Isaiah 53-55


The Suffering Servant

aWho has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

2
For He grew up before Him like a atender 1shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has bno stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should 2be attracted to Him.

3
He was adespised and forsaken of men,
A man of 1sorrows and bacquainted with 2grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was cdespised, and we did not desteem Him.


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Surely our 1griefs He Himself abore,
And our 2sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
3Smitten of bGod, and afflicted.

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But He was 1pierced through for aour transgressions,
He was crushed for bour iniquities;
The cchastening for our 2well‑being fell upon Him,
And by dHis scourging we are healed.

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All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To 1fall on Him.


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He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He did not aopen His mouth;
bLike a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.

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By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off out of the land of the 1living
aFor the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?

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His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a arich man in His death,
bBecause He had cdone no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.


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But the Lord was pleased
To acrush Him, 1bputting Him to grief;
If 2He would render Himself as a guilt coffering,
He will see dHis 3offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the 4good epleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.

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As a result of the 1anguish of His soul,
He will asee 2it and be satisfied;
By His bknowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will cbear their iniquities.

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Therefore, I will allot Him a aportion with the great,
And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out 1bHimself to death,
And was cnumbered with the transgressors;
Yet He Himself dbore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors.

The Fertility of Zion

aShout for joy, O barren one, you who have borne no child;
Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not travailed;
For the sons of the bdesolate one will be cmore numerous
Than the sons of the married woman,” says the Lord.

2
aEnlarge the place of your tent;
1Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not;
Lengthen your bcords
And strengthen your bpegs.

3
“For you will aspread abroad to the right and to the left.
And your 1descendants will bpossess nations
And will cresettle the desolate cities.


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“Fear not, for you will anot be put to shame;
And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced;
But you will forget the bshame of your youth,
And the creproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.

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“For your ahusband is your Maker,
Whose name is the Lord of hosts;
And your bRedeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
Who is called the cGod of all the earth.

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“For the Lord has called you,
Like a wife aforsaken and grieved in spirit,
Even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,”
Says your God.

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1For a abrief moment I forsook you,
But with great compassion I will bgather you.

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“In an 1aoutburst of anger
I hid My face from you for a moment,
But with everlasting blovingkindness I will chave compassion on you,”
Says the Lord your dRedeemer.


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“For 1this is like the days of Noah to Me,
When I swore that the waters of Noah
Would anot 2flood the earth again;
So I have sworn that I will bnot be angry with you
Nor will I rebuke you.

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“For the amountains may be removed and the hills may shake,
But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you,
And My bcovenant of peace will not be shaken,”
Says cthe Lord who has compassion on you.


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“O aafflicted one, storm‑tossed, and bnot comforted,
Behold, I will set your stones in antimony,
And your foundations I will clay in 1dsapphires.

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“Moreover, I will make your battlements of 1rubies,
And your gates of 2crystal,
And your entire 3wall of precious stones.

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aAll your sons will be 1taught of the Lord;
And the well‑being of your sons will be bgreat.

14
“In arighteousness you will be established;
You will be far from boppression, for you will cnot fear;
And from dterror, for it will not come near you.

15
“If anyone fiercely assails you it will not be from Me.
aWhoever assails you will fall because of you.

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“Behold, I Myself have created the smith who blows the fire of coals
And brings out a weapon for its work;
And I have created the destroyer to ruin.

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aNo weapon that is formed against you will prosper;
And bevery tongue that 1accuses you in judgment you will condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
And their cvindication is from Me,” declares the Lord.

The Free Offer of Mercy

“Ho! Every one who athirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have bno 1money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy cwine and milk
dWithout money and without cost.

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“Why do you 1spend money for what is anot bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and beat what is good,
And cdelight yourself in abundance.

3
aIncline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that 1you may blive;
And I will make can everlasting covenant with you,
According to the dfaithful mercies 2shown to David.

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“Behold, I have made ahim a witness to the peoples,
A bleader and commander for the peoples.

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“Behold, you will call a anation you do not know,
And a nation which knows you not will brun to you,
Because of the Lord your God, even the Holy One of Israel;
For He has cglorified you.”


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aSeek the Lord while He may be found;
bCall upon Him while He is near.

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aLet the wicked forsake his way
And the unrighteous man his bthoughts;
And let him creturn to the Lord,
And He will have dcompassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will eabundantly pardon.

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“For My thoughts are not ayour thoughts,
Nor are byour ways My ways,” declares the Lord.

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“For aas the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts than your thoughts.

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“For as the arain and the snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth
And making it bear and sprout,
And furnishing bseed to the sower and bread to the eater;

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So will My aword be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will bnot return to Me empty,
Without caccomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

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“For you will go out with ajoy
And be led forth with bpeace;
The cmountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
And all the dtrees of the field will clap their hands.

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“Instead of the athorn bush the bcypress will come up,
And instead of the cnettle the myrtle will come up,
And 1it will be a 2dmemorial to the Lord,
For an everlasting esign which fwill not be cut off.”

Psalm 128


Blessedness of the Fear of the Lord.

A Song of Ascents.

aHow blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
Who bwalks in His ways.

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When you shall aeat of the 1bfruit of your hands,
You will be happy and cit will be well with you.

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Your wife shall be like a afruitful vine
1Within your house,
Your children like bolive plants
Around your table.

4
Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the Lord.


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aThe Lord bless you bfrom Zion,
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.

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Indeed, may you see your achildren’s children.
bPeace be upon Israel!

1 Corinthians 15


The Fact of Christ’s Resurrection

Now aI make known to you, brethren, the bgospel which I preached to you, which also you received, cin which also you stand,
2 by which also you are saved, aif you hold fast 1the word which I preached to you, bunless you believed in vain.
3 For aI delivered to you 1as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died bfor our sins caccording to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He was araised on the third day baccording to the Scriptures, 5 and that aHe appeared to bCephas, then cto the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some ahave fallen asleep; 7 then He appeared to 1aJames, then to ball the apostles; 8 and last of all, as 1to one untimely born, aHe appeared to me also. 9 For I am athe least of the apostles, 1and not fit to be called an apostle, because I bpersecuted the church of God. 10 But by athe grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I blabored even more than all of them, yet cnot I, but the grace of God with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.
12 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there ais no resurrection of the dead?
13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14 and aif Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. 15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified 1against God that He araised 2Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; ayou are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who ahave fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are aof all men most to be pitied.

The Order of Resurrection

20 But now Christ ahas been raised from the dead, the bfirst fruits of those who care asleep.
21 For since aby a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For aas in Adam all die, so also in 1Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ athe first fruits, after that bthose who are Christ’s at cHis coming, 24 then comes the end, when He hands over athe kingdom to the bGod and Father, when He has abolished call rule and all authority and power. 25 For He must reign auntil He has put all His enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy that will be aabolished is death. 27 For aHe has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “bAll things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him. 28 When aall things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that bGod may be all in all.
29 Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?
30 Why are we also ain danger every hour? 31 I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, aI die daily. 32 If 1from human motives I afought with wild beasts at bEphesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, clet us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. 33 aDo not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” 34 aBecome sober-minded 1as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have bno knowledge of God. cI speak this to your shame.
35 But asomeone will say, “How are bthe dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?”
36 aYou fool! That which you bsow does not come to life unless it dies; 37 and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of 1something else. 38 But God gives it a body just as He wished, and ato each of the seeds a body of its own. 39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish. 40 There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
42 aSo also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown 1ba perishable body, it is raised 2can imperishable body;
43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in aglory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a anatural body, it is raised a bspiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So also it is written, “The first aman, Adam, became a living soul.” The blast Adam became a clife-giving spirit. 46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. 47 The first man is afrom the earth, 1bearthy; the second man is from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly, aso also are those who are heavenly. 49 Just as we have aborne the image of the earthy, 1we bwill also bear the image of the heavenly.

The Mystery of Resurrection

50 Now I say this, brethren, that aflesh and blood cannot binherit the kingdom of God; nor does 1the perishable inherit 2cthe imperishable.
51 Behold, I tell you a amystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be bchanged, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for athe trumpet will sound, and bthe dead will be raised 1imperishable, and cwe will be changed. 53 For this 1perishable must put on 2athe imperishable, and this bmortal must put on immortality. 54 But when this 1perishable will have put on 2the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “aDeath is swallowed up in victory. 55 aO death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of adeath is sin, and bthe power of sin is the law; 57 but athanks be to God, who gives us the bvictory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 aTherefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in bthe work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.
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