Isaiah 62; Isaiah 63; Isaiah 64; 1 Timothy 1

1 Because I love Jerusalem, I will continue to speak for her; for Jerusalem's sake I will not stop speaking until her goodness shines like a bright light, until her salvation burns bright like a flame.

2 Jerusalem, the nations will see your goodness, and all kings will see your glory. Then you will have a new name, which the Lord himself will give you.

3 You will be like a beautiful crown in the Lord's hand, like a king's crown in your God's hand.

4 You will never again be called the People that God Left, nor your land the Land that God Destroyed. You will be called the People God Loves, and your land will be called the Bride of God, because the Lord loves you. And your land will belong to him as a bride belongs to her husband.

5 As a young man marries a woman, so your children will marry your land. As a man rejoices over his new wife, so your God will rejoice over you.

6 Jerusalem, I have put guards on the walls to watch. They must not be silent day or night. needs in prayer should never be quiet.

7 You should not stop praying to him until he builds up Jerusalem and makes it a city all people will praise.

8 The Lord has made a promise, and by his power he will keep his promise. He said, "I will never again give your grain as food to your enemies. I will not let your enemies drink the new wine that you have worked to make.

9 The person who gathers food will eat it, and he will praise the Lord. The person who gathers the grapes will drink the wine in the courts of my Temple."

10 Go through, go through the gates! Make the way ready for the people. Build up, build up the road! Move all the stones off the road. Raise the banner as a sign for the people.

11 The Lord is speaking to all the faraway lands: "Tell the people of Jerusalem, 'Look, your Savior is coming. He is bringing your reward to you; he is bringing his payment with him.'"

12 His people will be called the Holy People, the Saved People of the Lord, and Jerusalem will be called the City God Wants, the City God Has Not Rejected.

1 Who is this coming from Edom, from the city of Bozrah, dressed in red? Who is this dressed in fine clothes and marching forward with his great power? He says, "I, the Lord, speak what is right. I have the power to save you."

2 Someone asks, "Why are your clothes bright red as if you had walked on the grapes to make wine?"

3 The Lord answers, "I have walked in the winepress alone, and no one among the nations helped me. I was angry and walked on the nations and crushed them because of my anger. Blood splashed on my clothes, and I stained all my clothing.

4 I chose a time to punish people, and the time has come for me to save.

5 I looked around, but I saw no one to help me. I was surprised that no one supported me. So I used my own power to save my people; my own anger supported me.

6 While I was angry, I walked on the nations. In my anger I punished them and poured their blood on the ground."

7 I will tell about the Lord's kindness and praise him for everything he has done. and for his goodness to the people of Israel. He has shown great mercy to us and has been very kind to us.

8 He said, "These are my people; my children will not lie to me." So he saved them.

9 When they suffered, he suffered also. He sent his own angel to save them. Because of his love and kindness, he saved them. Since long ago he has picked them up and carried them.

10 But they turned against him and made his Holy Spirit very sad. So he became their enemy, and he fought against them.

11 But then his people remembered what happened long ago, in the days of Moses and the Israelites with him. Where is the Lord who brought the people through the sea, with the leaders of his people? Where is the one who put his Holy Spirit among them,

12 who led Moses by the right hand with his wonderful power, who divided the water before them to make his name famous forever,

13 who led the people through the deep waters? Like a horse walking through a desert, the people did not stumble.

14 Like cattle that go down to the valley, the Spirit of the Lord gave the people a place to rest. Lord, that is the way you led your people, and by this you won for yourself wonderful fame.

15 Lord, look down from the heavens and see; look at us from your wonderful and holy home in heaven. Where is your strong love and power? Why are you keeping your love and mercy from us?

16 You are our father. Abraham doesn't know we are his children, and Israel doesn't recognize us. Lord, you are our father. You are called "the one who has always saved us."

17 Lord, why are you making us wander from your ways? Why do you make us stubborn so that we don't honor you? For our sake come back to us, your servants, who belong to you.

18 Your people had your Temple for a while, but now our enemies have walked on your holy place and crushed it.

19 We have become like people you never ruled over, like those who have never worn your name.

1 Tear open the skies and come down to earth so that the mountains will tremble before you.

2 Like a fire that burns twigs, like a fire that makes water boil, let your enemies know who you are. Then all nations will shake with fear when they see you.

3 You have done amazing things we did not expect. You came down, and the mountains trembled before you.

4 From long ago no one has ever heard of a God like you. No one has ever seen a God besides you, who helps the people who trust you.

5 You help those who enjoy doing good, who remember how you want them to live. But you were angry because we sinned. For a long time we disobeyed, so how can we be saved?

6 All of us are dirty with sin. All the right things we have done are like filthy pieces of cloth. All of us are like dead leaves, and our sins, like the wind, have carried us away.

7 No one worships you or even asks you to help us. That is because you have turned away from us and have let our sins destroy us.

8 But Lord, you are our father. We are like clay, and you are the potter; your hands made us all.

9 Lord, don't continue to be angry with us; don't remember our sins forever. Please, look at us, because we are your people.

10 Your holy cities are empty like the desert. Jerusalem is like a desert; it is destroyed.

11 Our ancestors worshiped you in our holy and wonderful Temple, but now it has been burned with fire, and all our precious things have been destroyed.

12 When you see these things, will you hold yourself back from helping us, Lord? Will you be silent and punish us beyond what we can stand?

1 From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus, by the command of God our Savior and Christ Jesus our hope.

2 To Timothy, a true child to me because you believe: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

3 I asked you to stay longer in Ephesus when I went into Macedonia so you could command some people there to stop teaching false things.

4 Tell them not to spend their time on stories that are not true and on long lists of names in family histories. These things only bring arguments; they do not help God's work, which is done in faith.

5 The purpose of this command is for people to have love, a love that comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a true faith.

6 Some people have missed these things and turned to useless talk.

7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand either what they are talking about or what they are sure about.

8 But we know that the law is good if someone uses it lawfully.

9 We also know that the law is not made for good people but for those who are against the law and for those who refuse to follow it. It is for people who are against God and are sinful, who are not holy and have no religion, who kill their fathers and mothers, who murder,

10 who take part in sexual sins, who have sexual relations with people of the same sex, who sell slaves, who tell lies, who speak falsely, and who do anything against the true teaching of God.

11 That teaching is part of the Good News of the blessed God that he gave me to tell.

12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who gave me strength, because he trusted me and gave me this work of serving him.

13 In the past I spoke against Christ and persecuted him and did all kinds of things to hurt him. But God showed me mercy, because I did not know what I was doing. I did not believe.

14 But the grace of our Lord was fully given to me, and with that grace came the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

15 What I say is true, and you should fully accept it: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst.

16 But I was given mercy so that in me, the worst of all sinners, Christ Jesus could show that he has patience without limit. His patience with me made me an example for those who would believe in him and have life forever.

17 To the King that rules forever, who will never die, who cannot be seen, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

18 Timothy, my child, I am giving you a command that agrees with the prophecies that were given about you in the past. I tell you this so you can follow them and fight the good fight.

19 Continue to have faith and do what you know is right. Some people have rejected this, and their faith has been shipwrecked.

20 Hymenaeus and Alexander have done that, and I have given them to Satan so they will learn not to speak against God.