Book of Common Prayer
A Prayer for the King
Of Solomon.
72 God, give the king your good judgment
and the king’s son your goodness.
2 Help him judge your people fairly
and decide what is right for the poor.
3 Let there be peace on the mountains
and goodness on the hills for the people.
4 Help him be fair to the poor
and save the needy
and punish those who hurt them.
5 May they respect you as long as the sun shines
and as long as the moon glows.
6 Let him be like rain on the grass,
like showers that water the earth.
7 Let goodness be plentiful while he lives.
Let peace continue as long as there is a moon.
8 Let his kingdom go from sea to sea,
and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9 Let the people of the desert bow down to him,
and make his enemies lick the dust.
10 Let the kings of Tarshish and the faraway lands
bring him gifts.
Let the kings of Sheba and Seba
bring their presents to him.
11 Let all kings bow down to him
and all nations serve him.
12 He will help the poor when they cry out
and will save the needy when no one else will help.
13 He will be kind to the weak and poor,
and he will save their lives.
14 He will save them from cruel people who try to hurt them,
because their lives are precious to him.
15 Long live the king!
Let him receive gold from Sheba.
Let people always pray for him
and bless him all day long.
16 Let the fields grow plenty of grain
and the hills be covered with crops.
Let the land be as fertile as Lebanon,
and let the cities grow like the grass in a field.
17 Let the king be famous forever;
let him be remembered as long as the sun shines.
Let the nations be blessed because of him,
and may they all bless him.
18 Praise the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does such miracles.
19 Praise his glorious name forever.
Let his glory fill the whole world.
Amen and amen.
20 This ends the prayers of David son of Jesse.
73 You made me and formed me with your hands.
Give me understanding so I can learn your commands.
74 Let those who respect you rejoice when they see me,
because I put my hope in your word.
75 Lord, I know that your laws are right
and that it was right for you to punish me.
76 Comfort me with your love,
as you promised me, your servant.
77 Have mercy on me so that I may live.
I love your teachings.
78 Make proud people ashamed because they lied about me.
But I will think about your orders.
79 Let those who respect you return to me,
those who know your rules.
80 Let me obey your demands perfectly
so I will not be ashamed.
81 I am weak from waiting for you to save me,
but I hope in your word.
82 My eyes are tired from looking for your promise.
When will you comfort me?
83 Even though I am like a wine bag going up in smoke,
I do not forget your demands.
84 How long will I live?
When will you judge those who are hurting me?
85 Proud people have dug pits to trap me.
They have nothing to do with your teachings.
86 All of your commands can be trusted.
Liars are hurting me. Help me!
87 They have almost put me in the grave,
but I have not rejected your orders.
88 Give me life by your love
so I can obey your rules.
89 Lord, your word is everlasting;
it continues forever in heaven.
90 Your loyalty will go on and on;
you made the earth, and it still stands.
91 All things continue to this day because of your laws,
because all things serve you.
92 If I had not loved your teachings,
I would have died from my sufferings.
93 I will never forget your orders,
because you have given me life by them.
94 I am yours. Save me.
I want to obey your orders.
95 Wicked people are waiting to destroy me,
but I will think about your rules.
96 Everything I see has its limits,
but your commands have none.
Time and Chance
11 I also saw something else here on earth:
The fastest runner does not always win the race,
the strongest soldier does not always win the battle,
the wisest does not always have food,
the smartest does not always become wealthy,
and the talented one does not always receive praise.
Time and chance happen to everyone.
12 No one knows what will happen next.
Like a fish caught in a net,
or a bird caught in a trap,
people are trapped by evil
when it suddenly falls on them.
Wisdom Does Not Always Win
13 I also saw something wise here on earth that impressed me. 14 There was a small town with only a few people in it. A great king fought against it and put his armies all around it. 15 Now there was a poor but wise man in the town who used his wisdom to save his town. But later on, everyone forgot about him. 16 I still think wisdom is better than strength. But those people forgot about the poor man’s wisdom and stopped listening to what he said.
17 The quiet words of a wise person are better
than the shouts of a foolish ruler.
18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war,
but one sinner can destroy much good.
Keep Your Freedom
5 We have freedom now, because Christ made us free. So stand strong. Do not change and go back into the slavery of the law. 2 Listen, I Paul tell you that if you go back to the law by being circumcised, Christ does you no good. 3 Again, I warn every man: If you allow yourselves to be circumcised, you must follow all the law. 4 If you try to be made right with God through the law, your life with Christ is over—you have left God’s grace. 5 But we have the true hope that comes from being made right with God, and by the Spirit we wait eagerly for this hope. 6 When we are in Christ Jesus, it is not important if we are circumcised or not. The important thing is faith—the kind of faith that works through love.
7 You were running a good race. Who stopped you from following the true way? 8 This change did not come from the One who chose you. 9 Be careful! “Just a little yeast makes the whole batch of dough rise.” 10 But I trust in the Lord that you will not believe those different ideas. Whoever is confusing you with such ideas will be punished.
11 My brothers and sisters, I do not teach that a man must be circumcised. If I teach circumcision, why am I still being attacked? If I still taught circumcision, my preaching about the cross would not be a problem. 12 I wish the people who are bothering you would castrate[a] themselves!
13 My brothers and sisters, God called you to be free, but do not use your freedom as an excuse to do what pleases your sinful self. Serve each other with love. 14 The whole law is made complete in this one command: “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.”[b] 15 If you go on hurting each other and tearing each other apart, be careful, or you will completely destroy each other.
The Leaders Ask for a Miracle
16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus, wanting to trick him. So they asked him to show them a miracle from God.
2 Jesus answered,[a] “At sunset you say we will have good weather, because the sky is red. 3 And in the morning you say that it will be a rainy day, because the sky is dark and red. You see these signs in the sky and know what they mean. In the same way, you see the things that I am doing now, but you don’t know their meaning. 4 Evil and sinful people ask for a miracle as a sign, but they will not be given any sign, except the sign of Jonah.”[b] Then Jesus left them and went away.
Guard Against Wrong Teachings
5 Jesus’ followers went across the lake, but they had forgotten to bring bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Be careful! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”
7 His followers discussed the meaning of this, saying, “He said this because we forgot to bring bread.”
8 Knowing what they were talking about, Jesus asked them, “Why are you talking about not having bread? Your faith is small. 9 Do you still not understand? Remember the five loaves of bread that fed the five thousand? And remember that you filled many baskets with the leftovers? 10 Or the seven loaves of bread that fed the four thousand and the many baskets you filled then also? 11 I was not talking to you about bread. Why don’t you understand that? I am telling you to beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.” 12 Then the followers understood that Jesus was not telling them to beware of the yeast used in bread but to beware of the teaching of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.