Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
15 This took place on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of the second year of the reign of[a] King Darius.
The Future Glory of the Lord’s House
2 On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, this message from the Lord came by[b] Haggai the prophet: 2 “Speak to Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, to Jehozadak’s son Joshua, the high priest, and to the rest[c] of the people, asking, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? And what does it look like now? From what you can see, it seems like nothing, doesn’t it? 4 Now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord, ‘and be strong, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord. ‘Go to work, because I am with you,’ declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. 5 ‘My Spirit continues to dwell among you, according to[d] the covenant I established when you came out from Egypt. Don’t be afraid!’
6 “For this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘Once more, in a little while, I will make the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the dry land to shake. 7 I will shake all nations, and the One desired by all nations will come. Then I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.
8 “The silver belongs to me, as does the gold,”[e] declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. 9 “The glory of this present house will be greater than was the former,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. “And in this place I will grant peace,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.”
A Davidic Psalm[a]
Praising God for His Works
145 I will speak highly of you, my God and King,
and I will bless your name forever and ever.
2 I will bless you every day
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
3 The Lord is great,
and to be praised highly,
though his greatness is indescribable.
17 The Lord is righteous in all of his ways
and graciously loving in all of his activities.
18 The Lord remains near to all who call out to him,
to everyone who calls out to him sincerely.[a]
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him,
hearing their cry and saving them.
20 The Lord preserves everyone who loves him,
but he will destroy all of the wicked.
21 My mouth will praise the Lord,
and all creatures will bless his holy name forever and ever.
A psalm
Sing Praise to the King
98 Sing to the Lord a new song,
for he has done awesome deeds!
His right hand and powerful[a] arm[b]
have brought him victory.
2 The Lord has made his deliverance known;
he has disclosed his justice before the nations.
3 He has remembered his gracious love;
his faithfulness toward the house of Israel;
all the ends of the earth saw our God’s deliverance.
4 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Break forth into joyful songs of praise!
5 Sing praises to the Lord with a lyre—
with a lyre and a melodious song!
6 With trumpets and the sound of a ram’s horn
shout in the presence of the Lord, the king!
7 Let the sea and everything in it shout,[c]
along with the world and its inhabitants;
8 let the rivers clap their hands in unison;
and let the mountains sing for joy
9 in the Lord’s presence, who comes to judge the earth;
He’ll judge the world righteously;
and its people fairly.
The Lawless One
2 Now we ask you, brothers, regarding the coming of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[a] and our gathering together to him, 2 not to be so quickly upset[b] or alarmed when someone claims that we said,[c] either by some spirit, conversation, or letter that the Day of the Lord has already come. 3 Do not let anyone deceive you in any way, for it will not come unless the rebellion[d] takes place first and the man of sin,[e] who is destined for destruction,[f] is revealed. 4 He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god and object of worship. As a result, he seats himself in the sanctuary[g] of God and himself declares that he is God.
5 Don’t you remember that I repeatedly told you about these things when I was still with you?
13 At all times we are obligated to thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God chose you to be the first fruits[a] for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through faith in the truth. 14 With this purpose in mind, he called you through our proclamation of the[b] gospel so that you would obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.[c] 15 So then, brothers, stand firm, and cling to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth[d] or by our letter. 16 May our Lord Jesus, the Messiah[e] himself, and may God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal comfort[f] and good hope, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good action and word.
A Question about the Resurrection(A)
27 Now some Sadducees, who claim there is no resurrection, came to Jesus[a] 28 and asked him, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no child, the man[b] should marry the widow and have children for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died childless. 30 Then the second 31 and the third married her. In the same way, all seven died and left no children. 32 Finally, the woman died, too. 33 Now in the resurrection, whose wife will the woman be, since the seven had married her?”
34 Jesus told them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are married, 35 but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. 36 Nor can they die anymore, because they are like the angels and, since they share in the resurrection, are God’s children. 37 Even Moses demonstrated in the story about the bush that the dead are raised, when he calls the Lord, ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’[c] 38 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, because he considers all people to be alive to him.”
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.