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 Wed, Nov 26

Psalm 119:145-176

ק Qoph

¹⁴⁵I call with all my heart;^(A) answer me, Lord,
and I will obey your decrees.^(B)
¹⁴⁶I call out to you; save me^(C)
and I will keep your statutes.
¹⁴⁷I rise before dawn^(D) and cry for help;
I have put my hope in your word.
¹⁴⁸My eyes stay open through the watches of the night,^(E)
that I may meditate on your promises.
¹⁴⁹Hear my voice^(F) in accordance with your love;^(G)
preserve my life,^(H) Lord, according to your laws.
¹⁵⁰Those who devise wicked schemes^(I) are near,
but they are far from your law.
¹⁵¹Yet you are near,^(J) Lord,
and all your commands are true.^(K)
¹⁵²Long ago I learned from your statutes^(L)
that you established them to last forever.^(M)

ר Resh

¹⁵³Look on my suffering^(N) and deliver me,^(O)
for I have not forgotten^(P) your law.
¹⁵⁴Defend my cause^(Q) and redeem me;^(R)
preserve my life^(S) according to your promise.^(T)
¹⁵⁵Salvation is far from the wicked,
for they do not seek out^(U) your decrees.
¹⁵⁶Your compassion, Lord, is great;^(V)
preserve my life^(W) according to your laws.^(X)
¹⁵⁷Many are the foes who persecute me,^(Y)
but I have not turned^(Z) from your statutes.
¹⁵⁸I look on the faithless with loathing,^(AA)
for they do not obey your word.^(AB)
¹⁵⁹See how I love your precepts;
preserve my life,^(AC) Lord, in accordance with your love.
¹⁶⁰All your words are true;
all your righteous laws are eternal.^(AD)

ש Sin and Shin

¹⁶¹Rulers persecute me^(AE) without cause,
but my heart trembles^(AF) at your word.
¹⁶²I rejoice^(AG) in your promise
like one who finds great spoil.^(AH)
¹⁶³I hate and detest^(AI) falsehood
but I love your law.^(AJ)
¹⁶⁴Seven times a day I praise you
for your righteous laws.^(AK)
¹⁶⁵Great peace^(AL) have those who love your law,
and nothing can make them stumble.^(AM)
¹⁶⁶I wait for your salvation,^(AN) Lord,
and I follow your commands.
¹⁶⁷I obey your statutes,
for I love them^(AO) greatly.
¹⁶⁸I obey your precepts^(AP) and your statutes,^(AQ)
for all my ways are known^(AR) to you.

ת Taw

¹⁶⁹May my cry come^(AS) before you, Lord;
give me understanding^(AT) according to your word.^(AU)
¹⁷⁰May my supplication come^(AV) before you;
deliver me^(AW) according to your promise.^(AX)
¹⁷¹May my lips overflow with praise,^(AY)
for you teach me^(AZ) your decrees.
¹⁷²May my tongue sing^(BA) of your word,
for all your commands are righteous.^(BB)
¹⁷³May your hand be ready to help^(BC) me,
for I have chosen^(BD) your precepts.
¹⁷⁴I long for your salvation,^(BE) Lord,
and your law gives me delight.^(BF)
¹⁷⁵Let me live^(BG) that I may praise you,
and may your laws sustain me.
¹⁷⁶I have strayed like a lost sheep.^(BH)
Seek your servant,
for I have not forgotten^(BI) your commands.

Cross references:

Psalm 119:145 : ver 10
Psalm 119:145 : ver 22, 55
Psalm 119:146 : S ver 94
Psalm 119:147 : Ps 5:3; 57:8; 108:2
Psalm 119:148 : S Ps 63:6
Psalm 119:149 : S Ps 27:7
Psalm 119:149 : ver 124
Psalm 119:149 : S ver 40
Psalm 119:150 : S Ps 37:7
Psalm 119:151 : S Ps 34:18; Php 4:5
Psalm 119:151 : S ver 142
Psalm 119:152 : ver 7, 73
Psalm 119:152 : S ver 89; S Ps 111:8; Lk 21:33
Psalm 119:153 : S Ps 13:3
Psalm 119:153 : S Ps 3:7
Psalm 119:153 : S Ps 44:17
Psalm 119:154 : Ps 35:1; Jer 50:34; Mic 7:9
Psalm 119:154 : S 1Sa 24:15
Psalm 119:154 : ver 25
Psalm 119:154 : S ver 41
Psalm 119:155 : ver 94, 118
Psalm 119:156 : S Ne 9:27; Jas 5:11
Psalm 119:156 : ver 25
Psalm 119:156 : ver 149
Psalm 119:157 : S Ps 7:1
Psalm 119:157 : S Ps 44:18
Psalm 119:158 : ver 104; S Ex 32:19
Psalm 119:158 : S ver 136
Psalm 119:159 : ver 25; S Ps 41:2
Psalm 119:160 : S ver 89; S Ps 111:8
Psalm 119:161 : ver 23, 122, 157; 1Sa 24:14-15
Psalm 119:161 : ver 120
Psalm 119:162 : S ver 111
Psalm 119:162 : 1Sa 30:16; Isa 9:3; 53:12
Psalm 119:163 : S ver 128
Psalm 119:163 : ver 47
Psalm 119:164 : ver 7, 160
Psalm 119:165 : Ps 37:11; Isa 26:3, 12; 27:5; 32:17; 57:19; 66:12
Psalm 119:165 : S ver 11; S Ps 37:24; 1Jn 2:10
Psalm 119:166 : ver 81
Psalm 119:167 : ver 47
Psalm 119:168 : S ver 56,S 88
Psalm 119:168 : ver 2, 22
Psalm 119:168 : S Job 10:4; S 23:10; Ps 139:3; Pr 5:21
Psalm 119:169 : S Job 16:18
Psalm 119:169 : S ver 34
Psalm 119:169 : S ver 9
Psalm 119:170 : 1Ki 8:30; 2Ch 6:24; Ps 28:2; 140:6; 143:1
Psalm 119:170 : Ps 3:7; 22:20; 59:1
Psalm 119:170 : S ver 41
Psalm 119:171 : Ps 51:15; 63:3
Psalm 119:171 : Ps 94:12; Isa 2:3; Mic 4:2
Psalm 119:172 : Ps 51:14
Psalm 119:172 : ver 7,S 75
Psalm 119:173 : Ps 37:24; 73:23; Isa 41:10
Psalm 119:173 : S Jos 24:22
Psalm 119:174 : ver 166
Psalm 119:174 : ver 16, 24
Psalm 119:175 : ver 116, 159; Isa 55:3
Psalm 119:176 : ver 10; S Ps 95:10; Jer 50:17; Eze 34:11; S Lk 15:4
Psalm 119:176 : S Ps 44:17

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 128-130

Psalm 128

A song of ascents.

¹Blessed are all who fear the Lord,^(A)
who walk in obedience to him.^(B)
²You will eat the fruit of your labor;^(C)
blessings and prosperity^(D) will be yours.
³Your wife will be like a fruitful vine^(E)
within your house;
your children^(F) will be like olive shoots^(G)
around your table.
⁴Yes, this will be the blessing^(H)
for the man who fears the Lord.^(I)

⁵May the Lord bless you from Zion;^(J)
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem^(K)
all the days of your life.
⁶May you live to see your children’s children—^(L)
peace be on Israel.^(M)

Psalm 129

A song of ascents.

¹“They have greatly oppressed^(N) me from my youth,”^(O)
let Israel say;^(P)
²“they have greatly oppressed me from my youth,
but they have not gained the victory^(Q) over me.
³Plowmen have plowed my back
and made their furrows long.
⁴But the Lord is righteous;^(R)
he has cut me free^(S) from the cords of the wicked.”^(T)

⁵May all who hate Zion^(U)
be turned back in shame.^(V)
⁶May they be like grass on the roof,^(W)
which withers^(X) before it can grow;
⁷a reaper cannot fill his hands with it,^(Y)
nor one who gathers fill his arms.
⁸May those who pass by not say to them,
“The blessing of the Lord be on you;
we bless you^(Z) in the name of the Lord.”

Psalm 130

A song of ascents.

¹Out of the depths^(AA) I cry to you,^(AB) Lord;
²Lord, hear my voice.^(AC)
Let your ears be attentive^(AD)
to my cry for mercy.^(AE)

³If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?^(AF)
⁴But with you there is forgiveness,^(AG)
so that we can, with reverence, serve you.^(AH)

⁵I wait for the Lord,^(AI) my whole being waits,^(AJ)
and in his word^(AK) I put my hope.
⁶I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen^(AL) wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.^(AM)

⁷Israel, put your hope^(AN) in the Lord,
for with the Lord is unfailing love^(AO)
and with him is full redemption.^(AP)
⁸He himself will redeem^(AQ) Israel
from all their sins.^(AR)

Cross references:

Psalm 128:1 : Ps 103:11; S 112:1
Psalm 128:1 : Ps 119:1-3
Psalm 128:2 : S Ps 58:11; 109:11; Isa 3:10
Psalm 128:2 : S Ge 39:3; Pr 10:22
Psalm 128:3 : S Ge 49:22
Psalm 128:3 : S Job 29:5
Psalm 128:3 : Ps 52:8; 144:12
Psalm 128:4 : S Ps 1:1
Psalm 128:4 : Ps 112:1
Psalm 128:5 : S Ps 20:2
Psalm 128:5 : Ps 122:9
Psalm 128:6 : S Ge 48:11
Psalm 128:6 : S Ps 125:5
Psalm 129:1 : S Ex 1:13
Psalm 129:1 : S Ps 88:15
Psalm 129:1 : Ps 124:1
Psalm 129:2 : Jer 1:19; 15:20; 20:11; Mt 16:18
Psalm 129:4 : S Ex 9:27
Psalm 129:4 : Ps 37:9
Psalm 129:4 : Ps 140:5
Psalm 129:5 : Mic 4:11
Psalm 129:5 : S Ps 70:2
Psalm 129:6 : Isa 37:27
Psalm 129:6 : S 2Ki 19:26; Ps 102:11
Psalm 129:7 : S Dt 28:38; Ps 79:12
Psalm 129:8 : Ps 118:26
Psalm 130:1 : S Job 30:19; Ps 42:7; La 3:55
Psalm 130:1 : Ps 22:2; 55:17; 142:5
Psalm 130:2 : S Ps 27:7; 28:2
Psalm 130:2 : S 2Ch 6:40
Psalm 130:2 : S Ps 28:6; 31:22; 86:6; 140:6
Psalm 130:3 : S 1Sa 6:20; S Ezr 9:15; Ps 143:2; Na 1:6; Rev 6:17
Psalm 130:4 : S Ex 34:7; S 2Sa 24:14; S Jer 31:34
Psalm 130:4 : S 1Ki 8:40
Psalm 130:5 : S Ps 27:14; Isa 8:17; 26:8; 30:18; 49:23
Psalm 130:5 : S Ps 5:3
Psalm 130:5 : S Ps 119:74
Psalm 130:6 : Ps 63:6
Psalm 130:6 : S 2Sa 23:4
Psalm 130:7 : S Ps 25:5; S 71:14
Psalm 130:7 : S 1Ch 21:13
Psalm 130:7 : S Ps 111:9; S Ro 3:24
Psalm 130:8 : Lk 1:68
Psalm 130:8 : S Ex 34:7; S Mt 1:21

New International Version (NIV)

Obadiah 15-21

¹⁵“The day of the Lord is near^(A)
for all nations.
As you have done, it will be done to you;
your deeds^(B) will return upon your own head.
¹⁶Just as you drank^(C) on my holy hill,^(D)
so all the nations will drink^(E) continually;
they will drink and drink
and be as if they had never been.^(F)
¹⁷But on Mount Zion will be deliverance;^(G)
it will be holy,^(H)
and Jacob will possess his inheritance.^(I)
¹⁸Jacob will be a fire
and Joseph a flame;
Esau will be stubble,
and they will set him on fire^(J) and destroy^(K) him.
There will be no survivors^(L)
from Esau.”
The Lord has spoken.

¹⁹People from the Negev will occupy
the mountains of Esau,
and people from the foothills will possess
the land of the Philistines.^(M)
They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria,^(N)
and Benjamin^(O) will possess Gilead.
²⁰This company of Israelite exiles who are in Canaan
will possess the land as far as Zarephath;^(P)
the exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad
will possess the towns of the Negev.^(Q)
²¹Deliverers^(R) will go up on^[a] Mount Zion
to govern the mountains of Esau.
And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.^(S)

Footnotes:

Obadiah 1:21 Or from

New International Version (NIV)

1 Peter 2:1-10

2 Therefore, rid yourselves^(A) of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander^(B) of every kind. ²Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk,^(C) so that by it you may grow up^(D) in your salvation, ³now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.^(E)

The Living Stone and a Chosen People

⁴As you come to him, the living Stone^(F)—rejected by humans but chosen by God^(G) and precious to him— ⁵you also, like living stones, are being built^(H) into a spiritual house^[a]^(I) to be a holy priesthood,^(J) offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.^(K) ⁶For in Scripture it says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,^(L)
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”^[b]^(M)

⁷Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,^(N)

“The stone the builders rejected^(O)
has become the cornerstone,”^[c]^(P)

⁸and,

“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”^[d]^(Q)

They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.^(R)

⁹But you are a chosen people,^(S) a royal priesthood,^(T) a holy nation,^(U) God’s special possession,^(V) that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.^(W) ¹⁰Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God;^(X) once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Footnotes:

1 Peter 2:5 Or into a temple of the Spirit
1 Peter 2:6 Isaiah 28:16
1 Peter 2:7 Psalm 118:22
1 Peter 2:8 Isaiah 8:14

New International Version (NIV)

Matthew 19:23-30

²³Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich^(A) to enter the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁵When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?”

²⁶Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”^(B)

²⁷Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you!^(C) What then will there be for us?”

²⁸Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne,^(D) you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.^(E) ²⁹And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife^[a] or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.^(F) ³⁰But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.^(G)

Footnotes:

Matthew 19:29 Some manuscripts do not have or wife.

Cross references:

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 11/23/2025

DAILY READINGS: November 23 - 30

SUNDAY: Morning: Psalm 118; Evening: Psalm 145; Zechariah 9:9-16; 1 Peter 3:13-22; Matthew 21:1-13

MONDAY: Morning: Psalm 106:1-18; Evening: Psalm 106:19-48; Zechariah 10:1-12; Galatians 6:1-10; Luke 18:15-30

TUESDAY: Morning: Psalm [120], 121, 122, 123; Evening: Psalm 124, 125, 126, [127]; Zechariah 11:4-17; 1 Corinthians 3:10-23; Luke 18:31-43

WEDNESDAY: Morning: Psalm 119:145-176; Evening: Psalm 128, 129, 130; Zechariah 12:1-10; Ephesians 1:3-14; Luke 19:1-10

THURSDAY: Morning: Psalm 131, 132, [133]; Evening: Psalm 134, 135; Zechariah 13:1-9; Ephesians 1:15-23; Luke 19:11-27

FRIDAY: Morning: Psalm 140, 142; Evening: Psalm 141, 143:1-11(12); Zechariah 14:1-11; Romans 15:7-13; Luke 19:28-40

SATURDAY: Morning: Psalm 137:1-9, 144; Evening: Psalm 104; Zechariah 14:12-21; Philippians 2:1-11; Luke 19:41-48

SUNDAY: Morning: Psalm 146, 147; Evening: Psalm 111, 112, 113; Isaiah 1:1-9; 2 Peter 3:1-10; Matthew 25:1-13

FOR THE WEEK: Jeremiah 23:1-6; Luke 1:68-79; Colossians 1:11-20; Luke 23:33-43; Luke 19