Isaiah 14 - 15, Luke 9, Psalms 42 - 43

Israel’s Restoration and Dominion

14When Yahweh will ^ahave compassion on Jacob and again ^bchoose Israel, and ¹put them in their own land, then ^csojourners will join them and attach themselves to the house of Jacob. ²And the peoples will take them along and bring them to their place, and the ^ahouse of Israel will possess them as an inheritance in the land of Yahweh ^bfor their male and female slaves; and ¹they will take their captors captive and will have dominion over their taskmasters.

³And it will be in the day when Yahweh gives you ^arest from your pain and turmoil and harsh slavery in which you have been enslaved, ⁴that you will ^atake up this ¹taunt against the king of Babylon, and say, “How ^bthe taskmaster has ceased,And how ²fury has ceased!

⁵“Yahweh has broken the staff of the wicked,The scepter of rulers⁶^aWhich used to strike the peoples in fury with unceasing strokes,Which had dominion over the nations in anger with unrestrained persecution.⁷“The whole earth is at rest and is quiet;They ^abreak forth into shouts of joy.⁸“Even the ^acypress trees are glad over you, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying,‘Since you were laid low, no tree cutter comes up against us.’⁹“^aSheol from beneath trembles excitedly over you to meet you when you come;It wakens for you the ¹spirits of the dead, all the ²leaders of the earth;It raises all the kings of the nations from their thrones.¹⁰“^aThey will all answer and say to you,‘Even you have been made weak as we,You have become like us.¹¹‘Your ^apride and the music of your harpsHave been brought down to Sheol;Maggots are spread out as your bed beneath youAnd worms are your covering.’¹²“How you have ^afallen from heaven,O ¹^,^bstar of the morning, son of the dawn!You have been cut down to the earth,You who have weakened the nations!¹³“But you said in your heart,‘I will ^aascend to heaven;I will ^braise my throne above the stars of God,And I will sit on the mount of assemblyIn the recesses of the north.¹⁴‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;^aI will make myself like the Most High.’¹⁵“Nevertheless you ^awill be brought down to Sheol,To the recesses of the pit.¹⁶“Those who see you will gaze at you,They will ¹carefully consider you, saying,‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,Who caused kingdoms to quake,¹⁷Who made the world like a ^awildernessAnd pulled down its cities,Who ^bdid not ¹allow his prisoners to go home?’¹⁸“All the kings of the nations lie in glory,Each in his own ¹place.¹⁹“But you have been ^acast out of your graveLike an abhorred branch,¹Clothed with those killed who are pierced with a sword,Who go down to the stones of the ^bpitLike a ^ctrampled corpse.²⁰“You will not be united with them in burial,Because you have ruined your country,You have killed your people.May the ^aseed of evildoers not be called upon forever.²¹“Prepare for his sons a place of slaughterBecause of the ^ainiquity of their fathers.They must not arise and take possession of the earthAnd fill the face of the world with cities.”

²²“I will rise up against them,” declares Yahweh of hosts, “and will cut off from Babylon ^aname and remnant, ^boffspring and posterity,” declares Yahweh. ²³“I will also make it a possession for the ^ahedgehog and swamps of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of ¹^,^bdestruction,” declares Yahweh of hosts.

Yahweh’s Plan to Break Assyrian Rule

²⁴Yahweh of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, ^ajust as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have counseled so it will stand, ²⁵to ^abreak Assyria in My land, and I will trod him down on My mountains. Then his ^byoke will be removed from them and his burden removed from their shoulder. ²⁶“This is the ^acounsel that is counseled against the whole earth; and this is the ^bhand that is stretched out against all the nations. ²⁷“For ^aYahweh of hosts has counseled, and who can thwart it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?”

An Oracle Concerning Philistia

²⁸In the ^ayear that King Ahaz died this ¹^,^boracle came:

²⁹“Do not be glad, O ^aPhilistia, all of you,Because the rod that ^bstruck you is broken;For from the serpent’s root a ^cviper will come out,And its fruit will be a ^dflying fiery serpent.³⁰“¹And the foremost ^aof the poor will eat,And the needy will lie down in security;I will put to death your root with ^bfamine,And it will kill off your remnant.³¹“Wail, O ^agate; cry, O city;¹Melt away, O ^bPhilistia, all of you;For smoke comes from the ^cnorth,And ^dthere is no straggler in his ranks.³²“How then will one answer the ^amessengers of the nation?That ^bYahweh has founded Zion,And ^cthe afflicted of His people will take refuge in it.”

An Oracle Concerning Moab

15The ¹oracle concerning ^aMoab. Surely in a night ^bAr of Moab is destroyed and ruined;Surely in a night Kir of Moab is destroyed and ruined.

²They have gone up to the ¹temple and to ^aDibon, even to the high places to weep.Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba;Everyone’s head is ^bbald and every beard is cut off.³In their streets they have girded themselves with ^asackcloth;^bOn their rooftops and in their squaresEveryone is wailing, ¹^,^cdissolved in weeping.⁴^aHeshbon and Elealeh also cry out,Their voice is heard all the way to Jahaz;Therefore ¹the armed men of Moab make a loud shout;His soul trembles within him.⁵My heart cries out for Moab;Those who flee from her are as far as ^aZoar and Eglath-shelishiyah,For they go up the ^bascent of Luhith weeping;Surely on the road to Horonaim they keep awake with crying in distress ^cover their destruction.⁶For the ^awaters of Nimrim are ¹desolate.Surely the grass is dried up, the tender grass has ²completely ceased,There is ^bno green thing.⁷Therefore the ^aabundance they have made and stored upThey carry off over the brook of ¹Arabim.⁸For the cry has gone around the territory of Moab,Its wailing goes as far as Eglaim and its wailing even to Beer-elim.⁹For the waters of Dimon are full of ¹blood;Surely I will put added woes upon Dimon,A ^alion upon those of Moab who have escaped and upon the remnant of the land.

The Twelve Disciples Sent Out

9^aAnd calling the twelve together, He gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. ²And He sent them out to ^apreach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. ³And He said to them, “^aTake nothing for your journey, ^bneither a staff, nor a ¹bag, nor bread, nor money; nor have two ²tunics apiece. ⁴“And whatever house you enter, stay there ¹until you leave that city. ⁵“And as for those who do not receive you, as you go out from that city, ^ashake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” ⁶And departing, they were going ¹throughout the villages, ^aproclaiming the gospel and healing everywhere.

⁷^aNow ^bHerod the tetrarch heard of all that was happening, and he was greatly perplexed, because it was said by some that ^cJohn had risen from the dead, ⁸and by some that ^aElijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen again. ⁹And Herod said, “I myself had John beheaded, but who is this man about whom I hear such things?” And ^ahe kept trying to see Him.

¹⁰^aAnd when the apostles returned, they recounted to Him all that they had done. ^bTaking them with Him, He slipped away by Himself to a city called ^cBethsaida. ¹¹But when the crowds became aware of this, they followed Him; and welcoming them, He began speaking to them about the kingdom of God and curing those who had need of healing.

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand

¹²Now the day ¹was ending, and the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the crowd away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and obtain lodging and find provisions, for here we are in a desolate place.” ¹³But He said to them, “You give them something to eat!” And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless perhaps we go and buy food for all these people.” ¹⁴(For there were about five thousand men.) And He said to His disciples, “Have them ¹sit down ^ain groups of about fifty each.” ¹⁵And they did so, and had them all ¹sit down. ¹⁶Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed them. And He broke them and kept giving them to the disciples to set before the crowd. ¹⁷And they all ate and were satisfied; and ¹the broken pieces which they had left over were picked up, twelve ^abaskets full.

Peter Confesses Jesus Is the Christ

¹⁸^aAnd it happened that while He was ^bpraying alone, the disciples were with Him, and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” ¹⁹And they answered and said, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah, but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.” ²⁰And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered and said, “^aThe ¹Christ of God.” ²¹But He ¹^,^awarned them and directed them not to tell this to anyone, ²²^asaying, “^bThe Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day.”

Take Up Your Cross

²³And He was saying to them all, “^aIf anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. ²⁴“For ^awhoever wishes to save his ¹life will lose it, but whoever loses his ²life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. ²⁵“For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and ^aloses or forfeits himself? ²⁶“^aFor whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. ²⁷“But I say to you truthfully, ^athere are some of those standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

²⁸^aNow it happened some eight days after these words, that taking along ^bPeter and John and James, He ^cwent up on the mountain ^dto pray. ²⁹And it happened that while He was ^apraying, the appearance of His face ^bbecame different, and His clothing became white and ¹gleaming. ³⁰And behold, two men were talking with Him, and they were Moses and Elijah, ³¹who, appearing in ¹glory, were speaking of His ²^,^adeparture which He was about to fulfill at Jerusalem. ³²Now Peter and his companions ^ahad been overcome with sleep, but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him. ³³And it happened that as they were leaving Him, Peter said to Jesus, “^aMaster, it is good for us to be here; ^blet us make three ¹booths: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—^cnot realizing what he was saying. ³⁴While he was saying this, a cloud ¹formed and began to overshadow them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵Then ^aa voice came out of the cloud, saying, “^bThis is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!” ³⁶And when the voice ¹had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And ^athey kept silent, and reported to no one in those days any of the things which they had seen.

Jesus Casts Out a Demon

³⁷^aNow it happened on the next day, that when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met Him. ³⁸And behold, a man from the crowd shouted, saying, “Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my ¹only one, ³⁹and behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly screams, and it throws him into a convulsion with foaming at the mouth, and only with difficulty does it leave him, mauling him as it leaves. ⁴⁰“And I begged Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not.” ⁴¹And Jesus answered and said, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.” ⁴²Now while he was still approaching, the demon ¹slammed him to the ground and threw him into a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy and gave him back to his father. ⁴³And they were all astonished at the ^amajesty of God. Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection ^bBut while everyone was marveling at all that He was doing, He said to His disciples, ⁴⁴“Put these words into your ears; ^afor the Son of Man is going to be ¹delivered into the hands of men.” ⁴⁵But ^athey ¹did not understand this statement, and it was concealed from them so that they would not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask Him about this statement.

Who Is the Greatest?

⁴⁶^aNow an argument ¹started among them as to which of them might be the greatest. ⁴⁷But Jesus, ^aknowing ¹what they were thinking in their heart, took a child and stood him by His side, ⁴⁸and said to them, “^aWhoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; ^bfor the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.”

⁴⁹^aAnd John answered and said, “^bMaster, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to hinder him because he does not follow along with us.” ⁵⁰But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him, ^afor he who is not against you is ¹for you.”

⁵¹Now it happened that when the days for ^aHim to be taken up were soon to be fulfilled, He set His face ^bto go to Jerusalem; ⁵²and He sent messengers on ahead of Him, and they went and entered a village of the ^aSamaritans to ¹make arrangements for Him. ⁵³But they did not receive Him, ^abecause ¹He was journeying with His face toward Jerusalem. ⁵⁴And when His disciples ^aJames and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to ^bcommand fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” ⁵⁵But He turned and rebuked them, ¹[and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of, ⁵⁶for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.

The Cost of Following Jesus

⁵⁷^aAnd as they were going along the road, ^bsomeone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.” ⁵⁸And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the ¹air have ²nests, but ^athe Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” ⁵⁹And He said to another, “^aFollow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” ⁶⁰But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and ^aproclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” ⁶¹Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord, but ^afirst permit me to say farewell to those at home.” ⁶²But Jesus said to him, “^aNo one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

BOOK 2

My Soul Thirsts for God

For the choir director. A ¹Maskil of the sons of Korah.

As the deer ²pants for the water brooks,So my soul ³^,^apants for You, O God.²My soul ^athirsts for God, for the ^bliving God;When shall I come and ¹^,^cappear before God?³My ^atears have been my food day and night,While they ^bsay to me all day long, “Where is your God?”⁴These things I remember and I ^apour out my soul within me.For I ^bused to go along with the throng and ¹lead them in procession to the house of God,With the sound of a ^cshout of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.⁵^aWhy are you ¹^,^bin despair, O my soul?And why are you ^cdisturbed within me?^dWait for God, for I shall still praise Him,²For the ³^,^esalvation of His presence.⁶O my God, my soul is ¹in despair within me;Therefore I ^aremember You from ^bthe land of the JordanAnd the ²peaks of ^cHermon, from Mount Mizar.⁷Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;All Your ^abreakers and Your waves have rolled over me.⁸By day, Yahweh will ^acommand His lovingkindness;And ^bby night, His song will be with me,A prayer to ^cthe God of my life.⁹I say to God ^amy rock, “Why have You forgotten me?Why do I go ^bmourning ¹because of the ^coppression of the enemy?”¹⁰As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries reproach me,While they ^asay to me all day long, “Where is your God?”¹¹^aWhy are you ¹in despair, O my soul?And why are you disturbed within me?Wait for God, for I shall still praise Him,The salvation of my presence and my God.

Send Out Your Light and Your Truth

43^aGive justice to me, O God, and ^bplead my case against an unholy nation;¹Oh protect me from ^cthe deceitful and unrighteous man!²For You are the ^aGod of my strength; why have You ^brejected me?Why do I go ^cmourning ¹because of the oppression of the enemy?³Oh send out Your ^alight and Your truth, let them lead me;Let them bring me to Your ^bholy mountainAnd to Your ^cdwelling places.⁴Then I will go to ^athe altar of God,To God ¹my exceeding ^bjoy;And upon the ^clyre I shall praise You, O God, my God.⁵^aWhy are you ¹in despair, O my soul?And why are you disturbed within me?Wait for God, for I shall still praise Him,The salvation of my presence and my God.