40 Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.

² Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins.

³ The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

⁴ Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:

⁵ And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

⁶ The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:

⁷ The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.

⁸ The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

⁹ O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!

¹⁰ Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

¹¹ He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

85 Lord, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob.

² Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.

³ Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.

⁴ Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.

⁵ Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?

⁶ Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?

⁷ Shew us thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us thy salvation.

⁸ I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.

⁹ Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.

¹⁰ Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

¹¹ Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

¹² Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase.

¹³ Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.

1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;

² As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.

³ The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

⁴ John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

⁵ And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.

⁶ And John was clothed with camel's hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey;

⁷ And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose.

⁸ I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.