January 4, 2026

1Arise! Shine, for your light has come, the glory of the LORD has dawned upon you. 2Though darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds, the peoples, Upon you the LORD will dawn, and over you his glory will be seen. 3Nations shall walk by your light, kings by the radiance of your dawning. 4The Nations Come to Zion - Raise your eyes and look about; they all gather and come to you— Your sons from afar, your daughters in the arms of their nurses. 5Then you shall see and be radiant, your heart shall throb and overflow. For the riches of the sea shall be poured out before you, the wealth of nations shall come to you. 6Caravans of camels shall cover you, dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; All from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and heralding the praises of the LORD.

1Psalm 72 A Prayer for the King - Of Solomon. 2I - O God, give your judgment to the king; your justice to the king’s son; That he may govern your people with justice, your oppressed with right judgment, 7That abundance may flourish in his days, great bounty, till the moon be no more. 8III - May he rule from sea to sea, from the river to the ends of the earth. 10May the kings of Tarshish and the islands bring tribute, the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts. 11May all kings bow before him, all nations serve him. 12For he rescues the poor when they cry out, the oppressed who have no one to help. 13He shows pity to the needy and the poor and saves the lives of the poor.

2if, as I suppose, you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for your benefit, 3[namely, that] the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly earlier. 5which was not made known to human beings in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, 6that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

2saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.”

1When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, 2saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.” 3When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet: 6‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel.’” 7Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance. 8He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage.” 9After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. 10They were overjoyed at seeing the star, 11and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.