Book of Common Prayer
The Lord the Psalmist’s Portion in Life and Deliverer in Death.
A [a]Mikhtam of David.
16 (A)Preserve me, O God, for (B)I take refuge in You.
2 [b]I said to the Lord, “You are [c]my Lord;
I (C)have no good besides You.”
3 As for the [d](D)saints who are in the earth,
[e]They are the majestic ones (E)in whom is all my delight.
4 The [f](F)sorrows of those who have [g]bartered for another god will be multiplied;
I shall not pour out their drink offerings of (G)blood,
Nor will I (H)take their names upon my lips.
5 The Lord is the (I)portion of my inheritance and my (J)cup;
You support my (K)lot.
6 The (L)lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is (M)beautiful to me.
7 I will bless the Lord who has (N)counseled me;
Indeed, my [h](O)mind instructs me in the night.
8 (P)I have (Q)set the Lord continually before me;
Because He is (R)at my right hand, (S)I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore (T)my heart is glad and (U)my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will (V)dwell securely.
10 For You (W)will not abandon my soul to [i]Sheol;
Nor will You [j](X)allow Your [k]Holy One to [l]undergo decay.
11 You will make known to me (Y)the path of life;
In (Z)Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are (AA)pleasures forever.
Prayer for Protection against Oppressors.
A Prayer of David.
17 Hear a (AB)just cause, O Lord, (AC)give heed to my cry;
(AD)Give ear to my prayer, which is not from (AE)deceitful lips.
2 Let (AF)my [m]judgment come forth from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look with (AG)equity.
3 You have (AH)tried my heart;
You have visited me by night;
You have (AI)tested me and (AJ)You find [n]nothing;
I have (AK)purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
4 As for the deeds of men, (AL)by the word of Your lips
I have kept from the (AM)paths of the violent.
5 My (AN)steps have held fast to Your [o]paths.
My (AO)feet have not slipped.
6 I have (AP)called upon You, for You will answer me, O God;
(AQ)Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.
7 (AR)Wondrously show Your lovingkindness,
O (AS)Savior of those who take refuge [p]at Your right hand
From those who rise up against them.
8 Keep me as [q]the (AT)apple of the eye;
Hide me (AU)in the shadow of Your wings
9 From the (AV)wicked who despoil me,
My (AW)deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They have (AX)closed their [r]unfeeling heart,
With their mouth they (AY)speak proudly.
11 They have now (AZ)surrounded us in our steps;
They set their eyes (BA)to cast us down to the ground.
12 He is (BB)like a lion that is eager to tear,
And as a young lion (BC)lurking in hiding places.
13 (BD)Arise, O Lord, confront him, (BE)bring him low;
(BF)Deliver my soul from the wicked with (BG)Your sword,
14 From men with (BH)Your hand, O Lord,
From men [s]of the world, (BI)whose portion is in this life,
And whose belly You (BJ)fill with Your treasure;
They are satisfied with children,
And leave their abundance to their babes.
15 As for me, I shall (BK)behold Your face in righteousness;
(BL)I will be satisfied [t]with Your (BM)likeness when I awake.
A Cry of Anguish and a Song of Praise.
For the choir director; upon [a]Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.
22 (A)My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
[b](B)Far from my deliverance are the words of my [c](C)groaning.
2 O my God, I (D)cry by day, but You do not answer;
And by night, but [d]I have no rest.
3 Yet (E)You are holy,
O You who [e]are enthroned upon (F)the praises of Israel.
4 In You our fathers (G)trusted;
They trusted and You (H)delivered them.
5 To You they cried out and were delivered;
(I)In You they trusted and were not [f]disappointed.
6 But I am a (J)worm and not a man,
A (K)reproach of men and (L)despised by the people.
7 All who see me [g](M)sneer at me;
They [h]separate with the lip, they (N)wag the head, saying,
8 “[i]Commit yourself to the Lord; (O)let Him deliver him;
Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him.”
9 Yet You are He who (P)brought me forth from the womb;
You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts.
10 Upon You I was cast (Q)from [j]birth;
You have been my God from my mother’s womb.
11 (R)Be not far from me, for [k]trouble is near;
For there is (S)none to help.
12 Many (T)bulls have surrounded me;
Strong bulls of (U)Bashan have encircled me.
13 They (V)open wide their mouth at me,
As a ravening and a roaring (W)lion.
14 I am (X)poured out like water,
And all my (Y)bones are out of joint;
My (Z)heart is like wax;
It is melted within [l]me.
15 My (AA)strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And (AB)my tongue cleaves to my jaws;
And You (AC)lay me [m]in the dust of death.
16 For (AD)dogs have surrounded me;
[n]A band of evildoers has encompassed me;
[o]They (AE)pierced my hands and my feet.
17 I can count all my bones.
(AF)They look, they stare at me;
18 They (AG)divide my garments among them,
And for my clothing they cast lots.
19 But You, O Lord, (AH)be not far off;
O You my help, (AI)hasten to my assistance.
20 Deliver my [p]soul from (AJ)the sword,
My (AK)only life from the [q]power of the dog.
21 Save me from the (AL)lion’s mouth;
From the horns of the (AM)wild oxen You (AN)answer me.
22 I will (AO)tell of Your name to my brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23 (AP)You who fear the Lord, praise Him;
All you [r]descendants of Jacob, (AQ)glorify Him,
And (AR)stand in awe of Him, all you [s]descendants of Israel.
24 For He has (AS)not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
Nor has He (AT)hidden His face from him;
But (AU)when he cried to Him for help, He heard.
25 From You comes (AV)my praise in the great assembly;
I shall (AW)pay my vows before those who fear Him.
26 The [t]afflicted will eat and (AX)be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will (AY)praise the Lord.
Let your (AZ)heart live forever!
27 All the (BA)ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the (BB)families of the nations will worship before [u]You.
28 For the (BC)kingdom is the Lord’s
And He (BD)rules over the nations.
29 All the [v](BE)prosperous of the earth will eat and worship,
All those who (BF)go down to the dust will bow before Him,
Even he who [w](BG)cannot keep his soul alive.
30 [x](BH)Posterity will serve Him;
It will be told of the Lord to (BI)the coming generation.
31 They will come and (BJ)will declare His righteousness
To a people (BK)who will be born, that He has performed it.
The Marriage of Ruth
4 Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, (A)the [a]close relative of whom Boaz spoke was passing by, so he said, “Turn aside, [b]friend, sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down. 2 He took ten men of the (B)elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. 3 Then he said to the [c]closest relative, “Naomi, who has come back from the land of Moab, has to sell the piece of land (C)which belonged to our brother Elimelech. 4 So I thought to [d]inform you, saying, ‘(D)Buy it before those who are sitting here, and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if [e]not, tell me that I may know; for (E)there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am after you.’” And he said, “I will redeem it.” 5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the deceased, in order (F)to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance.” 6 (G)The [f]closest relative said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, because I would [g]jeopardize my own inheritance. Redeem it for yourself; you may have my right of redemption, for I cannot redeem it.”
7 Now this was (H)the custom in former times in Israel concerning the redemption and the exchange of land to confirm any matter: a man removed his sandal and gave it to another; and this was the manner of attestation in Israel. 8 So the [h]closest relative said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” And he removed his sandal. 9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon. 10 Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance, so (I)that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the [i]court of his birth place; you are witnesses today.” 11 All the people who were in the [j]court, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home (J)like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel; and may you achieve [k]wealth in Ephrathah and [l]become famous in Bethlehem. 12 Moreover, may your house be like the house of (K)Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the [m]offspring which the Lord will give you by this young woman.”
13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And (L)the Lord [n]enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 Then the (M)women said to Naomi, “Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without a [o]redeemer today, and may his name [p]become famous in Israel. 15 May he also be to you a restorer of life and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you [q](N)and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”
The Line of David Began Here
16 Then Naomi took the child [r]and laid him in her lap, and became his nurse. 17 The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Concerning Elders
17 (A)The elders who (B)rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who (C)work hard [a]at preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “(D)You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing,” and “(E)The laborer is worthy of his wages.” 19 Do not receive an accusation against an (F)elder except on the basis of (G)two or three witnesses. 20 Those who continue in sin, (H)rebuke in the presence of all, (I)so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning. 21 (J)I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of His chosen angels, to maintain these principles without bias, doing nothing in a spirit of partiality. 22 (K)Do not lay hands upon anyone too hastily and [b]thereby share (L)responsibility for the sins of others; keep yourself [c]free from sin.
23 No longer drink water exclusively, but (M)use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.
24 The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins (N)follow after. 25 Likewise also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and (O)those which are otherwise cannot be concealed.
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
14 It happened that when He went into the house of one of the [a]leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread, (A)they were watching Him closely. 2 And [b]there in front of Him was a man suffering from dropsy. 3 And Jesus answered and spoke to the [c](B)lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “(C)Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” 4 But they kept silent. And He took hold of him and healed him, and sent him away. 5 And He said to them, “[d](D)Which one of you will have a son or an ox fall into a well, and will not immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?” 6 (E)And they could make no reply to this.
Parable of the Guests
7 And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how (F)they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, (G)do not [e]take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him, 9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then (H)in disgrace you [f]proceed to occupy the last place. 10 But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, (I)move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who [g]are at the table with you. 11 (J)For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
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