For you are our father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not acknowledge us;you, O Lord, are our father; our Redeemer from of old is your name.Why, O Lord, do you make us stray from your ways and harden our heart, so that we do not fear you?Turn back for the sake of your servants, for…
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The kingship and dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High;their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them.’ From Daniel 7:15-27, NRSV At the beginning of today’s reading we hear the prophet…
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As I watched in the night visions,I saw one like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven.And he came to the Ancient One and was presented before him.To him was given dominion and glory and kingship,that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass…
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For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. For, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ From Romans 10:9-18, NRSV For Paul, a devout Jew, it was difficult to come to terms with…
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‘So from his presence the hand was sent and this writing was inscribed. And this is the writing that was inscribed: mene, mene, tekel, and parsin. This is the interpretation of the matter: mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end; tekel, you have been weighed on the scales and found wanting; peres, your kingdom is divided and…
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And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall this kingdom be left to another people. It shall crush all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand for ever; just as you saw that a stone…
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To these four young men God gave knowledge and skill in every aspect of literature and wisdom; Daniel also had insight into all visions and dreams. From Daniel 1:1-6,8-20, NRSV The four young men referred to in the reading were Israelite boys who had been brought into the service of King Nebuchadnezzar. Not content with…
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For thus says the Lord God: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of…
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But now I remember the wrong I did in Jerusalem. I seized all its vessels of silver and gold, and I sent to destroy the inhabitants of Judah without good reason. I know that it is because of this that these misfortunes have come upon me; here I am, perishing of bitter disappointment in a…
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Then Judas and his brothers said, ‘See, our enemies are crushed; let us go up to cleanse the sanctuary and dedicate it.’ So all the army assembled and went up to Mount Zion. From 1 Maccabees 4:36-37,52-59, NRSV After the death of Mattathias, whose stand against King Antiochus was related in yesterday’s reading, his son…
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