Isaiah 35
1 Be glad, you thirsty desert, and rejoice exceedingly, and let the desert blossom as a lily.
2 The desert places of the Jordan shall blossom abundantly and rejoice exceedingly. The glory of Lebanon and the honor of Carmel shall be given to it, and My people shall see the glory of the Lord and the majesty of our God.
3 Be strong, you relaxed hands and feeble knees.
4 Be comforted, you fainthearted. Be strong, do not fear. Behold, our God renders judgment and will render it. He will come and save us.
5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall hear.
6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb will speak clearly. For water shall burst forth in the desert, and a valley in the thirsty land.
7 The waterless desert shall become meadows, and the thirsty land springs of water. There will be the gladness of birds, a habitation of reeds and marshes.
8 A pure way shall be there, and it shall be called a holy way. No unclean man shall pass through there, neither shall there be an unclean way there. But those dispersed shall walk in it, and they shall not go astray.†
9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous animals go up on it, nor at all be found there. But the redeemed shall walk in it,
10 and those gathered by the Lord shall return and come to Zion with gladness, and with everlasting gladness over their head. For praise and exceeding joy will be on their head, and gladness shall possess them. Pain, sorrow, and sighing fled away.
Psalms 80
1 For the End; concerning the winepresses; a psalm for Asaph. †
2 Rejoice in God our helper; Rejoice greatly in the living God.
3 Take up a psalm and sound a timbrel, a pleasant psaltery with a harp;
4 Sound a trumpet in the new moon On this honorable day of our feast;
5 For this is an ordinance for Israel And a judgment by the God of Jacob.
6 He made it a testimony in Joseph When he went out from the land of Egypt; He heard a tongue he knew not;
7 He removed his back from forced labors; His hands served in the basket.
8 You called upon Me in affliction, and I delivered you; I heard you in the secret place of the storm; I tested you at the water of Rebellion. (Pause)
9 Listen, O My people, for I testify to you; Listen, O Israel, if you hear Me:
10 There shall be no new god among you, Nor shall you worship an alien god;
11 I am the Lord your God, Who brought you up from the land of Egypt; Open wide your mouth, and I will fill it.
12 But My people did not hear My voice, And Israel would pay no attention to Me.
13 And I sent them away because of the desires in their hearts; They shall walk in their ways of living.
14 If My people had heard Me, If Israel had walked in My ways,
15 I would have humbled their enemies quickly; And I would have laid My hand on those oppressing them.
16 The Lord’s enemies lied to Him, And their time shall be forever.
17 He fed them with the finest of wheat And satisfied them with honey from the rock.
Proverbs of Solomon 17
6 The crown of old men is children of children, And the boasting of children is their fathers.
7 The entire world of goods belongs to the faithful, But to the faithless, not even a penny.
8 Faithful lips will not adapt to a man without discernment, Nor lying lips to a righteous man.
9 Instruction awards benefits to those using it, And wherever it turns, it prospers them.†
10 He who hides wrongdoings seeks love, But he who hates to cover them will separate friends and close relatives.
Philippians 1
Greeting
1 Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:†
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving
3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,
4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy,
5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,†
6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;
7 just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace.
8 For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment,†
10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ,
11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Paul’s Suffering in Prison
12 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel,
13 so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ;
14 and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
15 Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill:
16 The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains;
17 but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel.
18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.
19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,†
20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22 But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell.
23 For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.
24 Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you.
25 And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith,
26 that your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again.
Be Steadfast in Suffering
27 Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel,
28 and not in any way terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God.
29 For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,†
30 having the same conflict which you saw in me and now hear is in me.