Bible Readings for November 9, 2015

Today our passages are Ezekiel 20:1-49; Hebrews 9:11-28; Psalm 107:1-43; and Proverbs 27:11. 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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Ezekiel 20:1-49 (Contemporary English Version)

Ezekiel 20

Israel Keeps On Rebelling

 ¹Seven years after King Jehoiachin and the rest of us had been led away as prisoners to Babylonia, some of Israel's leaders came to me on the tenth day of the fifth month. ^[a] They sat down and asked for a message from the LORD. ²Just then, the LORD God said: ³Ezekiel, son of man, these leaders have come to find out what I want them to do. As surely as I live, I will not give them an answer of any kind.     ⁴Are you willing to warn them, Ezekiel? Then remind them of the disgusting sins of their ancestors.
    ⁵Tell them that long ago I, the LORD God, chose Israel to be my own. I appeared to their ancestors in Egypt and made a solemn promise that I would be their God and the God of their descendants. ⁶I swore that I would rescue them from Egypt and lead them to a land I had already chosen. This land was rich with milk and honey and was the most splendid land of all. ⁷I told them to get rid of their disgusting idols and not to sin by worshiping the gods of Egypt. I reminded them that I was the LORD their God, ⁸but they still rebelled against me. They refused to listen and kept on worshiping their idols and foreign gods.
   In my anger, I decided to punish the Israelites in Egypt. ⁹But that would have made me look like a liar, because I had already promised in front of everyone that I would lead them out of Egypt. ¹⁰So I brought them out and led them into the desert. ¹¹I gave them my laws and teachings, so they would know how to live right. ¹²And I commanded them to respect the Sabbath as a way of showing that they were holy and belonged to me. ¹³But the Israelites rebelled against me in the desert. They refused to obey my laws and teachings, and they treated the Sabbath like any other day.
   Then in my anger, I decided to destroy the Israelites in the desert once and for all. ¹⁴But that would have disgraced me, because many other nations had seen me bring the Israelites out of Egypt. ¹⁵Instead, I told them in the desert that I would not lead them into the beautiful, fertile land I had promised. ¹⁶I said this because they had not only ignored my laws and teachings, but had disgraced my Sabbath and worshiped idols.
    ¹⁷Yet, I felt sorry for them and could not let them die in the desert. ¹⁸So I warned the children not to act like their parents or follow their evil ways or worship their idols. ¹⁹I reminded them that I was the LORD their God and that they should obey my laws and teachings. ²⁰I told them to respect my Sabbath to show that they were my people and that I was the LORD their God. ²¹But the children also rebelled against me. They refused to obey my laws and teachings, and they treated the Sabbath as any other day.
   I became angry and decided to punish them in the desert. ²²But I did not. That would have disgraced me in front of the nations that had seen me bring the Israelites out of Egypt. ²³So I solemnly swore that I would scatter the people of Israel across the nations, ²⁴because they had disobeyed my laws and ignored my teachings; they had disgraced my Sabbath and worshiped the idols their ancestors had made. ²⁵I gave them laws that bring punishment instead of life, ²⁶and I let them offer me unacceptable sacrifices, including their first-born sons. I did this to horrify them and to let them know that I, the LORD, was punishing them.
    ²⁷Ezekiel, tell the people of Israel that their ancestors also rejected and insulted me ²⁸by offering sacrifices, incense, and wine to gods on every hill and under every large tree. I was very angry, because they did these things in the land I had given them! ²⁹I asked them where they went to worship those gods, and they answered, "At the local shrines." ^[b] And those places of worship are still called shrines. ³⁰Then ask the Israelites why they are following the example of their wicked ancestors ³¹by worshiping idols and by sacrificing their own children as offerings. They commit these sins and still think they can ask me for a message. As surely as I am the living LORD God, I will give them no answer. ³²They may think they can be like other nations and get away with worshiping idols made of wood and stone. But that will never happen!
   

The LORD Promises To Restore Israel

The LORD said to the people of Israel:

 ³³As surely as I am the living LORD God, I will rule over you with my powerful arm. You will feel my fierce anger ³⁴and my power, when I gather you from the places where you are scattered ³⁵and lead you into a desert surrounded by nations. I will meet you there face to face. Then I will pass judgment on you ³⁶and punish you, just as I punished your ancestors in the desert near Egypt. ^{[c] 37}I will force each of you to obey the regulations of our solemn agreement. ³⁸I will separate the sinful rebels from the rest of you, and even though I will bring them from the nations where they live in exile, they won't be allowed to return to Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD. ³⁹Go ahead and worship your idols for now, you Israelites, because soon I will no longer let you dishonor me by offering gifts to them. You will have no choice but to obey me! ^{[d] 40}When that day comes, everyone in Israel will worship me on Mount Zion, my holy mountain in Jerusalem. I will once again call you my own, and I will accept your sacred offerings and sacrifices. ⁴¹When I bring you home from the places where you are now scattered, I will be pleased with you, just as I am pleased with the smell of the smoke from your sacrifices. Every nation on earth will see that I am holy, ⁴²and you will know that I, the LORD, am the one who brought you back to Israel, the land I promised your ancestors. ⁴³Then you will remember your wicked sins, and you will hate yourselves for doing such horrible things. They have made you unacceptable to me, ⁴⁴so you deserve to be punished. But I will treat you in a way that will bring honor to my name, and you will know that I am the LORD God.

Fire from the South

 ⁴⁵The LORD said, ⁴⁶"Ezekiel, son of man, turn toward the south and warn the forests ⁴⁷that I, the LORD God, will start a fire that will burn up every tree, whether green or dry. Nothing will be able to put out the blaze of that fire as it spreads to the north and burns everything in its path. ⁴⁸Everyone will know that I started it, and that it cannot be stopped."     ⁴⁹But I complained, "LORD God, I don't want to do that! People already say I confuse them with my messages."
   

Footnotes:

1. Ezekiel 20:1 Seven years. . . fifth month: Probably August of 591 B.C.
2. Ezekiel 20:29 where they went to worship those gods. . . local shrines: In Hebrew "where they went" sounds like "local shrines." These were places to worship foreign gods.
3. Ezekiel 20:36 the desert near Egypt: The Sinai Desert.
4. Ezekiel 20:39 me: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 39.

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Hebrews 9:11-28 (Contemporary English Version)

¹¹Christ came as the high priest of the good things that are now here. ^[a] He also went into a much better tent that wasn't made by humans and that doesn't belong to this world. ¹²Then Christ went once for all into the most holy place and freed us from sin forever. He did this by offering his own blood instead of the blood of goats and bulls. ¹³According to the Law of Moses, those people who become unclean are not fit to worship God. Yet they will be considered clean, if they are sprinkled with the blood of goats and bulls and with the ashes of a sacrificed calf. ¹⁴But Christ was sinless, and he offered himself as an eternal and spiritual sacrifice to God. That's why his blood is much more powerful and makes our ^[b] consciences clear. Now we can serve the living God and no longer do things that lead to death. ¹⁵Christ died to rescue those who had sinned and broken the old agreement. Now he brings his chosen ones a new agreement with its guarantee of God's eternal blessings! ¹⁶In fact, making an agreement of this kind is like writing a will. This is because the one who makes the will must die before it is of any use. ¹⁷In other words, a will doesn't go into effect as long as the one who made it is still alive.
    ¹⁸Blood was also used ^[c] to put the first agreement into effect. ¹⁹Moses told the people all that the Law said they must do. Then he used red wool and a hyssop plant to sprinkle the people and the book of the Law with the blood of bulls and goats ^[d] and with water. ²⁰He told the people, "With this blood God makes his agreement with you." ²¹Moses also sprinkled blood on the tent and on everything else that was used in worship. ²²The Law says that almost everything must be sprinkled with blood, and no sins can be forgiven unless blood is offered.

Christ's Great Sacrifice

 ²³These things are only copies of what is in heaven, and so they had to be made holy by these ceremonies. But the real things in heaven must be made holy by something better. ²⁴This is why Christ did not go into a tent that had been made by humans and was only a copy of the real one. Instead, he went into heaven and is now there with God to help us.     ²⁵Christ did not have to offer himself many times. He wasn't like a high priest who goes into the most holy place each year to offer the blood of an animal. ²⁶If he had offered himself every year, he would have suffered many times since the creation of the world. But instead, near the end of time he offered himself once and for all, so that he could be a sacrifice that does away with sin.
    ²⁷We die only once, and then we are judged. ²⁸So Christ died only once to take away the sins of many people. But when he comes again, it will not be to take away sin. He will come to save everyone who is waiting for him.
   

Footnotes:

1. Hebrews 9:11 that are now here: Some manuscripts have "that were coming."
2. Hebrews 9:14 our: Some manuscripts have "your," and others have "their."
3. Hebrews 9:18 Blood was also used: Or "There also had to be a death."
4. Hebrews 9:19 blood of bulls and goats: Some manuscripts do not have "and goats."

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Psalm 107:1-43 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 107

BOOK V

(Psalms 107-150)

The LORD Is Good to His People

 ¹Shout praises to the LORD!    He is good to us,
   and his love never fails.
    ²Everyone the LORD has rescued
   from trouble
   should praise him,
    ³everyone he has brought
   from the east and the west,
   the north and the south. ^{[a] 4}Some of you were lost
   in the scorching desert,
   far from a town.
    ⁵You were hungry and thirsty
   and about to give up.
    ⁶You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ⁷Right away he brought you
   to a town.
    ⁸You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ⁹To everyone who is thirsty,
   he gives something to drink;
   to everyone who is hungry,
   he gives good things to eat.
    ¹⁰Some of you were prisoners
   suffering in deepest darkness
   and bound by chains,
    ¹¹because you had rebelled
   against God Most High
   and refused his advice.
    ¹²You were worn out
   from working like slaves,
   and no one came to help.
    ¹³You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ¹⁴He brought you out
   of the deepest darkness
   and broke your chains.
    ¹⁵You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ¹⁶He breaks down bronze gates
   and shatters iron locks.
    ¹⁷Some of you had foolishly
   committed a lot of sins
   and were in terrible pain.
    ¹⁸The very thought of food
   was disgusting to you,
   and you were almost dead.
    ¹⁹You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ²⁰By the power of his own word,
   he healed you
   and saved you
   from destruction.
    ²¹You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ²²You should celebrate
   by offering sacrifices
   and singing joyful songs
   to tell what he has done.
    ²³Some of you made a living
   by sailing the mighty sea,
    ²⁴and you saw the miracles
   the LORD performed there.
    ²⁵At his command a storm arose,
   and waves covered the sea.
    ²⁶You were tossed to the sky
   and to the ocean depths,
   until things looked so bad
   that you lost your courage.
    ²⁷You staggered like drunkards
   and gave up all hope.
    ²⁸You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ²⁹He made the storm stop
   and the sea be quiet.
    ³⁰You were happy because of this,
   and he brought you to the port
   where you wanted to go.
    ³¹You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ³²Honor the LORD
   when you
   and your leaders
   meet to worship.
    ³³If you start doing wrong,
   the LORD will turn rivers
   into deserts,
    ³⁴flowing streams
   into scorched land,
   and fruitful fields
   into beds of salt.
    ³⁵But the LORD can also turn
   deserts into lakes
   and scorched land
   into flowing streams.
    ³⁶If you are hungry,
   you can settle there
   and build a town.
    ³⁷You can plant fields
   and vineyards
   that produce
   a good harvest.
    ³⁸The LORD will bless you
   with many children
   and with herds of cattle.
    ³⁹Sometimes you may be crushed
   by troubles and sorrows,
   until only a few of you
   are left to survive.
    ⁴⁰But the LORD will take revenge
   on those who conquer you,
   and he will make them wander
   across desert sands.
    ⁴¹When you are suffering
   and in need,
   he will come to your rescue,
   and your families will grow
   as fast as a herd of sheep.
    ⁴²You will see this because
   you obey the LORD,
   but everyone who is wicked
   will be silenced.
    ⁴³Be wise! Remember this
   and think about the kindness
   of the LORD.
   

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 107:3 south: The Hebrew text has " sea," probably referring to the Mediterranean Sea.

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Proverbs 27:11 (Contemporary English Version)

¹¹My child, show good sense!
   Then I will be happy
   and able to answer anyone
   who criticizes me.

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Verse of the Day

“[An Invitation from the LORD]I, the LORD, invite you to come and talk it over. Your sins are scarlet red, but they will be whiter than snow or wool.” - Isaiah 1:18

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

French author and winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1947, André Gide wrote, “Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.”