Is. 56:1–12

56:1 This is what the Lord says,

“Promote justice! Do what is right!

For I am ready to deliver you;

I am ready to vindicate you openly.

2The people who do this will be blessed,

the people who commit themselves to obedience,

who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it,

who refrain from doing anything that is wrong.

3No foreigner who becomes a follower of the Lord should say,

‘The Lord will certainly exclude me from his people.’

The eunuch should not say,

‘Look, I am like a dried-up tree.’”

4For this is what the Lord says:

“For the eunuchs who observe my Sabbaths

and choose what pleases me

and are faithful to my covenant,

5I will set up within my temple and my walls a monument

that will be better than sons and daughters.

I will set up a permanent monument for them that will remain.

6As for foreigners who become followers of the Lord and serve him,

who love the name of the Lord and want to be his servants—

all who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it,

and who are faithful to my covenant—

7I will bring them to my holy mountain;

I will make them happy in the temple where people pray to me.

Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar,

for my temple will be known as a temple where all nations may pray.”

8The Sovereign Lord says this,

the one who gathers the dispersed of Israel:

“I will still gather them up.”

9All you wild animals in the fields, come and devour,

all you wild animals in the forest!

10All their watchmen are blind,

they are unaware.

All of them are like mute dogs,

unable to bark.

They pant, lie down,

and love to snooze.

11The dogs have big appetites;

they are never full.

They are shepherds who have no understanding;

they all go their own way,

each one looking for monetary gain.

12Each one says,

“Come on, I’ll get some wine!

Let’s guzzle some beer!

Tomorrow will be just like today!

We’ll have everything we want!”

Ps. 42

42:1 For the music director, a well-written song by the Korahites.

As a deer longs for streams of water,

so I long for you, O God!

2I thirst for God,

for the living God.

I say, “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?”

3I cannot eat; I weep day and night.

All day long they say to me, “Where is your God?”

4I will remember and weep.

For I was once walking along with the great throng to the temple of God,

shouting and giving thanks along with the crowd as we celebrated the holy festival.

5Why are you depressed, O my soul?

Why are you upset?

Wait for God!

For I will again give thanks

to my God for his saving intervention.

6I am depressed,

so I will pray to you while in the region of the upper Jordan,

from Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

7One deep stream calls out to another at the sound of your waterfalls;

all your billows and waves overwhelm me.

8By day the Lord decrees his loyal love,

and by night he gives me a song,

a prayer to the God of my life.

9I will pray to God, my high ridge:

“Why do you ignore me?

Why must I walk around mourning

because my enemies oppress me?”

10My enemies’ taunts cut me to the bone,

as they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

11Why are you depressed, O my soul?

Why are you upset?

Wait for God!

For I will again give thanks

to my God for his saving intervention.

John 19:16–27

19:16 Then Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.

So they took Jesus, 17and carrying his own cross he went out to the place called “The Place of the Skull” (called in Aramaic Golgotha). 18There they crucified him along with two others, one on each side, with Jesus in the middle. 19Pilate also had a notice written and fastened to the cross, which read: “Jesus the Nazarene, the king of the Jews.” 20Thus many of the Jewish residents of Jerusalem read this notice because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the notice was written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek. 21Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The king of the Jews,’ but rather, ‘This man said, I am king of the Jews.’” 22Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

23Now when the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and made four shares, one for each soldier, and the tunic remained. (Now the tunic was seamless, woven from top to bottom as a single piece.) 24So the soldiers said to one another, “Let’s not tear it, but throw dice to see who will get it.” This took place to fulfill the scripture that says, “They divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they threw dice.” So the soldiers did these things.

25Now standing beside Jesus’ cross were his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26So when Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Woman, look, here is your son!” 27He then said to his disciple, “Look, here is your mother!” From that very time the disciple took her into his own home.