DAILY OFFICE

Daily scripture readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer

Sunday, May 14

Today's readings include passages from Psalms, 1 Timothy 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.

 

1 Timothy 3:14-4:5

14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, 15 if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth. 16 Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:     He was manifested in the flesh,     vindicated by the Spirit,     seen by angels,     proclaimed among the nations,     believed on in the world,     taken up in glory. 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, 2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, 3 who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5 for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.

 

Matthew 13:24-34

24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” 31 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” 33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.” 34 All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable.

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