The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior and a savior. He will rejoice over you with gladness and renew you through his love. He will exult over you with shouts of joy.
Rejoice with all your heart, O daughter Zion. Shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem. See, your king is coming to you, triumphant and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Sing to God, sing praise to his name; exalt him who rides upon the clouds. Rejoice in the presence of this God whose name is the Lord. The Father of orphans and the defender of widows: such is God in his holy dwelling place.
Even though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, even though the olive crop will fail and the orchards will yield no food, even though the flock is cut off from the fold and there is no herd in the stalls, I will continue to rejoice in the Lord, and exult in the God of my salvation.
I rejoice in the Lord with all my heart; my soul exults in my God. For he has clothed me in garments of salvation and wrapped me in a robe of saving justice, like a bridegroom adorned with a garland or a bride bedecked with her jewels.
Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with a joy that is indescribable and glorious. For you are achieving the goal of your faith, that is, the salvation of your souls.
Moreover, the one to whom God grants wealth and possessions and the ability to enjoy them and to find contentment in his toil receives a gift from God.
Do I derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? asks the Lord God. Would I not rather rejoice to see them turn away from their wickedness and live?
For this reason, I rejoice when I endure weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and distress for the sake of Christ. For it is when I am weak that I am strong.
And not only that, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we realize that suffering develops perseverance, and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope.
I understand that man’s greatest happiness is to be glad and do well throughout his life. And when we eat and drink and find satisfaction in all our labors, this is a gift of God.