Book of Common Prayer
The Thirsting Soul Satisfied in God.
A Psalm of David, [a]when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
63 O God, (A)You are my God; I shall seek You [b]earnestly;
My soul (B)thirsts for You, my flesh [c]yearns for You,
In a (C)dry and weary land where there is no water.
2 Thus I have (D)seen You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.
3 Because Your (E)lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips will praise You.
4 So I will bless You (F)as long as I live;
I will (G)lift up my hands in Your name.
5 My soul is (H)satisfied as with [d]marrow and fatness,
And my mouth offers (I)praises with joyful lips.
6 When I remember You (J)on my bed,
I meditate on You in the (K)night watches,
7 For (L)You have been my help,
And in the (M)shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.
8 My soul (N)clings [e]to You;
Your (O)right hand upholds me.
9 But those who (P)seek my [f]life to destroy it,
Will go into the [g](Q)depths of the earth.
10 [h]They will be [i](R)delivered over to the power of the sword;
They will be a [j](S)prey for foxes.
11 But the (T)king will rejoice in God;
Everyone who (U)swears by Him will glory,
For the (V)mouths of those who speak lies will be stopped.
A Call to Praise the Lord for His Righteousness.
A Psalm.
98 O sing to the Lord a (A)new song,
For He has done (B)wonderful things,
His (C)right hand and His (D)holy arm have [a]gained the victory for Him.
2 (E)The Lord has made known His salvation;
He has (F)revealed His [b]righteousness in the sight of the nations.
3 He has (G)remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
(H)All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Praise for the Lord’s Mercies.
A Psalm of David.
103 (A)Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is within me, bless His (B)holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And (C)forget none of His benefits;
3 Who (D)pardons all your iniquities,
Who (E)heals all your diseases;
4 Who (F)redeems your life from the pit,
Who (G)crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;
5 Who (H)satisfies your [a]years with good things,
So that your youth is (I)renewed like the eagle.
6 The Lord (J)performs [b]righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are (K)oppressed.
7 He (L)made known His ways to Moses,
His (M)acts to the sons of Israel.
8 The Lord is (N)compassionate and gracious,
(O)Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.
9 He (P)will not always strive with us,
Nor will He (Q)keep His anger forever.
10 He has (R)not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high (S)as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His lovingkindness toward those who [c]fear Him.
12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He (T)removed our transgressions from us.
13 Just (U)as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who [d]fear Him.
14 For (V)He Himself knows [e]our frame;
He (W)is mindful that we are but (X)dust.
15 As for man, his days are (Y)like grass;
As a (Z)flower of the field, so he flourishes.
16 When the (AA)wind has passed over it, it is no more,
And its (AB)place acknowledges it no longer.
17 But the (AC)lovingkindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who [f]fear Him,
And His [g]righteousness (AD)to children’s children,
18 To (AE)those who keep His covenant
And remember His precepts to do them.
19 The Lord has established His (AF)throne in the heavens,
And His [h](AG)sovereignty rules over [i]all.
20 Bless the Lord, you (AH)His angels,
(AI)Mighty in strength, who (AJ)perform His word,
(AK)Obeying the voice of His word!
21 Bless the Lord, all you (AL)His hosts,
You (AM)who serve Him, doing His will.
22 Bless the Lord, (AN)all you works of His,
In all places of His dominion;
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Serve God Willingly
5 (A)Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your (B)fellow elder and (C)witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a (D)partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, 2 shepherd (E)the flock of God among you, exercising oversight (F)not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and (G)not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; 3 nor yet as (H)lording it over [a]those allotted to your charge, but [b]proving to be (I)examples to the flock. 4 And when the Chief (J)Shepherd appears, you will receive the (K)unfading [c](L)crown of glory. 5 (M)You younger men, likewise, (N)be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with (O)humility toward one another, for (P)God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
6 Therefore (Q)humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 7 casting all your (R)anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. 8 (S)Be of sober spirit, (T)be on the alert. Your adversary, (U)the devil, prowls around like a roaring (V)lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 [d](W)But resist him, (X)firm in your faith, knowing that (Y)the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your [e]brethren who are in the world. 10 After you have suffered (Z)for a little while, the (AA)God of all grace, who (AB)called you to His (AC)eternal glory in Christ, will Himself (AD)perfect, (AE)confirm, strengthen and establish you. 11 (AF)To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.
A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of the (A)false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are (B)ravenous wolves. 16 You will [a](C)know them by their fruits. [b]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So (D)every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 (E)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will [c]know them (F)by their fruits.
21 “(G)Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 (H)Many will say to Me on (I)that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many [d]miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; (J)depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’
The Two Foundations
24 “Therefore (K)everyone who hears these words of Mine and [e]acts on them, [f]may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the [g]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26 Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not [h]act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain fell, and the [i]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
28 [j](L)When Jesus had finished these words, (M)the crowds were amazed at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.
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