Psalm 20; Matthew 3

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Psalm 20

Trust in the Name of the Lord Our God

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

May the Lord lanswer you in the day of trouble!

May mthe name of the God of Jacob nprotect you!

May he send you help from othe sanctuary

and give you support from pZion!

May he qremember all your offerings

and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! Selah

May he rgrant you your heart’s desire

and fulfill all your plans!

May we shout for joy over syour salvation,

and in the name of our God set up our tbanners!

May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!

Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed;

he will answer him from his holy heaven

with uthe saving might of his right hand.

Some trust in vchariots and some in whorses,

xbut we trust in the name of the Lord our God.

They collapse and fall,

but we rise and stand upright.

O Lord, save ythe king!

May he answer us when we call.


Matthew 3

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

hIn those days iJohn the Baptist came preaching in jthe wilderness of Judea, kRepent, for lthe kingdom of heaven is at hand.1 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

mThe voice of one crying in the wilderness:

nPrepare2 the way of the Lord;

make his paths straight.

Now John wore oa garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was plocusts and qwild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, rconfessing their sins.

But when he saw many of sthe Pharisees and tSadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, uYou brood of vvipers! Who warned you to flee from wthe wrath to come? Bear fruit xin keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, yWe have Abraham as our father, for I tell you, God is able from zthese stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. aEvery tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

11 bI baptize you with water cfor repentance, but dhe who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you ewith the Holy Spirit and ffire. 12 His gwinnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and hgather his wheat into the barn, ibut the chaff he will burn with junquenchable fire.

The Baptism of Jesus

13 kThen Jesus came lfrom Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 mJohn would have prevented him, saying, I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me? 15 But Jesus answered him, Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, othe heavens were opened to him,3 and he psaw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, qa voice from heaven said, rThis is my beloved Son,4 with whom I am well pleased.