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Book of Common Prayer

Daily Old and New Testament readings based on the Book of Common Prayer.
Duration: 861 days
Contemporary English Version (CEV)
Version
Psalm 24

(A psalm by David.)

Who Can Enter the Lord's Temple?

(A) The earth and everything on it,
including its people,
    belong to the Lord.
The world and its people
    belong to him.
The Lord placed it all
    on the oceans and rivers.

Who may climb the Lord's hill[a]
    or stand in his holy temple?
(B) Only those who do right
    for the right reasons,
and don't worship idols
    or tell lies under oath.
The Lord God, who saves them,
    will bless and reward them,
because they worship and serve
    the God of Jacob.[b]
Open the ancient gates,
so that the glorious king
    may come in.

Who is this glorious king?
He is our Lord, a strong
    and mighty warrior.

Open the ancient gates,
so that the glorious king
    may come in.

10 Who is this glorious king?
He is our Lord,
    the All-Powerful!

Psalm 29

(A psalm by David.)

The Voice of the Lord in a Storm

(A) All you angels[a] in heaven,
honor the glory and power
    of the Lord!
Honor the wonderful name
    of the Lord,
and worship the Lord
    most holy and glorious.[b]

The voice of the Lord
    echoes over the oceans.
The glorious Lord God
thunders above the roar
    of the raging sea,
and his voice is mighty
    and marvelous.
The voice of the Lord
    destroys the cedar trees;
the Lord shatters cedars
    on Mount Lebanon.
God makes Mount Lebanon
    skip like a calf
and Mount Hermon
    jump like a wild ox.

The voice of the Lord
makes lightning flash
    and the desert tremble.
And because of the Lord,
the desert near Kadesh
    shivers and shakes.

The voice of the Lord
makes deer give birth
    before their time.[c]
Forests are stripped of leaves,
and the temple is filled
    with shouts of praise.

10 The Lord rules on his throne,
    king of the flood[d] forever.
11 Pray that our Lord
will make us strong
    and give us peace.

Psalm 103

(By David.)

The Lord's Wonderful Love

With all my heart
    I praise the Lord,
and with all that I am
    I praise his holy name!
With all my heart
    I praise the Lord!
I will never forget
    how kind he has been.

The Lord forgives our sins,
heals us when we are sick,
    and protects us from death.
His kindness and love
    are a crown on our heads.
Each day that we live,[a]
    he provides for our needs
and gives us the strength
    of a young eagle.

For all who are mistreated,
    the Lord brings justice.
He taught his Law to Moses
and showed all Israel
    what he could do.

(A) The Lord is merciful!
He is kind and patient,
    and his love never fails.
The Lord won't always be angry
    and point out our sins;
10 he doesn't punish us
    as our sins deserve.

11 How great is God's love for all
    who worship him?
Greater than the distance
    between heaven and earth!
12 How far has the Lord taken
    our sins from us?
Farther than the distance
    from east to west!

13 Just as parents are kind
    to their children,
the Lord is kind
    to all who worship him,
14 because he knows
    we are made of dust.
15 We humans are like grass
or wild flowers
    that quickly bloom.
16 But a scorching wind blows,
and they quickly wither
    to be forever forgotten.

17 The Lord is always kind
    to those who worship him,
and he keeps his promises
to their descendants
18 who faithfully obey him.

19 God has set up his kingdom
in heaven, and he rules
    the whole creation.
20 All of you mighty angels,
who obey God's commands,
    come and praise your Lord!
21 All of you thousands
who serve and obey God,
    come and praise your Lord!
22 All of God's creation
and all that he rules,
    come and praise your Lord!
With all my heart
    I praise the Lord!

Zechariah 9:9-12

The Lord Tells about the Coming King

(A) Everyone in Jerusalem,
    celebrate and shout!
Your king has won a victory,
    and he is coming to you.
He is humble
    and rides on a donkey;
he comes on the colt
    of a donkey.
10 (B) I, the Lord, will take away
war chariots and horses
    from Israel[a] and Jerusalem.
Bows that were made for battle
    will be broken.
I will bring peace to nations,
and your king will rule
    from sea to sea.
His kingdom will reach
from the Euphrates River
    across the earth.

The Lord Promises To Rescue Captives

11 (C) When I made a sacred agreement
with you, my people,
    we sealed it with blood.[b]
Now some of you are captives
    in waterless pits,
but I will come to your rescue
12     and offer you hope.
Return to your fortress,
because today I will reward you
    with twice what you had.

Zechariah 12:9-11

I am determined to wipe out every nation that attacks Jerusalem.

Mourning for the One Pierced with a Spear

10 (A) I, the Lord, will make the descendants of David and the people of Jerusalem feel deep sorrow and pray when they see the one they pierced with a spear. They will mourn and weep for him, as parents weep over the death of their only child or their first-born. 11 On that day the people of Jerusalem will mourn as much as everyone did for Hadad Rimmon[a] on the flatlands near Megiddo.

Zechariah 13:1

Getting Rid of Idols and False Prophets

13 In the future there will be a fountain, where David's descendants and the people of Jerusalem can wash away their sin and guilt.

Zechariah 13:7-9

A Wounded Shepherd and Scattered Sheep

(A) The Lord All-Powerful said:

My sword, wake up! Attack
    my shepherd and friend.
Strike down the shepherd!
Scatter the little sheep,
    and I will destroy them.
Nowhere in the land
will more than a third of them
    be left alive.
Then I will purify them
    and put them to the test,
just as gold and silver
    are purified and tested.
They will pray in my name,
    and I will answer them.
I will say, “You are my people,”
and they will reply,
    “You, Lord, are our God!”

1 Timothy 6:12-16

12 Fight a good fight for the faith and claim eternal life. God offered it to you when you clearly told about your faith, while so many people listened. 13 (A) Now I ask you to make a promise. Make it in the presence of God, who gives life to all, and in the presence of Christ Jesus, who openly told Pontius Pilate about his faith. 14 Promise to obey completely and fully all that you have been told until our Lord Jesus Christ returns.

15 (B) The glorious God
    is the only Ruler,
    the King of kings
    and Lord of lords.
At the time that God
    has already decided,
he will send Jesus Christ
    back again.

16 (C) Only God lives forever!
And he lives in light
    that no one can come near.
No human has ever seen God
    or ever can see him.
God will be honored,
and his power
    will last forever. Amen.

Luke 19:41-48

41 When Jesus came closer and could see Jerusalem, he cried 42 and said:

It is too bad that today your people don't know what will bring them peace! Now it is hidden from them. 43 Jerusalem, the time will come when your enemies will build walls around you to attack you. Armies will surround you and close in on you from every side. 44 They will level you to the ground and kill your people. Not one stone in your buildings will be left on top of another. This will happen because you did not see that God had come to save you.[a]

Jesus in the Temple

(Matthew 21.12-17; Mark 11.15-19; John 2.13-22)

45 When Jesus entered the temple, he started chasing out the people who were selling things. 46 (A) He told them, “The Scriptures say, ‘My house should be a place of worship.’ But you have made it a place where robbers hide!”

47 (B) Each day, Jesus kept on teaching in the temple. So the chief priests, the teachers of the Law of Moses, and some other important people tried to have him killed. 48 But they could not find a way to do it, because everyone else was eager to listen to him.

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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