Matthew 9:27-38
[27]
And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed him, crying
aloud, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” [28] When he entered the house,
the blind men came to him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that
I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” [29] Then he
touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.”
[30] And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, “See
that no one knows about it.” [31] But they went away and spread his fame
through all that district.
[32]
As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was
brought to him. [33] And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man
spoke. And the crowds marveled, saying, “Never was anything like this
seen in Israel.” [34] But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by
the prince of demons.”
[35]
And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in
their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing
every disease and every affliction. [36] When he saw the crowds, he had
compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep
without a shepherd. [37] Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is
plentiful, but the laborers are few; [38] therefore pray earnestly to
the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Acts 14
[1]
Now at Iconium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and
spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks
believed. [2] But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and
poisoned their minds against the brothers. [3] So they remained for a
long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of
his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. [4]
But the people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews and
some with the apostles. [5] When an attempt was made by both Gentiles
and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them, [6]
they learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and
to the surrounding country, [7] and there they continued to preach the
gospel.
[8]
Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He
was crippled from birth and had never walked. [9] He listened to Paul
speaking. And Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith
to be made well, [10] said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your
feet.” And he sprang up and began walking. [11] And when the crowds saw
what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian,
“The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” [12] Barnabas
they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker.
[13] And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the
city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and wanted to offer
sacrifice with the crowds. [14] But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul
heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd,
crying out, [15] “Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men,
of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should
turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the
earth and the sea and all that is in them. [16] In past generations he
allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways. [17] Yet he did not
leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from
heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and
gladness.” [18] Even with these words they scarcely restrained the
people from offering sacrifice to them.
[19]
But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the
crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that
he was dead. [20] But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up
and entered the city, and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to
Derbe. [21] When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made
many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch,
[22] strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to
continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must
enter the kingdom of God. [23] And when they had appointed elders for
them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the
Lord in whom they had believed.
[24]
Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. [25] And when
they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, [26] and
from there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the
grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. [27] And when they
arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had
done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.
[28] And they remained no little time with the disciples.
Psalm 22:12-31
[12] Many bulls encompass me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;
[13] they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.
[14] I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast;
[15] my strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.
[16] For dogs encompass me;
a company of evildoers encircles me;
they have pierced my hands and feet—
[17] I can count all my bones—
they stare and gloat over me;
[18] they divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.
[19] But you, O LORD, do not be far off!
O you my help, come quickly to my aid!
[20] Deliver my soul from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dog!
[21] Save me from the mouth of the lion!
You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen!
[22] I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
[23] You who fear the LORD, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him,
and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
[24] For he has not despised or abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted,
and he has not hidden his face from him,
but has heard, when he cried to him.
[25] From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will perform before those who fear him.
[26] The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the LORD!
May your hearts live forever!
[27] All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the LORD,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
[28] For kingship belongs to the LORD,
and he rules over the nations.
[29] All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
even the one who could not keep himself alive.
[30] Posterity shall serve him;
it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;
[31] they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,
that he has done it.
Genesis 49
[1]
Then Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather yourselves together, that I
may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come.
[2] “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob,
listen to Israel your father.
[3] “Reuben, you are my firstborn,
my might, and the firstfruits of my strength,
preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
[4] Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence,
because you went up to your father’s bed;
then you defiled it—he went up to my couch!
[5] “Simeon and Levi are brothers;
weapons of violence are their swords.
[6] Let my soul come not into their council;
O my glory, be not joined to their company.
For in their anger they killed men,
and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen.
[7] Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce,
and their wrath, for it is cruel!
I will divide them in Jacob
and scatter them in Israel.
[8] “Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
[9] Judah is a lion’s cub;
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He stooped down; he crouched as a lion
and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?
[10] The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him;
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
[11] Binding his foal to the vine
and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
he has washed his garments in wine
and his vesture in the blood of grapes.
[12] His eyes are darker than wine,
and his teeth whiter than milk.
[13] “Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea;
he shall become a haven for ships,
and his border shall be at Sidon.
[14] “Issachar is a strong donkey,
crouching between the sheepfolds.
[15] He saw that a resting place was good,
and that the land was pleasant,
so he bowed his shoulder to bear,
and became a servant at forced labor.
[16] “Dan shall judge his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.
[17] Dan shall be a serpent in the way,
a viper by the path,
that bites the horse’s heels
so that his rider falls backward.
[18] I wait for your salvation, O LORD.
[19] “Raiders shall raid Gad,
but he shall raid at their heels.
[20] “Asher’s food shall be rich,
and he shall yield royal delicacies.
[21] “Naphtali is a doe let loose
that bears beautiful fawns.
[22] “Joseph is a fruitful bough,
a fruitful bough by a spring;
his branches run over the wall.
[23] The archers bitterly attacked him,
shot at him, and harassed him severely,
[24] yet his bow remained unmoved;
his arms were made agile
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob
(from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),
[25] by the God of your father who will help you,
by the Almighty who will bless you
with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that crouches beneath,
blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
[26] The blessings of your father
are mighty beyond the blessings of my parents,
up to the bounties of the everlasting hills.
May they be on the head of Joseph,
and on the brow of him who was set apart from his brothers.
[27] “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf,
in the morning devouring the prey
and at evening dividing the spoil.”
[28] All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their
father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing
suitable to him. [29] Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am to
be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in
the field of Ephron the Hittite, [30] in the cave that is in the field
at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham
bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite to possess as a burying
place. [31] There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife. There they
buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah—[32] the
field and the cave that is in it were bought from the Hittites.” [33]
When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the
bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.
