Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 75
God Judges the Wicked
For the choir director: “Do Not Destroy.” A psalm of Asaph.(A) A song.
1 We give thanks to you, God;
we give thanks to you, for your name is near.(B)
People tell about your wondrous works.(C)
2 “When I choose a time,
I will judge fairly.(D)
3 When the earth and all its inhabitants shake,
I am the one who steadies its pillars.(E)Selah
4 I say to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’
and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horn.(F)
5 Do not lift up your horn against heaven[a]
or speak arrogantly.’”(G)
6 Exaltation does not come
from the east, the west, or the desert,
7 for God is the Judge:
He brings down one and exalts another.(H)
8 For there is a cup in the Lord’s hand,
full of wine blended with spices, and he pours from it.
All the wicked of the earth will drink,
draining it to the dregs.(I)
9 As for me, I will tell about him forever;
I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.(J)
10 “I will cut off all the horns of the wicked,(K)
but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.”(L)
Psalm 76
God, the Powerful Judge
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph.(M) A song.
1 God is known in Judah;
his name is great in Israel.(N)
2 His tent is in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.(O)
3 There he shatters the bow’s flaming arrows,
the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.(P)Selah
4 You are resplendent and majestic
coming down from the mountains of prey.(Q)
5 The brave-hearted have been plundered;
they have slipped into their final sleep.
None of the warriors was able to lift a hand.(R)
6 At your rebuke, God of Jacob,
both chariot and horse lay still.(S)
7 And you—you are to be feared.[b]
When you are angry,
who can stand before you?(T)
8 From heaven you pronounced judgment.
The earth feared and grew quiet(U)
9 when God rose up to judge
and to save all the lowly of the earth.(V)Selah
10 Even human wrath will praise you;
you will clothe yourself
with the wrath that remains.[c](W)
Psalm 23
The Good Shepherd
A psalm of David.
1 The Lord is my shepherd;(A)
I have what I need.(B)
2 He lets me lie down in green pastures;(C)
he leads me beside quiet waters.(D)
3 He renews my life;
he leads me along the right paths[a]
for his name’s sake.(E)
4 Even when I go through the darkest valley,[b]
I fear no danger,
for you are with me;(F)
your rod and your staff—they comfort me.(G)
Psalm 27
My Stronghold
Of David.
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
whom should I fear?(A)
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
whom should I dread?(B)
2 When evildoers came against me to devour my flesh,(C)
my foes and my enemies stumbled and fell.(D)
3 Though an army deploys against me,
my heart will not be afraid;
though a war breaks out against me,
I will still be confident.(E)
4 I have asked one thing from the Lord;
it is what I desire:
to dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,(F)
gazing on the beauty of the Lord(G)
and seeking him in his temple.(H)
5 For he will conceal me in his shelter
in the day of adversity;
he will hide me under the cover of his tent;
he will set me high on a rock.(I)
6 Then my head will be high
above my enemies around me;(J)
I will offer sacrifices in his tent with shouts of joy.(K)
I will sing and make music to the Lord.(L)
7 Lord, hear my voice when I call;
be gracious to me and answer me.(M)
8 My heart says this about you:
“Seek[a] his face.”
Lord, I will seek your face.(N)
9 Do not hide your face from me;(O)
do not turn your servant away in anger.(P)
You have been my helper;(Q)
do not leave me or abandon me,
God of my salvation.
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord cares for me.(R)
23 The Lord spoke to Moses: 24 “Tell the Israelites: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you are to have a day of complete rest, commemoration, and trumpet blasts(A)—a sacred assembly.(B) 25 You must not do any daily work, but you must present a food offering to the Lord.”
26 The Lord again spoke to Moses: 27 “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement.(C) You are to hold a sacred assembly and practice self-denial;(D) you are to present a food offering to the Lord. 28 On this particular day you are not to do any work, for it is a Day of Atonement to make atonement for yourselves before the Lord your God. 29 If any person does not practice self-denial on this particular day, he is to be cut off from his people. 30 I will destroy among his people anyone who does any work on this same day. 31 You are not to do any work. This is a permanent statute throughout your generations wherever you live. 32 It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must practice self-denial. You are to observe your Sabbath from the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening.”
33 The Lord spoke to Moses: 34 “Tell the Israelites: The Festival of Shelters[a](E) to the Lord begins on the fifteenth day of this seventh month and continues for seven days. 35 There is to be a sacred assembly on the first day; you are not to do any daily work. 36 You are to present a food offering to the Lord for seven days. On the eighth day you are to hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the Lord. It is a solemn assembly;(F) you are not to do any daily work.
37 “These are the Lord’s appointed times that you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for presenting food offerings to the Lord, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its designated day. 38 These are in addition to the offerings for the Lord’s Sabbaths, your gifts, all your vow offerings, and all your freewill offerings that you give to the Lord.
39 “You are to celebrate the Lord’s festival on the fifteenth day of the seventh month for seven days after you have gathered the produce of the land. There will be complete rest on the first day and complete rest on the eighth day. 40 On the first day you are to take the product(G) of majestic trees—palm fronds,(H) boughs of leafy trees,(I) and willows of the brook(J)—and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 You are to celebrate it as a festival to the Lord seven days each year. This is a permanent statute for you throughout your generations; celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 You are to live in shelters(K) for seven days. All the native-born of Israel must live in shelters, 43 so that your generations may know that I made the Israelites live in shelters when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God.” 44 So Moses declared the Lord’s appointed times to the Israelites.
Pray for Us
3 In addition, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you,(A) 2 and that we may be delivered(B) from wicked and evil people, for not all have faith.[a] 3 But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.(C) 4 We have confidence in the Lord about you, that you are doing and will continue to do what we command. 5 May the Lord direct your hearts to God’s love and Christ’s endurance.(D)
Warning against Irresponsible Behavior
6 Now we command you, brothers and sisters, in the name(E) of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from every brother or sister(F) who is idle and does not live[b] according to the tradition(G) received(H) from us. 7 For you yourselves know how you should imitate(I) us: We were not idle among you; 8 we did not eat(J) anyone’s food free of charge;(K) instead, we labored(L) and toiled,(M) working(N) night and day, so that we would not be a burden(O) to any of you. 9 It is not that we don’t have the right(P) to support, but we did it to make ourselves an example to you so that you would imitate(Q) us. 10 In fact, when we were with you, this is what we commanded you: “If anyone isn’t willing to work, he should not eat.”(R) 11 For we hear that there are some among you who are idle. They are not busy but busybodies.(S) 12 Now we command and exhort such people by the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and provide for themselves.[c] 13 But as for you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary(T) in doing good.
14 If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take note of that person; don’t associate with him, so that he may be ashamed. 15 Yet don’t consider him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
Final Greetings
16 May the Lord of peace(U) himself give you peace always in every way.(V) The Lord be with all of you.(W) 17 I, Paul, am writing this greeting with my own hand,(X) which is an authenticating mark in every letter; this is how I write. 18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
Entering the Kingdom
13 “Enter through the narrow gate.(A) For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,(B) and there are many who go through it. 14 How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.
15 “Be on your guard against false prophets(C) who come to you in sheep’s(D) clothing(E) but inwardly are ravaging wolves.(F) 16 You’ll recognize them by their fruit.(G) Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles?(H) 17 In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.(I) 20 So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.(J)
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,(K) but only the one who does the will(L) of my Father in heaven.(M)
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