Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Expiation of Sin, Redemption of Israel
Chapter 49
Message to Israel[a]
1 Listen to me, O coastlands.
Pay attention, you distant peoples.
The Lord called me before I was born;
while I was still in my mother’s womb
he gave me my name.
2 He made my tongue like a sharp sword
and hid me in the shadow of his hand.
He formed me into a polished arrow,
and he concealed me in his quiver.
3 He said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, through whom I will manifest my glory.”
4 I formerly believed that I had labored in vain
and had exhausted my strength for nothing
and for no discernible purpose.
5 Yet now the Lord has spoken;
he formed me in the womb to be his servant
so that I could bring back Jacob to him
and enable Israel to be gathered to him.
For I am honored in the sight of the Lord,
and my God is the source of my strength.
6 It is not enough for you to be my servant, he says,
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to bring back the survivors of Israel.
I will make you a light to the nations
so that my salvation may reach
to the ends of the earth.
7 Thus says the Lord,
the redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,
to the one who is despised
and whom the people abhor,
the slave of tyrants:
Kings will rise up when they see you,
and princes will prostrate themselves in homage,
because of the Lord who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.
Psalm 40[a]
Thanksgiving and Prayer for Help
1 For the director.[b] A psalm of David.
2 [c]I waited patiently for the Lord;
then he stooped down and heard my cry.
3 He raised me up from the desolate pit,
out of the mire of the swamp;
he set my feet upon a rock,
giving me a firm footing.
4 He put a new song[d] in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will look on and be awestruck,
and they will place their trust in the Lord.
5 Blessed[e] is the man
who places his trust in the Lord,
who does not follow the arrogant
or those who go astray after falsehoods.
6 How innumerable, O Lord, my God,
are the wonders you have worked;
no one can compare with you
in the plans you have made for us.
I would proclaim them and recount them,
but there are far too many to enumerate.
7 [f]Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but you have made my ears receptive.[g]
Burnt offerings and sin offerings
you did not demand.
8 [h]Then I said, “Behold I come;
it is written of me in the scroll of the book.
9 To do your will, O God, is my delight;
your law is in my heart.”[i]
10 I have proclaimed your righteousness in the great assembly;
I did not seal my lips,
as you well know, O Lord.
11 I have not concealed your righteousness within the depths of my heart;
I have spoken of your faithfulness and salvation.
I have not concealed your kindness and your truth
in the great assembly.
Greetings and Thanksgiving
Chapter 1
Address to a Church.[a] 1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and Sosthenes[b] our brother, 2 to the Church of God in Corinth,[c] to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord as well as ours. 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I continually give thanks to my God for you because of his grace that has been granted to you in Christ Jesus. 5 For through him you have been enriched in every way in all facets of speech and knowledge, 6 as our testimony about Christ has been confirmed in you.
7 Therefore, you do not lack any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He will keep you steadfast until the very end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, and it is by him that you have been called into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
29 Behold, the Lamb of God, Who Takes Away the Sin of the World.[a] The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and he said,
“Behold, the Lamb of God,
who takes away the sin of the world.
30 This is the one of whom I said,
‘After me is coming one
who ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.’
31 I myself did not know him,[b]
but the reason I came to baptize with water
was so that he might be revealed to Israel.”
32 John also gave this testimony, saying,
“I saw the Spirit
descending from heaven like a dove,
and it came to rest on him.[c]
33 I myself did not know him,
but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me,
‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest
is the one who is to baptize with the Holy Spirit.’[d]
34 And I myself have seen and have testified
that this is the Son of God.”
35 We Have Found the Messiah.[e] The next day John was standing there with two of his disciples, 36 and as he watched Jesus pass by, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.” 37 On hearing him say this, the two disciples began to follow Jesus. 38 When Jesus turned and saw them following him, he asked them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which, translated, is “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” 39 He answered them, “Come and see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him for the rest of that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.[f]
40 One of the two who had heard John speak and had followed Jesus was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to seek out his brother Simon and say to him, “We have found the Messiah”[g] (which, translated, is “Christ”), 42 and he took him to Jesus. Jesus gazed at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas”[h] (which, translated, is “Peter”).
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