Isaiah Assures Deliverance^(A)

19 And ^(B)so it was, when King Hezekiah heard it, that he tore his clothes, covered himself with ^(C)sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord. ² Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz. ³ And they said to him, “Thus says Hezekiah: ‘This day is a day of trouble, and rebuke, and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but there is no strength to ^[a]bring them forth. ^4 (D)It may be that the Lord your God will hear all the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to ^(E)reproach the living God, and will ^(F)rebuke the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’ ”

⁵ So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah. ^6 (G)And Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Do not be ^(H)afraid of the words which you have heard, with which the ^(I)servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. ⁷ Surely I will send ^(J)a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.” ’ ”

Sennacherib’s Threat and Hezekiah’s Prayer^(K)

⁸ Then the Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah, for he heard that he had departed ^(L)from Lachish. ⁹ And ^(M)the king heard concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, “Look, he has come out to make war with you.” So he again sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, ¹⁰ “Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: ‘Do not let your God ^(N)in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ¹¹ Look! You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands by utterly destroying them; and shall you be delivered? ^12 (O)Have the gods of the nations delivered those whom my fathers have destroyed, Gozan and Haran and Rezeph, and the people of ^(P)Eden who were in Telassar? ^13 (Q)Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah?’ ”

^14 (R)And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. ¹⁵ Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said: “O Lord God of Israel, the One ^(S)who dwells between the cherubim, ^(T)You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. ^16 (U)Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; ^(V)open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, ^(W)which he has sent to reproach the living God. ¹⁷ Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, ¹⁸ and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were ^(X)not gods, but ^(Y)the work of men’s hands—wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them. ¹⁹ Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, ^(Z)that all the kingdoms of the earth may ^(AA)know that You are the Lord God, You alone.”

Take Up the Cross and Follow Him^(A)

³⁴ When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, ^(B)“Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. ³⁵ For ^(C)whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. ³⁶ For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? ³⁷ Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? ^38 (D)For whoever ^(E)is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

The Transfiguration of Christ^(F)

9 And He said to them, ^(G)“Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see ^(H)the kingdom of God ^[a]present with power.”

Free from Indwelling Sin

8 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, ^(A)who^[a] do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. ² For ^(B)the law of ^(C)the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from ^(D)the law of sin and death. ³ For ^(E)what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, ^(F)God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who ^(G)do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. ⁵ For ^(H)those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, ^(I)the things of the Spirit. ⁶ For ^(J)to be ^[b]carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. ⁷ Because ^(K)the ^[c]carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, ^(L)nor indeed can be. ⁸ So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

⁹ But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. ¹⁰ And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. ¹¹ But if the Spirit of ^(M)Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, ^(N)He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies ^[d]through His Spirit who dwells in you.

Sonship Through the Spirit

^12 (O)Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. ¹³ For ^(P)if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you ^(Q)put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. ¹⁴ For ^(R)as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. ¹⁵ For ^(S)you did not receive the spirit of bondage again ^(T)to fear, but you received the ^(U)Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ^(V)“Abba,^[e] Father.” ^16 (W)The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then ^(X)heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, ^(Y)if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.