DAILY OFFICE

Daily scripture readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer

Sunday, March 17

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

Psalm 118

1 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;     for his steadfast love endures forever! 2 Let Israel say,     “His steadfast love endures forever.” 3 Let the house of Aaron say,     “His steadfast love endures forever.” 4 Let those who fear the Lord say,     “His steadfast love endures forever.” 5 Out of my distress I called on the Lord;     the Lord answered me and set me free. 6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.     What can man do to me? 7 The Lord is on my side as my helper;     I shall look in triumph on those who hate me. 8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord     than to trust in man. 9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord     than to trust in princes. 10 All nations surrounded me;     in the name of the Lord I cut them off! 11 They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side;     in the name of the Lord I cut them off! 12 They surrounded me like bees;     they went out like a fire among thorns;     in the name of the Lord I cut them off! 13 I was pushed hard, so that I was falling,     but the Lord helped me. 14 The Lord is my strength and my song;     he has become my salvation. 15 Glad songs of salvation     are in the tents of the righteous:     “The right hand of the Lord does valiantly, 16 the right hand of the Lord exalts,     the right hand of the Lord does valiantly!” 17 I shall not die, but I shall live,     and recount the deeds of the Lord. 18 The Lord has disciplined me severely,     but he has not given me over to death. 19 Open to me the gates of righteousness,     that I may enter through them     and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord;     the righteous shall enter through it. 21 I thank you that you have answered me     and have become my salvation. 22 The stone that the builders rejected     has become the cornerstone. 23 This is the Lord's doing;     it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the Lord has made;     let us rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Save us, we pray, O Lord!     Lord, we pray, give us success! 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!     We bless you from the house of the Lord. 27 The Lord is God,     and he has made his light to shine upon us.     Bind the festal sacrifice with cords,     up to the horns of the altar! 28 You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;     you are my God; I will extol you. 29 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;     for his steadfast love endures forever!

Psalm 145

1 I will extol you, my God and King,     and bless your name forever and ever. 2 Every day I will bless you     and praise your name forever and ever. 3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,     and his greatness is unsearchable. 4 One generation shall commend your works to another,     and shall declare your mighty acts. 5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty,     and on your wondrous works, I will meditate. 6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,     and I will declare your greatness. 7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness     and shall sing aloud of your righteousness. 8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,     slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 The Lord is good to all,     and his mercy is over all that he has made. 10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,     and all your saints shall bless you! 11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom     and tell of your power, 12 to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,     and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. 13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,     and your dominion endures throughout all generations.     [The Lord is faithful in all his words     and kind in all his works.] 14 The Lord upholds all who are falling     and raises up all who are bowed down. 15 The eyes of all look to you,     and you give them their food in due season. 16 You open your hand;     you satisfy the desire of every living thing. 17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways     and kind in all his works. 18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,     to all who call on him in truth. 19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;     he also hears their cry and saves them. 20 The Lord preserves all who love him,     but all the wicked he will destroy. 21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,     and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

Exodus 3:16-4:12

16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt, 17 and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ 18 And they will listen to your voice, and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; and now, please let us go a three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.’ 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all the wonders that I will do in it; after that he will let you go. 21 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and when you go, you shall not go empty, 22 but each woman shall ask of her neighbor, and any woman who lives in her house, for silver and gold jewelry, and for clothing. You shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. So you shall plunder the Egyptians.” 4:1 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” 2 The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” 3 And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. 4 But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— 5 “that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” 6 Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. 7 Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. 8 “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. 9 If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.” 10 But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.”11 Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”

Romans 12

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. 3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. 9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

John 8:46-59

46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.” 48 The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” 49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” 52 The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ 53 Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” 54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ 55 But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” 59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

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