Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
An Ideal King Establishes a Kingdom of Peace
11 A shoot will grow out of Jesse’s[a] root stock,
a bud will sprout[b] from his roots.
2 The Lord’s Spirit will rest on him[c]—
a Spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom,[d]
a Spirit that provides the ability to execute plans,[e]
a Spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord.[f]
3 He will take delight in obeying the Lord.[g]
He will not judge by mere appearances,[h]
or make decisions on the basis of hearsay.[i]
4 He will treat the poor fairly,[j]
and make right decisions[k] for the downtrodden of the earth.[l]
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,[m]
and order the wicked to be executed.[n]
5 Justice will be like a belt around his waist,
integrity will be like a belt around his hips.[o]
6 A wolf will reside[p] with a lamb,
and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;
an ox and a young lion will graze together,[q]
as a small child leads them along.
7 A cow and a bear will graze together,
their young will lie down together.[r]
A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.
8 A baby[s] will play
over the hole of a snake;[t]
over the nest[u] of a serpent
an infant[v] will put his hand.[w]
9 They will no longer injure or destroy
on my entire royal mountain.[x]
For there will be universal submission to the Lord’s sovereignty,
just as the waters completely cover the sea.[y]
Israel is Reclaimed and Reunited
10 At that time[z] a root from Jesse[aa] will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance,[ab] and his residence will be majestic.
Psalm 72[a]
For[b] Solomon.
72 O God, grant the king the ability to make just decisions.[c]
Grant the king’s son[d] the ability to make fair decisions.[e]
2 Then he will judge[f] your people fairly,
and your oppressed ones[g] equitably.
3 The mountains will bring news of peace to the people,
and the hills will announce justice.[h]
4 He will defend[i] the oppressed among the people;
he will deliver[j] the children[k] of the poor
and crush the oppressor.
5 People will fear[l] you[m] as long as the sun and moon remain in the sky,
for generation after generation.[n]
6 He[o] will descend like rain on the mown grass,[p]
like showers that drench[q] the earth.[r]
7 During his days the godly will flourish;[s]
peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky.[t]
4 For everything that was written in former times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and through encouragement of the scriptures we may have hope. 5 Now may the God of endurance and comfort give you unity with one another[a] in accordance with Christ Jesus, 6 so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Exhortation to Mutual Acceptance
7 Receive one another, then, just as Christ also received you, to God’s glory. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised[b] on behalf of God’s truth to confirm the promises made to the fathers,[c] 9 and thus the Gentiles glorify God for his mercy.[d] As it is written, “Because of this I will confess you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praises to your name.”[e] 10 And again it says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.”[f] 11 And again, “Praise the Lord all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him.”[g] 12 And again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse will come, and the one who rises to rule over the Gentiles, in him will the Gentiles hope.”[h] 13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in him,[i] so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Ministry of John the Baptist
3 In those days John the Baptist came into the wilderness[a] of Judea proclaiming, 2 “Repent,[b] for the kingdom of heaven is near.” 3 For he is the one about whom the prophet Isaiah had spoken:[c]
“The voice[d] of one shouting in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make[e] his paths straight.’”[f]
4 Now John wore clothing made from camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his diet consisted of locusts and wild honey.[g] 5 Then people from Jerusalem,[h] as well as all Judea and all the region around the Jordan, were going out to him, 6 and he was baptizing them[i] in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins.
7 But when he saw many Pharisees[j] and Sadducees[k] coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Therefore produce fruit[l] that proves your[m] repentance, 9 and don’t think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’[n] For I tell you that God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones! 10 Even now the ax is laid at[o] the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
11 “I baptize you with water, for repentance, but the one coming after me is more powerful than I am—I am not worthy[p] to carry his sandals! He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.[q] 12 His winnowing fork[r] is in his hand, and he will clean out his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the storehouse,[s] but the chaff he will burn up with inextinguishable fire!”[t]
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