Book of Common Prayer
Praise to the Lord and Warning against Unbelief.
95 Come, let’s (A)sing for joy to the Lord,
Let’s shout joyfully to (B)the rock of our salvation.
2 Let’s (C)come before His presence (D)with a song of thanksgiving,
Let’s shout joyfully to Him (E)in songs with instruments.
3 For the Lord is a (F)great God
And a great King (G)above all gods,
4 In whose hand are the (H)depths of the earth,
The peaks of the mountains are also His.
5 [a]The sea is His, for it was He (I)who made it,
And His hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let’s (J)worship and bow down,
Let’s (K)kneel before the Lord our (L)Maker.
7 For He is our God,
And (M)we are the people of His [b](N)pasture and the sheep of His hand.
(O)Today, [c]if you will hear His voice,
8 Do not harden your hearts as at [d](P)Meribah,
As on the day of [e](Q)Massah in the wilderness,
9 “When your fathers (R)put Me to the test,
They tested Me, though they had seen My work.
10 For (S)forty years I was disgusted with that generation,
And said they are a people who err in their heart,
And they do not know My ways.
11 Therefore I (T)swore in My anger,
They certainly shall not enter My (U)rest.”
A Petition to Be Saved from Death.
A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the music director; according to Mahalath Leannoth. A [a]Maskil of Heman [b]the Ezrahite.
88 Lord, the (A)God of my salvation,
I have (B)cried out by day and in the night before You.
2 Let my prayer (C)come before You;
(D)Incline Your ear to my cry!
3 For my (E)soul has [c]had enough troubles,
And (F)my life has approached [d]Sheol.
4 I am counted among those who (G)go down to the pit;
I have become like a man (H)without strength,
5 [e]Abandoned (I)among the dead,
Like the slain who lie in the grave,
Whom You no longer remember,
And they are (J)cut off from Your hand.
6 You have put me in (K)the lowest pit,
In (L)dark places, in the (M)depths.
7 Your wrath (N)has rested upon me,
And You have afflicted me with (O)all Your waves. Selah
8 You have removed (P)my acquaintances far from me;
You have made me an [f](Q)object of loathing to them;
I am (R)shut up and cannot go out.
9 My (S)eye grows dim from misery;
I have (T)called upon You every day, Lord;
I have (U)spread out my [g]hands to You.
10 Will You perform wonders for the dead?
Or will (V)the departed spirits rise and praise You? Selah
11 Will Your graciousness be declared in the grave,
Your faithfulness in [h]Abaddon?
12 Will Your wonders be made known in the (W)darkness?
And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But I, Lord, have cried out (X)to You for help,
And (Y)in the morning my prayer comes before You.
14 Lord, why (Z)do You reject my soul?
Why do You (AA)hide Your face from me?
15 I was miserable and (AB)about to die from my youth on;
I suffer (AC)Your terrors; I grow weary.
16 Your (AD)burning anger has passed over me;
Your terrors have [i](AE)destroyed me.
17 They have (AF)surrounded me (AG)like water all day long;
They have (AH)encircled me altogether.
18 You have removed (AI)lover and friend far from me;
My acquaintances are in a hiding place.
A Psalm of Fearless Trust in God.
A Psalm of David.
27 The Lord is my (A)light and my (B)salvation;
Whom should I fear?
The Lord is the [a](C)defense of my life;
(D)Whom should I dread?
2 When evildoers came upon me to (E)devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they (F)stumbled and fell.
3 If an (G)army encamps against me,
My heart will not fear;
If war arises against me,
In spite of this I am (H)confident.
4 (I)One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek:
That I may (J)dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
To behold (K)the [b]beauty of the Lord
And to [c](L)meditate in His temple.
5 For on the (M)day of trouble He will (N)conceal me in His [d]tabernacle;
He will (O)hide me in the secret place of His tent;
He will (P)lift me up on a rock.
6 And now (Q)my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me,
And I will offer (R)sacrifices in His tent [e]with shouts of joy;
I will (S)sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.
7 (T)Hear, Lord, when I cry with my voice,
And be gracious to me and (U)answer me.
8 When You said, “(V)Seek My face,” my heart said to You,
“(W)I shall seek Your face, Lord.”
9 (X)Do not hide Your face from me,
Do not turn Your servant away in (Y)anger;
You have been (Z)my help;
(AA)Do not abandon me nor (AB)forsake me,
God of my salvation!
10 [f]For my father and (AC)my mother have forsaken me,
But (AD)the Lord will take me up.
11 (AE)Teach me Your way, Lord,
And lead me on a (AF)level path
Because of my enemies.
12 Do not turn me over to the [g](AG)desire of my enemies,
For (AH)false witnesses have risen against me,
And the violent (AI)witness.
13 I certainly believed that I would see the (AJ)goodness of the Lord
In the (AK)land of the living.
14 (AL)Wait for the Lord;
Be (AM)strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the Lord.
21 Pity me, pity me, you friends of mine,
For the (A)hand of God has struck me.
22 Why do you (B)persecute me as God does,
And are not satisfied with my flesh?
Job Says My Redeemer Lives
23 “Oh that my words were written!
Oh that they were (C)recorded in a book!
24 That with an iron stylus and lead
They were engraved in the rock forever!
25 Yet as for me, I know that (D)my Redeemer lives,
And at the last, He will take His stand on the [a]earth.
26 Even after my skin [b]is destroyed,
Yet from my flesh I will (E)see God,
27 Whom I, on my part, shall behold for myself,
And whom my eyes will see, and not another.
My [c]heart (F)faints [d]within me!
The Believer’s Rest
4 Therefore, we must fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have (A)come short of it. 2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also did; but (B)the word [a]they heard did not benefit them, because [b]they were not united with those who listened with faith. 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said,
“(C)As I swore in My anger,
They certainly shall not enter My rest,”
although His works were finished (D)from the foundation of the world. 4 For He has said (E)somewhere concerning the seventh day: “(F)And God (G)rested on the seventh day from all His works”; 5 and again in this passage, “(H)They certainly shall not enter My rest.” 6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who previously had good news preached to them failed to enter because of (I)disobedience, 7 He again sets a certain day, “Today,” saying [c]through David after so long a time just (J)as has been said before,
“(K)Today if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”
8 For (L)if [d]Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. 9 Consequently, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. 10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also (M)rested from his works, as (N)God did from His. 11 Therefore let’s make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following the same (O)example of (P)disobedience. 12 For (Q)the word of God is (R)living and (S)active, and sharper than any two-edged (T)sword, even penetrating as far as the division of (U)soul and (V)spirit, of both joints and marrow, and (W)able to [e]judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And (X)there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are (Y)open and laid bare to the eyes of Him to whom [f]we must answer.
14 Therefore, since we have a great (Z)high priest who has (AA)passed through the heavens, Jesus (AB)the Son of God, let’s hold firmly to our (AC)confession. 15 For we do not have (AD)a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been (AE)tempted in all things just as we are, yet (AF)without sin. 16 Therefore let’s (AG)approach the throne of grace with (AH)confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace for help at the time of our need.
Deliverance from Bondage
8 Therefore there is now no (A)condemnation at all for those who are (B)in (C)Christ Jesus. 2 For (D)the law of the Spirit of life [a]in (E)Christ Jesus (F)has set you free from the law of sin and of death. 3 For (G)what the Law could not do, [b](H)weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in (I)the likeness of [c]sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 so that the (J)requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us who (K)do not walk [d]according to the flesh but [e]according to the Spirit. 5 For those who are in accord with the flesh set their minds on (L)the things of the flesh, but those who are in accord with the Spirit, (M)the things of the Spirit. 6 (N)For the mind [f]set on the flesh is (O)death, but the mind [g]set on the Spirit is life and peace, 7 because the mind [h]set on the flesh is (P)hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, 8 and those who are (Q)in the flesh cannot please God.
9 However, you are not (R)in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God (S)dwells in you. But (T)if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. 10 (U)If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is [i]alive because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who (V)raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, (W)He who raised (X)Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies [j]through His Spirit who dwells in you.
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