Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer for the King
Of Solomon.
72 God, give the king your good judgment
and the king’s son your goodness.
2 Help him judge your people fairly
and decide what is right for the poor.
3 Let there be peace on the mountains
and goodness on the hills for the people.
4 Help him be fair to the poor
and save the needy
and punish those who hurt them.
5 May they respect you as long as the sun shines
and as long as the moon glows.
6 Let him be like rain on the grass,
like showers that water the earth.
7 Let goodness be plentiful while he lives.
Let peace continue as long as there is a moon.
8 Let his kingdom go from sea to sea,
and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9 Let the people of the desert bow down to him,
and make his enemies lick the dust.
10 Let the kings of Tarshish and the faraway lands
bring him gifts.
Let the kings of Sheba and Seba
bring their presents to him.
11 Let all kings bow down to him
and all nations serve him.
12 He will help the poor when they cry out
and will save the needy when no one else will help.
13 He will be kind to the weak and poor,
and he will save their lives.
14 He will save them from cruel people who try to hurt them,
because their lives are precious to him.
15 Long live the king!
Let him receive gold from Sheba.
Let people always pray for him
and bless him all day long.
16 Let the fields grow plenty of grain
and the hills be covered with crops.
Let the land be as fertile as Lebanon,
and let the cities grow like the grass in a field.
17 Let the king be famous forever;
let him be remembered as long as the sun shines.
Let the nations be blessed because of him,
and may they all bless him.
18 Praise the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does such miracles.
19 Praise his glorious name forever.
Let his glory fill the whole world.
Amen and amen.
20 This ends the prayers of David son of Jesse.
73 You made me and formed me with your hands.
Give me understanding so I can learn your commands.
74 Let those who respect you rejoice when they see me,
because I put my hope in your word.
75 Lord, I know that your laws are right
and that it was right for you to punish me.
76 Comfort me with your love,
as you promised me, your servant.
77 Have mercy on me so that I may live.
I love your teachings.
78 Make proud people ashamed because they lied about me.
But I will think about your orders.
79 Let those who respect you return to me,
those who know your rules.
80 Let me obey your demands perfectly
so I will not be ashamed.
81 I am weak from waiting for you to save me,
but I hope in your word.
82 My eyes are tired from looking for your promise.
When will you comfort me?
83 Even though I am like a wine bag going up in smoke,
I do not forget your demands.
84 How long will I live?
When will you judge those who are hurting me?
85 Proud people have dug pits to trap me.
They have nothing to do with your teachings.
86 All of your commands can be trusted.
Liars are hurting me. Help me!
87 They have almost put me in the grave,
but I have not rejected your orders.
88 Give me life by your love
so I can obey your rules.
89 Lord, your word is everlasting;
it continues forever in heaven.
90 Your loyalty will go on and on;
you made the earth, and it still stands.
91 All things continue to this day because of your laws,
because all things serve you.
92 If I had not loved your teachings,
I would have died from my sufferings.
93 I will never forget your orders,
because you have given me life by them.
94 I am yours. Save me.
I want to obey your orders.
95 Wicked people are waiting to destroy me,
but I will think about your rules.
96 Everything I see has its limits,
but your commands have none.
God Tests Abraham
22 After these things God tested Abraham’s faith. God said to him, “Abraham!”
And he answered, “Here I am.”
2 Then God said, “Take your only son, Isaac, the son you love, and go to the land of Moriah. Kill him there and offer him as a whole burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”
3 Abraham got up early in the morning and saddled his donkey. He took Isaac and two servants with him. After he cut the wood for the sacrifice, they went to the place God had told them to go. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey. My son and I will go over there and worship, and then we will come back to you.”
6 Abraham took the wood for the sacrifice and gave it to his son to carry, but he himself took the knife and the fire. So he and his son went on together.
7 Isaac said to his father Abraham, “Father!”
Abraham answered, “Yes, my son.”
Isaac said, “We have the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb we will burn as a sacrifice?”
8 Abraham answered, “God will give us the lamb for the sacrifice, my son.”
So Abraham and his son went on together 9 and came to the place God had told him about. Abraham built an altar there. He laid the wood on it and then tied up his son Isaac and laid him on the wood on the altar. 10 Then Abraham took his knife and was about to kill his son.
11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham! Abraham!”
Abraham answered, “Yes.”
12 The angel said, “Don’t kill your son or hurt him in any way. Now I can see that you trust God and that you have not kept your son, your only son, from me.”
13 Then Abraham looked up and saw a male sheep caught in a bush by its horns. So Abraham went and took the sheep and killed it. He offered it as a whole burnt offering to God, and his son was saved. 14 So Abraham named that place The Lord Provides. Even today people say, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “The Lord says, ‘Because you did not keep back your son, your only son, from me, I make you this promise by my own name: 17 I will surely bless you and give you many descendants. They will be as many as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, and they will capture the cities of their enemies. 18 Through your descendants all the nations on the earth will be blessed, because you obeyed me.’”
23 It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born. They saw that Moses was a beautiful baby, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s order.
24 It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of the king of Egypt’s daughter. 25 He chose to suffer with God’s people instead of enjoying sin for a short time. 26 He thought it was better to suffer for the Christ than to have all the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking for God’s reward. 27 It was by faith that Moses left Egypt and was not afraid of the king’s anger. Moses continued strong as if he could see the God that no one can see. 28 It was by faith that Moses prepared the Passover and spread the blood on the doors so the one who brings death would not kill the firstborn sons of Israel.
29 It was by faith that the people crossed the Red Sea as if it were dry land. But when the Egyptians tried it, they were drowned.
30 It was by faith that the walls of Jericho fell after the people had marched around them for seven days.
31 It was by faith that Rahab, the prostitute, welcomed the spies and was not killed with those who refused to obey God.
52 Then the evil people began to argue among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
53 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, you must eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood. Otherwise, you won’t have real life in you. 54 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day. 55 My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them. 57 The living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father. So whoever eats me will live because of me. 58 I am not like the bread your ancestors ate. They ate that bread and still died. I am the bread that came down from heaven, and whoever eats this bread will live forever.” 59 Jesus said all these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.