Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

148 Praise ye the Lord from the heavens: praise ye him in the high places.

² Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts.

³ Praise ye him, O sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars and light.

⁴ Praise him, ye heavens of heavens: and let all the waters that are above the heavens

⁵ Praise the name of the Lord. For he spoke, and they were made: he commanded, and they were created.

⁶ He hath established them for ever, and for ages of ages: he hath made a decree, and it shall not pass away.

⁷ Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all ye deeps:

⁸ Fire, hail, snow, ice, stormy winds which fulfill his word:

⁹ Mountains and all hills, fruitful trees and all cedars:

¹⁰ Beasts and all cattle: serpents and feathered fowls:

¹¹ Kings of the earth and all people: princes and all judges of the earth:

¹² Young men and maidens: let the old with the younger, praise the name of the Lord:

¹³ For his name alone is exalted.

¹⁴ The praise of him is above heaven and earth: and he hath exalted the horn of his people. A hymn to all his saints: to the children of Israel, a people approaching to him. Alleluia.

¹⁵ Thus saith the Lord: A voice was heard on high of lamentation, of mourning, and weeping, of Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing to be comforted for them, because they are not.

¹⁶ Thus saith the Lord: Let thy voice cease from weeping, and thy eyes from tears: for there is a reward for thy work, saith the Lord: and they shall return out of the land of the enemy.

¹⁷ And here is hope for thy last end, saith the Lord: and the children shall return to their own borders.

¹³ And after they were departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: Arise, and take the child and his mother, and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy him.

¹⁴ Who arose, and took the child and his mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and he was there until the death of Herod:

¹⁵ That it might be fulfilled which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying: Out of Egypt have I called my son.

¹⁶ Then Herod perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry; and sending killed all the men children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.

¹⁷ Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremias the prophet, saying:

¹⁸ A voice in Rama was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.