Thursday 11 September 2008<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span><!--StartFragment-->
<p class="MsoNormal">DAILY LECTIONARY</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Email Evangelism, forward to a friend: http://www.dailylectionary.org</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Job 29:1,31:1-23</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Job again took up his discourse and said:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘I have made a covenant with my eyes;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>how then could I look upon a virgin?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">What would be my portion from God above,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and my heritage from the Almighty* on high?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Does not calamity befall the unrighteous,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and disaster the workers of iniquity?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Does he not see my ways,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and number all my steps?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘If I have walked with falsehood,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and my foot has hurried to deceit—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">let me be weighed in a just balance,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and let God know my integrity!—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">if my step has turned aside from the way,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and my heart has followed my eyes,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and if any spot has clung to my hands;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then let me sow, and another eat;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and let what grows for me be rooted out.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘If my heart has been enticed by a woman,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and I have lain in wait at my neighbour’s door;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then let my wife grind for another,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and let other men kneel over her.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For that would be a heinous crime;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>that would be a criminal offence;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">for that would be a fire consuming down to Abaddon,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and it would burn to the root all my harvest.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘If I have rejected the cause of my male or female slaves,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>when they brought a complaint against me;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">what then shall I do when God rises up?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>When he makes inquiry, what shall I answer him?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Did not he who made me in the womb make them?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>And did not one fashion us in the womb?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘If I have withheld anything that the poor desired,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">or have eaten my morsel alone,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and the orphan has not eaten from it—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">for from my youth I reared the orphan* like a father,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow*—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">if I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or a poor person without covering,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">whose loins have not blessed me,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and who was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">if I have raised my hand against the orphan,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>because I saw I had supporters at the gate;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and let my arm be broken from its socket.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For I was in terror of calamity from God,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and I could not have faced his majesty.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Acts 15:1-11</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Then certain individuals came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’ And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to discuss this question with the apostles and the elders. So they were sent on their way by the church, and as they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, they reported the conversion of the Gentiles, and brought great joy to all the believers.* When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them. But some believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and said, ‘It is necessary for them to be circumcised and ordered to keep the law of Moses.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>The apostles and the elders met together to consider this matter. After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, ‘My brothers,* you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that I should be the one through whom the Gentiles would hear the message of the good news and become believers. And God, who knows the human heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us; and in cleansing their hearts by faith he has made no distinction between them and us. Now therefore why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">John 11:17-29</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus* had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles* away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life.* Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah,* the Son of God, the one coming into the world.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Morning Psalms:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Psalm 50</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 50</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The mighty one, God the Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>speaks and summons the earth</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>from the rising of the sun to its setting.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>God shines forth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our God comes and does not keep silence,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>before him is a devouring fire,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and a mighty tempest all around him.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He calls to the heavens above</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and to the earth, that he may judge his people:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘Gather to me my faithful ones,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The heavens declare his righteousness,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for God himself is judge.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘Hear, O my people, and I will speak,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>O Israel, I will testify against you.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am God, your God.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>your burnt-offerings are continually before me.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I will not accept a bull from your house,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or goats from your folds.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For every wild animal of the forest is mine,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the cattle on a thousand hills.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I know all the birds of the air,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and all that moves in the field is mine.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘If I were hungry, I would not tell you,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for the world and all that is in it is mine.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Do I eat the flesh of bulls,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or drink the blood of goats?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and pay your vows to the Most High.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Call on me in the day of trouble;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But to the wicked God says:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>‘What right have you to recite my statutes,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or take my covenant on your lips?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For you hate discipline,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and you cast my words behind you.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You make friends with a thief when you see one,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and you keep company with adulterers.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘You give your mouth free rein for evil,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and your tongue frames deceit.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You sit and speak against your kin;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you slander your own mother’s child.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">These things you have done and I have been silent;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you thought that I was one just like yourself.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">‘Mark this, then, you who forget God,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>or I will tear you apart, and there will be no one to deliver.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honour me;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to those who go the right way*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I will show the salvation of God.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Evening Psalms:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Psalm 59, 60, 93, 96</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 59</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>protect me from those who rise up against me.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Deliver me from those who work evil;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>from the bloodthirsty save me.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Even now they lie in wait for my life;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the mighty stir up strife against me.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For no transgression or sin of mine, O Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for no fault of mine, they run and make ready.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Rouse yourself, come to my help and see!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>You, Lord God of hosts, are God of Israel.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Awake to punish all the nations;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>spare none of those who treacherously plot evil.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Each evening they come back,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>howling like dogs</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and prowling about the city.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There they are, bellowing with their mouths,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>with sharp words* on their lips—</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for ‘Who’, they think,* ‘will hear us?’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But you laugh at them, O Lord;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you hold all the nations in derision.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">O my strength, I will watch for you;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for you, O God, are my fortress.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My God in his steadfast love will meet me;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>my God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Do not kill them, or my people may forget;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>make them totter by your power, and bring them down,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>O Lord, our shield.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>let them be trapped in their pride.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the cursing and lies that they utter,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>consume them in wrath;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>consume them until they are no more.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Then it will be known to the ends of the earth</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>that God rules over Jacob.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Each evening they come back,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>howling like dogs</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and prowling about the city.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">They roam about for food,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and growl if they do not get their fill.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">But I will sing of your might;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For you have been a fortress for me</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and a refuge on the day of my distress.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">O my strength, I will sing praises to you,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for you, O God, are my fortress,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the God who shows me steadfast love.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 60</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">O God, you have rejected us, broken our defences;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you have been angry; now restore us!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You have caused the land to quake; you have torn it open;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You have made your people suffer hard things;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You have set up a banner for those who fear you,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>to rally to it out of bowshot.*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes"> </span>Selah</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Give victory with your right hand, and answer us,*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>so that those whom you love may be rescued.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">God has promised in his sanctuary:*</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>‘With exultation I will divide up Shechem,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and portion out the Vale of Succoth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Ephraim is my helmet;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Judah is my sceptre.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Moab is my wash-basin;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>on Edom I hurl my shoe;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>over Philistia I shout in triumph.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Who will bring me to the fortified city?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Who will lead me to Edom?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Have you not rejected us, O God?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>You do not go out, O God, with our armies.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">O grant us help against the foe,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for human help is worthless.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">With God we shall do valiantly;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>it is he who will tread down our foes.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 93</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Lord is king, he is robed in majesty;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the Lord is robed, he is girded with strength.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He has established the world; it shall never be moved;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>your throne is established from of old;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>you are from everlasting.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The floods have lifted up, O Lord,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the floods have lifted up their voice;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>the floods lift up their roaring.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>more majestic than the waves* of the sea,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>majestic on high is the Lord!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Your decrees are very sure;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>holiness befits your house,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>O Lord, for evermore.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Psalm 96</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">O sing to the Lord a new song;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>sing to the Lord, all the earth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sing to the Lord, bless his name;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>tell of his salvation from day to day.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Declare his glory among the nations,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>his marvellous works among all the peoples.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>he is to be revered above all gods.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For all the gods of the peoples are idols,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>but the Lord made the heavens.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Honour and majesty are before him;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>bring an offering, and come into his courts.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Worship the Lord in holy splendour;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>tremble before him, all the earth.</p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Say among the nations, ‘The Lord is king!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>He will judge the peoples with equity.’</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>let the sea roar, and all that fills it;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>let the field exult, and everything in it.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>before the Lord; for he is coming,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>for he is coming to judge the earth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He will judge the world with righteousness,</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>and the peoples with his truth.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">******************************************************************</p>
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