December 8, 2019

Isaiah 11: 1- 10

11:1And a rod will go forth from the root of Jesse, and a flower will ascend from his root.
11:2And the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and fortitude, the spirit of knowledge and piety.
11:3And he will be filled with the spirit of the fear of the Lord. He will not judge according to the sight of the eyes, nor reprove according to the hearing of the ears.
11:4Instead, he will judge the poor with justice, and he will reprove the meek of the earth with fairness. And he will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and he will slay the impious with the spirit of his lips.
11:5And justice will be the belt around his waist. And faith will be the warrior’s belt at his side.
11:6The wolf will dwell with the lamb; and the leopard will lie down with the kid; the calf and the lion and the sheep will abide together; and a little boy will drive them.
11:7The calf and the bear will feed together; their young ones will rest together. And the lion will eat straw like the ox.
11:8And a breastfeeding infant will play above the lair of the asp. And a child who has been weaned will thrust his hand into the den of the king snake.
11:9They will not harm, and they will not kill, on all my holy mountain. For the earth has been filled with the knowledge of the Lord, like the waters covering the sea.
11:10In that day, the root of Jesse, who stands as a sign among the people, the same the Gentiles shall beseech, and his sepulcher will be glorious.

Romans 15: 4-9

15:4For whatever was written, was written to teach us, so that, through patience and the consolation of the Scriptures, we might have hope.
15:5So may the God of patience and solace grant you to be of one mind toward one another, in accord with Jesus Christ,
15:6so that, together with one mouth, you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15:7For this reason, accept one another, just as Christ also has accepted you, in the honor of God.
15:8For I declare that Christ Jesus was the minister of circumcision because of the truth of God, so as to confirm the promises to the fathers,
15:9and that the Gentiles are to honor God because of his mercy, just as it was written: “Because of this, I will confess you among the Gentiles, O Lord, and I will sing to your name.”

Matthew 3: 1- 12

3:1Now in those days, John the Baptist arrived, preaching in the desert of Judea,
3:2and saying: “Repent. For the kingdom of heaven has drawn near.”
3:3For this is the one who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, saying: “A voice crying out in the desert: Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths.”
3:4Now the same John had a garment made from the hair of camels, and a leather belt around his waist. And his food was locusts and wild honey.
3:5Then Jerusalem, and all Judea, and the entire region around the Jordan went out to him.
3:6And they were baptized by him in the Jordan, acknowledging their sins.
3:7Then, seeing many of the Pharisees and Sadducees arriving for his baptism, he said to them: “Progeny of vipers, who warned to you to flee from the approaching wrath?
3:8Therefore, produce fruit worthy of repentance.
3:9And do not choose to say within yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God has the power to raise up sons to Abraham from these stones.
3:10For even now the axe has been placed at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not produce good fruit shall be cut down and cast into the fire.
3:11Indeed, I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who will come after me is more powerful than me. I am not worthy to carry his shoes. He will baptize you with the fire of the Holy Spirit.
3:12His winnowing fan is in his hand. And he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. And he will gather his wheat into the barn. But the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”