Thursday 12 December 2024 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Thursday 12 December 2024  
DAILY LECTIONARY

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Isaiah 7:1-9

In the days of Ahaz son of Jotham son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King
Rezin of Aram and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel went up to
attack Jerusalem, but could not mount an attack against it. When the
house of David heard that Aram had allied itself with Ephraim, the
heart of Ahaz* and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the
forest shake before the wind.

 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, Go out to meet Ahaz, you and your son
Shear-jashub,* at the end of the conduit of the upper pool on the
highway to the Fuller’s Field, and say to him, Take heed, be quiet,
do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two
smouldering stumps of firebrands, because of the fierce anger of Rezin
and Aram and the son of Remaliah. Because Aram—with Ephraim and the
son of Remaliah—has plotted evil against you, saying, Let us go up
against Judah and cut off Jerusalem* and conquer it for ourselves and
make the son of Tabeel king in it; therefore thus says the Lord God:
It shall not stand,
   and it shall not come to pass. 
For the head of Aram is Damascus,
   and the head of Damascus is Rezin.

(Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered, no longer a
people.) 
The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
   and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.
If you do not stand firm in faith,
   you shall not stand at all.
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2 Thessalonians 2:1-12

As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered
together to him, we beg you, brothers and sisters,* not to be quickly
shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by word or by letter,
as though from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already
here. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come
unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one* is revealed, the
one destined for destruction.* He opposes and exalts himself above
every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in
the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. Do you not remember
that I told you these things when I was still with you? And you know
what is now restraining him, so that he may be revealed when his time
comes. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but only
until the one who now restrains it is removed. And then the lawless
one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus* will destroy* with the
breath of his mouth, annihilating him by the manifestation of his
coming. The coming of the lawless one is apparent in the working of
Satan, who uses all power, signs, lying wonders, and every kind of
wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to
love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a
powerful delusion, leading them to believe what is false, so that all
who have not believed the truth but took pleasure in unrighteousness
will be condemned.
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Luke 22:1-13

Now the festival of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover,
was near. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to
put Jesus* to death, for they were afraid of the people.

 Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was one of the
twelve; he went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers
of the temple police about how he might betray him to them. They were
greatly pleased and agreed to give him money. So he consented and
began to look for an opportunity to betray him to them when no crowd
was present.
 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb
had to be sacrificed. So Jesus* sent Peter and John, saying, ‘Go and
prepare the Passover meal for us that we may eat it.’ They asked
him, ‘Where do you want us to make preparations for it?’
‘Listen,’ he said to them, ‘when you have entered the city, a
man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him into the house
he enters and say to the owner of the house, “The teacher asks you,
‘Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my
disciples?’ ” He will show you a large room upstairs, already
furnished. Make preparations for us there.’ So they went and found
everything as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover meal.
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Morning Psalms:  Psalm 37:1-18

Psalm 37:1-18

Do not fret because of the wicked;
   do not be envious of wrongdoers, 
for they will soon fade like the grass,
   and wither like the green herb. 

Trust in the Lord, and do good;
   so you will live in the land, and enjoy security. 
Take delight in the Lord,
   and he will give you the desires of your heart. 

Commit your way to the Lord;
   trust in him, and he will act. 
He will make your vindication shine like the light,
   and the justice of your cause like the noonday. 

Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
   do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
   over those who carry out evil devices. 

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath.
   Do not fret—it leads only to evil. 
For the wicked shall be cut off,
   but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land. 

Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more;
   though you look diligently for their place, they will not be
there. 
But the meek shall inherit the land,
   and delight in abundant prosperity. 

The wicked plot against the righteous,
   and gnash their teeth at them; 
but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
   for he sees that their day is coming. 

The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
   to bring down the poor and needy,
   to kill those who walk uprightly; 
their sword shall enter their own heart,
   and their bows shall be broken. 

Better is a little that the righteous person has
   than the abundance of many wicked. 
For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
   but the Lord upholds the righteous. 

The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
   and their heritage will abide for ever;
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Evening Psalms: Psalm 37:19-42

Psalm 37:19-42

they are not put to shame in evil times,
   in the days of famine they have abundance. 

But the wicked perish,
   and the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;
   they vanish—like smoke they vanish away. 

The wicked borrow, and do not pay back,
   but the righteous are generous and keep giving; 
for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,
   but those cursed by him shall be cut off. 

Our steps* are made firm by the Lord,
   when he delights in our* way; 
though we stumble,* we* shall not fall headlong,
   for the Lord holds us* by the hand. 

I have been young, and now am old,
   yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
   or their children begging bread. 
They are ever giving liberally and lending,
   and their children become a blessing. 

Depart from evil, and do good;
   so you shall abide for ever. 
For the Lord loves justice;
   he will not forsake his faithful ones. 

The righteous shall be kept safe for ever,
   but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. 
The righteous shall inherit the land,
   and live in it for ever. 

The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
   and their tongues speak justice. 
The law of their God is in their hearts;
   their steps do not slip. 

The wicked watch for the righteous,
   and seek to kill them. 
The Lord will not abandon them to their power,
   or let them be condemned when they are brought to trial. 

Wait for the Lord, and keep to his way,
   and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
   you will look on the destruction of the wicked. 

I have seen the wicked oppressing,
   and towering like a cedar of Lebanon.* 
Again I* passed by, and they were no more;
   though I sought them, they could not be found. 

Mark the blameless, and behold the upright,
   for there is posterity for the peaceable. 
But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
   the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off. 

The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
   he is their refuge in the time of trouble. 
The Lord helps them and rescues them;
   he rescues them from the wicked, and saves them,
   because they take refuge in him.
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