Daily Readings - 18/10/2026

^45:1 Thus says Yahweh to his anointed, to Cyrus, whom he has taken by his right hand to subdue nations before him and strip the loins of kings,[*a] to force gateways before him that their gates be closed no more:

^45:4 It is for the sake of my servant Jacob, of Israel my chosen one, that I have called you by your name, conferring a title though you do not know me.

^45:5 I am Yahweh, unrivalled; there is no other God besides me. Though you do not know me, I arm you

^45:6 that men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun that, apart from me, all is nothing.

^95:1 Come, let us praise Yahweh joyfully, acclaiming the Rock of our safety;

^95:2 let us come into his presence with thanksgiving, acclaiming him with music.

^95:3 For Yahweh is a great God, a greater King than all other gods;

^95:4 from depths of earth to mountain top everything comes under his rule;

^95:5 the sea belongs to him, he made it, so does the land, he shaped this too.

^95:6 Come in, let us bow, prostrate ourselves, and kneel in front of Yahweh our maker,

^95:7 for this is our God, and we are the people he pastures, the flock that he guides. If only you would listen to him today,

^95:8 ‘Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness,[*a]

^95:9 when your ancestors challenged me, tested me, although they had seen what I could do.

^95:10 ‘For forty years that generation repelled me, until I said: How unreliable these people who refuse to grasp my ways!

^95:11 And so, in anger, I swore that not one would reach the place of rest I had for them.’

^22:15 Then the Pharisees went away to work out between them how to trap him in what he said.

^22:16 And they sent their disciples to him, together with the Herodians,[*a] to say, ‘Master, we know that you are an honest man and teach the way of God in an honest way, and that you are not afraid of anyone, because a man’s rank means nothing to you.

^22:17 Tell us your opinion, then. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not?’

^22:18 But Jesus was aware of their malice and replied, ‘You hypocrites! Why do you set this trap for me?

^22:19 Let me see the money you pay the tax with.’ They handed him a denarius,

^22:20 and he said, ‘Whose head is this? Whose name?’

^22:21 ‘Caesar’s’ they replied. He then said to them, ‘Very well, give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar – and to God what belongs to God’.