Book of Common Prayer
A psalm of David.
26 Lord, when you hand down your sentence, let it be in my favor.
I have lived without blame.
I have trusted in the Lord.
I have never doubted him.
2 Lord, test me. Try me out.
Look deep down into my heart and mind.
3 I have always remembered your love that never fails.
I have always depended on the fact that you are faithful.
4 I don’t spend time with people who tell lies.
I don’t keep company with pretenders.
5 I hate to be with a group of sinful people.
I refuse to spend time with those who are evil.
6 I wash my hands to show that I’m not guilty.
Lord, I come near your altar.
7 I shout my praise to you.
I tell about all the wonderful things you have done.
8 Lord, I love the house where you live.
I love the place where your glory is.
9 Don’t destroy me together with sinners.
Don’t take away my life along with murderers.
10 Their hands are always planning to do evil.
Their right hands are full of money that has bought their help.
11 But I live without blame.
Save me from harm and treat me with kindness.
12 My feet stand on level ground.
In the whole community I will praise the Lord.
A psalm of David.
28 Lord, my Rock, I call out to you.
Pay attention to me.
If you remain silent, I will die.
I will be like those who go down into the grave.
2 Hear my cry for your favor
when I call out to you for help.
Hear me when I lift up my hands in prayer
toward your Most Holy Room.
3 Don’t drag me away with sinners.
Don’t drag me away with those who do evil.
They speak in a friendly way to their neighbors.
But their hearts are full of hate.
4 Pay them back for their evil actions.
Pay them back for what their hands have done.
Give them exactly what they should get.
5 They don’t care about the Lord’s mighty acts.
They don’t care about what his hands have done.
So he will tear them down.
He will never build them up again.
6 Give praise to the Lord.
He has heard my cry for his favor.
7 The Lord gives me strength. He is like a shield that keeps me safe.
My heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart jumps for joy.
With my song I praise him.
8 The Lord gives strength to his people.
He guards and saves his anointed king.
9 Save your people. Bless those who belong to you.
Be their shepherd. Take care of them forever.
For the director of music. A psalm of David, the servant of the Lord.
36 I have a message from God in my heart.
It is about the evil ways of anyone who sins.
They don’t have any respect for God.
2 They praise themselves so much
that they can’t see their sin or hate it.
3 Their mouths speak words that are evil and false.
They do not act wisely or do what is good.
4 Even as they lie in bed they make evil plans.
They commit themselves to a sinful way of life.
They never say no to what is wrong.
5 Lord, your love is as high as the heavens.
Your faithful love reaches up to the skies.
6 Your holiness is as great as the height of the highest mountains.
You are as honest as the oceans are deep.
Lord, you keep people and animals safe.
7 How priceless your faithful love is!
People find safety in the shadow of your wings.
8 They eat well because there is more than enough in your house.
You let them drink from your river that flows with good things.
9 You have the fountain of life.
We are filled with light because you give us light.
10 Keep on loving those who know you.
Keep on doing right to those whose hearts are honest.
11 Don’t let the feet of those who are proud step on me.
Don’t let the hands of those who are evil drive me away.
12 See how those who do evil have fallen!
They are thrown down and can’t get up.
For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will be careful about how I live.
I will not sin by what I say.
I will keep my mouth closed
when I am near sinful people.”
2 So I was completely silent.
I didn’t even say anything good.
But the pain inside me grew worse.
3 My heart was deeply troubled.
As I thought about what was happening to me,
I became even more troubled.
Then I spoke out.
4 I said, “Lord, show me when my life will end.
Show me how many days I have left.
Tell me how short my life will be.
5 You have given me only a few days to live.
My whole life doesn’t seem like anything to you.
No one lasts any longer than a breath.
This is true even for those who feel secure.
6 People are only shadows as they go here and there.
They rush around, but it doesn’t mean anything.
They pile up wealth, but they don’t know who will finally get it.
7 “Lord, what can I look forward to now?
You are the only hope I have.
8 Save me from all the wrong things I’ve done.
Don’t let foolish people make fun of me.
9 I keep silent. I don’t open my mouth.
You are the one who has caused all this to happen.
10 Please stop beating me.
I’m about to die from the blows of your hand.
11 You correct and punish people for their sin.
Then, just as a moth eats cloth, you destroy their wealth.
No one lasts any longer than a breath.
12 “Lord, hear my prayer.
Listen to my cry for help.
Pay attention to my weeping.
I’m like an outsider in your home.
I’m just a stranger, like all my family who lived before me.
13 Leave me alone.
Let me enjoy life again before I die.”
9 Those who make statues of gods don’t amount to anything.
And the statues they think so much of are worthless.
Those who would speak up for them are blind.
They don’t know anything.
So they will be put to shame.
10 People make statues of gods.
But those gods can’t do any good.
11 People who do that will be put to shame.
Those who make statues of gods are mere human beings.
Let all of them come together and state their case.
They will be terrified and put to shame.
12 A blacksmith gets his tool.
He uses it to shape metal over the burning coals.
He uses his hammers to make a statue of a god.
He forms it with his powerful arm.
He gets hungry and loses his strength.
He doesn’t drink any water.
He gets weaker and weaker.
13 A carpenter measures a piece of wood with a line.
He draws a pattern on it with a marker.
He cuts out a statue with sharp tools.
He marks it with compasses.
He shapes it into the form of a beautiful human being.
He does this so he can put it in a temple.
14 He cuts down a cedar tree.
Or perhaps he takes a cypress or an oak tree.
It might be a tree that grew in the forest.
Or it might be a pine tree he planted.
And the rain made it grow.
15 A man gets wood from trees to burn.
He uses some of it to warm himself.
He starts a fire and bakes bread.
But he also uses some of it to make a god and worship it.
He makes a statue of a god and bows down to it.
16 He burns half of the wood in the fire.
He prepares a meal over it.
He cooks meat over it.
He eats until he is full.
He also warms himself. He says,
“Good! I’m getting warm.
The fire is nice and hot.”
17 From the rest of the wood he makes a statue.
It becomes his god.
He bows down and worships it.
He prays to it. He says,
“Save me! You are my god!”
18 People like that don’t even know what they are doing.
Their eyes are shut so that they can’t see the truth.
Their minds are closed so that they can’t understand it.
19 No one even stops to think about this.
No one has any sense or understanding.
If anyone did, they would say,
“I used half of the wood for fuel.
I even baked bread over the fire.
I cooked meat. Then I ate it.
Should I now make a statue of a god
out of the wood that’s left over?
Should I bow down to a block of wood?
The Lord would hate that.”
20 That’s as foolish as eating ashes!
The mind of someone like that
has led him astray.
He can’t save himself.
He can’t bring himself to say,
“This thing I’m holding in my right hand
isn’t really a god at all.”
Teachings for Living as Christians
17 Here is what I’m telling you. I am speaking for the Lord as I warn you. You must no longer live as the Gentiles do. Their thoughts don’t have any purpose. 18 They can’t understand the truth. They are separated from the life of God. That’s because they don’t know him. And they don’t know him because their hearts are stubborn. 19 They have lost all feeling for what is right. So they have given themselves over to all kinds of evil pleasures. They take part in every kind of unclean act. And they are full of greed.
20 But that is not the way of life in Christ that you learned about. 21 You heard about Christ and were taught about life in him. What you learned was the truth about Jesus. 22 You were taught not to live the way you used to. You must get rid of your old way of life. That’s because it has been made impure by the desire for things that lead you astray. 23 You were taught to be made new in your thinking. 24 You were taught to start living a new life. It is created to be truly good and holy, just as God is.
25 So each of you must get rid of your lying. Speak the truth to your neighbor. We are all parts of one body. 26 Scripture says, “When you are angry, do not sin.” (Psalm 4:4) Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry. 27 Don’t give the devil a chance. 28 Anyone who has been stealing must never steal again. Instead, they must work. They must do something useful with their own hands. Then they will have something to give to people in need.
29 Don’t let any evil talk come out of your mouths. Say only what will help to build others up and meet their needs. Then what you say will help those who listen. 30 Do not make God’s Holy Spirit mourn. The Holy Spirit is the proof that you belong to God. And the Spirit is the proof that God will set you completely free. 31 Get rid of all hard feelings, anger and rage. Stop all fighting and lying. Don’t have anything to do with any kind of hatred. 32 Be kind and tender to one another. Forgive one another, just as God forgave you because of what Christ has done.
19 Judas Iscariot was one of them too. He was the one who was later going to hand Jesus over to his enemies.
Jesus Is Accused by Teachers of the Law
20 Jesus entered a house. Again a crowd gathered. It was so large that Jesus and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 His family heard about this. So they went to take charge of him. They said, “He is out of his mind.”
22 Some teachers of the law were there. They had come down from Jerusalem. They said, “He is controlled by Beelzebul! He is driving out demons by the power of the prince of demons.”
23 So Jesus called them over to him. He began to speak to them using stories. He said, “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom fights against itself, it can’t stand. 25 If a family is divided, it can’t stand. 26 And if Satan fights against himself, and his helpers are divided, he can’t stand. That is the end of him. 27 In fact, none of you can enter a strong man’s house unless you tie him up first. Then you can steal things from his house. 28 What I’m about to tell you is true. Everyone’s sins and evil words against God will be forgiven. 29 But whoever speaks evil things against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. Their guilt will last forever.”
30 Jesus said this because the teachers of the law were saying, “He has an evil spirit.”
Jesus’ Mother and Brothers
31 Jesus’ mother and brothers came and stood outside. They sent someone in to get him. 32 A crowd was sitting around Jesus. They told him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside. They are looking for you.”
33 “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” he asked.
34 Then Jesus looked at the people sitting in a circle around him. He said, “Here is my mother! Here are my brothers! 35 Anyone who does what God wants is my brother or sister or mother.”
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