Sunday, December 21

14Now when Abram heard his brother Lot was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants, born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.

15So he divided his forces against them by night, and he and his servants attacked and pursued them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.

16So he brought back all the cavalry of Sodom, and also brought back his brother Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the people.

17Then the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King's Valley), after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer and the kings with him.

18Now Melchizedek the king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High.

19He blessed Abram and said, 'Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth;

20and blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hands.' Then Abram gave him a tithe of all.

8Behold, I am delivering the land in your presence; go in and inherit the land I swore to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—to give it to them and their seed after them.'

9'So I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I alone am not able to bear you.

10The Lord your God multiplied you, and here you are today, as the stars of heaven in multitude.

11May the Lord God of your fathers make you a thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you, just as He said.

12How can I alone bear your labors, your burdens, and your lawsuits?

13Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them leaders over you.'

14'Then you answered me and said, 'The thing you told us to do is good.'

15So I took from you wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men and made them leaders over you: leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens; judges to interpret the law for you.

16'Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, 'Hear the cases between your brethren, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the resident alien with him.

17You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall judge the small and the great; you shall not shrink before any man's presence, for the judgment is God's. The case too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it.'

14Indeed, heaven and heaven of heaven belong to the Lord your God, also the earth and everything in it.

15The Lord chose your fathers to love them; and He chose their seed after them, you above all nations, as it is this day.

16Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and do not be stiff-necked any longer.

17For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe.

18He administers justice for the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, and loves the resident alien, giving him food and clothing.

19Therefore, love the resident aliens, for you were resident aliens in the land of Egypt.

20You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and hold fast to Him, and take oaths in His name.

21He is your boast and your God, who did these great and glorious things for you, the things you saw with your own eyes.

36Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, 'Peace to you.'

37But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit.

38And He said to them, 'Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?

39Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.'

40When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.

41But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, 'Have you any food here?'

42So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb.

43And He took it and ate in their presence.

44Then He said to them, 'These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.'

45And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.

46Then He said to them, 'Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day,

47and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

48And you are witnesses of these things.

49Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.'

50And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them.

51Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven.

52And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy,

53and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen.

9By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;

10for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

11By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised.

12Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.

13These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

14For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland.

15And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.

16But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

17By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,

18of whom it was said, 'In Isaac your seed shall be called,'

19concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

20By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.

21By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

22By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.

23By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king's command.

24By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter,

25choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,

26esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.

27By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.

28By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

29By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.

30By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.

31By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.

32And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets:

33who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

34quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

35Women received their dead raised to life again.

36Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment.

37They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented—

38of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth.

39And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise,

40God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

1The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

2Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers.

3Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.

4Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon.

5Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse,

6and Jesse begot David the king.

7David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa.

8Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah.

9Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah.

10Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah.

11Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.

12And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel.

13Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor.

14Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud.

15Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob.

16And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.

17So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.

18Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.

19Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

20But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

21And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.'

22So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:

23'Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' which is translated, 'God with us.'

24Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife,

25and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.