Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 40[a](A)
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 I waited patiently(B) for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.(C)
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,(D)
out of the mud(E) and mire;(F)
he set my feet(G) on a rock(H)
and gave me a firm place to stand.
3 He put a new song(I) in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord(J)
and put their trust(K) in him.
4 Blessed is the one(L)
who trusts in the Lord,(M)
who does not look to the proud,(N)
to those who turn aside to false gods.[b](O)
5 Many, Lord my God,
are the wonders(P) you have done,
the things you planned for us.
None can compare(Q) with you;
were I to speak and tell of your deeds,
they would be too many(R) to declare.
6 Sacrifice and offering you did not desire—(S)
but my ears you have opened[c]—(T)
burnt offerings(U) and sin offerings[d] you did not require.
7 Then I said, “Here I am, I have come—
it is written about me in the scroll.[e](V)
8 I desire to do your will,(W) my God;(X)
your law is within my heart.”(Y)
9 I proclaim your saving acts(Z) in the great assembly;(AA)
I do not seal my lips, Lord,
as you know.(AB)
10 I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I speak of your faithfulness(AC) and your saving help.
I do not conceal your love and your faithfulness
from the great assembly.(AD)
11 Do not withhold your mercy(AE) from me, Lord;
may your love(AF) and faithfulness(AG) always protect(AH) me.
12 For troubles(AI) without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.(AJ)
They are more than the hairs of my head,(AK)
and my heart fails(AL) within me.
13 Be pleased to save me, Lord;
come quickly, Lord, to help me.(AM)
14 May all who want to take my life(AN)
be put to shame and confusion;(AO)
may all who desire my ruin(AP)
be turned back in disgrace.
15 May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”(AQ)
be appalled at their own shame.
16 But may all who seek you(AR)
rejoice and be glad(AS) in you;
may those who long for your saving help always say,
“The Lord is great!”(AT)
Psalm 54[a]
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A maskil[b] of David. When the Ziphites(A) had gone to Saul and said, “Is not David hiding among us?”
1 Save me(B), O God, by your name;(C)
vindicate me by your might.(D)
2 Hear my prayer, O God;(E)
listen to the words of my mouth.
Psalm 51[a]
For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.(A)
1 Have mercy(B) on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;(C)
according to your great compassion(D)
blot out(E) my transgressions.(F)
2 Wash away(G) all my iniquity
and cleanse(H) me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.(I)
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned(J)
and done what is evil in your sight;(K)
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.(L)
5 Surely I was sinful(M) at birth,(N)
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom(O) in that secret place.(P)
7 Cleanse(Q) me with hyssop,(R) and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.(S)
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;(T)
let the bones(U) you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins(V)
and blot out(W) all my iniquity.
10 Create in me a pure heart,(X) O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.(Y)
11 Do not cast me(Z) from your presence(AA)
or take your Holy Spirit(AB) from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation(AC)
and grant me a willing spirit,(AD) to sustain me.(AE)
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,(AF)
so that sinners(AG) will turn back to you.(AH)
14 Deliver me(AI) from the guilt of bloodshed,(AJ) O God,
you who are God my Savior,(AK)
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.(AL)
15 Open my lips, Lord,(AM)
and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 You do not delight in sacrifice,(AN) or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 My sacrifice,(AO) O God, is[b] a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart(AP)
you, God, will not despise.
Job’s Final Defense
29 Job continued his discourse:(A)
24 “If I have put my trust in gold(A)
or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’(B)
25 if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,(C)
the fortune my hands had gained,(D)
26 if I have regarded the sun(E) in its radiance
or the moon(F) moving in splendor,
27 so that my heart was secretly enticed(G)
and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,(H)
28 then these also would be sins to be judged,(I)
for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.(J)
29 “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune(K)
or gloated over the trouble that came to him(L)—
30 I have not allowed my mouth to sin
by invoking a curse against their life(M)—
31 if those of my household have never said,
‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’(N)—
32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
for my door was always open to the traveler(O)—
33 if I have concealed(P) my sin as people do,[a]
by hiding(Q) my guilt in my heart
34 because I so feared the crowd(R)
and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
that I kept silent(S) and would not go outside—
35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!(T)
I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
let my accuser(U) put his indictment in writing.
36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,(V)
I would put it on like a crown.(W)
37 I would give him an account of my every step;(X)
I would present it to him as to a ruler.(Y))—
38 “if my land cries out against me(Z)
and all its furrows are wet(AA) with tears,
39 if I have devoured its yield without payment(AB)
or broken the spirit of its tenants,(AC)
40 then let briers(AD) come up instead of wheat
and stinkweed(AE) instead of barley.”
The words of Job are ended.(AF)
12 The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders(A) God had done among the Gentiles through them.(B) 13 When they finished, James(C) spoke up. “Brothers,” he said, “listen to me. 14 Simon[a] has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles.(D) 15 The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:
16 “‘After this I will return
and rebuild David’s fallen tent.
Its ruins I will rebuild,
and I will restore it,
17 that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
even all the Gentiles who bear my name,
says the Lord, who does these things’[b](E)—
18 things known from long ago.[c](F)
19 “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols,(G) from sexual immorality,(H) from the meat of strangled animals and from blood.(I) 21 For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”(J)
30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him.(A) 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her,(B) noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.
32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”(C)
33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved(D) in spirit and troubled.(E) 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.
“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
35 Jesus wept.(F)
36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”(G)
37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man(H) have kept this man from dying?”(I)
Jesus Raises Lazarus From the Dead
38 Jesus, once more deeply moved,(J) came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance.(K) 39 “Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”(L)
40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe,(M) you will see the glory of God?”(N)
41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up(O) and said, “Father,(P) I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here,(Q) that they may believe that you sent me.”(R)
43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”(S) 44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen,(T) and a cloth around his face.(U)
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
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