My Help Comes from the Lord
A Song of mAscents.
1 I vlift up my eyes to wthe hills.
From where does my help come?
2 xMy help comes from the Lord,
who ymade heaven and earth.
3 He will not zlet your foot be moved;
he who akeeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your bshade on your cright hand.
6 dThe sun shall not estrike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will akeep you from all evil;
he will akeep your life.
8 The Lord will keep
your fgoing out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.
The Servant of the Lord
1 Listen to me, kO coastlands,
and give attention, you peoples lfrom afar.
mThe Lord called me from the womb,
from the body of my mother he named my name.
2 nHe made my mouth like a sharp sword;
oin the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow;
in his quiver he hid me away.
3 And he said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, pin whom I will be glorified.”1
4 qBut I said, “I have labored in vain;
I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my right is with the Lord,
and my recompense with my God.”
5 rAnd now the Lord says,
he mwho formed me from the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him;
and that Israel might be gathered to him—
for sI am honored in the eyes of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
6 he says:
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to bring back the preserved of Israel;
tI will make you uas a light for the nations,
that vmy salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
7 Thus says the Lord,
wthe Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
xto one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation,
the servant of rulers:
y“Kings shall see and arise;
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
Justified by Faith
15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not mGentile sinners; 16 yet we know that na person is not justified1 by works of the law obut through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, pbecause by works of the law no one will be justified.
17 But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found qto be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through the law I rdied to the law, so that I might slive to God. 20 I have been tcrucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives uin me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, vwho loved me and wgave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for xif righteousness2 were through the law, ythen Christ died for no purpose.
13 tAnd they cast out many demons and vanointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.
The Death of John the Baptist
14 wKing Herod heard of it, for Jesus’1 name had become known. Some2 said, x“John the Baptist3 has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” 15 xBut others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is ya prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16 But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” 17 zFor it was Herod who had sent and seized John and abound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her. 18 zFor John had been saying to Herod, b“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, 20 for Herod cfeared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he dheard him gladly.
21 But an opportunity came when Herod eon his birthday fgave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. 22 For when Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” 23 And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, gup to half of my kingdom.” 24 And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” 25 And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26 And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. 27 And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s4 head. He went and beheaded him in the prison 28 and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his hdisciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
