Book of Common Prayer
I Will Bless the Lord
Of David.
26 (A)Vindicate me, O Lord,
for I have (B)walked in my integrity,
and I have (C)trusted in the Lord without wavering.
2 (D)Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
test my heart and (E)my mind.[a]
3 For your (F)steadfast love is before my eyes,
and I (G)walk in your (H)faithfulness.
4 I do not (I)sit with men of (J)falsehood,
nor do I consort with hypocrites.
5 I (K)hate the assembly of evildoers,
and I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I (L)wash my hands in innocence
and go around your altar, O Lord,
7 proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,
and telling all your (M)wondrous deeds.
The Lord Is My Strength and My Shield
Of David.
28 To you, O Lord, I call;
(A)my rock, be not deaf to me,
lest, if you (B)be silent to me,
I become like those who (C)go down to the pit.
2 (D)Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy,
when I cry to you for help,
when I (E)lift up my hands
(F)toward your most holy sanctuary.[a]
3 Do not (G)drag me off with the wicked,
with the workers of evil,
(H)who speak peace with their neighbors
while evil is in their hearts.
4 (I)Give to them according to their work
and according to the evil of their deeds;
give to them according to the work of their hands;
(J)render them their due reward.
5 Because they (K)do not regard the works of the Lord
or the work of his hands,
he will tear them down and build them up no more.
How Precious Is Your Steadfast Love
To the choirmaster. Of David, the (A)servant of the Lord.
36 Transgression speaks to the wicked
deep in his heart;[a]
(B)there is no fear of God
before his eyes.
2 (C)For he flatters himself in his own eyes
that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
3 The words of his mouth are (D)trouble and deceit;
(E)he has ceased to act wisely and do good.
4 He (F)plots (G)trouble while on his bed;
he sets himself in (H)a way that is not good;
(I)he does not reject evil.
5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
6 (J)Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
(K)your judgments are like the great deep;
man and beast you (L)save, O Lord.
7 (M)How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge (N)in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on (O)the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from (P)the river of (Q)your delights.
9 For with you is (R)the fountain of life;
(S)in your light do we see light.
What Is the Measure of My Days?
To the choirmaster: to (A)Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (B)guard my ways,
that I (C)may not sin with my tongue;
I will (D)guard my mouth with a muzzle,
so long as the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was (E)mute and silent;
I held my peace to no avail,
and my distress grew worse.
3 My (F)heart became hot within me.
As I mused, the fire burned;
then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “O Lord, (G)make me know my end
and what is the measure of my days;
let me know how fleeting I am!
5 Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,
and (H)my lifetime is as nothing before you.
Surely (I)all mankind stands as a mere breath! Selah
6 Surely a man (J)goes about as a shadow!
Surely for nothing[a] they are in turmoil;
man (K)heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!
7 “And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?
(L)My hope is in you.
8 Deliver me from all my transgressions.
(M)Do not make me the scorn of the fool!
9 (N)I am mute; I do not open my mouth,
(O)for it is you who have done it.
10 (P)Remove your stroke from me;
I am spent by the hostility of your hand.
11 When you discipline a man
with (Q)rebukes for sin,
you (R)consume like a (S)moth what is dear to him;
(T)surely all mankind is a mere breath! Selah
A Great Multitude from Every Nation
9 After this I looked, and behold, (A)a great multitude that no one could number, (B)from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, (C)clothed in white robes, with (D)palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, (E)“Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and (F)the four living creatures, and they (G)fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 (H)saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”
13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, (I)clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of (J)the great tribulation. (K)They have washed their robes and (L)made them white (M)in the blood of the Lamb.
15 “Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and (N)serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne (O)will shelter them with his presence.
16 (P)They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
(Q)the sun shall not strike them,
nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne (R)will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of (S)living water,
and (T)God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two
10 After this the Lord appointed (A)seventy-two[a] others and (B)sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 (C)And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. (D)Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; (E)behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 (F)Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and (G)greet no one on the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, (H)‘Peace be to this house!’ 6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, (I)it will return to you. 7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for (J)the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick in it and say to them, (K)‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, 11 (L)‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that (M)the kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, (N)it will be more bearable on (O)that day for Sodom than for that town.
Woe to Unrepentant Cities
13 (P)“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in (Q)Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 (R)But it will be more bearable in the judgment for (S)Tyre and Sidon than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, (T)will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to (U)Hades.
16 (V)“The one who hears you hears me, and (W)the one who rejects you rejects me, and (X)the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.