Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 72[a]
The Kingdom of the Messiah
1 Of Solomon.
O God, endow the king with your judgment,
the son of kings with your righteousness.
2 [b]He will govern your people fairly
and deal justly with your poor ones.
3 The mountains will yield peace for the people,
and the hills, righteousness.
4 He will defend the afflicted among the people,
save the children of the poor,
and overwhelm the oppressor.
5 He will reign as long as the sun,
as long as the moon, through all generations.
6 He will descend like rain on the meadow,
like showers that water the earth.
7 Justice will reign in his days,
and peace will abound
until the moon is no more.
18 [a]Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
who alone can perform such wondrous deeds.
19 May his glorious name be blessed forever,
and may the whole world be filled with his glory.
Amen. Amen.
The Book of Consolation[a]
The Lord’s Majesty in Israel’s Liberation[b]
Chapter 40
Salvation of the Lord[c]
1 Comfort my people and console them,
says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem
and proclaim to her
that her time of servitude is over
and that her guilt has been expiated.
Indeed she has received from the Lord’s hand
double punishment for all her sins.
3 A voice cries out:
In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord;
make a straight path in the desert for our God.
4 Let every valley be filled in
and every mountain and hill be made low.
Uneven ground will be made smooth
and the rugged places will become a plain.
5 Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
and all mankind will see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
6 A voice says, “Cry out!”
I reply, “What shall I cry out?”
“All mortals are grass;
they last no longer than the flowers of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the Lord falls upon them.
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass may wither and the flower may fade,
but the word of our God will endure forever.”
9 Climb to the top of a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings.
Cry out as loudly as you can,
O Jerusalem, herald of good news.
Lift up your voice without fear
and proclaim to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
10 See the Lord God approaching with power,
he who rules with his powerful arm.
His reward is with him
and his recompense[d] is before him.
11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
and in his arms he will gather the lambs,
carrying them in his bosom
and gently leading the pregnant ewes to water.
Jesus Is the Expected Messiah[a]
19 John the Baptist Is Not the Messiah.[b] This is the testimony offered by John when the Jews[c] sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed, he did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”[d] 21 Then they asked him, “Who then are you? Are you Elijah?”[e] He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.” 22 Therefore, they said to him, “Who are you, so we may have an answer to give to those who sent us? What do you have to say about yourself?” 23 He replied, in the words of the prophet Isaiah,
“I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
‘Make straight the way of the Lord.’ ”
24 Some Pharisees were present in this group, 25 and they asked him, “Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 John answered them, “I baptize with water; but among you there is one whom you do not know, 27 the one who is coming after me. I am not worthy to loosen the strap of his sandal.” 28 This took place in Bethany, beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
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