Book of Common Prayer
That the Generation to Come Might Know
A [a]Maskil of Asaph.
78 (A)Give ear, O my people, to my [b]instruction;
(B)Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will (C)open my mouth in a parable;
I will pour forth (D)dark sayings of old,
3 Which we have heard and known,
And (E)our fathers have recounted to us.
4 We will (F)not conceal them from their children,
But (G)recount to the generation to come the praises of Yahweh,
And His strength and His (H)wondrous deeds that He has done.
5 For He established a (I)testimony in Jacob
And set a (J)law in Israel,
Which He (K)commanded our fathers
That they should [c](L)teach them to their children,
6 (M)That the generation to come might know, even (N)the children yet to be born,
That they may arise and (O)recount them to their children,
7 That they should set their confidence in God
And (P)not forget the deeds of God,
But (Q)observe His commandments,
8 And (R)not be like their fathers,
A (S)stubborn and rebellious generation,
A generation that (T)did not [d]prepare its heart
And whose spirit was not (U)faithful to God.
9 The sons of Ephraim [e]were (V)archers equipped with bows,
Yet (W)they turned back in the day of battle.
10 They (X)did not keep the covenant of God
And refused to (Y)walk in His law;
11 So they (Z)forgot His acts
And His [f]wondrous deeds that He had shown them.
12 (AA)He did wonders before their fathers
In the land of Egypt, in the (AB)field of Zoan.
13 He (AC)split the sea and caused them to pass through,
And He made the waters stand (AD)up like a heap.
14 Then He led them with the cloud by (AE)day
And all the night with a (AF)light of fire.
15 He was (AG)splitting the rocks in the wilderness
And so gave them abundant drink like the ocean depths.
16 He (AH)brought forth streams also from the cliff face
And caused waters to run down like rivers.
17 Yet they still continued to sin against Him,
To (AI)rebel against the Most High in the desert.
18 And in their heart they (AJ)put God to the test
By asking for (AK)food according to their desire.
19 Then they spoke against God;
They said, “(AL)Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?
20 Behold, He (AM)struck the rock so that waters gushed out,
And streams were overflowing;
Can He give bread also?
Will He prepare [g](AN)meat for His people?”
21 Therefore Yahweh heard and [h]was (AO)full of wrath;
And a fire was kindled against Jacob
And anger also mounted against Israel,
22 Because they (AP)did not believe in God
And did not trust in His salvation.
23 Yet He commanded the skies above
And (AQ)opened the doors of heaven;
24 He (AR)rained down manna upon them to eat
And gave them (AS)grain from heaven.
25 Man ate the bread of [i]angels;
He sent them provision (AT)to satisfy.
26 He (AU)led forth the east wind in the heavens
And by His strength He guided the south wind.
27 Then He rained [j]meat upon them like the dust,
Even (AV)winged fowl like the sand of the seas,
28 He caused them to fall in the midst of His camp,
All around His dwelling places.
29 So they (AW)ate and were very satisfied,
And their desire He brought to them.
30 [k]Before they had satisfied their desire,
(AX)While their food was in their mouths,
31 The (AY)anger of God rose against them
And killed [l]some of their (AZ)stoutest ones,
And [m]subdued the choice men of Israel.
32 In spite of all this they (BA)still sinned
And (BB)did not believe in His wondrous deeds.
33 So He brought (BC)their days to an end in [n]futility
And their years in sudden terror.
34 When He killed them, then they (BD)sought Him,
And returned and sought (BE)earnestly for God;
35 And they remembered that God was their (BF)rock,
And the Most High God their (BG)Redeemer.
36 But they (BH)deceived Him with their mouth
And (BI)lied to Him with their tongue.
37 For their heart was not (BJ)prepared to remain with Him,
Nor were they faithful in His covenant.
38 But He, being (BK)compassionate, (BL)atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them;
And He abounded in (BM)turning back His anger
And did not arouse all His wrath.
39 Thus (BN)He remembered that they were but (BO)flesh,
A [o](BP)wind that goes and does not return.
40 How often they (BQ)rebelled against Him in the wilderness
And (BR)grieved Him in the (BS)wasteland!
41 Again and again they [p](BT)tested God,
And pained the (BU)Holy One of Israel.
42 They (BV)did not remember (BW)His [q]power,
The day when He (BX)redeemed them from the adversary,
43 When He performed His (BY)signs in Egypt
And His (BZ)miracles in the field of Zoan,
44 And (CA)turned their rivers to blood,
And their streams, they could not drink.
45 He sent among them swarms of (CB)flies which devoured them,
And (CC)frogs which destroyed them.
46 He gave also their crops to the (CD)grasshopper
And the fruit of their labor to the (CE)locust.
47 He killed their vines with (CF)hailstones
And their sycamore trees with frost.
48 He gave over their (CG)cattle also to the hailstones
And their herds to bolts of lightning.
49 He (CH)sent upon them His burning anger,
Fury and indignation and [r]distress,
[s]A band of destroying angels.
50 He leveled a path for His anger;
He did not hold back their soul from death,
But (CI)gave over their life to the plague,
51 So He (CJ)struck all the firstborn in Egypt,
The (CK)first of their vigor in the tents of (CL)Ham.
52 But He (CM)led forth His own people like sheep
And guided them in the wilderness (CN)like a flock;
53 He led them (CO)safely, so that they did not fear;
But (CP)the sea covered their enemies.
54 So (CQ)He brought them to His holy [t]land,
To this [u](CR)hill country (CS)which His right hand had acquired.
55 He also (CT)drove out the nations before them
And (CU)apportioned them for an inheritance by measurement,
And made the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.
56 Yet they [v](CV)tested and (CW)rebelled against the Most High God
And did not keep His testimonies,
57 But turned back and (CX)acted treacherously like their fathers;
They (CY)turned aside like a treacherous bow.
58 For they (CZ)provoked Him with their (DA)high places
And (DB)aroused His jealousy with their (DC)graven images.
59 God heard and [w]was filled with (DD)wrath
And greatly (DE)rejected Israel;
60 So that He (DF)abandoned the (DG)dwelling place at Shiloh,
The tent [x]which He caused to dwell among men,
61 And gave up His (DH)strength to captivity
And His beauty (DI)into the hand of the adversary.
62 He also (DJ)gave over His people to the sword,
And [y]was filled with wrath at His inheritance.
63 (DK)Fire devoured [z]His choice men,
And [aa]His (DL)virgins had no wedding songs.
64 [ab]His (DM)priests fell by the sword,
And [ac]His (DN)widows could not weep.
65 Then the Lord (DO)awoke as if from sleep,
As if He were a (DP)warrior [ad]overcome by wine.
66 He (DQ)struck His adversaries backward;
He put on them an everlasting reproach.
67 He also (DR)rejected the tent of Joseph,
And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 But chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount (DS)Zion which He loved.
69 And He (DT)built His sanctuary like the heights,
Like the earth which He has founded forever.
70 He also (DU)chose David His servant
And took him from the sheepfolds;
71 From (DV)following the [ae](DW)nursing ewes He brought him
To (DX)shepherd Jacob His people,
And Israel (DY)His inheritance.
72 So he shepherded them according to the (DZ)integrity of his heart,
And led them with his skillful hands.
15 (A)Alas for the day!
For the (B)day of Yahweh is near,
And it will come as (C)destruction from the [a]Almighty.
16 Has not (D)food been cut off before our eyes,
Gladness and (E)joy from the house of our God?
17 The [b](F)seeds shrivel under their [c]clods;
The storehouses are desolate;
The barns are pulled down,
For the grain is dried up.
18 How (G)the beasts groan!
The herds of cattle wander aimlessly
Because there is no pasture for them;
Even the flocks of sheep [d]suffer.
19 (H)To You, O Yahweh, I cry;
For (I)fire has consumed the pastures of the wilderness,
And the flame has burned up all the trees of the field.
20 Even the beasts of the field [e](J)pant for You;
For the (K)water brooks are dried up,
And fire has consumed the pastures of the wilderness.
2 (L)Blow a trumpet in Zion,
And make a loud shout on My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
For the (M)day of Yahweh is coming;
Surely it is near,
2 A day of (N)darkness and thick darkness,
A day of clouds and dense gloom.
As the dawn is spread over the mountains,
So there is a (O)numerous and mighty people;
There has (P)never been anything like it,
Nor will there be again after it
For the years from generation to generation.
3 A (Q)fire consumes before them,
And behind them a flame burns.
The land is (R)like the garden of Eden before them
But a (S)desolate wilderness behind them,
And nothing at all escapes them.
4 Their (T)appearance is like the appearance of horses;
And like war horses, so they run.
5 [f]With a (U)noise as of chariots
They leap on the tops of the mountains,
Like the [g]crackling of a (V)flame of fire consumes the stubble,
Like a mighty people arranged for battle.
6 Before them the peoples are (W)writhing;
All (X)faces [h]turn pale.
7 They run like mighty men;
They climb up the wall like men of war;
And they each (Y)march [i]in line,
And they do not deviate from their paths.
8 They do not crowd each other;
They march everyone in his path;
When they fall against the defending weapons,
They do not break ranks.
9 They rush on the city;
They run on the wall;
They climb up into the (Z)houses;
They (AA)enter through the windows like a thief.
10 Before them the earth (AB)trembles;
The heavens quake;
The (AC)sun and the moon grow dark,
And the stars [j]lose their brightness.
11 But Yahweh (AD)gives forth His voice before (AE)His military force;
Surely His camp is very numerous,
For (AF)mighty is he who does His word.
The (AG)day of Yahweh is indeed great and very awesome,
And (AH)who can endure it?
Hallelujah!
19 After these things I heard something like a (A)loud voice of a great crowd in heaven, saying,
“(B)Hallelujah! (C)Salvation and (D)glory and power belong to our God; 2 (E)because His (F)judgments are (G)true and righteous; for He has judged the (H)great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her sexual immorality, and He has (I)avenged the blood of His slaves shed by her hand.” 3 And a second time they said, “(J)Hallelujah! (K)Her smoke rises up forever and ever.” 4 And the (L)twenty-four elders and the (M)four living creatures (N)fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “(O)Amen. (P)Hallelujah!” 5 And a voice came from the throne, saying,
“(Q)Give praise to our God, all you His slaves, (R)you who fear Him, the small and the great.” 6 Then I heard something like (S)the voice of a great crowd and like (T)the sound of many waters and like the (U)sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying,
“(V)Hallelujah! For the (W)Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb
7 Let us rejoice and be glad and (X)give the glory to Him, for (Y)the marriage of the Lamb has come and His [a](Z)bride has made herself ready.” 8 And it was given to her to clothe herself in (AA)fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the (AB)righteous acts of the saints.
9 Then (AC)he *said to me, “(AD)Write, ‘(AE)Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” And he *said to me, “(AF)These are true words of God.” 10 Then (AG)I fell at his feet to worship him. (AH)But he *said to me, “[b]Do not do that! I am a (AI)fellow slave with you and your brothers who (AJ)have the witness of Jesus. Worship God! For the witness of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
The Cost of Discipleship
25 Now many crowds were going along with Him, and He turned and said to them, 26 “(A)If anyone comes to Me, and does not [a]hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27 Whoever does not (B)carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 Lest, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and (C)consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends [b]a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 So then, none of you can be My disciple who (D)does not give up all his own possessions.
34 “Therefore, salt is good, but (E)if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? 35 It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. (F)He who has ears to hear, [c]let him hear.”
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