Daily Reading for Thursday, December 24th, 2009

Reading 1, 2 Sm 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16

¹ The men of Kiriath-Jearim came and, taking up the ark of Yahweh, brought it to the house of Abinadab on the hill, and consecrated his son Eleazar to guard the ark of Yahweh.

² From the day when the ark was installed at Kiriath-Jearim, a long time went by -- twenty years -- and the whole House of Israel longed for Yahweh.

³ Samuel then spoke as follows to the whole House of Israel, 'If you are returning to Yahweh with all your heart, banish the foreign gods and Astartes which you now have, and set your heart on Yahweh and serve him alone; and he will deliver you from the power of the Philistines.'

⁴ And the Israelites banished the Baals and Astartes and served Yahweh alone.

⁵ Samuel then said, 'Muster all Israel at Mizpah and I shall plead with Yahweh for you.'

⁸ They said to Samuel, 'Do not stop calling on Yahweh our God to rescue us from the power of the Philistines.'

⁹ Samuel took a sucking lamb and presented it as a burnt offering to Yahweh, and he called on Yahweh on behalf of Israel and Yahweh heard him.

¹⁰ While Samuel was in the act of presenting burnt offering, the Philistines joined battle with Israel, but that day Yahweh thundered violently over the Philistines, threw them into panic and Israel defeated them.

¹¹ The men of Israel sallied out from Mizpah in pursuit of the Philistines and beat them all the way to below Beth-Car.

¹² Samuel then took a stone and erected it between Mizpah and the Tooth, and gave it the name Ebenezer, saying, 'Yahweh helped us as far as this.'

¹⁴ The towns which the Philistines had taken from Israel were given back to Israel, from Ekron all the way to Gath, and Israel freed their territory from the power of the Philistines. There was peace, too, between Israel and the Amorites.

¹⁶ Each year he went on circuit through Bethel and Gilgal and Mizpah and judged Israel in all these places.

Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 89:2-3, 4-5, 27, 29

² for you have said: love is built to last for ever, you have fixed your constancy firm in the heavens.

³ 'I have made a covenant with my Chosen One, sworn an oath to my servant David:

⁴ I have made your dynasty firm for ever, built your throne stable age after age.

⁵ The heavens praise your wonders, Yahweh, your constancy in the gathering of your faithful.

²⁷ So I shall make him my first-born, the highest of earthly kings.

²⁹ I have established his dynasty for ever, his throne to be as lasting as the heavens.