Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
Psalm 113
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise, O you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
from this time forth and for evermore.
3 From the rising of the sun to its going down,
the Lord’s name is to be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all nations,
and His glory above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God,
who dwells on high,
6 who looks down on the things
that are in heaven and on the earth?
7 He raises up the poor out of the dust
and lifts the needy out of the ash heap,
8 to make them sit with princes,
even with the princes of His people.
9 He gives the barren woman a dwelling,
making her the joyful mother of children.
Praise the Lord!
The Lord’s Help Is Promised
14 I have for a long time held My peace;
I have been still and refrained Myself.
Now I will cry like a travailing woman;
I will destroy and devour at once.
15 I will lay waste mountains and hills
and dry up all their vegetation,
and I will make the rivers islands,
and I will dry up the pools.
16 I will bring the blind by a way that they did not know;
I will lead them in paths that they have not known.
I will make darkness light before them
and crooked things straight.
These things I will do for them
and not forsake them.
17 They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed,
who trust in graven images,
who say to the molded images, “You are our gods.”
Israel’s Disobedience
18 Hear, you deaf;
look, you blind, that you may see.
19 Who is blind, but My servant?
Or deaf, as My messenger whom I sent?
Who is blind as he who is at peace with Me,
and blind as the servant of the Lord?
20 You have seen many things, but you do not observe them;
your ears are open, but no one hears.
21 The Lord is well pleased
for His righteousness’ sake
to magnify the law and make it honorable.
The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 They were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were now well advanced in years.
8 Now while he served as priest before God, when his division was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 And the whole crowd of people were praying outside at the hour of incense.
11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not fear, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 He will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children[a] and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
18 Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man and my wife well advanced in years.”
19 The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God. And I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. 20 And now you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things happen, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their season.”
21 The people waited for Zechariah, and wondered why he waited so long in the temple. 22 When he came out, he could not speak to them. They perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he made signs to them and remained speechless.
23 As soon as the days of his service were fulfilled, he departed to his own home. 24 After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she hid herself, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.