1    Bless the Lord, O my soul.  ♦

O Lord my God, how excellent is your greatness!

2    You are clothed with majesty and honour,  ♦

wrapped in light as in a garment.

3    You spread out the heavens like a curtain  ♦

and lay the beams of your dwelling place in the waters above.

4    You make the clouds your chariot  ♦

and ride on the wings of the wind.

5    You make the winds your messengers  ♦

and flames of fire your servants.

6    You laid the foundations of the earth,  ♦

that it never should move at any time.

7    You covered it with the deep like a garment;  ♦

the waters stood high above the hills.

8    At your rebuke they fled;  ♦

at the voice of your thunder they hastened away.

9    They rose up to the hills and flowed down to the valleys beneath,  ♦

to the place which you had appointed for them.

10  You have set them their bounds that they should not pass,  ♦

nor turn again to cover the earth.

11  You send the springs into the brooks,  ♦

which run among the hills.

12  They give drink to every beast of the field,  ♦

and the wild asses quench their thirst.

13  Beside them the birds of the air make their nests  ♦

and sing among the branches.

14  You water the hills from your dwelling on high;  ♦

the earth is filled with the fruit of your works.

15  You make grass to grow for the cattle  ♦

and plants to meet our needs,

16  Bringing forth food from the earth  ♦

and wine to gladden our hearts,

17  Oil to give us a cheerful countenance  ♦

and bread to strengthen our hearts.

18  The trees of the Lord are full of sap,  ♦

the cedars of Lebanon which he planted,

19  In which the birds build their nests,  ♦

while the fir trees are a dwelling for the stork.

20  The mountains are a refuge for the wild goats  ♦

and the stony cliffs for the conies.

21  You appointed the moon to mark the seasons,  ♦

and the sun knows the time for its setting.

22  You make darkness that it may be night,  ♦

in which all the beasts of the forest creep forth.

23  The lions roar for their prey  ♦

and seek their food from God.

24  The sun rises and they are gone  ♦

to lay themselves down in their dens.

25  People go forth to their work  ♦

and to their labour until the evening.

26  O Lord, how manifold are your works!  ♦

In wisdom you have made them all;

    the earth is full of your creatures.

27  There is the sea, spread far and wide,  ♦

and there move creatures beyond number, both small and great.

28  There go the ships, and there is that Leviathan  ♦

which you have made to play in the deep.

29  All of these look to you  ♦

to give them their food in due season.

30  When you give it them, they gather it;  ♦

you open your hand and they are filled with good.

31  When you hide your face they are troubled;  ♦

when you take away their breath,

    they die and return again to the dust.

32  When you send forth your spirit, they are created,  ♦

and you renew the face of the earth.

33  May the glory of the Lord endure for ever;  ♦

may the Lord rejoice in his works;

34  He looks on the earth and it trembles;  ♦

he touches the mountains and they smoke.

35  I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;  ♦

I will make music to my God while I have my being.

36  So shall my song please him  ♦

while I rejoice in the Lord.

37  Let sinners be consumed out of the earth

    and the wicked be no more.  ♦

Bless the Lord, O my soul.

    Alleluia.

 

Common Worship: Services and Prayers for the Church of England, material from which is included here,
is copyright © The Archbishops' Council 2000 and published by Church House Publishing.