DAILY OFFICE

Daily scripture readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer

Friday, May 19

Today's readings include passages from Psalms, Ezekiel, Hebrews and Luke.

Psalm 85

1 Lord, you were favorable to your land;     you restored the fortunes of Jacob. 2 You forgave the iniquity of your people;     you covered all their sin. Selah 3 You withdrew all your wrath;     you turned from your hot anger. 4 Restore us again, O God of our salvation,     and put away your indignation toward us! 5 Will you be angry with us forever?     Will you prolong your anger to all generations? 6 Will you not revive us again,     that your people may rejoice in you? 7 Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,     and grant us your salvation. 8 Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,     for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints;     but let them not turn back to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him,     that glory may dwell in our land. 10 Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;     righteousness and peace kiss each other. 11 Faithfulness springs up from the ground,     and righteousness looks down from the sky. 12 Yes, the Lord will give what is good,     and our land will yield its increase. 13 Righteousness will go before him     and make his footsteps a way.

 

Psalm 86

1 Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me,     for I am poor and needy. 2 Preserve my life, for I am godly;     save your servant, who trusts in you—you are my God. 3 Be gracious to me, O Lord,     for to you do I cry all the day. 4 Gladden the soul of your servant,     for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. 5 For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,     abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you. 6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;     listen to my plea for grace. 7 In the day of my trouble I call upon you,     for you answer me. 8 There is none like you among the gods, O Lord,     nor are there any works like yours. 9 All the nations you have made shall come     and worship before you, O Lord,     and shall glorify your name. 10 For you are great and do wondrous things;     you alone are God. 11 Teach me your way, O Lord,     that I may walk in your truth;     unite my heart to fear your name. 12 I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,     and I will glorify your name forever. 13 For great is your steadfast love toward me;     you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol. 14 O God, insolent men have risen up against me;     a band of ruthless men seeks my life,     and they do not set you before them. 15 But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,     slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. 16 Turn to me and be gracious to me;     give your strength to your servant,     and save the son of your maidservant. 17 Show me a sign of your favor,     that those who hate me may see and be put to shame     because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

 

Psalm 91

1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High     will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,     my God, in whom I trust.” 3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler     and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his pinions,     and under his wings you will find refuge;     his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. 5 You will not fear the terror of the night,     nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,     nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side,     ten thousand at your right hand,     but it will not come near you. 8 You will only look with your eyes     and see the recompense of the wicked. 9 Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—     the Most High, who is my refuge— 10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you,     no plague come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you     to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up,     lest you strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the adder;     the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot. 14 “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;     I will protect him, because he knows my name. 15 When he calls to me, I will answer him;     I will be with him in trouble;     I will rescue him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him     and show him my salvation.”

 

Psalm 92

1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord,     to sing praises to your name, O Most High; 2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning,     and your faithfulness by night, 3 to the music of the lute and the harp,     to the melody of the lyre. 4 For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;     at the works of your hands I sing for joy. 5 How great are your works, O Lord!     Your thoughts are very deep! 6 The stupid man cannot know;     the fool cannot understand this: 7 that though the wicked sprout like grass     and all evildoers flourish,     they are doomed to destruction forever; 8 but you, O Lord, are on high forever. 9 For behold, your enemies, O Lord,     for behold, your enemies shall perish;     all evildoers shall be scattered. 10 But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;     you have poured over me fresh oil. 11 My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;     my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants. 12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree     and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 13 They are planted in the house of the Lord;     they flourish in the courts of our God. 14 They still bear fruit in old age;     they are ever full of sap and green, 15 to declare that the Lord is upright;     he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

 

Ezekiel 1:28-3:3

28 Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking. 2:1 And he said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” 2 And as he spoke to me, the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard him speaking to me. 3 And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. 4 The descendants also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ 5 And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them. 6 And you, son of man, be not afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions. Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. 7 And you shall speak my words to them, whether they hear or refuse to hear, for they are a rebellious house. 8 “But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.” 9 And when I looked, behold, a hand was stretched out to me, and behold, a scroll of a book was in it. 10 And he spread it before me. And it had writing on the front and on the back, and there were written on it words of lamentation and mourning and woe. 3:1 And he said to me, “Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” 2 So I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat. 3 And he said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it.” Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.

 

Hebrews 4:14-5:6

14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. 5:1 For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. 3 Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. 4 And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. 5 So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him,     “You are my Son,     today I have begotten you”; 6 as he says also in another place,     “You are a priest forever,     after the order of Melchizedek.”

 

Luke 9:28-36

28 Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. 34 As he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!” 36 And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

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