Make a Joyful Noise to the Lord
A Psalm.
1 Oh msing to the Lord a new song,
for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
have worked salvation for him.
2 The Lord has nmade known his salvation;
he has orevealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
3 He has premembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have qseen
the salvation of our God.
4 rMake a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
sbreak forth into joyous song and sing praises!
5 Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody!
6 tWith trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord!
7 uLet the sea roar, and all that fills it;
vthe world and those who dwell in it!
8 Let the rivers clap their hands;
let the hills wsing for joy together
9 xbefore the Lord, for he comes
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.
The Lord Our God Is Holy
1 The Lord yreigns; let the peoples tremble!
He sits zenthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2 The Lord is great in Zion;
he is exalted aover all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name!
bHoly is he!
4 The King in his might loves justice.1
You have established equity;
you have executed cjustice
and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Exalt the Lord our God;
dworship at his footstool!
Holy is he!
6 eMoses and Aaron were among his priests,
fSamuel also was among those who gcalled upon his name.
hThey called to the Lord, and he answered them.
7 iIn the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;
they kept his testimonies
and the statute that he gave them.
8 O Lord our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them,
but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9 Exalt the Lord our God,
and worship at his holy mountain;
for the Lord our God is holy!
Mem
97 Oh how I love your law!
It is my meditation all the day.
98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies,
for it is ever with me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers,
for your testimonies are my meditation.
100 I understand more than the aged,1
for I keep your precepts.
101 I dhold back my feet from every evil way,
in order to keep your word.
102 I do not eturn aside from your rules,
for you have taught me.
103 How sweet are your words to my taste,
fsweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 Through your precepts I get understanding;
therefore I ghate every false way.
Nun
105 Your word is a hlamp to my feet
and a light to my path.
106 I have sworn an oath and confirmed it,
to keep your righteous rules.
107 I am severely afflicted;
give me life, O Lord, iaccording to your word!
108 Accept my freewill offerings of praise, O Lord,
and teach me your rules.
109 I hold my life in my hand continually,
but I do not forget your law.
110 The wicked have laid a snare for me,
but I do not stray from your precepts.
111 Your testimonies are my jheritage forever,
for they are the kjoy of my heart.
112 I lincline my heart to perform your statutes
forever, to the end.2
10 In that day jthe kroot of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.
11 In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the lremnant that remains of his people, mfrom Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush,1 from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.
12 He will nraise a signal for the nations
and will oassemble the banished of Israel,
and pgather the dispersed of Judah
from the four corners of the earth.
13 The jealousy of Ephraim shall depart,
and those who harass Judah shall be cut off;
qEphraim shall not be jealous of Judah,
and Judah shall not harass Ephraim.
14 But they shall swoop down on the shoulder of the Philistines in the west,
and together they shall plunder the people of the east.
They shall put out their hand against Edom and Moab,
and the Ammonites shall obey them.
15 And the Lord will utterly destroy2
the tongue of the Sea of Egypt,
and will rwave his hand over the River3
with his scorching breath,4
and strike it into seven channels,
sand he will lead people across in sandals.
16 And there will be a thighway from Assyria
for the remnant that remains of his people,
as there was for Israel
when they came up from the land of Egypt.
The Lord Is My Strength and My Song
1 You5 will say in that day:
“I will give thanks to you, O Lord,
for though you were angry with me,
uyour anger turned away,
that you might vcomfort me.
2 “Behold, God is my salvation;
I will wtrust, and will not be afraid;
for xthe Lord God6 is my strength and my song,
and he has become my salvation.”
3 With joy you7 will draw ywater from the wells of salvation. 4 And you will say in that day:
z“Give thanks to the Lord,
call upon his name,
make known his deeds among the peoples,
proclaim that his name is exalted.
5 “Sing praises to the Lord, afor he has done gloriously;
let this be made known8 in all the earth.
6 bShout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
for great in your9 midst is the Holy One of Israel.”
Dedication to Theophilus
1 aInasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been baccomplished among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were ceyewitnesses and ministers of the word have ddelivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 ethat you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.
Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5 In the fdays of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah,1 of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was gbarren, and both were advanced in years.
8 Now while he was serving as priest before God when his hdivision was on duty, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by ilot to enter the temple of the Lord and jburn incense. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the kaltar of incense. 12 And Zechariah was ltroubled when he saw him, mand fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great before the Lord. nAnd he must not odrink wine or strong drink, pand he will be qfilled with the Holy Spirit, even rfrom his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, sto turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”
18 And Zechariah said to the angel, t“How shall I uknow this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered him, “I am vGabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this wgood news. 20 And behold, you will be silent and xunable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” 21 And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. 23 And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to ytake away my reproach among people.”
