chapters of the day 12/24/2009

Daniel 1

1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came and laid siege to Jerusalem.

2 The Lord handed over to him Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and some of the vessels of the temple of God, which he carried off to the land of Shinar, and placed in the temple treasury of his god.

3 The king told Ashpenaz, his chief chamberlain, to bring in some of the Israelites of royal blood and of the nobility,

4 young men without any defect, handsome, intelligent and wise, quick to learn, and prudent in judgment, such as could take their place in the king’s palace; they were to be taught the language and literature of the Chaldeans;

5 after three years’ training they were to enter the king’s service. The king allotted them a daily portion of food and wine from the royal table.

6 Among these were men of Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

7 The chief chamberlain changed their names: Daniel to Belteshazzar, Hananiah to Shadrach, Mishael to Meshach, and Azariah to Abednego.

8 But Daniel was resolved not to defile himself with the king’s food or wine; so he begged the chief chamberlain to spare him this defilement.

9 Though God had given Daniel the favor and sympathy of the chief chamberlain,

10 he nevertheless said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king; it is he who allotted your food and drink. If he sees that you look wretched by comparison with the other young men of your age, you will endanger my life with the king.”

11 Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief chamberlain had put in charge of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,

12 “Please test your servants for ten days. Give us vegetables to eat and water to drink.

13 Then see how we look in comparison with the other young men who eat from the royal table, and treat your servants according to what you see.”

14 He acceded to this request, and tested them for ten days;

15 after ten days they looked healthier and better fed than any of the young men who ate from the royal table.

16 So the steward continued to take away the food and wine they were to receive, and gave them vegetables.

17 To these four young men God gave knowledge and proficiency in all literature and science, and to Daniel the understanding of all visions and dreams.

18 At the end of the time the king had specified for their preparation, the chief chamberlain brought them before Nebuchadnezzar.

19 When the king had spoken with all of them, none was found equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; and so they entered the king’s service.

20 In any question of wisdom or prudence which the king put to them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his kingdom.

21 Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

1 Peter 4

1 Therefore, since Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same attitude (for whoever suffers in the flesh has broken with sin),

2 so as not to spend what remains of one’s life in the flesh on human desires, but on the will of God.

3 For the time that has passed is sufficient for doing what the Gentiles like to do: living in debauchery, evil desires, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and wanton idolatry.

4 They are surprised that you do not plunge into the same swamp of profligacy, and they vilify you;

5 but they will give an account to him who stands ready to judge the living and the dead.

6 For this is why the gospel was preached even to the dead that, though condemned in the flesh in human estimation, they might live in the spirit in the estimation of God.

7 The end of all things is at hand. Therefore, be serious and sober for prayers.

8 Above all, let your love for one another be intense, because love covers a multitude of sins.

9 Be hospitable to one another without complaining.

10 As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace.

11 Whoever preaches, let it be with the words of God; whoever serves, let it be with the strength that God supplies, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

12 Beloved, do not be surprised that a trial by fire is occurring among you, as if something strange were happening to you.

13 But rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that when his glory is revealed you may also rejoice exultantly.

14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

15 But let no one among you be made to suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as an intriguer.

16 But whoever is made to suffer as a Christian should not be ashamed but glorify God because of the name.

17 For it is time for the judgment to begin with the household of God; if it begins with us, how will it end for those who fail to obey the gospel of God?

18 “And if the righteous one is barely saved, where will the godless and the sinner appear?”

19 As a result, those who suffer in accord with God’s will hand their souls over to a faithful creator as they do good.

chapters of the day 12/23/2009

Lamentations 4

1 How tarnished is the gold, how changed the noble metal; How the sacred stones lie strewn at every street corner!

2 Zion’s precious sons, fine gold their counterpart, Now worth no more than earthen jars made by the hands of a potter!

3 Even the jackals bare their breasts and suckle their young; The daughter of my people has become as cruel as the ostrich in the desert.

4 The tongue of the suckling cleaves to the roof of its mouth in thirst; The babes cry for food, but there is no one to give it to them.

5 Those accustomed to dainty food perish in the streets; Those brought up in purple now cling to the ash heaps.

6 The punishment of the daughter of my people is greater than the penalty of Sodom, Which was overthrown in an instant without the turning of a hand.

7 Brighter than snow were her princes, whiter than milk, More ruddy than coral, more precious than sapphire.

8 Now their appearance is blacker than soot, they are unrecognized on the streets; Their skin shrinks on their bones, as dry as wood.

9 Better for those who perish by the sword than for those who die of hunger, Who waste away, as though pierced through, lacking the fruits of the field!

10 The hands of compassionate women boiled their own children, To serve them as mourners’ food in the downfall of the daughter of my people.

11 The LORD has spent his anger, poured out his blazing wrath; He has kindled a fire in Zion that has consumed her foundations.

12 The kings of the earth did not believe, nor any of the world’s inhabitants, That enemy or foe could enter the gates of Jerusalem.

13 Because of the sins of her prophets and the crimes of her priests, Who shed in her midst the blood of the just!–

14 They staggered blindly in the streets, soiled with blood, So that people could not touch even their garments:

15 “Away you unclean!” they cried to them, “Away, away, do not draw near!” If they left and wandered among the nations, nowhere could they remain.

16 The LORD himself has dispersed them, he regards them no more; He does not receive the priests with favor, nor show kindness to the elders.

17 Our eyes ever wasted away, looking in vain for aid; From our watchtower we watched for a nation that could not save us.

18 Men dogged our steps so that we could not walk in our streets; Our end drew near, and came; our time had expired.

19 Our pursuers were swifter than eagles in the air, They harassed us on the mountains and waylaid us in the desert.

20 The anointed one of the LORD, our breath of life, was caught in their snares, He in whose shadow we thought we could live on among the nations.

21 Though you rejoice and are glad, O daughter Edom, you who dwell in the land of Uz, To you also shall the cup be passed; you shall become drunk and naked.

22 Your chastisement is completed, O daughter Zion, he will not prolong your exile; But your wickedness, O daughter Edom, he will punish, he will lay bare your sins.

Hebrews 1

1 In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets;

2 in these last days, he spoke to us through a son, whom he made heir of all things and through whom he created the universe,

3 who is the refulgence of his glory, the very imprint of his being, and who sustains all things by his mighty word. When he had accomplished purification from sins, he took his seat at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

4 as far superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say: “You are my son; this day I have begotten you”? Or again: “I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me”?

6 And again, when he leads the first-born into the world, he says: “Let all the angels of God worship him.”

7 Of the angels he says: “He makes his angels winds and his ministers a fiery flame”;

8 but of the Son: “Your throne, O God, stands forever and ever; and a righteous scepter is the scepter of your kingdom.

9 You loved justice and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions”;

10 and: “At the beginning, O Lord, you established the earth, and the heavens are the works of your hands.

11 They will perish, but you remain; and they will all grow old like a garment.

12 You will roll them up like a cloak, and like a garment they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will have no end.”

13 But to which of the angels has he ever said: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool”?

14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent to serve, for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?

chapters of the day 12/22/2009

Genesis 22

1 Some time after these events, God put Abraham to the test. He called to him, “Abraham!” “Ready!” he replied.

2 Then God said: “Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him up as a holocaust on a height that I will point out to you.”

3 Early the next morning Abraham saddled his donkey, took with him his son Isaac, and two of his servants as well, and with the wood that he had cut for the holocaust, set out for the place of which God had told him.

4 On the third day Abraham got sight of the place from afar.

5 Then he said to his servants: “Both of you stay here with the donkey, while the boy and I go on over yonder. We will worship and then come back to you.”

6 Thereupon Abraham took the wood for the holocaust and laid it on his son Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife.

7 As the two walked on together, Isaac spoke to his father Abraham. “Father!” he said. “Yes, son,” he replied. Isaac continued, “Here are the fire and the wood, but where is the sheep for the holocaust?”

8 “Son,” Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the sheep for the holocaust.” Then the two continued going forward.

9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. Next he tied up his son Isaac, and put him on top of the wood on the altar.

10 Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.

11 But the LORD’S messenger called to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered.

12 “Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger. “Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.”

13 As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.

14 Abraham named the site Yahweh-yireh; hence people now say, “On the mountain the LORD will see.”

15 Again the LORD’S messenger called to Abraham from heaven

16 and said: “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son,

17 I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies,

18 and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing–all this because you obeyed my command.”

19 Abraham then returned to his servants, and they set out together for Beer-sheba, where Abraham made his home.

20 Some time afterward, the news came to Abraham: “Milcah too has borne sons, to your brother Nahor:

21 Uz, his first-born, his brother Buz, Kemuel (the father of Aram),

22 Chesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.”

23 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore to Abraham’s brother Nahor.

24 His concubine, whose name was Reumah, also bore children: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash, and Maacah.

Hebrews 6

1 Therefore, let us leave behind the basic teaching about Christ and advance to maturity, without laying the foundation all over again: repentance from dead works and faith in God,

2 instruction about baptisms and laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment.

3 And we shall do this, if only God permits.

4 For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened and tasted the heavenly gift and shared in the holy Spirit

5 and tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

6 and then have fallen away, to bring them to repentance again, since they are recrucifying the Son of God for themselves and holding him up to contempt.

7 Ground that has absorbed the rain falling upon it repeatedly and brings forth crops useful to those for whom it is cultivated receives a blessing from God.

8 But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is rejected; it will soon be cursed and finally burned.

9 But we are sure in your regard, beloved, of better things related to salvation, even though we speak in this way.

10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones.

11 We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness for the fulfillment of hope until the end,

12 so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who, through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises.

13 When God made the promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, “he swore by himself,”

14 and said, “I will indeed bless you and multiply” you.

15 And so, after patient waiting, he obtained the promise.

16 Human beings swear by someone greater than themselves; for them an oath serves as a guarantee and puts an end to all argument.

17 So when God wanted to give the heirs of his promise an even clearer demonstration of the immutability of his purpose, he intervened with an oath,

18 so that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to hold fast to the hope that lies before us.

19 This we have as an anchor of the soul, sure and firm, which reaches into the interior behind the veil,

20 where Jesus has entered on our behalf as forerunner, becoming high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

chapters of the day 12/21/2009

Jonah 4

1 But this was greatly displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry.

2 “I beseech you, LORD,” he prayed, “is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? This is why I fled at first to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, rich in clemency, loathe to punish.

3 And now, LORD, please take my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.”

4 But the LORD asked, “Have you reason to be angry?”

5 Jonah then left the city for a place to the east of it, where he built himself a hut and waited under it in the shade, to see what would happen to the city.

6 And when the LORD God provided a gourd plant, that grew up over Jonah’s head, giving shade that relieved him of any discomfort, Jonah was very happy over the plant.

7 But the next morning at dawn God sent a worm which attacked the plant, so that it withered.

8 And when the sun arose, God sent a burning east wind; and the sun beat upon Jonah’s head till he became faint. Then he asked for death, saying, “I would be better off dead than alive.”

9 But God said to Jonah, “Have you reason to be angry over the plant?” “I have reason to be angry,” Jonah answered, “angry enough to die.”

10 Then the LORD said, “You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor and which you did not raise; it came up in one night and in one night it perished.

11 And should I not be concerned over Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot distinguish their right hand from their left, not to mention the many cattle?”

Philippians 1

1 Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to all the holy ones in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and ministers:

2 grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you,

4 praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you,

5 because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now.

6 I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.

7 It is right that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.

8 For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

9 And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception,

10 to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,

11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.

12 I want you to know, brothers, that my situation has turned out rather to advance the gospel,

13 so that my imprisonment has become well known in Christ throughout the whole praetorium and to all the rest,

14 and so that the majority of the brothers, having taken encouragement in the Lord from my imprisonment, dare more than ever to proclaim the word fearlessly.

15 Of course, some preach Christ from envy and rivalry, others from good will.

16 The latter act out of love, aware that I am here for the defense of the gospel;

17 the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not from pure motives, thinking that they will cause me trouble in my imprisonment.

18 What difference does it make, as long as in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed? And in that I rejoice. Indeed I shall continue to rejoice,

19 for I know that this will result in deliverance for me through your prayers and support from the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

20 My eager expectation and hope is that I shall not be put to shame in any way, but that with all boldness, now as always, Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.

21 For to me life is Christ, and death is gain.

22 If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose.

23 I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, (for) that is far better.

24 Yet that I remain (in) the flesh is more necessary for your benefit.

25 And this I know with confidence, that I shall remain and continue in the service of all of you for your progress and joy in the faith,

26 so that your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound on account of me when I come to you again.

27 Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear news of you, that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind struggling together for the faith of the gospel,

28 not intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is proof to them of destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing.

29 For to you has been granted, for the sake of Christ, not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him.

30 Yours is the same struggle as you saw in me and now hear about me.

chapters of the day 12/20/2009

Ecclesiastes 3

1 There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens.

2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.

3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to tear down, and a time to build.

4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.

5 A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them; a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.

6 A time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away.

7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to be silent, and a time to speak.

8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

9 What advantage has the worker from his toil?

10 I have considered the task which God has appointed for men to be busied about.

11 He has made everything appropriate to its time, and has put the timeless into their hearts, without men’s ever discovering, from beginning to end, the work which God has done.

12 I recognized that there is nothing better than to be glad and to do well during life.

13 For every man, moreover, to eat and drink and enjoy the fruit of all his labor is a gift of God.

14 I recognized that whatever God does will endure forever; there is no adding to it, or taking from it. Thus has God done that he may be revered.

15 What now is has already been; what is to be, already is; and God restores what would otherwise be displaced.

16 And still under the sun in the judgment place I saw wickedness, and in the seat of justice, iniquity.

17 And I said to myself, both the just and the wicked God will judge, since there is a time for every affair and on every work a judgment.

18 I said to myself: As for the children of men, it is God’s way of testing them and of showing that they are in themselves like beasts.

19 For the lot of man and of beast is one lot; the one dies as well as the other. Both have the same life-breath, and man has no advantage over the beast; but all is vanity.

20 Both go to the same place; both were made from the dust, and to the dust they both return.

21 Who knows if the life-breath of the children of men goes upward and the life-breath of beasts goes earthward?

22 And I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to rejoice in his work; for this is his lot. Who will let him see what is to come after him?

2 Thessalonians 3

1 Finally, brothers, pray for us, so that the word of the Lord may speed forward and be glorified, as it did among you,

2 and that we may be delivered from perverse and wicked people, for not all have faith.

3 But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.

4 We are confident of you in the Lord that what we instruct you, you (both) are doing and will continue to do.

5 May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the endurance of Christ.

6 We instruct you, brothers, in the name of (our) Lord Jesus Christ,to shun any brother who conducts himself in a disorderly way and not according to the tradition they received from us.

7 For you know how one must imitate us. For we did not act in a disorderly way among you,

8 nor did we eat food received free from anyone. On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day we worked, so as not to burden any of you.

9 Not that we do not have the right. Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you, so that you might imitate us.

10 In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat.

11 We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a disorderly way, by not keeping busy but minding the business of others.

12 Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and to eat their own food.

13 But you, brothers, do not be remiss in doing good.

14 If anyone does not obey our word as expressed in this letter, take note of this person not to associate with him, that he may be put to shame.

15 Do not regard him as an enemy but admonish him as a brother.

16 May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.

17 This greeting is in my own hand, Paul’s. This is the sign in every letter; this is how I write.

18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you.

chapters of the day 12/19/2009

Isaiah 24

1 Lo, the LORD empties the land and lays it waste; he turns it upside down, scattering its inhabitants:

2 Layman and priest alike, servant and master, The maid as her mistress, the buyer as the seller, The lender as the borrower, the creditor as the debtor.

3 The earth is utterly laid waste, utterly stripped, for the LORD has decreed this thing.

4 The earth mourns and fades, the world languishes and fades; both heaven and earth languish.

5 The earth is polluted because of its inhabitants, who have transgressed laws, violated statutes, broken the ancient covenant.

6 Therefore a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants pay for their guilt; Therefore they who dwell on earth turn pale, and few men are left.

7 The wine mourns, the vine languishes, all the merry-hearted groan.

8 Stilled are the cheerful timbrels, ended the shouts of the jubilant, stilled is the cheerful harp.

9 They cannot sing and drink wine; strong drink is bitter to those who partake of it.

10 Broken down is the city of chaos, shut against entry, every house.

11 In the streets they cry out for lack of wine; all joy has disappeared and cheer has left the land.

12 In the city nothing remains but ruin; its gates are battered and desolate.

13 Thus it is within the land, and among the peoples, As with an olive tree after it is beaten, as with a gleaning when the vintage is done.

14 These lift up their voice in acclaim; from the sea they proclaim the majesty of the LORD:

15 “For this, in the coastlands, give glory to the LORD! In the coastlands of the sea, to the name of the LORD, the God of Israel!”

16 From the end of the earth we hear songs: “Splendor to the Just One!” But I said, “I am wasted, wasted away. Woe is me! The traitors betray: with treachery have the traitors betrayed!

17 Terror, pit, and trap are upon you, inhabitant of the earth;

18 He who flees at the sound of terror will fall into the pit; He who climbs out of the pit will be caught in the trap. For the windows on high will be opened and the foundations of the earth will shake.

19 The earth will burst asunder, the earth will be shaken apart, the earth will be convulsed.

20 The earth will reel like a drunkard, and it will sway like a hut; Its rebellion will weigh it down, until it falls, never to rise again.”

21 On that day the LORD will punish the host of the heavens in the heavens, and the kings of the earth on the earth.

22 They will be gathered together like prisoners into a pit; They will be shut up in a dungeon, and after many days they will be punished.

23 Then the moon will blush and the sun grow pale, For the LORD of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, glorious in the sight of his elders.

Colossians 4

1 Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, realizing that you too have a Master in heaven.

2 Persevere in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving;

3 at the same time, pray for us, too, that God may open a door to us for the word, to speak of the mystery of Christ, for which I am in prison,

4 that I may make it clear, as I must speak.

5 Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity.

6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you know how you should respond to each one.

7 Tychicus, my beloved brother, trustworthy minister, and fellow slave in the Lord, will tell you all the news of me.

8 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, so that you may know about us and that he may encourage your hearts,

9 together with Onesimus, a trustworthy and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you about everything here.

10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you greetings, as does Mark the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions; if he comes to you, receive him),

11 and Jesus, who is called Justus, who are of the circumcision; these alone are my co-workers for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me.

12 Epaphras sends you greetings; he is one of you, a slave of Christ (Jesus), always striving for you in his prayers so that you may be perfect and fully assured in all the will of God.

13 For I can testify that he works very hard for you and for those in Laodicea and those in Hierapolis.

14 Luke the beloved physician sends greetings, as does Demas.

15 Give greetings to the brothers in Laodicea and to Nympha and to the church in her house.

16 And when this letter is read before you, have it read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and you yourselves read the one from Laodicea.

17 And tell Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you received in the Lord.”

18 The greeting is in my own hand, Paul’s. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.

chapters of the day 12/18/2009

Lamentations 1

1 How lonely she is now, the once crowded city! Widowed is she who was mistress over nations; The princess among the provinces has been made a toiling slave.

2 Bitterly she weeps at night, tears upon her cheeks, With not one to console her of all her dear ones; Her friends have all betrayed her and become her enemies.

3 Judah has fled into exile from oppression and cruel slavery; Yet where she lives among the nations she finds no place to rest: All her persecutors come upon her where she is narrowly confined.

4 The roads to Zion mourn for lack of pilgrims going to her feasts; All her gateways are deserted, her priests groan, Her virgins sigh; she is in bitter grief.

5 Her foes are uppermost, her enemies are at ease; The LORD has punished her for her many sins. Her little ones have gone away, captive before the foe.

6 Gone from daughter Zion is all her glory: Her princes, like rams that find no pasture, Have gone off without strength before their captors.

7 Jerusalem is mindful of the days of her wretched homelessness, When her people fell into enemy hands, and she had no one to help her; When her foes gloated over her, laughed at her ruin.

8 Through the sin of which she is guilty, Jerusalem is defiled; All who esteemed her think her vile now that they see her nakedness; She herself groans and turns away.

9 Her filth is on her skirt; she gave no thought how she would end. Astounding is her downfall, with no one to console her. Look, O LORD, upon her misery, for the enemy has triumphed!

10 The foe stretched out his hand to all her treasures; She has seen those nations enter her sanctuary Whom you forbade to come into your assembly.

11 All her people groan, searching for bread; They give their treasures for food, to retain the breath of life. “Look O LORD, and see how worthless I have become!

12 “Come, all you who pass by the way, look and see Whether there is any suffering like my suffering, which has been dealt me When the LORD afflicted me on the day of his blazing wrath.

13 “From on high he sent fire down into my very frame; He spread a net for my feet, and overthrew me. He left me desolate, in pain all the day.

14 “He has kept watch over my sins; by his hand they have been plaited: They have settled about my neck, he has brought my strength to its knees; The Lord has delivered me into their grip, I am unable to rise.

15 “All the mighty ones in my midst the Lord has cast away; He summoned an army against me to crush my young men; The LORD has trodden in the wine press virgin daughter Judah.

16 “At this I weep, my eyes run with tears: Far from me are all who could console me, any who might revive me; My sons were reduced to silence when the enemy prevailed.”

17 Zion stretched out her hands, but there was no one to console her; The LORD gave orders against Jacob for his neighbors to be his foes; Jerusalem has become in their midst a thing unclean.

18 “The LORD is just; I had defied his command. Listen, all you peoples, and behold my suffering: My maidens and my youths have gone into captivity.

19 “I cried out to my lovers, but they failed me. My priests and my elders perished in the city; Where they sought food for themselves, they found it not.

20 “Look, O LORD, upon my distress: all within me is in ferment, My heart recoils within me from my monstrous rebellion. In the streets the sword bereaves, at home death stalks.

21 “Give heed to my groaning; there is no one to console me. All my enemies rejoice at my misfortune: it is you who have wrought it. Bring on the day you have proclaimed, that they may be even as I.

22 “Let all their evil come before you; deal with them As you have dealt with me for all my sins; My groans are many, and I am sick at heart.”

Mark 9

1 He also said to them, “Amen, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see that the kingdom of God has come in power.”

2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them,

3 and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.

4 Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.

5 Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

6 He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.

7 Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; then from the cloud came a voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”

8 Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them.

9 As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

10 So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant.

11 Then they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

12 He told them, “Elijah will indeed come first and restore all things, yet how is it written regarding the Son of Man that he must suffer greatly and be treated with contempt?

13 But I tell you that Elijah has come and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.”

14 When they came to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and scribes arguing with them.

15 Immediately on seeing him, the whole crowd was utterly amazed. They ran up to him and greeted him.

16 He asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?”

17 Someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I have brought to you my son possessed by a mute spirit.

18 Wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, grinds his teeth, and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive it out, but they were unable to do so.”

19 He said to them in reply, “O faithless generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I endure you? Bring him to me.”

20 They brought the boy to him. And when he saw him, the spirit immediately threw the boy into convulsions. As he fell to the ground, he began to roll around and foam at the mouth.

21 Then he questioned his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” He replied, “Since childhood.

22 It has often thrown him into fire and into water to kill him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

23 Jesus said to him, ” ‘If you can!’ Everything is possible to one who has faith.”

24 Then the boy’s father cried out, “I do believe, help my unbelief!”

25 Jesus, on seeing a crowd rapidly gathering, rebuked the unclean spirit and said to it, “Mute and deaf spirit, I command you: come out of him and never enter him again!”

26 Shouting and throwing the boy into convulsions, it came out. He became like a corpse, which caused many to say, “He is dead!”

27 But Jesus took him by the hand, raised him, and he stood up.

28 When he entered the house, his disciples asked him in private, “Why could we not drive it out?”

29 He said to them, “This kind can only come out through prayer.”

30 They left from there and began a journey through Galilee, but he did not wish anyone to know about it.

31 He was teaching his disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death he will rise.”

32 But they did not understand the saying, and they were afraid to question him.

33 They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, he began to ask them, “What were you arguing about on the way?”

34 But they remained silent. They had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest.

35 Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”

36 Taking a child he placed it in their midst, and putting his arms around it he said to them,

37 “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the one who sent me.”

38 John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.”

39 Jesus replied, “Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me.

40 For whoever is not against us is for us.

41 Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.

42 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe (in me) to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, 10 into the unquenchable fire.

44 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.

45 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,

46 where ‘their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.’

47 “Everyone will be salted with fire.

48 Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid, with what will you restore its flavor? Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.”

chapters of the day 12/17/2009

Jonah 3

1 The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time:

2 “Set out for the great city of Nineveh, and announce to it the message that I will tell you.”

3 So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the LORD’S bidding. Now Nineveh was an enormously large city; it took three days to go through it.

4 Jonah began his journey through the city, and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,”

5 when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.

6 When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in the ashes.

7 Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh, by decree of the king and his nobles: “Neither man nor beast, neither cattle nor sheep, shall taste anything; they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water.

8 Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God; every man shall turn from his evil way and from the violence he has in hand.

9 Who knows, God may relent and forgive, and withhold his blazing wrath, so that we shall not perish.”

10 When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.

Romans 5

1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

2 through whom we have gained access (by faith) to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God.

3 Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance,

4 and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope,

5 and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us.

6 For Christ, while we were still helpless, yet died at the appointed time for the ungodly.

7 Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die.

8 But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.

9 How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath.

10 Indeed, if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more, once reconciled, will we be saved by his life.

11 Not only that, but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

12 Therefore, just as through one person sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all, inasmuch as all sinned–

13 for up to the time of the law, sin was in the world, though sin is not accounted when there is no law.

14 But death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin after the pattern of the trespass of Adam, who is the type of the one who was to come.

15 But the gift is not like the transgression. For if by that one person’s transgression the many died, how much more did the grace of God and the gracious gift of the one person Jesus Christ overflow for the many.

16 And the gift is not like the result of the one person’s sinning. For after one sin there was the judgment that brought condemnation; but the gift, after many transgressions, brought acquittal.

17 For if, by the transgression of one person, death came to reign through that one, how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of justification come to reign in life through the one person Jesus Christ.

18 In conclusion, just as through one transgression condemnation came upon all, so through one righteous act acquittal and life came to all.

19 For just as through the disobedience of one person the many were made sinners, so through the obedience of one the many will be made righteous.

20 The law entered in so that transgression might increase but, where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more,

21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through justification for eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

chapters of the day 12/16/2009

1 Kings 18

1 Long afterward, in the third year, the LORD spoke to Elijah, “Go, present yourself to Ahab,” he said, “that I may send rain upon the earth.”

2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab.

3 Now the famine in Samaria was bitter,

4 and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, his vizier, who was a zealous follower of the LORD. When Jezebel was murdering the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah took a hundred prophets, hid them away fifty each in two caves, and supplied them with food and drink.

5 Ahab said to Obadiah, “Come, let us go through the land to all sources of water and to all the streams. We may find grass and save the horses and mules, so that we shall not have to slaughter any of the beasts.”

6 Dividing the land to explore between them, Ahab went one way by himself, Obadiah another way by himself.

7 As Obadiah was on his way, Elijah met him. Recognizing him, Obadiah fell prostrate and asked, “Is it you, my lord Elijah?”

8 “Yes,” he answered. “Go tell your master, ‘Elijah is here!’”

9 But Obadiah said, “What sin have I committed, that you are handing me over to Ahab to have me killed?

10 As the LORD, your God, lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent in search of you. When they replied, ‘He is not here,’ he made each kingdom and nation swear they could not find you.

11 And now you say, ‘Go tell your master: Elijah is here!’

12 After I leave you, the spirit of the LORD will carry you to some place I do not know, and when I go to inform Ahab and he does not find you, he will kill me. Your servant has revered the LORD from his youth.

13 Have you not been told, my lord, what I did when Jezebel was murdering the prophets of the LORD–that I hid a hundred of the prophets of the LORD, fifty each in two caves, and supplied them with food and drink?

14 And now you say, ‘Go tell your master: Elijah is here!’ He will kill me!”

15 Elijah answered, “As the LORD of hosts lives, whom I serve, I will present myself to him today.”

16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and informed him. Ahab came to meet Elijah,

17 and when he saw Elijah, said to him, “Is it you, you disturber of Israel?”

18 “It is not I who disturb Israel,” he answered, “but you and your family, by forsaking the commands of the LORD and following the Baals.

19 Now summon all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, as well as the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

20 So Ahab sent to all the Israelites and had the prophets assemble on Mount Carmel.

21 Elijah appealed to all the people and said, “How long will you straddle the issue? If the LORD is God, follow him; if Baal, follow him.” The people, however, did not answer him.

22 So Elijah said to the people, “I am the only surviving prophet of the LORD, and there are four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal.

23 Give us two young bulls. Let them choose one, cut it into pieces, and place it on the wood, but start no fire. I shall prepare the other and place it on the wood, but shall start no fire.

24 You shall call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The God who answers with fire is God.” All the people answered, “Agreed!”

25 Elijah then said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one young bull and prepare it first, for there are more of you. Call upon your gods, but do not start the fire.”

26 Taking the young bull that was turned over to them, they prepared it and called on Baal from morning to noon, saying, “Answer us, Baal!” But there was no sound, and no one answering. And they hopped around the altar they had prepared.

27 When it was noon, Elijah taunted them: “Call louder, for he is a god and may be meditating, or may have retired, or may be on a journey. Perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.”

28 They called out louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until blood gushed over them.

29 Noon passed and they remained in a prophetic state until the time for offering sacrifice. But there was not a sound; no one answered, and no one was listening.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” When they had done so, he repaired the altar of the LORD which had been destroyed.

31 He took twelve stones, for the number of tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the LORD had said, “Your name shall be Israel.”

32 He built an altar in honor of the LORD with the stones, and made a trench around the altar large enough for two seahs of grain.

33 When he had arranged the wood, he cut up the young bull and laid it on the wood.

34 “Fill four jars with water,” he said, “and pour it over the holocaust and over the wood.” “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again. “Do it a third time,” he said, and they did it a third time.

35 The water flowed around the altar, and the trench was filled with the water.

36 At the time for offering sacrifice, the prophet Elijah came forward and said, “LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things by your command.

37 Answer me, LORD! Answer me, that this people may know that you, LORD, are God and that you have brought them back to their senses.”

38 The LORD’S fire came down and consumed the holocaust, wood, stones, and dust, and it lapped up the water in the trench.

39 Seeing this, all the people fell prostrate and said, “The LORD is God! The LORD is God!”

40 Then Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal. Let none of them escape!” They were seized, and Elijah had them brought down to the brook Kishon and there he slit their throats.

41 Elijah then said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.”

42 So Ahab went up to eat and drink, while Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, crouched down to the earth, and put his head between his knees.

43 “Climb up and look out to sea,” he directed his servant, who went up and looked, but reported, “There is nothing.” Seven times he said, “Go look again!”

44 And the seventh time the youth reported, “There is a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising from the sea.” Elijah said, “Go and say to Ahab, ‘Harness up and leave the mountain before the rain stops you.’”

45 In a trice, the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and a heavy rain fell. Ahab mounted his chariot and made for Jezreel.

46 But the hand of the LORD was on Elijah, who girded up his clothing and ran before Ahab as far as the approaches to Jezreel.

Romans 13

1 Let every person be subordinate to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been established by God.

2 Therefore, whoever resists authority opposes what God has appointed, and those who oppose it will bring judgment upon themselves.

3 For rulers are not a cause of fear to good conduct, but to evil. Do you wish to have no fear of authority? Then do what is good and you will receive approval from it,

4 for it is a servant of God for your good. But if you do evil, be afraid, for it does not bear the sword without purpose; it is the servant of God to inflict wrath on the evildoer.

5 Therefore, it is necessary to be subject not only because of the wrath but also because of conscience.

6 This is why you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.

7 Pay to all their dues, taxes to whom taxes are due, toll to whom toll is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.

8 Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; you shall not kill; you shall not steal; you shall not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this saying, (namely) “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

10 Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.

11 And do this because you know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed;

12 the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness (and) put on the armor of light;

13 let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day, 4 not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and licentiousness, not in rivalry and jealousy.

14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.

chapters of the day 12/15/2009

Zechariah 4

1 Then I said to the angel who spoke with me, “What are these things, my lord?”

2 And the angel who spoke with me replied, “Do you not know what these things are?” “No, my lord,” I answered.

3 Then he said to me, “This is the LORD’S message to Zerubbabel: Not by an army, nor by might, but by my spirit, says the LORD of hosts.

4 What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you are but a plain. He shall bring out the capstone amid exclamations of ‘Hail, Hail’ to it.”

5 This word of the LORD then came to me:

6 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this house, and his hands shall finish it; then you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.

7 For even they who were scornful on that day of small beginnings shall rejoice to see the select stone in the hands of Zerubbabel. These seven facets are the eyes of the LORD that range over the whole earth.

8 Then the angel who spoke with me returned and awakened me, like a man awakened from his sleep.

9 “What do you see?” he asked me. “I see a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl at the top,” I replied; “on it are seven lamps with their tubes,

10 and beside it are two olive trees, one on the right and the other on the left.”

11 I then asked him, “What are these two olive trees at each side of the lampstand?”

12 And again I asked, “What are the two olive tufts which freely pour out fresh oil through the two golden channels?”

13 “Do you not know what these are?” he said to me. “No, my lord,” I answered him.

14 He said, “These are the two anointed who stand by the LORD of the whole earth.”

1 Corinthians 8

1 Now in regard to meat sacrificed to idols: we realize that “all of us have knowledge”; knowledge inflates with pride, but love builds up.

2 If anyone supposes he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know.

3 But if one loves God, one is known by him.

4 So about the eating of meat sacrificed to idols: we know that “there is no idol in the world,” and that “there is no God but one.”

5 Indeed, even though there are so-called gods in heaven and on earth (there are, to be sure, many “gods” and many “lords”),

6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom all things are and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things are and through whom we exist.

7 But not all have this knowledge. There are some who have been so used to idolatry up until now that, when they eat meat sacrificed to idols, their conscience, which is weak, is defiled.

8 Now food will not bring us closer to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, nor are we better off if we do.

9 But make sure that this liberty of yours in no way becomes a stumbling block to the weak.

10 If someone sees you, with your knowledge, reclining at table in the temple of an idol, may not his conscience too, weak as it is, be “built up” to eat the meat sacrificed to idols?

11 Thus through your knowledge, the weak person is brought to destruction, the brother for whom Christ died.

12 When you sin in this way against your brothers and wound their consciences, weak as they are, you are sinning against Christ.

13 Therefore, if food causes my brother to sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I may not cause my brother to sin.