Book of Common Prayer

² I will behave wisely in a ^[a]perfect way.
Oh, when will You come to me?
I will ^(A)walk within my house with a perfect heart.

³ I will set nothing ^[b]wicked before my eyes;
^(B)I hate the work of those ^(C)who fall away;
It shall not cling to me.
⁴ A perverse heart shall depart from me;
I will not ^(D)know wickedness.

⁵ Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor,
Him I will destroy;
^(E)The one who has a haughty look and a proud heart,
Him I will not endure.

⁶ My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land,
That they may dwell with me;
He who walks in a ^[c]perfect way,
He shall serve me.
⁷ He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house;
He who tells lies shall not ^[d]continue in my presence.
^8 (F)Early I will destroy all the wicked of the land,
That I may cut off all the evildoers ^(G)from the city of the Lord.

⁶ Set a wicked man over him,
And let ^(E)an ^[a]accuser stand at his right hand.
⁷ When he is judged, let him be found guilty,
And ^(F)let his prayer become sin.
⁸ Let his days be ^(G)few,
And ^(H)let another take his office.
^9 (I)Let his children be fatherless,
And his wife a widow.
¹⁰ Let his children ^[b]continually be vagabonds, and beg;
Let them ^[c]seek their bread also from their desolate places.
^11 (J)Let the creditor seize all that he has,
And let strangers plunder his labor.
¹² Let there be none to extend mercy to him,
Nor let there be any to favor his fatherless children.
^13 (K)Let his ^[d]posterity be cut off,
And in the generation following let their ^(L)name be blotted out.

^14 (M)Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
And let not the sin of his mother ^(N)be blotted out.
¹⁵ Let them be continually before the Lord,
That He may ^(O)cut off the memory of them from the earth;
¹⁶ Because he did not remember to show mercy,
But persecuted the poor and needy man,
That he might even slay the ^(P)broken in heart.
^17 (Q)As he loved cursing, so let it come to him;
As he did not delight in blessing, so let it be far from him.
¹⁸ As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment,
So let it ^(R)enter his body like water,
And like oil into his bones.
¹⁹ Let it be to him like the garment which covers him,
And for a belt with which he girds himself continually.
²⁰ Let this be the Lord’s reward to my accusers,
And to those who speak evil against my person.

²¹ But You, O God the Lord,
Deal with me for Your name’s sake;
Because Your mercy is good, deliver me.
²² For I am poor and needy,
And my heart is wounded within me.
²³ I am gone ^(S)like a shadow when it lengthens;
I am shaken off like a locust.
²⁴ My ^(T)knees are weak through fasting,
And my flesh is feeble from lack of fatness.
²⁵ I also have become ^(U)a reproach to them;
When they look at me, ^(V)they shake their heads.

²⁶ Help me, O Lord my God!
Oh, save me according to Your mercy,
^27 (W)That they may know that this is Your hand—
That You, Lord, have done it!
^28 (X)Let them curse, but You bless;
When they arise, let them be ashamed,
But let ^(Y)Your servant rejoice.
^29 (Z)Let my accusers be clothed with shame,
And let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle.

³⁰ I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth;
Yes, ^(AA)I will praise Him among the multitude.

⁷ “You offer ^(D)defiled food on My altar,
But say,
‘In what way have we defiled You?’
By saying,
^(E)‘The table of the Lord is ^[a]contemptible.’
⁸ And ^(F)when you offer the blind as a sacrifice,
Is it not evil?
And when you offer the lame and sick,
Is it not evil?
Offer it then to your governor!
Would he be pleased with you?
Would he ^(G)accept^[b] you favorably?”
Says the Lord of hosts.

⁹ “But now entreat God’s favor,
That He may be gracious to us.
^(H)While this is being done by your hands,
Will He accept you favorably?”
Says the Lord of hosts.
¹⁰ “Who is there even among you who would shut the doors,
^(I)So that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain?
I have no pleasure in you,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
^(J)“Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.
¹¹ For ^(K)from the rising of the sun, even to its going down,
My name shall be great ^(L)among the Gentiles;
^(M)In every place ^(N)incense shall be offered to My name,
And a pure offering;
^(O)For My name shall be great among the nations,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

¹² “But you profane it,
In that you say,
^(P)‘The table of the ^[c]Lord is defiled;
And its fruit, its food, is contemptible.’
¹³ You also say,
‘Oh, what a ^(Q)weariness!’
And you sneer at it,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
“And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick;
Thus you bring an offering!
^(R)Should I accept this from your hand?”
Says the Lord.
¹⁴ “But cursed be ^(S)the deceiver
Who has in his flock a male,
And takes a vow,
But sacrifices to the Lord ^(T)what is blemished—
For ^(U)I am a great King,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“And My name is to be feared among the nations.

^(P)“God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.”