Today's Scripture & Prayer

Daily Bible Reading & Praying with the Church

The congregation of Countryside is encouraged to not only read ahead in the texts we will be sharing and studying together during our services, but also to personally read the Scriptures together as a congregation. Here you will find Scripture for the day (a Psalm for each morning (always at least the first Psalm) and night, and selections from the Old Testament, New Testament and Gospels), as well as weekly and daily prayers. Together we read through the New Testament once a year, and the Old Testament every two years. The Scripture selections, and the prayers, are from common sources used by most Christians throughout the world.

The historic church found expression in the same rhythms of worship and devotion that were evident in the early church, and among the Hebrews, God's people, before that. Our hope is that the regular reminder will be of encouragement to us all to join the people of God in reading the Scriptures and praying. Both are meant to go together with our daily prayer and communion service.

Reading for Fri, Jan 16

Psalm 16-17

Psalm 16

A miktam^[a] of David.

¹Keep me safe,^(A) my God,
for in you I take refuge.^(B)

²I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;^(C)
apart from you I have no good thing.”^(D)
³I say of the holy people^(E) who are in the land,^(F)
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
⁴Those who run after other gods^(G) will suffer^(H) more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names^(I) on my lips.

⁵Lord, you alone are my portion^(J) and my cup;^(K)
you make my lot^(L) secure.
⁶The boundary lines^(M) have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.^(N)
⁷I will praise the Lord, who counsels me;^(O)
even at night^(P) my heart instructs me.
⁸I keep my eyes always on the Lord.
With him at my right hand,^(Q) I will not be shaken.^(R)

⁹Therefore my heart is glad^(S) and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,^(T)
¹⁰because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,^(U)
nor will you let your faithful^[b] one^(V) see decay.^(W)
¹¹You make known to me the path of life;^(X)
you will fill me with joy in your presence,^(Y)
with eternal pleasures^(Z) at your right hand.^(AA)

Psalm 17

A prayer of David.

¹Hear me,^(AB) Lord, my plea is just;
listen to my cry.^(AC)
Hear^(AD) my prayer—
it does not rise from deceitful lips.^(AE)
²Let my vindication^(AF) come from you;
may your eyes see what is right.^(AG)

³Though you probe my heart,^(AH)
though you examine me at night and test me,^(AI)
you will find that I have planned no evil;^(AJ)
my mouth has not transgressed.^(AK)
⁴Though people tried to bribe me,
I have kept myself from the ways of the violent
through what your lips have commanded.
⁵My steps have held to your paths;^(AL)
my feet have not stumbled.^(AM)

⁶I call on you, my God, for you will answer me;^(AN)
turn your ear to me^(AO) and hear my prayer.^(AP)
⁷Show me the wonders of your great love,^(AQ)
you who save by your right hand^(AR)
those who take refuge^(AS) in you from their foes.
⁸Keep me^(AT) as the apple of your eye;^(AU)
hide me^(AV) in the shadow of your wings^(AW)
⁹from the wicked who are out to destroy me,
from my mortal enemies who surround me.^(AX)

¹⁰They close up their callous hearts,^(AY)
and their mouths speak with arrogance.^(AZ)
¹¹They have tracked me down, they now surround me,^(BA)
with eyes alert, to throw me to the ground.
¹²They are like a lion^(BB) hungry for prey,^(BC)
like a fierce lion crouching in cover.

¹³Rise up,^(BD) Lord, confront them, bring them down;^(BE)
with your sword rescue me from the wicked.
¹⁴By your hand save me from such people, Lord,
from those of this world^(BF) whose reward is in this life.^(BG)
May what you have stored up for the wicked fill their bellies;
may their children gorge themselves on it,
and may there be leftovers^(BH) for their little ones.

¹⁵As for me, I will be vindicated and will see your face;
when I awake,^(BI) I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.^(BJ)

Footnotes:

Psalm 16:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
Psalm 16:10 Or holy

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 22

Psalm 22^[a]

For the director of music. To the tune of “The Doe of the Morning.” A psalm of David.

¹My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?^(A)
Why are you so far^(B) from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?^(C)
²My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,^(D)
by night,^(E) but I find no rest.^[b]

³Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;^(F)
you are the one Israel praises.^[c]^(G)
⁴In you our ancestors put their trust;
they trusted and you delivered them.^(H)
⁵To you they cried out^(I) and were saved;
in you they trusted^(J) and were not put to shame.^(K)

⁶But I am a worm^(L) and not a man,
scorned by everyone,^(M) despised^(N) by the people.
⁷All who see me mock me;^(O)
they hurl insults,^(P) shaking their heads.^(Q)
⁸“He trusts in the Lord,” they say,
“let the Lord rescue him.^(R)
Let him deliver him,^(S)
since he delights^(T) in him.”

⁹Yet you brought me out of the womb;^(U)
you made me trust^(V) in you, even at my mother’s breast.
¹⁰From birth^(W) I was cast on you;
from my mother’s womb you have been my God.

¹¹Do not be far from me,^(X)
for trouble is near^(Y)
and there is no one to help.^(Z)

¹²Many bulls^(AA) surround me;^(AB)
strong bulls of Bashan^(AC) encircle me.
¹³Roaring lions^(AD) that tear their prey^(AE)
open their mouths wide^(AF) against me.
¹⁴I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint.^(AG)
My heart has turned to wax;^(AH)
it has melted^(AI) within me.
¹⁵My mouth^[d] is dried up like a potsherd,^(AJ)
and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;^(AK)
you lay me in the dust^(AL) of death.

¹⁶Dogs^(AM) surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce^[e]^(AN) my hands and my feet.
¹⁷All my bones are on display;
people stare^(AO) and gloat over me.^(AP)
¹⁸They divide my clothes among them
and cast lots^(AQ) for my garment.^(AR)

¹⁹But you, Lord, do not be far from me.^(AS)
You are my strength;^(AT) come quickly^(AU) to help me.^(AV)
²⁰Deliver me from the sword,^(AW)
my precious life^(AX) from the power of the dogs.^(AY)
²¹Rescue me from the mouth of the lions;^(AZ)
save me from the horns of the wild oxen.^(BA)

²²I will declare your name to my people;
in the assembly^(BB) I will praise you.^(BC)
²³You who fear the Lord, praise him!^(BD)
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!^(BE)
Revere him,^(BF) all you descendants of Israel!
²⁴For he has not despised^(BG) or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;^(BH)
he has not hidden his face^(BI) from him
but has listened to his cry for help.^(BJ)

²⁵From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;^(BK)
before those who fear you^[f] I will fulfill my vows.^(BL)
²⁶The poor will eat^(BM) and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise him—^(BN)
may your hearts live forever!

²⁷All the ends of the earth^(BO)
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,^(BP)
²⁸for dominion belongs to the Lord^(BQ)
and he rules over the nations.

²⁹All the rich^(BR) of the earth will feast and worship;^(BS)
all who go down to the dust^(BT) will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.^(BU)
³⁰Posterity^(BV) will serve him;
future generations^(BW) will be told about the Lord.
³¹They will proclaim his righteousness,^(BX)
declaring to a people yet unborn:^(BY)
He has done it!^(BZ)

Footnotes:

Psalm 22:1 In Hebrew texts 22:1-31 is numbered 22:2-32.
Psalm 22:2 Or night, and am not silent
Psalm 22:3 Or Yet you are holy, / enthroned on the praises of Israel
Psalm 22:15 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text strength
Psalm 22:16 Dead Sea Scrolls and some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Septuagint and Syriac; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text me, / like a lion
Psalm 22:25 Hebrew him

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Genesis 6:1-8

Wickedness in the World

6 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth^(A) and daughters were born to them, ²the sons of God^(B) saw that the daughters^(C) of humans were beautiful,^(D) and they married^(E) any of them they chose. ³Then the Lord said, “My Spirit^(F) will not contend with^[a] humans forever,^(G) for they are mortal^[b];^(H) their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”

⁴The Nephilim^(I) were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans^(J) and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.^(K)

⁵The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth,^(L) and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.^(M) ⁶The Lord regretted^(N) that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. ⁷So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth^(O) the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.^(P)” ⁸But Noah^(Q) found favor in the eyes of the Lord.^(R)

Footnotes:

Genesis 6:3 Or My spirit will not remain in
Genesis 6:3 Or corrupt

New International Version (NIV)

Hebrews 3:12-19

¹²See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.^(A) ¹³But encourage one another daily,^(B) as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.^(C) ¹⁴We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold^(D) our original conviction firmly to the very end.^(E) ¹⁵As has just been said:

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion.”^[a]^(F)

¹⁶Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?^(G) ¹⁷And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness?^(H) ¹⁸And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest^(I) if not to those who disobeyed?^(J) ¹⁹So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.^(K)

Footnotes:

Hebrews 3:15 Psalm 95:7,8

New International Version (NIV)

John 2:1-12

Jesus Changes Water Into Wine

2 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.^(A) Jesus’ mother^(B) was there, ²and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. ³When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

⁴“Woman,^[a]^(C) why do you involve me?”^(D) Jesus replied. “My hour^(E) has not yet come.”

⁵His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”^(F)

⁶Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing,^(G) each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.^[b]

⁷Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.

⁸Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, ⁹and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.^(H) He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside ¹⁰and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

¹¹What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs^(I) through which he revealed his glory;^(J) and his disciples believed in him.^(K)

¹²After this he went down to Capernaum^(L) with his mother^(M) and brothers^(N) and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.

Footnotes:

John 2:4 The Greek for Woman does not denote any disrespect.
John 2:6 Or from about 75 to about 115 liters

Cross references:

John 2:1 : Jn 4:46; 21:2
John 2:1 : S Mt 12:46
John 2:4 : Jn 19:26
John 2:4 : S Mt 8:29
John 2:4 : S Mt 26:18
John 2:5 : Ge 41:55
John 2:6 : Mk 7:3, 4; Jn 3:25
John 2:9 : Jn 4:46
John 2:11 : ver 23; Mt 12:38; Jn 3:2; S 4:48; 6:2, 14, 26, 30; 12:37; 20:30
John 2:11 : Jn 1:14
John 2:11 : Ex 14:31
John 2:12 : S Mt 4:13
John 2:12 : S Mt 12:46
John 2:12 : S Mt 12:46

New International Version (NIV)

For Today's Prayers click here

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Greatest Commandment

"‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these.” [Mark 12:29-31]

Daily Scripture 01-11-2026

DAILY READINGS: January 11-18

SUNDAY: Morning: Psalm 146, 147; Evening: Psalm 111, 112, 113; Isaiah 40:1-11; Hebrews 1:1-12; John 1:1-7,19-20,29-34

MONDAY: Morning: Psalm 1, 2, 3; Evening: Psalm 4, 7; Isaiah 40:12-23; Ephesians 1:1-14; Mark 1:1-13

TUESDAY: Morning: Psalm 5, 6; Evening: Psalm 10, 11; Isaiah 40:25-31; Ephesians 1:15-23; Mark 1:14-28

WEDNESDAY: Morning: Psalm 119:1-24; Evening: Psalm 12, 13, 14; Isaiah 41:1-16; Ephesians 2:1-10; Mark 1:29-45

THURSDAY: Morning: Psalm 18:1-20; Evening: Psalm 18:21-50; Isaiah 41:17-29; Ephesians 2:11-22; Mark 2:1-12

FRIDAY: Morning: Psalm 16, 17; Evening: Psalm 22; Isaiah 42:1-17; Ephesians 3:1-13; Mark 2:13-22

SATURDAY: Morning: Psalm 20, 21:1-14; Evening: Psalm 110:1-7, 116, 117; Isaiah 43:1-13; Ephesians 3:14-21; Mark 2:23-3:6

SUNDAY: Morning: Psalm 148, 149, 150; Evening: Psalm 114, 115; Isaiah 43:14-44:5; Hebrews 6:17-7:10; John 4:27-42

FOR THE WEEK: Psalm 29; Isaiah 42:1-9; Acts 10:34-43; Matthew 3:13-17; Luke 19

Today's Scripture & Prayer

Daily Bible Reading & Praying with the Church

Today's Scripture & Prayer

Daily Bible Reading & Praying with the Church

Reading for Fri, Jan 16

Psalm 16-17

Psalm 16

A miktam[a] of David.

Psalm 17

A prayer of David.

Footnotes:

Cross references:

Psalm 22

Psalm 22[a]

For the director of music. To the tune of “The Doe of the Morning.” A psalm of David.

Footnotes:

Cross references:

Genesis 6:1-8

Wickedness in the World

Footnotes:

Cross references:

Hebrews 3:12-19

Footnotes:

Cross references:

John 2:1-12

Jesus Changes Water Into Wine

Footnotes:

Cross references:

A miktam^[a] of David.

Psalm 22^[a]