The Daily Audio Bible
The Eternal Covenant of Peace
54 Shout for joy, O barren one who has borne no children;
burst into song and shout,
you who have not been in labor!
For the children of the desolate woman will be more
than the children of the one who is married, says the Lord.(A)
2 Enlarge the site of your tent,
and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
do not hold back; lengthen your cords
and strengthen your stakes.(B)
3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left,
and your descendants will possess nations
and will settle desolate towns.(C)
4 Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
do not be discouraged, for you will not suffer disgrace,
for you will forget the shame of your youth,
and the disgrace of your widowhood you will remember no more.(D)
5 For your Maker is your husband;
the Lord of hosts is his name;
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer;
the God of the whole earth he is called.(E)
6 For the Lord has called you
like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
like the wife of a man’s youth when she is cast off,
says your God.(F)
7 For a brief moment I abandoned you,
but with great compassion I will gather you.(G)
8 In overflowing wrath for a moment
I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,
says the Lord, your Redeemer.(H)
9 This is like the days of Noah to me:
Just as I swore that the waters of Noah
would never again go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you
and will not rebuke you.(I)
10 For the mountains may depart
and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,
says the Lord, who has compassion on you.(J)
11 O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,
I am about to set your stones in antimony
and lay your foundations with sapphires.[a](K)
12 I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
your gates of jewels,
and all your wall of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
and great shall be the prosperity of your children.(L)
14 In righteousness you shall be established;
you shall be far from oppression; indeed, you shall not fear;
and from terror; indeed, it shall not come near you.(M)
15 If anyone stirs up strife,
it is not from me;
whoever stirs up strife with you
shall fall because of you.(N)
16 See, it is I who have created the smith
who blows the fire of coals
and produces a weapon fit for its purpose;
I have also created the ravager to destroy.
17 No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper,
and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord
and their vindication from me, says the Lord.(O)
An Invitation to Abundant Life
55 Hear, everyone who thirsts;
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.(P)
2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread
and your earnings for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.(Q)
3 Incline your ear, and come to me;
listen, so that you may live.
I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, sure love for David.(R)
4 See, I made him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and commander for the peoples.(S)
5 Now you shall call nations that you do not know,
and nations that do not know you shall run to you,
because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel,
for he has glorified you.(T)
6 Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call upon him while he is near;(U)
7 let the wicked forsake their way
and the unrighteous their thoughts;
let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.(V)
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.(W)
10 For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there until they have watered the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,(X)
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose
and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.(Y)
12 For you shall go out in joy
and be led back in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you
shall burst into song,
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.(Z)
13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle,
and it shall be to the Lord for a memorial,
for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.(AA)
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.(AB)
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.(AC)
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.”(AD)
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,(AE)
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.(AF)
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—(AG)
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.(AH)
8 Thus says the Lord God,
who gathers the outcasts of Israel:
I will gather others to them
besides those already gathered.[b](AI)
The Corruption of Israel’s Rulers
9 All you wild animals,
all you wild animals in the forest, come to devour!(AJ)
10 Israel’s[c] sentinels are blind;
they are all without knowledge;
they are all silent dogs
that cannot bark,
dreaming, lying down,
loving to slumber.(AK)
11 The dogs have a mighty appetite;
they never have enough.
The shepherds also have no understanding;
they have all turned to their own way,
to their own gain, one and all.
12 “Come,” they say, “let us[d] get wine;
let us fill ourselves with strong drink.
And tomorrow will be like today,
great beyond measure.”
Israel’s Futile Idolatry
57 The righteous perish,
and no one considers why;
the devout are taken away,
while no one understands
that it is due to evil that the righteous are taken away.(AL)
2 Those who walk uprightly enter into peace
and rest on their couches.(AM)
3 But as for you, come here,
you children of a sorceress,
you offspring of an adulterer and a prostitute.[e](AN)
4 Whom are you mocking?
Against whom do you open your mouth wide
and stick out your tongue?
Are you not children of transgression,
the offspring of deceit—(AO)
5 you who burn with lust among the oaks,
under every green tree;
you who slaughter your children in the valleys,
under the clefts of the rocks?(AP)
6 Among the smooth stones of the valley is your portion;
it is they who are your lot;
to them you have poured out a drink offering;
you have brought a grain offering.
Should these acts cause me to relent?(AQ)
7 Upon a high and lofty mountain
you have set your bed,
and there you went up to offer sacrifice.(AR)
8 Behind the door and the doorpost
you have set up your symbol,
for in deserting me[f] you have uncovered your bed;
you have gone up to it;
you have made it wide;
and you have made a bargain for yourself with them;
you have loved their bed;
you have gazed on their nakedness.[g](AS)
9 You journeyed to Molech[h] with oil
and multiplied your perfumes;
you sent your envoys far away
and sent them down to Sheol.(AT)
10 You grew weary from your many wanderings,
but you did not say, “It is no use!”
You found your desire rekindled,
and so you did not weaken.(AU)
11 Whom did you dread and fear
so that you lied
and did not remember me
or give me a thought?
Have I not kept silent and closed my eyes,[i]
and so you do not fear me?(AV)
12 I will announce your verdict,
and the objects you made will not help you.
13 When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you!
The wind will carry them off;
a breath will take them away.
But whoever takes refuge in me shall possess the land
and inherit my holy mountain.(AW)
A Promise of Help and Healing
14 It shall be said,
“Build up, build up, prepare the way;
remove every obstruction from my people’s way.”(AX)
Children and Parents
6 Children, obey your parents in the Lord,[a] for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother”—this is the first commandment with a promise(A)— 3 “so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”
4 And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.(B)
Slaves and Masters
5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect[b] and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ,(C) 6 not with a slavery performed merely for looks, to please people, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the soul. 7 Render service with enthusiasm, as for the Lord and not for humans, 8 knowing that whatever good we do, we will receive the same again from the Lord, whether we are enslaved or free.
9 And, masters,[c] do the same to them. Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Lord[d] in heaven, and with him there is no partiality.(D)
The Whole Armor of God
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power; 11 put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, 12 for our[e] struggle is not against blood and flesh but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present[f] darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.[g](E) 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on the evil day and, having prevailed against everything, to stand firm.(F) 14 Stand, therefore, and belt your waist with truth and put on the breastplate of righteousness(G) 15 and lace up your sandals in preparation for the gospel of peace. 16 With all of these,[h] take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.(H) 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.(I) 18 Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.(J) 19 Pray also for me, so that when I speak a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,[i](K) 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.(L)
Personal Matters and Benediction
21 So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus will tell you everything. He is a dear brother and a faithful minister in the Lord.(M) 22 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, to let you know how we are and to encourage your hearts.
23 Peace be to the brothers and sisters and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.(N) 24 Grace be with all who have an undying love for[j] our Lord Jesus Christ.[k]
Psalm 70
Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies
To the leader. Of David, for the memorial offering.
1 Be pleased, O God, to deliver me.
O Lord, make haste to help me!(A)
2 Let those be put to shame and confusion
who seek my life.
Let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
who desire to hurt me.(B)
3 Let those who say, “Aha, Aha!”
turn back because of their shame.(C)
4 Let all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you.
Let those who love your salvation
say evermore, “God is great!”
5 But I am poor and needy;
hasten to me, O God!
You are my help and my deliverer;
O Lord, do not delay!(D)
8 Whoever plans to do evil
will be called a mischief-maker.(A)
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.