Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
The Majesty and Condescension of God
113 Praise[a] the Lord!
(A)Praise, O servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord!
2 (B)Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore!
3 (C)From the rising of the sun to its going down
The Lord’s name is to be praised.
4 The Lord is (D)high above all nations,
(E)His glory above the heavens.
5 (F)Who is like the Lord our God,
Who dwells on high,
6 (G)Who humbles Himself to behold
The things that are in the heavens and in the earth?
7 (H)He raises the poor out of the dust,
And lifts the (I)needy out of the ash heap,
8 That He may (J)seat him with princes—
With the princes of His people.
9 (K)He grants the [b]barren woman a home,
Like a joyful mother of children.
Praise the Lord!
Promise of the Lord’s Help
14 “I have held My peace a long time,
I have been still and restrained Myself.
Now I will cry like a woman in [a]labor,
I will pant and gasp at once.
15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills,
And dry up all their vegetation;
I will make the rivers coastlands,
And I will dry up the pools.
16 I will bring the blind by a way they did not know;
I will lead them in paths they have not known.
I will make darkness light before them,
And crooked places straight.
These things I will do for them,
And not forsake them.
17 They shall be (A)turned back,
They shall be greatly ashamed,
Who trust in carved images,
Who say to the molded images,
‘You are our gods.’
18 “Hear, you deaf;
And look, you blind, that you may see.
19 (B)Who is blind but My servant,
Or deaf as My messenger whom I send?
Who is blind as he who is perfect,
And blind as the Lord’s servant?
20 Seeing many things, (C)but you do not observe;
Opening the ears, but he does not hear.”
Israel’s Obstinate Disobedience
21 The Lord is well pleased for His righteousness’ sake;
He will exalt the law and make it honorable.
John’s Birth Announced to Zacharias
5 There was (A)in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, (B)of the division of (C)Abijah. His (D)wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.
8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, [a]his lot fell (E)to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 (F)And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of (G)the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, (H)he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and (I)you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and (J)many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be (K)great in the sight of the Lord, and (L)shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, (M)even from his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 (N)He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
18 And Zacharias said to the angel, (O)“How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”
19 And the angel answered and said to him, “I am (P)Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you [b]these glad (Q)tidings. 20 But behold, (R)you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”
21 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple. 22 But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless.
23 So it was, as soon as (S)the days of his service were completed, that he departed to his own house. 24 Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to (T)take away my reproach among people.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.