Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 97
The Majestic King
1 The Lord reigns! Let the earth rejoice;
let the many coasts and islands be glad.(A)
2 Clouds and total darkness surround him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.(B)
3 Fire goes before him
and burns up his foes on every side.(C)
4 His lightning lights up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.(D)
5 The mountains melt like wax
at the presence of the Lord—
at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.(E)
7 All who serve carved images,
those who boast in worthless idols, will be put to shame.(H)
All the gods[a] must worship him.(I)
Psalm 99
The King Is Holy
1 The Lord reigns! Let the peoples tremble.
He is enthroned between the cherubim.(A)
Let the earth quake.(B)
2 The Lord is great in Zion;
he is exalted above all the peoples.(C)
3 Let them praise your great
and awe-inspiring name.(D)
He is holy.(E)
4 The mighty King loves justice.
You have established fairness;
you have administered justice
and righteousness in Jacob.(F)
5 Exalt the Lord our God;
bow in worship at his footstool.(G)
He is holy.(H)
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests;(I)
Samuel also was among those calling on his name.
They called to the Lord and he answered them.(J)
7 He spoke to them in a pillar of cloud;(K)
they kept his decrees and the statutes he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered them.
You were a forgiving God to them,(L)
but an avenger of their sinful actions.(M)
9 Exalt the Lord our God;
bow in worship at his holy mountain,
for the Lord our God is holy.(N)
Psalm 100
Be Thankful
A psalm of thanksgiving.
1 Let the whole earth shout triumphantly to the Lord!(O)
2 Serve the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.(P)
3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God.
He made us, and we are his[a](Q)—
his people, the sheep of his pasture.(R)
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving(S)
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and bless his name.(T)
5 For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever;
his faithfulness, through all generations.
Psalm 94
The Just Judge
1 Lord, God of vengeance—
God of vengeance, shine!(A)
2 Rise up, Judge of the earth;
repay the proud what they deserve.(B)
3 Lord, how long will the wicked—
how long will the wicked celebrate?(C)
4 They pour out arrogant words;
all the evildoers boast.(D)
5 Lord, they crush your people;
they oppress your heritage.(E)
6 They kill the widow and the resident alien
and murder the fatherless.(F)
7 They say, “The Lord doesn’t see it.
The God of Jacob doesn’t pay attention.”(G)
8 Pay attention, you stupid people!
Fools, when will you be wise?(H)
9 Can the one who shaped the ear not hear,
the one who formed the eye not see?(I)
10 The one who instructs nations,
the one who teaches mankind knowledge—
does he not discipline?(J)
11 The Lord knows the thoughts of mankind;
they are futile.(K)
12 Lord, how happy is anyone you discipline
and teach from your law(L)
13 to give him relief from troubled times
until a pit is dug for the wicked.(M)
14 The Lord will not leave his people
or abandon his heritage,(N)
15 for the administration of justice will again be righteous,
and all the upright in heart will follow[a] it.(O)
16 Who stands up for me against the wicked?
Who takes a stand for me against evildoers?(P)
17 If the Lord had not been my helper,
I would soon rest in the silence of death.(Q)
18 If I say, “My foot is slipping,”
your faithful love will support me, Lord.(R)
19 When I am filled with cares,
your comfort brings me joy.(S)
20 Can a corrupt throne be your ally,
a throne that makes evil laws?(T)
21 They band together against the life of the righteous
and condemn the innocent to death.(U)
22 But the Lord is my refuge;
my God is the rock of my protection.(V)
23 He will pay them back for their sins
and destroy them for their evil.
The Lord our God will destroy them.(W)
Psalm 95
Worship and Warning
1 Come, let’s shout joyfully to the Lord,
shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation!(X)
2 Let’s enter his presence with thanksgiving;
let’s shout triumphantly to him in song.(Y)
3 For the Lord is a great God,
a great King above all gods.(Z)
4 The depths of the earth are in his hand,
and the mountain peaks are his.(AA)
5 The sea is his; he made it.
His hands formed the dry land.(AB)
6 Come, let’s worship and bow down;
let’s kneel before the Lord our Maker.(AC)
7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
the sheep under his care.[b](AD)
Today, if you hear his voice:(AE)
8 Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the wilderness(AF)
9 where your ancestors tested me;
they tried me, though they had seen what I did.(AG)
10 For forty years I was disgusted with that generation;
I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray;
they do not know my ways.”(AH)
11 So I swore in my anger,
“They will not enter my rest.”(AI)
Habakkuk’s Third Prayer
3 A prayer of the prophet Habakkuk. According to Shigionoth.[a](A)
2 Lord, I have heard the report about you;
Lord, I stand in awe of your deeds.(B)
Revive your work in these years;
make it known in these years.
In your wrath remember mercy!(C)
3 God comes from Teman,
the Holy One from Mount Paran.(D)Selah
His splendor covers the heavens,
and the earth is full of his praise.(E)
4 His brilliance is like light;
rays are flashing from his hand.
This is where his power is hidden.
5 Plague goes before him,
and pestilence follows in his steps.
6 He stands and shakes[b] the earth;(F)
he looks and startles the nations.
The age-old mountains break apart;
the ancient hills sink down.(G)
His pathways are ancient.(H)
7 I see the tents of Cushan[c] in distress;
the tent curtains of the land of Midian tremble.
8 Are you angry at the rivers, Lord?
Is your wrath against the rivers?
Or is your fury against the sea
when you ride on your horses,
your victorious chariot?(I)
9 You took the sheath from your bow;
the arrows are ready[d] to be used with an oath.[e](J)Selah
You split the earth with rivers.
10 The mountains see you and shudder;(K)
a downpour of water sweeps by.
The deep roars with its voice(L)
and lifts its waves[f] high.
11 Sun and moon stand still in their lofty residence,(M)
at the flash of your flying arrows,
at the brightness of your shining spear.
12 You march across the earth with indignation;
you trample down the nations in wrath.(N)
13 You come out to save your people,(O)
to save your anointed.[g]
You crush the leader of the house of the wicked
and strip him from foot[h] to neck.Selah
14 You pierce his head
with his own spears;
his warriors storm out to scatter us,
gloating as if ready to secretly devour the weak.
15 You tread the sea with your horses,
stirring up the vast water.(P)
Habakkuk’s Confidence in God Expressed
16 I heard, and I trembled within;(Q)
my lips quivered at the sound.
Rottenness entered my bones;
I trembled where I stood.
Now I must quietly wait for the day of distress(R)
to come against the people invading us.
17 Though the fig tree does not bud
and there is no fruit on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though the flocks disappear from the pen
and there are no herds in the stalls,
18 yet I will celebrate in the Lord;
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!(S)
Controlling the Tongue
3 Not many should become teachers, my brothers,[a] because you know that we will receive a stricter judgment.(A) 2 For we all stumble in many ways.(B) If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is mature, able also to control the whole body.(C) 3 Now if we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us,(D) we direct their whole bodies. 4 And consider ships: Though very large and driven by fierce winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So too, though the tongue is a small part of the body, it boasts great things.(E) Consider how a small fire sets ablaze a large forest. 6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed[b] among our members. It stains the whole body,(F) sets the course of life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 Every kind of animal, bird, reptile, and fish is tamed and has been tamed by humankind, 8 but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.(G) 9 With the tongue we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in God’s likeness.(H) 10 Blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way. 11 Does a spring pour out sweet and bitter water from the same opening? 12 Can a fig tree produce olives, my brothers and sisters, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a saltwater spring yield fresh water.
Warnings from Jesus
17 He(A) said to his disciples, “Offenses will certainly come,[a] but woe(B) to the one through whom they come!(C) 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to stumble.(D) 3 Be(E) on your guard. If your brother sins,[b] rebuke(F) him, and if he repents, forgive(G) him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and comes back to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”
Faith and Duty
5 The(H) apostles(I) said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”(J)
6 “If you have faith the size of[c] a mustard seed,”(K) the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
7 “Which one of you having a servant tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready, and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’?(L) 9 Does he thank that servant because he did what was commanded?[d] 10 In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are unworthy (M) servants; we’ve only done our duty.’”
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