Bible Readings for December 3, 2015

Today our passages are Daniel 11:2-35; 1 John 3:7-24; Psalm 122:1-9; and Proverbs 29:1. 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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Daniel 11:2-35 (Contemporary English Version)

The Angel's Message to Daniel

Part One: The Four Kings and their Successors

 ² What I am going to tell you is certain to happen. Four kings will rule Persia, one after the other, but the fourth one will become much richer than the others. In fact, his wealth will make him so powerful that he will turn everyone against the kingdom of Greece. ³Then a mighty king will come to power and will be able to do whatever he pleases. ⁴But suddenly his kingdom will be crushed and scattered to the four corners of the earth, where four more kingdoms will rise. But these won't be ruled by his descendants or be as powerful as his kingdom.     ⁵The king of the south will grow powerful. Then one of his generals will rebel and take over most of the kingdom. ⁶Years later the southern kingdom and the northern kingdom will make a treaty, and the daughter of the king of the south will marry the king of the north. But she will lose her power. Then she, her husband, their child, ^[a] and the servants who came with her will all be killed. After this, ⁷one of her relatives will become the ruler of the southern kingdom. He will attack the army of the northern kingdom and capture its fortresses. ⁸Then he will carry their idols to Egypt, together with their precious treasures of silver and gold, but it will be a long time before he attacks the northern kingdom again. Some years later ⁹the king of the north will invade the southern kingdom, but he will be forced back to his own country.
    ¹⁰The sons of the king of the north will gather a huge army that will sweep down like a roaring flood, reaching all the way to the fortress of the southern kingdom. ¹¹But this will make the king of the south angry, and he will defeat this large army from the north. ¹²The king of the south will feel proud because of the many thousands he has killed. But his victories won't last long, ¹³because the king of the north will gather a larger and more powerful army than ever before. Then in a few years, he will start invading other countries.
    ¹⁴At this time many of your own people will try to make this vision come true by rebelling against the king of the south, but their rebellion will fail. ¹⁵Then the army from the north will surround and capture a fortress in the south, and not even the most experienced troops of the southern kingdom will be able to make them retreat. ¹⁶The king who invaded from the north will do as he pleases, and he will even capture and destroy the holy land. ^{[b] 17}In fact, he will decide to invade the south with his entire army. Then he will attempt to make peace by giving the king of the south a bride from the northern kingdom, but this won't be successful. ¹⁸Afterwards, this proud king of the north will invade and conquer many of the nations along the coast, but a military leader will defeat him and make him lose his pride. ¹⁹He will retreat to his fortresses in his own country, but on the way he will be defeated and never again be seen.
    ²⁰The next king of the north will try to collect taxes for the glory of his kingdom. However, he will come to a sudden end in some mysterious way, instead of in battle or because of someone's anger.
   

Part Two: The Evil King from the North

 ²¹ The successor of this king of the north will be a worthless nobody, who doesn't come from a royal family. He will suddenly appear and gain control of the kingdom by treachery. ²²Then he will destroy armies and remove God's chosen high priest. ²³He will make a treaty, but he will be deceitful and break it, even though he has only a few followers. ²⁴Without warning, he will successfully invade a wealthy province, which is something his ancestors never did. Then he will divide among his followers all of its treasures and property. But none of this will last very long.     ²⁵He will gather a large and powerful army, and with great courage he will attack the king of the south. The king of the south will meet him with a much stronger army, but he will lose the battle, because he will be betrayed ²⁶by members of the royal court. He will be ruined, and most of his army will be slaughtered.
    ²⁷The two kings will meet around a table and tell evil lies to each other. But their plans will fail, because God has already decided what will happen. ²⁸Then the king of the north will return to his country with great treasures. But on the way, he will attack the religion of God's people and do whatever else he pleases.
    ²⁹At the time God has decided, the king of the north will invade the southern kingdom again, but this time, things will be different. ³⁰Ships from the west will come to attack him, and he will be discouraged. Then he will start back to his own country and take out his anger on the religion of God's faithful people, while showing kindness to those who are unfaithful. ³¹He will send troops to pollute the temple and the fortress, and he will stop the daily sacrifices. Then he will set up that " Horrible Thing" that causes destruction. ³²The king will use deceit to win followers from those who are unfaithful to God, but those who remain faithful will do everything possible to oppose him.
    ³³Wise leaders will instruct many of the people. But for a while, some of these leaders will either be killed with swords or burned alive, or else robbed of their possessions and thrown into prison. ³⁴They will receive only a little help in their time of trouble, and many of their followers will be treacherous. ³⁵Some of those who are wise will suffer, so that God will make them pure and acceptable until the end, which will still come at the time he has decided.
   

Footnotes:

1. Daniel 11:6 their child: One Hebrew manuscript and two ancient translations; most Hebrew manuscripts " her father."
2. Daniel 11:16 the holy land: See the note at 8.9.

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1 John 3:7-24 (Contemporary English Version)

⁷Children, don't be fooled. Anyone who does right is good, just like Christ himself. ⁸Anyone who keeps on sinning belongs to the devil. He has sinned from the beginning, but the Son of God came to destroy all that he has done. ⁹God's children cannot keep on being sinful. His life-giving power ^[a] lives in them and makes them his children, so that they cannot keep on sinning. ¹⁰You can tell God's children from the devil's children, because those who belong to the devil refuse to do right or to love each other.

Love Each Other

 ¹¹From the beginning you were told that we must love each other. ¹²Don't be like Cain, who belonged to the devil and murdered his own brother. Why did he murder him? He did it because his brother was good, and he was evil. ¹³My friends, don't be surprised if the people of this world hate you. ¹⁴Our love for each other proves that we have gone from death to life. But if you don't love each other, you are still under the power of death.     ¹⁵If you hate each other, you are murderers, and we know that murderers do not have eternal life. ¹⁶We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. That's why we must give our lives for each other. ¹⁷If we have all we need and see one of our own people in need, we must have pity on that person, or else we cannot say we love God. ¹⁸Children, you show love for others by truly helping them, and not merely by talking about it.
    ¹⁹When we love others, we know that we belong to the truth, and we feel at ease in the presence of God. ²⁰But even if we don't feel at ease, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything. ²¹Dear friends, if we feel at ease in the presence of God, we will have the courage to come near him. ²²He will give us whatever we ask, because we obey him and do what pleases him. ²³God wants us to have faith in his Son Jesus Christ and to love each other. This is also what Jesus taught us to do. ²⁴If we obey God's commandments, we will stay one in our hearts with him, and he will stay one with us. The Spirit that he has given us is proof that we are one with him.
   

Footnotes:

1. 1 John 3:9 His life-giving power: The Greek text has "his seed."

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Psalm 122:1-9 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 122

(A song by David for worship.)

A Song of Praise

 ¹It made me glad    to hear them say,
   "Let's go to the house
   of the LORD!"
    ²Jerusalem, we are standing
   inside your gates.
    ³Jerusalem, what a strong
   and beautiful city you are!
    ⁴Every tribe of the LORD
   obeys him
   and comes to you
   to praise his name.
    ⁵David's royal throne is here
   where justice rules.
    ⁶Jerusalem, we pray
   that you will have peace,
   and that all will go well
   for those who love you.
    ⁷May there be peace
   inside your city walls
   and in your palaces.
    ⁸Because of my friends
   and my relatives,
   I will pray for peace.
    ⁹And because of the house
   of the LORD our God,
   I will work for your good.

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Proverbs 29:1 (Contemporary English Version)

Proverbs 29

Use Good Sense

 ¹If you keep being stubborn    after many warnings,
   you will suddenly discover
   you have gone too far.

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Verse of the Day

“Jesus replied: I am the bread that gives life! No one who comes to me will ever be hungry. No one who has faith in me will ever be thirsty.” - John 6:35

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

Prominent American abolitionist, journalist, suffragist, and social reformer, William Lloyd Garrison wrote, “Are right and wrong convertible terms, dependant upon popular opinion?”