DAILY OFFICE

Daily scripture readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer

Sunday, January 1

Today's readings include passages from Psalms, Isaiah, Hebrews and Matthew.

Psalm 34

1 I will bless the Lord at all times;     his praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2 My soul makes its boast in the Lord;     let the humble hear and be glad. 3 Oh, magnify the Lord with me,     and let us exalt his name together! 4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me     and delivered me from all my fears. 5 Those who look to him are radiant,     and their faces shall never be ashamed. 6 This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him     and saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the Lord encamps     around those who fear him, and delivers them. 8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!     Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! 9 Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints,     for those who fear him have no lack! 10 The young lions suffer want and hunger;     but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. 11 Come, O children, listen to me;     I will teach you the fear of the Lord. 12 What man is there who desires life     and loves many days, that he may see good? 13 Keep your tongue from evil     and your lips from speaking deceit. 14 Turn away from evil and do good;     seek peace and pursue it. 15 The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous     and his ears toward their cry. 16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,     to cut off the memory of them from the earth. 17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears     and delivers them out of all their troubles. 18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted     and saves the crushed in spirit. 19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,     but the Lord delivers him out of them all. 20 He keeps all his bones;     not one of them is broken. 21 Affliction will slay the wicked,     and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. 22 The Lord redeems the life of his servants;     none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

 

Psalm 93

1 The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty;     the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt.     Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. 2 Your throne is established from of old;     you are from everlasting. 3 The floods have lifted up, O Lord,     the floods have lifted up their voice;     the floods lift up their roaring. 4 Mightier than the thunders of many waters,     mightier than the waves of the sea,     the Lord on high is mighty! 5 Your decrees are very trustworthy;     holiness befits your house,     Lord, forevermore.

 

Psalm 96

1 Oh sing to the Lord a new song;     sing to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Sing to the Lord, bless his name;     tell of his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations,     his marvelous works among all the peoples! 4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;     he is to be feared above all gods. 5 For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,     but the Lord made the heavens. 6 Splendor and majesty are before him;     strength and beauty are in his sanctuary. 7 Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,     ascribe to the Lord glory and strength! 8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;     bring an offering, and come into his courts! 9 Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;     tremble before him, all the earth! 10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!     Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;     he will judge the peoples with equity.” 11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;     let the sea roar, and all that fills it; 12 let the field exult, and everything in it!     Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy 13 before the Lord, for he comes,     for he comes to judge the earth.     He will judge the world in righteousness,     and the peoples in his faithfulness.

 

Psalm 103

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,     and all that is within me,     bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul,     and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity,     who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit,     who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good     so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. The Lord works righteousness     and justice for all who are oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses,     his acts to the people of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious,     slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide,     nor will he keep his anger forever. 10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,     nor repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,     so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west,     so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 13 As a father shows compassion to his children,     so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. 14 For he knows our frame;     he remembers that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are like grass;     he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,     and its place knows it no more. 17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,     and his righteousness to children's children, 18 to those who keep his covenant     and remember to do his commandments. 19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,     and his kingdom rules over all. 20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,     you mighty ones who do his word,     obeying the voice of his word! 21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,     his ministers, who do his will! 22 Bless the Lord, all his works,     in all places of his dominion.     Bless the Lord, O my soul! 

 

Psalm 148

1 Praise the Lord!     Praise the Lord from the heavens;     praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels;     praise him, all his hosts! Praise him, sun and moon,     praise him, all you shining stars! Praise him, you highest heavens,     and you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord!     For he commanded and they were created. And he established them forever and ever;     he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth,     you great sea creatures and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and mist,     stormy wind fulfilling his word! Mountains and all hills,     fruit trees and all cedars! 10 Beasts and all livestock,     creeping things and flying birds! 11 Kings of the earth and all peoples,     princes and all rulers of the earth! 12 Young men and maidens together,     old men and children! 13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,     for his name alone is exalted;     his majesty is above earth and heaven. 14 He has raised up a horn for his people,     praise for all his saints,     for the people of Israel who are near to him.     Praise the Lord

 

Genesis 17:1-12a, 15-16 

1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.” And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. 10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. ... 15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” 

 

Isaiah 62:6-7, 10-12

6 On your walls, O Jerusalem,     I have set watchmen;     all the day and all the night     they shall never be silent.     You who put the Lord in remembrance,     take no rest, 7 and give him no rest     until he establishes Jerusalem     and makes it a praise in the earth. ... 10 Go through, go through the gates;     prepare the way for the people;     build up, build up the highway;     clear it of stones;     lift up a signal over the peoples. 11 Behold, the Lord has proclaimed     to the end of the earth:     Say to the daughter of Zion,     “Behold, your salvation comes;     behold, his reward is with him,     and his recompense before him.” 12 And they shall be called The Holy People,     The Redeemed of the Lord;     and you shall be called Sought Out,     A City Not Forsaken.

 

Colossians 2:6-12

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 
 

Hebrews 2:10-18

10 For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11 For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, 12 saying,     “I will tell of your name to my brothers;     in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” 13 And again,     “I will put my trust in him.”     And again,     “Behold, I and the children God has given me.” 14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

 

Matthew 1:18-25

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,     and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

 

John 16:23b-30

23b ... Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. 24 Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. 25 “I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. 26 In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; 27 for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. 28 I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.” 29 His disciples said, “Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! 30 Now we know that you know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that you came from God.” 
  English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.