Is. 51:1–11

51:1 “Listen to me, you who pursue godliness,

who seek the Lord.

Look at the rock from which you were chiseled,

at the quarry from which you were dug.

2Look at Abraham, your father,

and Sarah, who gave you birth.

When I summoned him, he was a lone individual,

but I blessed him and gave him numerous descendants.

3Certainly the Lord will console Zion;

he will console all her ruins.

He will make her wilderness like Eden,

her arid rift valley like the garden of the Lord.

Happiness and joy will be restored to her,

thanksgiving and the sound of music.

4Pay attention to me, my people.

Listen to me, my people!

For I will issue a decree,

I will make my justice a light to the nations.

5I am ready to vindicate,

I am ready to deliver,

I will establish justice among the nations.

The coastlands wait patiently for me;

they wait in anticipation for the revelation of my power.

6Look up at the sky.

Look at the earth below.

For the sky will dissipate like smoke,

and the earth will wear out like clothes;

its residents will die like gnats.

But the deliverance I give is permanent;

the vindication I provide will not disappear.

7Listen to me, you who know what is right,

you people who are aware of my law.

Don’t be afraid of the insults of men;

don’t be discouraged because of their abuse.

8For a moth will eat away at them like clothes;

a clothes moth will devour them like wool.

But the vindication I provide will be permanent;

the deliverance I give will last.”

9Wake up! Wake up!

Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the Lord!

Wake up as in former times, as in antiquity.

Did you not smash the Proud One?

Did you not wound the sea monster?

10Did you not dry up the sea,

the waters of the great deep?

Did you not make a path through the depths of the sea,

so those delivered from bondage could cross over?

11Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return;

they will enter Zion with a happy shout.

Unending joy will crown them,

happiness and joy will overwhelm them;

grief and suffering will disappear.

Ps. 37:1–22

37:1 By David.

Do not fret when wicked men seem to succeed.

Do not envy evildoers.

2For they will quickly dry up like grass,

and wither away like plants.

3Trust in the Lord and do what is right.

Settle in the land and maintain your integrity.

4Then you will take delight in the Lord,

and he will answer your prayers.

5Commit your future to the Lord.

Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.

6He will vindicate you in broad daylight,

and publicly defend your just cause.

7Wait patiently for the Lord!

Wait confidently for him!

Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner,

a man who carries out wicked schemes.

8Do not be angry and frustrated.

Do not fret. That only leads to trouble.

9Wicked men will be wiped out,

but those who rely on the Lord are the ones who will possess the land.

10Evil men will soon disappear;

you will stare at the spot where they once were, but they will be gone.

11But the oppressed will possess the land

and enjoy great prosperity.

12Evil men plot against the godly

and viciously attack them.

13The Lord laughs in disgust at them,

for he knows that their day is coming.

14Evil men draw their swords

and prepare their bows,

to bring down the oppressed and needy,

and to slaughter those who are godly.

15Their swords will pierce their own hearts,

and their bows will be broken.

16The little bit that a godly man owns is better than

the wealth of many evil men,

17for evil men will lose their power,

but the Lord sustains the godly.

18The Lord watches over the innocent day by day,

and they possess a permanent inheritance.

19They will not be ashamed when hard times come;

when famine comes they will have enough to eat.

20But evil men will die;

the Lord’s enemies will be incinerated—

they will go up in smoke.

21Evil men borrow, but do not repay their debt,

but the godly show compassion and are generous.

22Surely those favored by the Lord will possess the land,

but those rejected by him will be wiped out.

John 16:4–24

16:4 But I have told you these things so that when their time comes, you will remember that I told you about them.

“I did not tell you these things from the beginning because I was with you. 5But now I am going to the one who sent me, and not one of you is asking me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6Instead your hearts are filled with sadness because I have said these things to you. 7But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. 8And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong concerning sin and righteousness and judgment— 9concerning sin because they do not believe in me; 10concerning righteousness because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; 11and concerning judgment because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

12“I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. For he will not speak on his own authority, but will speak whatever he hears and will tell you what is to come. 14He will glorify me because he will receive from me what is mine and will tell it to you. 15Everything that the Father has is mine; that is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what is mine and will tell it to you. 16In a little while you will see me no longer; again after a little while, you will see me.”

17Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What is the meaning of what he is saying, ‘In a little while you will not see me; again after a little while, you will see me,’ and ‘because I am going to the Father’?” 18So they kept on repeating, “What is the meaning of what he says, ‘In a little while’? We do not understand what he is talking about.”

19Jesus could see that they wanted to ask him about these things, so he said to them, “Are you asking each other about this—that I said, ‘In a little while you will not see me; again after a little while, you will see me’? 20I tell you the solemn truth, you will weep and wail, but the world will rejoice; you will be sad, but your sadness will turn into joy. 21When a woman gives birth, she has distress because her time has come, but when her child is born, she no longer remembers the suffering because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you. 23At that time you will ask me nothing. I tell you the solemn truth, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you. 24Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive it, so that your joy may be complete.