Book of Common Prayer
The Hope of the Faithful, and the Messiah’s Victory
A (A)Michtam of David.
16 Preserve[a] me, O God, for in You I put my trust.
2 O my soul, you have said to the Lord,
“You are my Lord,
(B)My goodness is nothing apart from You.”
3 As for the saints who are on the earth,
“They are the excellent ones, in (C)whom is all my delight.”
4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god;
Their drink offerings of (D)blood I will not offer,
(E)Nor take up their names on my lips.
5 O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You [b]maintain my lot.
6 The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.
7 I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
My [c]heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
8 (F)I have set the Lord always before me;
Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will [d]rest in hope.
10 (G)For You will not leave my soul in [e]Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to [f]see corruption.
11 You will show me the (H)path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Prayer with Confidence in Final Salvation
A Prayer of David.
17 Hear a just cause, O Lord,
Attend to my cry;
Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.
2 Let my vindication come from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright.
3 You have tested my heart;
You have visited me in the night;
(I)You have [g]tried me and have found [h]nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth shall not (J)transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men,
By the word of Your lips,
I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.
5 (K)Uphold my steps in Your paths,
That my footsteps may not slip.
6 (L)I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
7 Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand,
O You who [i]save those who trust in You
From those who rise up against them.
8 Keep me as the [j]apple of Your eye;
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
9 From the wicked who oppress me,
From my deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They have closed up their (M)fat hearts;
With their mouths they (N)speak proudly.
11 They have now surrounded us in our steps;
They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth,
12 As a lion is eager to tear his prey,
And like a young lion lurking in secret places.
13 Arise, O Lord,
Confront him, cast him down;
Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword,
14 With Your hand from men, O Lord,
From men of the world who have their portion in this life,
And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure.
They are satisfied with children,
And leave the rest of their possession for their babes.
The Suffering, Praise, and Posterity of the Messiah
To the Chief Musician. Set to [a]“The Deer of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David.
22 My (A)God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning?
2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear;
And in the night season, and am not silent.
3 But You are holy,
Enthroned in the (B)praises of Israel.
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
They trusted, and You delivered them.
5 They cried to You, and were delivered;
(C)They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
6 But I am (D)a worm, and no man;
(E)A reproach of men, and despised by the people.
7 (F)All those who see Me ridicule Me;
They [b]shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8 “He(G) [c]trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him;
(H)Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
9 (I)But You are He who took Me out of the womb;
You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts.
10 I was cast upon You from birth.
From My mother’s womb
(J)You have been My God.
11 Be not far from Me,
For trouble is near;
For there is none to help.
12 (K)Many bulls have surrounded Me;
Strong bulls of (L)Bashan have encircled Me.
13 (M)They [d]gape at Me with their mouths,
Like a raging and roaring lion.
14 I am poured out like water,
(N)And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It has melted [e]within Me.
15 (O)My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And (P)My tongue clings to My jaws;
You have brought Me to the dust of death.
16 For dogs have surrounded Me;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
(Q)They[f] pierced My hands and My feet;
17 I can count all My bones.
(R)They look and stare at Me.
18 (S)They divide My garments among them,
And for My clothing they cast lots.
19 But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me;
O My Strength, hasten to help Me!
20 Deliver Me from the sword,
(T)My[g] precious life from the power of the dog.
21 (U)Save Me from the lion’s mouth
And from the horns of the wild oxen!
(V)You have answered Me.
22 (W)I will declare Your name to (X)My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23 (Y)You who fear the Lord, praise Him!
All you [h]descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
Nor has He hidden His face from Him;
But (Z)when He cried to Him, He heard.
25 (AA)My praise shall be of You in the great assembly;
(AB)I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise the Lord.
Let your heart live forever!
27 All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the [i]nations
Shall worship before [j]You.
28 (AC)For the kingdom is the Lord’s,
And He rules over the nations.
29 (AD)All the prosperous of the earth
Shall eat and worship;
(AE)All those who go down to [k]the dust
Shall bow before Him,
Even he who cannot keep himself alive.
30 A posterity shall serve Him.
It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,
31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born,
That He has done this.
8 For (A)Jerusalem stumbled,
And Judah is fallen,
Because their tongue and their doings
Are against the Lord,
To provoke the eyes of His glory.
9 The look on their countenance witnesses against them,
And they declare their sin as (B)Sodom;
They do not hide it.
Woe to their soul!
For they have brought evil upon themselves.
10 “Say to the righteous (C)that it shall be well with them,
(D)For they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11 Woe to the wicked! (E)It shall be ill with him,
For the reward of his hands shall be [a]given him.
12 As for My people, children are their oppressors,
And women rule over them.
O My people! (F)Those who lead you [b]cause you to err,
And destroy the way of your paths.”
Oppression and Luxury Condemned
13 The Lord stands up (G)to [c]plead,
And stands to judge the people.
14 The Lord will enter into judgment
With the elders of His people
And His princes:
“For you have [d]eaten up (H)the vineyard;
The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15 What do you mean by (I)crushing My people
And grinding the faces of the poor?”
Says the Lord God of hosts.
Plea for Purity
4 Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus (A)that you should abound more and more, (B)just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God; 2 for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
3 For this is (C)the will of God, (D)your sanctification: (E)that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4 (F)that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 (G)not in passion of lust, (H)like the Gentiles (I)who do not know God; 6 that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord (J)is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. 7 For God did not call us to uncleanness, (K)but in holiness. 8 (L)Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, (M)who[a] has also given us His Holy Spirit.
A Brotherly and Orderly Life
9 But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for (N)you yourselves are taught by God (O)to love one another; 10 and indeed you do so toward all the brethren who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brethren, (P)that you increase more and more; 11 that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, (Q)to mind your own business, and (R)to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, 12 (S)that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing.
Jesus: How Can David Call His Descendant Lord?(A)
41 And He said to them, (B)“How can they say that the Christ is the Son of David? 42 Now David himself said in the Book of Psalms:
(C)‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
43 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’
44 Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord’; (D)how is He then his Son?”
Beware of the Scribes(E)
45 (F)Then, in the hearing of all the people, He said to His disciples, 46 (G)“Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, (H)love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, 47 (I)who devour widows’ houses, and for a (J)pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”
The Widow’s Two Mites(K)
21 And He looked up (L)and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, 2 and He saw also a certain (M)poor widow putting in two (N)mites.[a] 3 So He said, “Truly I say to you (O)that this poor widow has put in more than all; 4 for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings [b]for God, but she out of her poverty put in (P)all the livelihood that she had.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.