Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Zion Will Be Glorious
60 “People of Jerusalem, get up.
Shine, because your light has come.
The glory of the Lord will shine on you.
2 Darkness covers the earth.
Thick darkness spreads over the nations.
But I will rise and shine on you.
My glory will appear over you.
3 Nations will come to your light.
Kings will come to the brightness of your new day.
4 “Look up. Look all around you.
All your people are getting together to come back to you.
Your sons will come from far away.
Your daughters will be carried on the hip like little children.
5 Then your face will glow with joy.
Your heart will beat fast because you are so happy.
Wealth from across the ocean will be brought to you.
The riches of the nations will come to you.
6 Herds of young camels will cover your land.
They will come from Midian and Ephah.
They will also come from Sheba.
They’ll carry gold and incense.
And people will shout praises to me.
A psalm of Solomon.
72 God, give the king the ability to judge fairly.
He is your royal son. Help him to do what is right.
2 May he rule your people in the right way.
May he be fair to those among your people who are hurting.
3 May the mountains and the hills produce rich crops,
because the people will do what is right.
4 May the king stand up for those who are hurting.
May he save the children of those who are in need.
May he crush those who treat others badly.
5 May the king rule as long as the sun shines
and the moon gives its light.
May he rule for all time to come.
6 May he be like rain falling on the fields.
May he be like showers watering the earth.
7 May godly people do well as long as he rules.
May they have more than they need as long as the moon lasts.
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of places far away
bring him gifts.
May the kings of Sheba and Seba
give him presents.
11 May all kings bow down to him.
May all nations serve him.
12 The king will save needy people who cry out to him.
He will save those who are hurting and have no one else to help.
13 He will take pity on those who are weak and in need.
He will save them from death.
14 He will save them from people who treat others badly.
He will save them from people who do mean things to them.
Their lives are very special to him.
God’s Wonderful Plan for the Gentiles
3 I, Paul, am a prisoner because of Christ Jesus. I am in prison because of my work among you who are Gentiles.
2 I am sure you have heard that God appointed me to share his grace with you. 3 I’m talking about the mystery God showed me. I have already written a little about it. 4 By reading about this mystery, you will be able to understand what I know. You will know about the mystery of Christ. 5 The mystery was not made known to people of other times. But now the Holy Spirit has made this mystery known to God’s holy apostles and prophets. 6 Here is the mystery. Because of the good news, God’s promises are for Gentiles as well as for Jews. Both groups are parts of one body. They share in the promise. It belongs to them because they belong to Christ Jesus.
7 I now serve the good news because God gave me his grace. His power is at work in me. 8 I am by far the least important of all the Lord’s holy people. But he gave me the grace to preach to the Gentiles about the unlimited riches that Christ gives. 9 God told me to make clear to everyone how the mystery came about. In times past it was kept hidden in the mind of God, who created all things. 10 He wanted the rulers and authorities in the heavenly world to come to know his great wisdom. The church would make it known to them. 11 That was God’s plan from the beginning. He has fulfilled his plan through Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Through him and through faith in him we can approach God. We can come to him freely. We can come without fear.
The Wise Men Visit Jesus
2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea. This happened while Herod was king of Judea. After Jesus’ birth, Wise Men from the east came to Jerusalem. 2 They asked, “Where is the child who has been born to be king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose. Now we have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard about it, he was very upset. Everyone in Jerusalem was troubled too. 4 So Herod called together all the chief priests of the people. He also called the teachers of the law. He asked them where the Messiah was going to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied. “This is what the prophet has written. He said,
6 “ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are certainly not the least important among the towns of Judah.
A ruler will come out of you.
He will rule my people Israel like a shepherd.’ ” (Micah 5:2)
7 Then Herod secretly called for the Wise Men. He found out from them exactly when the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem. He said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report it to me. Then I can go and worship him too.”
9 After the Wise Men had listened to the king, they went on their way. The star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them. It finally stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy. 11 The Wise Men went to the house. There they saw the child with his mother Mary. They bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures. They gave him gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 But God warned them in a dream not to go back to Herod. So they returned to their country on a different road.
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