Isaiah 56:1-8
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Covenant Extended to All Who Obey
56 Thus says the Lord:
Maintain justice, and do what is right,
for soon my salvation will come
and my deliverance be revealed.(A)
2 Happy is the mortal who does this,
the one who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it,
and refrains from doing any evil.(B)
3 Do not let the foreigner joined to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely separate me from his people,”
and do not let the eunuch say,
“I am just a dry tree.”(C)
4 For thus says the Lord:
To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose the things that please me
and hold fast my covenant,(D)
5 I will give, in my house and within my walls,
a monument and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that shall not be cut off.(E)
6 And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,
to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord,
and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbath and do not profane it
and hold fast my covenant—(F)
7 these I will bring to my holy mountain
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar,
for my house shall be called a house of prayer
for all peoples.(G)
8 Thus says the Lord God,
who gathers the outcasts of Israel:
I will gather others to them
besides those already gathered.[a](H)
Footnotes
- 56.8 Heb besides his gathered ones
Galatians 5:16-24
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Works of the Flesh
16 Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.(A) 17 For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want.(B) 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law.(C) 19 Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery,(D) 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, 21 envy,[a] drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.(E)
The Fruit of the Spirit
22 By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,(F) 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. 24 And those who belong to Christ[b] have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.(G)
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Mark 9:2-13
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Transfiguration
2 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them,(A) 3 and his clothes became dazzling bright, such as no one[a] on earth could brighten them.(B) 4 And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. 5 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us set up three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”(C) 6 He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. 7 Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved;[b] listen to him!”(D) 8 Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.
The Coming of Elijah
9 As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10 So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead could mean. 11 Then they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” 12 He said to them, “Elijah is indeed coming first to restore all things. How then is it written about the Son of Man, that he is to go through many sufferings and be treated with contempt? 13 But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written about him.”
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Psalm 73
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Book III
(Psalms 73–89)
Psalm 73
Plea for Relief from Oppressors
A Psalm of Asaph.
1 Truly God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.(A)
2 But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
my steps had nearly slipped.(B)
3 For I was envious of the arrogant;
I saw the prosperity of the wicked.(C)
4 For they have no pain;
their bodies are sound and sleek.
5 They are not in trouble as others are;
they are not plagued like other people.(D)
6 Therefore pride is their necklace;
violence covers them like a garment.(E)
7 Their eyes swell out with fatness;
their hearts overflow with follies.(F)
8 They scoff and speak with malice;
loftily they threaten oppression.(G)
9 They set their mouths against heaven,
and their tongues range over the earth.
10 Therefore the people turn and praise them[a]
and find no fault in them.[b]
11 And they say, “How can God know?
Is there knowledge in the Most High?”(H)
12 Such are the wicked;
always at ease, they increase in riches.(I)
13 All in vain I have kept my heart clean
and washed my hands in innocence.(J)
14 For all day long I have been plagued
and am punished every morning.(K)
15 If I had said, “I will talk on in this way,”
I would have been untrue to the circle of your children.
16 But when I thought how to understand this,
it seemed to me a wearisome task,(L)
17 until I went into the sanctuary of God;
then I perceived their end.(M)
18 Truly you set them in slippery places;
you make them fall to ruin.(N)
19 How they are destroyed in a moment,
swept away utterly by terrors!(O)
20 They are[c] like a dream when one awakes;
on awaking you despise their phantoms.(P)
21 When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart,
22 I was stupid and ignorant;
I was like a brute beast toward you.(Q)
23 Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
24 You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me with honor.[d](R)
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And there is nothing on earth that I desire other than you.(S)
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength[e] of my heart and my portion forever.(T)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.