Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 95
Worship and Warning
1 Come, let’s shout joyfully to the Lord,
shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation!(A)
2 Let’s enter his presence with thanksgiving;
let’s shout triumphantly to him in song.(B)
3 For the Lord is a great God,
a great King above all gods.(C)
4 The depths of the earth are in his hand,
and the mountain peaks are his.(D)
5 The sea is his; he made it.
His hands formed the dry land.(E)
6 Come, let’s worship and bow down;
let’s kneel before the Lord our Maker.(F)
7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
the sheep under his care.[a](G)
Today, if you hear his voice:(H)
8 Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the wilderness(I)
9 where your ancestors tested me;
they tried me, though they had seen what I did.(J)
10 For forty years I was disgusted with that generation;
I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray;
they do not know my ways.”(K)
11 So I swore in my anger,
“They will not enter my rest.”(L)
Psalm 40
Thanksgiving and a Cry for Help
For the choir director. A psalm of David.
1 I waited patiently for the Lord,
and he turned to me and heard my cry for help.(A)
2 He brought me up from a desolate[a] pit,
out of the muddy clay,(B)
and set my feet on a rock,
making my steps secure.(C)
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.(D)
Many will see and fear,
and they will trust in the Lord.(E)
4 How happy is anyone
who has put his trust in the Lord
and has not turned to the proud
or to those who run after lies!(F)
5 Lord my God, you have done many things—
your wondrous works and your plans for us;
none can compare with you.
If I were to report and speak of them,
they are more than can be told.(G)
6 You do not delight in sacrifice and offering;
you open my ears to listen.[b]
You do not ask for a whole burnt offering or a sin offering.(H)
7 Then I said, “See, I have come;
in the scroll it is written about me.(I)
8 I delight to do your will, my God,(J)
and your instruction is deep within me.”(K)
9 I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
see, I do not keep my mouth closed[c]—
as you know, Lord.(L)
10 I did not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I spoke about your faithfulness and salvation;
I did not conceal your constant love and truth
from the great assembly.(M)
11 Lord, you do not[d] withhold your compassion from me.
Your constant love and truth will always guard me.(N)
12 For troubles without number have surrounded me;
my iniquities have overtaken me; I am unable to see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my courage leaves me.(O)
13 Lord, be pleased to rescue me;
hurry to help me, Lord.(P)
Psalm 54
Prayer for Deliverance
For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. When the Ziphites went and said to Saul, “Is David not hiding among us?” (A)
1 God, save me by your name,
and vindicate me by your might!(B)
2 God, hear my prayer;
listen to the words from my mouth.(C)
3 For strangers rise up against me,
and violent men intend to kill me.
They do not let God guide them.[a](D)Selah
Psalm 51
A Prayer for Restoration
For the choir director. A psalm of David, when the prophet Nathan came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba.(A)
1 Be gracious to me, God,
according to your faithful love;
according to your abundant compassion,
blot out my rebellion.(B)
2 Completely wash away my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.(C)
3 For I am conscious of my rebellion,
and my sin is always before me.(D)
4 Against you—you alone—I have sinned
and done this evil in your sight.(E)
So you are right when you pass sentence;
you are blameless when you judge.(F)
5 Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;
I was sinful when my mother conceived me.(G)
6 Surely you desire integrity in the inner self,
and you teach me wisdom deep within.(H)
7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.(I)
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.(J)
9 Turn your face away[a] from my sins
and blot out all my guilt.(K)
10 God, create a clean heart for me
and renew a steadfast[b] spirit within me.(L)
11 Do not banish me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.(M)
12 Restore the joy of your salvation to me,
and sustain me by giving me a willing spirit.(N)
13 Then I will teach the rebellious your ways,
and sinners will return to you.(O)
14 Save me from the guilt of bloodshed, God(P)—
God of my salvation—
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.(Q)
15 Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.(R)
16 You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
you are not pleased with a burnt offering.(S)
17 The sacrifice pleasing to God is[c] a broken spirit.
You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God.(T)
What God Requires
12 “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear(A) the Lord your God by walking in all his ways, to love him, and to worship the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul?(B) 13 Keep the Lord’s commands and statutes I am giving you today, for your own good.(C) 14 The heavens, indeed the highest heavens, belong to the Lord your God, as does the earth and everything in it.(D) 15 Yet the Lord had his heart set on your ancestors and loved them.(E) He chose their descendants after them—he chose you out of all the peoples, as it is today.(F) 16 Therefore, circumcise your hearts(G) and don’t be stiff-necked any longer. 17 For the Lord your God is the God of gods(H) and Lord of lords,(I) the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God, showing no partiality and taking no bribe.(J) 18 He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the resident alien, giving him food and clothing.(K) 19 You are also to love the resident alien, since you were resident aliens in the land of Egypt.(L) 20 You are to fear the Lord your God and worship him. Remain faithful[a] to him and take oaths in his name.(M) 21 He is your praise and he is your God, who has done for you these great and awe-inspiring works your eyes have seen. 22 Your ancestors went down to Egypt, seventy people in all,(N) and now the Lord your God has made you numerous, like the stars of the sky.(O)
11 Let us, then, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience.
12 For the word of God is living and effective(A) and sharper than any double-edged sword,(B) penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.(C) 13 No creature is hidden from him, but all things are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom(D) we must give an account.
Our Great High Priest
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens—Jesus the Son of God—let us hold fast to our confession.(E) 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are,(F) yet without sin.(G) 16 Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.
Jesus and John the Baptist
22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went to the Judean countryside, where he spent time with them and baptized.
23 John(A) also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. People were coming and being baptized, 24 since John had not yet been thrown into prison.(B)
25 Then a dispute arose between John’s disciples(C) and a Jew[a] about purification.(D) 26 So they came to John and told him, “Rabbi,(E) the one you testified about, and who was with you across the Jordan,(F) is baptizing—and everyone is going to him.”(G)
27 John responded, “No one can receive anything unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah,(H) but I’ve been sent ahead of him.’(I) 29 He who has the bride(J) is the groom. But the groom’s friend, who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly[b] at the groom’s voice. So this joy(K) of mine is complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”
The One from Heaven
31 The one who comes from above(L) is above all. The one who is from the earth is earthly and speaks in earthly terms.[c] The one who comes from heaven is above all.(M) 32 He testifies(N) to what he has seen and heard, and yet no one accepts his testimony. 33 The one who has accepted his testimony has affirmed that God is true.(O) 34 For the one whom God sent speaks God’s words, since he[d] gives the Spirit(P) without measure. 35 The Father loves the Son(Q) and has given all things into his hands.(R) 36 The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who rejects the Son[e] will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him.(S)
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