Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Child Immanuel
10 Then the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 “Ask a (A)sign for yourself from the Lord your God; [a]make it deep as Sheol or high as [b]heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!” 13 Then he said, “Listen now, O (B)house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will (C)try the patience of (D)my God as well? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, (E)a [c]virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name [d](F)Immanuel. 15 He will eat (G)curds and honey [e]at the time He knows enough to refuse evil and choose good. 16 (H)For before the boy will know enough to refuse evil and choose good, (I)the land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken.
God Implored to Rescue His People from Their Calamities.
For the choir director; set to [a]El Shoshannim; [b]Eduth. A Psalm of Asaph.
80 Oh, give ear, (A)Shepherd of Israel,
You who lead (B)Joseph like a flock;
You who (C)are enthroned above the cherubim, shine forth!
2 Before (D)Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, (E)stir up Your power
And come to save us!
3 O God, (F)restore us
And (G)cause Your face to shine upon us, [c]and we will be saved.
4 O (H)Lord God of hosts,
(I)How long will You [d]be angry with the prayer of Your people?
5 You have fed them with the (J)bread of tears,
And You have made them to drink tears in [e]large measure.
6 You make us [f]an object of contention (K)to our neighbors,
And our enemies laugh among themselves.
7 O God of hosts, restore us
And cause Your face to shine upon us, [g]and we will be saved.
The Gospel Exalted
1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, [a](A)called as an apostle, (B)set apart for (C)the gospel of God, 2 which He (D)promised beforehand through His (E)prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born (F)of a [b]descendant of David (G)according to the flesh, 4 who was declared (H)the Son of God with power [c]by the resurrection from the dead, according to the [d]Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and (I)apostleship [e]to bring about the (J)obedience of faith among (K)all the Gentiles for His name’s sake, 6 among whom you also are the (L)called of Jesus Christ;
7 to all who are (M)beloved of God in Rome, called as [f](N)saints: (O)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Conception and Birth of Jesus
18 Now the birth of Jesus [a]Christ was as follows: when His (A)mother Mary had been [b]betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was (B)found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned [c](C)to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “(D)Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for [d]the Child who has been [e]conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a Son; and (E)you shall call His name Jesus, for [f]He (F)will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this [g]took place to fulfill what was (G)spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 “(H)Behold, the virgin shall be with (I)child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name [h]Immanuel,” which translated means, “(J)God with us.” 24 And Joseph [i]awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 [j]but kept her a virgin until she (K)gave birth to a Son; and (L)he called His name Jesus.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.