Daily Reading for Saturday, April 4th, 2026

Gospel, Matthew 28:1-10

¹ After the Sabbath, and towards dawn on the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala and the other Mary went to visit the sepulchre.

² And suddenly there was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled away the stone and sat on it.

³ His face was like lightning, his robe white as snow.

⁴ The guards were so shaken by fear of him that they were like dead men.

⁵ But the angel spoke; and he said to the women, 'There is no need for you to be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

⁶ He is not here, for he has risen, as he said he would. Come and see the place where he lay,

⁷ then go quickly and tell his disciples, "He has risen from the dead and now he is going ahead of you to Galilee; that is where you will see him." Look! I have told you.'

⁸ Filled with awe and great joy the women came quickly away from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples.

⁹ And suddenly, coming to meet them, was Jesus. 'Greetings,' he said. And the women came up to him and, clasping his feet, they did him homage.

¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, 'Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee; there they will see me.'

Reading 2, Genesis 22:1-18

¹ It happened some time later that God put Abraham to the test. 'Abraham, Abraham!' he called. 'Here I am,' he replied.

² God said, 'Take your son, your only son, your beloved Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, where you are to offer him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I shall point out to you.'

³ Early next morning Abraham saddled his donkey and took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. He chopped wood for the burnt offering and started on his journey to the place which God had indicated to him.

⁴ On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance.

⁵ Then Abraham said to his servants, 'Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I are going over there; we shall worship and then come back to you.'

⁶ Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on Isaac, and carried in his own hands the fire and the knife. Then the two of them set out together.

⁷ Isaac spoke to his father Abraham. 'Father?' he said. 'Yes, my son,' he replied. 'Look,' he said, 'here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?'

⁸ Abraham replied, 'My son, God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering.' And the two of them went on together.

⁹ When they arrived at the place which God had indicated to him, Abraham built an altar there, and arranged the wood. Then he bound his son and put him on the altar on top of the wood.

¹⁰ Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to kill his son.

¹¹ But the angel of Yahweh called to him from heaven. 'Abraham, Abraham!' he said. 'Here I am,' he replied.

¹² 'Do not raise your hand against the boy,' the angel said. 'Do not harm him, for now I know you fear God. You have not refused me your own beloved son.'

¹³ Then looking up, Abraham saw a ram caught by its horns in a bush. Abraham took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son.

¹⁴ Abraham called this place 'Yahweh provides', and hence the saying today: 'On the mountain Yahweh provides.'

¹⁵ The angel of Yahweh called Abraham a second time from heaven.

¹⁶ 'I swear by my own self, Yahweh declares, that because you have done this, because you have not refused me your own beloved son,

¹⁷ I will shower blessings on you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will gain possession of the gates of their enemies.

¹⁸ All nations on earth will bless themselves by your descendants, because you have obeyed my command.'

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