Isaiah 45:2-3

2I will go before you

and will level the mountains^a;

I will break down gates of bronze

and cut through bars of iron.

3I will give you the treasures of darkness,

riches stored in secret places,

so that you may know that I am the Lord,

the God of Israel, who summons you by name.

Hebrews 11:17-19

17By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring^b will be reckoned.”^c 19Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.

Ecclesiastes 7:15-18

15In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these:

a righteous man perishing in his righteousness,

and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.

16Do not be overrighteous,

neither be overwise—

why destroy yourself?

17Do not be overwicked,

and do not be a fool—

why die before your time?

18It is good to grasp the one

and not let go of the other.

The man who fears God will avoid all [extremes].

Psalm 1:1-3

1Blessed is the man

who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked

or stand in the way of sinners

or sit in the seat of mockers.

2But his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.

3He is like a tree planted by streams of water,

which yields its fruit in season

and whose leaf does not wither.

Whatever he does prospers.

Psalm 91

1He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.^a

2I will say^b of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,

my God, in whom I trust.”

3Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare

and from the deadly pestilence.

4He will cover you with his feathers,

and under his wings you will find refuge;

his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

5You will not fear the terror of night,

nor the arrow that flies by day,

6nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,

nor the plague that destroys at midday.

7A thousand may fall at your side,

ten thousand at your right hand,

but it will not come near you.

8You will only observe with your eyes

and see the punishment of the wicked.

9If you make the Most High your dwelling—

even the Lord, who is my refuge—

10then no harm will befall you,

no disaster will come near your tent.

11For he will command his angels concerning you

to guard you in all your ways;

12they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

13You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;

you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

14“Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;

I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

15He will call upon me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble,

I will deliver him and honor him.

16With long life will I satisfy him

and show him my salvation.”

Psalm 86:1-7

1Hear, O Lord, and answer me,

for I am poor and needy.

2Guard my life, for I am devoted to you.

You are my God; save your servant

who trusts in you.

3Have mercy on me, O Lord,

for I call to you all day long.

4Bring joy to your servant,

for to you, O Lord,

I lift up my soul.

5You are forgiving and good, O Lord,

abounding in love to all who call to you.

6Hear my prayer, O Lord;

listen to my cry for mercy.

7In the day of my trouble I will call to you,

for you will answer me.

Hebrews 8:7-12

7For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. 8But God found fault with the people and said^b:

“The time is coming, declares the Lord,

when I will make a new covenant

with the house of Israel

and with the house of Judah.

9It will not be like the covenant

I made with their forefathers

when I took them by the hand

to lead them out of Egypt,

because they did not remain faithful to my covenant,

and I turned away from them,

declares the Lord.

10This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel

after that time, declares the Lord.

I will put my laws in their minds

and write them on their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they will be my people.

11No longer will a man teach his neighbor,

or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

because they will all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest.

12For I will forgive their wickedness

and will remember their sins no more.”