Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

[A Psalm] of David.

27 Jehovah is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? Jehovah is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

² When evil-doers, mine adversaries and mine enemies, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.

³ If a host encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; if war rise against me, in this will I be confident.

⁴ One [thing] have I asked of Jehovah, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of Jehovah all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of Jehovah, and to inquire [of him] in his temple.

⁵ For in the day of evil he will hide me in his pavilion; in the secret of his tent will he keep me concealed: he will set me high upon a rock.

⁶ And now shall my head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me; and I will offer in his tent sacrifices of shouts of joy: I will sing, yea, I will sing psalms unto Jehovah.

⁷ Hear, Jehovah; with my voice do I call; be gracious unto me, and answer me.

⁸ My heart said for thee, Seek ye my face. Thy face, O Jehovah, will I seek.

⁹ Hide not thy face from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; cast me not off, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.

¹⁰ For had my father and my mother forsaken me, then had Jehovah taken me up.

¹¹ Teach me thy way, Jehovah, and lead me in an even path, because of mine enemies.

¹² Deliver me not over to the will of mine adversaries; for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out violence.

¹³ Unless I had believed to see the goodness of Jehovah in the land of the living …!

¹⁴ Wait for Jehovah; be strong and let thy heart take courage: yea, wait for Jehovah.

¹⁰ Have we not all one father? Hath not one God created us? Why do we deal unfaithfully every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?

¹¹ Judah hath dealt unfaithfully, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah hath profaned the sanctuary of Jehovah which he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange god.

¹² Jehovah will cut off from the tents of Jacob the man that doeth this, him that calleth and him that answereth; and him that offereth an oblation unto Jehovah of hosts.

¹³ And further ye do this: ye cover the altar of Jehovah with tears, with weeping, and with sighing, insomuch that he regardeth not the oblation any more, nor receiveth [it] with satisfaction at your hand.

¹⁴ Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because Jehovah hath been a witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt unfaithfully: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.

¹⁵ And did not one make [them]? and the remnant of the Spirit was his. And wherefore the one? He sought a seed of God. Take heed then to your spirit, and let none deal unfaithfully against the wife of his youth,

¹⁶ (for I hate putting away, saith Jehovah the God of Israel;) and he covereth with violence his garment, saith Jehovah of hosts: take heed then to your spirit, that ye deal not unfaithfully.

¹⁷ Ye have wearied Jehovah with your words, and ye say, Wherein have we wearied [him]? In that ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of Jehovah, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?

3 Behold, I send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me; and the Lord whom ye seek will suddenly come to his temple, and the Angel of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he cometh, saith Jehovah of hosts.

⁵ There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest, by name Zacharias, of the course of Abia, and his wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name Elizabeth.

⁶ And they were both just before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

⁷ And they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.

⁸ And it came to pass, as he fulfilled his priestly service before God in the order of his course,

⁹ it fell to him by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter into the temple of the Lord to burn incense.

¹⁰ And all the multitude of the people were praying without at the hour of incense.

¹¹ And an angel of [the] Lord appeared to him, standing on the right of the altar of incense.

¹² And Zacharias was troubled, seeing [him], and fear fell upon him.

¹³ But the angel said to him, Fear not, Zacharias, because thy supplication has been heard, and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.

¹⁴ And he shall be to thee joy and rejoicing, and many shall rejoice at his birth.

¹⁵ For he shall be great before [the] Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with [the] Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.

¹⁶ And many of the sons of Israel shall he turn to [the] Lord their God.

¹⁷ And *he* shall go before him in [the] spirit and power of Elias, to turn hearts of fathers to children, and disobedient ones to [the] thoughts of just [men], to make ready for [the] Lord a prepared people.