Thursday, May 21

2Now it shall come to pass in the last days, the mountain of the Lord and the house of God shall be visible on the tops of the mountains and exalted above the hills. All the Gentiles shall come to it.

3Many Gentiles shall travel and say, 'Come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will proclaim His way to us, and we shall walk in it.' For the law of the Lord shall go forth from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

10Go through My gates, make a way for My people, throw the stones off the road, and lift up a standard for the Gentiles.'

11For behold, the Lord caused this to be heard to the ends of the earth: 'Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your Savior is come, and has His reward, and His work before His face.' '

12One shall call them a holy people, the redeemed of the Lord, and you shall be called a City Sought for and Not Forsaken.

1Who is this who comes from Edom with red garments from Bozrah, so beautiful in His apparel, with force of strength? 'I speak of righteousness and saving judgment.'

2Why are Your garments red and Your apparel as one who treads in a winepress?

3'I am full of the treading of grapes, and there is no man with Me among the nations. I trampled them in My anger, and crushed them like earth, and brought down their blood to the ground.

4For the day of recompense has come upon them, and the year of redemption has arrived.

5I looked, but there was no helper; and I observed, but there was no one to help; therefore, My arm delivered them, and My anger was suddenly present.

6So I trampled them in My wrath and brought their blood down to the ground.'

7I remembered the Lord's mercy, the praises of the Lord in all things in which the Lord recompenses us. The Lord is a good judge to the house of Israel, and He deals with us according to His mercy, and according to the multitude of His righteousness.

8He said, 'Surely My people, My children, have not rejected Me?' So He became their salvation.

9Not an elder or an angel, but the Lord Himself saved them from all their tribulation, because He loved them and spared them. He redeemed and took them up, and lifted them up all the days of old.

1Behold, the days of the Lord come, and your plunder will be divided among you.

2And I shall gather together all the nations to war against Jerusalem. The city shall be taken, the houses plundered, the women defiled, and half of the city will go forth into exile, but the rest of My people shall not be utterly cut off from the city.

3And the Lord will go forth and prepare for battle against those nations, as in the day of His battle array in the day of war.

4And on that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, half towards the east and half towards the sea, a very great divide; and half the mountain shall lean toward the north and half of it toward the south.

5And the valley of my mountains will be blocked up, and the ravine of the mountains will be joined as far as Azal. And it will be blocked up as he had blocked it up in the days of the earthquake, in the days of Uzziah the king of Judah, and the Lord my God shall come and all the saints with Him.

6And in that day, it shall be that there will not be any light, but there shall be cold and frost

7for one day, and that day shall be known to the Lord. It will be neither a day nor a night, but towards evening there will be light.

8And in that day living water shall come forth out of Jerusalem, half of it toward the eastern sea and half toward the western sea. So it will be in both summer and spring.

9And the Lord shall be King of all the earth, and in that day the Lord shall be one Lord, and His name one name,

10encircling all the land, even the wilderness from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Rama shall remain in her place; from Benjamin's Gate to the place of the First Gate; to the Gate of the Corners, and to the Tower of Hananeel, as far as the king's winepresses,

11they will dwell in her, and it will no longer be a curse. Jerusalem shall dwell securely.

22You have kept what You promised Your servant David my father; You have both spoken with Your mouth, and fulfilled it with Your hand, as today.

23Now, O Lord God of Israel, keep what You promised Your servant David my father, saying, 'You shall not fail to have a man sit before Me on the throne of Israel, so long as your people guard and keep their ways to walk before Me, as you walked before Me.'

24So now, O Lord God of Israel, let the word be confirmed You spoke to Your servant David my father.

25'But will God indeed dwell with men on earth? If the heaven and the heaven of heaven will not be sufficient for You, how much less even this temple I built in Your name?

26Yet, O Lord God of Israel, regard my prayer, which Your servant is praying before You today,

27that Your eyes may be open toward this temple day and night, toward the place of which You said, 'My name shall be there,' to hear the prayer Your servant prays in this place day and night.

28You will hear the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. You will hear in Your dwelling place in heaven, and You will be merciful.

29'When anyone sins against his neighbor, or if he takes up an oath that he should swear, and comes and redeems himself before Your altar in this temple,

30You will hear in heaven, and act, and judge Your people Israel; condemning the wicked, bringing his way on his own head, and justifying the righteous by giving to him according to his righteousness.

10and they shall have exceeding gladness in the Lord.'

11Let my soul rejoice exceedingly in the Lord, for He clothed me with the garment of salvation and the tunic of gladness. He put a miter around me like a bridegroom and adorned me with ornaments like a bride. As the earth causes its flower to grow, and as a garden its seeds, so shall the Lord cause righteousness to rise up, and exceeding joy before all the Gentiles.

1For Zion's sake I will not be silent, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until My righteousness goes forth as light, and My salvation burns like a lamp.

2The Gentiles will see your righteousness, and kings your glory; and one will call you by your new name, which the Lord shall name.

3You shall also be a crown of beauty in the Lord's hand, and the diadem of a kingdom in the hand of your God.

4You shall no longer be called Forsaken, and your land shall not be called Desert; for you shall be called My Will, and in your land, the Inhabited Earth.

5As a young man lives in wedlock with a virgin, so shall your sons dwell with you, and as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so the Lord shall rejoice over you.

1Shine, shine, O Jerusalem, for your light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.

2Behold, darkness and gloom shall cover the earth upon the nations, but the Lord will shine on you; and His glory shall be seen upon you.

3Kings shall come to your light, and the Gentiles to your brightness.

4Lift up your eyes all around, and see your children gathered together. Behold, all your sons come from afar, and your daughters shall be lifted upon their shoulders.

5Then you will see, fear and be amazed in your heart, because the wealth of the sea and of nations and peoples shall change their course and turn to you.

6Herds of camels shall come to you, and the camels of Midian and Ephah shall cover you. All those from Sheba shall come bearing gold, and they shall bring frankincense and proclaim the good news of the Lord's salvation.

7All the sheep of Kedar shall be gathered together to you, and the rams of Nebaioth shall come to you. They shall offer acceptable sacrifices upon My altar, and My house of prayer shall be glorified.

8Who are these who fly like clouds and like doves with young?

9The coastlands waited for Me, and the ships of Tarshish among the first, to bring your children from afar, and silver and gold with them for the sake of the Lord's name, and because the Holy One of Israel is glorified.

10Foreigners shall build your walls, and their kings shall defend you; for I struck you because of My wrath, and I loved you because of My mercy.

11Your gates shall be opened continually, and they shall not be shut day or night, to bring you the power of the Gentiles, and their kings leading them.

12For the nations and their kings who will not serve you shall perish, and those nations will be utterly desolate.

13The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, with the cypress, the pine, and the cedar together, to glorify My holy place.

14The sons of those who humbled and provoked you shall go to you in fear, and you shall be called City of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15Because you were forsaken and hated, and there was no one to help you, therefore I will make you an eternal joy, the gladness of generations to generations.

16You shall drink the milk of the Gentiles and eat the wealth of kings. You shall know I am the Lord who saves you and the God of Israel who delivers you.

9Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.

10She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept.

11And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

12After that, He appeared in another form to two of them as they walked and went into the country.

13And they went and told it to the rest, but they did not believe them either.

14Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.

15And He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

16He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

17And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;

18they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.'

19So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.

20And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.

9I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.

10The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

11'I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.

12But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.

13The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.

14I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.

15As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.

16And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.

1The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,

2until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen,

3to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.

4And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, 'which,' He said, 'you have heard from Me;

5for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.'

6Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, 'Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?'

7And He said to them, 'It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.

8But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.'

9Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

10And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel,

11who also said, 'Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.'

12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey.

1Then Agrippa said to Paul, 'You are permitted to speak for yourself.'

2So Paul stretched out his hand and answered for himself: 'I think myself happy, King Agrippa, because today I shall answer for myself before you concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews,

3especially because you are expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews. Therefore I beg you to hear me patiently.

4'My manner of life from my youth, which was spent from the beginning among my own nation at Jerusalem, all the Jews know.

5They knew me from the first, if they were willing to testify, that according to the strictest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

6And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers.

7To this promise our twelve tribes, earnestly serving God night and day, hope to attain. For this hope's sake, King Agrippa, I am accused by the Jews.

8Why should it be thought incredible by you that God raises the dead?

9'Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

10This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.

11And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.

12'While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,

13at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me.

14And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

15So I said, 'Who are You, Lord?' And He said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

16But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you.

17I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you,

18to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.'

19'Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision,

20but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.

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.

1Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

2But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

3To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

4And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

5Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.'

6Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.

7Then Jesus said to them again, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

8All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.

9I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.