September 26th - Day 269

Isaiah 48:12-50:11



Israel Freed

12 "Listen to me, O Jacob,

Israel, whom I have called:

I am he;

I am the first and I am the last.

13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,

and my right hand spread out the heavens;

when I summon them,

they all stand up together.

14 "Come together, all of you, and listen:

Which of the idols has foretold these things?

The LORD's chosen ally

will carry out his purpose against Babylon;

his arm will be against the Babylonians. [a]

15 I, even I, have spoken;

yes, I have called him.

I will bring him,

and he will succeed in his mission.

16 "Come near me and listen to this:

"From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;

at the time it happens, I am there."

And now the Sovereign LORD has sent me,

with his Spirit.

17 This is what the LORD says—

your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:

"I am the LORD your God,

who teaches you what is best for you,

who directs you in the way you should go.

18 If only you had paid attention to my commands,

your peace would have been like a river,

your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

19 Your descendants would have been like the sand,

your children like its numberless grains;

their name would never be cut off

nor destroyed from before me."

20 Leave Babylon,

flee from the Babylonians!

Announce this with shouts of joy

and proclaim it.

Send it out to the ends of the earth;

say, "The LORD has redeemed his servant Jacob."

21 They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts;

he made water flow for them from the rock;

he split the rock

and water gushed out.

22 "There is no peace," says the LORD, "for the wicked."

Isaiah 49

The Servant of the LORD

1 Listen to me, you islands;

hear this, you distant nations:

Before I was born the LORD called me;

from my birth he has made mention of my name.

2 He made my mouth like a sharpened sword,

in the shadow of his hand he hid me;

he made me into a polished arrow

and concealed me in his quiver.

3 He said to me, "You are my servant,

Israel, in whom I will display my splendor."

4 But I said, "I have labored to no purpose;

I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing.

Yet what is due me is in the LORD's hand,

and my reward is with my God."

5 And now the LORD says—

he who formed me in the womb to be his servant

to bring Jacob back to him

and gather Israel to himself,

for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD

and my God has been my strength-

6 he says:

"It is too small a thing for you to be my servant

to restore the tribes of Jacob

and bring back those of Israel I have kept.

I will also make you a light for the Gentiles,

that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth."

7 This is what the LORD says—

the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel—

to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation,

to the servant of rulers:

"Kings will see you and rise up,

princes will see and bow down,

because of the LORD, who is faithful,

the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you."

Restoration of Israel

8 This is what the LORD says:

"In the time of my favor I will answer you,

and in the day of salvation I will help you;

I will keep you and will make you

to be a covenant for the people,

to restore the land

and to reassign its desolate inheritances,

9 to say to the captives, 'Come out,'

and to those in darkness, 'Be free!'

"They will feed beside the roads

and find pasture on every barren hill.

10 They will neither hunger nor thirst,

nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them.

He who has compassion on them will guide them

and lead them beside springs of water.

11 I will turn all my mountains into roads,

and my highways will be raised up.

12 See, they will come from afar—

some from the north, some from the west,

some from the region of Aswan. [b] "

13 Shout for joy, O heavens;

rejoice, O earth;

burst into song, O mountains!

For the LORD comforts his people

and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

14 But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me,

the Lord has forgotten me."

15 "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast

and have no compassion on the child she has borne?

Though she may forget,

I will not forget you!

16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;

your walls are ever before me.

17 Your sons hasten back,

and those who laid you waste depart from you.

18 Lift up your eyes and look around;

all your sons gather and come to you.

As surely as I live," declares the LORD,

"you will wear them all as ornaments;

you will put them on, like a bride.

19 "Though you were ruined and made desolate

and your land laid waste,

now you will be too small for your people,

and those who devoured you will be far away.

20 The children born during your bereavement

will yet say in your hearing,

'This place is too small for us;

give us more space to live in.'

21 Then you will say in your heart,

'Who bore me these?

I was bereaved and barren;

I was exiled and rejected.

Who brought these up?

I was left all alone,

but these—where have they come from?' "

22 This is what the Sovereign LORD says:

"See, I will beckon to the Gentiles,

I will lift up my banner to the peoples;

they will bring your sons in their arms

and carry your daughters on their shoulders.

23 Kings will be your foster fathers,

and their queens your nursing mothers.

They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground;

they will lick the dust at your feet.

Then you will know that I am the LORD;

those who hope in me will not be disappointed."

24 Can plunder be taken from warriors,

or captives rescued from the fierce [c] ?

25 But this is what the LORD says:

"Yes, captives will be taken from warriors,

and plunder retrieved from the fierce;

I will contend with those who contend with you,

and your children I will save.

26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh;

they will be drunk on their own blood, as with wine.

Then all mankind will know

that I, the LORD, am your Savior,

your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob."

Isaiah 50

Israel's Sin and the Servant's Obedience

1 This is what the LORD says:

"Where is your mother's certificate of divorce

with which I sent her away?

Or to which of my creditors

did I sell you?

Because of your sins you were sold;

because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.

2 When I came, why was there no one?

When I called, why was there no one to answer?

Was my arm too short to ransom you?

Do I lack the strength to rescue you?

By a mere rebuke I dry up the sea,

I turn rivers into a desert;

their fish rot for lack of water

and die of thirst.

3 I clothe the sky with darkness

and make sackcloth its covering."

4 The Sovereign LORD has given me an instructed tongue,

to know the word that sustains the weary.

He wakens me morning by morning,

wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.

5 The Sovereign LORD has opened my ears,

and I have not been rebellious;

I have not drawn back.

6 I offered my back to those who beat me,

my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;

I did not hide my face

from mocking and spitting.

7 Because the Sovereign LORD helps me,

I will not be disgraced.

Therefore have I set my face like flint,

and I know I will not be put to shame.

8 He who vindicates me is near.

Who then will bring charges against me?

Let us face each other!

Who is my accuser?

Let him confront me!

9 It is the Sovereign LORD who helps me.

Who is he that will condemn me?

They will all wear out like a garment;

the moths will eat them up.

10 Who among you fears the LORD

and obeys the word of his servant?

Let him who walks in the dark,

who has no light,

trust in the name of the LORD

and rely on his God.

11 But now, all you who light fires

and provide yourselves with flaming torches,

go, walk in the light of your fires

and of the torches you have set ablaze.

This is what you shall receive from my hand:

You will lie down in torment.

Footnotes:

1. Isaiah 48:14 Or Chaldeans ; also in verse 20
   
2. Isaiah 49:12 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text Sinim
   
3. Isaiah 49:24 Dead Sea Scrolls, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Septuagint and verse 25 Masoretic Text righteous

Ephesians 4:17-32



Living as Children of Light

17So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.

20You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. 21Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

25Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26"In your anger do not sin"[a]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27and do not give the devil a foothold. 28He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

29Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Footnotes:

1. Ephesians 4:26 Psalm 4:4

Psalm 69:1-18



Psalm 69

For the director of music. To the tune of "Lilies." Of David.

1 Save me, O God,

for the waters have come up to my neck.

2 I sink in the miry depths,

where there is no foothold.

I have come into the deep waters;

the floods engulf me.

3 I am worn out calling for help;

my throat is parched.

My eyes fail,

looking for my God.

4 Those who hate me without reason

outnumber the hairs of my head;

many are my enemies without cause,

those who seek to destroy me.

I am forced to restore

what I did not steal.

5 You know my folly, O God;

my guilt is not hidden from you.

6 May those who hope in you

not be disgraced because of me,

O Lord, the LORD Almighty;

may those who seek you

not be put to shame because of me,

O God of Israel.

7 For I endure scorn for your sake,

and shame covers my face.

8 I am a stranger to my brothers,

an alien to my own mother's sons;

9 for zeal for your house consumes me,

and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.

10 When I weep and fast,

I must endure scorn;

11 when I put on sackcloth,

people make sport of me.

12 Those who sit at the gate mock me,

and I am the song of the drunkards.

13 But I pray to you, O LORD,

in the time of your favor;

in your great love, O God,

answer me with your sure salvation.

14 Rescue me from the mire,

do not let me sink;

deliver me from those who hate me,

from the deep waters.

15 Do not let the floodwaters engulf me

or the depths swallow me up

or the pit close its mouth over me.

16 Answer me, O LORD, out of the goodness of your love;

in your great mercy turn to me.

17 Do not hide your face from your servant;

answer me quickly, for I am in trouble.

18 Come near and rescue me;

redeem me because of my foes.

Proverbs 24:5-6



5 A wise man has great power,

and a man of knowledge increases strength;

6 for waging war you need guidance,

and for victory many advisers.