Daily Readings for Friday February 09,2018
Season of Epiphany
Commemoration of the Dead
- Ezek 37:1-14 The Lord promises new life to His people.
- Sir 44:1-15 Glory of Fathers.
- 1Cor 15:39-49 The resurrection of the body
- Mt 25:31-40 Crown of justice to those who do good
Reading 1, Ezek 37:1-14 : The Lord promises new life to His people.
| 1 | The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley; it was full of bones. |
| 2 | And he led me round among them; and behold, there were very many upon the valley; and lo, they were very dry. |
| 3 | And he said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" And I answered, "O Lord GOD, thou knowest." |
| 4 | Again he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. |
| 5 | Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. |
| 6 | And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the LORD." |
| 7 | So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone. |
| 8 | And as I looked, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. |
| 9 | Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." |
| 10 | So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great host. |
| 11 | Then he said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, `Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.' |
| 12 | Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you home into the land of Israel. |
| 13 | And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. |
| 14 | And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land; then you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken, and I have done it, says the LORD." |
Reading 2, Sir 44:1-15 : Glory of Fathers.
| 1 | Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers in their generations. |
| 2 | The Lord apportioned to them great glory, his majesty from the beginning. |
| 3 | There were those who ruled in their kingdoms, and were men renowned for their power, giving counsel by their understanding, and proclaiming prophecies; |
| 4 | leaders of the people in their deliberations and in understanding of learning for the people, wise in their words of instruction; |
| 5 | those who composed musical tunes, and set forth verses in writing; |
| 6 | rich men furnished with resources, living peaceably in their habitations -- |
| 7 | all these were honored in their generations, and were the glory of their times. |
| 8 | There are some of them who have left a name, so that men declare their praise. |
| 9 | And there are some who have no memorial, who have perished as though they had not lived; they have become as though they had not been born, and so have their children after them. |
| 10 | But these were men of mercy, whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten; |
| 11 | their prosperity will remain with their descendants, and their inheritance to their children's children. |
| 12 | Their descendants stand by the covenants; their children also, for their sake. |
| 13 | Their posterity will continue for ever, and their glory will not be blotted out. |
| 14 | Their bodies were buried in peace, and their name lives to all generations. |
| 15 | Peoples will declare their wisdom, and the congregation proclaims their praise. |
Reading 3, 1Cor 15:39-49 : The resurrection of the body
| 39 | For not all flesh is alike, but there is one kind for men, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. |
| 40 | There are celestial bodies and there are terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. |
| 41 | There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. |
| 42 | So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. |
| 43 | It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. |
| 44 | It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body. |
| 45 | Thus it is written, "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. |
| 46 | But it is not the spiritual which is first but the physical, and then the spiritual. |
| 47 | The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. |
| 48 | As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. |
| 49 | Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven. |
Gospel, Mt 25:31-40 : Crown of justice to those who do good
| 31 | "When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. |
| 32 | Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, |
| 33 | and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but the goats at the left. |
| 34 | Then the King will say to those at his right hand, `Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; |
| 35 | for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, |
| 36 | I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' |
| 37 | Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? |
| 38 | And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee? |
| 39 | And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?' |
| 40 | And the King will answer them, `Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.' |
