For this is what the Lord says:
"Maintain justice and do what is right,
for my salvation is close at hand and
my righteousness will soon be revealed.
Blessed is the man who does this, the man
who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath
without desecrating it, and keeps his hand
from doing any evil." Let no foreigner who has
bound himself to the Lord say, "The Lord will
surely exclude me from his people."And let not
any eunuch complain, "I am only a dry tree."
This is what the Lord says:
"To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenant-
to them I will give within my temple and its walls
a memorial and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that will not be cut off.
And foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord
to serve him,
to love the name of the Lord ,
and to worship him,
all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it
and who hold fast to my covenant-
these I will bring to my holy mountain
and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations."
The Sovereign Lord declares-
he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
"I will gather still others to them
besides those already gathered."
Isaiah 56: 1-8
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven,
raised his voice and addressed the crowd:
"Fellow Jews and all of you who live in
Jerusalem, let me explain this to you;
listen carefully to what I say.
These men are not drunk, as you suppose.
It's only nine in the morning!
No, this is what was spoken by the
prophet Joel:
" 'In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and
glorious day of the Lord.
And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.'
Acts 2:14-21
"To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write
These are the words of him who is holy and true,
who holds the key of David. What he opens no
one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.
I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you
an open door that no one can shut. I know that
you have little strength, yet you have kept
my word and have not denied my name.
I will make those who are of the synagogue
of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they
are not, but are liars--I will make them come
and fall down at your feet and acknowledge
that I have loved you. Since you have kept
my command to endure patiently, I will also keep
you from the hour of trial that is going to come
upon the whole world to test those who live on
the earth. I am coming soon. Hold on to what
you have, so that no one will take your crown.
Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the
temple of my God. Never again will he leave it.
I will write on him the name of my God and the
name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem,
which is coming down out of heaven from my God;
and I will also write on him my new name.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit
says to the churches.
Revelation 3:7-13
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth,
for the first heaven and the first earth
had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
"Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he
will live with them. They will be his people, and
God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning
or crying or pain, for the old order
of things has passed away."
He who was seated on the throne said,
"I am making everything new!" Then he said,
"Write this down, for these words are trustworthy
and true."
He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha
and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.
To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without
cost from the spring of the water of life.
He who overcomes will inherit all this, and
I will be his God and he will be my son.
But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile,
the murderers, the sexually immoral, those
who practice magic arts, the idolaters and
all liars--their place will be in the fiery lake
of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
Revelation 21:1-8
And you have forgotten that word of
encouragement that addresses you as sons:
"My son, do not make light of the
Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart
when he rebukes you, because the Lord
disciplines those he loves, and he punishes
everyone he accepts as a son."
Hebrews 12: 5-6
Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find; knock
and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives;
he who seeks finds; and to him
who knocks, the door will be opened.
Matthew 7: 7-8
Carly Simon / St. Thomas Choir of Men and Boys
Working Girl: Original Soundtrack Album ©1988
Track 5: Let the River Run