Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
7 How beautiful on the mountains(A)
are the feet of those who bring good news,(B)
who proclaim peace,(C)
who bring good tidings,
who proclaim salvation,
who say to Zion,
“Your God reigns!”(D)
8 Listen! Your watchmen(E) lift up their voices;(F)
together they shout for joy.(G)
When the Lord returns(H) to Zion,(I)
they will see it with their own eyes.
9 Burst into songs of joy(J) together,
you ruins(K) of Jerusalem,
for the Lord has comforted(L) his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.(M)
10 The Lord will lay bare his holy arm(N)
in the sight of all the nations,(O)
and all the ends of the earth(P) will see
the salvation(Q) of our God.
Psalm 98
A psalm.
1 Sing to the Lord(A) a new song,(B)
for he has done marvelous things;(C)
his right hand(D) and his holy arm(E)
have worked salvation(F) for him.
2 The Lord has made his salvation known(G)
and revealed his righteousness(H) to the nations.(I)
3 He has remembered(J) his love
and his faithfulness to Israel;
all the ends of the earth(K) have seen
the salvation of our God.(L)
4 Shout for joy(M) to the Lord, all the earth,
burst into jubilant song with music;
5 make music to the Lord with the harp,(N)
with the harp and the sound of singing,(O)
6 with trumpets(P) and the blast of the ram’s horn(Q)—
shout for joy(R) before the Lord, the King.(S)
7 Let the sea(T) resound, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it.(U)
8 Let the rivers clap their hands,(V)
let the mountains(W) sing together for joy;
9 let them sing before the Lord,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples with equity.(X)
God’s Final Word: His Son
1 In the past God spoke(A) to our ancestors through the prophets(B) at many times and in various ways,(C) 2 but in these last days(D) he has spoken to us by his Son,(E) whom he appointed heir(F) of all things, and through whom(G) also he made the universe.(H) 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory(I) and the exact representation of his being,(J) sustaining all things(K) by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins,(L) he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.(M) 4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.(N)
The Son Superior to Angels
5 For to which of the angels did God ever say,
Or again,
6 And again, when God brings his firstborn(C) into the world,(D) he says,
7 In speaking of the angels he says,
8 But about the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever;(G)
a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions(H)
by anointing you with the oil(I) of joy.”[e](J)
10 He also says,
“In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.(K)
11 They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.(L)
12 You will roll them up like a robe;
like a garment they will be changed.
But you remain the same,(M)
and your years will never end.”[f](N)
The Word Became Flesh
1 In the beginning was the Word,(A) and the Word was with God,(B) and the Word was God.(C) 2 He was with God in the beginning.(D) 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.(E) 4 In him was life,(F) and that life was the light(G) of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness,(H) and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.(I)
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John.(J) 7 He came as a witness to testify(K) concerning that light, so that through him all might believe.(L) 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
9 The true light(M) that gives light to everyone(N) was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him,(O) the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.(P) 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed(Q) in his name,(R) he gave the right to become children of God(S)— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.(T)
14 The Word became flesh(U) and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory,(V) the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace(W) and truth.(X)
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