Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer of Repentance
A psalm of David. To bring to remembrance.[a]
38 O Yahweh, do not rebuke me in your anger
or chastise me in your wrath.
2 For your arrows have sunk into me,
and your hand has pressed down on me.
3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation.
There is no health in my bones because of my sin.
4 For my iniquities have passed over my head;
like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
5 My wounds start to stink; they rot
because of my foolishness.
6 I am bowed down; I am bent over greatly.
All the day I go about mourning.
7 For my loins are full of burning,
and there is no soundness in my flesh.
8 I am faint and crushed greatly;
I groan because of the roaring of my heart.
9 O Lord, all my longing is before you,
and my sighing is not hidden from you.
10 My heart throbs violently, my strength leaves me;
and the light of my eyes, that also is not with me.
11 My friends and companions stand aloof from my affliction,
and my relatives stand afar off.
12 Those who seek my life lay snares as well,
and those intent on my harm speak threats.
They also plot deceit all day.
13 But as for me, like the deaf I cannot hear,
and I am like the mute who cannot open his mouth.
14 And so I am like a man who hears not,
and in whose mouth there are no retorts.
15 Rather for you I wait, O Yahweh.
You will answer, O Lord my God.
16 For I said, “Help, lest they rejoice over me,
lest they boast against me when my foot slips.”
17 For I am ready to stumble,
and my pain is before me continually.
18 For my iniquity I confess;
I am anxious because of my sin.
19 And my enemies without cause[b] are numerous,
and those who hate me wrongfully[c] are many.
20 And those who repay evil in return for good
accuse me in return for my pursuing good.
21 Do not forsake me, O Yahweh.
O my God, do not be far from me.
22 Hurry to help me,
O Lord, my salvation.
Daleth
25 My soul clings to the dust;
revive me according to your word.
26 I told of my ways, and you answered me;
teach me your statutes.
27 Make me understand the way of your precepts,
that I may meditate on your wonderful things.
28 My soul weeps[a] because of grief;
strengthen me according to your word.
29 Remove from me the deceptive way,
and graciously give me your law.
30 I have chosen the faithful way;
I have set your ordinances before me.
31 I cling to your testimonies;
O Yahweh, do not let me be put to shame.
32 I will run the way of your commands,
for you will enlarge my heart.[b]
Heʼ
33 Teach me, O Yahweh, the way of your statutes,
and I will keep it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law
and heed it with my whole heart.
35 Cause me to walk in the path of your commands,
for I delight in it.
36 Incline my heart to your testimonies,
and not to dishonest gain.
37 Turn away my eyes from looking at what is worthless;
revive me in your ways.
38 Fulfill your word[c] to your servant,
which is to bring about a reverence for you.
39 Turn away my disgrace that I dread,
for your ordinances are good.
40 Look, I have longed for your precepts;
revive me in your righteousness.
Waw
41 Let your acts of loyal love also come to me, O Yahweh,
your salvation according to your word.[d]
42 Then I will have an answer for the one who taunts me,
for I trust your word.
43 And do not snatch the word of truth utterly from my mouth,
for I hope in your ordinances.
44 So I will heed your law continually,
forever and ever.
45 And I will go about freely,[e]
for I have sought your precepts.
46 And I will speak of your testimonies before kings,
and will not be ashamed.
47 And I will take delight in your commands,
which I love.
48 And I will lift up my hands[f] to your commands, which I love,
and I will meditate on your statutes.
17 Better a dry morsel and quiet with it
than a house filled with feasts of strife.
2 A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully,
and in the midst of brothers he will share his inheritance.
3 A crucible is for the silver, and a furnace is for the gold,
but Yahweh will test hearts.
4 He who does evil listens to lips of wickedness,
and the liar gives heed to the tongue of mischief.
5 He who mocks the poor insults him who made him;
he who rejoices at calamity will not go unpunished.
6 The crown of the elderly are grandchildren,[a]
and the glory of children is their fathers.
7 Fine speech[b] is not becoming a fool,
still less[c] is false speech[d] for a ruler.
8 The bribe is a stone of magic in the eyes of its owner;[e]
everywhere[f] he will turn, he will prosper.
9 He who forgives an affront fosters love,
but he who waits on a matter will alienate a friend.
10 A rebuke strikes him who understands
deeper than one hundred blows to a fool.
11 An evil person will seek only rebellion,
and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
12 May a man meet a she-bear robbed of offspring
and not a fool in his folly.
13 For he who returns evil for good,
evil will not depart from his house.
14 Like the release of water is the beginning of strife;
before it breaks out, stop the quarrel.
15 He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous,
the two of them are both abominations of Yahweh.
16 Why is this? A price in the hand of a fool,
in order to buy wisdom where[g] there is no sense.[h]
17 The friend loves at all times[i],
but a brother is born for adversity.
18 A person who lacks sense[j] pledges;[k]
he becomes security before his neighbor.
19 He who loves transgression loves strife;
he who builds his high thresholds seeks destruction.
20 He who is crooked of heart[l] will not find goodness,
and he who is perverse, by his tongue he will fall into calamity.
Qualifications for Overseers
3 The saying is trustworthy: if anyone aspires to supervision, he desires a good work. 2 Therefore the overseer must be irreproachable, the husband of one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, skillful in teaching, 3 not addicted to wine, not a violent person, but gentle, peaceable, not loving money, 4 managing his own household well, having children in submission with all dignity 5 (but if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), 6 not newly converted, lest he become conceited and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 But he must also have a good testimony from those outside, in order that he may not fall into disgrace and the trap of the devil.
Qualifications for Deacons
8 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not insincere, not devoted to much wine, not fond of dishonest gain, 9 holding the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience, 10 and these also must be tested first; then let them serve if they[a] are above reproach. 11 The wives[b] likewise must be dignified, not slanderous, temperate, faithful in all things. 12 Deacons must be husbands of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. 13 For those who have served well acquire a good standing for themselves, and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
The Mystery of Godliness Described
14 I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you in a short time. 15 But if I am delayed, I am writing[c] in order that you may know how one must conduct oneself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and mainstay[d] of the truth. 16 And most certainly, great is the mystery of godliness:
An Unclean Spirit Returns
43 “Now whenever an unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it travels through waterless places searching for rest, and does not find it.[a] 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came out.’ And when it[b] arrives it finds the house[c] unoccupied and swept and put in order. 45 Then it goes and brings along with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and[d] live there. And the last state of that person becomes worse than the first. So it will be for this evil generation also!”
Jesus’ Mother and Brothers
46 And[e] while[f] he was still speaking to the crowds, behold, his mother and brothers were standing there outside, desiring to speak to him. 47 And someone told him, “Behold, your mother and your brothers are standing there outside desiring to speak to you.” 48 But he answered and[g] said to the one who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Behold my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
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