Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 146
The God of Compassion
1 Hallelujah!
My soul, praise the Lord.(A)
2 I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing to my God as long as I live.(B)
3 Do not trust in nobles,
in a son of man,[a] who cannot save.(C)
4 When his breath[b] leaves him,
he returns to the ground;
on that day his plans die.(D)
5 Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,(E)
6 the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea and everything in them.(F)
He remains faithful forever,(G)
7 executing justice for the exploited
and giving food to the hungry.(H)
The Lord frees prisoners.(I)
8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.(J)
The Lord raises up those who are oppressed.[c](K)
The Lord loves the righteous.(L)
9 The Lord protects resident aliens
and helps the fatherless and the widow,(M)
but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.(N)
10 The Lord reigns forever;
Zion, your God reigns for all generations.(O)
Hallelujah!
Psalm 147
God Restores Jerusalem
1 Hallelujah!
How good it is to sing to our God,
for praise is pleasant and lovely.(P)
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;(Q)
he gathers Israel’s exiled people.(R)
3 He heals the brokenhearted
and bandages their wounds.(S)
4 He counts the number of the stars;
he gives names to all of them.(T)
5 Our Lord is great, vast in power;
his understanding is infinite.[d](U)
6 The Lord helps the oppressed
but brings the wicked to the ground.(V)
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
play the lyre to our God,(W)
8 who covers the sky with clouds,
prepares rain for the earth,
and causes grass to grow on the hills.(X)
9 He provides the animals with their food,
and the young ravens what they cry for.(Y)
10 He is not impressed by the strength of a horse;
he does not value the power of a warrior.[e](Z)
11 The Lord values those who fear him,
those who put their hope in his faithful love.(AA)
12 Exalt the Lord, Jerusalem;
praise your God, Zion!(AB)
13 For he strengthens the bars of your city gates
and blesses your children within you.(AC)
14 He endows your territory with prosperity;[f](AD)
he satisfies you with the finest wheat.(AE)
Psalm 111
Praise for the Lord’s Works
1 Hallelujah![a]
I will praise the Lord with all my heart
in the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.(A)
2 The Lord’s works are great,
studied by all who delight in them.(B)
3 All that he does is splendid and majestic;(C)
his righteousness endures forever.(D)
4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered.(E)
The Lord is gracious and compassionate.(F)
5 He has provided food for those who fear him;(G)
he remembers his covenant forever.(H)
6 He has shown his people the power of his works
by giving them the inheritance of the nations.(I)
7 The works of his hands are truth and justice;
all his instructions are trustworthy.(J)
8 They are established forever and ever,
enacted in truth and in uprightness.(K)
9 He has sent redemption to his people.(L)
He has ordained his covenant forever.
His name is holy and awe-inspiring.(M)
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;(N)
all who follow his instructions[b] have good insight.(O)
His praise endures forever.(P)
Psalm 112
The Traits of the Righteous
1 Hallelujah![c]
Happy is the person who fears the Lord,
taking great delight in his commands.(Q)
2 His descendants will be powerful in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.(R)
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,(S)
and his righteousness endures forever.(T)
4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright.(U)
He is gracious, compassionate, and righteous.(V)
5 Good will come to the one who lends generously
and conducts his business fairly.(W)
6 He will never be shaken.(X)
The righteous one will be remembered forever.(Y)
7 He will not fear bad news;
his heart is confident, trusting in the Lord.(Z)
8 His heart is assured; he will not fear.(AA)
In the end he will look in triumph on his foes.(AB)
9 He distributes freely to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.(AC)
His horn will be exalted in honor.(AD)
10 The wicked one will see it and be angry;
he will gnash his teeth in despair.(AE)
The desire of the wicked leads to ruin.(AF)
Psalm 113
Praise to the Merciful God
1 Hallelujah!
Give praise, servants of the Lord;
praise the name of the Lord.(AG)
2 Let the name of the Lord be blessed
both now and forever.(AH)
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting,
let the name of the Lord be praised.(AI)
4 The Lord is exalted above all the nations,(AJ)
his glory above the heavens.(AK)
5 Who is like the Lord our God—
the one enthroned on high,(AL)
6 who stoops down to look
on the heavens and the earth?(AM)
7 He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the trash heap(AN)
8 in order to seat them with nobles—
with the nobles of his people.(AO)
9 He gives the childless woman a household,
making her the joyful mother of children.(AP)
Hallelujah!
The Creation
1 In the beginning(A) God created the heavens and the earth.[a](B)
2 Now the earth was formless and empty,(C) darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.(D) 3 Then God said, “Let there be light,”(E) and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was an evening, and there was a morning: one day.
6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters, separating water from water.”(F) 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above the expanse.(G) And it was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.”[b] Evening came and then morning: the second day.
9 Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place,(H) and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering of the water he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.”(I) And it was so. 12 The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 Evening came and then morning: the third day.
14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs(J) for seasons[c] and for days and years.(K) 15 They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night—as well as the stars.(L) 17 God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, 18 to rule the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness.(M) And God saw that it was good. 19 Evening came and then morning: the fourth day.
20 Then God said, “Let the water swarm with[d] living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21 So God created the large sea-creatures and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water,(N) according to their kinds. He also created every winged creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them: “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”(O) 23 Evening came and then morning: the fifth day.
24 Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 So God made the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that crawl on the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us(P) make man[e] in[f] our image, according to our likeness.(Q) They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl[g] on the earth.”(R)
27 So God created man
in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female.(S)
28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth,(T) and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.” 29 God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This will be food for you,(U) 30 for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth—everything having the breath of life in it—I have given[h] every green plant for food.”(V) And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good indeed.(W) Evening came and then morning: the sixth day.
2 So the heavens and the earth and everything in them were completed.(X) 2 On the seventh[i] day God had completed his work that he had done, and he rested[j] on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.(Y) 3 God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it he rested(Z) from all his work of creation.(AA)
God’s Rich Blessings
3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens in Christ.(A) 4 For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him.[a](B) 5 He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace(C) that he lavished on us in the Beloved One.(D)
7 In him we have redemption(E) through his blood, the forgiveness(F) of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding.[b] 9 He made known to us the mystery of his will,(G) according to his good pleasure that he purposed in Christ(H) 10 as a plan for the right time[c]—to bring everything together in Christ,(I) both things in heaven and things on earth(J) in him.(K)
11 In him we have also received an inheritance,[d] because we were predestined(L) according to the plan of the one who works out everything in agreement with the purpose of his will, 12 so that we who had already put our hope(M) in Christ might bring praise to his glory.(N)
13 In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit(O) when you heard the word of truth,(P) the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed. 14 The Holy Spirit is the down payment(Q) of our inheritance, until the redemption of the possession, to the praise of his glory.
The Lamb of God
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God,(A) who takes away the sin(B) of the world! 30 This is the one I told you about: ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me, because he existed before me.’ 31 I didn’t know him,(C) but I came baptizing with water so that he might be revealed(D) to Israel.” 32 And John testified, “I saw the Spirit(E) descending from heaven like a dove, and he rested on him.(F) 33 I didn’t know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The one you see the Spirit descending and resting on—he is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’(G) 34 I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”[a](H)
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