Book of Common Prayer
The Privileges of Citizenship in Zion.
A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A Song.
87 His (A)foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 The Lord (B)loves the gates of Zion
More than all the other dwelling places of Jacob.
3 (C)Glorious things are spoken of you,
O (D)city of God. [a]Selah.
4 “I shall mention [b](E)Rahab and Babylon [c]among those who know Me;
Behold, Philistia and (F)Tyre with [d](G)Ethiopia:
‘This one was born there.’”
5 But of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in her”;
And the Most High Himself will (H)establish her.
6 The Lord will count when He (I)registers the peoples,
“This one was born there.” Selah.
7 Then those who (J)sing as well as those who [e](K)play the flutes shall say,
“All my (L)springs of joy are in you.”
BOOK 4
God’s Eternity and Man’s Transitoriness.
A Prayer of [a]Moses, the man of God.
90 Lord, You have been our [b](A)dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before (B)the mountains were born
[c]Or You (C)gave birth to the earth and the world,
Even (D)from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
3 You (E)turn man back into dust
And say, “Return, O children of men.”
4 For (F)a thousand years in Your sight
Are like (G)yesterday when it passes by,
[d]Or as a (H)watch in the night.
5 You (I)have [e]swept them away like a flood, they [f](J)fall asleep;
In the morning they are like (K)grass which [g]sprouts anew.
6 In the morning it (L)flourishes and [h]sprouts anew;
Toward evening it (M)fades and (N)withers away.
7 For we have been (O)consumed by Your anger
And by Your wrath we have been [i]dismayed.
8 You have (P)placed our iniquities before You,
Our (Q)secret sins in the light of Your presence.
9 For (R)all our days have declined in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a [j]sigh.
10 As for the days of our [k]life, [l]they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, (S)eighty years,
Yet their pride is but (T)labor and sorrow;
For soon it is gone and we (U)fly away.
11 Who [m]understands the (V)power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the (W)fear [n]that is due You?
12 So (X)teach us to number our days,
That we may [o](Y)present to You a heart of wisdom.
13 Do (Z)return, O Lord; (AA)how long will it be?
And [p]be (AB)sorry for Your servants.
14 O (AC)satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness,
That we may (AD)sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 (AE)Make us glad [q]according to the days You have afflicted us,
And the (AF)years we have seen [r]evil.
16 Let Your (AG)work appear to Your servants
And Your (AH)majesty [s]to their children.
17 Let the (AI)favor of the Lord our God be upon us;
And [t](AJ)confirm for us the work of our hands;
Yes, [u]confirm the work of our hands.
Thanks for the Lord’s Goodness to Israel.
136 (A)Give thanks to the Lord, for (B)He is good,
For (C)His lovingkindness is everlasting.
2 Give thanks to the (D)God of gods,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
3 Give thanks to the (E)Lord of lords,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
4 To Him who (F)alone does great [a]wonders,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
5 To Him who (G)made the heavens [b](H)with skill,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
6 To Him who (I)spread out the earth above the waters,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
7 To Him who (J)made the great lights,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting:
8 The (K)sun to rule [c]by day,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
9 The (L)moon and stars to rule [d]by night,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
10 To Him who (M)smote [e]the Egyptians in their firstborn,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
11 And (N)brought Israel out from their midst,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
12 With a (O)strong hand and an (P)outstretched arm,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
13 To Him who (Q)divided the [f]Red Sea [g]asunder,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
14 And (R)made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
15 But (S)He [h]overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the [i]Red Sea,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
16 To Him who (T)led His people through the wilderness,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
17 To Him who (U)smote great kings,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
18 And (V)slew [j]mighty kings,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting:
19 (W)Sihon, king of the Amorites,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
20 And (X)Og, king of Bashan,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
21 And (Y)gave their land as a heritage,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
22 Even a heritage to Israel His (Z)servant,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
23 Who (AA)remembered us in our low estate,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,
24 And has (AB)rescued us from our adversaries,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
25 Who (AC)gives food to all flesh,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
26 Give thanks to the (AD)God of heaven,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “(A)We are not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us.” 32 So they gave out to the sons of Israel (B)a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone, in spying it out, is (C)a land that devours its [a]inhabitants; and (D)all the people whom we saw in it are men of great size. 33 There also we saw the (E)Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and (F)we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
The People Rebel
14 Then all the congregation [b]lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept [c]that night. 2 All the sons of Israel (G)grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, “(H)Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, (I)to fall by the sword? (J)Our wives and our little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” 4 So they said to one another, “(K)Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.”
5 (L)Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in the presence of all the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel. 6 Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, of those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; 7 and they spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, “(M)The land which we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. 8 (N)If the Lord is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us—(O)a land which flows with milk and honey. 9 Only (P)do not rebel against the Lord; and do not (Q)fear the people of the land, for they will be our [d]prey. Their [e]protection has been removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.” 10 (R)But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Then (S)the glory of the Lord appeared in the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel.
Moses Pleads for the People
11 (T)The Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people spurn Me? And how long will (U)they not believe in Me, despite all the signs which I have performed in their midst? 12 I will smite them with [f](V)pestilence and dispossess them, and I (W)will make you into a nation greater and mightier than they.”
13 (X)But Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought up this people from their midst, 14 and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, O Lord, are in the midst of this people, for (Y)You, O Lord, are seen eye to eye, while Your cloud stands over them; and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 Now if You slay this people as one man, (Z)then the nations who have heard of Your fame will [g]say, 16 ‘Because the Lord (AA)could not bring this people into the land which He promised them by oath, therefore He slaughtered them in the wilderness.’ 17 But now, I pray, let the power of the Lord be great, just as You have [h]declared, 18 ‘(AB)The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but (AC)He will by no means clear the guilty, (AD)visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children [i]to the third and the fourth generations.’ 19 (AE)Pardon, I pray, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Your lovingkindness, just as You also have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”
The Lord Pardons and Rebukes
20 So the Lord said, “(AF)I have pardoned them according to your word; 21 but indeed, (AG)as I live, [j](AH)all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord. 22 Surely (AI)all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet (AJ)have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, 23 (AK)shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it. 24 But My servant Caleb, (AL)because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, [k](AM)I will bring into the land [l]which he entered, and his [m]descendants shall take possession of it. 25 (AN)Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys; turn tomorrow and set out to the wilderness by the way of the [n]Red Sea.”
9 What then? [a](A)Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both (B)Jews and (C)Greeks are (D)all under sin; 10 as it is written,
“(E)There is none righteous, not even one;
11 There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
12 All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.”
13 “(F)Their throat is an open grave,
With their tongues they keep deceiving,”
“(G)The poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “(H)Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”;
15 “(I)Their feet are swift to shed blood,
16 Destruction and misery are in their paths,
17 And the path of peace they have not known.”
18 “(J)There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
19 Now we know that whatever the (K)Law says, it speaks to (L)those who are [b]under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and (M)all the world may become accountable to God; 20 because (N)by the works [c]of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for [d](O)through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.
Concerning Divorce
19 (A)When Jesus had finished these words, He departed from Galilee and (B)came into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan; 2 and [a]large crowds followed Him, and (C)He healed them there.
3 Some Pharisees came to [b]Jesus, testing Him and asking, “(D)Is it lawful for a man to [c]divorce his wife for any reason at all?” 4 And He answered and said, “Have you not read (E)that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, 5 and said, ‘(F)For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and (G)the two shall become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” 7 They *said to Him, “(H)Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate of divorce and send her away?” 8 He *said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses permitted you to [d]divorce your wives; but from the beginning it has not been this way. 9 And I say to you, (I)whoever [e]divorces his wife, except for [f]immorality, and marries another woman [g]commits adultery[h].”
10 The disciples *said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.” 11 But He said to them, “(J)Not all men can accept this statement, but (K)only those to whom it has been given. 12 For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.”
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.