Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 55
Betrayal by a Friend
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.
1 God, listen to my prayer
and do not hide from my plea for help.(A)
2 Pay attention to me and answer me.(B)
I am restless and in turmoil with my complaint,(C)
3 because of the enemy’s words,[a]
because of the pressure[b] of the wicked.
For they bring down disaster on me
and harass me in anger.(D)
4 My heart shudders within me;(E)
terrors of death sweep over me.
5 Fear and trembling grip me;
horror has overwhelmed me.(F)
6 I said, “If only I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and find rest.(G)
7 How far away I would flee;
I would stay in the wilderness.(H)Selah
8 I would hurry to my shelter
from the raging wind and the storm.”(I)
9 Lord, confuse[c] and confound their speech,[d](J)
for I see violence and strife in the city;
10 day and night they make the rounds on its walls.
Crime and trouble are within it;(K)
11 destruction is inside it;
oppression and deceit never leave its marketplace.(L)
12 Now it is not an enemy who insults me—
otherwise I could bear it;
it is not a foe who rises up against me—
otherwise I could hide from him.
13 But it is you, a man who is my peer,
my companion and good friend!(M)
14 We used to have close fellowship;
we walked with the crowd into the house of God.(N)
15 Let death take them by surprise;(O)
let them go down to Sheol alive,
because evil is in their homes and within them.(P)
16 But I call to God,
and the Lord will save me.(Q)
17 I complain and groan morning, noon, and night,(R)
and he hears my voice.(S)
18 Though many are against me,
he will redeem me from my battle unharmed.(T)
19 God, the one enthroned from long ago,(U)
will hear and will humiliate themSelah
because they do not change
and do not fear God.(V)
20 My friend(W) acts violently
against those at peace with him;(X)
he violates his covenant.(Y)
21 His buttery words are smooth,
but war is in his heart.
His words are softer than oil,
but they are drawn swords.(Z)
Psalm 138
A Thankful Heart
Of David.
1 I will give you thanks with all my heart;(A)
I will sing your praise before the heavenly beings.[a](B)
2 I will bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name
for your constant love and truth.
You have exalted your name
and your promise above everything else.[b](C)
3 On the day I called, you answered me;
you increased strength within me.[c](D)
4 All the kings on earth will give you thanks, Lord,
when they hear what you have promised.[d](E)
5 They will sing of the Lord’s ways,
for the Lord’s glory is great.(F)
6 Though the Lord is exalted,
he takes note of the humble;
but he knows the haughty from a distance.(G)
7 If I walk into the thick of danger,
you will preserve my life
from the anger of my enemies.(H)
You will extend your hand;
your right hand will save me.(I)
8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me.(J)
Lord, your faithful love endures forever;
do not abandon the work of your hands.(K)
Psalm 139
The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God
For the choir director. A psalm of David.
1 Lord, you have searched me and known me.(L)
2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
you understand my thoughts from far away.(M)
3 You observe my travels and my rest;
you are aware of all my ways.(N)
4 Before a word is on my tongue,
you know all about it, Lord.(O)
5 You have encircled me;
you have placed your hand on me.(P)
6 This wondrous knowledge is beyond me.
It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.(Q)
7 Where can I go to escape your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?(R)
8 If I go up to heaven, you are there;(S)
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.(T)
9 If I fly on the wings of the dawn
and settle down on the western horizon,[e]
10 even there your hand will lead me;
your right hand will hold on to me.(U)
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night”(V)—
12 even the darkness is not dark to you.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to you.(W)
13 For it was you who created my inward parts;[f]
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.(X)
14 I will praise you
because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.[g][h]
Your works are wondrous,
and I know this very well.(Y)
15 My bones were not hidden from you
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.(Z)
16 Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in your book and planned
before a single one of them began.(AA)
17 God, how precious[i] your thoughts are to me;
how vast their sum is!
18 If I counted them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;(AB)
when I wake up,[j] I am still with you.(AC)
19 God, if only you would kill the wicked—
you bloodthirsty men, stay away from me(AD)—
20 who invoke you deceitfully.
Your enemies swear by you falsely.(AE)
21 Lord, don’t I hate those who hate you,
and detest those who rebel against you?
22 I hate them with extreme hatred;
I consider them my enemies.(AF)
23 Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my concerns.(AG)
9 The Lord of Armies says this: “Let your hands be strong, you who now hear these words that the prophets spoke when the foundations were laid for the rebuilding of the temple, the house of the Lord of Armies. 10 For prior to those days neither people nor animals had wages. There was no safety from the enemy for anyone who came or went, for I turned everyone against his neighbor. 11 But now, I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days”—this is the declaration of the Lord of Armies. 12 “For they will sow in peace: the vine will yield its fruit, the land will yield its produce, and the skies will yield their dew. I will give the remnant of this people all these things as an inheritance.(A) 13 As you have been a curse among the nations,(B) house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing.(C) Don’t be afraid; let your hands be strong.” 14 For the Lord of Armies says this: “As I resolved to treat you badly when your ancestors provoked me to anger, and I did not relent,” says the Lord of Armies, 15 “so I have resolved again in these days to do what is good to Jerusalem and the house of Judah.(D) Don’t be afraid. 16 These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another; make true and sound decisions within your city gates. 17 Do not plot evil(E) in your hearts against your neighbor,(F) and do not love perjury,(G) for I hate all this”—this is the Lord’s declaration.
The First Seal on the Scroll
6 Then I saw the Lamb open one of the seven[a] seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder,(A) “Come!” 2 I looked, and there was a white horse.(B) Its rider held a bow;(C) a crown(D) was given to him, and he went out as a conqueror in order to conquer.[b]
The Second Seal
3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 Then another horse went out, a fiery red one,(E) and its rider was allowed to take peace from the earth, so that people would slaughter one another. And a large sword was given to him.(F)
The Third Seal
5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and there was a black horse.(G) Its rider held a set of scales in his hand.(H) 6 Then I heard something like a voice among the four living creatures say, “A quart of wheat for a denarius,[c] and three quarts of barley for a denarius,(I) but do not harm the oil and the wine.”(J)
The Fourth Seal
7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 And I looked, and there was a pale green[d] horse. Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following after him.(K) They were[e] given authority(L) over a fourth of the earth, to kill by the sword, by famine, by plague, and by the wild animals of the earth.(M)
The Fifth Seal
9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slaughtered because of the word of God and the testimony they had given.[f](N) 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “Lord,[g] the one who is holy and true,(O) how long until you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?(P)” 11 So they were each given a white robe, and they were told to rest a little while longer until the number would be completed of their fellow servants and their brothers and sisters, who were going to be killed just as they had been.
The Sixth Seal
12 Then I saw him open[h] the sixth seal. A violent earthquake occurred;(Q) the sun turned black like sackcloth(R) made of hair; the entire moon[i] became like blood;(S) 13 the stars[j] of heaven fell to the earth as a fig tree drops its unripe figs when shaken by a high wind; 14 the sky was split apart like a scroll being rolled up;(T) and every mountain and island was moved from its place.(U)
15 Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the generals, the rich, the powerful, and every slave and free person hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.(V) 16 And they said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us(W) from the face of the one seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 because the great day of their[k] wrath has come! And who is able to stand?” (X)
The Sheep and the Goats
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels[a](A) with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.(B) 32 All the nations[b](C) will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.(D) 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; inherit the kingdom(E) prepared for you from the foundation of the world.(F)
35 “‘For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me; I was in prison and you visited me.’(G)
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and take you in, or without clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick, or in prison, and visit you?’
40 “And the King will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’(H)
41 “Then he will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!(I) 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink; 43 I was a stranger and you didn’t take me in; I was naked and you didn’t clothe me, sick and in prison and you didn’t take care of me.’
44 “Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or without clothes, or sick, or in prison, and not help you?’
45 “Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’(J)
46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”(K)
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