Book of Common Prayer
87 The psalm of the song of the sons of Korah. The foundaments thereof be in holy hills; (The psalm of the song for the sons of Korah. Its foundations be upon the holy hill/s;)
2 (and) the Lord loveth the gates of Zion, more than all the tabernacles of Jacob.
3 Thou city of God, without end; glorious things be said of thee. (Thou city of God; may glorious things be said of thee forever.)
4 I shall be mindful of Rahab, and Babylon; knowing me. Lo! aliens, and Tyre, and the people of Ethiopians; they were there. (I shall remember the people of Rahab, and of Babylon; they all know me. Lo! Philistia, and Tyre, and the Ethiopian people; they all were there.)
5 Whether a man shall say to Zion, And a man is born therein; and that man, (the) alder Highest, founded it? (And of Zion it shall be said, This person, and that person, were born there; and the Most High himself founded it.)
6 The Lord shall tell in the scriptures of (these) peoples; and of these princes, that were therein. (The Lord shall write of these peoples; and of their princes, or their leaders, who all were there.)
7 As the dwelling of all that be glad; is in thee. (And they all shall dance; and they shall sing, In Zion is the Source of all our blessings.)
90 The prayer of Moses, the man of God. Lord, thou art made (a) help to us; from generation into generation. (Lord, thou hast helped us; from generation unto generation.)
2 Before that (the) hills were made, either the earth and the world was formed; from the world and into the world, thou art God (forever and ever, thou art God).
3 Turn thou not away a man into lowness; and thou saidest, Ye sons of men, be turned again. (Thou hast turned people back to the lowness from whence they came; yea, thou sayest, Ye sons and daughters of men, return to dust.)
4 For a thousand years be before thine eyes; as yesterday, which is passed, and as [the] keeping in the night. (For in thine eyes a thousand years be like yesterday, which is just passed; yea, as fleeting as the night watch.)
5 The years of them shall be; that be had for nought. Early pass he, as an herb, (And their years shall be as if nothing. In the morning they shall come forth, like a blade of grass,)
6 early flourish he, and pass; in the eventide fall he down, be he hard, and wax he dry. (yea, that flourisheth in the morning, and groweth up; and then, in the evening, it falleth down, and hardeneth, and groweth dry.)
7 For we have failed in thine ire; and we be troubled in thy strong vengeance. (For we be brought to an end by thy anger; and we be dis-eased, or distressed, by thy fury.)
8 Thou hast set our wickednesses in thy sight; our world in the lightening of thy cheer. (Thou hast set our wickednesses before thee; our secret sins in the full light of thy face.)
9 For all our days have failed; and we have failed in thine ire. Our years (we) shall bethink upon as a spider; (For all our days be brought to an end by thy anger. All our years we shall remember as but a whisper;)
10 the days of our years be those seventy years. Forsooth, if fourscore years/if eighty years be in mighty men; and (yet) the more time of them is travail and sorrow. For mildness came above; and we shall be chastised. (and the days of our years be those seventy years. For strong people, they be eighty years; yet most of that time is trouble, or labour, and sorrow. For life is short; and then we be gone.)
11 Who knew the power of thine ire; and durst number thine ire for thy dread? (Who knoweth the power of thy anger? and who knoweth thy anger better than those who fear thee?)
12 Make thy right hand so known; and make men learned in heart by wisdom. (Make thy right hand, or thy power, known to us/Teach us that our days be short; and so make people learned in their hearts with thy wisdom.)
13 Lord, be thou converted some-deal; and be thou able to be prayed of (by) thy servants. (Lord, how long until thou be turned somewhat; and then thou be able to be prayed to, or petitioned by, thy servants?)
14 We were [ful]filled early with thy mercy; we made full out joy, and we delighted in all our days. (Fulfill us/Fill us full each morning with thy love; so that we can rejoice, and be glad, in all our days.)
15 We were glad for the days in which thou madest us meek; for the years in which we saw evils. (Make us glad now in recompense for the days in which thou hast humbled us; yea, for the years in which we endured evils.)
16 Lord, behold thou into thy servants, and into thy works; and (ad)dress thou, (or direct thou,) the sons of them. (Lord, let thy servants see thy mighty works; and our sons and daughters see thy glory.)
17 And the shining of our Lord God be on us; and (ad)dress thou the works of our hands on us; and (ad)dress thou the works of our hands. (And let the shining of the Lord our God be upon us, and direct thou the works of our hands for us; yea, direct thou the works of our hands.)
136 Alleluia. Acknowledge ye to the Lord, for he is good; for his mercy is [into] without end. (Alleluia. Give ye thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his love is forever.)
2 Acknowledge ye to the God of gods. (Give ye thanks to the God of gods.)
3 Acknowledge ye to the Lord of lords. (Give ye thanks to the Lord of lords.)
4 Which alone maketh great marvels. (Who alone doeth marvellous deeds, or great miracles.)
5 Which made heavens by understanding. (Who made the heavens by his wisdom.)
6 Which made steadfast [the] earth on waters. (Who made the earth firm upon the waters.)
7 Which made great lights. (Who made the great lights.)
8 The sun into the power of the day. (The sun to have power over the day.)
9 The moon and the stars into power of the night. (The moon and the stars to have power over the night.)
10 Which smote Egypt with the first engendered things of them. (Who struck down the first-born of the Egyptians.)
11 Which led out Israel from the midst of them. (Who led out Israel from their midst.)
12 In a mighty hand, and in an high arm. (Yea, with a mighty hand, and a powerful arm.)
13 Which parted the Red Sea into partings. (Who divided the Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds, in two.)
14 And led out Israel through the midst thereof.
15 And he cast adown Pharaoh and his power, or virtue, in the Red Sea. (And he threw down Pharaoh, and his host, or his army, into the Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds.)
16 Which led over his people through desert. (Who led his people through the wilderness.)
17 Which smote great kings. (Who struck down great kings.)
18 And killed strong kings.
19 Sihon, the king of Amorites.
20 And Og, the king of Bashan.
21 And he gave the land of them to be heritage. (And he gave their land for an inheritance to his people.)
22 Heritage to Israel, his servant. (Yea, for an inheritance to his servant Israel.)
23 For in our lowness he had mind on us. (For he remembered us in our defeat./For he remembered us when we were brought down so very low.)
24 And he again-bought us from our enemies. (And he redeemed us, or he rescued us, from our enemies.)
25 Which giveth meat to each flesh. (Who giveth food to all his creatures.)
26 Acknowledge ye to the God of heaven. Acknowledge ye to the Lord of lords; for his mercy is [into] without end. (Give ye thanks to the God of heaven. Give ye thanks to the Lord of lords; for his love is forever.)
4 and the word of Samuel came to all Israel. And it was done in those days (the) Philistines came together into battle; for Israel went out against the Philistines into battle, and setted tents beside the stone of help (and pitched their tents at Ebenezer). And the Philistines came into Aphek,
2 and made ready (the) battle array against Israel. And when the battle was begun, Israel turned the(ir) backs to [the] Philistines; and as four thousand of men were slain in that battle everywhere by fields; and the people of Israel turned again to their tents. (and prepared the battle array against Israel. And when the battle was begun, Israel turned their backs to the Philistines; and about four thousand men were killed that day in that battle, in every part of the field; and then the people of Israel returned to their tents.)
3 And the greater men in birth of Israel said, Why hath the Lord smitten us today before the Philistines? Bring we to us from Shiloh the ark of the bond of peace of the Lord, and come it into the midst of us, that it save us from the hand of our enemies. (And the men of great age, that is, the elders, of Israel, said, Why did the Lord let us be defeated today by the Philistines? Let us bring the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from Shiloh, and have it come here into our midst, so that it can save us from the hand of our enemies.)
4 Therefore the people sent into Shiloh, and they took from thence the ark of the bond of peace of the Lord of hosts, that sat on cherubim. And Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were with the ark of the bond of peace of the Lord. (And so the people sent to Shiloh, and they brought from there the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of hosts, who sitteth above, or upon, the cherubim. And Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, came with the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.)
5 And when the ark of [the] bond of peace of the Lord had come into the tents (And when the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord came to the camp), all Israel cried [out] with [a] great cry, and the earth sounded.
6 And the Philistines heard the voice of their cry, and they said, And what is this voice of great cry in the tents of Hebrews? And they knew, that the ark of [the] bond of peace of the Lord had come into the tents of Israel. (And the Philistines heard the sound of their cry, and they said, And what is this sound of a great cry from the Hebrews’ tents? And then they knew, that the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord had come to Israel’s camp.)
7 And the Philistines dreaded, and said, God is come into their tents; and they wailed, and said, Woe to us! for so great out-joying was not there yesterday, and the third day passed; (And the Philistines were afraid, and said, God hath come to their tents; and they wailed, and said, Woe to us! for there was not so great rejoicing there yesterday, or the third day ago;)
8 woe to us! who shall keep us from the hand of these high gods? these be the gods, that smited Egypt with all vengeance in desert. (woe to us! who shall save us from the power of these high gods? these be the gods, who struck down the Egyptians with all that slaughter in the wilderness.)
9 Philistines, be ye comforted, and be ye men, serve ye not to the Hebrews, as they have served to you; be ye comforted, and fight ye against Israel. (Philistines, take ye courage, and be ye men, otherwise ye shall serve as slaves to the Hebrews, like they have served you; yea, be ye of good courage, and fight ye against Israel.)
10 Then the Philistines fought, and Israel was overcome, and each man fled into his tabernacle; and a full great vengeance was made, and thirty thousand of (the) footmen of Israel felled down. (Then the Philistines fought, and Israel was overcome, and each man fled into his tent; and there was a great slaughter, and thirty thousand of the footmen of Israel fell down.)
11 And the ark of God was taken; and, the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were dead. (And the Ark of God was taken; and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were killed.)
32 And of the multitude of men believing was one heart and one will [one heart and one soul, or will]; neither any man said any thing of those things that he wielded to be his own, but all things were common to them.
33 And with great virtue the apostles yielded witnessing of the again-rising of Jesus Christ our Lord, and great grace was in all them [and great grace was in them all].
34 For neither any needy man was among them, for how many ever were possessors of fields, either of houses [for how many ever were possessors of fields, or houses], they sold, and brought the prices of those things that they sold,
35 and laid before the feet of the apostles. And it was parted to each, as it was need to each.
36 Forsooth Joseph, that was named Barnabas of [the] apostles, that is to say, the son of comfort, of the lineage of Levi, a man of Cyprus,[a]
37 when he had a field, sold it, and brought the price, and laid it before the feet of the apostles.
5 But a man [Forsooth some man], Ananias by name, with Sapphira, his wife, sold a field,
2 and defrauded of the price of the field; and his wife was witting. And he brought a part [And he brought some part], and laid [it] before the feet of the apostles.
3 And Peter said to him, Ananias, why hath Satan tempted thine heart, that thou lie to the Holy Ghost [Forsooth Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan tempted thine heart, thee to lie to the Holy Ghost], and to defraud of the price of the field?
4 Whether it unsold was not thine; and when it was sold, it was in thy power? Why hast thou put this thing in thine heart? Thou hast not lied to men, but to God.
5 Ananias heard these words, and felled down, and was dead [Forsooth Ananias hearing these words, felled down and died]. And great dread was made on all that heard.
6 And young men rose [rised], and moved him away, and bare him out, and buried.
7 And there was made a space of three hours, and his wife knew not that thing that was done, and entered. [Forsooth there was made as the space of three hours, and the wife of him not knowing that thing that was done, entered in.]
8 And Peter answered to her, Woman, say to me, whether ye sold the field for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
9 And Peter said to her, What befelled to you [What soothly came together to you, or accorded], to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? Lo! the feet of them that have buried thine husband be at the door, and they shall bear thee out.
10 At once [Anon] she felled down at his feet, and died. And the young men entered, and found her dead, and they bare her out, and buried [her] to her husband.
11 And great dread was made in all the church, and into all that heard these things.
20 But when ye shall see Jerusalem be environed with an host, then know ye, that the desolation of it shall approach. [Forsooth when ye shall see Jerusalem environed of an host of battle, then know ye, that the desolation thereof shall nigh.]
21 Then they that be in Judaea, flee to the mountains; and they that be in the middle of it, go away; and they that be in the countries, enter not into it.
22 For these be the days of vengeance, that all things that be written, be fulfilled.
23 And woe to them, that be with child, and nourishing in those days [and nursing in those days]; for a great dis-ease shall be on the earth, and wrath to this people.
24 And they shall fall by the sharpness of sword, and they shall be led prisoners into all folks [and they shall be led captive, or prisoners, into all folks]; and Jerusalem shall be defouled of heathen men [and Jerusalem shall be defouled, or trodden down, of heathen men], till the times of nations be fulfilled.
25 And tokens shall be in the sun, and the moon, and in the stars; and in the earth overlaying of folks, for confusion of the sound of the sea and of floods [for confusion of sound of the sea and waves];
26 for men shall wax dry for dread and abiding that shall come into all the world [men waxing dry for dread and abiding that shall come on all the world]; for virtues of heaven shall be moved.
27 And then they shall see man's Son coming in a cloud, with great power and majesty.
28 And when these things begin to be made, behold ye, and raise ye your heads, for your redemption approacheth.[a]
2001 by Terence P. Noble