31st December

¹ Canst thou draw out leviathan with an hook? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down?² Canst thou put an hook into his nose? or bore his jaw through with a thorn?³ Will he make many supplications unto thee? will he speak soft words unto thee?⁴ Will he make a covenant with thee? wilt thou take him for a servant for ever?⁵ Wilt thou play with him as with a bird? or wilt thou bind him for thy maidens?⁶ Shall the companions make a banquet of him? shall they part him among the merchants?⁷ Canst thou fill his skin with barbed irons? or his head with fish spears?⁸ Lay thine hand upon him, remember the battle, do no more.⁹ Behold, the hope of him is in vain: shall not one be cast down even at the sight of him?¹⁰ None is so fierce that dare stir him up: who then is able to stand before me?¹¹ Who hath prevented me, that I should repay him? whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine.¹² I will not conceal his parts, nor his power, nor his comely proportion.¹³ Who can discover the face of his garment? or who can come to him with his double bridle?¹⁴ Who can open the doors of his face? his teeth are terrible round about.¹⁵ His scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close seal.¹⁶ One is so near to another, that no air can come between them.¹⁷ They are joined one to another, they stick together, that they cannot be sundered.¹⁸ By his neesings a light doth shine, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.¹⁹ Out of his mouth go burning lamps, and sparks of fire leap out.²⁰ Out of his nostrils goeth smoke, as out of a seething pot or caldron.²¹ His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth.²² In his neck remaineth strength, and sorrow is turned into joy before him.²³ The flakes of his flesh are joined together: they are firm in themselves; they cannot be moved.²⁴ His heart is as firm as a stone; yea, as hard as a piece of the nether millstone.²⁵ When he raiseth up himself, the mighty are afraid: by reason of breakings they purify themselves.²⁶ The sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold: the spear, the dart, nor the habergeon.²⁷ He esteemeth iron as straw, and brass as rotten wood.²⁸ The arrow cannot make him flee: slingstones are turned with him into stubble.²⁹ Darts are counted as stubble: he laugheth at the shaking of a spear.³⁰ Sharp stones are under him: he spreadeth sharp pointed things upon the mire.³¹ He maketh the deep to boil like a pot: he maketh the sea like a pot of ointment.³² He maketh a path to shine after him; one would think the deep to be hoary.³³ Upon earth there is not his like, who is made without fear.³⁴ He beholdeth all high things: he is a king over all the children of pride.

¹ Then Job answered the LORD, and said,² I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee.³ Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.⁴ Hear, I beseech thee, and I will speak: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.⁵ I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.⁶ Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.⁷ And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath.⁸ Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job.⁹ So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went, and did according as the LORD commanded them: the LORD also accepted Job.¹⁰ And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.¹¹ Then came there unto him all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him: every man also gave him a piece of money, and every one an earring of gold.¹² So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses.¹³ He had also seven sons and three daughters.¹⁴ And he called the name of the first, Jemima; and the name of the second, Kezia; and the name of the third, Kerenhappuch.¹⁵ And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren.¹⁶ After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations.¹⁷ So Job died, being old and full of days.

¹ Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.² But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:³ And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.⁴ Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.⁵ And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts.⁶ For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.⁷ Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?⁸ Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.⁹ Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.¹⁰ Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.¹¹ And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.¹² And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.¹³ Your words have been stout against me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee?¹⁴ Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts?¹⁵ And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.¹⁶ Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.¹⁷ And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.¹⁸ Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

¹ For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.² But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.³ And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.⁴ Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.⁵ Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:⁶ And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

¹ And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.² And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.³ And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.⁴ And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.⁵ And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.⁶ And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.⁷ He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.⁸ But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.⁹ And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.¹⁰ And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,¹¹ Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;¹² And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:¹³ On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.¹⁴ And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.¹⁵ And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.¹⁶ And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.¹⁷ And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.¹⁸ And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.¹⁹ And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;²⁰ The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.²¹ And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.²² And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.²³ And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.²⁴ And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.²⁵ And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.²⁶ And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.²⁷ And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

¹ And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.² In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.³ And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:⁴ And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.⁵ And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.⁶ And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.⁷ Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.⁸ And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.⁹ Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.¹⁰ And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.¹¹ He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.¹² And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.¹³ I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.¹⁴ Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.¹⁵ For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.¹⁶ I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.¹⁷ And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.¹⁸ For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:¹⁹ And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.²⁰ He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.²¹ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.