Bible Readings - Aug. 29, 2024

Reading 1

Second Letter of [our Holy Spirit through] Paul to the Thessalonians [in Jesus' Name] 3:6-10, 16-18

We instruct you, brothers and sisters,

in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

to shun any brother

who walks in a disorderly way

and not according to the tradition they received from us.

For you know how one must imitate us.

For we did not act in a disorderly way among you,

nor did we eat food received free from anyone.

On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day we worked,

so as not to burden any of you.

Not that we do not have the right.

Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you,

so that you might imitate us.

In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that

if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat.

May the Lord of peace himself

give you peace at all times and in every way.

The Lord be with all of you.

This greeting is in my own hand, Paul’s.

This is the sign in every letter; this is how I write.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you.

Psalm 128:1-2, 4-5

Blessed are you who fear the LORD,

who walk in his ways!

For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;

blessed shall you be, and favored.

Behold, thus is the man blessed

who fears the LORD.

The LORD bless you from Zion:

may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem

all the days of your life.

[our Holy Spirit through] Matthew [in Jesus' Name] 23:39b

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’"

[our Holy Spirit through] Matthew [in Jesus' Name] 23:33-39, 24:1-14

You serpents, you brood of vipers, how can you flee from the judgment of Gehenna?

Therefore, behold, I send to you prophets and wise men and scribes;

some of them you will kill and crucify, some of them you will scourge

in your synagogues and pursue from town to town,

so that there may come upon you all the righteous blood shed upon earth,

from the righteous blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Barachiah,

whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

Amen, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,

how many times I yearned to gather your children together, as a hen gathers

her young under her wings, but you were unwilling!

Behold, your house will be abandoned, desolate.

I tell you, you will not see me again until you say,

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Jesus left the temple area and was going away,

when his disciples approached him to point out the temple buildings.

He said to them in reply, “You see all these things, do you not?

Amen, I say to you, there will not be left here a stone upon

another stone that will not be thrown down.”

As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached him

privately and said, “Tell us, when will this happen,

and what sign will there be of your coming, and of the end of the age?”

Jesus said to them in reply, “See that no one deceives you.

For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’

and they will deceive many.

You will hear of wars and reports of wars; see that you are not alarmed,

for these things must happen, but it will not yet be the end.

Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom;

there will be famines and earthquakes from place to place.

All these are the beginning of the labor pains.

Then they will hand you over to persecution, and they will kill you.

You will be hated by all nations because of my name.

And then many will be led into sin; they will betray and hate one another.

Many false prophets will arise and deceive many;

and because of the increase of evildoing, the love of many will grow cold.

But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the world

as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come.

[our Holy Spirit through] Matthew [in Jesus' Name] 23:39b

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’"