Book of Common Prayer
(A psalm by Asaph for the music leader. To the tune “Lilies of the Agreement.”)
Help Our Nation
1 (A) Shepherd of Israel, you lead
the descendants of Joseph,
and you sit on your throne
above the winged creatures.[a]
Listen to our prayer
and let your light shine
2 for the tribes of Ephraim,
Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Save us by your power.
3 Our God, make us strong again!
Smile on us and save us.
4 Lord God All-Powerful,
how much longer
will the prayers of your people
make you angry?
5 You gave us tears for food,
and you made us drink them
by the bowlful.
6 Because of you,
our enemies who live nearby
laugh and joke about us.
7 Our God, make us strong again!
Smile on us and save us.
8 We were like a grapevine
you brought out of Egypt.
You chased other nations away
and planted us here.
9 Then you cleared the ground,
and we put our roots deep,
spreading over the land.
10 Shade from this vine covered
the mountains.
Its branches climbed
the mighty cedars
11 and stretched to the sea;
its new growth reached
to the river.[b]
12 Our Lord, why have you
torn down the wall
from around the vineyard?
You let everyone who walks by
pick the grapes.
13 Now the vine is gobbled up
by pigs from the forest
and other wild animals.
14 God All-Powerful,
please do something!
Look down from heaven
and see what's happening
to this vine.
15 With your own hands
you planted its roots,
and you raised it
as your very own.
16 Enemies chopped the vine down
and set it on fire.
Now show your anger
and destroy them.
17 But help the one who sits
at your right side,[c]
the one you raised
to be your very own.
18 Then we will never turn away.
Put new life into us,
and we will worship you.
19 Lord God All-Powerful,
make us strong again!
Smile on us and save us.
(A psalm by Asaph for Jeduthun, the music leader.)
In Times of Trouble God Is with His People
1 I pray to you, Lord God,
and I beg you to listen.
2 In days filled with trouble,
I search for you.
And at night I tirelessly
lift my hands in prayer,
refusing comfort.
3 When I think of you,
I feel restless and weak.
4 Because of you, Lord God,
I can't sleep.
I am restless
and can't even talk.
5 I think of times gone by,
of those years long ago.
6 Each night my mind
is flooded with questions:[a]
7 “Have you rejected me forever?
Won't you be kind again?
8 Is this the end of your love
and your promises?
9 Have you forgotten
how to have pity?
Do you refuse to show mercy
because of your anger?”
10 Then I said, “God Most High,
what hurts me most
is that you no longer help us
with your mighty arm.”
11 Our Lord, I will remember
the things you have done,
your miracles of long ago.
12 I will think about each one
of your mighty deeds.
13 Everything you do is right,
and no other god
compares with you.
14 You alone work miracles,
and you have let nations
see your mighty power.
15 With your own arm you rescued
your people, the descendants
of Jacob and Joseph.
16 The ocean looked at you, God,
and it trembled deep down
with fear.
17 Water flowed from the clouds.
Thunder was heard above
as your arrows of lightning
flashed about.
18 Your thunder roared
like chariot wheels.
The world was made bright
by lightning,
and all the earth trembled.
19 You walked through the water
of the mighty sea,
but your footprints
were never seen.
20 You guided your people
like a flock of sheep,
and you chose Moses and Aaron
to be their leaders.
(A psalm by Asaph.)
Have Pity on Jerusalem
1 (A) Our God, foreign nations
have taken your land,
disgraced your temple,
and left Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They have fed the bodies
of your servants
to flesh-eating birds;
your loyal people are food
for savage animals.
3 All Jerusalem is covered
with their blood,
and there is no one left
to bury them.
4 Every nation around us
sneers and makes fun.
5 Our Lord, will you keep on
being angry?
Will your angry feelings
keep flaming up like fire?
6 Get angry with those nations
that don't know you
and won't worship you!
7 They have gobbled up
Jacob's descendants
and left the land in ruins.
8 (B) Don't make us pay for the sins
of our ancestors.
Have pity and come quickly!
We are completely helpless.
9 Our God, you keep us safe.
Now help us! Rescue us.
Forgive our sins
and bring honor to yourself.
10 Why should nations ask us,
“Where is your God?”
Let us and the other nations
see you take revenge
for your servants who died
a violent death.
11 Listen to the prisoners groan!
Let your mighty power save all
who are sentenced to die.
12 Each of those nations sneered
at you, our Lord.
Now let others sneer at them,
seven times as much.
13 Then we, your people,
will always thank you.
We are like sheep
with you as our shepherd,
and all generations
will hear us praise you.
The Lord Takes Care of You
Moses said:
8 Israel, do you want to go into the land the Lord promised your ancestors? Do you want to capture it, live there, and become a powerful nation? Then be sure to obey every command I am giving you.
2 Don't forget how the Lord your God has led you through the desert for the past 40 years. He wanted to find out if you were truly willing to obey him and depend on him, 3 (A) so he made you go hungry. Then he gave you manna,[a] a kind of food that you and your ancestors had never even heard about. The Lord was teaching you that people need more than food to live—they need every word that the Lord has spoken.
4 Over the past 40 years, your clothing hasn't worn out, and your feet haven't swollen. 5 (B) So keep in mind that the Lord has been correcting you, just as parents correct their children. 6 Obey the commands the Lord your God has given you and worship him with fear and trembling.
7 The Lord your God is bringing you into a good land with streams that flow from springs in the valleys and hills. 8-9 You can dig for copper in those hills, and the stones are made of iron ore. And you won't go hungry. Wheat and barley fields are everywhere, and so are vineyards and orchards full of fig, pomegranate,[b] and olive trees, and there is plenty of honey.
Don't Forget the Lord
Moses said to Israel:
10 After you eat and are full, give praise to the Lord your God for the good land he gave you.
1 (A) From James, a servant of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Greetings to the twelve tribes scattered all over the world.[a]
Faith and Wisdom
2 (B) My friends, be glad, even if you have a lot of trouble. 3 You know you learn to endure by having your faith tested. 4 But you must learn to endure everything, so you will be completely mature and not lacking in anything.
5 (C) If any of you need wisdom, you should ask God, and it will be given to you. God is generous and won't correct you for asking. 6 But when you ask for something, you must have faith and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like an ocean wave tossed around in a storm. 7-8 If you are that kind of person, you can't make up your mind, and you surely can't be trusted. So don't expect the Lord to give you anything at all.
Poor People and Rich People
9 Any of God's people who are poor should be glad he thinks so highly of them. 10 (D) But any who are rich should be glad when God makes them humble. Rich people will disappear like wild flowers 11 scorched by the burning heat of the sun. The flowers lose their blossoms, and their beauty is destroyed. This is how the rich will disappear, as they go about their business.
Trials and Temptations
12 (E) God will bless you, if you don't give up when your faith is being tested. He will reward you with a glorious life,[b] just as he rewards everyone who loves him.
13 (F) Don't blame God when you are tempted! God cannot be tempted by evil, and he doesn't use evil to tempt others. 14 We are tempted by our own desires that drag us off and trap us. 15 Our desires make us sin, and when sin is finished with us, it leaves us dead.
Who Is Jesus?
(Matthew 16.13-19; Mark 8.27-29)
18 When Jesus was alone praying, his disciples came to him, and he asked them, “What do people say about me?”
19 (A) They answered, “Some say you are John the Baptist or Elijah[a] or a prophet from long ago who has come back to life.”
20 (B) Jesus then asked, “But who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Messiah sent from God.”
21 Jesus strictly warned his disciples not to tell anyone about this.
Jesus Speaks about His Suffering and Death
(Matthew 16.20-28; Mark 8.30—9.1)
22 Jesus told his disciples, “The nation's leaders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law of Moses will make the Son of Man suffer terribly. They will reject him and kill him, but three days later he will rise to life.”
23 (C) Then Jesus said to all the people:
If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross every day and follow me. 24 (D) If you want to save your life,[b] you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me, you will save it. 25 What will you gain, if you own the whole world but destroy yourself or waste your life? 26 If you are ashamed of me and my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in his glory and in the glory of his Father and the holy angels. 27 You can be sure some of the people standing here will not die before they see God's kingdom.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.