Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 147[a]
147 Praise the Lord,
for it is good to sing praises to our God.
Yes,[b] praise is pleasant and appropriate.
2 The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem,
and gathers the exiles of Israel.
3 He heals[c] the brokenhearted,
and bandages their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
he names all of them.
5 Our Lord is great and has awesome power;[d]
there is no limit to his wisdom.[e]
6 The Lord lifts up the oppressed,
but knocks[f] the wicked to the ground.
7 Offer to the Lord a song of thanks.[g]
Sing praises to our God to the accompaniment of a harp.
8 He covers[h] the sky with clouds,
provides the earth with rain,
and causes grass to grow on the hillsides.[i]
9 He gives food to the animals,
and to the young ravens when they chirp.[j]
10 He is not enamored with the strength of a horse,
nor is he impressed by the warrior’s strong legs.[k]
11 The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers,[l]
and in those who wait for his loyal love.
12 Extol the Lord, O Jerusalem.
Praise your God, O Zion.
13 For he makes the bars of your gates strong.
He blesses your children[m] within you.
14 He[n] brings peace to your territory.[o]
He abundantly provides for you[p] the best grain.
15 He[q] sends his command through the earth;[r]
swiftly his order reaches its destination.[s]
16 He sends the snow that is white like wool;
he spreads the frost that is white like ashes.[t]
17 He throws his hailstones[u] like crumbs.
Who can withstand the cold wind he sends?[v]
18 He then orders it all to melt;[w]
he breathes on it,[x] and the water flows.
19 He proclaims his word to Jacob,
his statutes and regulations to Israel.
20 He has not done so with any other nation;
they are not aware of his regulations.
Praise the Lord!
Presentation of the Firstfruits
26 When[a] you enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you occupy it and live in it, 2 you must take the first of all the ground’s produce you harvest from the land the Lord your God is giving you, place it in a basket, and go to the place where he[b] chooses to locate his name.[c] 3 You must go to the priest in office at that time and say to him, “I declare today to the Lord your[d] God that I have come into the land that the Lord[e] promised[f] to our ancestors[g] to give us.” 4 The priest will then take the basket from you[h] and set it before the altar of the Lord your God. 5 Then you must affirm before the Lord your God, “A wandering[i] Aramean[j] was my ancestor,[k] and he went down to Egypt and lived there as a foreigner with a household few in number,[l] but there he became a great, powerful, and numerous people. 6 But the Egyptians mistreated and oppressed us, forcing us to do burdensome labor. 7 So we cried out to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, and he[m] heard us and saw our humiliation, toil, and oppression. 8 Therefore the Lord brought us out of Egypt with tremendous strength and power,[n] as well as with great awe-inspiring signs and wonders. 9 Then he brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 So now, look! I have brought the first of the ground’s produce that you, Lord, have given me.” Then you must set it down before the Lord your God and worship before him.[o] 11 You will celebrate all the good things that the Lord your God has given you and your family,[p] along with the Levites and the resident foreigners among you.
26 Jesus replied,[a] “I tell you the solemn truth,[b] you are looking for me not because you saw miraculous signs, but because you ate all the loaves of bread you wanted.[c] 27 Do not work for the food that disappears,[d] but for the food that remains to eternal life—the food[e] which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has put his seal of approval on him.”[f]
28 So then they said to him, “What must we do to accomplish the deeds[g] God requires?”[h] 29 Jesus replied,[i] “This is the deed[j] God requires[k]—to believe in the one whom he[l] sent.” 30 So they said to him, “Then what miraculous sign will you perform, so that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our ancestors[m] ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”[n]
32 Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the solemn truth,[o] it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but my Father is giving you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the one who[p] comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 So they said to him, “Sir,[q] give us this bread all the time!”
35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. The one who comes to me will never go hungry, and the one who believes in me will never be thirsty.[r]
Psalm 145[a]
A psalm of praise; by David.
145 I will extol you, my God, O King.
I will praise your name continually.[b]
2 Every day I will praise you.
I will praise your name continually.[c]
3 The Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise.
No one can fathom his greatness.[d]
4 One generation will praise your deeds to another,
and tell about your mighty acts.[e]
5 I will focus on your honor and majestic splendor,
and your amazing deeds.[f]
6 They will proclaim[g] the power of your awesome acts.
I will declare your great deeds.
7 They will talk about the fame of your great kindness,[h]
and sing about your justice.[i]
8 The Lord is merciful and compassionate;
he is patient[j] and demonstrates great loyal love.[k]
9 The Lord is good to all,
and has compassion on all he has made.[l]
10 All your works will give thanks to you, Lord.
Your loyal followers will praise you.
11 They will proclaim the splendor of your kingdom;
they will tell about your power,
12 so that mankind[m] might acknowledge your mighty acts,
and the majestic splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an eternal kingdom,[n]
and your dominion endures through all generations.
14 [o] The Lord supports all who fall,
and lifts up all who are bent over.[p]
15 Everything looks to you in anticipation,[q]
and you provide them with food on a regular basis.[r]
16 You open your hand,
and fill every living thing with the food it desires.[s]
17 The Lord is just in all his actions,[t]
and exhibits love in all he does.[u]
18 The Lord is near all who cry out to him,
all who cry out to him sincerely.[v]
19 He satisfies the desire[w] of his loyal followers;[x]
he hears their cry for help and delivers them.
20 The Lord protects all those who love him,
but he destroys all the wicked.
21 My mouth will praise the Lord.[y]
Let all who live[z] praise his holy name forever.
Final Instructions
12 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters,[a] to acknowledge those who labor among you and preside over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them most highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters,[b] admonish the undisciplined, comfort the discouraged, help the weak, be patient toward all. 15 See that no one pays back evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good for one another and for all. 16 Always rejoice, 17 constantly pray, 18 in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not extinguish the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt. 21 But examine all things; hold fast to what is good. 22 Stay away from every form of evil.
Conclusion
23 Now may the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your spirit and soul and body be kept entirely blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is trustworthy, and he will in fact do this.[c]
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