Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
8 I will hear what God the Lord will speak,
For He will speak peace
To His people and to His saints;
But let them not turn back to [a]folly.
9 Surely (A)His salvation is near to those who fear Him,
(B)That glory may dwell in our land.
10 Mercy and truth have met together;
(C)Righteousness and peace have kissed.
11 Truth shall spring out of the earth,
And righteousness shall look down from heaven.
12 (D)Yes, the Lord will give what is good;
And our land will yield its increase.
13 Righteousness will go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps our pathway.
Israel Did Not Accept Correction
6 “Also I gave you [a]cleanness of teeth in all your cities,
And lack of bread in all your places;
(A)Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
7 “I also withheld rain from you,
When there were still three months to the harvest.
I made it rain on one city,
I withheld rain from another city.
One part was rained upon,
And where it did not rain the part withered.
8 So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water,
But they were not satisfied;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
9 “I(B) blasted you with blight and mildew.
When your gardens increased,
Your vineyards,
Your fig trees,
And your olive trees,
(C)The locust devoured them;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
10 “I sent among you a plague (D)after the manner of Egypt;
Your young men I killed with a sword,
Along with your captive horses;
I made the stench of your camps come up into your nostrils;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
11 “I overthrew some of you,
As God overthrew (E)Sodom and Gomorrah,
And you were like a firebrand plucked from the burning;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
12 “Therefore thus will I do to you, O Israel;
Because I will do this to you,
(F)Prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”
Birth of John the Baptist
57 Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. 58 When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they (A)rejoiced with her.
Circumcision of John the Baptist
59 So it was, (B)on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. 60 His mother answered and said, (C)“No; he shall be called John.”
61 But they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” 62 So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called.
63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, “His name is John.” So they all marveled. 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God. 65 Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. 66 And all those who heard them (D)kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And (E)the hand of the Lord was with him.
Zacharias’ Prophecy
67 Now his father Zacharias (F)was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
68 “Blessed(G) is the Lord God of Israel,
For (H)He has visited and redeemed His people,
69 (I)And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
70 (J)As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who have been (K)since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
72 (L)To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
73 (M)The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
74 To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might (N)serve Him without fear,
75 (O)In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
76 “And you, child, will be called the (P)prophet of the Highest;
For (Q)you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
77 To give (R)knowledge of salvation to His people
By the remission of their sins,
78 Through the tender mercy of our God,
With which the [a]Dayspring from on high [b]has visited us;
79 (S)To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To (T)guide our feet into the way of peace.”
80 So (U)the child grew and became strong in spirit, and (V)was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.