Thursday, January 2

1But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, And no torture will ever touch them.

2In the eyes of the undiscerning they seemed to have died, And their departure was considered to be misfortune,

3And their passage from us to be their destruction; But they are at peace.

4For though in man's view they were punished, Their hope is full of immortality.

5Though chastened in a few things, Great kindness will be shown them, For God tested them and found them worthy of Himself.

6He tested them like gold in a furnace And accepted them as a whole burnt offering.

7In the time of their visitation they will shine forth, And they will run about like sparks through straw.

8They will judge nations and rule over peoples, And the Lord shall reign over them unto the ages.

9Those who trust in Him will understand truth, And the faithful shall continue with Him in love, Because grace and mercy are upon His elect.

15But the righteous live forever, And their reward is with the Lord; And their care is by the Most High.

16Therefore they shall receive a kingly dwelling of dignity And a crown of beauty from the hand of the Lord, Because He will shelter them with His right hand And protect them with His arm.

17He will take His zeal as His full armor And will turn His creation into weapons against His enemies.

18He will wear righteousness as a breastplate And put on impartial judgment as a helmet.

19He will take holiness as an unconquerable shield

20And sharpen His relentless wrath for a sword; And creation will fight with Him against the senseless.

21Well-aimed flashes of lightning will strike And leap to their object as from a well-drawn bow of clouds;

22And hailstones full of anger will be hurled As from an engine of war. The water of the sea will be vexed with them, And the rivers will wash over them severely.

23A powerful wind will oppose them, And like a storm it will winnow them away. Lawlessness will lay waste all the earth, And wrongdoing will overturn the thrones of rulers.

1Listen therefore, O kings, and understand; Learn, O judges of the ends of the earth.

2Give ear, you that rule over multitudes, And take pride in yourself over a multitude of nations.

3For power was given to you from the Lord, And your lordship from the Most High, Who will make a careful search of your works And examine closely your plans.

7But though a righteous man may die before his time, He shall be at rest.

8For old age is not honored for its length of existence, Nor measured by its number of years;

9But discernment is gray hair for mankind, And a spotless life is the maturity of old age.

10There was once a man pleasing to God and loved by Him, And while living among sinners he was taken up.

11He was caught up lest evil change his understanding Or deceit deceive his soul.

12For envy arising from lack of judgment obscures what is good, And a whirling of desire undermines an innocent heart.

13He was made perfect, For in a short time he fulfilled long years,

14For his soul was pleasing to the Lord; Therefore, He took him early from the midst of evil. Yet peoples saw this but did not understand, Nor take such a thing to heart,

15That the Lord's grace and mercy are with His elect And that He watches over His holy ones.

27All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

28Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

30For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.'

5For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you—

6if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination.

7For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money,

8but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled,

9holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.

10For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,

11whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain.

12One of them, a prophet of their own, said, 'Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.'

13This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

14not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth.

15To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled.

16They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work.

1But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine:

22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

24And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

25If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

26Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

1Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.

2Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

38Then He said to them in His teaching, 'Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces,

39the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts,

40who devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.'

41Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much.

42Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans.

43So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury;

44for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood.'

17And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,

18as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed.

19And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.

20'Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God.

21Blessed are you who hunger now, For you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, For you shall laugh.

22Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man's sake.

23Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.