Daily Lectionary

Isaiah 7:10-8:8

¹⁰ Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz:
¹¹ “Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.”
¹² But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test.”
¹³ And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also?
¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
¹⁵ He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good.
¹⁶ For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted.
¹⁷ The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father’s house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”
¹⁸ In that day the LORD will whistle for the fly that is at the end of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
¹⁹ And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines, and in the clefts of the rocks, and on all the thornbushes, and on all the pastures.
²⁰ In that day the Lord will shave with a razor that is hired beyond the River—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will sweep away the beard also.
²¹ In that day a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep,
²² and because of the abundance of milk that they give, he will eat curds, for everyone who is left in the land will eat curds and honey.
²³ In that day every place where there used to be a thousand vines, worth a thousand shekels of silver, will become briers and thorns.
²⁴ With bow and arrows a man will come there, for all the land will be briers and thorns.
²⁵ And as for all the hills that used to be hoed with a hoe, you will not come there for fear of briers and thorns, but they will become a place where cattle are let loose and where sheep tread.
¹ Then the LORD said to me, “Take a large tablet and write on it in common characters, ‘Belonging to Maher-shalal-hash-baz.’
² And I will get reliable witnesses, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah, to attest for me.”
³ And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the LORD said to me, “Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz;
⁴ for before the boy knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”
⁵ The LORD spoke to me again:
⁶ “Because this people has refused the waters of Shiloah that flow gently, and rejoice over Rezin and the son of Remaliah,
⁷ therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them the waters of the River, mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks,
⁸ and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, reaching even to the neck, and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.” (ESV)

1 Peter 3:1-22

¹ Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives,
² when they see your respectful and pure conduct.
³ Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear—
⁴ but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.
⁵ For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands,
⁶ as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.
⁷ Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
⁸ Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.
⁹ Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
¹⁰ For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit;
¹¹ let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.
¹² For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
¹³ Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?
¹⁴ But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,
¹⁵ but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
¹⁶ having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
¹⁷ For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil.
¹⁸ For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,
¹⁹ in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison,
²⁰ because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.
²¹ Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
²² who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him. (ESV)