Book of Common Prayer
Thanksgiving for God’s Righteous Judgment
To the Chief Musician. Set to (A)“Do[a] Not Destroy.” A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
75 We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!
For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.
2 “When I choose the [b]proper time,
I will judge uprightly.
3 The earth and all its inhabitants are dissolved;
I set up its pillars firmly. Selah
4 “I said to the boastful, ‘Do not deal boastfully,’
And to the wicked, (B)‘Do not [c]lift up the horn.
5 Do not lift up your horn on high;
Do not speak with [d]a stiff neck.’ ”
6 For exaltation comes neither from the east
Nor from the west nor from the south.
7 But (C)God is the Judge:
(D)He puts down one,
And exalts another.
8 For (E)in the hand of the Lord there is a cup,
And the wine is red;
It is fully mixed, and He pours it out;
Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth
Drain and drink down.
9 But I will declare forever,
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10 “All(F) the [e]horns of the wicked I will also cut off,
But (G)the horns of the righteous shall be (H)exalted.”
The Majesty of God in Judgment
To the Chief Musician. On [f]stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
76 In (I)Judah God is known;
His name is great in Israel.
2 In [g]Salem also is His tabernacle,
And His dwelling place in Zion.
3 There He broke the arrows of the bow,
The shield and sword of battle. Selah
4 You are more glorious and excellent
(J)Than the mountains of prey.
5 (K)The stouthearted were plundered;
(L)They [h]have sunk into their sleep;
And none of the mighty men have found the use of their hands.
6 (M)At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
Both the chariot and horse were cast into a dead sleep.
7 You, Yourself, are to be feared;
And (N)who may stand in Your presence
When once You are angry?
8 (O)You caused judgment to be heard from heaven;
(P)The earth feared and was still,
9 When God (Q)arose to judgment,
To deliver all the oppressed of the earth. Selah
10 (R)Surely the wrath of man shall praise You;
With the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself.
The Lord the Shepherd of His People
A Psalm of David.
23 The Lord is (A)my shepherd;
(B)I shall not [a]want.
2 (C)He makes me to lie down in [b]green pastures;
(D)He leads me beside the [c]still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
(E)He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
An Exuberant Declaration of Faith
A Psalm of David.
27 The Lord is my (A)light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The (B)Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked came against me
To (C)eat[a] up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
3 (D)Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
4 (E)One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may (F)dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the [b]beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple.
5 For (G)in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall (H)set me high upon a rock.
6 And now (I)my head shall be [c]lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of [d]joy in His tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When You said, “Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
9 (J)Do not hide Your face from me;
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not leave me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation.
10 (K)When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then the Lord will take care of me.
11 (L)Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.
12 Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries;
For (M)false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the Lord
(N)In the land of the living.
19 “The kings came and fought,
Then the kings of Canaan fought
In (A)Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo;
They took no spoils of silver.
20 They fought from the heavens;
The stars from their courses fought against Sisera.
21 (B)The torrent of Kishon swept them away,
That ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon.
O my soul, march on in strength!
22 Then the horses’ hooves pounded,
The galloping, galloping of his steeds.
23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the [a]angel of the Lord,
‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly,
Because they did not come to the help of the Lord,
To the help of the Lord against the mighty.’
24 “Most blessed among women is Jael,
The wife of Heber the Kenite;
(C)Blessed is she among women in tents.
25 He asked for water, she gave milk;
She brought out cream in a lordly bowl.
26 She stretched her hand to the tent peg,
Her right hand to the workmen’s hammer;
She pounded Sisera, she pierced his head,
She split and struck through his temple.
27 At her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still;
At her feet he sank, he fell;
Where he sank, there he fell (D)dead.
28 “The mother of Sisera looked through the window,
And cried out through the lattice,
‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why tarries the clatter of his chariots?’
29 Her wisest [b]ladies answered her,
Yes, she [c]answered herself,
30 ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil:
To every man a girl or two;
For Sisera, plunder of dyed garments,
Plunder of garments embroidered and dyed,
Two pieces of dyed embroidery for the neck of the looter?’
31 “Thus let all Your enemies (E)perish, O Lord!
But let those who love Him be (F)like the (G)sun
When it comes out in full (H)strength.”
So the land had rest for forty years.
22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you (A)by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— 23 Him, (B)being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, (C)you [a]have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; 24 (D)whom God raised up, having [b]loosed the [c]pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. 25 For David says concerning Him:
(E)‘I foresaw the Lord always before my face,
For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken.
26 Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad;
Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope.
27 For You will not leave my soul in Hades,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see (F)corruption.
28 You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of joy in Your presence.’
29 “Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you (G)of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Therefore, being a prophet, (H)and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, [d]according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, 31 he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, (I)that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 32 (J)This Jesus God has raised up, (K)of which we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore (L)being exalted [e]to (M)the right hand of God, and (N)having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He (O)poured out this which you now see and hear.
34 “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself:
(P)‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
35 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’
36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
The Soldiers Are Bribed
11 Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. 12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.
The Great Commission(A)
16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain (B)which Jesus had appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some (C)doubted.
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, (D)“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 (E)Go [a]therefore and (F)make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 (G)teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am (H)with you always, even to the end of the age.” [b]Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.