Psalms 116; Psalms 117; Psalms 118; 1 Corinthians 7:1-19

1 I love the Lord, because he listens to my prayers for help.

2 He paid attention to me, so I will call to him for help as long as I live.

3 The ropes of death bound me, and the fear of the grave took hold of me. I was troubled and sad.

4 Then I called out the name of the Lord. I said, "Please, Lord, save me!"

5 The Lord is kind and does what is right; our God is merciful.

6 The Lord watches over the foolish; when I was helpless, he saved me.

7 I said to myself, "Relax, because the Lord takes care of you."

8 Lord, you saved me from death. You stopped my eyes from crying; you kept me from being defeated.

9 So I will walk with the Lord in the land of the living.

10 I believed, so I said, "I am completely ruined."

11 In my distress I said, "All people are liars."

12 What can I give the Lord for all the good things he has given to me?

13 I will lift up the cup of salvation, and I will pray to the Lord.

14 I will give the Lord what I promised in front of all his people.

15 The death of one that belongs to the Lord is precious in his sight.

16 Lord, I am your servant; I am your servant and the son of your female servant. You have freed me from my chains.

17 I will give you an offering to show thanks to you, and I will pray to the Lord.

18 I will give the Lord what I promised in front of all his people,

19 in the Temple courtyards in Jerusalem.

1 All you nations, praise the Lord. All you people, praise him

2 because the Lord loves us very much, and his truth is everlasting.

1 Thank the Lord because he is good. His love continues forever.

2 Let the people of Israel say, "His love continues forever."

3 Let the family of Aaron say, "His love continues forever."

4 Let those who respect the Lord say, "His love continues forever."

5 I was in trouble, so I called to the Lord. The Lord answered me and set me free.

6 I will not be afraid, because the Lord is with me. People can't do anything to me.

7 The Lord is with me to help me, so I will see my enemies defeated.

8 It is better to trust the Lord than to trust people.

9 It is better to trust the Lord than to trust princes.

10 All the nations surrounded me, but I defeated them in the name of the Lord.

11 They surrounded me on every side, but with the Lord's power I defeated them.

12 They surrounded me like a swarm of bees, but they died as quickly as thorns burn. By the Lord's power, I defeated them.

13 They chased me until I was almost defeated, but the Lord helped me.

14 The Lord gives me strength and a song. He has saved me.

15 Shouts of joy and victory come from the tents of those who do right: "The Lord has done powerful things."

16 The power of the Lord has won the victory; with his power the Lord has done mighty things.

17 I will not die, but live, and I will tell what the Lord has done.

18 The Lord has taught me a hard lesson, but he did not let me die.

19 Open for me the Temple gates. Then I will come in and thank the Lord.

20 This is the Lord's gate; only those who are good may enter through it.

21 Lord, I thank you for answering me. You have saved me.

22 The stone that the builders rejected became the cornerstone.

23 The Lord did this, and it is wonderful to us.

24 This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad today!

25 Please, Lord, save us; please, Lord, give us success.

26 God bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless all of you from the Temple of the Lord.

27 The Lord is God, and he has shown kindness to us. With branches in your hands, join the feast. Come to the corners of the altar.

28 You are my God, and I will thank you; you are my God, and I will praise your greatness.

29 Thank the Lord because he is good. His love continues forever.

1 Now I will discuss the things you wrote me about. It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.

2 But because sexual sin is a danger, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.

3 The husband should give his wife all that he owes her as his wife. And the wife should give her husband all that she owes him as her husband.

4 The wife does not have full rights over her own body; her husband shares them. And the husband does not have full rights over his own body; his wife shares them.

5 Do not refuse to give your bodies to each other, unless you both agree to stay away from sexual relations for a time so you can give your time to prayer. Then come together again so Satan cannot tempt you because of a lack of self-control.

6 I say this to give you permission to stay away from sexual relations for a time. It is not a command to do so.

7 I wish that everyone were like me, but each person has his own gift from God. One has one gift, another has another gift.

8 Now for those who are not married and for the widows I say this: It is good for them to stay unmarried as I am.

9 But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry. It is better to marry than to burn with sexual desire.

10 Now I give this command for the married people. (The command is not from me; it is from the Lord.) A wife should not leave her husband.

11 But if she does leave, she must not marry again, or she should make up with her husband. Also the husband should not divorce his wife.

12 For all the others I say this (I am saying this, not the Lord): If a Christian man has a wife who is not a believer, and she is happy to live with him, he must not divorce her.

13 And if a Christian woman has a husband who is not a believer, and he is happy to live with her, she must not divorce him.

14 The husband who is not a believer is made holy through his believ- ing wife. And the wife who is not a believer is made holy through her believing husband. If this were not true, your children would not be clean, but now your children are holy.

15 But if those who are not believers decide to leave, let them leave. When this happens, the Christian man or woman is free. But God called us to live in peace.

16 Wife, you don't know; maybe you will save your husband. And husband, you don't know; maybe you will save your wife.

17 But in any case each one of you should continue to live the way God has given you to live -- the way you were when God called you. This is a rule I make in all the churches.

18 If a man was already circumcised when he was called, he should not undo his circumcision. If a man was without circumcision when he was called, he should not be circumcised.

19 It is not important if a man is circumcised or not. The important thing is obeying God's commands.