Psalm 97:6–12

⁶The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
and all the peoples see his glory.
⁷All worshipers of images are put to shame,
who make their boast in worthless idols;
worship him, all you gods!
⁸Zion hears and is glad,
and the daughters of Judah rejoice,
because of your judgments, O Lord.
⁹For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
¹⁰O you who love the Lord, hate evil!
He preserves the lives of his saints;
he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
¹¹Light is sown for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
¹²Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!

Old Testament Reading Numbers 32:1–6, 16–27

¹Now the people of Reuben and the people of Gad had a very great number of livestock. And they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead, and behold, the place was a place for livestock. ²So the people of Gad and the people of Reuben came and said to Moses and to Eleazar the priest and to the chiefs of the congregation, ³“Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon, ⁴the land that the Lord struck down before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.” ⁵And they said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants for a possession. Do not take us across the Jordan.”

⁶But Moses said to the people of Gad and to the people of Reuben, “Shall your brothers go to the war while you sit here?” . . .

¹⁶Then they came near to him and said, “We will build sheepfolds here for our livestock, and cities for our little ones, ¹⁷but we will take up arms, ready to go before the people of Israel, until we have brought them to their place. And our little ones shall live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. ¹⁸We will not return to our homes until each of the people of Israel has gained his inheritance. ¹⁹For we will not inherit with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on this side of the Jordan to the east.” ²⁰So Moses said to them, “If you will do this, if you will take up arms to go before the Lord for the war, ²¹and every armed man of you will pass over the Jordan before the Lord, until he has driven out his enemies from before him ²²and the land is subdued before the Lord; then after that you shall return and be free of obligation to the Lord and to Israel, and this land shall be your possession before the Lord. ²³But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out. ²⁴Build cities for your little ones and folds for your sheep, and do what you have promised.” ²⁵And the people of Gad and the people of Reuben said to Moses, “Your servants will do as my lord commands. ²⁶Our little ones, our wives, our livestock, and all our cattle, shall remain there in the cities of Gilead, ²⁷but your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before the Lord to battle, as my lord orders.”

New Testament Reading Luke 24:1–27

¹But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. ²And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. ⁴While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. ⁵And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? ⁶He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, ⁷that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” ⁸And they remembered his words, ⁹and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. ¹⁰Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, ¹¹but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. ¹²But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.

¹³That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁴and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. ¹⁵While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. ¹⁶But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. ¹⁷And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” ¹⁹And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. ²¹But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. ²²Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, ²³and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. ²⁴Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” ²⁵And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! ²⁶Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” ²⁷And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.