Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer in Time of Sickness
A psalm of David ·to remember [or for the memorial offering].
38 Lord, don’t ·correct [rebuke; reprove] me when you are angry.
Don’t ·punish [discipline] me when you are ·furious [enraged; 6:1].
2 Your arrows have ·wounded [pierced] me,
and your hand has come down on me.
3 My ·body [flesh] is ·sick [L not sound] from your ·punishment [L indignation].
Even my bones are not healthy because of my sin.
4 My guilt has ·overwhelmed me [L passed over my head];
like a ·load [burden] it ·weighs me down [is too heavy for me].
5 My sores stink and become infected
because I was foolish.
6 I am bent over and bowed down;
I ·am sad [L walk around mourning] all day long.
7 ·I am burning with fever [L My loins are burned with fever],
and my ·whole body [flesh] is ·sore [L not sound].
8 I am weak and ·faint [L completely crushed].
I ·moan [groan] from the ·pain I feel [L anguish of my heart].
9 Lord, you know everything I ·want [desire; long for];
my ·cries [sighs] are not hidden from you.
10 My heart pounds, and my strength ·is gone [abandons/forsakes me].
·I am losing my sight [L The light of my eyes is not with me].
11 Because of my wounds, ·my friends [L those who love me] and neighbors ·avoid [L stand away from] me,
and my relatives ·stay [L stand] far away.
12 ·Some people set traps to kill me [L Those who seek my life set traps for me].
Those who ·want [seek] to ·hurt [harm; trouble] me plan trouble;
all day long they ·think up [meditate on] ·lies [deception].
13 I am like the deaf; I cannot hear.
Like the mute, I cannot ·speak [open my mouth].
14 I am like those who do not hear,
who have no ·answer [reproof] ·to give [L in their mouth].
15 I ·trust [hope in; wait for] you, Lord.
You will answer, my Lord and God.
16 I said, “Don’t let them ·laugh at [rejoice in] me
or ·brag [boast] when ·I am defeated [L my foot totters/slips].”
17 I am ·about to die [L ready to stumble],
and ·I cannot forget my pain [L my pain is constantly with me].
18 I confess my guilt;
I am troubled by my sin.
19 My ·enemies are strong and [L living enemies are] healthy,
and many hate me for no reason.
20 They repay me with evil for the good I did.
They ·lie about me [L are my accusers/adversaries] because I ·try to do [L pursued] good.
21 Lord, don’t ·leave [abandon; forsake] me;
my God, don’t ·go away [be far from me].
22 Quickly come and help me,
my Lord and Savior.
25 ·I am about to die [L My soul clings to the dust].
Give me life, as you have promised.
26 I ·told you about my life [L recounted my way], and you answered me.
Teach me your ·demands [statutes; ordinances; requirements].
27 Help me understand your ·orders [L the way of your precepts].
Then I will ·think [meditate] about your ·miracles [wonders].
28 ·I am sad and tired [L My soul is weary/melts with sorrow affliction].
Make me ·strong [L rise up] again as you have promised.
29 ·Don’t let me be dishonest [L Turn me away from a false way];
·have mercy on me by helping me obey your teachings [graciously teach me your instructions/laws].
30 I have chosen the way of ·truth [faithfulness];
I have ·obeyed [placed before me] your ·laws [judgments].
31 I ·hold on [cling] to your ·rules [decrees; testimonies].
Lord, do not let me be ·disgraced [shamed].
32 I will ·quickly obey [L run the way of] your commands,
because you have ·made me happy [L enlarged my heart/mind].
33 Lord, teach me ·your demands [L the way of your demands/statutes/ordinances/requirements],
and I will ·keep [observe] them until the end.
34 Help me understand, so I can ·keep [protect] your ·teachings [instructions; laws],
·obeying [guarding] them with all my heart.
35 Lead me in the path of your commands,
because ·that makes me happy [L I take pleasure in them].
36 Make me want to keep your ·rules [decrees; testimonies]
·instead of wishing for riches [L not to gain/profit].
37 ·Keep me [L Turn my eyes] from looking at ·worthless [false; vain] things.
Let me live ·by your word [L in your path].
38 ·Keep your promise [Confirm your word] to me, your servant,
so you will be ·respected [feared; Prov. 1:7].
39 Take away ·the shame [my scorn/humiliation] I fear,
because your ·laws [judgments] are good.
40 How I ·want to follow [long for] your ·orders [precepts].
Give me life because of your ·goodness [righteousness].
41 Lord, ·show [L bring] me your ·love [loyalty],
and ·save me [give me victory] as you have ·promised [said].
42 I have an answer for people who ·insult [scorn] me,
because I ·trust [find refuge in] what you say.
43 Never ·keep me from speaking your truth [L take the word of truth from my mouth],
because I ·depend [pin my hopes] on your ·fair laws [judgments].
44 I will ·obey [keep; guard] your ·teachings [instructions; laws]
forever and ever.
45 So I will live in ·freedom [liberty],
because I ·want to follow [L seek] your ·orders [precepts].
46 I will discuss your ·rules [decrees; testimonies] with kings
and will not be ashamed.
47 I ·enjoy obeying [L delight in] your commands,
which I love.
48 I ·praise [L lift my palms/hands to] your commands, which I love,
and I ·think [meditate] about your ·demands [statutes; ordinances; requirements].
17 It is better to eat a dry crust of bread in ·peace [quiet]
than to have a feast where there is ·quarreling [strife; contention].
2 A ·wise [insightful] servant will rule over the master’s disgraceful child
and will even ·inherit a share of what the master leaves his children [L divide an inheritance with the brothers/relatives].
3 A crucible ·tests [or refines] silver and a furnace gold,
but the Lord ·tests [or refines] hearts.
4 Evil people listen to ·evil words [L guilty lips].
Liars pay attention to ·cruel words [L a destructive tongue].
5 Whoever ·mistreats [ridicules; mocks] the poor insults their Maker;
whoever enjoys someone’s trouble will ·be punished [L not go unpunished].
6 ·Old people are proud of their grandchildren [L Grandchildren are the crown of the elderly],
and ·children are proud of [L the glory/splendor of children are] their parents.
7 ·Fools should not be proud [or It is not right for fools to be good speakers],
and ·rulers [honorable people] should not ·be liars [L have lying lips].
8 ·Some people think they can pay others to do anything they ask [L A bribe is a magic stone in the eyes of those who give it].
·They think it will work every time [L It grants success to all who use it].
9 ·Whoever forgives someone’s sin makes a friend [L One who seeks love conceals an offense],
but ·gossiping about the sin [repeating a thing] breaks up friendships.
10 A wise person will learn more from a ·warning [rebuke]
than a fool will learn from a hundred lashings.
11 Disobedient ·people look only for trouble [L seek only rebellion],
so a cruel messenger will be sent against them.
12 It is ·better [safer] to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
than to meet a fool doing foolish things.
13 Whoever gives evil in return for good
will always have trouble at home.
14 Starting a quarrel is like ·a leak in a dam [L letting out water],
so ·stop it [hold back an accusation] before a fight breaks out.
15 The Lord hates both of these things:
·freeing the guilty and punishing the innocent [L judging the righteous wicked and the wicked righteous].
16 It won’t do a fool any good to try to buy wisdom,
because he doesn’t have the ability to be wise.
17 A friend loves you all the time,
and a brother ·helps in [L is born for a] time of trouble.
18 ·It is not wise to promise
to pay what your neighbor owes [L A person lacks sense/heart who shakes hands in agreement, who secures a loan for a friend/neighbor].
19 Whoever loves to argue loves to sin.
Whoever ·brags a lot is asking for trouble [L builds a high doorway is seeking a collapse].
20 A person with an ·evil [crooked] heart will find no success,
and the person ·whose words are evil [L who twists matters with their tongue] will get into trouble.
Elders in the Church
3 ·What I say is true [or This saying/word is trustworthy; 1:15; 4:9; 2 Tim. 2:11; Titus 3:8]: Anyone ·wanting [aspiring] to become an ·overseer [T bishop; C perhaps the same as elder; 3:6, 7; 5:17; Titus 1:5–6] desires a ·good [honorable; noble] ·work [role; position]. 2 An overseer must ·not give people a reason to criticize him [have a good reputation; be above reproach], and he must ·have only one wife [or be faithful to his wife]. He must be ·self-controlled [sober], ·wise [have good judgment], respected by others, ·ready to welcome guests [hospitable], and able to teach. 3 He must not drink too much wine or ·like to fight [be violent/a troublemaker], but rather be gentle and ·peaceable [not quarrelsome/contentious], not ·loving money [avaricious; greedy]. 4 He must ·be a good family leader [L manage/lead his own household well], having children ·who cooperate with full respect [who obey and respect him; or whom he controls with dignity]. 5 (If someone does not know how to ·lead [manage] his own ·family [household], how can that person take care of God’s church?) 6 But an elder must not be a ·new believer [recent convert], or he might ·be too proud of himself [become arrogant] and ·be judged guilty just as the devil was [or incur the same punishment as the devil; 1:20]. 7 An elder must also have ·the respect of [a good reputation among] ·people who are not in the church [L outsiders] so he will not ·be criticized by others [fall into disgrace; be caught in a scandal] ·and [or and in this way] ·caught [ensnared] in the devil’s trap.
Deacons in the Church
8 In the same way, deacons must be ·respected by others [dignified], not ·saying things they do not mean [insincere; two-faced; deceitful]. They must not drink too much wine or ·try to get rich by cheating others [be greedy for money/profit]. 9 With a clear conscience they must ·follow [hold on to] ·the secret of the faith that God made known to us [or God’s revealed truths; L the mystery of the faith; C a mystery being something previously unknown but now revealed by God; Eph. 1:9]. 10 Test them first. Then let them serve as deacons if you find ·nothing wrong in them [them blameless]. 11 In the same way, ·women [or women who are deacons; or deacon’s wives] must be ·respected by others [dignified]. They must not ·speak evil of others [be slanderers/gossips]. They must be ·self-controlled [sober] and ·trustworthy [honest; faithful] in everything. 12 Deacons must ·have only one wife [or be faithful to their wife] and be good ·leaders [managers] of their children and their own ·families [households]. 13 Those who serve well as deacons ·are making an honorable place [gain good standing] for themselves, and they will ·be very bold [or have greater confidence/assurance] in their faith in Christ Jesus.
The Secret of Our Life
14 Although I hope I can come to you ·soon [quickly], I am writing these things to you now. 15 Then, even if I am delayed, you will know ·how [L how it is necessary] to live in the ·family [household] of God, which is the ·church [assembly] of the living God, the ·support [pillar] and foundation of the truth. 16 ·Without doubt [or And we all agree], ·the secret of our life of worship [or the truth revealed in our faith/worship; L the mystery of godliness; v. 9] is great [C what follows may be from an early Christian hymn]:
He[a] ·was shown to us [appeared; was revealed] in ·a human body [T the flesh],
·proved right [vindicated] ·in spirit [or by the Spirit],
and seen by angels.
He was proclaimed ·to [among] the ·nations [Gentiles],
believed in ·by [or in; throughout] the world,
and taken up in glory.
People Today Are Full of Evil(A)
43 “When an ·evil [defiling; L unclean] spirit comes out of a person, it travels through ·dry [waterless; arid] places, looking for a place to rest, but it doesn’t find it. 44 So the spirit says, ‘I will go back to the house [C the person] I left.’ When the spirit comes back, it finds the house still empty, swept clean, and ·made neat [put in order; fixed up]. 45 Then the evil spirit goes out and brings seven other spirits even more ·evil [wicked] than it is, and they go in and live there. So ·the person has even more trouble than before [L the last state of that person is worse than the first]. ·It is the same way [L So it will be] with ·the evil people who live today [this evil generation].”
Jesus’ True Family(B)
46 While Jesus was talking to the ·people [crowds], [L look; T behold] his mother and ·brothers [or brothers and sisters; C the Greek word can mean “siblings”] stood outside, ·trying to find a way [seeking; asking] to talk to him. 47 Someone told Jesus, “[L Look; T Behold] Your mother and brothers [and sisters] are standing outside, ·and they want [seeking; asking] to talk to you.”[a]
48 He answered, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers [and sisters]?” 49 Then he ·pointed to [or stretched out his hand toward] his ·followers [disciples] and said, “·Here are [L Look; T Behold] my mother and my brothers. 50 My true brother and sister and mother are those who do ·what my Father in heaven wants [the will of my Father in heaven].”
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