20 to hear the groans of the prisoners(A)
    and release those condemned to death.”

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11 May the groans of the prisoners come before you;
    with your strong arm preserve those condemned to die.

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He upholds(A) the cause of the oppressed(B)
    and gives food to the hungry.(C)
The Lord sets prisoners free,(D)

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The Year of the Lord’s Favor

61 The Spirit(A) of the Sovereign Lord(B) is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed(C) me
    to proclaim good news(D) to the poor.(E)
He has sent me to bind up(F) the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom(G) for the captives(H)
    and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a]
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor(I)
    and the day of vengeance(J) of our God,
to comfort(K) all who mourn,(L)
    and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown(M) of beauty
    instead of ashes,(N)
the oil(O) of joy
    instead of mourning,(P)
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
    a planting(Q) of the Lord
    for the display of his splendor.(R)

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 61:1 Hebrew; Septuagint the blind

The Lord said, “I have indeed seen(A) the misery(B) of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned(C) about their suffering.(D)

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in which you used to live(A) when you followed the ways of this world(B) and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air,(C) the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.(D) All of us also lived among them at one time,(E) gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a](F) and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.

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Footnotes

  1. Ephesians 2:3 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.

The Coming of Zion’s King

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!(A)
    Shout,(B) Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,(C)
    righteous and victorious,(D)
lowly and riding on a donkey,(E)
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.(F)
10 I will take away the chariots from Ephraim
    and the warhorses from Jerusalem,
    and the battle bow will be broken.(G)
He will proclaim peace(H) to the nations.
    His rule will extend from sea to sea
    and from the River[a] to the ends of the earth.(I)
11 As for you, because of the blood of my covenant(J) with you,
    I will free your prisoners(K) from the waterless pit.(L)
12 Return to your fortress,(M) you prisoners of hope;
    even now I announce that I will restore twice(N) as much to you.

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Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 9:10 That is, the Euphrates

17 the man who made the world a wilderness,(A)
    who overthrew(B) its cities
    and would not let his captives go home?”(C)

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11 So the Lord brought against them the army commanders of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh prisoner,(A) put a hook(B) in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles(C) and took him to Babylon. 12 In his distress he sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled(D) himself greatly before the God of his ancestors. 13 And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.

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22 Hazael king of Aram oppressed(A) Israel throughout the reign of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion and showed concern for them because of his covenant(B) with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. To this day he has been unwilling to destroy(C) them or banish them from his presence.(D)

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The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains,(A) and sentries stood guard at the entrance. Suddenly an angel(B) of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.(C)

Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.(D) 10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself,(E) and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

11 Then Peter came to himself(F) and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me(G) from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.”

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Then Jehoahaz sought(A) the Lord’s favor, and the Lord listened to him, for he saw(B) how severely the king of Aram was oppressing(C) Israel.

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23 During that long period,(A) the king of Egypt died.(B) The Israelites groaned in their slavery(C) and cried out, and their cry(D) for help because of their slavery went up to God. 24 God heard their groaning and he remembered(E) his covenant(F) with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. 25 So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned(G) about them.

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32 the river crossings seized,
    the marshes set on fire,(A)
    and the soldiers terrified.(B)

33 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says:

“Daughter Babylon(C) is like a threshing floor(D)
    at the time it is trampled;
    the time to harvest(E) her will soon come.(F)

34 “Nebuchadnezzar(G) king of Babylon has devoured(H) us,(I)
    he has thrown us into confusion,
    he has made us an empty jar.
Like a serpent he has swallowed us
    and filled his stomach with our delicacies,
    and then has spewed(J) us out.
35 May the violence(K) done to our flesh[a] be on Babylon,”
    say the inhabitants of Zion.
“May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,”
    says Jerusalem.(L)

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 51:35 Or done to us and to our children

12 The groans of the dying rise from the city,
    and the souls of the wounded cry out for help.(A)
    But God charges no one with wrongdoing.(B)

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