DAILY OFFICE

1 May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble!
    May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!
2 May he send you help from the sanctuary
    and give you support from Zion!
3 May he remember all your offerings
    and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! Selah
4 May he grant you your heart's desire
    and fulfill all your plans!
5 May we shout for joy over your salvation,
    and in the name of our God set up our banners!
    May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!
6 Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed;
    he will answer him from his holy heaven
    with the saving might of his right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
    but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
8 They collapse and fall,
    but we rise and stand upright.
9 O Lord, save the king!
    May he answer us when we call.

1 O Lord, in your strength the king rejoices,
    and in your salvation how greatly he exults!
2 You have given him his heart's desire
    and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah
3 For you meet him with rich blessings;
    you set a crown of fine gold upon his head.
4 He asked life of you; you gave it to him,
    length of days forever and ever.
5 His glory is great through your salvation;
    splendor and majesty you bestow on him.
6 For you make him most blessed forever;
    you make him glad with the joy of your presence.
7 For the king trusts in the Lord,
    and through the steadfast love of the Most High he shall not be moved.
8 Your hand will find out all your enemies;
    your right hand will find out those who hate you.
9 You will make them as a blazing oven
    when you appear.
    The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath,
    and fire will consume them.
10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth,
    and their offspring from among the children of man.
11 Though they plan evil against you,
    though they devise mischief, they will not succeed.
12 For you will put them to flight;
    you will aim at their faces with your bows.
13 Be exalted, O Lord, in your strength!
    We will sing and praise your power.

1 The Lord says to my Lord:
    “Sit at my right hand,
    until I make your enemies your footstool.”
2 The Lord sends forth from Zion
    your mighty scepter.
    Rule in the midst of your enemies!
3 Your people will offer themselves freely
    on the day of your power,
    in holy garments;
    from the womb of the morning,
    the dew of your youth will be yours.
4 The Lord has sworn
    and will not change his mind,
    “You are a priest forever
    after the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right hand;
    he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6 He will execute judgment among the nations,
    filling them with corpses;
    he will shatter chiefs
    over the wide earth.
7 He will drink from the brook by the way;
    therefore he will lift up his head.

1 I love the Lord, because he has heard
    my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed me;
    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
    I suffered distress and anguish.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
    “O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”
5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
    our God is merciful.
6 The Lord preserves the simple;
    when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Return, O my soul, to your rest;
    for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
8 For you have delivered my soul from death,
    my eyes from tears,
    my feet from stumbling;
9 I will walk before the Lord
    in the land of the living.
10 I believed, even when I spoke:
    “I am greatly afflicted”;
11 I said in my alarm,
    “All mankind are liars.”
12 What shall I render to the Lord
    for all his benefits to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
    and call on the name of the Lord,
14 I will pay my vows to the Lord
    in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
    is the death of his saints.
16 O Lord, I am your servant;
    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
    You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
    and call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will pay my vows to the Lord
    in the presence of all his people,
19 in the courts of the house of the Lord,
    in your midst, O Jerusalem.
    Praise the Lord!

1 Praise the Lord, all nations!
    Extol him, all peoples!
2 For great is his steadfast love toward us,
    and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
    Praise the Lord!

17 After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews, and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18 When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. 19 But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation. 20 For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.” 21 And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. 22 But we desire to hear from you what your views are, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.” 23 When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. 24 And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 25 And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: “The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:
26 “‘Go to this people, and say,
    “You will indeed hear but never understand,
    and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
27 For this people's heart has grown dull,
    and with their ears they can barely hear,
    and their eyes they have closed;
    lest they should see with their eyes
    and hear with their ears
    and understand with their heart
    and turn, and I would heal them.’
28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” 30 He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.

37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. 39 And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was coming, the demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astonished at the majesty of God. But while they were all marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus said to his disciples, 44 “Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying. 46 An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. 47 But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great.” 49 John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” 50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”