Book of Common Prayer
33 He turned[a] streams into a desert,
springs of water into arid land,
34 and a fruitful land into a barren place,[b]
because of the sin of its inhabitants.
35 As for his people,[c] he turned[d] a desert into a pool of water,
and a dry land into springs of water.
36 He allowed the hungry to settle there,
and they established a city in which to live.
37 They cultivated[e] fields,
and planted vineyards,
which yielded a harvest of fruit.[f]
38 He blessed[g] them so that they became very numerous.
He would not allow their cattle to decrease in number.[h]
39 As for their enemies,[i] they decreased in number and were beaten down,
because of painful distress[j] and suffering.
40 He would pour[k] contempt upon princes,
and he made them wander in a wasteland with no road.
41 Yet he protected[l] the needy from oppression,
and cared for his families like a flock of sheep.
42 When the godly see this, they rejoice,
and every sinner[m] shuts his mouth.
43 Whoever is wise, let him take note of these things.
Let them consider the Lord’s acts of loyal love.
Psalm 108[n]
A song, a psalm of David.
108 I am determined,[o] O God.
I will sing and praise you with my whole heart.[p]
2 Awake, O stringed instrument and harp.
I will wake up at dawn.[q]
3 I will give you thanks before the nations, O Lord.
I will sing praises to you before foreigners.[r]
4 For your loyal love extends beyond the sky,[s]
and your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
5 Rise up[t] above the sky, O God.
May your splendor cover the whole earth.[u]
6 Deliver by your power[v] and answer me,
so that the ones you love may be safe.[w]
7 God has spoken in his sanctuary:[x]
“I will triumph! I will parcel out Shechem;
the Valley of Sukkoth I will measure off.[y]
8 Gilead belongs to me,
as does Manasseh.[z]
Ephraim is my helmet,[aa]
Judah my royal scepter.[ab]
9 Moab is my washbasin.[ac]
I will make Edom serve me.[ad]
I will shout in triumph over Philistia.”
10 Who will lead me into the fortified city?
Who will bring me to Edom?[ae]
11 Have you not rejected us, O God?
O God, you do not go into battle with our armies.
12 Give us help against the enemy,
for any help men might offer is futile.[af]
13 By God’s power we will conquer;[ag]
he will trample down[ah] our enemies.
Psalm 33[a]
33 You godly ones, shout for joy because of the Lord!
It is appropriate for the morally upright to offer him praise.
2 Give thanks to the Lord with the harp.
Sing to him to the accompaniment of a ten-stringed instrument.
3 Sing to him a new song.[b]
Play skillfully as you shout out your praises to him.[c]
4 For the Lord’s decrees[d] are just,[e]
and everything he does is fair.[f]
5 He promotes[g] equity and justice;
the Lord’s faithfulness extends throughout the earth.[h]
6 By the Lord’s decree[i] the heavens were made,
and by the breath[j] of his mouth all the starry hosts.
7 He piles up the water of the sea;[k]
he puts the oceans[l] in storehouses.
8 Let the whole earth fear[m] the Lord.
Let all who live in the world stand in awe of him.
9 For he spoke, and it[n] came into existence.
He issued the decree,[o] and it stood firm.
10 The Lord frustrates[p] the decisions of the nations;
he nullifies the plans[q] of the peoples.
11 The Lord’s decisions stand forever;
his plans abide throughout the ages.[r]
12 How blessed[s] is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people whom he has chosen to be his special possession.[t]
13 The Lord watches[u] from heaven;
he sees all people.[v]
14 From the place where he lives he looks carefully
at all the earth’s inhabitants.
15 He is the one who forms every human heart,[w]
and takes note of all their actions.
16 No king is delivered by his vast army;
a warrior is not saved by his great might.
17 A horse disappoints those who trust in it for victory;[x]
despite its great strength, it cannot deliver.
18 Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers,[y]
those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness[z]
19 by saving their lives from death[aa]
and sustaining them during times of famine.[ab]
20 We[ac] wait for the Lord;
he is our deliverer[ad] and shield.[ae]
21 For our hearts rejoice in him,
for we trust in his holy name.
22 May we experience your faithfulness, O Lord,[af]
for[ag] we wait for you.
66 This is what the Lord says:
“The heavens are my throne
and the earth is my footstool.
Where then is the house you will build for me?
Where is the place where I will rest?
2 My hand made them;[a]
that is how they came to be,”[b] says the Lord.
“I show special favor[c] to the humble and contrite,
who respect what I have to say.[d]
3 The one who slaughters a bull also strikes down a man;[e]
the one who sacrifices a lamb also breaks a dog’s neck;[f]
the one who presents an offering includes pig’s blood with it;[g]
the one who offers incense also praises an idol.[h]
They have decided to behave this way;[i]
they enjoy these disgusting practices.[j]
4 So I will choose severe punishment[k] for them;
I will bring on them what they dread,
because I called, and no one responded.
I spoke and they did not listen.
They did evil before me;[l]
they chose to do what displeases me.”
5 Listen to the Lord’s message,
you who respect[m] his word!
“Your countrymen,[n] who hate you
and exclude you, supposedly for the sake of my name,
say, ‘May the Lord be glorified,
then we will witness your joy.’[o]
But they will be put to shame.
6 The sound of battle comes from the city;
the sound comes from the temple!
It is the sound of the Lord paying back his enemies.
6 Now godliness combined with contentment brings great profit. 7 For we have brought nothing into this world and so[a] we cannot take a single thing out either. 8 But if we have food and shelter, we will be satisfied with that.[b] 9 Those who long to be rich, however, stumble into temptation and a trap and many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is the root[c] of all evils.[d] Some people in reaching for it have strayed from the faith and stabbed themselves with many pains.
11 But you, as a person dedicated to God,[e] keep away from all that.[f] Instead pursue righteousness, godliness, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12 Compete well[g] for the faith and lay hold of that eternal life you were called for and made your good confession[h] for[i] in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I charge you[j] before God who gives life to all things and Christ Jesus who made his good confession[k] before Pontius Pilate, 14 to obey[l] this command[m] without fault or failure until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ 15 —whose appearing[n] the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, will reveal at the right time. 16 He alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no human has ever seen or is able to see. To him be honor and eternal power! Amen.
17 Command those who are rich in this world’s goods[o] not to be haughty or to set their hope on riches, which are uncertain,[p] but on God who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment. 18 Tell them to do good,[q] to be rich in good deeds, to be generous givers, sharing with others.[r] 19 In this way they will save up[s] a treasure for themselves as a firm foundation[t] for the future and so lay hold of[u] what is truly life.
Conclusion
20 O Timothy, protect what has been entrusted to you. Avoid[v] the profane chatter and absurdities[w] of so-called “knowledge.”[x] 21 By professing it, some have strayed from the faith.[y] Grace be with you all.[z]
The Messiah: David’s Son and Lord
35 While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he said, “How is it that the experts in the law[a] say that the Christ[b] is David’s son?[c] 36 David himself, by the Holy Spirit, said,
37 If David himself calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”[f] And the large crowd was listening to him with delight.
Warnings About Experts in the Law
38 In his teaching Jesus[g] also said, “Watch out for the experts in the law.[h] They like walking[i] around in long robes and elaborate greetings[j] in the marketplaces,[k] 39 and the best seats in the synagogues[l] and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They[m] devour widows’ property,[n] and as a show make long prayers. These men will receive a more severe punishment.”
The Widow’s Offering
41 Then[o] he[p] sat down opposite the offering box,[q] and watched the crowd putting coins into it. Many rich people were throwing in large amounts. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins,[r] worth less than a penny. 43 He called his disciples and said to them, “I tell you the truth,[s] this poor widow has put more into the offering box[t] than all the others.[u] 44 For they all gave out of their wealth.[v] But she, out of her poverty, put in what she had to live on, everything she had.”[w]
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