oremus Bible Browser

Psalm 135

1  Alleluia.
      Praise the name of the Lord; ♦︎
   give praise, you servants of the Lord,
2  You that stand in the house of the Lord, ♦︎
   in the courts of the house of our God.
3  Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; ♦︎
   make music to his name, for it is lovely.
4  For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself ♦︎
   and Israel for his own possession.
5  For I know that the Lord is great ♦︎
   and that our Lord is above all gods.
6  The Lord does whatever he pleases
      in heaven and on earth, ♦︎
   in the seas and in all the deeps.
7  He brings up the clouds from the ends of the earth; ♦︎
   he makes lightning with the rain
      and brings the winds out of his treasuries.
8  He smote the firstborn of Egypt, ♦︎
   the firstborn of man and beast.
9  He sent signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt, ♦︎
   upon Pharaoh and all his servants.
10  He smote many nations ♦︎
   and slew mighty kings:
11  Sihon, king of the Amorites,
      and Og, the king of Bashan, ♦︎
   and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
12  He gave their land as a heritage, ♦︎
   a heritage for Israel his people.
13  Your name, O Lord, endures for ever ♦︎
   and shall be remembered through all generations.
14  For the Lord will vindicate his people ♦︎
   and have compassion on his servants.
15  The idols of the nations are but silver and gold, ♦︎
   the work of human hands.
16  They have mouths, but cannot speak; ♦︎
   eyes have they, but cannot see;
17  They have ears, but cannot hear; ♦︎
   neither is there any breath in their mouths.
18  Those who make them shall become like them, ♦︎
   and so will all who put their trust in them.
19  Bless the Lord, O house of Israel; ♦︎
   O house of Aaron, bless the Lord.
20  Bless the Lord, O house of Levi; ♦︎
   you who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
21  Blessed be the Lord from Zion, ♦︎
   who dwells in Jerusalem.
      Alleluia.

Malachi 3: 13 - 4: 6

13 You have spoken harsh words against me, says the Lord. Yet you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ ¹⁴You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What do we profit by keeping his command or by going about as mourners before the Lord of hosts? ¹⁵Now we count the arrogant happy; evildoers not only prosper, but when they put God to the test they escape.’

The Reward of the Faithful

16 Then those who revered the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord took note and listened, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who revered the Lord and thought on his name. ¹⁷They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, my special possession on the day when I act, and I will spare them as parents spare their children who serve them. ¹⁸Then once more you shall see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

The Great Day of the Lord

4^*See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. ²But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. ³And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.

4 Remember the teaching of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

5 Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. ⁶He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.^*

James 5: 13-20

The Prayer of Faith

13 Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. ¹⁴Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. ¹⁶Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. ¹⁷Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. ¹⁸Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest.

19 My brothers and sisters,^* if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, ²⁰you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner’s^* soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.