Isaiah 56–58; Psalm 100; Acts 24–25

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Isaiah 56–58

Salvation for Foreigners

Thus says the Lord:

Keep justice, and do righteousness,

wfor soon my salvation will come,

and my righteousness be revealed.

Blessed is the man who does this,

and the son of man who holds it fast,

xwho keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it,

and keeps his hand from doing any evil.

Let not ythe foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,

The Lord will surely separate me from his people;

and let not the eunuch say,

Behold, I am za dry tree.

For thus says the Lord:

To the eunuchs xwho keep my Sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me

and hold fast my covenant,

aI will give in my house and within my walls

a bmonument and a name

better than sons and daughters;

cI will give them an everlasting name

that shall not be cut off.

And ythe foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,

to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord,

and to be his servants,

everyone xwho keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

and holds fast my covenant

dthese I will bring to emy holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

ftheir burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for gmy house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.

The Lord God,

hwho gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

iI will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.

Israel’s Irresponsible Leaders

jAll you beasts of the field, come to devour

all you beasts in the forest.

10  kHis watchmen are blind;

they are all without knowledge;

they are all silent ldogs;

they cannot bark,

dreaming, lying down,

loving to slumber.

11  mThe dogs have a mighty appetite;

they never have enough.

But nthey are shepherds who have no understanding;

they have all turned to their own way,

oeach to his own gain, one and all.

12  pCome, they say, let me get wine;

let us fill ourselves with strong drink;

qand tomorrow will be like this day,

great beyond measure.

Israel’s Futile Idolatry

The righteous man perishes,

and no one lays it to heart;

rdevout men are taken away,

while no one understands.

For the righteous man is taken away from calamity;

she enters into peace;

they rest tin their beds

who walk in their uprightness.

But you, draw near,

sons of the sorceress,

uoffspring of the adulterer and the loose woman.

Whom are you mocking?

Against whom vdo you open your mouth wide

and stick out your tongue?

Are you not children of wtransgression,

xthe offspring of deceit,

you who burn with lust among ythe oaks,1

under every green tree,

zwho slaughter your children in the valleys,

under the clefts of the rocks?

Among the smooth stones of athe valley is your portion;

they, they, are your lot;

to them you have poured out a drink offering,

you have brought a grain offering.

Shall I relent for these things?

bOn a high and lofty mountain

you have set your bed,

and there you went up to offer sacrifice.

Behind the door and the doorpost

you have set up your memorial;

for, deserting me, cyou have uncovered your bed,

you have gone up to it,

dyou have made it wide;

and you have made a covenant for yourself with them,

you have loved their bed,

you have looked on nakedness.2

You journeyed to the king with oil

and multiplied your perfumes;

eyou sent your envoys far off,

and sent down even to Sheol.

10  You were wearied with the length of your way,

fbut you did not say, It is hopeless;

you found new life for your strength,

and so you were not faint.3

11  gWhom did you dread and fear,

hso that you lied,

and did not remember me,

did not lay it to heart?

iHave I not held my peace, even for a long time,

and you do not fear me?

12  I will declare your righteousness and your deeds,

but they will not profit you.

13  jWhen you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you!

The wind will carry them all off,

a breath will take them away.

kBut he who takes refuge in me shall possess the land

and shall inherit lmy holy mountain.

Comfort for the Contrite

14  And it shall be said,

mBuild up, build up, prepare the way,

remove every obstruction from my people’s way.

15  For thus says nthe One who is high and lifted up,

who inhabits eternity, whose name is oHoly:

pI dwell in the high and holy place,

and also qwith him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit,

rto revive the spirit of the lowly,

and to revive the heart of the contrite.

16  sFor I will not contend forever,

nor will I always be angry;

for the spirit would grow faint before me,

and the breath of life that I made.

17  Because of the iniquity of his tunjust gain I was angry,

I struck him; I hid my face and was angry,

but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart.

18  I have seen his ways, ubut I will heal him;

I will lead him vand restore comfort to him and his mourners,

19  wcreating xthe fruit of the lips.

yPeace, peace, zto the far and to the near, says the Lord,

uand I will heal him.

20  aBut the wicked are like the tossing sea;

for it cannot be quiet,

and its waters toss up mire and dirt.

21  bThere is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.

True and False Fasting

Cry aloud; do not hold back;

clift up your voice like a trumpet;

ddeclare to my people their transgression,

to the house of Jacob their sins.

eYet they seek me daily

and delight to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that did righteousness

and did not forsake the judgment of their God;

they ask of me righteous judgments;

they delight to draw near to God.

fWhy have we fasted, and you see it not?

Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?

Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,4

gand oppress all your workers.

Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight

and to hit with a wicked fist.

Fasting like yours this day

will not make your voice to be heard on high.

hIs such the fast that I choose,

ia day for a person to humble himself?

Is it to bow down his head like a reed,

and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?

Will you call this a fast,

and a day acceptable to the Lord?

Is not this the fast that I choose:

jto loose the bonds of wickedness,

to undo the straps kof the yoke,

to let the oppressed5 go free,

and to break every yoke?

Is it not lto share your bread with the hungry

and bring the homeless poor into your house;

when you see the naked, to cover him,

mand not to hide yourself from your own flesh?

nThen shall your light break forth like the dawn,

oand your healing shall spring up speedily;

pyour righteousness shall go before you;

qthe glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.

Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;

you shall cry, and he will say, Here I am.

If you take away rthe yoke from your midst,

sthe pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,

10  tif you pour yourself out for the hungry

and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,

nthen shall your light rise in the darkness

and your gloom be as the noonday.

11  And the Lord will guide you continually

and satisfy your desire in scorched places

and make your bones strong;

and you shall be ulike a watered garden,

like a spring of water,

whose waters do not fail.

12  vAnd your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;

you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;

you shall be called the repairer of the breach,

the restorer of streets to dwell in.

13  wIf you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,

from doing your pleasure6 on my holy day,

and call the Sabbath a delight

and the holy day of the Lord honorable;

if you honor it, not going your own ways,

or seeking xyour own pleasure,7 or talking idly;8

14  then you shall take delight in the Lord,

yand I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;9

zI will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,

afor the mouth of the Lord has spoken.


Psalm 100

His Steadfast Love Endures Forever

A Psalm for ogiving thanks.

pMake a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

qServe the Lord with gladness!

rCome into his presence with singing!

Know that sthe Lord, he is God!

It is he who tmade us, and uwe are his;1

we are his vpeople, and wthe sheep of his pasture.

xEnter his gates with thanksgiving,

and his ycourts with praise!

Give thanks to him; zbless his name!

aFor the Lord is good;

his steadfast love endures forever,

and his bfaithfulness to all generations.


Acts 24–25

Paul Before Felix at Caesarea

And safter five days the high priest tAnanias came down with some elders and a spokesman, one Tertullus. They laid before uthe governor their case against Paul. And when he had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying:

Since through you we enjoy much peace, and since by your foresight, vmost excellent Felix, reforms are being made for this nation, in every way and everywhere we accept this with all gratitude. But, to detain1 you no further, I beg you in your kindness to hear us briefly. For we have found this man a plague, wone who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of xthe sect of the Nazarenes. yHe even tried to profane the temple, but we seized him.2 By examining him yourself you will be able to find out from him about everything of which we accuse him.

The Jews also joined in the charge, affirming that all these things were so.

10 And when the governor had nodded to him to speak, Paul replied:

Knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation, I cheerfully make my defense. 11 You can verify that zit is not more than twelve days since I awent up bto worship in Jerusalem, 12 and cthey did not find me disputing with anyone or stirring up a crowd, either in the temple or in the synagogues or in the city. 13 dNeither can they prove to you what they now bring up against me. 14 But this I confess to you, that according to ethe Way, which they call fa sect, gI worship hthe God of our fathers, believing everything ilaid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, 15 jhaving ka hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be la resurrection mof both the just and the unjust. 16 So I always ntake pains to have a oclear conscience toward both God and man. 17 Now pafter several years qI came to bring alms to rmy nation and to present sofferings. 18 While I was doing this, they found me tpurified in the temple, without any crowd or tumult. But usome Jews from Asia 19 vthey ought to be here before you and to make an accusation, should they have anything against me. 20 Or else let these men themselves say what wrongdoing they found when I stood before the council, 21 other than this one thing wthat I cried out while standing among them: It is with respect to the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you this day.

Paul Kept in Custody

22 But Felix, having a rather accurate knowledge of xthe Way, put them off, saying, When Lysias the tribune comes down, I will decide your case. 23 Then he gave orders to the centurion that he yshould be kept in custody but have some liberty, and that znone of his friends should be prevented from attending to his needs.

24 After some days Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about afaith bin Christ Jesus. 25 And as he reasoned cabout righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix was alarmed and said, Go away for the present. dWhen I get an opportunity I will summon you. 26 At the same time he hoped ethat money would be given him by Paul. So he sent for him often and conversed with him. 27 When two years had elapsed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius fFestus. And gdesiring to do the Jews a favor, hFelix left Paul in prison.

Paul Appeals to Caesar

Now three days after Festus had arrived in ithe province, he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. And the chief priests and the principal men of the Jews jlaid out their case against Paul, and they urged him, asking as a favor against Paul3 that he summon him to Jerusalembecause kthey were planning an ambush to kill him on the way. Festus replied that Paul was being kept at Caesarea and that he himself intended to go there shortly. So, said he, let the men of authority among you go down with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them bring charges against him.

After he stayed among them not more than eight or ten days, he went down to Caesarea. And the next day he took his seat on lthe tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought. When he had arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him mthat they could not prove. Paul argued in his defense, Neither nagainst othe law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor pagainst Caesar have I committed any offense. But Festus, qwishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, Do you wish to go up to Jerusalem and there be tried on these charges before me? 10 But Paul said, I am standing before Caesar’s rtribunal, where I ought to be tried. To the Jews I have done no wrong, as you yourself know very well. 11 If then I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death. But if there is nothing to their charges against me, no one can give me up to them. sI appeal to Caesar. 12 Then Festus, when he had conferred with his council, answered, To Caesar you have appealed; to Caesar you shall go.

Paul Before Agrippa and Bernice

13 Now when some days had passed, Agrippa the king and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus. 14 And as they stayed there many days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, tThere is a man left prisoner by Felix, 15 and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews laid out their case uagainst him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him. 16 vI answered them that it was not the custom of the Romans to give up anyone wbefore the accused met the accusers face to face and had opportunity to make his defense concerning the charge laid against him. 17 xSo when they came together here, I made no delay, but on the next day took my seat on ythe tribunal and ordered the man to be brought. 18 When the accusers stood up, they brought no charge in his case of such evils as I supposed. 19 Rather they zhad certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about aa certain Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. 20 Being at a loss how to investigate these questions, I basked whether he wanted to go to Jerusalem and be tried there regarding them. 21 But cwhen Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of dthe emperor, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar. 22 Then eAgrippa said to Festus, I would like to hear the man myself. Tomorrow, said he, you will hear him.

23 So on the next day fAgrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then, at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24 And Festus said, King Agrippa and all who are present with us, you see this man about whom gthe whole Jewish people petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, hshouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25 But I found that ihe had done nothing deserving death. And jas he himself appealed to kthe emperor, I decided to go ahead and send him. 26 But I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him. Therefore I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after we have examined him, I may have something to write. 27 For it seems to me unreasonable, in sending a prisoner, not to indicate the charges against him.