Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
5 Lord, the heavens praise you for your miracles
and for your loyalty in the meeting of your holy ones.
6 Who in heaven is equal to the Lord?
None of the angels is like the Lord.
7 When the holy ones meet, it is God they fear.
He is more frightening than all who surround him.
8 Lord God of heaven’s armies, who is like you?
Lord, you are powerful and completely to be trusted.
9 You rule the mighty sea.
You calm the stormy waves.
10 You crushed the sea monster Rahab.
By your power you scattered your enemies.
11 The skies and the earth belong to you.
You made the world and everything in it.
12 You created the north and the south.
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon sing for joy at your name.
13 Your arm has great power.
Your hand is strong. Your right hand is lifted up.
14 Your kingdom is built on what is right and fair.
Love and truth are in all you do.
15 Happy are the people who know how to praise you.
Lord, let them live in the light of your presence.
16 In your name they rejoice all the time.
They praise your goodness.
17 You are their glorious strength.
In your kindness you honor our king.
18 Our king, our shield, belongs to the Lord.
Our king belongs to the Holy One of Israel.
19 Once, in a vision, you spoke
to those who worship you.
You said, “I have given strength to a warrior.
I have selected a young man from my people.
20 I have found my servant David.
I appointed him by pouring holy oil on him.
21 I will steady him with my hand.
I will strengthen him with my arm.
22 No enemy will make him give forced payments.
Wicked people will not defeat him.
23 I will crush his enemies in front of him.
I will defeat those who hate him.
24 My loyalty and love will be with him.
Through me he will be strong.
25 I will give him power over the sea
and control over the rivers.
26 He will say to me, ‘You are my father,
my God, the Rock, the one who saves me.’
27 I will make him my firstborn son.
He will be the greatest king on earth.
28 My love will watch over him forever.
My agreement with him will never end.
29 I will make his family continue.
His kingdom will last as long as the skies.
30 “But his descendants might reject my teachings
and not follow my rules.
31 They might break my laws
and disobey my commands.
32 Then I will punish their sins with a rod
and their wrongs with a whip.
33 But I will not hold back my love from David.
I will not stop being loyal.
34 I will not break my agreement.
I will not change what I have said.
35 It is certain that I am a holy God.
So it is certain I will not lie to David.
36 His family will continue forever.
His kingdom will continue before me like the sun.
37 It will last forever, like the moon,
like a lasting witness in the sky.” Selah
Jerusalem Will Be Saved
51 The Lord says, “Listen to me,
those of you who try to live right and follow the Lord.
Look at the rock from which you were cut.
Look at the stone quarry from which you were dug.
2 Look at Abraham, your ancestor.
Look at Sarah, who gave birth to your ancestors.
Abraham had no children when I called him.
But I blessed him and gave him many descendants.
3 So the Lord will comfort Jerusalem.
He will show mercy to those who live in her ruins.
He will change her deserts into a garden like Eden.
He will make her empty lands like the garden of the Lord.
People there will be very happy.
They will give thanks and sing songs.
4 “My people, listen to me.
My nation, pay attention to me.
I will give the people my teachings.
And my decisions will be like a light to all people.
5 I will soon show I do what is right.
I will soon save you.
I will use my power and judge all nations.
All the faraway places are waiting for me.
They wait for my power to help them.
6 Look up to the heavens.
Look around you at the earth below.
The skies will disappear like clouds of smoke.
The earth will become useless like old clothes.
Its people will die like flies.
But my salvation will continue forever.
My goodness will never end.
7 “You people who know what is right should listen to me.
You people who follow my teachings should hear what I say.
Don’t be afraid of the evil things people say.
Don’t be upset by their insults.
8 Moths will eat those people as if they were clothes.
Worms will eat them as if they were wool.
But my goodness will continue forever.
My salvation will continue from now on.”
9 Wake up, wake up, and use your strength,
powerful Lord.
Wake up as you did in the old times.
Wake up as you did a long time ago.
With your own power, you cut Rahab into pieces.
You killed that sea monster.
10 You caused the sea to become dry.
You dried the waters of the deep ocean.
You made the deepest parts of the sea into a road.
Your people crossed over on that road and were saved.
11 The people the Lord has freed will return.
They will enter Jerusalem with joy.
Their happiness will last forever.
They will have joy and gladness.
All sadness and sorrow will be gone far away.
12 The Lord says, “I am the one who comforts you.
So why should you be afraid of people, who die?
Why should you fear people who die like the grass?
13 Have you forgotten that the Lord made you?
He stretched out the skies.
He made the earth.
Why are you always afraid
of those angry people who trouble you?
They want to destroy.
But where are those angry people now?
14 People in prison will soon be set free.
They will not die in prison.
They will have enough food.
15 This is because I am the Lord your God.
I stir the sea and make the waves roar.
My name is the Lord of heaven’s armies.
16 I will give you the words I want you to say.
I will cover you with my hands and protect you.
I made the heavens and the earth.
And I say to Jerusalem, ‘You are my people.’”
Jesus Is God’s Chosen Servant
15 Jesus knew what the Pharisees were doing, so he left that place. Many people followed him, and he healed all who were sick. 16 But Jesus warned the people not to tell who he was. 17 He did these things to make come true what Isaiah the prophet had said:
18 “Here is my servant whom I have chosen.
I love him, and I am pleased with him.
I will put my Spirit in him.
Then he will tell how I will judge all people fairly.
19 He will not argue or shout.
No one will hear his voice in the streets.
20 He will not break a crushed blade of grass.
He will not put out even a weak flame.
He will continue until he makes fair judgment win the victory.
21 In him will the nations find hope.” Isaiah 42:1-4
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.