Sunday, September 30, 2007

September 30th - Day 273

Isaiah 60-62:5

Isaiah 60

The Glory of Zion

1 "Arise, shine, for your light has come,

and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.

2 See, darkness covers the earth

and thick darkness is over the peoples,

but the LORD rises upon you

and his glory appears over you.

3 Nations will come to your light,

and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

4 "Lift up your eyes and look about you:

All assemble and come to you;

your sons come from afar,

and your daughters are carried on the arm.

5 Then you will look and be radiant,

your heart will throb and swell with joy;

the wealth on the seas will be brought to you,

to you the riches of the nations will come.

6 Herds of camels will cover your land,

young camels of Midian and Ephah.

And all from Sheba will come,

bearing gold and incense

and proclaiming the praise of the LORD.

7 All Kedar's flocks will be gathered to you,

the rams of Nebaioth will serve you;

they will be accepted as offerings on my altar,

and I will adorn my glorious temple.

8 "Who are these that fly along like clouds,

like doves to their nests?

9 Surely the islands look to me;

in the lead are the ships of Tarshish, [
a]

bringing your sons from afar,

with their silver and gold,

to the honor of the LORD your God,

the Holy One of Israel,

for he has endowed you with splendor.

10 "Foreigners will rebuild your walls,

and their kings will serve you.

Though in anger I struck you,

in favor I will show you compassion.

11 Your gates will always stand open,

they will never be shut, day or night,

so that men may bring you the wealth of the nations—

their kings led in triumphal procession.

12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish;

it will be utterly ruined.

13 "The glory of Lebanon will come to you,

the pine, the fir and the cypress together,

to adorn the place of my sanctuary;

and I will glorify the place of my feet.

14 The sons of your oppressors will come bowing before you;

all who despise you will bow down at your feet

and will call you the City of the LORD,

Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15 "Although you have been forsaken and hated,

with no one traveling through,

I will make you the everlasting pride

and the joy of all generations.

16 You will drink the milk of nations

and be nursed at royal breasts.

Then you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior,

your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

17 Instead of bronze I will bring you gold,

and silver in place of iron.

Instead of wood I will bring you bronze,

and iron in place of stones.

I will make peace your governor

and righteousness your ruler.

18 No longer will violence be heard in your land,

nor ruin or destruction within your borders,

but you will call your walls Salvation

and your gates Praise.

19 The sun will no more be your light by day,

nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,

for the LORD will be your everlasting light,

and your God will be your glory.

20 Your sun will never set again,

and your moon will wane no more;

the LORD will be your everlasting light,

and your days of sorrow will end.

21 Then will all your people be righteous

and they will possess the land forever.

They are the shoot I have planted,

the work of my hands,

for the display of my splendor.

22 The least of you will become a thousand,

the smallest a mighty nation.

I am the LORD;

in its time I will do this swiftly."

Isaiah 61


The Year of the LORD's Favor

1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,

because the LORD has anointed me

to preach good news to the poor.

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim freedom for the captives

and release from darkness for the prisoners, [
b]

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor

and the day of vengeance of our God,

to comfort all who mourn,

3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—

to bestow on them a crown of beauty

instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness

instead of mourning,

and a garment of praise

instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness,

a planting of the LORD

for the display of his splendor.

4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins

and restore the places long devastated;

they will renew the ruined cities

that have been devastated for generations.

5 Aliens will shepherd your flocks;

foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.

6 And you will be called priests of the LORD,

you will be named ministers of our God.

You will feed on the wealth of nations,

and in their riches you will boast.

7 Instead of their shame

my people will receive a double portion,

and instead of disgrace

they will rejoice in their inheritance;

and so they will inherit a double portion in their land,

and everlasting joy will be theirs.

8 "For I, the LORD, love justice;

I hate robbery and iniquity.

In my faithfulness I will reward them

and make an everlasting covenant with them.

9 Their descendants will be known among the nations

and their offspring among the peoples.

All who see them will acknowledge

that they are a people the LORD has blessed."

10 I delight greatly in the LORD;

my soul rejoices in my God.

For he has clothed me with garments of salvation

and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness,

as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,

and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up

and a garden causes seeds to grow,

so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise

spring up before all nations.

Isaiah 62


Zion's New Name

1 For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,

for Jerusalem's sake I will not remain quiet,

till her righteousness shines out like the dawn,

her salvation like a blazing torch.

2 The nations will see your righteousness,

and all kings your glory;

you will be called by a new name

that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.

3 You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand,

a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

4 No longer will they call you Deserted,

or name your land Desolate.

But you will be called Hephzibah, [
c]

and your land Beulah [
d] ;

for the LORD will take delight in you,

and your land will be married.

5 As a young man marries a maiden,

so will your sons [
e] marry you;

as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride,

so will your God rejoice over you.


Footnotes:


  1. Isaiah 60:9 Or the trading ships
  2. Isaiah 61:1 Hebrew; Septuagint the blind
  3. Isaiah 62:4 Hephzibah means my delight is in her .
  4. Isaiah 62:4 Beulah means married .
  5. Isaiah 62:5 Or Builder


Philippians 1:27-2:18



27Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel 28without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. 29For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, 30since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.


Philippians 2


Imitating Christ's Humility

1If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

5Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

6Who, being in very nature[
a] God,

did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

7but made himself nothing,

taking the very nature[
b] of a servant,

being made in human likeness.

8And being found in appearance as a man,

he humbled himself

and became obedient to death—

even death on a cross!

9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place

and gave him the name that is above every name,

10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

Shining as Stars

12Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.

14Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe 16as you hold out[c] the word of life—in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing. 17But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. 18So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.


Footnotes:


  1. Philippians 2:6 Or in the form of
  2. Philippians 2:7 Or the form
  3. Philippians 2:16 Or hold on to


Psalm 72:1-20



Psalm 72


Of Solomon.

1 Endow the king with your justice, O God,

the royal son with your righteousness.

2 He will [a] judge your people in righteousness,

your afflicted ones with justice.

3 The mountains will bring prosperity to the people,

the hills the fruit of righteousness.

4 He will defend the afflicted among the people

and save the children of the needy;

he will crush the oppressor.

5 He will endure [b] as long as the sun,

as long as the moon, through all generations.

6 He will be like rain falling on a mown field,

like showers watering the earth.

7 In his days the righteous will flourish;

prosperity will abound till the moon is no more.

8 He will rule from sea to sea

and from the River [
c] to the ends of the earth. [d]

9 The desert tribes will bow before him

and his enemies will lick the dust.

10 The kings of Tarshish and of distant shores

will bring tribute to him;

the kings of Sheba and Seba

will present him gifts.

11 All kings will bow down to him

and all nations will serve him.

12 For he will deliver the needy who cry out,

the afflicted who have no one to help.

13 He will take pity on the weak and the needy

and save the needy from death.

14 He will rescue them from oppression and violence,

for precious is their blood in his sight.

15 Long may he live!

May gold from Sheba be given him.

May people ever pray for him

and bless him all day long.

16 Let grain abound throughout the land;

on the tops of the hills may it sway.

Let its fruit flourish like Lebanon;

let it thrive like the grass of the field.

17 May his name endure forever;

may it continue as long as the sun.

All nations will be blessed through him,

and they will call him blessed.

18 Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel,

who alone does marvelous deeds.

19 Praise be to his glorious name forever;

may the whole earth be filled with his glory.

Amen and Amen.

20 This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.


Footnotes:


  1. Psalm 72:2 Or May he; similarly in verses 3-11 and 17
  2. Psalm 72:5 Septuagint; Hebrew You will be feared
  3. Psalm 72:8 That is, the Euphrates
  4. Psalm 72:8 Or the end of the land


Proverbs 24:11-12



11 Rescue those being led away to death;

hold back those staggering toward slaughter.


12 If you say, "But we knew nothing about this,"

does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?

Does not he who guards your life know it?

Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?

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