Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 78[a]
A well-written song[b] by Asaph.
78 Pay attention, my people, to my instruction.
Listen to the words I speak.[c]
2 I will sing a song that imparts wisdom;
I will make insightful observations about the past.[d]
3 What we have heard and learned[e]—
that which our ancestors[f] have told us—
4 we will not hide from their[g] descendants.
We will tell the next generation
about the Lord’s praiseworthy acts,[h]
about his strength and the amazing things he has done.
5 He established a rule[i] in Jacob;
he set up a law in Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to make his deeds known to their descendants,[j]
6 so that the next generation, children yet to be born,
might know about them.
They will grow up and tell their descendants about them.[k]
7 Then they will place their confidence in God.
They will not forget the works of God,
and they will obey[l] his commands.
8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,
who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation that was not committed
and faithful to God.[m]
9 The Ephraimites[n] were armed with bows,[o]
but they retreated in the day of battle.[p]
10 They did not keep their covenant with God,[q]
and they refused to obey[r] his law.
11 They forgot what he had done,[s]
the amazing things he had shown them.
12 He did amazing things in the sight of their ancestors,
in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.[t]
13 He divided the sea and led them across it;
he made the water stand in a heap.
14 He led them with a cloud by day,
and with the light of a fire all night long.
15 He broke open rocks in the wilderness,
and gave them enough water to fill the depths of the sea.[u]
16 He caused streams to flow from the rock,
and made the water flow like rivers.
17 Yet they continued to sin against him,
and rebelled against the Most High[v] in the desert.
18 They willfully challenged God[w]
by asking for food to satisfy their appetite.
19 They insulted God, saying,[x]
“Is God really able to give us food[y] in the wilderness?
20 Yes,[z] he struck a rock and water flowed out;
streams gushed forth.
But can he also give us food?
Will he provide meat for his people?”
21 When[aa] the Lord heard this, he was furious.
A fire broke out against Jacob,
and his anger flared up[ab] against Israel,
22 because they did not have faith in God,
and did not trust his ability to deliver them.[ac]
23 He gave a command to the clouds above,
and opened the doors in the sky.
24 He rained down manna for them to eat;
he gave them the grain of heaven.[ad]
25 Man ate the food of the mighty ones.[ae]
He sent them more than enough to eat.[af]
26 He brought the east wind through the sky,
and by his strength led forth the south wind.
27 He rained down meat on them like dust,
birds as numerous as the sand on the seashores.[ag]
28 He caused them to fall right in the middle of their camp,
all around their homes.
29 They ate until they were beyond full;[ah]
he gave them what they desired.
30 They were not yet filled up;[ai]
their food was still in their mouths,
31 when the anger of God flared up against them.
He killed some of the strongest of them;
he brought the young men of Israel to their knees.
32 Despite all this, they continued to sin,
and did not trust him to do amazing things.[aj]
33 So he caused them to die unsatisfied[ak]
and filled with terror.[al]
34 When he struck them down,[am] they sought his favor;[an]
they turned back and longed for God.
35 They remembered that God was their protector,[ao]
and that God Most High[ap] was their deliverer.[aq]
36 But they deceived him with their words,[ar]
and lied to him.[as]
37 They were not really committed to him,[at]
and they were unfaithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he is compassionate.
He forgives sin and does not destroy.
He often holds back his anger,
and does not stir up his fury.[au]
39 He remembered[av] that they were made of flesh,
and were like a wind that blows past and does not return.[aw]
40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness,
and insulted him[ax] in the wastelands.
41 They again challenged God,[ay]
and offended[az] the Holy One of Israel.[ba]
42 They did not remember what he had done,[bb]
how he delivered them from the enemy,[bc]
43 when he performed his awesome deeds[bd] in Egypt,
and his acts of judgment[be] in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their rivers into blood,
and they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of biting insects against them,[bf]
as well as frogs that overran their land.[bg]
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,
the fruit of their labor to the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail,
and their sycamore-fig trees with driving rain.
48 He rained hail down on their cattle,[bh]
and hurled lightning bolts down on their livestock.[bi]
49 His raging anger lashed out against them.[bj]
He sent fury, rage, and trouble
as messengers who bring disaster.[bk]
50 He sent his anger in full force.[bl]
He did not spare them from death;
he handed their lives over to destruction.[bm]
51 He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power[bn] in the tents of Ham.
52 Yet he brought out his people like sheep;
he led them through the wilderness like a flock.
53 He guided them safely along, and they were not afraid;
but the sea covered their enemies.
54 He brought them to the border of his holy land,
to this mountainous land[bo] that his right hand[bp] acquired.
55 He drove the nations out from before them;
he assigned them their tribal allotments[bq]
and allowed the tribes of Israel to settle down.[br]
56 Yet they challenged and defied[bs] God Most High,[bt]
and did not obey[bu] his commands.[bv]
57 They were unfaithful[bw] and acted as treacherously as[bx] their ancestors;
they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow.[by]
58 They made him angry with their pagan shrines,[bz]
and made him jealous with their idols.
59 God heard and was angry;
he completely rejected Israel.
60 He abandoned[ca] the sanctuary at Shiloh,
the tent where he lived among men.
61 He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured;[cb]
he gave the symbol of his splendor[cc] into the hand of the enemy.[cd]
62 He delivered his people over to the sword,
and was angry with his chosen nation.[ce]
63 Fire consumed their[cf] young men,
and their[cg] virgins remained unmarried.[ch]
64 Their[ci] priests fell by the sword,
but their[cj] widows did not weep.[ck]
65 But then the Lord awoke from his sleep;[cl]
he was like a warrior in a drunken rage.[cm]
66 He drove his enemies back;
he made them a permanent target for insults.[cn]
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 He chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above,[co]
as secure as the earth, which he established permanently.[cp]
70 He chose David, his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds.
71 He took him away from following the mother sheep,[cq]
and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,
and of Israel, his chosen nation.[cr]
72 David[cs] cared for them with pure motives;[ct]
he led them with skill.[cu]
21 Then the man Elkanah and all his family went up to make the yearly sacrifice[a] to the Lord and to keep his vow.[b] 22 But Hannah did not go up with them,[c] because she had told[d] her husband, “Not[e] until the boy is weaned. Then I will bring him so that he may appear before the Lord. And he will remain there from then on.”[f]
23 Then her husband Elkanah said to her, “Do what you think best.[g] Stay until you have weaned him. Only may the Lord fulfill his promise.”[h]
So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. 24 Then she took him up with her[i] as soon as she had weaned him, along with three bulls,[j] an ephah[k] of flour, and a container[l] of wine. She came to the Lord’s house at Shiloh, and the boy was with them.[m] 25 They slaughtered the bull, then brought the boy to Eli.[n] 26 She said, “My lord. Just as surely as you are alive, my lord, I am the woman who previously stood here with you in order to pray to the Lord. 27 For this boy I prayed, and the Lord has given me the request that I asked of him. 28 So I also dedicate[o] him to the Lord. For all the days of his life[p] he is dedicated to the Lord.” Then he[q] bowed down there in worship[r] to the Lord.
Hannah Exalts the Lord in Prayer
2 Hannah prayed,[s]
“My heart has rejoiced[t] in the Lord;
my horn[u] has been raised high because of the Lord.
I have loudly denounced[v] my enemies.
Indeed I rejoice in your deliverance.
2 No one is holy[w] like the Lord!
There is no one other than you!
There is no rock[x] like our God!
3 Don’t keep speaking[y] so arrogantly.[z]
Proud talk should not[aa] come out of your mouth,
for the Lord is a God who knows;
he[ab] evaluates what people do.
4 The bows of warriors are shattered,
but those who stumbled have taken on strength.[ac]
5 The well fed hire themselves out to earn food,
but the hungry no longer lack.[ad]
Even[ae] the barren woman has given birth to seven,[af]
but the one with many children has declined.[ag]
6 The Lord both kills and gives life;
he brings down to the grave[ah] and raises up.[ai]
7 The Lord impoverishes and makes wealthy;
he humbles and he exalts.
8 He lifts the weak[aj] from the dust;
he raises[ak] the poor from the ash heap
to seat them with princes—
he bestows on them an honored position.[al]
The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord—
he placed the world on them.
9 He watches over[am] his holy ones,[an]
but the wicked are made speechless in the darkness,[ao]
for it is not by one’s own[ap] strength that one prevails.
10 The Lord shatters[aq] his adversaries;[ar]
he thunders against them from[as] the heavens.
The Lord executes judgment to the ends of the earth.
He will strengthen[at] his king
and exalt the power[au] of his anointed one.”[av]
11 Then Elkanah went back home to Ramah.
Eli’s Sons Misuse Their Sacred Office
The boy[aw] Samuel[ax] was serving the Lord with the favor of[ay] Eli the priest.[az]
15 In those days[a] Peter stood up among the believers[b] (a gathering of about 120 people) and said, 16 “Brothers,[c] the scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit foretold through[d] David concerning Judas—who became the guide for those who arrested Jesus— 17 for he was counted as one of us and received a share in this ministry.”[e] 18 (Now this man Judas[f] acquired a field with the reward of his unjust deed,[g] and falling headfirst[h] he burst open in the middle and all his intestines[i] gushed out. 19 This[j] became known to all who lived in Jerusalem, so that in their own language[k] they called that field[l] Hakeldama, that is, “Field of Blood.”) 20 “For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his house become deserted,[m] and let there be no one to live in it,’[n] and ‘Let another take his position of responsibility.’[o] 21 Thus one of the men[p] who have accompanied us during all the time the Lord Jesus associated with[q] us, 22 beginning from his baptism by John until the day he[r] was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness of his resurrection together with us.” 23 So they[s] proposed two candidates:[t] Joseph called Barsabbas (also called Justus) and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed,[u] “Lord, you know the hearts of all. Show us which one of these two you have chosen 25 to assume the task[v] of this service[w] and apostleship from which Judas turned aside[x] to go to his own place.”[y] 26 Then[z] they cast lots for them, and the one chosen was Matthias;[aa] so he was counted with the eleven apostles.[ab]
19 Then[a] the experts in the law[b] and the chief priests wanted to arrest[c] him that very hour, because they realized he had told this parable against them. But[d] they were afraid of the people.
Paying Taxes to Caesar
20 Then[e] they watched him carefully and sent spies who pretended to be sincere.[f] They wanted to take advantage of what he might say[g] so that they could deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction[h] of the governor. 21 Thus[i] they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach correctly,[j] and show no partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.[k] 22 Is it right[l] for us to pay the tribute tax[m] to Caesar[n] or not?” 23 But Jesus[o] perceived their deceit[p] and said to them, 24 “Show me a denarius.[q] Whose image[r] and inscription are on it?”[s] They said, “Caesar’s.” 25 So[t] he said to them, “Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”[u] 26 Thus[v] they were unable in the presence of the people to trap[w] him with his own words.[x] And stunned[y] by his answer, they fell silent.
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