Prepare the Way for the LORD (Matthew 3:1–12; Mark 1:1–8; Luke 3:1–20; John 1:19–28)
1 RV Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. BSB BSB: “Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.
2 RV Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned; that she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins. BSB BSB: “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her forced labor has been completed; her iniquity has been pardoned. For she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her sins.”
3 RV The voice of one that crieth, Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. BSB BSB: A voice of one calling: “Prepare the way for the LORD in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert.
4 RV Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: BSB BSB: Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground will become smooth, and the rugged land a plain.
5 RV and the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. BSB BSB: And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all humanity together will see it.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
The Enduring Word (1 Peter 1:22–25)
7 RV The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; because the breath of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. BSB BSB: The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass.
Here Is Your God! (Romans 11:33–36)
9 RV O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain: O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold, your God! BSB BSB: Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Raise your voice loudly, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up, do not be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!”
10 RV Behold, the Lord GOD will come as a mighty one, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his recompence before him. BSB BSB: Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and His arm establishes His rule. His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him.
11 RV He shall feed his flock like a shepherd, he shall gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that give suck. BSB BSB: He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes.
13 RV Who hath directed the spirit of the LORD, or being his counsellor hath taught him? BSB BSB: Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or informed Him as His counselor?
14 RV With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding? BSB BSB: Whom did He consult to enlighten Him, and who taught Him the paths of justice? Who imparted knowledge to Him and showed Him the way of understanding?
15 RV Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing. BSB BSB: Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are considered a speck of dust on the scales; He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
16 RV And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. BSB BSB: Lebanon is not sufficient for fuel, nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.
17 RV All the nations are as nothing before him; they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity. BSB BSB: All the nations are as nothing before Him; He regards them as nothingness and emptiness.
18 RV To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him? BSB BSB: To whom will you liken God? To what image will you compare Him?
19 RV The graven image, a workman melted it , and the goldsmith spreadeth it over with gold, and casteth for it silver chains. BSB BSB: To an idol that a craftsman casts and a metalworker overlays with gold and fits with silver chains?
20 RV He that is too impoverished for such an oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to set up a graven image, that shall not be moved. BSB BSB: One lacking such an offering chooses wood that will not rot. He seeks a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple.
21 RV Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? BSB BSB: Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the foundation of the earth?
22 RV It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:BSB BSB: He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
23 RV that bringeth princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. BSB BSB: He brings the princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth meaningless.
24 RV Yea, they have not been planted; yea, they have not been sown; yea, their stock hath not taken root in the earth: moreover he bloweth upon them, and they wither, and the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble. BSB BSB: No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble.
25 RV To whom then will ye liken me, that I should be equal to him ? saith the Holy One. BSB BSB: “To whom will you liken Me, or who is My equal?” asks the Holy One.
26 RV Lift up your eyes on high, and see who hath created these, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and for that he is strong in power, not one is lacking. BSB BSB: Lift up your eyes on high: Who created all these? He leads forth the starry host by number; He calls each one by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
27 RV Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed away from my God? BSB BSB: Why do you say, O Jacob, and why do you assert, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my claim is ignored by my God”?
29 RV He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might he increaseth strength. BSB BSB: He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak.
30 RV Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: BSB BSB: Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall.
31 RV but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint. BSB BSB: But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.