Daily Reading for Sunday, December 24th, 2023

Daily Reading for Sunday December 24, 2023

Reading 1, Isaiah 62:1-5
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 89:4-5, 16-17, 27, 29
Gospel, Matthew 1:1-25
Reading 2, Acts 13:16-17, 22-25
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Reading 1, Isaiah 62:1-5

¹ About Zion I will not be silent, about Jerusalem I shall not rest until saving justice dawns for her like a bright light and her salvation like a blazing torch.

² The nations will then see your saving justice, and all kings your glory, and you will be called a new name which Yahweh's mouth will reveal.

³ You will be a crown of splendour in Yahweh's hand, a princely diadem in the hand of your God.

⁴ No more will you be known as 'Forsaken' or your country be known as 'Desolation'; instead, you will be called 'My Delight is in her' and your country 'The Wedded'; for Yahweh will take delight in you and your country will have its wedding.

⁵ Like a young man marrying a virgin, your rebuilder will wed you, and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so will your God rejoice in you.

Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 89:4-5, 16-17, 27, 29

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.

¹⁶ In your name they rejoice all day long, by your saving justice they are raised up.

¹⁷ You are the flower of their strength, by your favour our strength is triumphant;

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.

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Gospel, Matthew 1:1-25

¹ Roll of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham:

² Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers,

³ Judah fathered Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered Ram,

⁴ Ram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon,

⁵ Salmon fathered Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse;

⁶ and Jesse fathered King David. David fathered Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife,

⁷ Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, Abijah fathered Asa,

⁸ Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered Joram, Joram fathered Uzziah,

⁹ Uzziah fathered Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah,

¹⁰ Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered Amon, Amon fathered Josiah;

¹¹ and Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers. Then the deportation to Babylon took place.

¹² After the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah fathered Shealtiel, Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel,

¹³ Zerubbabel fathered Abiud, Abiud fathered Eliakim, Eliakim fathered Azor,

¹⁴ Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, Achim fathered Eliud,

¹⁵ Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, Matthan fathered Jacob;

¹⁶ and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary; of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.

¹⁷ The sum of generations is therefore: fourteen from Abraham to David; fourteen from David to the Babylonian deportation; and fourteen from the Babylonian deportation to Christ.

¹⁸ This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.

¹⁹ Her husband Joseph, being an upright man and wanting to spare her disgrace, decided to divorce her informally.

²⁰ He had made up his mind to do this when suddenly the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 'Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit.

²¹ She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.'

²² Now all this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken through the prophet:

²³ Look! the virgin is with child and will give birth to a son whom they will call Immanuel, a name which means 'God-is-with-us'.

²⁴ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home;

²⁵ he had not had intercourse with her when she gave birth to a son; and he named him Jesus.

Reading 2, Acts 13:16-17, 22-25

¹⁶ Paul stood up, raised his hand for silence and began to speak: 'Men of Israel, and fearers of God, listen!

¹⁷ The God of our nation Israel chose our ancestors and made our people great when they were living in Egypt, a land not their own; then by divine power he led them out

²² he deposed him and raised up David to be king, whom he attested in these words, "I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will perform my entire will."

²³ To keep his promise, God has raised up for Israel one of David's descendants, Jesus, as Saviour,

²⁴ whose coming was heralded by John when he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the whole people of Israel.

²⁵ Before John ended his course he said, "I am not the one you imagine me to be; there is someone coming after me whose sandal I am not fit to undo."

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