Bible Readings for October 3, 2015

Today our passages are Jeremiah 1:1–2:30; Philippians 4:1-23; Psalm 75:1-10; and Proverbs 24:17-20. The readings are from the Contemporary English Version. If you find these readings helpful, please consider sending an offering directly to Cove Presbyterian Church, 3404 Main Street, Weirton, West Virginia or through PayPal. 

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Jeremiah 1-2:30 (Contemporary English Version)

Jeremiah 1

 ¹My name is Jeremiah. I am a priest, and my father Hilkiah and everyone else in my family are from Anathoth in the territory of the Benjamin tribe. This book contains the things that the LORD told me to say. ²The LORD first spoke to me in the thirteenth year that Josiah ^[a] was king of Judah, ³and he continued to speak to me during the rule of Josiah's son Jehoiakim. ^[b] The last time the LORD spoke to me was in the fifth month ^[c] of the eleventh year that Josiah's son Zedekiah ^[d] was king. That was also when the people of Jerusalem were taken away as prisoners.

The LORD Chooses Jeremiah

 ⁴The LORD said:     ⁵"Jeremiah, I am your Creator,
   and before you were born,
   I chose you to speak for me
   to the nations."
    ⁶I replied, "I'm not a good speaker, LORD, and I'm too young."
    ⁷"Don't say you're too young," the LORD answered. "If I tell you to go and speak to someone, then go! And when I tell you what to say, don't leave out a word! ⁸I promise to be with you and keep you safe, so don't be afraid."
    ⁹The LORD reached out his hand, then he touched my mouth and said, "I am giving you the words to say, ¹⁰and I am sending you with authority to speak to the nations for me. You will tell them of doom and destruction, and of rising and rebuilding again."
    ¹¹The LORD showed me something in a vision. Then he asked, "What do you see, Jeremiah?"
   I answered, "A branch of almonds that ripen early."
    ¹²"That's right," the LORD replied, "and I always rise early ^[e] to keep a promise." ¹³Then the LORD showed me something else and asked, "What do you see now?"
   I answered, "I see a pot of boiling water in the north, and it's about to spill out toward us."
    ¹⁴The LORD said:
   I will pour out destruction
   all over the land.
    ¹⁵Just watch while I send
   for the kings of the north.
   They will attack and capture
   Jerusalem and other towns,
   then set up their thrones
   at the gates of Jerusalem.
    ¹⁶I will punish my people,
   because they are guilty
   of turning from me
   to worship idols.
    ¹⁷Jeremiah, get ready!
   Go and tell the people
   what I command you to say.
   Don't be frightened by them,
   or I will make you terrified
   while they watch.
    ¹⁸My power will make you strong
   like a fortress
   or a column of iron
   or a wall of bronze.
   You will oppose all of Judah,
   including its kings and leaders,
   its priests and people.
    ¹⁹They will fight back,
   but they won't win.
   I, the LORD, give my word--
   I won't let them harm you.
   

Jeremiah 2

Israel's Unfaithfulness

 ¹The LORD told me ²to go to Jerusalem and tell everyone that he had said:    When you were my young bride,
   you loved me
   and followed me
   through the barren desert.
    ³You belonged to me alone,
   like the first part of the harvest,
   and I severely punished
   those who mistreated you.
    ⁴Listen, people of Israel, ^{[f] 5}and I, the LORD, will speak.
   I was never unfair
   to your ancestors,
   but they left me
   and became worthless
   by following worthless idols.
    ⁶Your ancestors refused
   to ask for my help,
   though I had rescued them
   from Egypt
   and led them through
   a treacherous, barren desert,
   where no one lives
   or dares to travel.
    ⁷I brought you here to my land,
   where food is abundant,
   but you made my land filthy
   with your sins.
    ⁸The priests who teach my laws
   don't care to know me.
   Your leaders rebel against me;
   your prophets
   give messages from Baal
   and worship false gods.
   

The LORD Accuses His People

 ⁹I will take you to court    and accuse you
   and your descendants
    ¹⁰of a crime that no nation
   has ever committed before.
   Just ask anyone, anywhere,
   from the eastern deserts
   to the islands in the west.
    ¹¹You will find that no nation
   has ever abandoned its gods
   even though they were false.
   I am the true and glorious God,
   but you have rejected me
   to worship idols.
    ¹²Tell the heavens
   to tremble with fear!
    ¹³You, my people, have sinned
   in two ways--
   you have rejected me,
   the source
   of life-giving water,
   and you've tried to collect water
   in cracked and leaking pits
   dug in the ground.
    ¹⁴People of Israel,
   you weren't born slaves;
   you were captured in war.
    ¹⁵Enemies roared like lions
   and destroyed your land;
   towns lie burned and empty.
    ¹⁶Soldiers from the Egyptian towns
   of Memphis and Tahpanhes
   have cracked your skulls.
    ¹⁷It's all your own fault!
   You stopped following me,
   the LORD your God,
    ¹⁸and you trusted the power
   of Egypt and Assyria. ^{[g] 19}Your own sins will punish you,
   because it was a bitter mistake
   for you to reject me
   without fear of punishment.
   I, the LORD All-Powerful,
   have spoken.
    ²⁰Long ago you left me
   and broke all ties between us,
   refusing to be my servant.
   Now you worship other gods
   by having sex
   on hilltops or in the shade
   of large trees. ^{[h] 21}You were a choice grapevine,
   but now you produce nothing
   but small, rotten grapes.
   

Israel Is Stained with Guilt

 ²²The LORD said:    People of Israel,
   you are stained with guilt,
   and no soap or bleach
   can wash it away.
    ²³You deny your sins
   and say, "We aren't unclean.
   We haven't worshiped Baal." ^[i] But think about what you do
   in Hinnom Valley. ^[j] And you run back and forth
   like young camels,
   as you rush to worship one idol
   after another.
    ²⁴You are a female donkey
   sniffing the desert air,
   wanting to mate
   with just anyone.
   You are an easy catch!
    ²⁵Your shoes are worn out,
   and your throat is parched
   from running here and there
   to worship foreign gods.
   "Stop!" I shouted,
   but you replied, "No!
   I love those gods too much."
    ²⁶You and your leaders
   are more disgraceful
   than thieves--
   you and your kings,
   your priests and prophets
    ²⁷worship stone idols
   and sacred poles
   as if they had created you
   and had given you life.
   You have rejected me,
   but when you're in trouble,
   you cry to me for help.
    ²⁸Go cry to the gods you made!
   There should be enough of them
   to save you,
   because Judah has as many gods
   as it has towns.
   

Israel Rebels against the LORD

 ²⁹The LORD said to Israel:    You accuse me of not saving you,
   but I say you have rebelled.
    ³⁰I tried punishing you,
   but you refused
   to come back to me,
   and like fierce lions
   you killed my prophets.
   

Footnotes:

1. Jeremiah 1:2 Josiah: Ruled 640-609 B.C.
2. Jeremiah 1:3 Jehoiakim: Ruled 609-598 B.C.
3. Jeremiah 1:3 fifth month: Ab, the fifth month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-July to mid-August.
4. Jeremiah 1:3 Zedekiah: Ruled 598-586 B.C.
5. Jeremiah 1:12 almonds. . . rise early: In Hebrew "almonds that ripen early" sounds like "always rise early."
6. Jeremiah 2:4 Israel: After the nation was divided, the northern kingdom was called "Israel," and the southern kingdom was called "Judah" (see 1 Kings 12.1-20). In 722 B.C. the Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom, and Judah was all that was left. And so in the book of Jeremiah the name "Israel" is most often used of the southern kingdom.
7. Jeremiah 2:18 trusted. . . Assyria: Hebrew "went to Egypt and drank from the Shihor River, and you went to Assyria and drank from the Euphrates River."
8. Jeremiah 2:20 having sex. . . trees: In some Canaanite religions, worshipers had sex with temple prostitutes, who represented their gods; many of the Canaanite places of worship were on hilltops or under large trees.
9. Jeremiah 2:23 Baal: The Hebrew text has "the Baals," probably because the god Baal was believed to be present in different forms at different places of worship.
10. Jeremiah 2:23 Hinnom Valley: Hebrew "the valley" (see 7.31-32; 19.1-6).

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Philippians 4:1-23 (Contemporary English Version)

Philippians 4

 ¹Dear friends, I love you and long to see you. Please keep on being faithful to the Lord. You are my pride and joy.    

Paul Encourages the Lord's Followers

 ²Euodia and Syntyche, you belong to the Lord, so I beg you to stop arguing with each other. ³And, my true partner, ^[a] I ask you to help them. These women have worked together with me and with Clement and with the others in spreading the good news. Their names are now written in the book of life. ^{[b] 4}Always be glad because of the Lord! I will say it again: Be glad. ⁵Always be gentle with others. The Lord will soon be here. ⁶Don't worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. ⁷Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.     ⁸Finally, my friends, keep your minds on whatever is true, pure, right, holy, friendly, and proper. Don't ever stop thinking about what is truly worthwhile and worthy of praise. ⁹You know the teachings I gave you, and you know what you heard me say and saw me do. So follow my example. And God, who gives peace, will be with you.
   

Paul Gives Thanks for the Gifts He Was Given

 ¹⁰The Lord has made me very grateful that at last you have thought about me once again. Actually, you were thinking about me all along, but you didn't have any chance to show it. ¹¹I am not complaining about having too little. I have learned to be satisfied with ^[c] whatever I have. ¹²I know what it is to be poor or to have plenty, and I have lived under all kinds of conditions. I know what it means to be full or to be hungry, to have too much or too little. ¹³Christ gives me the strength to face anything. ¹⁴It was good of you to help me when I was having such a hard time. ¹⁵My friends at Philippi, you remember what it was like when I started preaching the good news in Macedonia. ^[d] After I left there, you were the only church that became my partner by giving blessings and by receiving them in return. ¹⁶Even when I was in Thessalonica, you helped me more than once. ¹⁷I am not trying to get something from you, but I want you to receive the blessings that come from giving. ¹⁸I have been paid back everything, and with interest. I am completely satisfied with the gifts that you had Epaphroditus bring me. They are like a sweet-smelling offering or like the right kind of sacrifice that pleases God. ¹⁹I pray that God will take care of all your needs with the wonderful blessings that come from Christ Jesus! ²⁰May God our Father be praised forever and ever. Amen.    

Final Greetings

 ²¹Give my greetings to all who are God's people because of Christ Jesus.    The Lord's followers here with me send you their greetings.
    ²²All of God's people send their greetings, especially those in the service of the Emperor.
    ²³I pray that our Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you and will bless your life!
   

Footnotes:

1. Philippians 4:3 partner: Or "Syzygus," a person's name.
2. Philippians 4:3 the book of life: A book in which the names of God's people are written.
3. Philippians 4:11 be satisfied with: Or "get by on."
4. Philippians 4:15 when I started preaching the good news in Macedonia: Paul is talking about his first visit to Philippi (see Acts 16.12-40).

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Psalm 75:1-10 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 75

(A psalm and a song by Asaph for the music leader. To the tune "Don't Destroy." (Psalm 75 Don't Destroy: See the note at Psalm 57.) )

Praise God for All He Has Done

 ¹Our God, we thank you    for being so near to us!
   Everyone celebrates
   your wonderful deeds.
    ²You have set a time
   to judge with fairness.
    ³The earth trembles,
   and its people shake;
   you alone keep
   its foundations firm.
    ⁴You tell every bragger,
   "Stop bragging!"
   And to the wicked you say,
   "Don't boast of your power!
    ⁵Stop bragging! Quit telling me
   how great you are."
    ⁶Our LORD and our God,
   victory doesn't come
   from the east or the west
   or from the desert.
    ⁷You are the one who judges.
   You can take away power
   and give it to others.
    ⁸You hold in your hand
   a cup filled with wine, ^[a] strong and foaming.
   You will pour out some
   for every sinful person
   on this earth,
   and they will have to drink
   until it is gone.
    ⁹But I will always tell about
   you, the God of Jacob,
   and I will sing your praise.
    ¹⁰Our Lord, you will destroy
   the power of evil people,
   but you will give strength
   to those who are good.
   

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 75:8 a cup. . . wine: In the Old Testament " a cup filled with wine" sometimes stands for God's anger.

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Proverbs 24:17-20 (Contemporary English Version)

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 ¹⁷ Don't be happy    to see your enemies trip
   and fall down.
    ¹⁸The LORD will find out
   and be unhappy.
   Then he will stop
   being angry with them.
   

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 ¹⁹ Don't let evil people    worry you
   or make you jealous.
    ²⁰They will soon be gone
   like the flame of a lamp
   that burns out.

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Verse of the Day

“[A Real Reason for Hope]Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on.” - 1 Peter 1:3

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

English dramatist, translator, and poet, George Chapman wrote, “They're only truly great who are truly good.”