Isaiah 43

The Savior of Israel

 5 “Do not be afraid, for I am with you.
      I will gather you and your children from east and west.
 6 I will say to the north and south,
      ‘Bring my sons and daughters back to Israel
      from the distant corners of the earth.
 7 Bring all who claim me as their God,
      for I have made them for my glory.
      It was I who created them.’”

Psalm 29

A psalm of David.

 3 The voice of the Lord echoes above the sea.
      The God of glory thunders.
      The Lord thunders over the mighty sea.
 4 The voice of the Lord is powerful ;
      the voice of the Lord is majestic.
 5 The voice of the Lord splits the mighty cedars;
      the Lord shatters the cedars of Lebanon.
 6 He makes Lebanon’s mountains skip like a calf;
      he makes Mount Hermon leap like a young wild ox. 
 7 The voice of the Lord strikes
      with bolts of lightning.
 8 The voice of the Lord makes the barren wilderness quake;
      the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
 9 The voice of the Lord twists mighty oaks
      and strips the forests bare.
   In his Temple everyone shouts, “Glory!”

 10 The Lord rules over the floodwaters.
      The Lord reigns as king forever.
 11 The Lord gives his people strength.
      The Lord blesses them with peace.

 15 Everyone was expecting the Messiah to come soon, and they were eager to know whether John might be the Messiah. 16 John answered their questions by saying, “I baptize you with water; but someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 17 He is ready to separate the chaff from the wheat with his winnowing fork. Then he will clean up the threshing area, gathering the wheat into his barn but burning the chaff with never-ending fire.” 18 John used many such warnings as he announced the Good News to the people.

 19 John also publicly criticized Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee,for marrying Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for many other wrongs he had done. 20 So Herod put John in prison , adding this sin to his many others.

The Baptism of Jesus

 14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there. 15 As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. 16 The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers , and they received the Holy Spirit.