Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Highway in the Wilderness
35 The wilderness and dry land will be glad.
The desert will rejoice and blossom like a lily.
2 It will blossom profusely,
will rejoice with joy and singing,
will be given the glory of Lebanon,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the glory of Adonai,
the splendor of our God.
3 Strengthen the limp hands,
make firm the wobbly knees.
4 Say to those with anxious heart,
“Be strong, have no fear!”
Behold, your God!
Vengeance is coming!
God’s recompense—it is coming!
Then He will save you.
5 Then the eyes of the blind will be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.[a]
6 Then the lame will leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the mute will sing.[b]
For water will burst forth in the desert
and streams in the wilderness.
7 The parched land will become a pool,
the thirsty ground springs of water.
In the haunt of jackals, where they rest,
grass will become reeds and rushes.
8 A highway will be there—a roadway.
It will be called the Way of Holiness.
The unclean will not travel on it.
It is for the one who walks the way.
Fools will not go astray.
9 No lion will be there.
No ravenous beast will go up on it.
They will not be found there.
But the redeemed will walk there.
10 The ransomed of Adonai will return
and come to Zion with singing,
with everlasting joy upon their heads.
They will obtain gladness and joy,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.
5 Happy is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in Adonai his God,
6 who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps truth forever,
7 who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives bread to the hungry.
Adonai sets the prisoners free.
8 Adonai opens the eyes of the blind.[a]
Adonai raises up those who are bowed down.
Adonai loves the righteous.
9 Adonai protects outsiders,
upholds the fatherless and the widow,
but thwarts the way of the wicked.
10 Adonai will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, from generation to generation.
Halleluyah!
46 Then Miriam said,
“My soul magnifies Adonai,[a]
47 and my spirit greatly rejoices in God, my Savior.
48 For He has looked with care upon the humble state of His maidservant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.
49 For the Mighty One has done a great thing for me,
and holy is His name.
50 And His mercy is from generation to generation
to the ones who fear Him.
51 He has displayed power with His arm
He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
52 He has brought down rulers from thrones
and exalted humble ones.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent away the rich empty-handed.
54 He has helped His servant Israel,[b]
remembering His mercy,
55 just as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his seed forever.”
Be Patient for His Coming
7 So be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient for it until it receives the early and late rain. [a] 8 You also be patient. Strengthen your hearts because the coming of the Lord is near. 9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be judged. Behold, the judge is standing at the doors. 10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers and sisters, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
2 Now when John heard in prison about the works of the Messiah, he sent word through his disciples 3 and said to Yeshua, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?”
4 Yeshua replied, “Go report to John what you hear and see: 5 the blind see and the lame walk, those with tzara’at are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised and the poor have good news proclaimed to them. 6 Blessed is the one who is not led to stumble because of Me.”[a]
A Prophet Without Honor
7 Now as they were leaving, Yeshua began to talk to the crowd concerning John. “What did you go out to the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 No? So what did you go out to see? A man dressed in finery? Look, those who wear finery are in the palaces of kings! 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, even more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written,
‘Behold, I send My messenger before You,
who will prepare Your way before You.’[b]
11 “Amen, I tell you, among those born of women, none has arisen greater than John the Immerser. Yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.