Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Confident in Prayer
7 Hear me, O Lord. With my voice I call.
Be merciful to me and answer me.
8 When you say, “Seek my face,” my heart says to you,
“Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
9 Do not hide your face from me.
Do not turn your servant away in anger.
You have been my help.
Do not reject me or forsake me, O God who saves me.
10 If my father and my mother abandoned me,
the Lord would take me in.
Walking in God’s Path
11 Lord, teach me your way,
and lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.
12 Do not give me up to the desire of my foes,
because false witnesses rise up against me,
and so do those who breathe out violence.
At Home in God’s Land
13 Unless I was confident to see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living—[a]
14 Wait for the Lord. Be strong and take heart,
and wait for the Lord!
Jacob Blesses His Sons
49 Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, so that I can declare to you what will happen to you in the days to come.” [a]
2 Assemble together, and listen to this, you sons of Jacob.
Listen to Israel, your father.
8 Judah, your brothers will praise you.
Your hand will be on the throat of your enemies.
Your father’s sons will bow down to you.
9 Judah is a lion’s cub.
You have gone up from the prey, my son.
He stooped down. He crouched like a lion.
He is like a lioness. Who will provoke him?
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until the one to whom it belongs comes.[a]
He will receive the obedience of the peoples.
11 He will tie his foal to the vine,
his donkey’s colt to the choice vine.
He has washed his clothing in wine,
his garments in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes will be darker than wine,
his teeth whiter than milk.[b]
13 Zebulun will dwell at the seashore.
He will provide a landing place for ships.
His border will extend toward Sidon.
21 Naphtali is a doe set free,
that bears beautiful fawns.[a]
22 Joseph is a fruitful vine,
a fruitful vine by a spring.
His branches run over the wall.[b]
23 The archers have fiercely attacked him.
They shot at him and harassed him,
24 but his bow remained steady.
His arms and hands were made strong
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
by the name of[c] the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel,
25 by the God of your father, who will help you,
by the Almighty, who will bless you
with blessings from heaven above,
blessings from the deep that lies below,
blessings from the breasts and from the womb.
26 The blessings of your father are greater than the blessings of
my parents,[d]
greater than the treasures of the ancient hills.
They will rest on the head of Joseph,
on the forehead of him who is elevated above his brothers.
Zechariah’s Song
67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
68 Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has visited us and prepared redemption for his people.
69 He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,
70 just as he said long ago through the mouth of his holy prophets.
71 He raised up salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,
72 in order to show mercy to our fathers by remembering his holy covenant,
73 the oath which he swore to Abraham our father,
74 to grant deliverance to us from the hand of our enemies,
so that we are able to serve him without fear,
75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High,
because you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of God’s tender mercies,
by which the Rising Sun from on high will visit us,
79 to shine on those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.