Book of Common Prayer
88 1 A grievous complaint of the faithful, sore afflicted by sickness, persecutions and adversity, 7 Being as it were left of God without any consolation. 13 Yet he calleth on God by faith, and striveth against desperation. 18 Complaining himself to be forsaken of all earthly help.
A song or Psalm of (A)Heman the Ezrahite to give instruction, committed to the sons of Korah for him that excelleth upon Mahalath [a]Leannoth.
1 O Lord God of my salvation, I cry day and night [b]before thee.
2 Let my prayer enter into thy presence: incline thine ear unto my cry.
3 For my soul is filled with evils, and my life draweth near to the grave.
4 I am counted among them that go down unto the pit, and am as a man without strength,
5 [c]Free among the dead, like the slain laying in the grave, when thou rememberest no more, and they are cut off from thy [d]hand.
6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, and in the deep.
7 Thine indignation lieth upon me, and thou hast vexed me with all thy [e]waves. Selah.
8 Thou hast put away mine [f]acquaintance far from me, and made me to be abhorred of them: [g]I am shut up, and cannot get forth.
9 [h]Mine eye is sorrowful through mine affliction: Lord, I call daily upon thee: I stretch out mine hands unto thee.
10 Wilt thou show [i]a miracle to the dead? or shall the dead rise and praise thee? Selah.
11 Shall thy loving kindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12 Shall thy wondrous works be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land [j]of oblivion?
13 But unto thee, have I cried, O Lord, and early shall my prayer come before thee.
14 Lord, why dost thou reject my soul, and hidest thy face from me?
15 I am afflicted and at the point of death: [k]from my youth I suffer thy terrors, doubting of my life.
16 Thine indignations go over me, and thy fear hath cut me off.
17 They came round about me daily like water, and compassed me together.
18 My lovers and friends hast thou put away from me, and mine acquaintance [l]hid themselves.
91 1 Here is described in what assurance he liveth, that putteth his whole trust in God, and commiteth himself wholly to his protection in all temptations. 14 A promise of God to those that love him, know him, and trust in him to deliver them, and give them immortal glory.
1 Who so dwelleth in the [a]secret of the most High, shall abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 [b]I will say unto the Lord, O my hope, and my fortress: he is my God, in him will I trust.
3 Surely I will deliver thee from the [c]snare of the hunter, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He will cover thee under his wings, and thou shalt be sure under his feathers: his [d]truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 [e]Thou shalt not be afraid of the fear of the night: nor of the arrow that flieth by day:
6 Nor of the pestilence that walketh in the darkness: nor of the plague that destroyeth at noon day.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall not come near thee.
8 Doubtless with thine [f]eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
9 For thou hast said, The Lord is mine hope: thou hast set the most High for thy refuge.
10 There shall none evil come unto thee, neither shall any plague come near thy tabernacle.
11 [g]For he shall give his Angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee in their hands, that thou hurt not thy foot against a stone.
13 Thou shalt walk upon the lion and asp: the [h]young lion, and the dragon shalt thou tread under feet.
14 [i]Because he hath loved me, therefore will I deliver him: I will exalt him because he hath known my Name.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will hear him: I will be with him in trouble: I will deliver him, and glorify him.
16 With [j]long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.
92 1 This Psalm was made to be sung on the Sabbath, to stir up the people to acknowledge God, and to praise him in his works: the Prophet rejoiceth therein. 6 But the wicked is not able to consider, that the ungodly, when he is most flourishing, shall most speedily perish. 12 In the end is described the felicity of the just, planted in the house of God to praise the Lord.
A Psalm or song for the [k]Sabbath day.
1 It is a good thing to praise the Lord, and to sing unto thy Name, O most High,
2 To declare thy loving kindness in the [l]morning, and thy truth in the night,
3 Upon an [m]instrument of ten strings, and upon the viol, with the song upon the harp.
4 For thou Lord, hast made me glad by thy [n]works, and I will rejoice in the works of thine hands.
5 O Lord, how glorious are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.
6 An [o]unwise man knoweth it not, and a fool doth not understand this,
7 (When the wicked grow as the grass, and all the workers of wickedness do flourish) that they shall be destroyed forever.
8 But thou, O Lord, art [p]most High forevermore.
9 For lo, thine enemies, O Lord: for lo, thine enemies shall perish: all the workers of iniquity shall be destroyed.
10 [q]But thou shalt exalt mine horn, like the unicorns, and I shall be anointed with fresh oil.
11 Mine eye also shall see my desire against mine enemies: and mine ears shall hear my wish against the wicked, that rise up against me.
12 The righteous shall [r]flourish like a palm tree, and shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Such as be planted in the house of the Lord, shall flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They shall still bring forth fruit in their [s]age: they shall be fat and flourishing,
15 To declare that the Lord my rock is righteous, and that none iniquity is in him.
8 1 After the death of Haman was Mordecai exalted. 14 Comfortable letters are sent unto the Jews.
1 The same day did King Ahasuerus give the house of Haman the adversary of the Jews, unto the Queen Esther. And Mordecai [a]came before the King: for Esther told what he was [b]unto her.
2 And the King took off his ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it unto Mordecai: and Esther set Mordecai over the house of Haman.
3 And Esther spake yet more before the King, and fell down at his feet weeping, and besought him that he would put away the [c]wickedness of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had imagined against the Jews.
4 And the King held out the golden [d]scepter toward Esther. Then arose Esther, and stood before the King,
5 And said, If it please the King, and if I have found favor in his sight, and the thing be acceptable before the King, and I please him, let it be written, that the letters of the device of Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite may be called again, which he wrote to destroy the Jews, that are in all the King’s provinces.
6 For how can I suffer and see the evil, that shall come unto my people? Or how can I suffer and see the destruction of my kindred?
7 And the king Ahasuerus said unto the Queen Esther, and to Mordecai the Jew, Behold, I have given Esther the house of Haman, whom they have hanged upon the tree, because he [e]laid hand upon the Jews.
8 Write ye also for the Jews, as it liketh you in the King’s name, and seal it with the King’s ring, (for the writings written in the King’s name, and sealed with the king’s ring, may [f]no man revoke.)
15 And Mordecai went out from the King in royal apparel of blue, and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple, and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.
16 And unto the Jews was come light and [a]joy and gladness, and honor.
17 Also in all and every province, and in all and every city and place, where the King’s commandment and his decree came, there was joy and gladness to the Jews, a feast and good day, and many of the people of the land [b]became Jews: for the fear of the Jews fell upon them.
21 ¶ [a]Now when these things were accomplished, Paul purposed by the [b]Spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achaia, and to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome.
22 So sent he into Macedonia two of them that ministered unto him, Timothy, and Erastus, but he remained in Asia for a season.
23 [c]And the same time there arose no small trouble about that way.
24 For a certain man named Demetrius a silversmith, which made silver [d]temples of Diana, brought great gains unto the craftsmen,
25 Whom he called together, with the workmen of like things, and said, Sirs, ye know that by this craft we have our goods:
26 Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia this Paul hath persuaded, and turned away much people, saying, That they be not Gods which are made with hands.
27 So that not only this thing is dangerous unto us, that this our [e]portion shall be reproved, but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be nothing esteemed, and that it would come to pass that her magnificence, which all Asia and the world worshippeth, should be destroyed.
28 Now when they heard it, they were full of wrath, and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.
29 And the whole city was full of confusion, and they rushed into the common place with one assent, and caught (A)Gaius, and (B)Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, and Paul’s companions of his journey.
30 And when Paul would have entered in unto the people, the disciples suffered him not.
31 [f]Certain also of the chief of Asia, which were his friends, sent unto him, desiring him that he would not present himself in the Common place.
32 Some therefore cried one thing, and some another: for the assembly was out of order, and the more part knew not wherefore they were come together.
33 And some of the company drew forth Alexander, the Jews thrusting him forwards. Alexander then beckoned with the hand, and would have excused the matter to the people.
34 [g]But when they knew that he was a Jew, there arose a shout almost for the space of two hours, of all men, crying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.
35 [h]Then the town clerk when he had stayed the people, said, Ye men of Ephesus, what man is it that knoweth not how that the city of the Ephesians is a worshipper of the great goddess Diana, and of the image, which [i]came down from Jupiter?
36 Seeing then that no man can speak against these things, ye ought to be appeased, and to do nothing rashly.
37 For ye have brought hither these men, which have neither committed sacrilege, neither do blaspheme your goddess.
38 Wherefore, if Demetrius and the craftsmen which are with him, have a [j]matter against any man, the [k]law is open, and there are [l]Deputies: let them accuse one another.
39 But if ye inquire anything concerning other matters, it may be determined in a [m]lawful assembly.
40 For we are even in jeopardy to be accused of this day’s sedition, forasmuch as there is no cause, whereby we may give a reason of this concourse of people.
41 And when he had thus spoken, he let the assembly depart.
31 ¶ (A)And came down into Capernaum a city of Galilee, and there taught them on the Sabbath days.
32 (B)And they were astonied at his doctrine: for his word was with authority.
33 (C)And in the Synagogue there was a man which had a spirit of an unclean devil, which cried with a loud voice,
34 [a]Saying, Oh, what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know who thou art, even the Holy one of God.
35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. Then the devil throwing him in the midst of them, came out of him, and hurt him nothing at all.
36 So fear came on them all, and they spake among themselves, saying, What thing is this: for with authority and power he commandeth the foul spirits, and they come out?
37 And the fame of him spread abroad throughout all the places of the country round about.
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