Book of Common Prayer
Praise to God for His Awesome Works
To the Chief Musician. A Song. A Psalm.
66 Make (A)a joyful shout to God, all the earth!
2 Sing out the honor of His name;
Make His praise glorious.
3 Say to God,
“How (B)awesome are Your works!
(C)Through the greatness of Your power
Your enemies shall submit themselves to You.
4 (D)All the earth shall worship You
And sing praises to You;
They shall sing praises to Your name.” Selah
5 Come and see the works of God;
He is awesome in His doing toward the sons of men.
6 (E)He turned the sea into dry land;
(F)They went through the river on foot.
There we will rejoice in Him.
7 He rules by His power forever;
His eyes observe the nations;
Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah
8 Oh, bless our God, you peoples!
And make the voice of His praise to be heard,
9 Who keeps our soul among the living,
And does not allow our feet to [a]be moved.
10 For (G)You, O God, have tested us;
(H)You have refined us as silver is refined.
11 (I)You brought us into the net;
You laid affliction on our backs.
12 (J)You have caused men to ride over our heads;
(K)We went through fire and through water;
But You brought us out to [b]rich fulfillment.
13 (L)I will go into Your house with burnt offerings;
(M)I will pay You my [c]vows,
14 Which my lips have uttered
And my mouth has spoken when I was in trouble.
15 I will offer You burnt sacrifices of fat animals,
With the sweet aroma of rams;
I will offer bulls with goats. Selah
16 Come and hear, all you who fear God,
And I will declare what He has done for my soul.
17 I cried to Him with my mouth,
And He was [d]extolled with my tongue.
18 (N)If I regard iniquity in my heart,
The Lord will not hear.
19 But certainly God (O)has heard me;
He has attended to the voice of my prayer.
20 Blessed be God,
Who has not turned away my prayer,
Nor His mercy from me!
An Invocation and a Doxology
To the Chief Musician. On [e]stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.
67 God be merciful to us and bless us,
And (P)cause His face to shine upon us, Selah
2 That (Q)Your way may be known on earth,
(R)Your salvation among all nations.
3 Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.
4 Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy!
For (S)You shall judge the people righteously,
And govern the nations on earth. Selah
The Perfect Revelation of the Lord
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
19 The (A)heavens declare the glory of God;
And the (B)firmament[a] shows [b]His handiwork.
2 Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
4 (C)Their [c]line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a [d]tabernacle for the sun,
5 Which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
(D)And rejoices like a strong man to run its race.
6 Its rising is from one end of heaven,
And its circuit to the other end;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7 (E)The law of the Lord is perfect, [e]converting the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making (F)wise the simple;
8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than (G)gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the [f]honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned,
And in keeping them there is great reward.
God the Refuge of His People and Conqueror of the Nations
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A Song (A)for Alamoth.
46 God is our (B)refuge and strength,
(C)A[a] very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the [b]midst of the sea;
3 (D)Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah
4 There is a (E)river whose streams shall make glad the (F)city of God,
The holy place of the [c]tabernacle of the Most High.
5 God is (G)in the midst of her, she shall not be [d]moved;
God shall help her, just [e]at the break of dawn.
6 (H)The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved;
He uttered His voice, the earth melted.
7 The (I)Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord,
Who has made desolations in the earth.
9 (J)He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
(K)He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;
(L)He burns the chariot in the fire.
10 Be still, and know that I am God;
(M)I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
The Prophet Questions God’s Judgments
1 The [a]burden which the prophet Habakkuk saw.
The Prophet’s Question
2 O Lord, how long shall I cry,
(A)And You will not hear?
Even cry out to You, (B)“Violence!”
And You will (C)not save.
3 Why do You show me iniquity,
And cause me to see [b]trouble?
For plundering and violence are before me;
There is strife, and contention arises.
4 Therefore the law is powerless,
And justice never goes forth.
For the (D)wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore perverse judgment proceeds.
The Lord’s Reply
5 “Look(E) among the nations and watch—
Be utterly astounded!
For I will work a work in your days
Which you would not believe, though it were told you.
6 For indeed I am (F)raising up the Chaldeans,
A bitter and hasty (G)nation
Which marches through the breadth of the earth,
To possess dwelling places that are not theirs.
7 They are terrible and dreadful;
Their judgment and their dignity proceed from themselves.
8 Their horses also are (H)swifter than leopards,
And more fierce than evening wolves.
Their [c]chargers [d]charge ahead;
Their cavalry comes from afar;
They fly as the (I)eagle that hastens to eat.
9 “They all come for violence;
Their faces are set like the east wind.
They gather captives like sand.
10 They scoff at kings,
And princes are scorned by them.
They deride every stronghold,
For they heap up earthen mounds and seize it.
11 Then his [e]mind changes, and he transgresses;
He commits offense,
(J)Ascribing this power to his god.”
The Prophet’s Second Question
12 Are You not (K)from everlasting,
O Lord my God, my Holy One?
We shall not die.
O Lord, (L)You have appointed them for judgment;
O Rock, You have marked them for (M)correction.
13 You are of purer eyes than to behold evil,
And cannot look on wickedness.
Why do You look on those who deal treacherously,
And hold Your tongue when the wicked devours
A person more righteous than he?
14 Why do You make men like fish of the sea,
Like creeping things that have no ruler over them?
15 They take up all of them with a hook,
They catch them in their net,
And gather them in their dragnet.
Therefore they rejoice and are glad.
16 Therefore (N)they sacrifice to their net,
And burn incense to their dragnet;
Because by them their share is [f]sumptuous
And their food plentiful.
17 Shall they therefore empty their net,
And continue to slay nations without pity?
The Just Shall Live by Faith
2 I will (O)stand my watch
And set myself on the rampart,
And watch to see what He will say to me,
And what I will answer when I am corrected.
13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have [a]apprehended; but one thing I do, (A)forgetting those things which are behind and (B)reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 (C)I press toward the goal for the prize of (D)the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
15 Therefore let us, as many as are (E)mature, (F)have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, (G)God will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already [b]attained, (H)let us walk (I)by the same [c]rule, let us be of the same mind.
Our Citizenship in Heaven
17 Brethren, (J)join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as (K)you have us for a pattern. 18 For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are (L)the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 (M)whose end is destruction, (N)whose god is their belly, and (O)whose glory is in their shame—(P)who set their mind on earthly things. 20 For (Q)our citizenship is in heaven, (R)from which we also (S)eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 (T)who will transform our lowly body that it may be (U)conformed to His glorious body, (V)according to the working by which He is able even to (W)subdue all things to Himself.
Be Anxious for Nothing; Think These Thoughts
4 Therefore, my beloved and (X)longed-for brethren, (Y)my joy and crown, so (Z)stand fast in the Lord, beloved.
13 “But (A)woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. 14 [a]Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! (B)For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of [b]hell as yourselves.
16 “Woe to you, (C)blind guides, who say, (D)‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ 17 Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold (E)or the temple that [c]sanctifies the gold? 18 And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.’ 19 Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift (F)or the altar that sanctifies the gift? 20 Therefore he who [d]swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. 21 He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by (G)Him who [e]dwells in it. 22 And he who swears by heaven, swears by (H)the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! (I)For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and (J)have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. 24 Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.