Book of Common Prayer
מ MEM
97 Oh, how I love Your law!
(A)It is my meditation all the day.
98 You, through Your commandments, make me (B)wiser than my enemies;
For they are ever with me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers,
(C)For Your testimonies are my meditation.
100 (D)I understand more than the [a]ancients,
Because I keep Your precepts.
101 I have restrained my feet from every evil way,
That I may keep Your word.
102 I have not departed from Your judgments,
For You Yourself have taught me.
103 (E)How sweet are Your words to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 Through Your precepts I get understanding;
Therefore I hate every false way.
נ NUN
105 (F)Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
106 (G)I have sworn and confirmed
That I will keep Your righteous judgments.
107 I am afflicted very much;
Revive me, O Lord, according to Your word.
108 Accept, I pray, (H)the freewill offerings of my mouth, O Lord,
And teach me Your judgments.
109 (I)My life is continually [b]in my hand,
Yet I do not forget Your law.
110 (J)The wicked have laid a snare for me,
Yet I have not strayed from Your precepts.
111 (K)Your testimonies I have taken as a [c]heritage forever,
For they are the rejoicing of my heart.
112 I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes
Forever, to the very end.
ס SAMEK
113 I hate the [d]double-minded,
But I love Your law.
114 (L)You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in Your word.
115 (M)Depart from me, you evildoers,
For I will keep the commandments of my God!
116 Uphold me according to Your word, that I may live;
And do not let me (N)be ashamed of my hope.
117 [e]Hold me up, and I shall be safe,
And I shall observe Your statutes continually.
118 You reject all those who stray from Your statutes,
For their deceit is falsehood.
119 You [f]put away all the wicked of the earth (O)like [g]dross;
Therefore I love Your testimonies.
120 (P)My flesh trembles for fear of You,
And I am afraid of Your judgments.
An Appeal for Israel’s Repentance
To the Chief Musician. (A)On[a] an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of Asaph.
81 Sing aloud to God our strength;
Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.
2 Raise a song and strike the timbrel,
The pleasant harp with the lute.
3 Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon,
At the full moon, on our solemn feast day.
4 For (B)this is a statute for Israel,
A law of the God of Jacob.
5 This He established in Joseph as a testimony,
When He went throughout the land of Egypt,
(C)Where I heard a language I did not understand.
6 “I removed his shoulder from the burden;
His hands were freed from the baskets.
7 (D)You called in trouble, and I delivered you;
(E)I answered you in the secret place of thunder;
I (F)tested you at the waters of [b]Meribah. Selah
8 “Hear,(G) O My people, and I will admonish you!
O Israel, if you will listen to Me!
9 There shall be no (H)foreign god among you;
Nor shall you worship any foreign god.
10 (I)I am the Lord your God,
Who brought you out of the land of Egypt;
(J)Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
11 “But My people would not heed My voice,
And Israel would have (K)none of Me.
12 (L)So I gave them over to [c]their own stubborn heart,
To walk in their own counsels.
13 “Oh,(M) that My people would listen to Me,
That Israel would walk in My ways!
14 I would soon subdue their enemies,
And turn My hand against their adversaries.
15 (N)The haters of the Lord would pretend submission to Him,
But their [d]fate would endure forever.
16 He would (O)have fed them also with [e]the finest of wheat;
And with honey (P)from the rock I would have satisfied you.”
A Plea for Justice
A Psalm of Asaph.
82 God (Q)stands in the congregation of [f]the mighty;
He judges among (R)the [g]gods.
2 How long will you judge unjustly,
And (S)show partiality to the wicked? Selah
3 [h]Defend the poor and fatherless;
Do justice to the afflicted and (T)needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy;
Free them from the hand of the wicked.
5 They do not know, nor do they understand;
They walk about in darkness;
All the (U)foundations of the earth are [i]unstable.
6 I said, (V)“You are [j]gods,
And all of you are children of the Most High.
7 But you shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes.”
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth;
(W)For You shall inherit all nations.
19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!” 21 And (A)every man stood in his place all around the camp; (B)and the whole army ran and cried out and fled. 22 When the three hundred (C)blew the trumpets, (D)the Lord set (E)every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to [a]Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of (F)Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.
23 And the men of Israel gathered together from (G)Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites.
24 Then Gideon sent messengers throughout all the (H)mountains of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites, and seize from them the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan.” Then all the men of Ephraim gathered together and (I)seized the watering places as far as (J)Beth Barah and the Jordan. 25 And they captured (K)two princes of the Midianites, (L)Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the (M)other side of the Jordan.
Gideon Subdues the Midianites
8 Now (N)the men of Ephraim said to him, “Why have you done this to us by not calling us when you went to fight with the Midianites?” And they reprimanded him sharply.
2 So he said to them, “What have I done now in comparison with you? Is not the [b]gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than [c]the vintage of (O)Abiezer? 3 (P)God has delivered into your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. And what was I able to do in comparison with you?” Then their (Q)anger toward him subsided when he said that.
4 When Gideon came (R)to the Jordan, he and (S)the three hundred men who were with him crossed over, exhausted but still in pursuit. 5 Then he said to the men of (T)Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, for they are exhausted, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian.”
6 And the leaders of Succoth said, (U)“Are[d] the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that (V)we should give bread to your army?”
7 So Gideon said, “For this cause, when the Lord has delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, (W)then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers!” 8 Then he went up from there (X)to Penuel and spoke to them in the same way. And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. 9 So he also spoke to the men of Penuel, saying, “When I (Y)come back in peace, (Z)I will tear down this tower!”
10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were at Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand, all who were left of (AA)all the army of the people of the East; for (AB)one hundred and twenty thousand men who drew the sword had fallen. 11 Then Gideon went up by the road of those who dwell in tents on the east of (AC)Nobah and Jogbehah; and he [e]attacked the army while the camp felt (AD)secure. 12 When Zebah and Zalmunna fled, he pursued them; and he (AE)took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and routed the whole army.
12 So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 (A)The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, (B)glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you (C)delivered up and (D)denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. 14 But you denied (E)the Holy One (F)and the Just, and (G)asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and killed the [a]Prince of life, (H)whom God raised from the dead, (I)of which we are witnesses. 16 (J)And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
17 “Yet now, brethren, I know that (K)you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers. 18 But (L)those things which God foretold (M)by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. 19 (N)Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send [b]Jesus Christ, who was [c]preached to you before, 21 (O)whom heaven must receive until the times of (P)restoration of all things, (Q)which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since [d]the world began. 22 For Moses truly said to the fathers, (R)‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. 23 And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ 24 Yes, and (S)all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also [e]foretold these days. 25 (T)You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, (U)‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ 26 To you (V)first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, (W)in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”
The Lamb of God(A)
29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! (B)The Lamb of God (C)who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who [a]is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ 31 I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, (D)therefore I came baptizing with water.”
32 (E)And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. 33 I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, (F)this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and testified that this is the (G)Son of God.”
The First Disciples
35 Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. 36 And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, (H)“Behold the Lamb of God!”
37 The two disciples heard him speak, and they (I)followed Jesus. 38 Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?”
They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?”
39 He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).
40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was (J)Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the [b]Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of [c]Jonah. (K)You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, [d]A Stone).
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.