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Isaiah
11:1-10
Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Romans 15:4-13
Matthew 3:1-12
Isaiah
11:1-10
11:1 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch
shall grow out of his roots.
11:2
The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and
understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of
knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
11:3
His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge
by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear;
11:4
but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with
equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with
the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall
kill the wicked.
11:5
Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness
the belt around his loins.
11:6
The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with
the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a
little child shall lead them.
11:7
The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down
together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
11:8
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the
weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's den.
11:9
They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the
earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters
cover the sea.
11:10
On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the
peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall
be glorious.
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Psalm
72:1-7, 18-19
72:1 Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to
a king's son.
72:2
May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with
justice.
72:3
May the mountains yield prosperity for the people, and the hills,
in righteousness.
72:4
May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give
deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.
72:5
May he live while the sun endures, and as long as the moon,
throughout all generations.
72:6
May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers
that water the earth.
72:7
his days may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the
moon is no more.
72:18
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous
things.
72:19
Blessed be his glorious name forever; may his glory fill the whole
earth. Amen and Amen.
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Romans
15:4-13
15:4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our
instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of
the scriptures we might have hope.
15:5
May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live
in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus,
15:6
that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
15:7
Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you,
for the glory of God.
15:8
For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised
on behalf of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the
promises given to the patriarchs,
15:9
and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As
it is written, "Therefore I will confess you among the
Gentiles, and sing praises to your name";
15:10
and again he says, "Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his
people";
15:11
and again, "Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all
the peoples praise him";
15:12
and again Isaiah says, "The root of Jesse shall come, the one
who rises to rule the Gentiles; in him the Gentiles shall
hope."
15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
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Matthew
3:1-12
3:1 In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of
Judea, proclaiming,
3:2
"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."
3:3
This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said,
"The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Prepare the
way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'"
3:4
Now John wore clothing of camel's hair with a leather belt around
his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.
3:5
Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him,
and all the region along the Jordan,
3:6
and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing
their sins.
3:7
But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism,
he said to them, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee
from the wrath to come?
3:8
Bear fruit worthy of repentance.
3:9
Do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our
ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise
up children to Abraham.
3:10
Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree
therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown
into the fire.
3:11
"I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more
powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his
sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
3:12
His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing
floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he
will burn with unquenchable fire."
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