Monday 23 December 2041

1“Behold, I send my messenger,and he will prepare the way before me!The Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple.Behold, the messenger of the covenant,whom you desire, is coming!”says the Lord of Armies.2“But who can endure the day of his coming?And who will stand when he appears?For he is like a refiner’s fire,and like launderers’ soap;3and he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver,and he will purify the sons of Levi,and refine them as gold and silver;and they shall offer to the Lord offerings in righteousness.4Then the offering of Judahand Jerusalem will be pleasant to the Lord as in the days of oldand as in ancient years.

· · · verses 5–22 are not read23Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the greatand terrible day of the Lord comes.24He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the childrenand the hearts of the children to their fathers,lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”

4Show me your ways, Lord.Teach me your paths.5Guide me in your truth, and teach me,for you are the God of my salvation.I wait for you all day long.

8Good and upright is the Lord,therefore he will instruct sinners in the way.9He will guide the humble in justice.He will teach the humble his way.

10All the paths of the Lord are loving kindness and truthto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.14The friendship of the Lord is with those who fear him.He will show them his covenant.

57Now the timethat Elizabeth should give birth was fulfilled,and she gave birth to a son.58Her neighbors and her relatives heardthat the Lord had magnified his mercy toward her,and they rejoiced with her.59On the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child;and they would have called him Zacharias,after the name of his father.60His mother answered, “Not so;but he will be called John.”

61They said to her, “There is no one among your relativeswho is called by this name.”62They made signs to his father,what he would have him called.

63He asked for a writing tablet,and wrote, “His name is John.”

They all marveled.64His mouth was opened immediately and his tongue freed,and he spoke, blessing God.65Fear came on all who lived around them,and all these sayings were talked about throughout all the hill country of Judea.66All who heard them laid them up in their heart,saying, “What then will this child be?”The hand of the Lord was with him.