Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Light of God’s Deliverance
60 “Arise, shine!
For your light has come;
the[a] glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
2 For look! Darkness will cover the earth
and thick darkness is over the people,[b]
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings before[c] your dawn.
4 “Lift up your eyes and look around:
They all gather together, they come to you;
your sons will come from far away,
and your daughters will be carried on the hip.”[d]
5 Then you will look and be radiant;
your heart will swell with joy,[e]
because the abundance of the seas will be diverted to you,
and the riches of the nations will come to you.
6 Throngs of camels will blanket you:
the young camels of Midian and Ephu;[f]
all those from Shebu[g] will come.
They’ll carry gold and frankincense,
and proclaim the praise of the Lord.
Solomonic
A Prayer for the King
72 God, endow the king with ability to render[a] your justice,
and the king’s son to render your right decisions.
2 May he rule your people with right decisions
and your oppressed ones with justice.
3 May the mountains bring prosperity to the people
and the hills bring righteousness.
4 May he defend the afflicted of the people
and deliver the children of the poor,
but crush the oppressor.
5 May they fear you as long as the sun and moon shine[b]—
from generation to generation.
6 May he be like the rain that descends on mown grass,
like showers sprinkling on the ground.
7 The righteous will flourish at the proper time
and peace will prevail until the moon is no more.
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores bring gifts,
and may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer tribute.
11 May all kings bow down to him,
and all nations serve him.
Paul’s Ministry to the Gentiles
3 For this reason I, Paul, am the prisoner of the Messiah[a] Jesus for the sake of you gentiles. 2 Surely you have heard about the responsibility of administering God’s grace that was given to me on your behalf, 3 and how this secret was made known to me through a revelation, just as I wrote about briefly in the past. 4 By reading this, you will be able to grasp my understanding of the secret about the Messiah,[b] 5 which in previous generations was not made known to human beings[c] as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s[d] holy apostles and prophets. This is that secret:[e] 6 The gentiles are heirs-in-common, members-in-common of the body, and common participants in what was promised[f] by the Messiah[g] Jesus through the gospel.
7 I have become a servant of this gospel[h] according to the gift of God’s grace that was given me by the working of his power. 8 To me, the very least of all the saints, this grace was given so that I might proclaim to the gentiles the immeasurable wealth of the Messiah[i] 9 and help everyone see how this secret that has been at work was hidden for ages by God, who created all things. 10 He did this[j] so that now, through the church, the wisdom of God in all its variety might be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realm 11 in keeping with the eternal purpose that God[k] carried out through the Messiah[l] Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and confident access through his faithfulness.[m]
The Visit of the Wise Men
2 After Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judea during the reign[a] of King Herod, wise men[b] arrived in Jerusalem from the east 2 and asked, “Where is the one who was born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east[c] and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed, as was all of Jerusalem. 4 He called together all the high priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Messiah[d] was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, because that is what was written by the prophet:
6 ‘O Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
you are by no means least among the rulers of Judah,
because from you will come a ruler
who will shepherd[e] my people Israel.’”[f]
7 Then Herod secretly called together the wise men, found out from them the time the star had appeared, 8 and sent them to Bethlehem. He told them,[g] “As you go, search carefully for the child. When you find him, tell me so that I, too, may go and worship him.”
9 After listening to the king, they set out, and the star they had seen in the east[h] went ahead of them until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were ecstatic with joy. 11 After they went into the house and saw the child with his mother Mary, they fell down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasure sacks and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 Having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they left for their own country by a different road.
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