Isaiah 45:1-7

Psalm 96

1 Thessalonians 1:1-5a

Matthew 22:15-21

LAY READER: Linda Holcomb

THE FIRST LESSON: ISAIAH 45:1-7 

THE WORD OF THE LORD 

45 Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped,  to subdue nations before him  

and to loose the belts of kings, to open doors before him that gates may not be closed:  2“I will go before you and level the exalted places, I will break in pieces the doors of  bronze and cut through the bars of iron, 3I will give you the treasures of darkness  and the hoards in secret places, that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of  Israel, who call you by your name. 4 For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my  chosen, I call you by your name, I name you, though you do not know me. 5I am the  Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not  know me, 6that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that  there is none besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other. 7I form light and create  darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these  things.  

HERE ENDS THE READING OF THE FIRST LESSON 

PSALMODY: PSALM 96 

P Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth!  

C Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day.  

P Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!  C For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all  gods.  

P For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the Lord made the heavens.  C Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.  

P Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!  C Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into  his courts! 

P Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth! 

C Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns! Yes, the world is established; it shall  never be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity.”  

P Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it;  C let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall all the trees of the forest sing  for joy  

P before the Lord, for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the  world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness.  

THE SECOND LESSON: 1st THESSALONIANS 1:1-5a 

THE WORD OF THE LORD 

1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father  and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.  

2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers,  3remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and  steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers loved by God,  that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in  power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. 

HERE ENDS THE SECOND READING 

THE GOSPEL: MATTHEW 22:15-21 

15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words. 16 And they  sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that  you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s  opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it  lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” 18 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why  put me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought  him a denarius. 20 And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” 21 They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things  that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 

HERE ENDS THE GOSPEL READING TODAY