Jesse Tree Scripture

7/30/2019 Jesse Tree Scripture

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/jesse-tree-scripture 1/241 of 24

JESSE TREE SCRIPTURE

CREATION Genesis 1:1-31

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the

deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters.

3 And God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.

4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the

darkness.

5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was

evening and there was morning, one day.

6 And God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it

separate the waters from the waters."

7 And God made the firmament and separated the waters which were under thefirmament from the waters which were above the firmament. And it was so.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was

morning, a second day.

9 And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into

one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so.

10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he

called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, "Let the earth put forth vegetation, plants yielding seed, and

fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, upon

the earth." And it was so.

12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their

own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its

kind. And God saw that it was good.

13 And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.

14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to separate

the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days

and years,

15 and let them be lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the

earth." And it was so.

16 And God made the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the

lesser light to rule the night; he made the stars also.

17 And God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth,

18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the

darkness. And God saw that it was good.

19 And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

20 And God said, "Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let

birds fly above the earth across the firmament of the heavens."


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/jesse-tree-scripture 2/24

2 of 24

21 So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves,

with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird

according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

22 And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in

the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth."

23 And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

24 And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their

kinds: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their

kinds." And it was so.

25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the cattle

according to their kinds, and everything that creeps upon the ground

according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them

have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over

the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps

upon the earth."

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him;

male and female he created them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill

the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over

the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth."

29 And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which is

upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall

have them for food.

30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything

that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given

every green plant for food." And it was so.

31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And

there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.

ADAM & EVE Genesis 2:7-9, 18-24

7 then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his

nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

8 And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the

man whom he had formed.

9 And out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant

to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden,

and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

18 Then the LORD God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will

make him a helper fit for him."

19 So out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every

bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them;

and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.

20 The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast



3 of 24

of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper fit for him.

21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept

took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh;

22 and the rib which the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a

woman and brought her to the man.

23 Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she

shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

24 Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and

they become one flesh.

THE FALL Genesis 3:1-7

1 Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the LORD

God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, `You shall not eat of any

tree of the garden'?"

2 And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the

garden;

3 but God said, `You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of

the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'"

4 But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die.

5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will

be like God, knowing good and evil."

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a

delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she

took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate.

7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; andthey sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons.

NOAH Genesis 6:5-8

5 The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that

every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

6 And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved

him to his heart.

7 So the LORD said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of theground, man and beast and creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry

that I have made them."

8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

ABRAHAM Genesis 12:1-3

1 Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and

your father's house to the land that I will show you.



4 of 24

2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your

name great, so that you will be a blessing.

3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who curses you I will curse; and by

you all the families of the earth shall bless themselves."

ISAAC Genesis 22:1-14

1 After these things God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!" And he

said, "Here am I."

2 He said, "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the

land of Mori'ah, and offer him there as a burnt offering upon one of the

mountains of which I shall tell you."

3 So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his ass, and took two of his

young men with him, and his son Isaac; and he cut the wood for the burnt

offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.

4 On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place afar off.

5 Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the ass; I and the lad

will go yonder and worship, and come again to you."

6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it on Isaac his son;

and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them

together.

7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, "My father!" And he said, "Here am I, my

son." He said, "Behold, the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for a burnt

offering?"

8 Abraham said, "God will provide himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my

son." So they went both of them together.

9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an

altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him

on the altar, upon the wood.

10 Then Abraham put forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

11 But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven, and said, "Abraham,

Abraham!" And he said, "Here am I."

12 He said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him; for now I

know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son,

from me."

13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram,caught in a thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and

offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son.

14 So Abraham called the name of that place The LORD will provide; as it is said

to this day, "On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided."

JACOB Genesis 25:1-34 (31), 28:10-15

1 Abraham took another wife, whose name was Ketu'rah.



5 of 24

2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Mid'ian, Ishbak, and Shuah.

3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were

Asshu'rim, Letu'shim, and Le-um'mim.

4 The sons of Mid'ian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abi'da, and Elda'ah. All these

were the children of Ketu'rah.

5 Abraham gave all he had to Isaac.

6 But to the sons of his concubines Abraham gave gifts, and while he was stillliving he sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.

7 These are the days of the years of Abraham's life, a hundred and seventy-five

years.

8 Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of

years, and was gathered to his people.

9 Isaac and Ish'mael his sons buried him in the cave of Mach-pe'lah, in the field

of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre,

10 the field which Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was

buried, with Sarah his wife.

11 After the death of Abraham God blessed Isaac his son. And Isaac dwelt at Beer-la'hai-roi.

12 These are the descendants of Ish'mael, Abraham's son, whom Hagar the

Egyptian, Sarah's maid, bore to Abraham.

13 These are the names of the sons of Ish'mael, named in the order of their birth:

Neba'ioth, the first-born of Ish'mael; and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,

14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa,

15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Ked'emah.

16 These are the sons of Ish'mael and these are their names, by their villages and

by their encampments, twelve princes according to their tribes.17 (These are the years of the life of Ish'mael, a hundred and thirty-seven years;

he breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his kindred.)

18 They dwelt from Hav'ilah to Shur, which is opposite Egypt in the direction of

Assyria; he settled over against all his people.

19 These are the descendants of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham was the father of

Isaac,

20 and Isaac was forty years old when he took to wife Rebekah, the daughter of

Bethu'el the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean.

21 And Isaac prayed to the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the

LORD granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived.

22 The children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it is thus, why do I

live?" So she went to inquire of the LORD.

23 And the LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples,

born of you, shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the

elder shall serve the younger."

24 When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her

womb.

25 The first came forth red, all his body like a hairy mantle; so they called his



6 of 24

name Esau.

26 Afterward his brother came forth, and his hand had taken hold of Esau's heel;

so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

27 When the boys grew up, Esau was a skilful hunter, a man of the field, while

Jacob was a quiet man, dwelling in tents.

28 Isaac loved Esau, because he ate of his game; but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 Once when Jacob was boiling pottage, Esau came in from the field, and he wasfamished.

30 And Esau said to Jacob, "Let me eat some of that red pottage, for I am

famished!" (Therefore his name was called Edom.)

31 Jacob said, "First sell me your birthright."

---

10 Jacob left Beer-sheba, and went toward Haran.

11 And he came to a certain place, and stayed there that night, because the sun

had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay

down in that place to sleep.12 And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it

reached to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and

descending on it!

13 And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, "I am the LORD, the God of

Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give

to you and to your descendants;

14 and your descendants shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread

abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and by

you and your descendants shall all the families of the earth bless themselves.

15 Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring youback to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done that of which I have

spoken to you."

JOSEPH Genesis 37:1-36

1 Jacob dwelt in the land of his father's sojournings, in the land of Canaan.

2 This is the history of the family of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old,

was shepherding the flock with his brothers; he was a lad with the sons of

Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives; and Joseph brought an ill report of themto their father.

3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was

the son of his old age; and he made him a long robe with sleeves.

4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his

brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him.

5 Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they only hated

him the more.

6 He said to them, "Hear this dream which I have dreamed:



7 of 24

7 behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf arose and stood

upright; and behold, your sheaves gathered round it, and bowed down to my

sheaf."

8 His brothers said to him, "Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed

to have dominion over us?" So they hated him yet more for his dreams and for

his words.

9 Then he dreamed another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, "Behold,

I have dreamed another dream; and behold, the sun, the moon, and elevenstars were bowing down to me."

10 But when he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him,

and said to him, "What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your

mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves to the ground before

you?"

11 And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.

12 Now his brothers went to pasture their father's flock near Shechem.

13 And Israel said to Joseph, "Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at

Shechem? Come, I will send you to them." And he said to him, "Here I am."

14 So he said to him, "Go now, see if it is well with your brothers, and with the

flock; and bring me word again." So he sent him from the valley of Hebron, and

he came to Shechem.

15 And a man found him wandering in the fields; and the man asked him, "What

are you seeking?"

16 "I am seeking my brothers," he said, "tell me, I pray you, where they are

pasturing the flock."

17 And the man said, "They have gone away, for I heard them say, `Let us go to

Dothan.'" So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan.

18 They saw him afar off, and before he came near to them they conspired against him to kill him.

19 They said to one another, "Here comes this dreamer.

20 Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say

that a wild beast has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his

dreams."

21 But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, "Let us

not take his life."

22 And Reuben said to them, "Shed no blood; cast him into this pit here in the

wilderness, but lay no hand upon him" -- that he might rescue him out of their

hand, to restore him to his father.23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the long

robe with sleeves that he wore;

24 and they took him and cast him into a pit. The pit was empty, there was no

water in it.

25 Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of Ish'maelites

coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing gum, balm, and myrrh, on their

way to carry it down to Egypt.

26 Then Judah said to his brothers, "What profit is it if we slay our brother and



8 of 24

conceal his blood?

27 Come, let us sell him to the Ish'maelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for

he is our brother, our own flesh." And his brothers heeded him.

28 Then Mid'ianite traders passed by; and they drew Joseph up and lifted him out

of the pit, and sold him to the Ish'maelites for twenty shekels of silver; and

they took Joseph to Egypt.

29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he

rent his clothes

30 and returned to his brothers, and said, "The lad is gone; and I, where shall I

go?"

31 Then they took Joseph's robe, and killed a goat, and dipped the robe in the

blood;

32 and they sent the long robe with sleeves and brought it to their father, and

said, "This we have found; see now whether it is your son's robe or not."

33 And he recognized it, and said, "It is my son's robe; a wild beast has devoured

him; Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces."

34 Then Jacob rent his garments, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mournedfor his son many days.

35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be

comforted, and said, "No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning." Thus

his father wept for him.

36 Meanwhile the Mid'ianites had sold him in Egypt to Pot'i-phar, an officer of

Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.

MOSES Exodous 2:1-10

1 Now a man from the house of Levi went and took to wife a daughter of Levi.

2 The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a goodly

child, she hid him three months.

3 And when she could hide him no longer she took for him a basket made of

bulrushes, and daubed it with bitumen and pitch; and she put the child in it

and placed it among the reeds at the river's brink.

4 And his sister stood at a distance, to know what would be done to him.

5 Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, and her

maidens walked beside the river; she saw the basket among the reeds and

sent her maid to fetch it.6 When she opened it she saw the child; and lo, the babe was crying. She took

pity on him and said, "This is one of the Hebrews' children."

7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and call you a nurse

from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?"

8 And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go." So the girl went and called the

child's mother.

9 And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away, and nurse him for

me, and I will give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed



9 of 24

him.

10 And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he

became her son; and she named him Moses, for she said, "Because I drew him

out of the water."

SAMUEL Sam 3:1-18 (10)

1 Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD under Eli. And the word of

the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.

2 At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim, so that he could not

see, was lying down in his own place;

3 the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down within the

temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was.

4 Then the LORD called, "Samuel! Samuel!" and he said, "Here I am!"

5 and ran to Eli, and said, "Here I am, for you called me." But he said, "I did not

call; lie down again." So he went and lay down.

6 And the LORD called again, "Samuel!" And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and

said, "Here I am, for you called me." But he said, "I did not call, my son; lie

down again."

7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not

yet been revealed to him.

8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to

Eli, and said, "Here I am, for you called me." Then Eli perceived that the LORD

was calling the boy.

9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, "Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say,

`Speak, LORD, for thy servant hears.'" So Samuel went and lay down in hisplace.

10 And the LORD came and stood forth, calling as at other times, "Samuel!

Samuel!" And Samuel said, "Speak, for thy servant hears."

JESSE 1Sam 16:1-15

1 The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul, seeing I have

rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I will

send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king

among his sons."

2 And Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me." And the LORD

said, "Take a heifer with you, and say, `I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.'

3 And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and

you shall anoint for me him whom I name to you."

4 Samuel did what the LORD commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of

the city came to meet him trembling, and said, "Do you come peaceably?"

5 And he said, "Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD; consecrate

yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice." And he consecrated Jesse and



10 of 24

his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice.

6 When they came, he looked on Eli'ab and thought, "Surely the LORD'S

anointed is before him."

7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height

of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the LORD sees not as man sees;

man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart."

8 Then Jesse called Abin'adab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said,

"Neither has the LORD chosen this one."

9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, "Neither has the LORD

chosen this one."

10 And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to

Jesse, "The LORD has not chosen these."

11 And Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here?" And he said, "There

remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep." And Samuel

said to Jesse, "Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down till he comes here."

12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes,

and was handsome. And the LORD said, "Arise, anoint him; for this is he."13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his

brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day

forward. And Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

14 Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the

LORD tormented him.

15 And Saul's servants said to him, "Behold now, an evil spirit from God is

tormenting you.

DAVID 1Sam 17:12-15

12 Now David was the son of an Eph'rathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named Jesse,

who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced

in years.

13 The three eldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle; and the names of

his three sons who went to the battle were Eli'ab the first-born, and next to

him Abin'adab, and the third Shammah.

14 David was the youngest; the three eldest followed Saul,

15 but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father's sheep at

Bethlehem.

SOLOMON 1Kings 3:5-14, 16-28

5 At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said,

"Ask what I shall give you."

6 And Solomon said, "Thou hast shown great and steadfast love to thy servant

David my father, because he walked before thee in faithfulness, in

righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward thee; and thou hast kept for



11 of 24

him this great and steadfast love, and hast given him a son to sit on his throne

this day.

7 And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king in place of David

my father, although I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come

in.

8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people whom thou hast chosen, a great

people, that cannot be numbered or counted for multitude.

9 Give thy servant therefore an understanding mind to govern thy people, that I

may discern between good and evil; for who is able to govern this thy great

people?"

10 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

11 And God said to him, "Because you have asked this, and have not asked for

yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for

yourself understanding to discern what is right,

12 behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and

discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you

shall arise after you.

13 I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no

other king shall compare with you, all your days.

14 And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments,

as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days."

---

16 Then two harlots came to the king, and stood before him.

17 The one woman said, "Oh, my lord, this woman and I dwell in the same house;

and I gave birth to a child while she was in the house.

18 Then on the third day after I was delivered, this woman also gave birth; and

we were alone; there was no one else with us in the house, only we two werein the house.

19 And this woman's son died in the night, because she lay on it.

20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while your

maidservant slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead son in my

bosom.

21 When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, it was dead; but when I

looked at it closely in the morning, behold, it was not the child that I had

borne."

22 But the other woman said, "No, the living child is mine, and the dead child is

yours." The first said, "No, the dead child is yours, and the living child is mine."Thus they spoke before the king.

23 Then the king said, "The one says, `This is my son that is alive, and your son is

dead'; and the other says, `No; but your son is dead, and my son is the living

one.'"

24 And the king said, "Bring me a sword." So a sword was brought before the

king.

25 And the king said, "Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and

half to the other."



12 of 24

26 Then the woman whose son was alive said to the king, because her heart

yearned for her son, "Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means

slay it." But the other said, "It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it."

27 Then the king answered and said, "Give the living child to the first woman, and

by no means slay it; she is its mother."

28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they

stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was

in him, to render justice.

JOSEPH Matt 1:18-25

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary

had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be

with child of the Holy Spirit;

19 and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame,

resolved to divorce her quietly.

20 But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a

dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for

that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit;

21 she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his

people from their sins."

22 All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

23 "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called

Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).

24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded

him; he took his wife,

25 but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus.

MARY Matt 1:18-25, Luke 1:26-38

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee

named Nazareth,

27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David;

and the virgin's name was Mary.

28 And he came to her and said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!"

29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what

sort of greeting this might be.

30 And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor

with God.

31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call

his name Jesus.

32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God

will give to him the throne of his father David,

33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there

will be no end."

34 And Mary said to the angel, "How shall this be, since I have no husband?"



13 of 24

35 And the angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power

of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be

called holy, the Son of God.

36 And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a

son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.

37 For with God nothing will be impossible."

38 And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me

according to your word." And the angel departed from her.

JOHN THE BAPTIST Mark 1:1-8

1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before thy

face, who shall prepare thy way;

3 the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make

his paths straight -- "

4 John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of

repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

5 And there went out to him all the country of Judea, and all the people of

Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their

sins.

6 Now John was clothed with camel's hair, and had a leather girdle around his

waist, and ate locusts and wild honey.

7 And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong

of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.

8 I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

The O Antiphons: 17 December

O Sapientia

LATIN: O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi prodidisti, attingens a fine usque ad finem, fortiter suaviter

disponensque omnia: veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.

ENGLISH: O Wisdom, who came from the mouth of the Most High, reaching from end to end and

ordering all things mightily and sweetly: come, and teach us the way of prudence.



14 of 24

Listen to this chant from the Liber Usualis: mp3

Scripture Reference:

Proverbs 1:20; 8; 9

I Corinthians 1:30

Relevant verse of Veni, Veni Emmanuel:

O come, O Wisdom from on high,

who orders all things mightily,

to us the path of knowledge show,and teach us in her ways to go.

The version from the Dominican antiphonarium:

REFLECTION: (ENGLISH: O Wisdom, who came from the mouth of the Most High, reaching from

end to end and ordering all things mightily and sweetly: come, and teach us the way of prudence.)

On December 17th we enter into that final stretch of our Advent preparation. In the Church's

solemn prayer of the hours, at Vespers, the great "O Antiphons" are sung. Today we have the first.

The Son is Eternal. There was never a time when He was not. Through Him all things were made.

http://www.wdtprs.com/JTZ/o_antiphons/01_O_sapientia.mp3






15 of 24

Through Him order was given to the primal chaos. Thus, the marvelous and sweet order we

observe in the universe is due to the eternal wisdom of the eternal Word. That same well-ordering

eternal Word is the Word made flesh, who dwell among us beginning with His coming birth at

Bethlehem.

Each of the "O Antiphons" carries Old Testament biblical figures. At the same time each one carries

an element of the New Covent. These two characteristics are juxtaposed and a third dimension

emerges which serves as a point of meditation when considering the Incarnate Word, the Son of God made flesh.

In today's "O Antiphon" - "O Sapientia" - we are drawn into the Old Testament's wisdom literature.

Wisdom is a divine attribute. The divine Wisdom is personified. Wisdom is the beloved daughter

who was before Creation, Wisdom is the breath of God's power, Wisdom is the shining of God's

(transforming) glory. (See Sirach 24:3 and Wisdom 8:1.)

Wisdom is also something which we deeply desire. It is also a human attribute, not just a divine

attribute, though authentic human wisdom is never separated from a relationship with God. Fear

of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, as we learn from the psalms as well as the school of

personal hard-knocks. From this convergence of awesome respect for God with the experience of learning through life's mysterious calendar, we understand (if we are wise) that wisdom is more

than mere knowledge. It is something more than love. It is something more than just a special

astuteness regarding how to get along in life, a certain kind of savoir faire. Rooted as it is in fear of

the Lord, true human wisdom is both love and that knowledge of God that seeks to understand, the

knowledge that is completed by faith.

The Prologue of John's Gospel refers to the "Verbum caro factum...the Word made flesh". He is the

divine Logos... the eternal thought/word/reason. Through Him all things were made. Without Him

nothing can be. So, the New Testament image in the Prologue of John brings to completion the

imagery of Wisdom. He, the Word, is the archetype of the material universe. All things are ordered

in and to Him.

Our lives, to be happy, need order. Our individual private lives and our collective lives in larger

society must have structure and order. They must be disposed in such a way that the real and

genuine good of all is fostered and promoted. Thus, in human governance we struggle to find the

proper balance of exercise of power (without which governance and order is not possible) and

gentle concern for the individual and community (without which there is mere imposition and

tyranny and exploitation for some end material or ideological). Wisdom permits the balance of

these.

This first "O Antiphon" shows us the Creator of all that is invisible and visible, the whole

of spiritual and material creation. It is moving according to an eternally disposed plan of divineProvidence toward an inexorable end: that God may be all in all. In this end the blessed elect will

participate. We have had the way opened for us toward this end by the Word (divine) made flesh

(human). Our humanity now sits in transformed glory at the right hand of the Father in an

indestructible bond with the Son's divinity. The risen Christ is the new Adam...the new Creation.

With unspeakable sweetness He orders our salvation. With irresistible power all things exist and

move according to His will. Our lives have meaning only in Him, according to His guidance, who

handles us "suaviter et fortiter ".

Our Old Testament and New Testament figures and images merge into a new point of reflection



16 of 24

for our lives which today's "O Antiphon" underscores as "prudence" - "Come...Teach us the way of

prudence!"

"Prudence" comes from the Latin "to see/look ahead". It is one of the four "cardinal" virtues, one

which other virtues depend. Prudence is a habit of the intellect that allows us to see in any

circumstance what is virtuous and what is not. Prudence helps us to seek what is virtuous and

avoid what is not. Prudence perfects the intellect (rather than the will) in practical decisions. It

determines which course of action must be taken. It indicates what the golden mean is hic et nunc...here and now. This mean is at the core of every virtue. Without the virtue of prudence

courage becomes foolhardiness... rushing in to the wrong danger in the wrong way at the wrong

time. Without the governing of prudence mercy devolves into slackness and enervated weakness,

spinelessness.

But this is still a kind of prudence which is merely human prudence, not looking beyond the issues

of daily life. We must also look beyond this vale of tears. In addition to the prudence which grows

out of the school of hard-knocks and which becomes a sound and good habit through repeated

acts, there is another prudence, an "infused" prudence. This kind of prudence is a grace given us

by God out of His merciful love. This greater prudence, which governs other grace-filled virtues,

cannot be separated from the life of grace. It is exercised in the state of grace. Mortal sin is itsenemy. This higher kind of prudence helps us to determine the proper things that help us to

salvation. It helps us to avoid things that slam the door that Christ opened (mortal sin). Thus,

prudence cannot be separated from charity, which is in the soul as a characteristic of sanctifying

(habitual) grace.

Today in the opening "O Antiphon" we sing to Emmanuel who is coming. We plead with Him, for

He orders all things "sweetly and strongly." He teaches us how to avoid things that harm us, both

in material concerns and in our pursuit of the happiness of heaven. He teaches us true prudence.

Take stock: is there something going on in my life that needs to be examined in prudence? Am I

doing something which is going to be an obstacle to the happiness of heaven? Christ is coming,both at Christmas as the infant King and the end of the world as the Judge and King of fearful

majesty. This is a cause to rejoice. But it is also cause to prepare prudently and well the way of the

Lord and make straight His paths before He comes, as we heard about on "Gaudete" ("Rejoice!)

Sunday of Advent.


O Adonai

LATIN: O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel, qui Moysi in igne flammae rubi apparuisti, et ei in Sina legem

dedisti: veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento..

ENGLISH: O Lord and Ruler the house of Israel, who appeared to Moses in the flame of the burning

bush and gave him the law on Sinai: come, and redeem us with outstretched arms.



17 of 24



Exodus 3Micah 5:2

Matthew 2:6


O come, O come, thou Lord of might,

Who to Thy tribes on Sinai's height

In ancient times didst give the lawIn cloud and majesty, and awe.


http://www.wdtprs.com/JTZ/o_antiphons/02_O_adonai.mp3






18 of 24

REFLECTION:

O Antiphons: 18 December - O Adonai (ENGLISH: "O Lord and Ruler the house of Israel, who

appeared to Moses in the flame of the burning bush and gave him the law on Sinai: come, and

redeem us with outstretched arms.")

"Adonai" is "LORD." It was the Hebrew word that the Jews used when they found the four-lettered

word for God's name which they held to be too sacred to pronounce aloud. Christ is Lord of Creation. We sang this yesterday in the antiphon "O Sapientia". Christ is also Lord of the Covenant

with the People He chose. The Lord made covenants with Noah, Abraham, and Moses. He guided

them and all the People. He gave them Law. He protected and feed them. The Lord delivered them

from bondage to Pharaoh and unending slavery. He went before them with arm outstretched.

This was all a pre-figuring of the great work of redemptions that Christ would work on the Cross.

He redeemed us His People from Satan and the eternal damnation of hell. He once appeared

clothed in the burning bush that was not consumed by fire. He is about to appear again clothed in

flesh in our liturgical celebration of Christmas. He will appear again one day in the future to judge

the living and the dead. Each day He appears to us in the person of our neighbor.

What amazing contrasts we find in our Lord! He came in thunder and lightening to give the Law on

Mt. Sinai. He comes now in swaddling clothes. He will come again in glory. He comes humbly in

the appearance of Bread and Wine.

He still goes before us with outstretched arm and our foes are put to flight at the sight of His

banner.


O Radix Jesse

LATIN: O Radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum, super quem continebunt reges os suum, quem

gentes deprecabuntur: veni ad liberandum nos, iam noli tardare.

ENGLISH: O Root of Jesse, that stands for an ensign of the people, before whom the kings keep

silence and unto whom the Gentiles shall make supplication: come, to deliver us, and tarry not.



19 of 24


Scripture References:

Isaiah 11:10

Romans 15:12

Revelation 5:5


O come, O Rod of Jesse free,

Thine own from Satan's tyranny;

From depths of hell Thy people save, And give them victory o'er the grave.


REFLECTION: (ENGLISH: O Root of Jesse, that stands for an ensign of the people, before whom the

kings keep silence and unto whom the Gentiles shall make supplication: come, to deliver us, and

http://www.wdtprs.com/JTZ/o_antiphons/03_O_radix.mp3






20 of 24

tarry not.)

O Antiphons: 19 December - O Jesse Radix (ENGLISH: O Root of Jesse, that stands for an ensign of

the people, before whom the kings keep silence and unto whom the Gentiles shall make

supplication: come, to deliver us, and tarry not.)

What urgency there is this antiphon. Something that lies below the earth (a root) stands high unto

the heavens like a banner! Vexilia Regis Prodeunt we sing in Lent... what is a little root duringAdvent becomes by Lent the Tree of our salvation. Isaiah 11:10 gives us imagery for our reflection

today. The great prophet of Advent tells us that the kingdom of David would be destroyed, but not

entirely destroyed. A root would remain. Jesse is David's father. David is Jesse's root. David leads

to Christ. After the destruction there remains a root. No matter what the exigencies of life present

to us or how turbulent the vicissitudes of the passing world may be, when we cling to the root we

are sure to be victorious in the end.


O Clavis David

LATIN: O clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel: qui aperis, et nemo claudit; claudis, et nemo

aperit: veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris, sedentem in tenebris.ENGLISH: O Key of David, and scepter of the house of Israel, who opens and no man shuts, who

shuts and no man opens: come, and lead forth the captive who sits in the shadows from his prison.



Isaiah 22:22

Revelation 3:7Relevant verse of Veni, Veni Emmanuel:

O come, thou Key of David, come,

And open wide our heavenly home;

Make safe the way that leads on high,

And close the path to misery.


http://www.wdtprs.com/JTZ/o_antiphons/04_O_clavis.mp3






21 of 24

ENGLISH: O Key of David, and scepter of the house of Israel, who opens and no man shuts, who

shuts and no man opens: come, and bring forth the captive from his prison, he who sits in

darkness and in the shadow of death.

REFLECTION:

What solace there is this antiphon.

In the 8th century BC King Hezekiah saw troubled times. Sargon the Assyrian invaded.

Sennnacherib invaded. You might know the poem of Byron: "The Assyrian came down like the

wolf on the fold, / And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold...". They were saved by the

Angel who smote the invaders with the plague and slew 185,000 in the night. Hezekiah instituted

a religious renewal, which included the suppression of idolatry and polytheism which had grown

up over time. Hezekiah, a descendent of David, is a foreshadow figure of Christ to come. Hezekiah

cleansed the Temple. Hezekiah rose from a dire illness on the third day. Hezekiah gives the "key of

David" to his steward Eliakim, all his authority, as an office to be handed on.

In Isaiah 22:22:

And I will lay the key of the house of David upon his shoulder: and he shall open, and none shall

shut: and he shall shut, and none shall open.

Government shall be upon his shoulder.

In Matthew 6:19, when the Lord speaks to Peter near the source of the Jordan, we read:

And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind uponearth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be loosed

also in heaven.

David's key is again mentioned in Revelation 3:7-8:

And to the angel of the church of Philadelphia write: These things saith the Holy One and the true

one, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth and no man shutteth, shutteth and no man

openeth: I know thy works. Behold, I have given before thee a door opened, which no man can

shut: because thou hast a little strength and hast kept my word and hast not denied my name.



22 of 24

Like the Philadelphians in Revelation 3, we must never deny the Lord.

The Lord who came in history, will come again at history's end. To point the way to His return, He

gave us a visible point of reference, someone to exercise His own authority to open and to shut, to

bind and to loose. He gave us His Church with a Vicar in the person of the Apostle Peter and all of

Peter's successors. The key is David's, which means, it is the Lord's. And that means that the one

who has the keys, acts with Christ's authority, speaks with Christ's voice when he acts and teachesfor the Church.

When the Lord died on His Cross and rose again, He fulfilled the debt incurred in the sin of the

whole human race. He ransomed "captive Israel", the new "Israel", those who belong to Him in His

new covenant. The Lord descended to the place where the faithful dead awaited His coming and

set them free. This is often depicted as the "harrowing of hell". When we are in mortal sin, we are

already in an anticipation of hell. Christ can set you free through the sacramental confession of

your sins to a priest, who unbinds your sins and forgives them with Christ's own authority.


O Oriens

LATIN: O Oriens, splendor lucis aeternae, et sol iustitiae: veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris et

umbra mortis.

ENGLISH: O dawn of the east, brightness of light eternal, and sun of justice: come, and enlighten

those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.



Luke 1:78, 79

Malachi 4:2


O come, Thou Dayspring, come and cheer,

Our spirits by Thine advent here;

Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,

http://www.wdtprs.com/JTZ/o_antiphons/05_O_oriens.mp3






23 of 24

And death's dark shadows put to flight.


REFLECTION: We are all desperately in need of a Savior, a Redeemer who is capable of ransoming

from the darkness of our sins and from the blinding and numbing wound of ignorance from which

we all suffer. In their terrible Fall, our First Parents inflicted grave wounds in the souls of every

person who would live after them, except of course - by an act of singular grace - the Mother of God. Our wills are damaged. Our intellect is clouded. In Christ we have the Truth, the sure

foundation of what is lasting. All else, apart from Him fails and fades into dark obscurity. He

brings clarity and light back to our souls when we are baptized or when we return to Him through

the sacrament of penance.

At Holy Mass of the ancient Church, Christians would face "East", at least symbolically, so that they

could greet the Coming of the Savior, both in the consecration of the bread and wine and in the

expectation of the glorious return of the King of Glory. They turned to the rising sun who is Justice

Itself, whose light will lay bare the truth of our every word, thought and deed in the Final Day.

This is the Solstice day, for the Northern Hemisphere the day which provides us with the least daylight of the year. From this point onward in the globe's majestic arc about the sun, we of the

north, benefit from increasing warmth and illumination. It is as if God in His Wisdom, provided

within the framework of the cosmos object lessons by which we might come to grasp something of

His good plan for our salvation.

Let us turn to the LIGHT, repent our evil ways and habits, and grasp onto Christ in His Holy

Church, for as we read in Scripture:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not

perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but

that the world might be saved through him. He who believes in him is not condemned; he who

does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of

God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness

rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one who does evil hates the light, and

does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.

But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have

been wrought in God."

John 3:16-21 (RSV)



JESUS IS LIGHT OF THE WORLD John 1:1-14

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word

was God.

2 He was in the beginning with God;3 all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made

that was made.

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

7 He came for testimony, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe

through him.

8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light.

9 The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world.10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world

knew him not.

11 He came to his own home, and his own people received him not.

12 But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to

become children of God;

13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man,

but of God.

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we

have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.

Jesse Tree Scripture

Documents

Transcript of Jesse Tree Scripture