8.21-Pray that leaders push for freedom and justice for all.

8.21
Luke 3.

3 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, ² in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness. ³ And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; ⁴ as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
‘Make ready the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight.
⁵ ‘Every ravine will be filled,
And every mountain and hill will be ^[a]brought low;
The crooked will become straight,
And the rough roads smooth;
⁶ And all ^[b]flesh will see the salvation of God.’”

⁷ So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say ^[c]to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. ⁹ Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
¹⁰ And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “Then what shall we do?” ¹¹ And he would answer and say to them, “The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.” ¹² And some tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” ¹³ And he said to them, “^[d]Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.” ¹⁴ Some soldiers were questioning him, saying, “And what about us, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not take money from anyone by force, or accuse anyone falsely, and be content with your wages.”
¹⁵ Now while the people were in a state of expectation and all were ^[e]wondering in their hearts about John, as to whether he was ^[f]the Christ, ¹⁶ John answered and said to them all, “As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you ^[g]with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
¹⁸ So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people. ¹⁹ But when Herod the tetrarch was reprimanded by him because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and because of all the wicked things which Herod had done, ²⁰ Herod also added this to them all: he locked John up in prison.

Psalm 79

79 O God, the nations have ^[a]invaded Your inheritance;
They have defiled Your holy temple;
They have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
² They have given the dead bodies of Your servants for food to the birds of the heavens,
The flesh of Your godly ones to the beasts of the earth.
³ They have poured out their blood like water round about Jerusalem;
And there was no one to bury them.
⁴ We have become a reproach to our neighbors,
A scoffing and derision to those around us.
⁵ How long, O Lord? Will You be angry forever?
Will Your jealousy burn like fire?
⁶ Pour out Your wrath upon the nations which do not know You,
And upon the kingdoms which do not call upon Your name.
⁷ For they have devoured Jacob
And laid waste his ^[b]habitation.

⁸ Do not remember ^[c]the iniquities of our forefathers against us;
Let Your compassion come quickly to meet us,
For we are brought very low.
⁹ Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of Your name;
And deliver us and ^[d]forgive our sins for Your name’s sake.
¹⁰ Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Let there be known among the nations in our sight,
Vengeance for the blood of Your servants which has been shed.
¹¹ Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You;
According to the greatness of Your ^[e]power preserve ^[f]those who are doomed to die.
¹² And return to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom
^[g]The reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord.
¹³ So we Your people and the sheep of Your ^[h]pasture
Will give thanks to You forever;
To all generations we will tell of Your praise.