Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Reign of the Righteous King.
A Psalm of Solomon.
72 Give the king (A)Your judgments, God,
And (B)Your righteousness to the king’s son.
2 [a]May [b]he (C)judge Your people with righteousness
And [c](D)Your afflicted with justice.
3 [d]May the mountains bring [e](E)peace to the people,
And the hills, in righteousness.
4 [f]May he (F)vindicate the [g]afflicted of the people,
Save the children of the needy,
And crush the oppressor.
5 [h]May they fear You (G)while the sun shines,
And [i]as long as the moon shines, throughout all generations.
6 [j]May he come down (H)like rain upon the mown grass,
Like (I)showers that water the earth.
7 [k]May the (J)righteous flourish in his days,
As well as an (K)abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.
8 May he also rule (L)from sea to sea,
And from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9 [l]May (M)the nomads of the desert (N)bow before him,
And his enemies (O)lick the dust.
10 [m]May the kings of (P)Tarshish and of the [n](Q)islands bring gifts;
May the kings of (R)Sheba and (S)Seba (T)offer tributes.
11 [o]And may all (U)kings bow down before him,
All (V)nations serve him.
12 For he will (W)save the needy when he cries for help,
The [p]afflicted also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will have (X)compassion on the poor and needy,
And he will save the [q]lives of the needy.
14 He will [r](Y)rescue their [s]life from oppression and violence,
And their blood will be (Z)precious in his sight;
15 So may he live, and may the (AA)gold of Sheba be given to him;
And [t]they are to pray for him continually;
[u]They are to bless him all day long.
16 May there be abundance of grain on the earth on top of the mountains;
Its fruit will wave like the cedars of (AB)Lebanon;
And may those from the city flourish like the (AC)vegetation of the earth.
17 May his (AD)name endure forever;
May his name produce descendants [v](AE)as long as the sun shines;
And may people (AF)wish blessings on themselves by him;
(AG)May all nations call him blessed.
18 (AH)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone (AI)works wonders.
19 And blessed be His (AJ)glorious name forever;
And may the whole (AK)earth be filled with His glory.
(AL)Amen and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
7 For this is what the Lord says:
“(A)Sing aloud with joy for Jacob,
And be joyful with the [a](B)chief of the nations;
Proclaim, give praise, and say,
‘Lord, (C)save Your people,
The (D)remnant of Israel!’
8 Behold, I am (E)bringing them from the north country,
And I will (F)gather them from the remote parts of the earth,
Among them those who are (G)blind and those who (H)limp,
The pregnant woman and she who is in labor, together;
They will return here as a great assembly.
9 (I)They will come with weeping,
And by pleading I will bring them;
I will lead them by (J)streams of waters,
On a straight path on which they will (K)not stumble;
For I am a (L)father to Israel,
And Ephraim is (M)My firstborn.”
10 Hear the word of the Lord, you nations,
And declare it in the (N)coastlands far away,
And say, “He who scattered Israel will (O)gather him,
And He will keep him as a (P)shepherd keeps his flock.”
11 For the Lord has (Q)ransomed Jacob
And redeemed him from the hand of him who was (R)stronger than he.
12 “They will (S)come and shout for joy on the (T)height of Zion,
And they will be (U)radiant over the [b]bounty of the Lord—
Over the (V)grain, the new wine, the oil,
And over the young of the (W)flock and the herd.
And their life will be like a (X)watered garden,
And they will (Y)never languish again.
13 Then the virgin will rejoice in the (Z)dance,
And the young men and the old together;
For I will (AA)turn their mourning into joy
And comfort them, and give them (AB)joy for their sorrow.
14 I will refresh the soul of the priests with [c]abundance,
And My people will be (AC)satisfied with My goodness,” declares the Lord.
1 (A)In the beginning was (B)the Word, and the Word was (C)with God, and (D)the Word was God. 2 [a]He was in the beginning with God. 3 (E)All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him [b]not even one thing came into being that has come into being. 4 (F)In Him was life, and the life was (G)the Light of mankind. 5 And (H)the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not [c]grasp it.
The Witness John the Baptist
6 A man [d]came, one sent from God, and his name was (I)John. 7 [e]He came [f](J)as a witness, to testify about the Light, (K)so that all might believe through him. 8 [g](L)He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.
9 [h]This was (M)the true Light [i]that, coming into the world, enlightens every person.
10 He was in the world, and (A)the world came into being through Him, and yet the world did not [a]know Him. 11 He came to His [b]own, and His own people did not [c]accept Him. 12 But [d]as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become (B)children of God, (C)to those who [e]believe in His name, 13 (D)who were [f]born, not of [g]blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God.
The Word Made Flesh
14 And (E)the Word (F)became flesh, and (G)dwelt among us; and (H)we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of (I)grace and (J)truth. 15 John *(K)testified about Him and called out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘(L)He who is coming after me has proved to be [h]my superior, (M)because He existed before me.’” 16 For of His (N)fullness [i]we have all received, and [j]grace upon grace. 17 For (O)the Law was given through Moses; (P)grace and (Q)truth [k]were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 (R)No one has seen God at any time; (S)God the only Son, who is (T)in the [l]arms of the Father, (U)He has [m]explained Him.
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