Wednesday 3 January 2024 DAILY LECTIONARY

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Wednesday 3 January 2024
DAILY LECTIONARY

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1 Kings 19:9-18

At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there.

Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘What are you doing
here, Elijah?’ He answered, ‘I have been very zealous for the
Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your
covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the
sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it
away.’
 He said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for
the Lord is about to pass by.’ Now there was a great wind, so strong
that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before
the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an
earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the
earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the
fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his
face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
Then there came a voice to him that said, ‘What are you doing here,
Elijah?’ He answered, ‘I have been very zealous for the Lord, the
God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown
down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am
left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.’ Then the Lord
said to him, ‘Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus;
when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. Also you
shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall
anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place.
Whoever escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall kill; and whoever
escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall kill. Yet I will leave
seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal,
and every mouth that has not kissed him.’
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Ephesians 4:17-32

Now this I affirm and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live
as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds. They are
darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God
because of their ignorance and hardness of heart. They have lost all
sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to
practise every kind of impurity. That is not the way you learned
Christ! For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as
truth is in Jesus. You were taught to put away your former way of
life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be
renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the
new self, created according to the likeness of God in true
righteousness and holiness.
 So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to
our neighbours, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not
sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room
for the devil. Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labour
and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to
share with the needy. Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but
only what is useful for building up,* as there is need, so that your
words may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy
Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of
redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and
wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one
another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has
forgiven you.
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John 6:15-27

When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force
to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
 When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, got into a
boat, and started across the lake to Capernaum. It was now dark, and
Jesus had not yet come to them. The lake became rough because a strong
wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles,* they
saw Jesus walking on the lake and coming near the boat, and they were
terrified. But he said to them, ‘It is I;* do not be afraid.’ Then
they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat
reached the land towards which they were going.
 The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the lake
saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus
had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples
had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place
where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.* So
when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there,
they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for
Jesus.

 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him,
‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Very
truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs,
but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food
that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which
the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has
set his seal.’
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Morning Psalms: Psalm 68

Psalm 68

Let God rise up, let his enemies be scattered;
   let those who hate him flee before him. 
As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;
   as wax melts before the fire,
   let the wicked perish before God. 
But let the righteous be joyful;
   let them exult before God;
   let them be jubilant with joy. 

Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
   lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds*—
his name is the Lord—
   be exultant before him. 

Father of orphans and protector of widows
   is God in his holy habitation. 
God gives the desolate a home to live in;
   he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
   but the rebellious live in a parched land. 

O God, when you went out before your people,
   when you marched through the wilderness,
          Selah 
the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain
   at the presence of God, the God of Sinai,
   at the presence of God, the God of Israel. 
Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad;
   you restored your heritage when it languished; 
your flock found a dwelling in it;
   in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy. 

The Lord gives the command;
   great is the company of those* who bore the tidings: 
   ‘The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!’
The women at home divide the spoil, 
   though they stay among the sheepfolds—
the wings of a dove covered with silver,
   its pinions with green gold. 
When the Almighty* scattered kings there,
   snow fell on Zalmon. 

O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan;
   O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan! 
Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountain,
   at the mount that God desired for his abode,
   where the Lord will reside for ever? 

With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand,
   thousands upon thousands,
   the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place.* 
You ascended the high mount,
   leading captives in your train
   and receiving gifts from people,
even from those who rebel against the Lord God’s abiding there. 
Blessed be the Lord,
   who daily bears us up;
   God is our salvation.
          Selah 
Our God is a God of salvation,
   and to God, the Lord, belongs escape from death. 

But God will shatter the heads of his enemies,
   the hairy crown of those who walk in their guilty ways. 
The Lord said,
   ‘I will bring them back from Bashan,
I will bring them back from the depths of the sea, 
so that you may bathe* your feet in blood,
   so that the tongues of your dogs may have their share from the
foe.’ 

Your solemn processions are seen,* O God,
   the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary— 
the singers in front, the musicians last,
   between them girls playing tambourines: 
‘Bless God in the great congregation,
   the Lord, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!’ 
There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
   the princes of Judah in a body,
   the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali. 

Summon your might, O God;
   show your strength, O God, as you have done for us before. 
Because of your temple at Jerusalem
   kings bear gifts to you. 
Rebuke the wild animals that live among the reeds,
   the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.
Trample* under foot those who lust after tribute;
   scatter the peoples who delight in war.* 
Let bronze be brought from Egypt;
   let Ethiopia* hasten to stretch out its hands to God. 

Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth;
   sing praises to the Lord,
          Selah 
O rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
   listen, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice. 
Ascribe power to God,
   whose majesty is over Israel;
   and whose power is in the skies. 
Awesome is God in his* sanctuary,
   the God of Israel;
   he gives power and strength to his people. 

Blessed be God!
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Evening Psalms: Psalm 72

Psalm 72

Give the king your justice, O God,
   and your righteousness to a king’s son. 
May he judge your people with righteousness,
   and your poor with justice. 
May the mountains yield prosperity for the people,
   and the hills, in righteousness. 
May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
   give deliverance to the needy,
   and crush the oppressor. 

May he live* while the sun endures,
   and as long as the moon, throughout all generations. 
May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
   like showers that water the earth. 
In his days may righteousness flourish
   and peace abound, until the moon is no more. 

May he have dominion from sea to sea,
   and from the River to the ends of the earth. 
May his foes* bow down before him,
   and his enemies lick the dust. 
May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles
   render him tribute,
may the kings of Sheba and Seba
   bring gifts. 
May all kings fall down before him,
   all nations give him service. 

For he delivers the needy when they call,
   the poor and those who have no helper. 
He has pity on the weak and the needy,
   and saves the lives of the needy. 
>From oppression and violence he redeems their life;
   and precious is their blood in his sight. 

Long may he live!
   May gold of Sheba be given to him.
May prayer be made for him continually,
   and blessings invoked for him all day long. 
May there be abundance of grain in the land;
   may it wave on the tops of the mountains;
   may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may people blossom in the cities
   like the grass of the field. 
May his name endure for ever,
   his fame continue as long as the sun.
May all nations be blessed in him;*
   may they pronounce him happy. 

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
   who alone does wondrous things. 
Blessed be his glorious name for ever;
   may his glory fill the whole earth.Amen and Amen. 

The prayers of David son of Jesse are ended.
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