the Workers.[a] 1 I looked up and beheld four horns. 2 I inquired of the angel who was conversing with me what these were. He answered me, “These are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
3 Then the Lord showed me four blacksmiths. And I said, “What are these coming to do?” 4 He replied, “Those horns scattered Judah so completely that no one dared to raise his head. However, those blacksmiths have come to terrify them and to strike down the horns of the nations that raised their horns against the land of Judah in order to scatter its people.”
The New Jerusalem.[b] 5 Following this, I raised my eyes and observed a man with a measuring line in his hand. 6 When I asked him, “Where are you going?” he replied, “To measure Jerusalem, to discover what is its width and what is its length.”
7 When the angel who was talking to me walked away, another angel came out to meet him 8 and said to him, “Run and tell that young man: Jerusalem will remain without walls because of the great multitude of men and animals dwelling there. 9 But I will be a wall of fire all around it, says the Lord. And I will be the glory within it.”
10 Up, up! Flee from the land of the north,
says the Lord.
For I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven,
says the Lord.
11 Away, away! Escape to Zion,
you who presently live in daughter Babylon.
12 For thus said the Lord of hosts
after he sent me forth,
in regard to the nations that plundered you:
Whoever touches you
touches the apple of my eye.
13 Behold, I will wave my hand over them,
and they will be plunder
for those they have enslaved.
Thus you will know
that the Lord of hosts has sent me.
14 Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion.
For I am coming to dwell in your midst,
says the Lord.
15 On that day
many nations will be converted to the Lord.
Yes, they will become his people,
and he will dwell among you.
Then you will know that the Lord of hosts
has sent me to you.
16 The Lord will claim Judah
as his portion in the holy land,
and once again he will choose Jerusalem.
17 Let all people be silent
in the presence of the Lord.
For he has roused himself
from his holy dwelling.
14 To Laodicea.[a]“To the angel of the Church in Laodicea,[b] write:
“ ‘These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the source of God’s creation:
15 “ ‘ “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either hot or cold. 16 As it is, since you are lukewarm, neither cold nor hot,[c] I will spit you out of my mouth. 17 For you say, ‘I am rich; I have prospered; I have everything I want,’ never realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.[d]
18 “ ‘ “I advise you to buy from me gold that has been refined by fire so that you will be truly rich, and white robes to clothe you so that you may keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen, and ointment to smear on your eyes so that you may see. 19 I reprove and discipline all those whom I love.[e] Therefore, be sincere in your desire to repent.
20 “ ‘ “Behold, I am standing at the door, knocking. If one of you hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with that person and that person with me. 21 To anyone who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, as I myself overcame and sat with my Father on his throne.
22 “ ‘ “Whoever has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the Churches.” ’ ”
Be Vigilant in Expectation of the End[a]
32 The Parable of the Fig Tree.[b]“Learn this lesson from the fig tree. As soon as its twigs become tender and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near. 33 In the same way, when you see all these things take place, know that he is near, at the very gates. 34 Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
36 The Day and Hour Unknown.[c]“As for the exact day and hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 For as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 In the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, up to the day that Noah entered the ark. 39 They knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and swept them all away.
“That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be out in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and the other will be left. 42 Therefore, keep watch, for you do not know the day when your Lord is coming.
43 The Parable of the Owner of the House.[d]“But keep this in mind: if the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore, you must also be prepared, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
Copyright © 2019 by Catholic Book Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.