Praise and Prayer

Psalm 148

¹⁰ In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists,^(A) should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.^{(B) 11} Both the one who makes people holy^(C) and those who are made holy^(D) are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.^{[a](E) 12} He says,

¹³ And again,

And again he says,

¹⁴ Since the children have flesh and blood,^(I) he too shared in their humanity^(J) so that by his death he might break the power^(K) of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil^(L)— ¹⁵ and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear^(M) of death. ¹⁶ For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants.^{(N) 17} For this reason he had to be made like them,^[e](O) fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful^(P) and faithful high priest^(Q) in service to God,^(R) and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.^{(S) 18} Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.^(T)

The Escape to Egypt

¹³ When they had gone, an angel^(A) of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.^(B) “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”^(C)

¹⁴ So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, ¹⁵ where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled^(D) what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”^[a](E)

¹⁶ When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. ¹⁷ Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:^(F)

The Return to Nazareth

¹⁹ After Herod died, an angel^(I) of the Lord appeared in a dream^(J) to Joseph in Egypt ²⁰ and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.”^(K)

²¹ So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. ²² But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream,^(L) he withdrew to the district of Galilee,^{(M) 23} and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth.^(N) So was fulfilled^(O) what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.^(P)