Bible Readings for December 20, 2015

Today our passages are Haggai 1:1–2:23; Revelation 11:1-9; Psalm 139:1-24; and Proverbs 30:15-16. 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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Haggai 1-2:23 (Contemporary English Version)

Haggai 1

Rebuild the Temple

 ¹On the first day of the sixth month of the second year that Darius was king of Persia, ^[a] the LORD told Haggai the prophet to speak his message to the governor of Judah and to the high priest. So Haggai told Governor Zerubbabel and High Priest Joshua ^[b]    ^2-5that the LORD All-Powerful had said to them and to the people: You say this isn't the right time to build a temple for me. But is it right for you to live in expensive houses, ^[c] while my temple is a pile of ruins? Just look at what's happening.
   ⁶You harvest less than you plant, you never have enough to eat or drink, your clothes don't keep you warm, and your wages are stored in bags full of holes.
   ⁷Think about what I have said!
   ⁸But first, go to the hills and get wood for my temple, so I can take pride in it and be worshiped there.
   ⁹You expected much, but received only a little. And when you brought it home, I made that little disappear. Why have I done this? It's because you hurry off to build your own houses, while my temple is still in ruins.
   ¹⁰That's also why the dew doesn't fall and your harvest fails.
   ¹¹And so, at my command everything will become barren--your farmland and pastures, your vineyards and olive trees, your animals and you yourselves. All your hard work will be for nothing.
   ¹²Zerubbabel and Joshua, together with the others who had returned from exile in Babylonia, obeyed the LORD's message spoken by his prophet Haggai, and they started showing proper respect for the LORD.
   ¹³Haggai then told them that the LORD had promised to be with them.
   ¹⁴So the LORD God All-Powerful made everyone eager to work on his temple, especially Zerubbabel and Joshua.
   ¹⁵And the work began on the twenty-fourth day of that same month.
   

Haggai 2

The Glorious New Temple

 ^1-2On the twenty-first day of the next month, ^[d] the LORD told Haggai the prophet to speak this message to Governor Zerubbabel, High Priest Joshua, and everyone else:    ³Does anyone remember how glorious this temple used to be? Now it looks like nothing.
   ⁴But cheer up! Because I, the LORD All-Powerful, will be here to help you with the work,
   ⁵just as I promised your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt. Don't worry. My Spirit is ^[e] right here with you.
   ⁶Soon I will again shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.
   ⁷I will shake the nations, and their treasures ^[f] will be brought here. Then the brightness of my glory will fill this temple.
   ⁸All silver and gold belong to me,
   ⁹and I promise that this new temple will be more glorious than the first one. I will also bless this city ^[g] with peace.
   

The Past and the Future

 ¹⁰On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, ^[h] the LORD God All-Powerful told the prophet Haggai    ¹¹to ask the priests for their opinion on the following matter:
   ¹²Suppose meat ready to be sacrificed to God is being carried in the folds of someone's clothing, and the clothing rubs against some bread or stew or wine or olive oil or any other food. Would those foods that were touched then become acceptable for sacrifice?
   "Of course not," the priests answered.
   ¹³Then Haggai said, "Suppose someone has touched a dead body and is considered unacceptable to worship God. If that person touches these foods, would they become unclean?"
   "Of course they would," the priests answered.
   ¹⁴So the LORD told Haggai to say:
   That's how it is with this entire nation. Everything you do and every sacrifice you offer is unacceptable to me.
   ¹⁵But from now on, things will get better. Before you started laying the foundation for the temple,
   ¹⁶you recalled what life was like in the past. ^[i] When you wanted twenty bushels of wheat, there were only ten, and when you wanted fifty jars of wine, there were only twenty.
   ¹⁷I made all of your hard work useless by sending mildew, mold, and hail--but you still did not return to me, your LORD.
   ¹⁸Today you have completed the foundation for my temple, so listen to what your future will be like.
   ¹⁹Although you have not yet harvested any grain, grapes, figs, pomegranates, ^[j] or olives, I will richly bless you in the days ahead.
   

God's Promise to Zerubbabel

 ²⁰That same day the LORD spoke to Haggai again and said:    ²¹Tell Governor Zerubbabel of Judah that I am going to shake the heavens and the earth
   ²²and wipe out kings and their kingdoms. I will overturn war chariots, and then cavalry troops will start slaughtering each other.
   ²³But tell my servant Zerubbabel that I, the LORD All-Powerful, have chosen him, and he will rule in my name. ^[k]
   

Footnotes:

1. Haggai 1:1 sixth month. . . king of Persia: Elul, the sixth month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-August to mid-September; the second year of the rule of Darius was 520 B.C.
2. Haggai 1:1 Governor. . . Joshua: Hebrew "Governor Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak."
3. Haggai 1:2 expensive houses: Either houses with paneled interiors or with roofs; the temple was not yet completely rebuilt at this time.
4. Haggai 2:1 the next month: Tishri (also called Ethanim), the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-September to mid-October (see the note at 1.1).
5. Haggai 2:5 My Spirit is: Or "I am."
6. Haggai 2:7 their treasures: Hebrew "what they most desire."
7. Haggai 2:9 city: Or "temple."
8. Haggai 2:10 ninth month: Chislev, the ninth month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-November to mid-December.
9. Haggai 2:16 you recalled. . . past: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
10. Haggai 2:19 pomegranates: A bright red fruit that looks like an apple.
11. Haggai 2:23 rule in my name: The Hebrew text has "be my signet ring," which signified authority.

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Revelation 11:1-9 (Contemporary English Version)

Revelation 11

The Two Witnesses

 ¹An angel gave me a measuring stick and said:    Measure around God's temple. Be sure to include the altar and everyone worshiping there. ²But don't measure the courtyard outside the temple building. Leave it out. It has been given to those people who don't know God, and they will trample all over the holy city for forty-two months. ³My two witnesses will wear sackcloth, ^[a] while I let them preach for one thousand two hundred sixty days. ⁴These two witnesses are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand in the presence of the Lord who rules the earth. ⁵Any enemy who tries to harm them will be destroyed by the fire that comes out of their mouths. ⁶They have the power to lock up the sky and to keep rain from falling while they are prophesying. And whenever they want to, they can turn water to blood and cause all kinds of terrible troubles on earth.
    ⁷After the two witnesses have finished preaching God's message, the beast that lives in the deep pit will come up and fight against them. It will win the battle and kill them. ⁸Their bodies will be left lying in the streets of the same great city where their Lord was nailed to a cross. And that city is spiritually like the city of Sodom or the country of Egypt.
    ⁹For three and a half days the people of every nation, tribe, language, and race will stare at the bodies of these two witnesses and refuse to let them be buried.

Footnotes:

1. Revelation 11:3 sackcloth: See the note at 6.12.

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Psalm 139:1-24 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 139

(A psalm by David for the music leader.)

The LORD Is Always Near

 ¹You have looked deep    into my heart, LORD,
   and you know all about me.
    ²You know when I am resting
   or when I am working,
   and from heaven
   you discover my thoughts.
    ³You notice everything I do
   and everywhere I go.
    ⁴Before I even speak a word,
   you know what I will say,
    ⁵and with your powerful arm
   you protect me
   from every side.
    ⁶I can't understand all of this!
   Such wonderful knowledge
   is far above me.
    ⁷Where could I go to escape
   from your Spirit
   or from your sight?
    ⁸If I were to climb up
   to the highest heavens,
   you would be there.
   If I were to dig down
   to the world of the dead
   you would also be there.
    ⁹Suppose I had wings
   like the dawning day
   and flew across the ocean.
    ¹⁰Even then your powerful arm
   would guide and protect me.
    ¹¹Or suppose I said, "I'll hide
   in the dark
   until night comes
   to cover me over."
    ¹²But you see in the dark
   because daylight and dark
   are all the same to you.
    ¹³You are the one
   who put me together
   inside my mother's body,
    ¹⁴and I praise you
   because of
   the wonderful way
   you created me.
   Everything you do is marvelous!
   Of this I have no doubt.
    ¹⁵Nothing about me
   is hidden from you!
   I was secretly woven together
   deep in the earth below,
    ¹⁶but with your own eyes
   you saw
   my body being formed.
   Even before I was born,
   you had written in your book
   everything I would do.
    ¹⁷Your thoughts are far beyond
   my understanding,
   much more than I
   could ever imagine.
    ¹⁸I try to count your thoughts,
   but they outnumber the grains
   of sand on the beach.
   And when I awake,
   I will find you nearby.
    ¹⁹How I wish that you would kill
   all cruel and heartless people
   and protect me from them!
    ²⁰They are always rebelling
   and speaking evil of you. ^[a] ²¹You know I hate anyone
   who hates you, LORD,
   and refuses to obey.
    ²²They are my enemies too,
   and I truly hate them.
    ²³Look deep into my heart, God,
   and find out everything
   I am thinking.
    ²⁴Don't let me follow evil ways,
   but lead me in the way
   that time has proven true.
   

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 139:20 you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 20.

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Proverbs 30:15-16 (Contemporary English Version)

¹⁵Greed ^[a] has twins, each named "Give me!"
   There are three or four things
   that are never satisfied:
    ¹⁶The world of the dead
   and a childless wife,
   the thirsty earth
   and a flaming fire.
   

Footnotes:

1. Proverbs 30:15 Greed: Or " A leech."

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Verse of the Day

“[The Birth of Jesus][(Matthew 1.18-25)]About that time Emperor Augustus gave orders for the names of all the people to be listed in record books. So Joseph had to leave Nazareth in Galilee and go to Bethlehem in Judea. Long ago Bethlehem had been King David's hometown, and Joseph went there because he was from David's family. Mary was engaged to Joseph and traveled with him to Bethlehem. She was soon going to have a baby,” - Luke 2:1, 4-5

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

English schoolmaster and theologian, best known as the author of the novella Flatland (1884), Edwin Abbott Abbott wrote, “I see a fulfilment of the great Law of all worlds, that while the wisdom of Man thinks it is working one thing, the wisdom of Nature constrains it to work another, and quite a different and far better thing.”