Great Is the Lord
1 A Song of Praise. Of David.
1 jI will extol you, my God and kKing,
and bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you
land praise your name forever and ever.
3 mGreat is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and his ngreatness is unsearchable.
4 oOne generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.
5 On pthe glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 They shall speak of qthe might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall pour forth the fame of your rabundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
8 The Lord is sgracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is tgood to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
12 uWhen the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, vhe1 will punish the speech2 of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the boastful look in his eyes. 13 wFor he says:
“By the strength of my hand I have done it,
and by my wisdom, for I have understanding;
I remove the boundaries of peoples,
and plunder their treasures;
like a bull I bring down those who sit on thrones.
14 My hand has found like a nest
the wealth of the peoples;
and as one gathers eggs that have been forsaken,
so I have gathered all the earth;
and there was none that moved a wing
or opened the mouth or chirped.”
15 Shall xthe axe boast over him who hews with it,
or the saw magnify itself against him who wields it?
As if a rod should wield him who lifts it,
or as if a staff should lift him who is not wood!
16 Therefore the Lord God of hosts
will send wasting sickness among his ystout warriors,
and under his glory za burning will be kindled,
like the burning of fire.
17 aThe light of Israel will become a fire,
and bhis Holy One a flame,
and cit will burn and devour
his thorns and briers din one day.
18 The glory of ehis forest and of his ffruitful land
the Lord will destroy, both soul and body,
and it will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19 The remnant of the trees of his forest will be so few
that a child can write them down.
The Remnant of Israel Will Return
20 gIn that day hthe remnant of Israel and the survivors of the house of Jacob will no more ilean on him who struck them, but jwill lean on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. 21 A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, kto the mighty God. 22 lFor though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, monly a remnant of them will return. nDestruction is decreed, overflowing with righteousness. 23 For the Lord God of hosts will make a full end, as decreed, in the midst of all the earth.
24 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: “O my people, owho dwell in Zion, pbe not afraid of the Assyrians when they strike with the rod and lift up their staff against you as qthe Egyptians did. 25 For rin a very little while my fury will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to their destruction. 26 And sthe Lord of hosts will wield against them a whip, as when he struck tMidian uat the rock of Oreb. And his staff will be over the sea, and he will lift it vas he did in Egypt. 27 And in that day whis burden will depart from your shoulder, and xhis yoke from your neck; and the yoke will be broken because of the fat.”3
33 Behold, the Lord God of hosts
iwill lop jthe boughs with terrifying power;
the great in height will be hewn down,
and the lofty will be brought low.
34 He will cut down jthe thickets of the forest with an axe,
and kLebanon will fall by the Majestic One.
Greeting
1 Simeon1 Peter, a servant2 and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have obtained aa faith of equal standing with ours bby the righteousness of our cGod and Savior Jesus Christ:
2 dMay grace and peace be multiplied to you ein the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Confirm Your Calling and Election
3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him fwho called us to3 his own glory and excellence,4 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become gpartakers of the divine nature, hhaving escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith iwith virtue,5 and virtue jwith knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control kwith steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness lwith brotherly affection, and brotherly affection mwith love. 8 For if these qualities6 are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or nunfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he ois blind, having forgotten that he was pcleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers,7 be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and qelection, for if you practice these qualities ryou will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you san entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
12 Therefore I intend talways to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in uthe truth that you have. 13 I think it right, as long as I am in this vbody,8 wto stir you up by way of reminder, 14 xsince I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, yas our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. 15 And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.
Christ’s Glory and the Prophetic Word
16 For we did not follow zcleverly devised amyths when we made known to you bthe power and ccoming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but dwe were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, e“This is my beloved Son,9 with whom I am well pleased,” 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on fthe holy mountain. 19 And gwe have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention has to a lamp shining in a dark place, until ithe day jdawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For kno prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God las they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
