Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer for Guidance, Deliverance, and Forgiveness
Of David.[a]
25 To you, O Yahweh, I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, I trust you; let me not be put to shame.
Do not let my enemies exult over me.
3 Indeed, none who wait for you should be put to shame.
Those who betray without cause should be put to shame.
4 Make me know your ways, O Yahweh.
Teach me your paths.
5 Cause me to walk in your truth and teach me,
because you are the God of my salvation.
I await you all day long.[b]
6 Remember your compassion, O Yahweh,
and your acts of loyal love,
because they are from of old.
7 Do not remember
the sins of my youth or my transgressions.
According to your loyal love remember me if you will,
for the sake of your goodness, O Yahweh.
8 Good and right is Yahweh;
therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
9 He causes the humble to walk in justice,
and teaches the humble his way.
10 All the paths of Yahweh are loyal love and faithfulness
for those who keep his covenant and statutes.[c]
11 Also, for the sake of your name, O Yahweh,
forgive my sin, because it is great.
12 Who is the man fearing Yahweh?
He will instruct him in the way he should choose.
13 His soul will lodge in prosperity,
and his offspring will possess the land.
14 Intimate fellowship with Yahweh is for those who fear him,
and he makes known his covenant to them.
15 My eyes are continually toward Yahweh,
because he will take my feet from the net.
16 Turn to me and have mercy on me
because I am lonely and afflicted.
17 Remove the troubles of my heart;
bring me out from my distresses.
18 Consider my affliction and trouble,
and forgive[d] all my sins.
19 Consider that my enemies are many,
and they hate me with violent hatred.
20 Protect my life and deliver me.
Let me not be put to shame, because I take shelter in you.
21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
because I wait for you.
22 O God, redeem Israel
from all its troubles.
Praise for Yahweh’s Justice
For the music director, according to Muth-labben.[a] A psalm of David.[b]
9 I will thank Yahweh with all my heart.
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
2 I will be glad and rejoice in you.
I will sing the praise of your name, O Most High.
3 When my enemies turn back,
they will stumble and perish because of your presence.
4 For you have maintained my just cause;
you have sat on the throne judging correctly.
5 You have rebuked the nations;
you have destroyed the wicked.
Their name you have blotted out
forever and ever.
6 The enemies are destroyed in ruins forever,
and you have uprooted their cities;
their very memory has perished.
7 But Yahweh sits enthroned forever.
He has established his throne for judgment.
8 And he will judge the world with righteousness.
He will judge the peoples with equity.
9 And Yahweh will be a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of distress.
10 And those who know your name will trust in you,
for you do not forsake those who seek you, O Yahweh.
11 Sing praises to Yahweh who sits enthroned[c] in Zion.
Tell his deeds among the peoples,
12 for he who avenges bloodshed[d] remembers them.
He does not forget the distressed cry of the afflicted.
13 Be gracious to me, O Yahweh.
See my suffering from those who hate me,
you who lift me up from the gates of death,
14 so that I may tell of all your praises.
In the gates of the daughter of Zion
let me rejoice in your salvation.
15 The nations have fallen in the pit that they made;
their foot is caught in the net that they hid.
16 Yahweh has made himself known;
he has executed judgment.
The wicked is snared by the work of his hands. Higgaion[e] Selah
17 The wicked shall turn back to Sheol,
all the nations forgetting God,
18 for the needy shall not always be forgotten;
the hope of the poor shall never perish.
19 Rise up, O Yahweh, let not humans[f] prevail;
let the nations be judged before you.
20 O Yahweh, put them in fear.
Let the nations know they are merely human. Selah
A Description of Those Who May Dwell with Yahweh
A psalm of David.[a]
15 O Yahweh, who may reside in your tent?
Who may dwell on your holy mountain?
2 He who walks blamelessly and does what is right.
He who speaks honestly in his heart.
3 He does not slander with his tongue.
He does not harm his friend,
nor bring up[b] a disgrace against his neighbor.
4 In his eyes a rejected one is contemptible,
but he honors those who respect Yahweh.
He takes an oath to his own injury and does not retract it.
5 He does not lend his money at interest,
and does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things
will never be shaken.
13 And[a] the next day, Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood before Moses from the morning until the evening. 14 And the father-in-law of Moses saw all that he was doing for the people, and he said, “What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why are you sitting alone and all the people are standing by you from morning until evening?” 15 And Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to seek God. 16 When they have an issue,[b] it comes to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make known God’s rule and his instructions.”
17 And the father-in-law of Moses said to him, “The thing that you are doing is not good. 18 Surely you will wear out, both you and this people who are with you, because the thing is too difficult[c] for you. You are not able to do it alone. 19 Now listen to my voice; I will advise you, and may God be with you. You be for the people before God, and you bring the issues to God. 20 And you warn them of the rules and the instructions, and you make known to them the way in which they must walk and the work that they must do. 21 And you will select from all the people men of ability, fearers of God, trustworthy men, haters of dishonest gain,[d] and you will appoint such men over them as commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, and commanders of tens. 22 And let them judge the people all the time, and[e] every major issue they will bring to you, and every minor issue they will judge themselves. And so lighten it for yourself, and they will bear it with you. 23 If you will do this thing and God will command you, then you will be able to endure, and also each of the people will go to his home[f] in peace.”
24 And Moses listened to the voice of his father-in-law, and he did all that he had said. 25 And Moses chose men of ability from all Israel, and he appointed them as heads over the people, as commanders of thousands, commanders of hundreds, commanders of fifties, and commanders of tens. 26 And they judged the people all the time; the difficult issues[g] they would bring to Moses, and every minor issue they would judge themselves. 27 And Moses let his father-in-law go, and he went to his land.
Leadership and Humility
5 Therefore I, your fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and[a] also a sharer of the glory that is going to be revealed, exhort the elders among you: 2 shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not by compulsion but willingly, in accordance with God, and not greedily but eagerly, 3 and not as lording it over those under your care[b], but being examples for the flock. 4 And when[c] the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
5 In the same way, younger men, be subject to the elders, and all of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. 6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the right time, 7 casting all your cares on him, because he cares[d] for you.
8 Be sober; be on the alert. Your adversary the devil walks around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him[e], steadfast in your[f] faith, because you[g] know the same kinds of sufferings are being accomplished by your community of believers in the world. 10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ,[h] after you[i] have suffered for a short time, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the power forever and ever[j].[k] Amen.
Conclusion and Final Greetings
12 Through Silvanus, the faithful brother (as I consider him), I have written to you briefly[l] to encourage you and to attest that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it. 13 She who is in Babylon, chosen the same as you, greets you, and so does my son Mark. 14 Greet one another with a loving kiss. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
2 Abraham became the father of Isaac, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez became the father of Hezron, and Hezron became the father of Aram,[a] 4 and Aram became the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon became the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon became the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz became the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed became the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse became the father of David the king.
And David became the father of Solomon by the wife[b] of Uriah, 7 and Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam became the father of Abijah, and Abijah became the father of Asa,[c] 8 and Asa became the father of Jehoshaphat,[d] and Jehoshaphat became the father of Joram, and Joram became the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah became the father of Jotham, and Jotham became the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz became the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh became the father of Amon,[e] and Amon became the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
12 And after the deportation to Babylon, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel,[f] and Shealtiel became the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel became the father of Abiud, and Abiud became the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim became the father of Azor, 14 and Azor became the father of Zadok, and Zadok became the father of Achim, and Achim became the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud became the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar became the father of Matthan, and Matthan became the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary by whom[g] was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
17 Therefore all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ are fourteen generations.
John the Baptist Begins His Ministry
3 Now in those days John the Baptist came preaching in the Judean wilderness 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near!” 3 For this is the one who was spoken about by the prophet Isaiah, saying,
“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.’”[a]
4 Now John himself had his clothing made from camel’s hair and a belt made of leather around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they[b] confessed their sins.
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