Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 97
The Majestic King
1 The Lord reigns! Let the earth rejoice;
let the many coasts and islands be glad.(A)
2 Clouds and total darkness surround him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.(B)
3 Fire goes before him
and burns up his foes on every side.(C)
4 His lightning lights up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.(D)
5 The mountains melt like wax
at the presence of the Lord—
at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.(E)
7 All who serve carved images,
those who boast in worthless idols, will be put to shame.(H)
All the gods[a] must worship him.(I)
Psalm 99
The King Is Holy
1 The Lord reigns! Let the peoples tremble.
He is enthroned between the cherubim.(A)
Let the earth quake.(B)
2 The Lord is great in Zion;
he is exalted above all the peoples.(C)
3 Let them praise your great
and awe-inspiring name.(D)
He is holy.(E)
4 The mighty King loves justice.
You have established fairness;
you have administered justice
and righteousness in Jacob.(F)
5 Exalt the Lord our God;
bow in worship at his footstool.(G)
He is holy.(H)
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests;(I)
Samuel also was among those calling on his name.
They called to the Lord and he answered them.(J)
7 He spoke to them in a pillar of cloud;(K)
they kept his decrees and the statutes he gave them.
8 Lord our God, you answered them.
You were a forgiving God to them,(L)
but an avenger of their sinful actions.(M)
9 Exalt the Lord our God;
bow in worship at his holy mountain,
for the Lord our God is holy.(N)
Psalm 100
Be Thankful
A psalm of thanksgiving.
1 Let the whole earth shout triumphantly to the Lord!(O)
2 Serve the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.(P)
3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God.
He made us, and we are his[a](Q)—
his people, the sheep of his pasture.(R)
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving(S)
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and bless his name.(T)
5 For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever;
his faithfulness, through all generations.
Psalm 94
The Just Judge
1 Lord, God of vengeance—
God of vengeance, shine!(A)
2 Rise up, Judge of the earth;
repay the proud what they deserve.(B)
3 Lord, how long will the wicked—
how long will the wicked celebrate?(C)
4 They pour out arrogant words;
all the evildoers boast.(D)
5 Lord, they crush your people;
they oppress your heritage.(E)
6 They kill the widow and the resident alien
and murder the fatherless.(F)
7 They say, “The Lord doesn’t see it.
The God of Jacob doesn’t pay attention.”(G)
8 Pay attention, you stupid people!
Fools, when will you be wise?(H)
9 Can the one who shaped the ear not hear,
the one who formed the eye not see?(I)
10 The one who instructs nations,
the one who teaches mankind knowledge—
does he not discipline?(J)
11 The Lord knows the thoughts of mankind;
they are futile.(K)
12 Lord, how happy is anyone you discipline
and teach from your law(L)
13 to give him relief from troubled times
until a pit is dug for the wicked.(M)
14 The Lord will not leave his people
or abandon his heritage,(N)
15 for the administration of justice will again be righteous,
and all the upright in heart will follow[a] it.(O)
16 Who stands up for me against the wicked?
Who takes a stand for me against evildoers?(P)
17 If the Lord had not been my helper,
I would soon rest in the silence of death.(Q)
18 If I say, “My foot is slipping,”
your faithful love will support me, Lord.(R)
19 When I am filled with cares,
your comfort brings me joy.(S)
20 Can a corrupt throne be your ally,
a throne that makes evil laws?(T)
21 They band together against the life of the righteous
and condemn the innocent to death.(U)
22 But the Lord is my refuge;
my God is the rock of my protection.(V)
23 He will pay them back for their sins
and destroy them for their evil.
The Lord our God will destroy them.(W)
Psalm 95
Worship and Warning
1 Come, let’s shout joyfully to the Lord,
shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation!(X)
2 Let’s enter his presence with thanksgiving;
let’s shout triumphantly to him in song.(Y)
3 For the Lord is a great God,
a great King above all gods.(Z)
4 The depths of the earth are in his hand,
and the mountain peaks are his.(AA)
5 The sea is his; he made it.
His hands formed the dry land.(AB)
6 Come, let’s worship and bow down;
let’s kneel before the Lord our Maker.(AC)
7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
the sheep under his care.[b](AD)
Today, if you hear his voice:(AE)
8 Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the wilderness(AF)
9 where your ancestors tested me;
they tried me, though they had seen what I did.(AG)
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.”(AH)
11 So I swore in my anger,
“They will not enter my rest.”(AI)
10 Here is the day! Here it comes!
Doom is on its way.(A)
The rod has blossomed;(B)
arrogance has bloomed.(C)
11 Violence has grown into a rod of wickedness.(D)
None of them will remain:
none of that crowd,
none of their wealth,
and none of the eminent[a] among them.
12 The time has come; the day has arrived.
Let the buyer not rejoice(E)
and the seller not mourn,
for wrath is on her whole crowd.(F)
13 The seller will certainly not return
to what was sold
as long as he and the buyer remain alive.[b]
For the vision concerning her whole crowd
will not be revoked,
and because of the iniquity of each one,
none will preserve his life.
23 Forge the chain,(A)
for the land is filled with crimes of bloodshed,
and the city is filled with violence.(B)
24 So I will bring the most evil of nations(C)
to take possession of their houses.
I will put an end to the pride of the strong,
and their sacred places will be profaned.(D)
25 Anguish is coming!
They will look for peace, but there will be none.
26 Disaster after disaster will come,(E)
and there will be rumor after rumor.(F)
Then they will look for a vision from a prophet,(G)
but instruction will perish from the priests
and counsel from the elders.(H)
27 The king will mourn;
the prince will be clothed in grief;
and the hands of the people of the land will tremble.
I will deal with them according to their own conduct,
and I will judge them by their own standards.(I)
Then they will know that I am the Lord.
Inheriting the Promise
13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself: 14 I will indeed bless you, and I will greatly multiply you.[a](A) 15 And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute. 17 Because God wanted to show his unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, he guaranteed it with an oath,(B) 18 so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us.(C) 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain.(D) 20 Jesus has entered there on our behalf as a forerunner,(E) because he has become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.(F)
Sending Out the Seventy-Two
10 After this, the Lord appointed seventy-two[a] others, and he sent them ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 He told them,(A) “The harvest(B) is abundant, but the workers(C) are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.(D) 3 Now go; I’m sending you out like lambs among wolves.(E) 4 Don’t carry a money-bag,(F) traveling bag,(G) or sandals; (H) don’t greet anyone along the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace(I) to this household.’ 6 If a person of peace is there, your peace(J) will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. 7 Remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they offer, for the worker is worthy of his wages.(K) Don’t move from house to house. 8 When you enter any town, and they welcome you, eat the things set before you.(L) 9 Heal the sick(M) who are there, and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God(N) has come near(O) you.’ 10 When you enter any town, and they don’t welcome you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘We are wiping off even the dust of your town that clings to our feet as a witness against you.(P) Know this for certain: The kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, on that day(Q) it will be more tolerable for Sodom(R) than for that town.(S)
Unrepentant Towns
13 “Woe(T) to you,(U) Chorazin!(V) Woe to you, Bethsaida!(W) For if the miracles(X) that were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon,(Y) they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.(Z) 14 But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment(AA) than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum,(AB) will you be exalted to heaven?(AC) No, you will go down to Hades.(AD) 16 Whoever listens to you listens to me.(AE) Whoever rejects you rejects me.(AF) And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”(AG)
The Return of the Seventy-Two
17 The seventy-two[b](AH) returned with joy, saying,(AI) “Lord, even the demons(AJ) submit to us in your name.”(AK)
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