Daily Mass Readings for December 21, 2024: Gospel — Lc 1, 39-45

⁸ The Beloved about Her Lover: Listen! My lover is approaching! Look! Here he comes, leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills! ⁹ My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look! There he stands behind our wall, gazing through the window, peering through the lattice. 1 ⁰ The Lover to His Beloved: My lover spoke to me, saying: “Arise, my darling; My beautiful one, come away with me! 1 ¹ Look! The winter has passed, the winter rains are over and gone. 1 ² Blossoms have appeared in the land; the time for pruning and singing has come; the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. 1 ³ The fig tree has ripened its figs; the vines have blossomed and give off their fragrance. Arise, come away my darling; my beautiful one, come away with me!” 1 ⁴ The Lover to His Beloved: O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places of the mountain crags, let me see your face; let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.