DAILY OFFICE

Daily scripture readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer

Saturday, March 11

Today's readings include passages from Psalms, Jeremiah, Romans and John.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.      He leads me beside still waters. 3 He restores my soul.     He leads me in paths of righteousness     for his name's sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,     I will fear no evil,     for you are with me;     your rod and your staff,     they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me     in the presence of my enemies;     you anoint my head with oil;     my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me     all the days of my life,     and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord     forever. 

 

Psalm 27

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation;     whom shall I fear?     The Lord is the stronghold of my life;     of whom shall I be afraid? 2 When evildoers assail me     to eat up my flesh,     my adversaries and foes,     it is they who stumble and fall. 3 Though an army encamp against me,     my heart shall not fear;     though war arise against me,     yet I will be confident. 4 One thing have I asked of the Lord,     that will I seek after:     that I may dwell in the house of the Lord     all the days of my life,     to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord     and to inquire in his temple. 5 For he will hide me in his shelter     in the day of trouble;     he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;     he will lift me high upon a rock. 6 And now my head shall be lifted up     above my enemies all around me,     and I will offer in his tent     sacrifices with shouts of joy;     I will sing and make melody to the Lord. 7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;     be gracious to me and answer me! 8 You have said, “Seek my face.”      My heart says to you,     “Your face, Lord, do I seek.” 9 Hide not your face from me.     Turn not your servant away in anger,     O you who have been my help.     Cast me not off; forsake me not,     O God of my salvation! 10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me,     but the Lord will take me in. 11 Teach me your way, O Lord,     and lead me on a level path     because of my enemies. 12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;     for false witnesses have risen against me,     and they breathe out violence. 13 I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord     in the land of the living! 14 Wait for the Lord;     be strong, and let your heart take courage;     wait for the Lord

 

Psalm 75

1 We give thanks to you, O God;     we give thanks, for your name is near.     We recount your wondrous deeds. 2 “At the set time that I appoint     I will judge with equity. 3 When the earth totters, and all its inhabitants,     it is I who keep steady its pillars. Selah 4 I say to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’     and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horn; 5 do not lift up your horn on high,     or speak with haughty neck.’” 6 For not from the east or from the west     and not from the wilderness comes lifting up, 7 but it is God who executes judgment,     putting down one and lifting up another. 8 For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup     with foaming wine, well mixed,     and he pours out from it,     and all the wicked of the earth     shall drain it down to the dregs. 9 But I will declare it forever;     I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. 10 All the horns of the wicked I will cut off,     but the horns of the righteous shall be lifted up. 

 

Psalm 76

1 In Judah God is known;     his name is great in Israel. 2 His abode has been established in Salem,     his dwelling place in Zion. 3 There he broke the flashing arrows,     the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. Selah 4 Glorious are you, more majestic     than the mountains full of prey. 5 The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil;     they sank into sleep;     all the men of war     were unable to use their hands. 6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,     both rider and horse lay stunned. 7 But you, you are to be feared!     Who can stand before you     when once your anger is roused? 8 From the heavens you uttered judgment;     the earth feared and was still, 9 when God arose to establish judgment,     to save all the humble of the earth. Selah 10 Surely the wrath of man shall praise you;     the remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt. 11 Make your vows to the Lord your God and perform them;     let all around him bring gifts     to him who is to be feared, 12 who cuts off the spirit of princes,     who is to be feared by the kings of the earth. 

 

Jeremiah 5:20-31

20 Declare this in the house of Jacob;     proclaim it in Judah: 21 “Hear this, O foolish and senseless people,     who have eyes, but see not,     who have ears, but hear not. 22 Do you not fear me? declares the Lord.     Do you not tremble before me?     I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea,     a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass;     though the waves toss, they cannot prevail;     though they roar, they cannot pass over it. 23 But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart;     they have turned aside and gone away. 24 They do not say in their hearts,     ‘Let us fear the Lord our God,     who gives the rain in its season,     the autumn rain and the spring rain,     and keeps for us     the weeks appointed for the harvest.’ 25 Your iniquities have turned these away,     and your sins have kept good from you. 26 For wicked men are found among my people;     they lurk like fowlers lying in wait.     They set a trap;     they catch men. 27 Like a cage full of birds,     their houses are full of deceit;     therefore they have become great and rich; 28 they have grown fat and sleek.     They know no bounds in deeds of evil;     they judge not with justice     the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper,     and they do not defend the rights of the needy. 29 Shall I not punish them for these things?     declares the Lord,     and shall I not avenge myself     on a nation such as this?” 30 An appalling and horrible thing     has happened in the land: 31 the prophets prophesy falsely,     and the priests rule at their direction;     my people love to have it so,     but what will you do when the end comes? 

 

Romans 3:19-31

19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. 27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. 29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. 31 Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law. 

 

John 7:1-13

1 After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. 2 Now the Jews' Feast of Booths was at hand. 3 So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. 4 For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 For not even his brothers believed in him. 6 Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. 8 You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After saying this, he remained in Galilee. 10 But after his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. 11 The Jews were looking for him at the feast, and saying, “Where is he?” 12 And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No, he is leading the people astray.” 13 Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him.

  English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.