Luke 22:31-38; Hebrews 6:1-12; Proverbs 22:17-29; Isaiah 24; Isaiah 25; Isaiah 26

Luke 22:31-38

31 "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you,that he might sift you like wheat,

32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers."

33 Peter said to him, "Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death."

34 Jesus said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me."

35 And he said to them, "When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?" They said, "Nothing."

36 He said to them, "But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one.

37 For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: 'And he was numbered with the transgressors.' For what is written about me has its fulfillment."

38 And they said, "Look, Lord, here are two swords." And he said to them, "It is enough."

Hebrews 6:1-12

1 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,

2 and of instruction about washings,the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.

3 And this we will do if God permits.

4 For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit,

5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come,

6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.

7 For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God.

8 But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned.

9 Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things--things that belong to salvation.

10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.

11 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end,

12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Proverbs 22:17-29

17 Incline your ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my knowledge,

18 for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, if all of them are ready on your lips.

19 That your trust may be in the LORD, I have made them known to you today, even to you.

20 Have I not written for you thirty sayings of counsel and knowledge,

21 to make you know what is right and true, that you may give a true answer to those who sent you?

22 Do not rob the poor, because he is poor, or crush the afflicted at the gate,

23 for the LORD will plead their cause and rob of life those who rob them.

24 Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man,

25 lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare.

26 Be not one of those who give pledges, who put up security for debts.

27 If you have nothing with which to pay, why should your bed be taken from under you?

28 Do not move the ancient landmark that your fathers have set.

29 Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.

Isaiah 24

1 Behold, the LORD will empty the earth and make it desolate, and he will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants.

2 And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the slave, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor.

3 The earth shall be utterly empty and utterly plundered; for the LORD has spoken this word.

4 The earth mourns and withers; the world languishes and withers; the highest people of the earth languish.

5 The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant.

6 Therefore a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are scorched, and few men are left.

7 The wine mourns, the vine languishes, all the merry-hearted sigh.

8 The mirth of the tambourines is stilled, the noise of the jubilant has ceased, the mirth of the lyre is stilled.

9 No more do they drink wine with singing; strong drink is bitter to those who drink it.

10 The wasted city is broken down; every house is shut up so that none can enter.

11 There is an outcry in the streets for lack of wine; all joy has grown dark; the gladness of the earth is banished.

12 Desolation is left in the city; the gates are battered into ruins.

13 For thus it shall be in the midst of the earth among the nations, as when an olive tree is beaten, as at the gleaning when the grape harvest is done.

14 They lift up their voices, they sing for joy; over the majesty of the LORD they shout from the west.

15 Therefore in the east give glory to the LORD; in the coastlands of the sea, give glory to the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

16 From the ends of the earth we hear songs of praise, of glory to the Righteous One. But I say, "I waste away, I waste away. Woe is me! For the traitors have betrayed, with betrayal the traitors have betrayed."

17 Terror and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth!

18 He who flees at the sound of the terror shall fall into the pit, and he who climbs out of the pit shall be caught in the snare. For the windows of heaven are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble.

19 The earth is utterly broken, the earth is split apart, the earth is violently shaken.

20 The earth staggers like a drunken man; it sways like a hut; its transgression lies heavy upon it, and it falls, and will not rise again.

21 On that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven, in heaven, and the kings of the earth, on the earth.

22 They will be gathered together as prisoners in a pit; they will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished.

23 Then the moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed, for the LORD of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and his glory will be before his elders.

Isaiah 25

1 O LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.

2 For you have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin; the foreigners' palace is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.

3 Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will fear you.

4 For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall,

5 like heat in a dry place. You subdue the noise of the foreigners; as heat by the shade of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless is put down.

6 On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.

7 And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.

8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.

9 It will be said on that day, "Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation."

10 For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, and Moab shall be trampled down in his place, as straw is trampled down in a dunghill.

11 And he will spread out his hands in the midst of it as a swimmer spreads his hands out to swim, but the LORD will lay low his pompous pride together with the skill of his hands.

12 And the high fortifications of his walls he will bring down, lay low, and cast to the ground, to the dust.

Isaiah 26

1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: "We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks.

2 Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in.

3 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.

4 Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.

5 For he has humbled the inhabitants of the height, the lofty city. He lays it low, lays it low to the ground, casts it to the dust.

6 The foot tramples it, the feet of the poor, the steps of the needy."

7 The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous.

8 In the path of your judgments, O LORD, we wait for you; your name and remembrance are the desire of our soul.

9 My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

10 If favor is shown to the wicked, he does not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness he deals corruptly and does not see the majesty of the LORD.

11 O LORD, your hand is lifted up, but they do not see it. Let them see your zeal for your people, and be ashamed. Let the fire for your adversaries consume them.

12 O LORD, you will ordain peace for us, for you have indeed done for us all our works.

13 O LORD our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone we bring to remembrance.

14 They are dead, they will not live; they are shades, they will not arise; to that end you have visited them with destruction and wiped out all remembrance of them.

15 But you have increased the nation, O LORD, you have increased the nation; you are glorified; you have enlarged all the borders of the land.

16 O LORD, in distress they sought you; they poured out a whispered prayer when your discipline was upon them.

17 Like a pregnant woman who writhes and cries out in her pangs when she is near to giving birth, so were we because of you, O LORD;

18 we were pregnant, we writhed, but we have given birth to wind. We have accomplished no deliverance in the earth, and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen.

19 Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead.

20 Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until the fury has passed by.

21 For behold, the LORD is coming out from his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity, and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it, and will no more cover its slain.