Book of Common Prayer
(By David.)
A Prayer for Guidance and Help
1 I offer you my heart, Lord God,
2 and I trust you.
Don't make me ashamed
or let enemies defeat me.
3 Don't disappoint any
of your worshipers,
but disappoint all
deceitful liars.
4 Show me your paths
and teach me to follow;
5 guide me by your truth
and instruct me.
You keep me safe,
and I always trust you.
6 Please, Lord, remember,
you have always
been patient and kind.
7 Forget each wrong I did
when I was young.
Show how truly kind you are
and remember me.
8 You are honest and merciful,
and you teach sinners
how to follow your path.
9 You lead humble people
to do what is right
and to stay on your path.
10 In everything you do,
you are kind and faithful
to everyone who keeps
our agreement with you.
11 Be true to your name, Lord,
by forgiving each one
of my terrible sins.
12 You will show the right path
to all who worship you.
13 Then they will have plenty,
and their children
will receive the land.
14 Our Lord, you are the friend
of your worshipers,
and you make an agreement
with all of us.
15 I always look to you,
because you rescue me
from every trap.
16 I am lonely and troubled.
Show that you care
and have pity on me.
17 My awful worries keep growing.
Rescue me from sadness.
18 See my troubles and misery
and forgive my sins.
19 Look at all my enemies!
See how much they hate me.
20 I come to you for shelter.
Protect me, keep me safe,
and don't disappoint me.
21 I obey you with all my heart,
and I trust you, knowing
that you will save me.
22 Our God, please save Israel
from all its troubles.
(A psalm by David for the music leader. To the tune “The Death of the Son.”)
Sing Praises to the Lord
1 I will praise you, Lord,
with all my heart
and tell about the wonders
you have worked.
2 God Most High, I will rejoice;
I will celebrate and sing
because of you.
3 When my enemies face you,
they run away and stumble
and are destroyed.
4 You take your seat as judge,
and your fair decisions prove
that I was in the right.
5 You warn the nations
and destroy evil people;
you wipe out their names
forever and ever.
6 Our enemies are destroyed
completely for all time.
Their cities are torn down,
and they will never
be remembered again.
7 You rule forever, Lord,
and you are on your throne,
ready for judgment.
8 You judge the world fairly
and treat all nations
with justice.
9 The poor can run to you
because you are a fortress
in times of trouble.
10 Everyone who honors your name
can trust you,
because you are faithful
to all who depend on you.
11 You rule from Zion, Lord,
and we sing about you
to let the nations know
everything you have done.
12 You did not forget
to punish the guilty
or listen to the cries
of those in need.
13 (A) Please have mercy, Lord!
My enemies mistreat me.
Keep me from the gates
that lead to death,
14 and I will sing about you
at the gate to Zion.
I will be happy there
because you rescued me.
15 (B) Our Lord, the nations fell
into their own pits,
and their feet were caught
in their own traps.
16 You showed what you are like,
and you made certain
that justice is done,
but evil people are trapped
by their own evil deeds.
17 The wicked will go down
to the world of the dead
to be with those nations
that forgot about you.
18 The poor and the homeless
won't always be forgotten
and without hope.
19 Do something, Lord!
Don't let the nations win.
Make them stand trial
in your court of law.
20 Make the nations afraid
and let them all discover
just how weak they are.
(A psalm by David.)
Who May Worship the Lord?
1 Who may stay in God's temple
or live on the holy mountain
of the Lord?
2 Only those who obey God
and do as they should.
They speak the truth
3 and don't spread gossip;
they treat others fairly
and don't say cruel things.
4 They hate worthless people,
but show respect for all
who worship the Lord.
And they keep their promises,
no matter what the cost.
5 They lend their money
without charging interest,
and they don't take bribes
to hurt the innocent.
Those who do these things
will always stand firm.
6-7 Forty days later Noah opened a window to send out a raven, but it kept flying around until the water had dried up. 8 Noah wanted to find out if the water had gone down, so he sent out a dove. 9 Deep water was still everywhere, and when the dove could not find a place to land, it flew back to the boat. Then Noah held out his hand and helped it back in.
10 Seven days later Noah sent the dove out again. 11 It returned in the evening, holding in its beak a green leaf from an olive tree. Noah knew the water was finally going down. 12 He waited seven more days before sending the dove out again, and this time it did not return.
13 Noah was now 601 years old. And by the first day of that year, almost all the water had gone away. Noah made an opening in the roof of the boat[a] and saw that the ground was getting dry. 14 By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the earth was completely dry.
15 God said to Noah, 16 “You, your wife, your sons, and your daughters-in-law may now leave the boat. 17 Let out the birds, animals, and reptiles, so they can mate and live all over the earth.” 18 After Noah and his family had left the boat, 19 the living creatures left in groups of their own kind.
The Lord's Promise for the Earth
20 Noah built an altar where he could offer sacrifices to the Lord. Then he offered on the altar one of each kind of animal and bird that could be used for a sacrifice.[b] 21 The smell of the burning offering pleased the Lord, and he said:
Never again will I punish the earth for the sinful things its people do. All of them have evil thoughts from the time they are young, but I will never destroy everything that breathes, as I did this time.
22 As long as the earth remains,
there will be planting
and harvest,
cold and heat;
winter and summer,
day and night.
Jesus Is the Great High Priest
14 We have a great high priest, who has gone into heaven, and he is Jesus the Son of God. This is why we must hold on to what we have said about him. 15 Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin! 16 So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved grace, and we will find help.
5 Every high priest is appointed to help others by offering gifts and sacrifices to God because of their sins. 2 A high priest has weaknesses of his own, and he feels sorry for foolish and sinful people. 3 (A) This is why he must offer sacrifices for his own sins and for the sins of others. 4 (B) But no one can have the honor of being a high priest simply by wanting to be one. Only God can choose a priest, and God is the one who chose Aaron.
5 (C) This is how it was with Christ. He became a high priest, but not just because he wanted the honor of being one. It was God who told him,
“You are my Son, because today
I have become your Father!”
6 (D) In another place, God says,
“You are a priest forever
just like Melchizedek.”[a]
Jesus Knows What People Are Like
23 In Jerusalem during Passover many people put their faith in Jesus, because they saw him work miracles.[a] 24 But Jesus knew what was in their hearts, and he would not let them have power over him. 25 No one had to tell him what people were like. He already knew.
Jesus and Nicodemus
3 There was a man named Nicodemus who was a Pharisee and a Jewish leader. 2 One night he went to Jesus and said, “Rabbi, we know that God has sent you to teach us. You could not work these miracles, unless God were with you.”
3 Jesus replied, “I tell you for certain that you must be born from above[b] before you can see God's kingdom!”
4 Nicodemus asked, “How can a grown man ever be born a second time?”
5 Jesus answered:
I tell you for certain that before you can get into God's kingdom, you must be born not only by water, but by the Spirit. 6 Humans give life to their children. Yet only God's Spirit can change you into a child of God. 7 Don't be surprised when I say that you must be born from above. 8 Only God's Spirit gives new life. The Spirit is like the wind that blows wherever it wants to. You can hear the wind, but you don't know where it comes from or where it is going.
9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.
10 Jesus replied:
How can you be a teacher of Israel and not know these things? 11 I tell you for certain we know what we are talking about because we have seen it ourselves. But none of you will accept what we say. 12 (A) If you don't believe when I talk to you about things on earth, how can you possibly believe if I talk to you about things in heaven?
13 (B) No one has gone up to heaven except the Son of Man, who came down from there. 14 (C) And the Son of Man must be lifted up, just as the metal snake was lifted up by Moses in the desert.[c] 15 Then everyone who has faith in the Son of Man will have eternal life.
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