Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
A Prayer for Divine Intervention
7 I will tell of the faithful acts of the Lord,
of the Lord’s praiseworthy deeds.
I will tell about all[a] the Lord did for us,
the many good things he did for the family of Israel,[b]
because of[c] his compassion and great faithfulness.
8 He said, “Certainly they will be my people,
children who are not disloyal.”[d]
He became their deliverer.
9 Through all that they suffered, he suffered too.[e]
The messenger sent from his very presence[f] delivered them.
In his love and mercy he protected[g] them;
he lifted them up and carried them throughout ancient times.[h]
Psalm 148[a]
148 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord from the sky.
Praise him in the heavens.
2 Praise him, all his angels.[b]
Praise him, all his heavenly assembly.[c]
3 Praise him, O sun and moon.
Praise him, all you shiny stars.[d]
4 Praise him, O highest heaven,
and you waters above the sky.[e]
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he gave the command and they came into existence.
6 He established them so they would endure;[f]
he issued a decree that will not be revoked.[g]
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea creatures and all you ocean depths,
8 O fire and hail, snow and clouds,[h]
O stormy wind that carries out his orders,[i]
9 you mountains and all you hills,
you fruit trees and all you cedars,
10 you animals and all you cattle,
you creeping things and birds,
11 you kings of the earth and all you nations,
you princes and all you leaders[j] on the earth,
12 you young men and young women,
you elderly, along with you children.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty extends over the earth and sky.
14 He has made his people victorious,[k]
and given all his loyal followers reason to praise—
the Israelites, the people who are close to him.[l]
Praise the Lord!
10 For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist,[a] in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer[b] of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 11 For indeed he who makes holy and those being made holy all have the same origin,[c] and so[d] he is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters,[e] 12 saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers;[f] in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.”[g] 13 Again he says,[h] “I will be confident in him,” and again, “Here I am,[i] with[j] the children God has given me.”[k] 14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in[l] their humanity,[m] so that through death he could destroy[n] the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil), 15 and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death. 16 For surely his concern is not for angels, but he is concerned for Abraham’s descendants. 17 Therefore he had[o] to be made like his brothers and sisters[p] in every respect, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in things relating to God, to make atonement[q] for the sins of the people. 18 For since he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.
The Escape to Egypt
13 After they had gone, an[a] angel of the Lord[b] appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod[c] is going to look for the child to kill him.” 14 Then he got up, took the child and his mother during[d] the night, and went to Egypt. 15 He stayed there until Herod[e] died. In this way what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet was fulfilled: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”[f]
16 When Herod[g] saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he became enraged. He sent men[h] to kill all the children in Bethlehem and throughout the surrounding region from the age of two and under, according to the time he had learned from the wise men. 17 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and loud wailing,[i]
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she did not want to be comforted, because they were[j] gone.”[k]
The Return to Nazareth
19 After Herod[l] had died, an[m] angel of the Lord[n] appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20 saying, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” 21 So[o] he got up and took the child and his mother and returned to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus[p] was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod,[q] he was afraid to go there. After being warned in a dream, he went to the regions of Galilee. 23 He came to a town called Nazareth[r] and lived there. Then what had been spoken by the prophets was fulfilled, that Jesus[s] would be called a Nazarene.[t]
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