Podcasts about our transgressions

Wherever we find references to Babylon in the Bible, we're frequently reminded of man's failed attempt to ascend to the heavens. This is due in part to the fact that “Babel” and “Babylon” happen to be the same word in Hebrew. On this edition, Shane walks through a variety of Old Testament passages that relate to this theme and contrasts them with prophecies about Israel's coming Messiah.SHOW NOTESRecommended BooksBabylonian Life & History, E.A. Wallis Budge—FREEGod Dwells Among Us, G.K. Beale & Mitchell KimThe Temple & The Tabernacle, J. Daniel HaysPierced for Our Transgressions, Andrew Sach & OthersThe Gospel According to Isaiah 53, Bock & GlaserBrave By Faith, Alistair BeggEchoes of Exodus, Roberts & WilsonHim We Proclaim, Dennis JohnsonRecommended ArticlesNebuchadnezzar & Archaeology, Shane Rosenthal (coming soon)Identifying Babylon The Great, Shane Rosenthal (coming soon)The Tower of Babel, Shane RosenthalNew Life in the New Year, Shane RosenthalJustin Martyr on the Importance of Fulfilled Prophecy, Shane RosenthalIsaiah's Prophecy of the Messiah's Birth, Shane RosenthalFinding Christ in All of Scripture, Shane RosenthalWhy Should We Believe the Bible?, Shane RosenthalRecommended AudioJacob's Ladder, with Richard Bauckham, Michael Horton & othersThe Intersection of Church & State, with David Van DrunenThe Big Picture, with J. Daniel HaysHow to Read & Interpret the Bible, with Mike BrownWorship in Spirit & Truth, with G.K. BealeJewish Views of the Messiah, with Daniel BoyarinWere Jews Expecting a Suffering Messiah? Life in a Post-Christian World, with Alistair BeggWe Need Your Help!Consider supporting The Humble Skeptic podcast by making a one-time gift or upgrading to a paid subscription via Substack ($5.95 per month, $59 per year). Use the button below for more information about giving options. Get full access to The Humble Skeptic at www.humbleskeptic.com/subscribe

Pierced for Our Transgressions

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 141 Psalm 141 (Listen) Give Ear to My Voice A Psalm of David. 141   O LORD, I call upon you; hasten to me!    Give ear to my voice when I call to you!2   Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,    and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! 3   Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth;    keep watch over the door of my lips!4   Do not let my heart incline to any evil,    to busy myself with wicked deeds  in company with men who work iniquity,    and let me not eat of their delicacies! 5   Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;    let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;    let my head not refuse it.  Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.6   When their judges are thrown over the cliff,1    then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.7   As when one plows and breaks up the earth,    so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.2 8   But my eyes are toward you, O GOD, my Lord;    in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!39   Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me    and from the snares of evildoers!10   Let the wicked fall into their own nets,    while I pass by safely. Footnotes [1] 141:6 Or When their judges fall into the hands of the Rock [2] 141:7 The meaning of the Hebrew in verses 6, 7 is uncertain [3] 141:8 Hebrew refuge; do not pour out my life! (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Job 30 Job 30 (Listen) 30   “But now they laugh at me,    men who are younger than I,  whose fathers I would have disdained    to set with the dogs of my flock.2   What could I gain from the strength of their hands,    men whose vigor is gone?3   Through want and hard hunger    they gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation;4   they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes,    and the roots of the broom tree for their food.15   They are driven out from human company;    they shout after them as after a thief.6   In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,    in holes of the earth and of the rocks.7   Among the bushes they bray;    under the nettles they huddle together.8   A senseless, a nameless brood,    they have been whipped out of the land. 9   “And now I have become their song;    I am a byword to them.10   They abhor me; they keep aloof from me;    they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.11   Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me,    they have cast off restraint2 in my presence.12   On my right hand the rabble rise;    they push away my feet;    they cast up against me their ways of destruction.13   They break up my path;    they promote my calamity;    they need no one to help them.14   As through a wide breach they come;    amid the crash they roll on.15   Terrors are turned upon me;    my honor is pursued as by the wind,    and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud. 16   “And now my soul is poured out within me;    days of affliction have taken hold of me.17   The night racks my bones,    and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.18   With great force my garment is disfigured;    it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.19   God3 has cast me into the mire,    and I have become like dust and ashes.20   I cry to you for help and you do not answer me;    I stand, and you only look at me.21   You have turned cruel to me;    with the might of your hand you persecute me.22   You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it,    and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.23   For I know that you will bring me to death    and to the house appointed for all living. 24   “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand,    and in his disaster cry for help?425   Did not I weep for him whose day was hard?    Was not my soul grieved for the needy?26   But when I hoped for good, evil came,    and when I waited for light, darkness came.27   My inward parts are in turmoil and never still;    days of affliction come to meet me.28   I go about darkened, but not by the sun;    I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.29   I am a brother of jackals    and a companion of ostriches.30   My skin turns black and falls from me,    and my bones burn with heat.31   My lyre is turned to mourning,    and my pipe to the voice of those who weep. Footnotes [1] 30:4 Or warmth [2] 30:11 Hebrew the bridle [3] 30:19 Hebrew He [4] 30:24 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: Revelation 12 Revelation 12 (Listen) The Woman and the Dragon 12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule1 all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Satan Thrown Down to Earth 7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers2 has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” 13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood3 on the sand of the sea. Footnotes [1] 12:5 Greek shepherd [2] 12:10 Or brothers and sisters [3] 12:17 Some manuscripts And I stood, connecting the sentence with 13:1 (ESV)

Old Testament: Isaiah 52–55 Isaiah 52–55 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?4    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected5 by men,    a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8  and as one from whom men hide their faces9    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;10  when his soul makes11 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see12 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,13    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,14  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;    break forth into singing and cry aloud,    you who have not been in labor!  For the children of the desolate one will be more    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;  do not hold back; lengthen your cords    and strengthen your stakes.3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,    and your offspring will possess the nations    and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;  for you will forget the shame of your youth,    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.5   For your Maker is your husband,    the LORD of hosts is his name;  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,    the God of the whole earth he is called.6   For the LORD has called you    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,    says your God.7   For a brief moment I deserted you,    but with great compassion I will gather you.8   In overflowing anger for a moment    I hid my face from you,  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”    says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah15 to me:    as I swore that the waters of Noah    should no more go over the earth,  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,    and will not rebuke you.10   For the mountains may depart    and the hills be removed,  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”    says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,    and lay your foundations with sapphires.1612   I will make your pinnacles of agate,17    your gates of carbuncles,18    and all your wall of precious stones.13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,    and great shall be the peace of your children.14   In righteousness you shall be established;    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.15   If anyone stirs up strife,    it is not from me;  whoever stirs up strife with you    shall fall because of you.16   Behold, I have created the smith    who blows the fire of coals    and produces a weapon for its purpose.  I have also created the ravager to destroy;17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD    and their vindication19 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,    come to the waters;  and he who has no money,    come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without price.2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,    and delight yourselves in rich food.3   Incline your ear, and come to me;    hear, that your soul may live;  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,    my steadfast, sure love for David.4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,    a leader and commander for the peoples.5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,    for he has glorified you. 6   “Seek the LORD while he may be found;    call upon him while he is near;7   let the wicked forsake his way,    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.8   For my thoughts are not your thoughts,    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.9   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,    so are my ways higher than your ways    and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10   “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven    and do not return there but water the earth,  making it bring forth and sprout,    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11   so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;    it shall not return to me empty,  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12   “For you shall go out in joy    and be led forth in peace;  the mountains and the hills before you    shall break forth into singing,    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.13   Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;  and it shall make a name for the LORD,    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle [4] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [5] 53:3 Or forsaken [6] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [7] 53:3 Or and knowing [8] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [9] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [10] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [11] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [12] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [13] 53:12 Or with the great [14] 53:12 Or with the numerous [15] 54:9 Some manuscripts For this is as the waters of Noah [16] 54:11 Or lapis lazuli [17] 54:12 Or jasper, or ruby [18] 54:12 Or crystal [19] 54:17 Or righteousness (ESV) Psalm: Psalm 99 Psalm 99 (Listen) The Lord Our God Is Holy 99   The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!    He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!2   The LORD is great in Zion;    he is exalted over all the peoples.3   Let them praise your great and awesome name!    Holy is he!4   The King in his might loves justice.1    You have established equity;  you have executed justice    and righteousness in Jacob.5   Exalt the LORD our God;    worship at his footstool!    Holy is he! 6   Moses and Aaron were among his priests,    Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.    They called to the LORD, and he answered them.7   In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;    they kept his testimonies&n

Old Testament: Isaiah 52–55 Isaiah 52–55 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?4    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected5 by men,    a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8  and as one from whom men hide their faces9    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;10  when his soul makes11 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see12 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,13    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,14  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;    break forth into singing and cry aloud,    you who have not been in labor!  For the children of the desolate one will be more    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;  do not hold back; lengthen your cords    and strengthen your stakes.3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,    and your offspring will possess the nations    and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;  for you will forget the shame of your youth,    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.5   For your Maker is your husband,    the LORD of hosts is his name;  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,    the God of the whole earth he is called.6   For the LORD has called you    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,    says your God.7   For a brief moment I deserted you,    but with great compassion I will gather you.8   In overflowing anger for a moment    I hid my face from you,  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”    says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah15 to me:    as I swore that the waters of Noah    should no more go over the earth,  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,    and will not rebuke you.10   For the mountains may depart    and the hills be removed,  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”    says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,    and lay your foundations with sapphires.1612   I will make your pinnacles of agate,17    your gates of carbuncles,18    and all your wall of precious stones.13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,    and great shall be the peace of your children.14   In righteousness you shall be established;    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.15   If anyone stirs up strife,    it is not from me;  whoever stirs up strife with you    shall fall because of you.16   Behold, I have created the smith    who blows the fire of coals    and produces a weapon for its purpose.  I have also created the ravager to destroy;17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD    and their vindication19 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,    come to the waters;  and he who has no money,    come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without price.2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,    and delight yourselves in rich food.3   Incline your ear, and come to me;    hear, that your soul may live;  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,    my steadfast, sure love for David.4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,    a leader and commander for the peoples.5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,    for he has glorified you. 6   “Seek the LORD while he may be found;    call upon him while he is near;7   let the wicked forsake his way,    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.8   For my thoughts are not your thoughts,    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.9   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,    so are my ways higher than your ways    and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10   “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven    and do not return there but water the earth,  making it bring forth and sprout,    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11   so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;    it shall not return to me empty,  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12   “For you shall go out in joy    and be led forth in peace;  the mountains and the hills before you    shall break forth into singing,    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.13   Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;  and it shall make a name for the LORD,    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle [4] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [5] 53:3 Or forsaken [6] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [7] 53:3 Or and knowing [8] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [9] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [10] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [11] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [12] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [13] 53:12 Or with the great [14] 53:12 Or with the numerous [15] 54:9 Some manuscripts For this is as the waters of Noah [16] 54:11 Or lapis lazuli [17] 54:12 Or jasper, or ruby [18] 54:12 Or crystal [19] 54:17 Or righteousness (ESV) New Testament: James 4:11–5:12 James 4:11–5:12 (Listen) 11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers.1 The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? Boasting About Tomorrow 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. Warning to the Rich 5 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you. Patience in Suffering 7 Be patient, therefore, brothers,2 until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patie

Morning: Isaiah 50–52 Isaiah 50–52 (Listen) Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law1 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;2  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing3 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?420   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.5 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;6    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle7 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 51:4 Or for teaching; also verse 7 [2] 51:6 Or will die like gnats [3] 51:16 Or planting [4] 51:19 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Masoretic Text how shall I comfort you [5] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [6] 52:13 Or shall prosper [7] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Evening: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

Isaiah 49–53 Isaiah 49–53 (Listen) The Servant of the Lord 49   Listen to me, O coastlands,    and give attention, you peoples from afar.  The LORD called me from the womb,    from the body of my mother he named my name.2   He made my mouth like a sharp sword;    in the shadow of his hand he hid me;  he made me a polished arrow;    in his quiver he hid me away.3   And he said to me, “You are my servant,    Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”14   But I said, “I have labored in vain;    I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;  yet surely my right is with the LORD,    and my recompense with my God.” 5   And now the LORD says,    he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,  to bring Jacob back to him;    and that Israel might be gathered to him—  for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,    and my God has become my strength—6   he says:  “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant    to raise up the tribes of Jacob    and to bring back the preserved of Israel;  I will make you as a light for the nations,    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” 7   Thus says the LORD,    the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,  to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,    the servant of rulers:  “Kings shall see and arise;    princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;  because of the LORD, who is faithful,    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” The Restoration of Israel 8   Thus says the LORD:  “In a time of favor I have answered you;    in a day of salvation I have helped you;  I will keep you and give you    as a covenant to the people,  to establish the land,    to apportion the desolate heritages,9   saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,'    to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.'  They shall feed along the ways;    on all bare heights shall be their pasture;10   they shall not hunger or thirst,    neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,  for he who has pity on them will lead them,    and by springs of water will guide them.11   And I will make all my mountains a road,    and my highways shall be raised up.12   Behold, these shall come from afar,    and behold, these from the north and from the west,2    and these from the land of Syene.”3 13   Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;    break forth, O mountains, into singing!  For the LORD has comforted his people    and will have compassion on his afflicted. 14   But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;    my Lord has forgotten me.” 15   “Can a woman forget her nursing child,    that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?  Even these may forget,    yet I will not forget you.16   Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;    your walls are continually before me.17   Your builders make haste;4    your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.18   Lift up your eyes around and see;    they all gather, they come to you.  As I live, declares the LORD,    you shall put them all on as an ornament;    you shall bind them on as a bride does. 19   “Surely your waste and your desolate places    and your devastated land—  surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,    and those who swallowed you up will be far away.20   The children of your bereavement    will yet say in your ears:  ‘The place is too narrow for me;    make room for me to dwell in.'21   Then you will say in your heart:    ‘Who has borne me these?  I was bereaved and barren,    exiled and put away,    but who has brought up these?  Behold, I was left alone;    from where have these come?'” 22   Thus says the Lord GOD:  “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,    and raise my signal to the peoples;  and they shall bring your sons in their arms,5    and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.23   Kings shall be your foster fathers,    and their queens your nursing mothers.  With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,    and lick the dust of your feet.  Then you will know that I am the LORD;    those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” 24   Can the prey be taken from the mighty,    or the captives of a tyrant6 be rescued?25   For thus says the LORD:  “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,    and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,  for I will contend with those who contend with you,    and I will save your children.26   I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,    and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.  Then all flesh shall know    that I am the LORD your Savior,    and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law7 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;8  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing9 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?1020   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    

A new MP3 sermon from Grace Bible Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Christ's Redemption of Our Transgressions Subtitle: The God of All Comforts Speaker: John Pittman Hey Broadcaster: Grace Bible Church Event: Sunday Service Date: 6/18/2023 Bible: Hebrews 9:15; Matthew 1:18-25 Length: 41 min.

With family: Deuteronomy 25; Psalm 116 Deuteronomy 25 (Listen) 25 “If there is a dispute between men and they come into court and the judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty, 2 then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall cause him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with a number of stripes in proportion to his offense. 3 Forty stripes may be given him, but not more, lest, if one should go on to beat him with more stripes than these, your brother be degraded in your sight. 4 “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain. Laws Concerning Levirate Marriage 5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.' 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,' 9 then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.' 10 And the name of his house1 shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.' Miscellaneous Laws 11 “When men fight with one another and the wife of the one draws near to rescue her husband from the hand of him who is beating him and puts out her hand and seizes him by the private parts, 12 then you shall cut off her hand. Your eye shall have no pity. 13 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. 14 You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. 15 A full and fair2 weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 16 For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. 17 “Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, 18 how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary, and cut off your tail, those who were lagging behind you, and he did not fear God. 19 Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget. Footnotes [1] 25:10 Hebrew its name [2] 25:15 Or just, or righteous; twice in this verse (ESV) Psalm 116 (Listen) I Love the Lord 116   I love the LORD, because he has heard    my voice and my pleas for mercy.2   Because he inclined his ear to me,    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.3   The snares of death encompassed me;    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;    I suffered distress and anguish.4   Then I called on the name of the LORD:    “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!” 5   Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;    our God is merciful.6   The LORD preserves the simple;    when I was brought low, he saved me.7   Return, O my soul, to your rest;    for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. 8   For you have delivered my soul from death,    my eyes from tears,    my feet from stumbling;9   I will walk before the LORD    in the land of the living. 10   I believed, even when1 I spoke:    “I am greatly afflicted”;11   I said in my alarm,    “All mankind are liars.” 12   What shall I render to the LORD    for all his benefits to me?13   I will lift up the cup of salvation    and call on the name of the LORD,14   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people. 15   Precious in the sight of the LORD    is the death of his saints.16   O LORD, I am your servant;    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.    You have loosed my bonds.17   I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving    and call on the name of the LORD.18   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people,19   in the courts of the house of the LORD,    in your midst, O Jerusalem.  Praise the LORD! Footnotes [1] 116:10 Or believed, indeed; Septuagint believed, therefore (ESV) In private: Isaiah 52; Revelation 22 Isaiah 52 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Revelation 22 (Listen) The River of Life 22 Then the angel1 showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life2 with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Jesus Is Coming 6 And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” 7 “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” 8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” 12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 14 Blessed are those who wash their robes,3 so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.4 Amen. Footnotes [1] 22:1 Greek he [2] 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life [3] 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments [4] 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints (ESV)

Isaiah 49–53 Isaiah 49–53 (Listen) The Servant of the Lord 49   Listen to me, O coastlands,    and give attention, you peoples from afar.  The LORD called me from the womb,    from the body of my mother he named my name.2   He made my mouth like a sharp sword;    in the shadow of his hand he hid me;  he made me a polished arrow;    in his quiver he hid me away.3   And he said to me, “You are my servant,    Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”14   But I said, “I have labored in vain;    I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;  yet surely my right is with the LORD,    and my recompense with my God.” 5   And now the LORD says,    he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,  to bring Jacob back to him;    and that Israel might be gathered to him—  for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,    and my God has become my strength—6   he says:  “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant    to raise up the tribes of Jacob    and to bring back the preserved of Israel;  I will make you as a light for the nations,    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” 7   Thus says the LORD,    the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,  to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,    the servant of rulers:  “Kings shall see and arise;    princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;  because of the LORD, who is faithful,    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” The Restoration of Israel 8   Thus says the LORD:  “In a time of favor I have answered you;    in a day of salvation I have helped you;  I will keep you and give you    as a covenant to the people,  to establish the land,    to apportion the desolate heritages,9   saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,'    to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.'  They shall feed along the ways;    on all bare heights shall be their pasture;10   they shall not hunger or thirst,    neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,  for he who has pity on them will lead them,    and by springs of water will guide them.11   And I will make all my mountains a road,    and my highways shall be raised up.12   Behold, these shall come from afar,    and behold, these from the north and from the west,2    and these from the land of Syene.”3 13   Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;    break forth, O mountains, into singing!  For the LORD has comforted his people    and will have compassion on his afflicted. 14   But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;    my Lord has forgotten me.” 15   “Can a woman forget her nursing child,    that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?  Even these may forget,    yet I will not forget you.16   Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;    your walls are continually before me.17   Your builders make haste;4    your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.18   Lift up your eyes around and see;    they all gather, they come to you.  As I live, declares the LORD,    you shall put them all on as an ornament;    you shall bind them on as a bride does. 19   “Surely your waste and your desolate places    and your devastated land—  surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,    and those who swallowed you up will be far away.20   The children of your bereavement    will yet say in your ears:  ‘The place is too narrow for me;    make room for me to dwell in.'21   Then you will say in your heart:    ‘Who has borne me these?  I was bereaved and barren,    exiled and put away,    but who has brought up these?  Behold, I was left alone;    from where have these come?'” 22   Thus says the Lord GOD:  “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,    and raise my signal to the peoples;  and they shall bring your sons in their arms,5    and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.23   Kings shall be your foster fathers,    and their queens your nursing mothers.  With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,    and lick the dust of your feet.  Then you will know that I am the LORD;    those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” 24   Can the prey be taken from the mighty,    or the captives of a tyrant6 be rescued?25   For thus says the LORD:  “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,    and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,  for I will contend with those who contend with you,    and I will save your children.26   I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,    and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.  Then all flesh shall know    that I am the LORD your Savior,    and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law7 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;8  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing9 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?1020   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 133 Psalm 133 (Listen) When Brothers Dwell in Unity A Song of Ascents. Of David. 133   Behold, how good and pleasant it is    when brothers dwell in unity!12   It is like the precious oil on the head,    running down on the beard,  on the beard of Aaron,    running down on the collar of his robes!3   It is like the dew of Hermon,    which falls on the mountains of Zion!  For there the LORD has commanded the blessing,    life forevermore. Footnotes [1] 133:1 Or dwell together (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Numbers 13–14 Numbers 13–14 (Listen) Spies Sent into Canaan 13 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol,1 because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. Report of the Spies 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” The People Rebel 14 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the people of Israel. 6 And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.” 10 Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.” Moses Intercedes for the People 13 But Moses said to the LORD, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them, 14 and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the midst of this people. For you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 Now if you kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard your fame will say, 16 ‘It is because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.' 17 And now, please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised, saying, 18 ‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.' 19 Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.” God Promises Judgment 20 Then the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. 21 But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, 22 none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, 23 shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it. 24 But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. 25 Now, since the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valleys, turn tomorrow and set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.” 26 And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 27 “How long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against me. 28 Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the LORD, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: 29 your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, 30 not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. 31 But your little ones, who you said would become a prey, I will bring in, and they shall know the land that you have rejected. 32 But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. 33 And your children shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years and shall suffer for your faithlessness, until the last of your dead bodies lies in the wilderness. 34 According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, a year for each day, you shall bear your iniquity forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.' 35 I, the LORD, have spoken. Surely this will I do to all this wicked congregation who are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall come to a full end, and there they shall die.” 36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land—37 the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the LORD. 38 Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive. Israel Defeated in Battle 39 When Moses told these words to all the people of Israel, the people mourned greatly. 40 And they rose early in the morning and went up to the heights of the hill country, saying, “Here we are. We will go up to the place that the LORD has promised, for we have sinned.” 41 But Moses said, “Why now are you transgressing the command of the LORD, when that will not succeed? 42 Do not go up, for the LORD is not among you, lest you be struck down before your enemies. 43 For there the Amalekites and the Canaanites are facing you, and you shall fall by the sword. Because you have turned back from following the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.” 44 But they presumed to go up to the heights of the hill country, although neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed out of the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and defeated them and pursued them, even to Hormah. Footnotes [1] 13:24 Eshcol means cluster (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

Isaiah 52:13-53:12  1.      The paradox of the suffering servant – exaltation and humiliation 52:13-15 2.      The fact of his suffering – he has suffered 53:1-3 3.      The meaning of his sufferings – he suffered as a substitute 4-6 4.      The manner of his sufferings – he suffered willingly and innocently 7-9 5.      The victory of his sufferings – he suffered for the salvation of the world 10-12 The post Pierced for Our Transgressions appeared first on Racine Bible Church.

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 141 Psalm 141 (Listen) Give Ear to My Voice A Psalm of David. 141   O LORD, I call upon you; hasten to me!    Give ear to my voice when I call to you!2   Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,    and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! 3   Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth;    keep watch over the door of my lips!4   Do not let my heart incline to any evil,    to busy myself with wicked deeds  in company with men who work iniquity,    and let me not eat of their delicacies! 5   Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;    let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;    let my head not refuse it.  Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.6   When their judges are thrown over the cliff,1    then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.7   As when one plows and breaks up the earth,    so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.2 8   But my eyes are toward you, O GOD, my Lord;    in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!39   Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me    and from the snares of evildoers!10   Let the wicked fall into their own nets,    while I pass by safely. Footnotes [1] 141:6 Or When their judges fall into the hands of the Rock [2] 141:7 The meaning of the Hebrew in verses 6, 7 is uncertain [3] 141:8 Hebrew refuge; do not pour out my life! (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Job 30 Job 30 (Listen) 30   “But now they laugh at me,    men who are younger than I,  whose fathers I would have disdained    to set with the dogs of my flock.2   What could I gain from the strength of their hands,    men whose vigor is gone?3   Through want and hard hunger    they gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation;4   they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes,    and the roots of the broom tree for their food.15   They are driven out from human company;    they shout after them as after a thief.6   In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,    in holes of the earth and of the rocks.7   Among the bushes they bray;    under the nettles they huddle together.8   A senseless, a nameless brood,    they have been whipped out of the land. 9   “And now I have become their song;    I am a byword to them.10   They abhor me; they keep aloof from me;    they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.11   Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me,    they have cast off restraint2 in my presence.12   On my right hand the rabble rise;    they push away my feet;    they cast up against me their ways of destruction.13   They break up my path;    they promote my calamity;    they need no one to help them.14   As through a wide breach they come;    amid the crash they roll on.15   Terrors are turned upon me;    my honor is pursued as by the wind,    and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud. 16   “And now my soul is poured out within me;    days of affliction have taken hold of me.17   The night racks my bones,    and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.18   With great force my garment is disfigured;    it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.19   God3 has cast me into the mire,    and I have become like dust and ashes.20   I cry to you for help and you do not answer me;    I stand, and you only look at me.21   You have turned cruel to me;    with the might of your hand you persecute me.22   You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it,    and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.23   For I know that you will bring me to death    and to the house appointed for all living. 24   “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand,    and in his disaster cry for help?425   Did not I weep for him whose day was hard?    Was not my soul grieved for the needy?26   But when I hoped for good, evil came,    and when I waited for light, darkness came.27   My inward parts are in turmoil and never still;    days of affliction come to meet me.28   I go about darkened, but not by the sun;    I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.29   I am a brother of jackals    and a companion of ostriches.30   My skin turns black and falls from me,    and my bones burn with heat.31   My lyre is turned to mourning,    and my pipe to the voice of those who weep. Footnotes [1] 30:4 Or warmth [2] 30:11 Hebrew the bridle [3] 30:19 Hebrew He [4] 30:24 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: Revelation 12 Revelation 12 (Listen) The Woman and the Dragon 12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule1 all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Satan Thrown Down to Earth 7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers2 has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” 13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood3 on the sand of the sea. Footnotes [1] 12:5 Greek shepherd [2] 12:10 Or brothers and sisters [3] 12:17 Some manuscripts And I stood, connecting the sentence with 13:1 (ESV)

Old Testament: Isaiah 52–55 Isaiah 52–55 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?4    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected5 by men,    a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8  and as one from whom men hide their faces9    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;10  when his soul makes11 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see12 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,13    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,14  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;    break forth into singing and cry aloud,    you who have not been in labor!  For the children of the desolate one will be more    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;  do not hold back; lengthen your cords    and strengthen your stakes.3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,    and your offspring will possess the nations    and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;  for you will forget the shame of your youth,    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.5   For your Maker is your husband,    the LORD of hosts is his name;  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,    the God of the whole earth he is called.6   For the LORD has called you    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,    says your God.7   For a brief moment I deserted you,    but with great compassion I will gather you.8   In overflowing anger for a moment    I hid my face from you,  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”    says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah15 to me:    as I swore that the waters of Noah    should no more go over the earth,  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,    and will not rebuke you.10   For the mountains may depart    and the hills be removed,  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”    says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,    and lay your foundations with sapphires.1612   I will make your pinnacles of agate,17    your gates of carbuncles,18    and all your wall of precious stones.13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,    and great shall be the peace of your children.14   In righteousness you shall be established;    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.15   If anyone stirs up strife,    it is not from me;  whoever stirs up strife with you    shall fall because of you.16   Behold, I have created the smith    who blows the fire of coals    and produces a weapon for its purpose.  I have also created the ravager to destroy;17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD    and their vindication19 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,    come to the waters;  and he who has no money,    come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without price.2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,    and delight yourselves in rich food.3   Incline your ear, and come to me;    hear, that your soul may live;  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,    my steadfast, sure love for David.4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,    a leader and commander for the peoples.5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,    for he has glorified you. 6   “Seek the LORD while he may be found;    call upon him while he is near;7   let the wicked forsake his way,    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.8   For my thoughts are not your thoughts,    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.9   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,    so are my ways higher than your ways    and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10   “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven    and do not return there but water the earth,  making it bring forth and sprout,    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11   so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;    it shall not return to me empty,  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12   “For you shall go out in joy    and be led forth in peace;  the mountains and the hills before you    shall break forth into singing,    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.13   Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;  and it shall make a name for the LORD,    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle [4] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [5] 53:3 Or forsaken [6] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [7] 53:3 Or and knowing [8] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [9] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [10] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [11] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [12] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [13] 53:12 Or with the great [14] 53:12 Or with the numerous [15] 54:9 Some manuscripts For this is as the waters of Noah [16] 54:11 Or lapis lazuli [17] 54:12 Or jasper, or ruby [18] 54:12 Or crystal [19] 54:17 Or righteousness (ESV) Psalm: Psalm 99 Psalm 99 (Listen) The Lord Our God Is Holy 99   The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!    He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!2   The LORD is great in Zion;    he is exalted over all the peoples.3   Let them praise your great and awesome name!    Holy is he!4   The King in his might loves justice.1    You have established equity;  you have executed justice    and righteousness in Jacob.5   Exalt the LORD our God;    worship at his footstool!    Holy is he! 6   Moses and Aaron were among his priests,    Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.    They called to the LORD, and he answered them.7   In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;    they kept his testimonies&n

Old Testament: Isaiah 52–55 Isaiah 52–55 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?4    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected5 by men,    a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8  and as one from whom men hide their faces9    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;10  when his soul makes11 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see12 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,13    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,14  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;    break forth into singing and cry aloud,    you who have not been in labor!  For the children of the desolate one will be more    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;  do not hold back; lengthen your cords    and strengthen your stakes.3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,    and your offspring will possess the nations    and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;  for you will forget the shame of your youth,    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.5   For your Maker is your husband,    the LORD of hosts is his name;  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,    the God of the whole earth he is called.6   For the LORD has called you    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,    says your God.7   For a brief moment I deserted you,    but with great compassion I will gather you.8   In overflowing anger for a moment    I hid my face from you,  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”    says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah15 to me:    as I swore that the waters of Noah    should no more go over the earth,  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,    and will not rebuke you.10   For the mountains may depart    and the hills be removed,  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”    says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,    and lay your foundations with sapphires.1612   I will make your pinnacles of agate,17    your gates of carbuncles,18    and all your wall of precious stones.13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,    and great shall be the peace of your children.14   In righteousness you shall be established;    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.15   If anyone stirs up strife,    it is not from me;  whoever stirs up strife with you    shall fall because of you.16   Behold, I have created the smith    who blows the fire of coals    and produces a weapon for its purpose.  I have also created the ravager to destroy;17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD    and their vindication19 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,    come to the waters;  and he who has no money,    come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without price.2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,    and delight yourselves in rich food.3   Incline your ear, and come to me;    hear, that your soul may live;  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,    my steadfast, sure love for David.4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,    a leader and commander for the peoples.5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,    for he has glorified you. 6   “Seek the LORD while he may be found;    call upon him while he is near;7   let the wicked forsake his way,    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.8   For my thoughts are not your thoughts,    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.9   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,    so are my ways higher than your ways    and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10   “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven    and do not return there but water the earth,  making it bring forth and sprout,    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11   so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;    it shall not return to me empty,  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12   “For you shall go out in joy    and be led forth in peace;  the mountains and the hills before you    shall break forth into singing,    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.13   Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;  and it shall make a name for the LORD,    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle [4] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [5] 53:3 Or forsaken [6] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [7] 53:3 Or and knowing [8] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [9] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [10] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [11] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [12] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [13] 53:12 Or with the great [14] 53:12 Or with the numerous [15] 54:9 Some manuscripts For this is as the waters of Noah [16] 54:11 Or lapis lazuli [17] 54:12 Or jasper, or ruby [18] 54:12 Or crystal [19] 54:17 Or righteousness (ESV) New Testament: James 4:11–5:12 James 4:11–5:12 (Listen) 11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers.1 The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? Boasting About Tomorrow 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. Warning to the Rich 5 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you. Patience in Suffering 7 Be patient, therefore, brothers,2 until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patie

Morning: Isaiah 50–52 Isaiah 50–52 (Listen) Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law1 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;2  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing3 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?420   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.5 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;6    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle7 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 51:4 Or for teaching; also verse 7 [2] 51:6 Or will die like gnats [3] 51:16 Or planting [4] 51:19 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Masoretic Text how shall I comfort you [5] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [6] 52:13 Or shall prosper [7] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Evening: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

Isaiah 49–53 Isaiah 49–53 (Listen) The Servant of the Lord 49   Listen to me, O coastlands,    and give attention, you peoples from afar.  The LORD called me from the womb,    from the body of my mother he named my name.2   He made my mouth like a sharp sword;    in the shadow of his hand he hid me;  he made me a polished arrow;    in his quiver he hid me away.3   And he said to me, “You are my servant,    Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”14   But I said, “I have labored in vain;    I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;  yet surely my right is with the LORD,    and my recompense with my God.” 5   And now the LORD says,    he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,  to bring Jacob back to him;    and that Israel might be gathered to him—  for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,    and my God has become my strength—6   he says:  “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant    to raise up the tribes of Jacob    and to bring back the preserved of Israel;  I will make you as a light for the nations,    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” 7   Thus says the LORD,    the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,  to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,    the servant of rulers:  “Kings shall see and arise;    princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;  because of the LORD, who is faithful,    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” The Restoration of Israel 8   Thus says the LORD:  “In a time of favor I have answered you;    in a day of salvation I have helped you;  I will keep you and give you    as a covenant to the people,  to establish the land,    to apportion the desolate heritages,9   saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,'    to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.'  They shall feed along the ways;    on all bare heights shall be their pasture;10   they shall not hunger or thirst,    neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,  for he who has pity on them will lead them,    and by springs of water will guide them.11   And I will make all my mountains a road,    and my highways shall be raised up.12   Behold, these shall come from afar,    and behold, these from the north and from the west,2    and these from the land of Syene.”3 13   Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;    break forth, O mountains, into singing!  For the LORD has comforted his people    and will have compassion on his afflicted. 14   But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;    my Lord has forgotten me.” 15   “Can a woman forget her nursing child,    that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?  Even these may forget,    yet I will not forget you.16   Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;    your walls are continually before me.17   Your builders make haste;4    your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.18   Lift up your eyes around and see;    they all gather, they come to you.  As I live, declares the LORD,    you shall put them all on as an ornament;    you shall bind them on as a bride does. 19   “Surely your waste and your desolate places    and your devastated land—  surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,    and those who swallowed you up will be far away.20   The children of your bereavement    will yet say in your ears:  ‘The place is too narrow for me;    make room for me to dwell in.'21   Then you will say in your heart:    ‘Who has borne me these?  I was bereaved and barren,    exiled and put away,    but who has brought up these?  Behold, I was left alone;    from where have these come?'” 22   Thus says the Lord GOD:  “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,    and raise my signal to the peoples;  and they shall bring your sons in their arms,5    and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.23   Kings shall be your foster fathers,    and their queens your nursing mothers.  With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,    and lick the dust of your feet.  Then you will know that I am the LORD;    those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” 24   Can the prey be taken from the mighty,    or the captives of a tyrant6 be rescued?25   For thus says the LORD:  “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,    and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,  for I will contend with those who contend with you,    and I will save your children.26   I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,    and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.  Then all flesh shall know    that I am the LORD your Savior,    and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law7 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;8  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing9 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?1020   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    

Preacher: Pastor Jim Reger Summary: God gives grace to us by Christ standing in our place, taking that punishment, and […] The post Isaiah 52:13-53:12 — He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions, Part 1 | 06-12-2022 first appeared on Redeemer Church.

Preacher: Pastor Jim Reger Summary: The 4th Servant Song that describes how God’s people are saved, and how every promise […] The post Isaiah 52:13-53:12 — He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions, Part 2 | 06-19-2022 first appeared on Redeemer Church.

With family: Deuteronomy 25; Psalm 116 Deuteronomy 25 (Listen) 25 “If there is a dispute between men and they come into court and the judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty, 2 then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall cause him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with a number of stripes in proportion to his offense. 3 Forty stripes may be given him, but not more, lest, if one should go on to beat him with more stripes than these, your brother be degraded in your sight. 4 “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain. Laws Concerning Levirate Marriage 5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.' 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,' 9 then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.' 10 And the name of his house1 shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.' Miscellaneous Laws 11 “When men fight with one another and the wife of the one draws near to rescue her husband from the hand of him who is beating him and puts out her hand and seizes him by the private parts, 12 then you shall cut off her hand. Your eye shall have no pity. 13 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. 14 You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. 15 A full and fair2 weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 16 For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. 17 “Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, 18 how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary, and cut off your tail, those who were lagging behind you, and he did not fear God. 19 Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget. Footnotes [1] 25:10 Hebrew its name [2] 25:15 Or just, or righteous; twice in this verse (ESV) Psalm 116 (Listen) I Love the Lord 116   I love the LORD, because he has heard    my voice and my pleas for mercy.2   Because he inclined his ear to me,    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.3   The snares of death encompassed me;    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;    I suffered distress and anguish.4   Then I called on the name of the LORD:    “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!” 5   Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;    our God is merciful.6   The LORD preserves the simple;    when I was brought low, he saved me.7   Return, O my soul, to your rest;    for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. 8   For you have delivered my soul from death,    my eyes from tears,    my feet from stumbling;9   I will walk before the LORD    in the land of the living. 10   I believed, even when1 I spoke:    “I am greatly afflicted”;11   I said in my alarm,    “All mankind are liars.” 12   What shall I render to the LORD    for all his benefits to me?13   I will lift up the cup of salvation    and call on the name of the LORD,14   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people. 15   Precious in the sight of the LORD    is the death of his saints.16   O LORD, I am your servant;    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.    You have loosed my bonds.17   I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving    and call on the name of the LORD.18   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people,19   in the courts of the house of the LORD,    in your midst, O Jerusalem.  Praise the LORD! Footnotes [1] 116:10 Or believed, indeed; Septuagint believed, therefore (ESV) In private: Isaiah 52; Revelation 22 Isaiah 52 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Revelation 22 (Listen) The River of Life 22 Then the angel1 showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life2 with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Jesus Is Coming 6 And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” 7 “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” 8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” 12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 14 Blessed are those who wash their robes,3 so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.4 Amen. Footnotes [1] 22:1 Greek he [2] 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life [3] 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments [4] 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints (ESV)

Isaiah 49–53 Isaiah 49–53 (Listen) The Servant of the Lord 49   Listen to me, O coastlands,    and give attention, you peoples from afar.  The LORD called me from the womb,    from the body of my mother he named my name.2   He made my mouth like a sharp sword;    in the shadow of his hand he hid me;  he made me a polished arrow;    in his quiver he hid me away.3   And he said to me, “You are my servant,    Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”14   But I said, “I have labored in vain;    I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;  yet surely my right is with the LORD,    and my recompense with my God.” 5   And now the LORD says,    he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,  to bring Jacob back to him;    and that Israel might be gathered to him—  for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,    and my God has become my strength—6   he says:  “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant    to raise up the tribes of Jacob    and to bring back the preserved of Israel;  I will make you as a light for the nations,    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” 7   Thus says the LORD,    the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,  to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,    the servant of rulers:  “Kings shall see and arise;    princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;  because of the LORD, who is faithful,    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” The Restoration of Israel 8   Thus says the LORD:  “In a time of favor I have answered you;    in a day of salvation I have helped you;  I will keep you and give you    as a covenant to the people,  to establish the land,    to apportion the desolate heritages,9   saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,'    to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.'  They shall feed along the ways;    on all bare heights shall be their pasture;10   they shall not hunger or thirst,    neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,  for he who has pity on them will lead them,    and by springs of water will guide them.11   And I will make all my mountains a road,    and my highways shall be raised up.12   Behold, these shall come from afar,    and behold, these from the north and from the west,2    and these from the land of Syene.”3 13   Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;    break forth, O mountains, into singing!  For the LORD has comforted his people    and will have compassion on his afflicted. 14   But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;    my Lord has forgotten me.” 15   “Can a woman forget her nursing child,    that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?  Even these may forget,    yet I will not forget you.16   Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;    your walls are continually before me.17   Your builders make haste;4    your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.18   Lift up your eyes around and see;    they all gather, they come to you.  As I live, declares the LORD,    you shall put them all on as an ornament;    you shall bind them on as a bride does. 19   “Surely your waste and your desolate places    and your devastated land—  surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,    and those who swallowed you up will be far away.20   The children of your bereavement    will yet say in your ears:  ‘The place is too narrow for me;    make room for me to dwell in.'21   Then you will say in your heart:    ‘Who has borne me these?  I was bereaved and barren,    exiled and put away,    but who has brought up these?  Behold, I was left alone;    from where have these come?'” 22   Thus says the Lord GOD:  “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,    and raise my signal to the peoples;  and they shall bring your sons in their arms,5    and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.23   Kings shall be your foster fathers,    and their queens your nursing mothers.  With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,    and lick the dust of your feet.  Then you will know that I am the LORD;    those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” 24   Can the prey be taken from the mighty,    or the captives of a tyrant6 be rescued?25   For thus says the LORD:  “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,    and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,  for I will contend with those who contend with you,    and I will save your children.26   I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,    and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.  Then all flesh shall know    that I am the LORD your Savior,    and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law7 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;8  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing9 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?1020   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 133 Psalm 133 (Listen) When Brothers Dwell in Unity A Song of Ascents. Of David. 133   Behold, how good and pleasant it is    when brothers dwell in unity!12   It is like the precious oil on the head,    running down on the beard,  on the beard of Aaron,    running down on the collar of his robes!3   It is like the dew of Hermon,    which falls on the mountains of Zion!  For there the LORD has commanded the blessing,    life forevermore. Footnotes [1] 133:1 Or dwell together (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Numbers 13–14 Numbers 13–14 (Listen) Spies Sent into Canaan 13 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol,1 because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. Report of the Spies 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” The People Rebel 14 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the people of Israel. 6 And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.” 10 Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.” Moses Intercedes for the People 13 But Moses said to the LORD, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them, 14 and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the midst of this people. For you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 Now if you kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard your fame will say, 16 ‘It is because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.' 17 And now, please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised, saying, 18 ‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.' 19 Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.” God Promises Judgment 20 Then the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. 21 But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, 22 none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, 23 shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it. 24 But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. 25 Now, since the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valleys, turn tomorrow and set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.” 26 And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 27 “How long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against me. 28 Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the LORD, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: 29 your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, 30 not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. 31 But your little ones, who you said would become a prey, I will bring in, and they shall know the land that you have rejected. 32 But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. 33 And your children shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years and shall suffer for your faithlessness, until the last of your dead bodies lies in the wilderness. 34 According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, a year for each day, you shall bear your iniquity forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.' 35 I, the LORD, have spoken. Surely this will I do to all this wicked congregation who are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall come to a full end, and there they shall die.” 36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land—37 the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the LORD. 38 Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive. Israel Defeated in Battle 39 When Moses told these words to all the people of Israel, the people mourned greatly. 40 And they rose early in the morning and went up to the heights of the hill country, saying, “Here we are. We will go up to the place that the LORD has promised, for we have sinned.” 41 But Moses said, “Why now are you transgressing the command of the LORD, when that will not succeed? 42 Do not go up, for the LORD is not among you, lest you be struck down before your enemies. 43 For there the Amalekites and the Canaanites are facing you, and you shall fall by the sword. Because you have turned back from following the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.” 44 But they presumed to go up to the heights of the hill country, although neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed out of the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and defeated them and pursued them, even to Hormah. Footnotes [1] 13:24 Eshcol means cluster (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

Isaiah wk14 - Pierced for Our Transgressions by Hope Community Church, Willow Grove

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 141 Psalm 141 (Listen) Give Ear to My Voice A Psalm of David. 141   O LORD, I call upon you; hasten to me!    Give ear to my voice when I call to you!2   Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,    and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! 3   Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth;    keep watch over the door of my lips!4   Do not let my heart incline to any evil,    to busy myself with wicked deeds  in company with men who work iniquity,    and let me not eat of their delicacies! 5   Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;    let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;    let my head not refuse it.  Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.6   When their judges are thrown over the cliff,1    then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.7   As when one plows and breaks up the earth,    so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.2 8   But my eyes are toward you, O GOD, my Lord;    in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!39   Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me    and from the snares of evildoers!10   Let the wicked fall into their own nets,    while I pass by safely. Footnotes [1] 141:6 Or When their judges fall into the hands of the Rock [2] 141:7 The meaning of the Hebrew in verses 6, 7 is uncertain [3] 141:8 Hebrew refuge; do not pour out my life! (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Job 30 Job 30 (Listen) 30   “But now they laugh at me,    men who are younger than I,  whose fathers I would have disdained    to set with the dogs of my flock.2   What could I gain from the strength of their hands,    men whose vigor is gone?3   Through want and hard hunger    they gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation;4   they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes,    and the roots of the broom tree for their food.15   They are driven out from human company;    they shout after them as after a thief.6   In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,    in holes of the earth and of the rocks.7   Among the bushes they bray;    under the nettles they huddle together.8   A senseless, a nameless brood,    they have been whipped out of the land. 9   “And now I have become their song;    I am a byword to them.10   They abhor me; they keep aloof from me;    they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.11   Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me,    they have cast off restraint2 in my presence.12   On my right hand the rabble rise;    they push away my feet;    they cast up against me their ways of destruction.13   They break up my path;    they promote my calamity;    they need no one to help them.14   As through a wide breach they come;    amid the crash they roll on.15   Terrors are turned upon me;    my honor is pursued as by the wind,    and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud. 16   “And now my soul is poured out within me;    days of affliction have taken hold of me.17   The night racks my bones,    and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.18   With great force my garment is disfigured;    it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.19   God3 has cast me into the mire,    and I have become like dust and ashes.20   I cry to you for help and you do not answer me;    I stand, and you only look at me.21   You have turned cruel to me;    with the might of your hand you persecute me.22   You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it,    and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.23   For I know that you will bring me to death    and to the house appointed for all living. 24   “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand,    and in his disaster cry for help?425   Did not I weep for him whose day was hard?    Was not my soul grieved for the needy?26   But when I hoped for good, evil came,    and when I waited for light, darkness came.27   My inward parts are in turmoil and never still;    days of affliction come to meet me.28   I go about darkened, but not by the sun;    I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.29   I am a brother of jackals    and a companion of ostriches.30   My skin turns black and falls from me,    and my bones burn with heat.31   My lyre is turned to mourning,    and my pipe to the voice of those who weep. Footnotes [1] 30:4 Or warmth [2] 30:11 Hebrew the bridle [3] 30:19 Hebrew He [4] 30:24 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: Revelation 12 Revelation 12 (Listen) The Woman and the Dragon 12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule1 all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Satan Thrown Down to Earth 7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers2 has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” 13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood3 on the sand of the sea. Footnotes [1] 12:5 Greek shepherd [2] 12:10 Or brothers and sisters [3] 12:17 Some manuscripts And I stood, connecting the sentence with 13:1 (ESV)

Old Testament: Isaiah 52–55 Isaiah 52–55 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?4    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected5 by men,    a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8  and as one from whom men hide their faces9    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;10  when his soul makes11 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see12 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,13    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,14  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;    break forth into singing and cry aloud,    you who have not been in labor!  For the children of the desolate one will be more    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;  do not hold back; lengthen your cords    and strengthen your stakes.3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,    and your offspring will possess the nations    and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;  for you will forget the shame of your youth,    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.5   For your Maker is your husband,    the LORD of hosts is his name;  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,    the God of the whole earth he is called.6   For the LORD has called you    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,    says your God.7   For a brief moment I deserted you,    but with great compassion I will gather you.8   In overflowing anger for a moment    I hid my face from you,  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”    says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah15 to me:    as I swore that the waters of Noah    should no more go over the earth,  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,    and will not rebuke you.10   For the mountains may depart    and the hills be removed,  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”    says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,    and lay your foundations with sapphires.1612   I will make your pinnacles of agate,17    your gates of carbuncles,18    and all your wall of precious stones.13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,    and great shall be the peace of your children.14   In righteousness you shall be established;    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.15   If anyone stirs up strife,    it is not from me;  whoever stirs up strife with you    shall fall because of you.16   Behold, I have created the smith    who blows the fire of coals    and produces a weapon for its purpose.  I have also created the ravager to destroy;17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD    and their vindication19 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,    come to the waters;  and he who has no money,    come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without price.2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,    and delight yourselves in rich food.3   Incline your ear, and come to me;    hear, that your soul may live;  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,    my steadfast, sure love for David.4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,    a leader and commander for the peoples.5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,    for he has glorified you. 6   “Seek the LORD while he may be found;    call upon him while he is near;7   let the wicked forsake his way,    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.8   For my thoughts are not your thoughts,    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.9   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,    so are my ways higher than your ways    and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10   “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven    and do not return there but water the earth,  making it bring forth and sprout,    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11   so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;    it shall not return to me empty,  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12   “For you shall go out in joy    and be led forth in peace;  the mountains and the hills before you    shall break forth into singing,    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.13   Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;  and it shall make a name for the LORD,    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle [4] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [5] 53:3 Or forsaken [6] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [7] 53:3 Or and knowing [8] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [9] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [10] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [11] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [12] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [13] 53:12 Or with the great [14] 53:12 Or with the numerous [15] 54:9 Some manuscripts For this is as the waters of Noah [16] 54:11 Or lapis lazuli [17] 54:12 Or jasper, or ruby [18] 54:12 Or crystal [19] 54:17 Or righteousness (ESV) New Testament: James 4:11–5:12 James 4:11–5:12 (Listen) 11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers.1 The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? Boasting About Tomorrow 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. Warning to the Rich 5 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you. Patience in Suffering 7 Be patient, therefore, brothers,2 until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patie

Old Testament: Isaiah 52–55 Isaiah 52–55 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?4    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected5 by men,    a man of sorrows6 and acquainted with7 grief;8  and as one from whom men hide their faces9    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;10  when his soul makes11 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see12 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,13    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,14  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. The Eternal Covenant of Peace 54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;    break forth into singing and cry aloud,    you who have not been in labor!  For the children of the desolate one will be more    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.2   “Enlarge the place of your tent,    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;  do not hold back; lengthen your cords    and strengthen your stakes.3   For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,    and your offspring will possess the nations    and will people the desolate cities. 4   “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;  for you will forget the shame of your youth,    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.5   For your Maker is your husband,    the LORD of hosts is his name;  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,    the God of the whole earth he is called.6   For the LORD has called you    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,    says your God.7   For a brief moment I deserted you,    but with great compassion I will gather you.8   In overflowing anger for a moment    I hid my face from you,  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”    says the LORD, your Redeemer. 9   “This is like the days of Noah15 to me:    as I swore that the waters of Noah    should no more go over the earth,  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,    and will not rebuke you.10   For the mountains may depart    and the hills be removed,  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”    says the LORD, who has compassion on you. 11   “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,    and lay your foundations with sapphires.1612   I will make your pinnacles of agate,17    your gates of carbuncles,18    and all your wall of precious stones.13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD,    and great shall be the peace of your children.14   In righteousness you shall be established;    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.15   If anyone stirs up strife,    it is not from me;  whoever stirs up strife with you    shall fall because of you.16   Behold, I have created the smith    who blows the fire of coals    and produces a weapon for its purpose.  I have also created the ravager to destroy;17     no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD    and their vindication19 from me, declares the LORD.” The Compassion of the Lord 55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,    come to the waters;  and he who has no money,    come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk    without money and without price.2   Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,    and delight yourselves in rich food.3   Incline your ear, and come to me;    hear, that your soul may live;  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,    my steadfast, sure love for David.4   Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,    a leader and commander for the peoples.5   Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,    for he has glorified you. 6   “Seek the LORD while he may be found;    call upon him while he is near;7   let the wicked forsake his way,    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.8   For my thoughts are not your thoughts,    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.9   For as the heavens are higher than the earth,    so are my ways higher than your ways    and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10   “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven    and do not return there but water the earth,  making it bring forth and sprout,    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,11   so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;    it shall not return to me empty,  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. 12   “For you shall go out in joy    and be led forth in peace;  the mountains and the hills before you    shall break forth into singing,    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.13   Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;  and it shall make a name for the LORD,    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle [4] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [5] 53:3 Or forsaken [6] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [7] 53:3 Or and knowing [8] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [9] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [10] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [11] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [12] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [13] 53:12 Or with the great [14] 53:12 Or with the numerous [15] 54:9 Some manuscripts For this is as the waters of Noah [16] 54:11 Or lapis lazuli [17] 54:12 Or jasper, or ruby [18] 54:12 Or crystal [19] 54:17 Or righteousness (ESV) Psalm: Psalm 99 Psalm 99 (Listen) The Lord Our God Is Holy 99   The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!    He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!2   The LORD is great in Zion;    he is exalted over all the peoples.3   Let them praise your great and awesome name!    Holy is he!4   The King in his might loves justice.1    You have established equity;  you have executed justice    and righteousness in Jacob.5   Exalt the LORD our God;    worship at his footstool!    Holy is he! 6   Moses and Aaron were among his priests,    Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.    They called to the LORD, and he answered them.7   In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;    they kept his testimonies&n

Morning: Isaiah 50–52 Isaiah 50–52 (Listen) Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law1 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;2  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing3 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?420   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.5 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;6    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle7 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 51:4 Or for teaching; also verse 7 [2] 51:6 Or will die like gnats [3] 51:16 Or planting [4] 51:19 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Masoretic Text how shall I comfort you [5] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [6] 52:13 Or shall prosper [7] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Evening: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

With family: Deuteronomy 25; Psalm 116 Deuteronomy 25 (Listen) 25 “If there is a dispute between men and they come into court and the judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty, 2 then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall cause him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with a number of stripes in proportion to his offense. 3 Forty stripes may be given him, but not more, lest, if one should go on to beat him with more stripes than these, your brother be degraded in your sight. 4 “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain. Laws Concerning Levirate Marriage 5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.' 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,' 9 then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.' 10 And the name of his house1 shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.' Miscellaneous Laws 11 “When men fight with one another and the wife of the one draws near to rescue her husband from the hand of him who is beating him and puts out her hand and seizes him by the private parts, 12 then you shall cut off her hand. Your eye shall have no pity. 13 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. 14 You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. 15 A full and fair2 weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 16 For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. 17 “Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, 18 how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary, and cut off your tail, those who were lagging behind you, and he did not fear God. 19 Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget. Footnotes [1] 25:10 Hebrew its name [2] 25:15 Or just, or righteous; twice in this verse (ESV) Psalm 116 (Listen) I Love the Lord 116   I love the LORD, because he has heard    my voice and my pleas for mercy.2   Because he inclined his ear to me,    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.3   The snares of death encompassed me;    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;    I suffered distress and anguish.4   Then I called on the name of the LORD:    “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!” 5   Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;    our God is merciful.6   The LORD preserves the simple;    when I was brought low, he saved me.7   Return, O my soul, to your rest;    for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. 8   For you have delivered my soul from death,    my eyes from tears,    my feet from stumbling;9   I will walk before the LORD    in the land of the living. 10   I believed, even when1 I spoke:    “I am greatly afflicted”;11   I said in my alarm,    “All mankind are liars.” 12   What shall I render to the LORD    for all his benefits to me?13   I will lift up the cup of salvation    and call on the name of the LORD,14   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people. 15   Precious in the sight of the LORD    is the death of his saints.16   O LORD, I am your servant;    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.    You have loosed my bonds.17   I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving    and call on the name of the LORD.18   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people,19   in the courts of the house of the LORD,    in your midst, O Jerusalem.  Praise the LORD! Footnotes [1] 116:10 Or believed, indeed; Septuagint believed, therefore (ESV) In private: Isaiah 52; Revelation 22 Isaiah 52 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Revelation 22 (Listen) The River of Life 22 Then the angel1 showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life2 with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Jesus Is Coming 6 And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” 7 “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” 8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” 12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 14 Blessed are those who wash their robes,3 so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.4 Amen. Footnotes [1] 22:1 Greek he [2] 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life [3] 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments [4] 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints (ESV)

Isaiah 49–53 Isaiah 49–53 (Listen) The Servant of the Lord 49   Listen to me, O coastlands,    and give attention, you peoples from afar.  The LORD called me from the womb,    from the body of my mother he named my name.2   He made my mouth like a sharp sword;    in the shadow of his hand he hid me;  he made me a polished arrow;    in his quiver he hid me away.3   And he said to me, “You are my servant,    Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”14   But I said, “I have labored in vain;    I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;  yet surely my right is with the LORD,    and my recompense with my God.” 5   And now the LORD says,    he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,  to bring Jacob back to him;    and that Israel might be gathered to him—  for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD,    and my God has become my strength—6   he says:  “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant    to raise up the tribes of Jacob    and to bring back the preserved of Israel;  I will make you as a light for the nations,    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” 7   Thus says the LORD,    the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,  to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,    the servant of rulers:  “Kings shall see and arise;    princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;  because of the LORD, who is faithful,    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” The Restoration of Israel 8   Thus says the LORD:  “In a time of favor I have answered you;    in a day of salvation I have helped you;  I will keep you and give you    as a covenant to the people,  to establish the land,    to apportion the desolate heritages,9   saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,'    to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.'  They shall feed along the ways;    on all bare heights shall be their pasture;10   they shall not hunger or thirst,    neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them,  for he who has pity on them will lead them,    and by springs of water will guide them.11   And I will make all my mountains a road,    and my highways shall be raised up.12   Behold, these shall come from afar,    and behold, these from the north and from the west,2    and these from the land of Syene.”3 13   Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;    break forth, O mountains, into singing!  For the LORD has comforted his people    and will have compassion on his afflicted. 14   But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;    my Lord has forgotten me.” 15   “Can a woman forget her nursing child,    that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?  Even these may forget,    yet I will not forget you.16   Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;    your walls are continually before me.17   Your builders make haste;4    your destroyers and those who laid you waste go out from you.18   Lift up your eyes around and see;    they all gather, they come to you.  As I live, declares the LORD,    you shall put them all on as an ornament;    you shall bind them on as a bride does. 19   “Surely your waste and your desolate places    and your devastated land—  surely now you will be too narrow for your inhabitants,    and those who swallowed you up will be far away.20   The children of your bereavement    will yet say in your ears:  ‘The place is too narrow for me;    make room for me to dwell in.'21   Then you will say in your heart:    ‘Who has borne me these?  I was bereaved and barren,    exiled and put away,    but who has brought up these?  Behold, I was left alone;    from where have these come?'” 22   Thus says the Lord GOD:  “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,    and raise my signal to the peoples;  and they shall bring your sons in their arms,5    and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.23   Kings shall be your foster fathers,    and their queens your nursing mothers.  With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,    and lick the dust of your feet.  Then you will know that I am the LORD;    those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.” 24   Can the prey be taken from the mighty,    or the captives of a tyrant6 be rescued?25   For thus says the LORD:  “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken,    and the prey of the tyrant be rescued,  for I will contend with those who contend with you,    and I will save your children.26   I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh,    and they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine.  Then all flesh shall know    that I am the LORD your Savior,    and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother's certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord's Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law7 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;8  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing9 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.'” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?1020   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over';  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the hol

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 133 Psalm 133 (Listen) When Brothers Dwell in Unity A Song of Ascents. Of David. 133   Behold, how good and pleasant it is    when brothers dwell in unity!12   It is like the precious oil on the head,    running down on the beard,  on the beard of Aaron,    running down on the collar of his robes!3   It is like the dew of Hermon,    which falls on the mountains of Zion!  For there the LORD has commanded the blessing,    life forevermore. Footnotes [1] 133:1 Or dwell together (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Numbers 13–14 Numbers 13–14 (Listen) Spies Sent into Canaan 13 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol,1 because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. Report of the Spies 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” The People Rebel 14 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the people of Israel. 6 And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.” 10 Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.” Moses Intercedes for the People 13 But Moses said to the LORD, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them, 14 and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the midst of this people. For you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 Now if you kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard your fame will say, 16 ‘It is because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.’ 17 And now, please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised, saying, 18 ‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.’ 19 Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.” God Promises Judgment 20 Then the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. 21 But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, 22 none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, 23 shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it. 24 But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. 25 Now, since the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valleys, turn tomorrow and set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.” 26 And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 27 “How long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against me. 28 Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the LORD, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: 29 your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, 30 not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. 31 But your little ones, who you said would become a prey, I will bring in, and they shall know the land that you have rejected. 32 But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. 33 And your children shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years and shall suffer for your faithlessness, until the last of your dead bodies lies in the wilderness. 34 According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, a year for each day, you shall bear your iniquity forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.’ 35 I, the LORD, have spoken. Surely this will I do to all this wicked congregation who are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall come to a full end, and there they shall die.” 36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land—37 the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the LORD. 38 Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive. Israel Defeated in Battle 39 When Moses told these words to all the people of Israel, the people mourned greatly. 40 And they rose early in the morning and went up to the heights of the hill country, saying, “Here we are. We will go up to the place that the LORD has promised, for we have sinned.” 41 But Moses said, “Why now are you transgressing the command of the LORD, when that will not succeed? 42 Do not go up, for the LORD is not among you, lest you be struck down before your enemies. 43 For there the Amalekites and the Canaanites are facing you, and you shall fall by the sword. Because you have turned back from following the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.” 44 But they presumed to go up to the heights of the hill country, although neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed out of the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and defeated them and pursued them, even to Hormah. Footnotes [1] 13:24 Eshcol means cluster (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians’ Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

DOCUMENTATION AND ADDITIONAL READING PART 1 (0:0 - 8:49): ────────────────── Delivered Up for Our Transgressions and Raised for Our Justification: The Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ as Center of Christian Belief PART 2 (8:50 - 15:23): ────────────────── He Is Risen, Indeed: The Reality of the Resurrection of Christ and the Arrival of the Age of Salvation PART 3 (15:24 - 19:40): ────────────────── What Is the Cost of Not Believing the Gospel Truth Claims of the Christian Worldview?

The catechism now dives down in detail into fallen man's sinful state--1. Our Guilt-2. Our Lack-3. Our Original Sin-4. Our Transgressions

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 141 Psalm 141 (Listen) Give Ear to My Voice A Psalm of David. 141   O LORD, I call upon you; hasten to me!    Give ear to my voice when I call to you!2   Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,    and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! 3   Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth;    keep watch over the door of my lips!4   Do not let my heart incline to any evil,    to busy myself with wicked deeds  in company with men who work iniquity,    and let me not eat of their delicacies! 5   Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;    let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;    let my head not refuse it.  Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.6   When their judges are thrown over the cliff,1    then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.7   As when one plows and breaks up the earth,    so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.2 8   But my eyes are toward you, O GOD, my Lord;    in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!39   Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me    and from the snares of evildoers!10   Let the wicked fall into their own nets,    while I pass by safely. Footnotes [1] 141:6 Or When their judges fall into the hands of the Rock [2] 141:7 The meaning of the Hebrew in verses 6, 7 is uncertain [3] 141:8 Hebrew refuge; do not pour out my life! (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Job 30 Job 30 (Listen) 30   “But now they laugh at me,    men who are younger than I,  whose fathers I would have disdained    to set with the dogs of my flock.2   What could I gain from the strength of their hands,    men whose vigor is gone?3   Through want and hard hunger    they gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation;4   they pick saltwort and the leaves of bushes,    and the roots of the broom tree for their food.15   They are driven out from human company;    they shout after them as after a thief.6   In the gullies of the torrents they must dwell,    in holes of the earth and of the rocks.7   Among the bushes they bray;    under the nettles they huddle together.8   A senseless, a nameless brood,    they have been whipped out of the land. 9   “And now I have become their song;    I am a byword to them.10   They abhor me; they keep aloof from me;    they do not hesitate to spit at the sight of me.11   Because God has loosed my cord and humbled me,    they have cast off restraint2 in my presence.12   On my right hand the rabble rise;    they push away my feet;    they cast up against me their ways of destruction.13   They break up my path;    they promote my calamity;    they need no one to help them.14   As through a wide breach they come;    amid the crash they roll on.15   Terrors are turned upon me;    my honor is pursued as by the wind,    and my prosperity has passed away like a cloud. 16   “And now my soul is poured out within me;    days of affliction have taken hold of me.17   The night racks my bones,    and the pain that gnaws me takes no rest.18   With great force my garment is disfigured;    it binds me about like the collar of my tunic.19   God3 has cast me into the mire,    and I have become like dust and ashes.20   I cry to you for help and you do not answer me;    I stand, and you only look at me.21   You have turned cruel to me;    with the might of your hand you persecute me.22   You lift me up on the wind; you make me ride on it,    and you toss me about in the roar of the storm.23   For I know that you will bring me to death    and to the house appointed for all living. 24   “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand,    and in his disaster cry for help?425   Did not I weep for him whose day was hard?    Was not my soul grieved for the needy?26   But when I hoped for good, evil came,    and when I waited for light, darkness came.27   My inward parts are in turmoil and never still;    days of affliction come to meet me.28   I go about darkened, but not by the sun;    I stand up in the assembly and cry for help.29   I am a brother of jackals    and a companion of ostriches.30   My skin turns black and falls from me,    and my bones burn with heat.31   My lyre is turned to mourning,    and my pipe to the voice of those who weep. Footnotes [1] 30:4 Or warmth [2] 30:11 Hebrew the bridle [3] 30:19 Hebrew He [4] 30:24 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: Revelation 12 Revelation 12 (Listen) The Woman and the Dragon 12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule1 all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Satan Thrown Down to Earth 7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers2 has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” 13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood3 on the sand of the sea. Footnotes [1] 12:5 Greek shepherd [2] 12:10 Or brothers and sisters [3] 12:17 Some manuscripts And I stood, connecting the sentence with 13:1 (ESV)

Morning: Isaiah 50–52 Isaiah 50–52 (Listen) Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience 50   Thus says the LORD:  “Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce,    with which I sent her away?  Or which of my creditors is it    to whom I have sold you?  Behold, for your iniquities you were sold,    and for your transgressions your mother was sent away.2   Why, when I came, was there no man;    why, when I called, was there no one to answer?  Is my hand shortened, that it cannot redeem?    Or have I no power to deliver?  Behold, by my rebuke I dry up the sea,    I make the rivers a desert;  their fish stink for lack of water    and die of thirst.3   I clothe the heavens with blackness    and make sackcloth their covering.” 4   The Lord GOD has given me    the tongue of those who are taught,  that I may know how to sustain with a word    him who is weary.  Morning by morning he awakens;    he awakens my ear    to hear as those who are taught.5   The Lord GOD has opened my ear,    and I was not rebellious;    I turned not backward.6   I gave my back to those who strike,    and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard;  I hid not my face    from disgrace and spitting. 7   But the Lord GOD helps me;    therefore I have not been disgraced;  therefore I have set my face like a flint,    and I know that I shall not be put to shame.8     He who vindicates me is near.  Who will contend with me?    Let us stand up together.  Who is my adversary?    Let him come near to me.9   Behold, the Lord GOD helps me;    who will declare me guilty?  Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment;    the moth will eat them up. 10   Who among you fears the LORD    and obeys the voice of his servant?  Let him who walks in darkness    and has no light  trust in the name of the LORD    and rely on his God.11   Behold, all you who kindle a fire,    who equip yourselves with burning torches!  Walk by the light of your fire,    and by the torches that you have kindled!  This you have from my hand:    you shall lie down in torment. The Lord’s Comfort for Zion 51   “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,    you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn,    and to the quarry from which you were dug.2   Look to Abraham your father    and to Sarah who bore you;  for he was but one when I called him,    that I might bless him and multiply him.3   For the LORD comforts Zion;    he comforts all her waste places  and makes her wilderness like Eden,    her desert like the garden of the LORD;  joy and gladness will be found in her,    thanksgiving and the voice of song. 4   “Give attention to me, my people,    and give ear to me, my nation;  for a law1 will go out from me,    and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.5   My righteousness draws near,    my salvation has gone out,    and my arms will judge the peoples;  the coastlands hope for me,    and for my arm they wait.6   Lift up your eyes to the heavens,    and look at the earth beneath;  for the heavens vanish like smoke,    the earth will wear out like a garment,    and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;2  but my salvation will be forever,    and my righteousness will never be dismayed. 7   “Listen to me, you who know righteousness,    the people in whose heart is my law;  fear not the reproach of man,    nor be dismayed at their revilings.8   For the moth will eat them up like a garment,    and the worm will eat them like wool,  but my righteousness will be forever,    and my salvation to all generations.” 9   Awake, awake, put on strength,    O arm of the LORD;  awake, as in days of old,    the generations of long ago.  Was it not you who cut Rahab in pieces,    who pierced the dragon?10   Was it not you who dried up the sea,    the waters of the great deep,  who made the depths of the sea a way    for the redeemed to pass over?11   And the ransomed of the LORD shall return    and come to Zion with singing;  everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;    they shall obtain gladness and joy,    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12   “I, I am he who comforts you;    who are you that you are afraid of man who dies,    of the son of man who is made like grass,13   and have forgotten the LORD, your Maker,    who stretched out the heavens    and laid the foundations of the earth,  and you fear continually all the day    because of the wrath of the oppressor,  when he sets himself to destroy?    And where is the wrath of the oppressor?14   He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;    he shall not die and go down to the pit,    neither shall his bread be lacking.15   I am the LORD your God,    who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—    the LORD of hosts is his name.16   And I have put my words in your mouth    and covered you in the shadow of my hand,  establishing3 the heavens    and laying the foundations of the earth,    and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.’” 17   Wake yourself, wake yourself,    stand up, O Jerusalem,  you who have drunk from the hand of the LORD    the cup of his wrath,  who have drunk to the dregs    the bowl, the cup of staggering.18   There is none to guide her    among all the sons she has borne;  there is none to take her by the hand    among all the sons she has brought up.19   These two things have happened to you—    who will console you?—  devastation and destruction, famine and sword;    who will comfort you?420   Your sons have fainted;    they lie at the head of every street    like an antelope in a net;  they are full of the wrath of the LORD,    the rebuke of your God. 21   Therefore hear this, you who are afflicted,    who are drunk, but not with wine:22   Thus says your Lord, the LORD,    your God who pleads the cause of his people:  “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering;  the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more;23   and I will put it into the hand of your tormentors,    who have said to you,    ‘Bow down, that we may pass over’;  and you have made your back like the ground    and like the street for them to pass over.” The Lord’s Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.5 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;6    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle7 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 51:4 Or for teaching; also verse 7 [2] 51:6 Or will die like gnats [3] 51:16 Or planting [4] 51:19 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Masoretic Text how shall I comfort you [5] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [6] 52:13 Or shall prosper [7] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Evening: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians’ Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

With family: Deuteronomy 25; Psalm 116 Deuteronomy 25 (Listen) 25 “If there is a dispute between men and they come into court and the judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty, 2 then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall cause him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with a number of stripes in proportion to his offense. 3 Forty stripes may be given him, but not more, lest, if one should go on to beat him with more stripes than these, your brother be degraded in your sight. 4 “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain. Laws Concerning Levirate Marriage 5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.’ 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,’ 9 then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.’ 10 And the name of his house1 shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.’ Miscellaneous Laws 11 “When men fight with one another and the wife of the one draws near to rescue her husband from the hand of him who is beating him and puts out her hand and seizes him by the private parts, 12 then you shall cut off her hand. Your eye shall have no pity. 13 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. 14 You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. 15 A full and fair2 weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 16 For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. 17 “Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, 18 how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary, and cut off your tail, those who were lagging behind you, and he did not fear God. 19 Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget. Footnotes [1] 25:10 Hebrew its name [2] 25:15 Or just, or righteous; twice in this verse (ESV) Psalm 116 (Listen) I Love the Lord 116   I love the LORD, because he has heard    my voice and my pleas for mercy.2   Because he inclined his ear to me,    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.3   The snares of death encompassed me;    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;    I suffered distress and anguish.4   Then I called on the name of the LORD:    “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!” 5   Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;    our God is merciful.6   The LORD preserves the simple;    when I was brought low, he saved me.7   Return, O my soul, to your rest;    for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. 8   For you have delivered my soul from death,    my eyes from tears,    my feet from stumbling;9   I will walk before the LORD    in the land of the living. 10   I believed, even when1 I spoke:    “I am greatly afflicted”;11   I said in my alarm,    “All mankind are liars.” 12   What shall I render to the LORD    for all his benefits to me?13   I will lift up the cup of salvation    and call on the name of the LORD,14   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people. 15   Precious in the sight of the LORD    is the death of his saints.16   O LORD, I am your servant;    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.    You have loosed my bonds.17   I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving    and call on the name of the LORD.18   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people,19   in the courts of the house of the LORD,    in your midst, O Jerusalem.  Praise the LORD! Footnotes [1] 116:10 Or believed, indeed; Septuagint believed, therefore (ESV) In private: Isaiah 52; Revelation 22 Isaiah 52 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Revelation 22 (Listen) The River of Life 22 Then the angel1 showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life2 with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Jesus Is Coming 6 And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” 7 “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” 8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” 12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 14 Blessed are those who wash their robes,3 so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.4 Amen. Footnotes [1] 22:1 Greek he [2] 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life [3] 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments [4] 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints (ESV)

With family: Deuteronomy 25; Psalm 116 Deuteronomy 25 (Listen) 25 “If there is a dispute between men and they come into court and the judges decide between them, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty, 2 then if the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall cause him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with a number of stripes in proportion to his offense. 3 Forty stripes may be given him, but not more, lest, if one should go on to beat him with more stripes than these, your brother be degraded in your sight. 4 “You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain. Laws Concerning Levirate Marriage 5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband's brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother's wife, then his brother's wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to perpetuate his brother's name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband's brother to me.’ 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,’ 9 then his brother's wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother's house.’ 10 And the name of his house1 shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.’ Miscellaneous Laws 11 “When men fight with one another and the wife of the one draws near to rescue her husband from the hand of him who is beating him and puts out her hand and seizes him by the private parts, 12 then you shall cut off her hand. Your eye shall have no pity. 13 “You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. 14 You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. 15 A full and fair2 weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 16 For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God. 17 “Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, 18 how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary, and cut off your tail, those who were lagging behind you, and he did not fear God. 19 Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget. Footnotes [1] 25:10 Hebrew its name [2] 25:15 Or just, or righteous; twice in this verse (ESV) Psalm 116 (Listen) I Love the Lord 116   I love the LORD, because he has heard    my voice and my pleas for mercy.2   Because he inclined his ear to me,    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.3   The snares of death encompassed me;    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;    I suffered distress and anguish.4   Then I called on the name of the LORD:    “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!” 5   Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;    our God is merciful.6   The LORD preserves the simple;    when I was brought low, he saved me.7   Return, O my soul, to your rest;    for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. 8   For you have delivered my soul from death,    my eyes from tears,    my feet from stumbling;9   I will walk before the LORD    in the land of the living. 10   I believed, even when1 I spoke:    “I am greatly afflicted”;11   I said in my alarm,    “All mankind are liars.” 12   What shall I render to the LORD    for all his benefits to me?13   I will lift up the cup of salvation    and call on the name of the LORD,14   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people. 15   Precious in the sight of the LORD    is the death of his saints.16   O LORD, I am your servant;    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.    You have loosed my bonds.17   I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving    and call on the name of the LORD.18   I will pay my vows to the LORD    in the presence of all his people,19   in the courts of the house of the LORD,    in your midst, O Jerusalem.  Praise the LORD! Footnotes [1] 116:10 Or believed, indeed; Septuagint believed, therefore (ESV) In private: Isaiah 52; Revelation 22 Isaiah 52 (Listen) The Lord's Coming Salvation 52   Awake, awake,    put on your strength, O Zion;  put on your beautiful garments,    O Jerusalem, the holy city;  for there shall no more come into you    the uncircumcised and the unclean.2   Shake yourself from the dust and arise;    be seated, O Jerusalem;  loose the bonds from your neck,    O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” 4 For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.1 5 Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. 6 Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.” 7   How beautiful upon the mountains    are the feet of him who brings good news,  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,    who publishes salvation,    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”8   The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;    together they sing for joy;  for eye to eye they see    the return of the LORD to Zion.9   Break forth together into singing,    you waste places of Jerusalem,  for the LORD has comforted his people;    he has redeemed Jerusalem.10   The LORD has bared his holy arm    before the eyes of all the nations,  and all the ends of the earth shall see    the salvation of our God. 11   Depart, depart, go out from there;    touch no unclean thing;  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.12   For you shall not go out in haste,    and you shall not go in flight,  for the LORD will go before you,    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;2    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle3 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand. Footnotes [1] 52:4 Or the Assyrian has oppressed them of late [2] 52:13 Or shall prosper [3] 52:15 Or startle (ESV) Revelation 22 (Listen) The River of Life 22 Then the angel1 showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life2 with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Jesus Is Coming 6 And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.” 7 “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” 8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10 And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” 12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” 14 Blessed are those who wash their robes,3 so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” 17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.4 Amen. Footnotes [1] 22:1 Greek he [2] 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life [3] 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments [4] 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints (ESV)

Psalms and Wisdom: Psalm 133 Psalm 133 (Listen) When Brothers Dwell in Unity A Song of Ascents. Of David. 133   Behold, how good and pleasant it is    when brothers dwell in unity!12   It is like the precious oil on the head,    running down on the beard,  on the beard of Aaron,    running down on the collar of his robes!3   It is like the dew of Hermon,    which falls on the mountains of Zion!  For there the LORD has commanded the blessing,    life forevermore. Footnotes [1] 133:1 Or dwell together (ESV) Pentateuch and History: Numbers 13–14 Numbers 13–14 (Listen) Spies Sent into Canaan 13 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. 17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol,1 because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there. Report of the Spies 25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” 30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” The People Rebel 14 Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the people of Israel. 6 And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes 7 and said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.” 10 Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel. 11 And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.” Moses Intercedes for the People 13 But Moses said to the LORD, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them, 14 and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the midst of this people. For you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 Now if you kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard your fame will say, 16 ‘It is because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.’ 17 And now, please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised, saying, 18 ‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.’ 19 Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now.” God Promises Judgment 20 Then the LORD said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. 21 But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, 22 none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, 23 shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it. 24 But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. 25 Now, since the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwell in the valleys, turn tomorrow and set out for the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.” 26 And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 27 “How long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against me. 28 Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the LORD, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: 29 your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, 30 not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. 31 But your little ones, who you said would become a prey, I will bring in, and they shall know the land that you have rejected. 32 But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. 33 And your children shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years and shall suffer for your faithlessness, until the last of your dead bodies lies in the wilderness. 34 According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, a year for each day, you shall bear your iniquity forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.’ 35 I, the LORD, have spoken. Surely this will I do to all this wicked congregation who are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall come to a full end, and there they shall die.” 36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land—37 the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the LORD. 38 Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive. Israel Defeated in Battle 39 When Moses told these words to all the people of Israel, the people mourned greatly. 40 And they rose early in the morning and went up to the heights of the hill country, saying, “Here we are. We will go up to the place that the LORD has promised, for we have sinned.” 41 But Moses said, “Why now are you transgressing the command of the LORD, when that will not succeed? 42 Do not go up, for the LORD is not among you, lest you be struck down before your enemies. 43 For there the Amalekites and the Canaanites are facing you, and you shall fall by the sword. Because you have turned back from following the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.” 44 But they presumed to go up to the heights of the hill country, although neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed out of the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and defeated them and pursued them, even to Hormah. Footnotes [1] 13:24 Eshcol means cluster (ESV) Chronicles and Prophets: Isaiah 52:13–53:12 Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (Listen) He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions 13   Behold, my servant shall act wisely;1    he shall be high and lifted up,    and shall be exalted.14   As many were astonished at you—    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—15   so shall he sprinkle2 many nations.    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,  for that which has not been told them they see,    and that which they have not heard they understand.53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?3    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?2   For he grew up before him like a young plant,    and like a root out of dry ground;  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,    and no beauty that we should desire him.3   He was despised and rejected4 by men,    a man of sorrows5 and acquainted with6 grief;7  and as one from whom men hide their faces8    he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs    and carried our sorrows;  yet we esteemed him stricken,    smitten by God, and afflicted.5   But he was pierced for our transgressions;    he was crushed for our iniquities;  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,    and with his wounds we are healed.6   All we like sheep have gone astray;    we have turned—every one—to his own way;  and the LORD has laid on him    the iniquity of us all. 7   He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,    yet he opened not his mouth;  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,    so he opened not his mouth.8   By oppression and judgment he was taken away;    and as for his generation, who considered  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people?9   And they made his grave with the wicked    and with a rich man in his death,  although he had done no violence,    and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10   Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;    he has put him to grief;9  when his soul makes10 an offering for guilt,    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.11   Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see11 and be satisfied;  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,    make many to be accounted righteous,    and he shall bear their iniquities.12   Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,12    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,13  because he poured out his soul to death    and was numbered with the transgressors;  yet he bore the sin of many,    and makes intercession for the transgressors. Footnotes [1] 52:13 Or shall prosper [2] 52:15 Or startle [3] 53:1 Or Who has believed what we have heard? [4] 53:3 Or forsaken [5] 53:3 Or pains; also verse 4 [6] 53:3 Or and knowing [7] 53:3 Or sickness; also verse 4 [8] 53:3 Or as one who hides his face from us [9] 53:10 Or he has made him sick [10] 53:10 Or when you make his soul [11] 53:11 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll he shall see light [12] 53:12 Or with the great [13] 53:12 Or with the numerous (ESV) Gospels and Epistles: 1 Thessalonians 1 1 Thessalonians 1 (Listen) Greeting 1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly1 mentioning you in our prayers, 3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers2 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Footnotes [1] 1:2 Or without ceasing [2] 1:4 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters (ESV)

• Good Friday, When God Passes Over by Dr. Michael Horton • Pierced for Our Transgressions by Dr. Mark Dever

Pierced for Our Transgressions