Friday 28 December 2007 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Friday 28 December 2007 (Holy Innocents)
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Isaiah 49:13-23

Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
   break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the Lord has comforted his people,
   and will have compassion on his suffering ones. 


14But Zion said, 'The Lord has forsaken me,
   my Lord has forgotten me.' 
15Can a woman forget her nursing-child,
   or show no compassion for the child of her womb?
Even these may forget,
   yet I will not forget you. 
16See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands;
   your walls are continually before me. 
17Your builders outdo your destroyers,*
   and those who laid you waste go away from you. 
18Lift up your eyes all around and see;
   they all gather, they come to you.
As I live, says the Lord,
   you shall put all of them on like an ornament,
   and like a bride you shall bind them on. 


19Surely your waste and your desolate places
   and your devastated land-
surely now you will be too crowded for your inhabitants,
   and those who swallowed you up will be far away. 
20The children born in the time of your bereavement
   will yet say in your hearing:
'The place is too crowded for me;
   make room for me to settle.' 
21Then you will say in your heart,
   'Who has borne me these?
I was bereaved and barren,
   exiled and put away-
   so who has reared these?
I was left all alone-
   where then have these come from?' 


22Thus says the Lord God:
I will soon lift up my hand to the nations,
   and raise my signal to the peoples;
and they shall bring your sons in their bosom,
   and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. 
23Kings shall be your foster-fathers,
   and their queens your nursing-mothers.
With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you,
   and lick the dust of your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;
   those who wait for me shall not be put to shame. 
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Matthew 18:1-14

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, 'Who is the greatest
in the kingdom of heaven?' 2He called a child, whom he put among them,
3and said, 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like
children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Whoever becomes
humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. 
Temptations to Sin6 'If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of
these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a
great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in
the depth of the sea. 7Woe to the world because of stumbling-blocks!
Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to the one by whom
the stumbling-block comes! 
8 'If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw
it away; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than to have
two hands or two feet and to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9And if
your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away; it is
better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and to
be thrown into the hell* of fire. 
The Parable of the Lost Sheep10 'Take care that you do not despise one
of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels
continually see the face of my Father in heaven.* 12What do you think?
If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does
he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the
one that went astray? 13And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he
rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray.
14So it is not the will of your* Father in heaven that one of these
little ones should be lost.
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Isaiah 54:1-13

Sing, O barren one who did not bear;
   burst into song and shout,
   you who have not been in labour!
For the children of the desolate woman will be more
   than the children of her that is married, says the Lord. 
2Enlarge the site of your tent,
   and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
do not hold back; lengthen your cords
   and strengthen your stakes. 
3For you will spread out to the right and to the left,
   and your descendants will possess the nations
   and will settle the desolate towns. 


4Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;
   do not be discouraged, for you will not suffer disgrace;
for you will forget the shame of your youth,
   and the disgrace of your widowhood you will remember no more. 
5For your Maker is your husband,
   the Lord of hosts is his name;
the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,
   the God of the whole earth he is called. 
6For the Lord has called you
   like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
like the wife of a man's youth when she is cast off,
   says your God. 
7For a brief moment I abandoned you,
   but with great compassion I will gather you. 
8In overflowing wrath for a moment
   I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,
   says the Lord, your Redeemer. 


9This is like the days of Noah to me:
   Just as I swore that the waters of Noah
   would never again go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you
   and will not rebuke you. 
10For the mountains may depart
   and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
   and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,
   says the Lord, who has compassion on you. 


11O afflicted one, storm-tossed, and not comforted,
   I am about to set your stones in antimony,
   and lay your foundations with sapphires.* 
12I will make your pinnacles of rubies,
   your gates of jewels,
   and all your wall of precious stones. 
13All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
   and great shall be the prosperity of your children.
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Mark 10:13-16

People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch
them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. 14But when Jesus saw
this, he was indignant and said to them, 'Let the little children come
to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of
God belongs. 15Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of
God as a little child will never enter it.' 16And he took them up in his
arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.
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Morning Psalms:  Psalm 2, 26

Psalm 2

Why do the nations conspire,
   and the peoples plot in vain? 
2The kings of the earth set themselves,
   and the rulers take counsel together,
   against the Lord and his anointed, saying, 
3'Let us burst their bonds asunder,
   and cast their cords from us.' 


4He who sits in the heavens laughs;
   the Lord has them in derision. 
5Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
   and terrify them in his fury, saying, 
6'I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.' 


7I will tell of the decree of the Lord:
He said to me, 'You are my son;
   today I have begotten you. 
8Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
   and the ends of the earth your possession. 
9You shall break them with a rod of iron,
   and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.' 


10Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
   be warned, O rulers of the earth. 
11Serve the Lord with fear,
   with trembling 12kiss his feet,*
or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way;
   for his wrath is quickly kindled. 


Happy are all who take refuge in him.


Psalm 26

Vindicate me, O Lord,
   for I have walked in my integrity,
   and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. 
2Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
   test my heart and mind. 
3For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
   and I walk in faithfulness to you.* 


4I do not sit with the worthless,
   nor do I consort with hypocrites; 
5I hate the company of evildoers,
   and will not sit with the wicked. 


6I wash my hands in innocence,
   and go around your altar, O Lord, 
7singing aloud a song of thanksgiving,
   and telling all your wondrous deeds. 


8O Lord, I love the house in which you dwell,
   and the place where your glory abides. 
9Do not sweep me away with sinners,
   nor my life with the bloodthirsty, 
10those in whose hands are evil devices,
   and whose right hands are full of bribes. 


11But as for me, I walk in my integrity;
   redeem me, and be gracious to me. 
12My foot stands on level ground;
   in the great congregation I will bless the Lord.
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Evening Psalms:  Psalm 19, 126

Psalm 19

The heavens are telling the glory of God;
   and the firmament* proclaims his handiwork. 
2Day to day pours forth speech,
   and night to night declares knowledge. 
3There is no speech, nor are there words;
   their voice is not heard; 
4yet their voice* goes out through all the earth,
   and their words to the end of the world. 


In the heavens* he has set a tent for the sun, 
5which comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy,
   and like a strong man runs its course with joy. 
6Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
   and its circuit to the end of them;
   and nothing is hidden from its heat. 


7The law of the Lord is perfect,
   reviving the soul;
the decrees of the Lord are sure,
   making wise the simple; 
8the precepts of the Lord are right,
   rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear,
   enlightening the eyes; 
9the fear of the Lord is pure,
   enduring for ever;
the ordinances of the Lord are true
   and righteous altogether. 
10More to be desired are they than gold,
   even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey,
   and drippings of the honeycomb. 


11Moreover by them is your servant warned;
   in keeping them there is great reward. 
12But who can detect their errors?
   Clear me from hidden faults. 
13Keep back your servant also from the insolent;*
   do not let them have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless,
   and innocent of great transgression. 


14Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
   be acceptable to you,
   O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.


Psalm 126

When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,*
   we were like those who dream. 
2Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
   and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations,
   'The Lord has done great things for them.' 
3The Lord has done great things for us,
   and we rejoiced. 


4Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
   like the watercourses in the Negeb. 
5May those who sow in tears
   reap with shouts of joy. 
6Those who go out weeping,
   bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
   carrying their sheaves.
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