The Song of Songs 2
1 I am a flower of the plain, A lily of the valleys.†
The Groom
2 As a lily among thorns, So is my beloved among the daughters.†
The Bride
3 As the apple among the trees of the woods, So is my beloved among the sons. I desired to be in his shadow and to sit down; And his fruit was sweet in my mouth.†
4 Bring me into the house of wine; Set love before me.†
5 Strengthen me with cakes of raisins; Refresh me with apples, For I am wounded with love.†
6 His left hand shall be under my head, And his right hand shall embrace me.†
7 I implore you, O daughters of Jerusalem, By the hosts and powers of the field, That you rouse not nor wake my love Until he wishes.†
8 The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes leaping on the mountains And skipping over the hills.†
9 My beloved is as a gazelle or a young stag On the mountains of Bethel. Behold, he stands behind our wall, Looking through the windows And peering through the lattices.†
10 My beloved answers and says to me, “Rise up and come, my companion, my fair one, my dove.
11 For behold, the winter is past, And the rain is gone; It has departed.†
12 The flowers are seen in the land; The time of pruning has arrived; The voice of the dove is heard in our land.†
13 The fig tree has put forth its young figs, And the vines are in bloom and give forth their fragrance. Arise and come, my companion, my fair one, my dove,†
14 And come, my dove, to the shelter of the rock, And take hold of the wall. Show me your face, And cause me to hear your voice; For your voice is sweet, And your face is beautiful.Ӡ
Companions
15 Catch us the foxes, The little ones that spoil the vineyard, For our vines are in bloom.
The Bride
16 My beloved is mine, and I am his, He who shepherds his flock among the lilies.†
17 Until the day dawns and the shadows depart, My beloved, turn back, and be as likened to A gazelle or a young stag On the mountains of the ravines.†
Psalms 134
13 O Lord, Your name abides forever, O Lord, Your memorial unto generation and generation.
14 For the Lord will judge His people, And He shall comfort His servants.
15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, The works of men’s hands;
16 They have a mouth, but they shall not speak; They have eyes, but they shall not see;
17 They have ears, but they shall not hear; They have noses, but they shall not smell; They have hands, but they shall not feel; They have feet, but they shall not walk; They have no sound in their throat; For neither is there breath in their mouth.
18 May those who made them become like them, And all who trust in them.
19 O house of Israel, bless the Lord; O house of Aaron, bless the Lord;
20 O house of Levi, bless the Lord; You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
21 Blessed be the Lord out of Zion, He who dwells in Jerusalem.
Proverbs 29
The Wise and the Unwise
1 A reproving man is better than an obstinate man, For when the latter is suddenly consumed, there shall be no remedy.†
2 When the righteous are praised, the people shall rejoice, But when the ungodly rule, men lament.
3 When a man loves wisdom, his father rejoices, But he who keeps prostitutes shall destroy his wealth.
4 A righteous king will establish a country, But a lawless man razes it to the ground.
5 He who prepares a net for the presence of his own friend Casts it around his own feet.
6 It is a great snare to a man when he sins, But a righteous man shall be in joy and gladness.†
John 21
Jesus Eats with the Eleven
1 After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: †
2 Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together.
3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.
4 But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.†
5 Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” They answered Him, “No.”
6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some. ” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.†
7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea.
8 But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish.†
9 Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.”
11 Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken.†
12 Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?”—knowing that it was the Lord.†
13 Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish.†
14 This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.
Jesus Restores and Commissions Peter
15 So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”†
16 He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
18 Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.Ӡ
19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
The Beloved Disciple and His Book
20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?”†
21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?”
22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”
23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true.†
25 And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.†