Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

A song for going up to the Temple.

³ Make the weak arms strong again. Strengthen the weak knees. ⁴ People are afraid and confused. Say to them, “Be strong! Don’t be afraid!” Look, your God will come and punish your enemies. He will come and give you your reward. He will save you. ⁵ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened so that they can see, and the ears of the deaf will be opened so that they can hear. ⁶ Crippled people will dance like deer, and those who cannot speak now will use their voices to sing happy songs. This will happen when springs of water begin to flow in the dry desert. ⁷ Now people see mirages^[a] that look like water, but then there will be real pools of water. There will be wells in the dry land where water flows from the ground. Tall water plants will grow where wild animals once ruled.

John Sends Men to Ask Jesus a Question^(A)

¹⁸ John’s followers told him about all these things. John called for two of his followers. ¹⁹ He sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one we heard was coming, or should we wait for someone else?”

²⁰ So the men came to Jesus. They said, “John the Baptizer sent us to you with this question: ‘Are you the one who is coming, or should we wait for someone else?’”

²¹ Right then Jesus healed many people of their sicknesses and diseases. He healed those who had evil spirits and made many who were blind able to see again. ²² Then he said to John’s followers, “Go tell John what you have seen and heard: The blind can see. The crippled can walk. People with leprosy are healed. The deaf can hear. The dead are brought back to life. And the Good News is being told to the poor. ²³ Great blessings belong to those who don’t have a problem accepting me.”

²⁴ When John’s followers left, Jesus began talking to the people about John: “What did you people go out into the desert to see? Someone who is weak, like a stem of grass^[a] blowing in the wind? ²⁵ Really, what did you expect to see? Someone dressed in fine clothes? Of course not. People who wear fancy clothes and live in luxury are all in kings’ palaces. ²⁶ So what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, John is a prophet. But I tell you, he is more than that. ²⁷ This Scripture was written about him:

²⁸ I tell you, no one ever born is greater than John. But even the least important person in God’s kingdom is greater than John.”

²⁹ (When the people heard this, they all agreed that God’s teaching was good. Even the tax collectors agreed. These were the people who were baptized by John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and experts in the law refused to accept God’s plan for themselves; they did not let John baptize them.)