October 16: Isaiah 52-55; Psalm 99; Acts 22

Isaiah 52-55

The Lord's Coming Salvation

52   Awake, awake,
    put on your strength, O Zion;
  put on your beautiful garments,
    O Jerusalem, the holy city;
  for there shall no more come into you
    the uncircumcised and the unclean.
  Shake yourself from the dust and arise;
    be seated, O Jerusalem;
  loose the bonds from your neck,
    O captive daughter of Zion.

For thus says the LORD: “You were sold for nothing, and you shall be redeemed without money.” For thus says the Lord GOD: “My people went down at the first into Egypt to sojourn there, and the Assyrian oppressed them for nothing.¹Now therefore what have I here,” declares the LORD, “seeing that my people are taken away for nothing? Their rulers wail,” declares the LORD, “and continually all the day my name is despised. Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.”

  How beautiful upon the mountains
    are the feet of him who brings good news,
  who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,
    who publishes salvation,
    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”
  The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;
    together they sing for joy;
  for eye to eye they see
    the return of the LORD to Zion.
  Break forth together into singing,
    you waste places of Jerusalem,
  for the LORD has comforted his people;
    he has redeemed Jerusalem.
  The LORD has bared his holy arm
    before the eyes of all the nations,
  and all the ends of the earth shall see
    the salvation of our God.
  Depart, depart, go out from there;
    touch no unclean thing;
  go out from the midst of her; purify yourselves,
    you who bear the vessels of the LORD.
  For you shall not go out in haste,
    and you shall not go in flight,
  for the LORD will go before you,
    and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.

He Was Pierced for Our Transgressions

  Behold, my servant shall act wisely;²
    he shall be high and lifted up,
    and shall be exalted.
  As many were astonished at you—
    his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance,
    and his form beyond that of the children of mankind—
  so shall he sprinkle³ many nations.
    Kings shall shut their mouths because of him,
  for that which has not been told them they see,
    and that which they have not heard they understand.
53   Who has believed what he has heard from us?⁴
    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
  For he grew up before him like a young plant,
    and like a root out of dry ground;
  he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
    and no beauty that we should desire him.
  He was despised and rejected⁵ by men,
    a man of sorrows⁶ and acquainted with⁷ grief;⁸
  and as one from whom men hide their faces⁹
    he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
  Surely he has borne our griefs
    and carried our sorrows;
  yet we esteemed him stricken,
    smitten by God, and afflicted.
  But he was pierced for our transgressions;
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
  upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
    and with his wounds we are healed.
  All we like sheep have gone astray;
    we have turned—every one—to his own way;
  and the LORD has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.
  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
    yet he opened not his mouth;
  like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
    and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
    so he opened not his mouth.
  By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
    and as for his generation, who considered
  that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
    stricken for the transgression of my people?
  And they made his grave with the wicked
    and with a rich man in his death,
  although he had done no violence,
    and there was no deceit in his mouth.
  Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him;
    he has put him to grief;¹⁰
  when his soul makes¹¹ an offering for guilt,
    he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
  the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
  Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see¹² and be satisfied;
  by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,
    make many to be accounted righteous,
    and he shall bear their iniquities.
  Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,¹³
    and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,¹⁴
  because he poured out his soul to death
    and was numbered with the transgressors;
  yet he bore the sin of many,
    and makes intercession for the transgressors.

The Eternal Covenant of Peace

54   “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear;
    break forth into singing and cry aloud,
    you who have not been in labor!
  For the children of the desolate one will be more
    than the children of her who is married,” says the LORD.
  “Enlarge the place of your tent,
    and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;
  do not hold back; lengthen your cords
    and strengthen your stakes.
  For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,
    and your offspring will possess the nations
    and will people the desolate cities.
  “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;
    be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;
  for you will forget the shame of your youth,
    and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.
  For your Maker is your husband,
    the LORD of hosts is his name;
  and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,
    the God of the whole earth he is called.
  For the LORD has called you
    like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,
  like a wife of youth when she is cast off,
    says your God.
  For a brief moment I deserted you,
    but with great compassion I will gather you.
  In overflowing anger for a moment
    I hid my face from you,
  but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”
    says the LORD, your Redeemer.
  “This is like the days of Noah¹⁵ to me:
    as I swore that the waters of Noah
    should no more go over the earth,
  so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,
    and will not rebuke you.
  For the mountains may depart
    and the hills be removed,
  but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
    and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,”
    says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
  “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and not comforted,
    behold, I will set your stones in antimony,
    and lay your foundations with sapphires.¹⁶
  I will make your pinnacles of agate,¹⁷
    your gates of carbuncles,¹⁸
    and all your wall of precious stones.
  All your children shall be taught by the LORD,
    and great shall be the peace of your children.
  In righteousness you shall be established;
    you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear;
    and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
  If anyone stirs up strife,
    it is not from me;
  whoever stirs up strife with you
    shall fall because of you.
  Behold, I have created the smith
    who blows the fire of coals
    and produces a weapon for its purpose.
  I have also created the ravager to destroy;
    no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,
    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.
  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD
    and their vindication¹⁹ from me, declares the LORD.”

The Compassion of the Lord

55   “Come, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
  and he who has no money,
    come, buy and eat!
  Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without price.
  Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
    and delight yourselves in rich food.
  Incline your ear, and come to me;
    hear, that your soul may live;
  and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
    my steadfast, sure love for David.
  Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,
    a leader and commander for the peoples.
  Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,
    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,
  because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has glorified you.
  “Seek the LORD while he may be found;
    call upon him while he is near;
  let the wicked forsake his way,
    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
  let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him,
    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
  For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.
  For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.
  “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
    and do not return there but water the earth,
  making it bring forth and sprout,
    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
  so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
  but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
  “For you shall go out in joy
    and be led forth in peace;
  the mountains and the hills before you
    shall break forth into singing,
    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
  Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
  and it shall make a name for the LORD,
    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

(ESV)

Psalm 99

The Lord Our God Is Holy

99   The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!
    He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
  The LORD is great in Zion;
    he is exalted over all the peoples.
  Let them praise your great and awesome name!
    Holy is he!
  The King in his might loves justice.¹
    You have established equity;
  you have executed justice
    and righteousness in Jacob.
  Exalt the LORD our God;
    worship at his footstool!
    Holy is he!
  Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
    Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.
    They called to the LORD, and he answered them.
  In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them;
    they kept his testimonies
    and the statute that he gave them.
  O LORD our God, you answered them;
    you were a forgiving God to them,
    but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
  Exalt the LORD our God,
    and worship at his holy mountain;
    for the LORD our God is holy!

(ESV)

Acts 22

22 “Brothers and fathers, hear the defense that I now make before you.”

And when they heard that he was addressing them in the Hebrew language,¹ they became even more quiet. And he said:

“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel² according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed toward Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished.

“As I was on my way and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone around me. And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’And I answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’Now those who were with me saw the light but did not understand³ the voice of the one who was speaking to me. And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.’And since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me, and came into Damascus.

“And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, came to me, and standing by me said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that very hour I received my sight and saw him. And he said, ‘The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the Righteous One and to hear a voice from his mouth; for you will be a witness for him to everyone of what you have seen and heard. And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’

“When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance and saw him saying to me, ‘Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that in one synagogue after another I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you. And when the blood of Stephen your witness was being shed, I myself was standing by and approving and watching over the garments of those who killed him.’ And he said to me, ‘Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

Paul and the Roman Tribune

Up to this word they listened to him. Then they raised their voices and said, “Away with such a fellow from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live.” And as they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, the tribune ordered him to be brought into the barracks, saying that he should be examined by flogging, to find out why they were shouting against him like this. But when they had stretched him out for the whips,⁴ Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned?” When the centurion heard this, he went to the tribune and said to him, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen.” So the tribune came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” And he said, “Yes.” The tribune answered, “I bought this citizenship for a large sum.” Paul said, “But I am a citizen by birth.” So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him immediately, and the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.

Paul Before the Council

But on the next day, desiring to know the real reason why he was being accused by the Jews, he unbound him and commanded the chief priests and all the council to meet, and he brought Paul down and set him before them.

(ESV)