The Season of Advent

¹⁴Listen, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will fulfill the good promises that I have spoken to the house of Israel and concerning the house of Judah.

¹⁵In those days and at that time,

I will cause a righteous Branch to grow up from David’s line.

He will establish justice and righteousness on earth.

¹⁶In those days Judah will be saved,

and Jerusalem will dwell securely.

This is what she will be called:

The Lord Our Righteousness.

⁹Indeed, how can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have before God on account of you? ¹⁰Night and day we are praying earnestly to see you in person and to supply what is lacking in your faith.

¹¹May God our Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. ¹²And may the Lord increase your love and make it overflow for each other and for all people, just as ours does for you, ¹³so that he may establish your hearts as blameless in holiness before our God and Father, when our Lord Jesus comes with all his saints.

²⁵“There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And on the earth nations will be in anguish, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the surging waves, ²⁶people fainting from fear and expectation of the things coming on the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸But when these things begin to happen, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is near.”

²⁹He told them a parable. “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. ³⁰As soon as they are sprouting leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is actually near. ³¹So also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. ³²Amen I tell you: This generation will not pass away until all these things happen. ³³Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

³⁴“Watch yourselves or else your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and the worries of this life, and that day may come on you suddenly. ³⁵For it will come like a trap on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. ³⁶Stay alert all the time, praying that you may be able to escape all these things that are going to happen and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

Look! I am sending my messenger! He will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord, whom you are seeking, will come to his temple! The Messenger of the Covenant, in whom you delight, will surely come, says the Lord of Armies.

²But who can endure the day when he comes? Who will remain standing when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire, like launderers bleach! ³He will be seated like a refiner and a purifier of silver. He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and like silver. They will belong to the Lord and bring him an offering in righteousness.

⁴Judah and Jerusalem’s offerings will be pleasing to the Lord as they were in the days of old, in years long ago.

³I thank my God every time I remember you. ⁴Every time I pray for all of you, I always pray with joy, ⁵because of your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now. ⁶I am convinced of this very thing: that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. ⁷I am equally convinced that it is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I have you in my heart, for both in my chains and in my defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all share in this grace with me. ⁸Yes, God is my witness of how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

⁹And I pray that your love may still increase more and more in knowledge and every insight. ¹⁰This will result in your approval of the things that really matter, so that you will be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, ¹¹filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—while Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene— ²during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. ³He went into the whole region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁴Just as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:

A voice of one calling in the wilderness,

“Prepare the way of the Lord! Make his paths straight.

⁵Every valley will be filled, and every mountain and hill will be made low.

The crooked will become straight, and the rough ways smooth.

⁶And everyone will see the salvation of God.”

¹⁴Sing out, daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, you daughter of Jerusalem. ¹⁵The Lord has removed the judgment against you. He has turned back your enemy. Israel’s king, the Lord, is in your midst! You no longer need to fear disaster. ¹⁶In that day Jerusalem will be told, “Do not be afraid, O Zion. Do not give up. ¹⁷The Lord your God is with you as a hero who will save you. He takes great delight in you. He will quiet you with his love. He will rejoice over you with singing.”

⁴Rejoice in the Lord always! I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. ⁶Do not worry about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. ⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

⁷So John kept saying to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him, “You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? ⁸Therefore produce fruits in keeping with repentance! Do not even think of saying to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ because I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones. ⁹Even now the ax is ready to strike the root of the trees. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is going to be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰The crowds began to ask him, “What should we do then?”

¹¹He answered them, “Whoever has two shirts should share with the person who has none, and whoever has food should do the same.”

¹²Tax collectors also came to be baptized. They said, “Teacher, what should we do?”

¹³To them he said, “Collect no more than what you were authorized to.”

¹⁴Soldiers were also asking him, “And what should we do?”

He told them, “Do not extort money from anyone by force or false accusation. Be satisfied with your wages.”

¹⁵The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John could be the Christ. ¹⁶John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But someone mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷His winnowing shovel is in his hand, and he will thoroughly clean out his threshing floor. He will gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸Then with many other words, he appealed to them and was preaching good news to the people.

²But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

though you are small among the clans of Judah,

from you, will go out the one who will be the ruler for me in Israel.

His goings forth are from the beginning, from the days of eternity.

³Therefore the Lord will give them up,

until the time when the woman who is in labor bears a child.

Then the remaining survivors from his brothers will return to the people of Israel.

⁴He will stand and shepherd with the strength of the Lord,

in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.

They will dwell securely, for at that time he will be great to the ends of the earth.

⁵This one will be their peace.

⁵Therefore when he entered the world, Christ said:

Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,

but you prepared a body for me.

⁶You were not pleased

with burnt offerings and sin offerings.

⁷Then I said, “Here I am.

I have come to do your will, God.

In the scroll of the book it is written about me.”

⁸First he said:

Sacrifices and offerings that were offered according to the law,

both burnt offerings and sin offerings,

you did not desire,

and you were not pleased with them.

⁹Then he said:

Here I am.

I have come to do your will.

He does away with the first in order to establish the second. ¹⁰By this will, we have been sanctified once and for all, through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ.

³⁹In those days Mary got up and hurried to the hill country, to a town of Judah. ⁴⁰She entered the home of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹Just as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴²She called out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³But why am I so favored that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴In fact, just now, as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy! ⁴⁵Blessed is she who believed, because the promises spoken to her from the Lord will be fulfilled!”

⁴⁶Then Mary said,

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,

⁴⁷and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,

⁴⁸because he has looked with favor on the humble state of his servant.

Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed,

⁴⁹because the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.

⁵⁰His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.

⁵¹He has shown strength with his arm.

He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

⁵²He has brought down rulers from their thrones.

He has lifted up the lowly.

⁵³He has filled the hungry with good things, but the rich he has sent away empty.

⁵⁴He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, remembering his mercy,

⁵⁵as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his offspring forever.