Isaiah 40:9-31
Christian Standard Bible
9 Zion, herald of good news,
go up on a high mountain.(A)
Jerusalem, herald of good news,(B)
raise your voice loudly.
Raise it, do not be afraid!
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!” (C)
10 See, the Lord God comes with strength,
and his power establishes his rule.(D)
His wages are with him,(E)
and his reward accompanies him.
11 He protects his flock like a shepherd;(F)
he gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them in the fold of his garment.
He gently leads those that are nursing.
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
or marked off the heavens with the span of his hand?(G)
Who has gathered the dust of the earth in a measure
or weighed the mountains on a balance
and the hills on the scales?
13 Who has directed[a] the Spirit of the Lord,
or who gave him counsel?(H)
14 Who did he consult?
Who gave him understanding(I)
and taught him the paths of justice?
Who taught him knowledge
and showed him the way of understanding?
15 Look, the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are considered as a speck of dust on the scales;
he lifts up the islands like fine dust.
16 Lebanon’s cedars are not enough for fuel,
or its animals enough for a burnt offering.(J)
17 All the nations are as nothing before him;
they are considered by him
as empty nothingness.(K)
18 With whom will you compare God?
What likeness will you set up for comparison with him?(L)
19 An idol?—something that a smelter casts
and a metalworker plates with gold
and makes silver chains for?(M)
20 A poor person contributes wood for a pedestal
that will not rot.[b]
He looks for a skilled craftsman
to set up an idol that will not fall over.(N)
21 Do you not know?(O)
Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you
from the beginning?
Have you not considered
the foundations of the earth?(P)
22 God is enthroned above the circle of the earth;
its inhabitants are like grasshoppers.(Q)
He stretches out the heavens like thin cloth(R)
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.(S)
23 He reduces princes to nothing(T)
and makes judges of the earth like a wasteland.
24 They are barely planted, barely sown,
their stem hardly takes root in the ground
when he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind carries them away like stubble.(U)
25 “To whom will you compare me,(V)
or who is my equal?” asks the Holy One.
26 Look up and see!
Who created(W) these?
He brings out the stars by number;
he calls all of them by name.(X)
Because of his great power and strength,
not one of them is missing.
27 Jacob, why do you say,
and Israel, why do you assert,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my claim is ignored by my God”?(Y)
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,(Z)
the Creator of the whole earth.
He never becomes faint or weary;
there is no limit to his understanding.(AA)
29 He gives strength to the faint
and strengthens the powerless.
30 Youths may become faint and weary,
and young men stumble and fall,
31 but those who trust in the Lord
will renew their strength;(AB)
they will soar on wings like eagles;(AC)
they will run and not become weary,
they will walk and not faint.
Deuteronomy 31:7-8
Christian Standard Bible
7 Moses then summoned Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will go with[a] this people into the land the Lord swore to give to their ancestors.(A) You will enable them to take possession of it. 8 The Lord is the one who will go before you.(B) He will be with you; he will not leave you or abandon you.(C) Do not be afraid or discouraged.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 31:7 Some Hb mss, Sam, Syr, Vg read you will bring
Psalm 28:7-8
Christian Standard Bible
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.(A)
Therefore my heart celebrates,
and I give thanks to him with my song.(B)
Footnotes
- 28:8 Some Hb mss, LXX, Syr; other Hb mss read strength for them
Psalm 68:32-35
Christian Standard Bible
32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth;
sing praise to the Lord,(A)Selah
33 to him who rides in the ancient, highest heavens.(B)
Look, he thunders with his powerful voice!(C)
34 Ascribe power to God.
His majesty is over Israel;
his power is among the clouds.(D)
35 God, you are awe-inspiring in your sanctuaries.
The God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!(E)
1 Corinthians 15:50-58
Christian Standard Bible
Victorious Resurrection
50 What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: Flesh(A) and blood(B) cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor can corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Listen, I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.(C) For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. 53 For this corruptible body must be clothed(D) with incorruptibility,(E) and this mortal body must be clothed with immortality. 54 When this corruptible body is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal body is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place:
Death has been swallowed up(F) in victory.[a](G)
55 Where, death, is your victory?
Where, death, is your sting?[b](H)
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin(I) is the law.(J) 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory(K) through our Lord Jesus Christ!
58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work,(L) because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
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