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Book of Common Prayer

Daily Old and New Testament readings based on the Book of Common Prayer.
Duration: 861 days
Expanded Bible (EXB)
Version
Psalm 69

A Cry for Help

For the director of music. To the tune of “Lilies.” A psalm of David.

69 God, ·save me [give me victory],
    because the water has risen to my neck [C the waters of chaos].
I’m sinking down into the ·mud [mire],
    and there is nothing to stand on.
I ·am in deep water [have come into the depths of the waters],
    and the flood ·covers [overwhelms] me.
I am ·tired [exhausted] from calling for help;
    my throat is ·sore [dry].
My eyes are ·tired [worn out] from ·waiting [hoping]
    for God to help me.
There are more people who hate me for no reason than hairs on my head;
    ·powerful [or many] enemies want to destroy me for no reason.
They make me ·pay back [return]
    what I did not steal.

God, you know ·what I have done wrong [my foolishness];
    I cannot hide my guilt from you.
Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts],
    do not let those who ·hope in [wait for] you be ashamed because of me.
God of Israel,
    do not let ·your worshipers [L those who seek you] be disgraced because of me.
For you, I carry this ·shame [reproach; scorn],
    and my face is covered with disgrace.
I am like a stranger to my closest relatives
    and a foreigner to my mother’s children.
My ·strong love [jealousy; passion; zeal] for your ·Temple [L house] ·completely controls [L consumes] me [John 2:17].
    ·When people insult you, it hurts me [L The reproaches/scorn of those who reproach/scorn you fall on me; Rom. 15:3].
10 When I ·cry [weep] and fast,
    they ·make fun of [reproach; scorn] me.
11 When I wear ·rough cloth [sackcloth; burlap; C a sign of grief],
    ·they joke about me [L I am a byword/proverb/joke to them].
12 ·They make fun of me in public places [L Those who sit in the gate complain about me],
    and the drunkards make up songs about me.

13 But I pray to you, Lord, ·for favor [or at an appropriate time].
God, because of your great ·love [loyalty], answer me.
    You are ·truly able [faithful] to ·save [give victory].
14 ·Pull [Protect] me from the ·mud [mire],
    and do not let me sink.
·Save [Protect] me from those who hate me
    and from the deep water.
15 Do not let the flood ·drown [overwhelm] me
    or the deep water swallow me
    or the ·grave [L pit] close its mouth over me.
16 Lord, answer me because your ·love [loyalty] is so good.
    Because of your ·great kindness [abundant compassion], turn to me.
17 Do not hide your face from me, your servant.
    I am in ·trouble [distress]. Hurry to ·help [L answer] me!
18 Come near and ·save [ransom] me;
    ·rescue [redeem] me from my enemies.

19 You ·see [know] my ·shame [reproach; scorn] and disgrace.
    ·You know all my enemies and what they have said [L The humiliation of all my foes is before you].
20 ·Insults [Reproach; Scorn] have broken my heart
    and ·left me weak [I am depressed].
I ·looked [hoped; waited] for ·sympathy [pity; consolation], but there was none;
    I found no one to comfort me.
21 They ·put [L gave me] poison in my food
    and gave me vinegar to drink for my thirst [Matt. 27:48; Mark 15:23, 36; Luke 23:36; John 19:29].

22 Let their ·own feasts cause their ruin [L table be a snare before them];
    ·let their feasts trap them and pay them back [or a trap for their friends].
23 Let their eyes be ·closed [L darkened] so they cannot see
    and their ·backs [L loins] ·be forever weak from troubles [L tremble all the time].
24 Pour your ·anger [wrath] out on them;
    let your anger ·catch up with [overtake] them.
25 May their ·place [camp] be ·empty [desolate];
    leave no one to live in their tents.
26 They ·chase after [persecute; pursue] those you have ·hurt [struck],
    and they talk about the pain of those you have wounded.
27 Charge them with ·crime after crime [L guilt on guilt],
    and do not ·let them have anything good [vindicate them].
28 ·Wipe [Blot] their names from the book of life [C kill them],
    and do not ·list them [write them down] with those who ·do what is right [are righteous].

29 I am ·sad [afflicted] and ·hurting [in pain].
God, ·save me [give me victory] and ·protect me [give me refuge].

30 I will praise ·God [L the name of God] in a song
    and will ·honor [magnify] him by giving thanks.
31 That will please the Lord more than ·offering him cattle [L an ox],
    more than sacrificing a bull with horns and hoofs.
32 Poor people will see this and be glad [C offering an ox or bull is expensive].
    ·Be encouraged, you who worship God [The hearts of those who seek God will be enlivened].
33 The Lord listens to those in need
    and does not ·look down on [despise] ·captives [prisoners].

34 Heaven and earth should praise him,
    the seas and ·everything in them [L all that swarms in them].
35 God will ·save Jerusalem [L give Zion victory; C the location of the Temple]
    and rebuild the cities of Judah.
Then people will live there and own the land.
36 The ·descendants [L seed] of his servants will inherit that land,
and those who love ·him [L his name] will live there.

Psalm 73

Book 3: Psalms 73–89

Should the Wicked Be Rich?

A psalm of Asaph [C a Levitical musician, a descendant of Gershon, at the time of David; 1 Chr. 6:39; 15:17; 2 Chr. 5:12].

73 ·God is truly [Surely God is] good to ·Israel [or those with integrity/virtue],
    to those who have pure hearts.
But ·I had almost stopped believing [L as for me, my feet almost stumbled];
    ·I had almost lost my faith [my steps almost slipped]
because I was ·jealous [envious] of ·proud people [braggers; boasters].
    I saw wicked people ·doing well [prospering].

They are not ·suffering [struggling; in pain];
    ·they [their bodies] are ·healthy [perfect] and strong.
They don’t have ·troubles [toils] like the rest of us;
    they ·don’t have problems [are not plagued] like other people [Gen. 3:17–19].
They wear pride like a necklace
    and ·put on violence as their clothing [L adorn themselves with garments of violence].
·They are looking for profits [L Their eyes bulge with fat]
    and ·do not control their selfish desires [cunning overflows from their hearts/minds].
They ·make fun of others [scoff] and speak ·evil [harm];
    ·proudly [from high] they speak of ·hurting [oppressing; exploiting] others.
They ·brag to the sky [L set their mouth against heaven].
    ·They say that they own [L Their tongue wanders] the earth.
10 So their people turn to them
    and ·give them whatever they want [L they drink up water in abundance].
11 They say, “How can God know?
    What does God Most High know?”
12 These people are wicked,
    always ·at ease [carefree], and getting richer.
13 ·So why have I kept my heart pure [L In vain, I kept my heart pure…]?
    ·Why have I kept my hands from doing wrong [L …and washed my hands in innocence; Matt. 27:24]?
14 I ·have suffered [am plagued] all day long;
    I have been ·punished [corrected] every morning.

15 God, if I had ·decided to talk like this [L said, “I will recount this,”],
    I would have ·let your people down [L betrayed the generation/race of your children].
16 I ·tried [thought how] to understand all this,
    but it was too ·hard [wearisome] ·for me to see [L in my eyes]
17 until I went to the ·Temple [sanctuary; Holy Place] of God.
    Then I understood ·what will happen to them [L their fate/end].
18 You have put them in ·danger [L slippery places];
    you cause them to ·be destroyed [L fall into disaster].
19 They are destroyed in a moment;
    they are swept away by terrors.
20 It will be like waking from a dream.
    Lord, when you ·rise up [awake; arouse yourself], ·they will disappear [L you despise their shadows].

21 When my heart was ·sad [bitter]
    and ·I was angry [L my innards felt stabbed],
22 I was senseless and stupid.
    I acted like an ·animal [brute beast] toward you.
23 But I am always with you [C in covenant relationship];
    you have held my ·hand [L right hand; C guiding him].
24 You guide me with your advice,
    and later you will receive me in ·honor [glory; C perhaps in the afterlife].
25 ·I have no one [L Whom do I have…?] in heaven but you;
    I ·want [desire] nothing on earth besides you.
26 My body and my ·mind [heart] may become weak,
    but God is ·my strength [L the rock of my heart].
He is ·mine [L my portion] forever.

27 Those who are far from ·God [L you] will ·die [perish];
    you ·destroy [bring to an end] those who ·are unfaithful [prostitute themselves spiritually].
28 But I am close to God, and that is good.
    The Lord God ·is [I have made] my ·protection [refuge].
I will ·tell [recount] all that you have done.

Isaiah 56:1-8

All Nations Will Obey the Lord

56 This is what the Lord says:

“·Give justice to all people [Promote justice],
    and ·do what is right [practice righteousness],
because my salvation ·will come to you soon [draws near].
    Soon ·everyone will know that I do what is right [my righteousness will be revealed].
The person who ·obeys the law about [keeps from defiling] the Sabbath
    will be blessed,
and the ·person [L son of man] who ·does no [keeps his hand from doing] evil
    will be blessed.”

Foreigners who have ·joined [committed to] the Lord should not say,
    “The Lord will ·not accept me with [L exclude/separate me from] his people [14:1].”
The eunuch should not say,
    “·Because I cannot have children, the Lord will not accept me [L Look, I am a dry tree].”
This is what the Lord says:
“This is for the eunuchs who ·obey the law about the Sabbath [keep my Sabbaths]
    and ·do what I want [choose what pleases me]
    and ·keep [hold firmly to] my ·agreement [covenant]:
I will ·make their names remembered [L set up a memorial/monument and a name]
    within my ·Temple [L house] and its walls.
    It will be better for them than ·children [L sons and daughters].
I will give them a name that will last forever,
    that will ·never be forgotten [L not be cut off].
As for the foreigners who ·join [commit themselves to] the Lord
    to ·worship [minister to] him and love ·him [L his name],
    to serve him,
to ·obey the law about [keep from defiling] the Sabbath,
    and to ·keep [hold firmly to] my ·agreement [covenant]:
I will bring these people to my holy mountain
    and give them joy in my house of prayer.
The offerings and sacrifices
    they place on my altar will ·please me [be accepted],
because my Temple will be called
    a house for prayer for people from all nations [Matt. 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46].”
The Lord God says—
    he who gathers the ·Israelites that were forced to leave their country [outcasts/exiles of Israel]:
“I will ·bring together [gather] other people
    to join those who are already gathered.”

Galatians 5:16-24

The Spirit and Human Nature

16 So I tell you: ·Live [Walk] ·by following [guided by; in the power of; L by] the Spirit. Then you will not do what your ·sinful self [sinful nature; T flesh] ·wants [desires; craves]. 17 Our ·sinful self [sinful nature; T flesh] ·wants [desires] what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit ·wants [desires] what is against our ·sinful self [sinful nature; T flesh]. [L For] The two are ·against [opposed to; or hostile toward] each other, so you cannot do just what you ·please [want]. 18 But if the Spirit is leading you, you are not under the law.

19 The ·wrong things the sinful self does [works of the flesh/sinful nature] are ·clear [evident; obvious]: ·being sexually unfaithful [sexual immorality], ·not being pure [impurity], ·taking part in sexual sins [depravity; promiscuity], 20 ·worshiping gods [idolatry], ·doing witchcraft [sorcery], ·hating [hostility; antagonism], ·making trouble [discord; strife], being jealous, ·being angry [rage], ·being selfish [rivalries], ·making people angry with each other [dissensions], ·causing divisions among people [factions], 21 feeling envy, being drunk, ·having wild and wasteful parties [carousings; orgies], and doing other things like these. I warn you now as I warned you before: Those who do these things will not inherit God’s kingdom. 22 But the ·Spirit produces the fruit of [L fruit of the Spirit is] love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, ·faithfulness [or faith], 23 gentleness, self-control. ·There is no law that says these things are wrong [or No law can oppose such things]. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified ·their own sinful selves [the sinful nature; the flesh]. They have given up ·their old selfish feelings and the evil things they wanted to do [L its passions and desires].

Mark 9:2-13

The Transfiguration on the Mountain(A)

Six days later, Jesus took Peter, James, and John [L and led them] up on a high mountain by themselves. ·While they watched [In their presence; In front of them], Jesus’ appearance was ·changed [transformed; T transfigured]. His clothes became shining white, whiter than any ·person [launderer on earth] could ·make them [bleach them]. Then Elijah and Moses appeared to them, talking with Jesus. [C God had given the Law through Moses, and Elijah was an important prophet (see 6:1); together they signify that Jesus fulfills the OT.]

Peter said to Jesus, “·Teacher [L Rabbi], it is good that we are here. Let us make three ·tents [shelters; shrines; tabernacles; Lev. 23:42]—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” [C Perhaps Peter wanted to prolong their stay or to commemorate their visit.] Peter did not know what to say, because he and the others were so frightened.

Then a cloud came and ·covered [overshadowed; Ex. 24:15] them, and a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my ·Son, whom I love [dearly loved Son; Ps. 2:7; Gen. 22:2; Mark 1:11]. Listen to him [Deut. 18:15; Acts 3:22]!”

Suddenly Peter, James, and John looked around, but they saw only Jesus there alone with them.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ·commanded [instructed] them not to tell anyone about what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

10 So they ·obeyed Jesus [kept this statement/matter to themselves], but they discussed what he meant about rising from the dead.

11 Then they asked Jesus, “Why do the ·teachers of the law [scribes] say that Elijah must come first [Mal. 3:1; 4:5]?”

12 Jesus answered, “·They are right to say that Elijah must come first and [L Elijah is indeed coming, and he will] ·make everything the way it should be [restore/prepare everything]. But why does the Scripture say that the Son of Man will suffer much and ·that people will treat him as if he were nothing [be despised; be treated with contempt; be rejected; Is. 52:13—53:12]? 13 [L But] I tell you that Elijah has already come. And ·people [L they] did to him whatever they wanted to do, just as ·the Scriptures said it would happen [it is written about him].”

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