Bible Readings for April 14, 2017

Today our passages are Joshua 11:1–12:24; Luke 17:11-37; Psalm 84:1-12; and Proverbs 13:5-6. 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 by using the link below.

 

 

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Joshua 11-12:24 (Contemporary English Version)

Joshua 11

Joshua Captures Towns in the North

 ¹King Jabin of Hazor heard about Joshua's victories, so he sent messages to many nearby kings and asked them to join him in fighting Israel. He sent these messages to King Jobab of Madon, the kings of Shimron and Achshaph, ²the kings in the northern hill country and in the Jordan River valley south of Lake Galilee, ^[a] and the kings in the foothills and in Naphath-Dor to the west. ³He sent messages to the Canaanite kings in the east and the west, to the Amorite, Hittite, Perizzite, and Jebusite kings in the hill country, and to the Hivite kings in the region of Mizpah, near the foot of Mount Hermon. ^[b] ^4-5The kings and their armies went to Merom Pond, ^[c] where they set up camp, and got ready to fight Israel. It seemed as though there were more soldiers and horses and chariots than there are grains of sand on a beach. ⁶The LORD told Joshua:    Don't let them frighten you! I'll help you defeat them, and by this time tomorrow they will be dead.
   When you attack, the first thing you have to do is to cripple their horses. Then after the battle is over, ^[d] burn their chariots. ⁷Joshua and his army made a surprise attack against the enemy camp at Merom Pond ^[e] ^8-9and crippled the enemies' horses. ^[f] Joshua followed the LORD's instructions, and the LORD helped Israel defeat the enemy. The Israelite army even chased enemy soldiers as far as Misrephoth-Maim to the northwest, ^[g] the city of Sidon to the north, and Mizpeh Valley to the northeast. ^[h] None of the enemy soldiers escaped alive. The Israelites came back after the battle and burned the enemy's chariots. ¹⁰Up to this time, the king of Hazor had controlled the kingdoms that had joined together to attack Israel, so Joshua led his army back and captured Hazor. They killed its king ¹¹and everyone else, then they set the town on fire.
    ^12-15Joshua captured all the towns where the enemy kings had ruled. These towns were built on small hills, ^[i] and Joshua did not set fire to any of these towns, except Hazor. The Israelites kept the animals and everything of value from these towns, but they killed everyone who lived in them, including their kings. That's what the LORD had told his servant Moses to do, that's what Moses had told Joshua to do, and that's exactly what Joshua did. ¹⁶Joshua and his army took control of the northern and southern hill country, the foothills to the west, the Southern Desert, the whole region of Goshen, ^[j] and the Jordan River valley. ^17-18They took control of the land from Mount Halak near the country of Edom in the south to Baal-Gad in Lebanon Valley at the foot of Mount Hermon in the north. Joshua and his army were at war with the kings in this region for a long time, but finally they captured and put to death the last king. ^19-20The LORD had told Moses that he wanted the towns in this region destroyed and their people killed without mercy. That's why the LORD made the people in the towns stubborn and determined to fight Israel. The only town that signed a peace treaty with Israel was the Hivite town of Gibeon. The Israelite army captured the rest of the towns in battle.
    ²¹During this same time, Joshua and his army killed the Anakim ^[k] from the northern and southern hill country. They also destroyed the towns where the Anakim had lived, including Hebron, Debir, and Anab. ²²There were not any Anakim left in the regions where the Israelites lived, although there were still some in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. ^[l] ²³That's how Joshua captured the land, just as the LORD had commanded Moses, and Joshua divided it up among the tribes.
   Finally, there was peace in the land.
   

Joshua 12

The Kings Defeated by the Israelites

 ¹Before Moses died, he and the people of Israel had defeated two kings east of the Jordan River. These kings had ruled the region from the Arnon River gorge in the south to Mount Hermon in the north, including the eastern side of the Jordan River valley.     ²The first king that Moses and the Israelites defeated was an Amorite, King Sihon of Heshbon. ^[m] The southern border of his kingdom ran down the middle of the Arnon River gorge, taking in the town of Aroer on the northern edge of the gorge. The Jabbok River separated Sihon's kingdom from the Ammonites on the east. Then the Jabbok turned west and became his northern border, so his kingdom included the southern half of the region of Gilead. ³Sihon also controlled the eastern side of the Jordan River valley from Lake Galilee ^[n] south to Beth-Jeshimoth and the Dead Sea. In addition to these regions, he ruled the town called Slopes of Mount Pisgah ^[o] and the land south of there at the foot of the hill. ⁴Next, Moses and the Israelites defeated King Og of Bashan, ^[p] who lived in the town of Ashtaroth part of each year and in Edrei the rest of the year. Og was one of the last of the Rephaim. ^[q] ⁵His kingdom stretched north to Mount Hermon, east to the town of Salecah, and included the land of Bashan as far west as the borders of the kingdoms of Geshur and Maacah. He also ruled the northern half of Gilead. ⁶Moses, the LORD's servant, had led the people of Israel in defeating Sihon and Og. Then Moses gave their land to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh.
    ^7-8Later, Joshua and the Israelites defeated many kings west of the Jordan River, from Baal-Gad in Lebanon Valley in the north to Mount Halak near the country of Edom in the south. This region included the hill country and the foothills, the Jordan River valley and its western slopes, and the Southern Desert. Joshua and the Israelites took this land from the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Joshua divided up the land among the tribes of Israel.
   The Israelites defeated the kings of the following towns west of the Jordan River:
    ^9-24Jericho, Ai near Bethel, Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, Eglon, Gezer, Debir, Geder, Hormah, Arad, Libnah, Adullam, Makkedah, Bethel, Tappuah, Hepher, Aphek, Lasharon, ^[r] Madon, Hazor, Shimron-Meron, Achshaph, Taanach, Megiddo, Kedesh, Jokneam on Mount Carmel, Dor in Naphath-Dor, Goiim in Galilee, ^[s] and Tirzah. ^[t] There were thirty-one of these kings in all.
   

Footnotes:

1. Joshua 11:2 Lake Galilee: The Hebrew text has " Lake Chinnereth," an earlier name.
2. Joshua 11:3 Mizpah, near the foot of Mount Hermon: Probably the same region as Mizpeh Valley in verses 8,9, but different from the two other places named Mizpeh in 15.37-41; 18.25-28, and also different from the Mizpah mentioned in Genesis 31.49 and Judges 10.17.
3. Joshua 11:4 Pond: Or " Gorge."
4. Joshua 11:6 When. . . over: Or " After the battle is over, cripple their horses and burn their chariots."
5. Joshua 11:7 Pond: See the note at 11.4,5.
6. Joshua 11:8 and crippled the enemies' horses: It is also possible that the Israelites crippled the enemies' horses after the battle at the same time they burned the enemies' chariots; see the note at 11.6.
7. Joshua 11:8 Misrephoth-Maim. . . northwest: Or " the town of Misrephoth to the northwest" or " the Misrephoth River."
8. Joshua 11:8 northeast: These three areas were twenty to thirty-five miles north of Merom.
9. Joshua 11:12 small hills: Towns were often built on top of the ruins of a previous town that had been destroyed. When this happened many times at one place, a hill was formed.
10. Joshua 11:16 Goshen: See the note at 10.41.
11. Joshua 11:21 Anakim: Perhaps a group of very large people that lived in Palestine before the Israelites (see Numbers 13.33 and Deuteronomy 2.10,11,20,21).
12. Joshua 11:22 Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod: Towns in Philistia.
13. Joshua 12:2 King Sihon of Heshbon: See Numbers 21.21-31.
14. Joshua 12:3 Lake Galilee: See the note at 11.2.
15. Joshua 12:3 the town called Slopes of Mount Pisgah: Or " the slopes of Mount Pisgah."
16. Joshua 12:4 King Og of Bashan: See Numbers 21.33-35.
17. Joshua 12:4 Rephaim: Perhaps a group of very large people that lived in Palestine before the Israelites (see Deuteronomy 2.10,11,20,21).
18. Joshua 12:9 Aphek, Lasharon: Or " Aphek in the Sharon Plain."
19. Joshua 12:9 Galilee: One ancient translation; Hebrew " Gilgal."
20. Joshua 12:9 Jericho. . . Tirzah: There are some differences in this list between the Hebrew and several ancient translations.

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Luke 17:11-37 (Contemporary English Version)

Ten Men with Leprosy

 ¹¹On his way to Jerusalem, Jesus went along the border between Samaria and Galilee. ¹²As he was going into a village, ten men with leprosy ^[a] came toward him. They stood at a distance ¹³and shouted, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" ¹⁴Jesus looked at them and said, "Go show yourselves to the priests." ^[b] On their way they were healed. ¹⁵When one of them discovered that he was healed, he came back, shouting praises to God. ¹⁶He bowed down at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. The man was from the country of Samaria.     ¹⁷Jesus asked, "Weren't ten men healed? Where are the other nine? ¹⁸Why was this foreigner the only one who came back to thank God?" ¹⁹Then Jesus told the man, "You may get up and go. Your faith has made you well."
   

God's Kingdom

(Matthew 24.23-28,37-41)

 ²⁰Some Pharisees asked Jesus when God's kingdom would come. He answered, "God's kingdom isn't something you can see. ²¹There is no use saying, `Look! Here it is' or `Look! There it is.' God's kingdom is here with you." ^[c] ²²Jesus said to his disciples:    The time will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not. ²³When people say to you, "Look there," or "Look here," don't go looking for him. ²⁴The day of the Son of Man will be like lightning flashing across the sky. ²⁵But first he must suffer terribly and be rejected by the people of today. ²⁶When the Son of Man comes, things will be just as they were when Noah lived. ²⁷People were eating, drinking, and getting married right up to the day when Noah went into the big boat. Then the flood came and drowned everyone on earth.
    ²⁸When Lot ^[d] lived, people were also eating and drinking. They were buying, selling, planting, and building. ²⁹But on the very day Lot left Sodom, fiery flames poured down from the sky and killed everyone. ³⁰The same will happen on the day when the Son of Man appears. ³¹At that time no one on a rooftop ^[e] should go down into the house to get anything. No one in a field should go back to the house for anything. ³²Remember what happened to Lot's wife. ^[f] ³³People who try to save their lives will lose them, and those who lose their lives will save them. ³⁴On that night two people will be sleeping in the same bed, but only one will be taken. The other will be left. ^35-36Two women will be together grinding wheat, but only one will be taken. The other will be left. ^[g] ³⁷Then Jesus' disciples spoke up, "But where will this happen, Lord?"
   Jesus said, "Where there is a corpse, there will always be buzzards." ^[h]

Footnotes:

1. Luke 17:12 leprosy: See the note at 4.27.
2. Luke 17:14 show yourselves to the priests: See the note at 5.14.
3. Luke 17:21 here with you: Or " in your hearts."
4. Luke 17:28 Noah. . . Lot: When God destroyed the earth by a flood, he saved Noah and his family. And when God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and the evil people who lived there, he rescued Lot and his family (see Genesis 19.1-29).
5. Luke 17:31 rooftop: See the note at 5.19.
6. Luke 17:32 what happened to Lot's wife: She turned into a block of salt when she disobeyed God (see Genesis 19.26).
7. Luke 17:35 will be left: Some manuscripts add, " Two men will be in the same field, but only one will be taken. The other will be left."
8. Luke 17:37 Where there is a corpse, there will always be buzzards: This saying may mean that when anything important happens, people soon know about it. Or the saying may mean that whenever something bad happens, curious people gather around and stare. But the word translated " buzzard" also means " eagle" and may refer to the Roman army, which had an eagle as its symbol.

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Psalm 84:1-12 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 84

(For the music leader. (Psalm 84 leader: See the note at Psalm 8.) A psalm for the people of Korah.)

The Joy of Worship

 ¹LORD God All-Powerful,    your temple is so lovely!
    ²Deep in my heart I long
   for your temple,
   and with all that I am
   I sing joyful songs to you.
    ³LORD God All-Powerful,
   my King and my God,
   sparrows find a home
   near your altars;
   swallows build nests there
   to raise their young.
    ⁴You bless everyone
   who lives in your house,
   and they sing your praises.
    ⁵You bless all who depend
   on you for their strength
   and all who deeply desire
   to visit your temple.
    ⁶When they reach Dry Valley, ^[a] springs start flowing,
   and the autumn rain fills it
   with pools of water. ^[b] ⁷Your people grow stronger,
   and you, the God of gods,
   will be seen in Zion.
    ⁸LORD God All-Powerful,
   the God of Jacob,
   please answer my prayer!
    ⁹You are the shield
   that protects your people,
   and I am your chosen one.
   Won't you smile on me?
    ¹⁰One day in your temple
   is better
   than a thousand
   anywhere else.
   I would rather serve
   in your house,
   than live in the homes
   of the wicked.
    ¹¹Our LORD and our God,
   you are like the sun
   and also like a shield.
   You treat us with kindness
   and with honor,
   never denying any good thing
   to those who live right.
    ¹²LORD God All-Powerful,
   you bless everyone
   who trusts you.
   

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 84:6 Dry Valley: Or " Balsam Tree Valley." The exact location is not known.
2. Psalm 84:6 and. . . water: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

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Proverbs 13:5-6 (Contemporary English Version)

⁵A good person hates deceit,
   but those who are evil
   cause shame and disgrace.
    ⁶Live right, and you are safe!
   But sin will destroy you.

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Verse of the Day

“[Christ Was Raised to Life]My friends, I want you to remember the message that I preached and that you believed and trusted. I told you the most important part of the message exactly as it was told to me. That part is: Christ died for our sins, as the Scriptures say. He was buried, and three days later he was raised to life, as the Scriptures say.” - 1 Corinthians 15:1, 3-4

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

American author of fantasy fiction and belles lettres, James Branch Cabell wrote, “You waste time, my friend, in trying to convince me of all human life's failure and unimportance, for I am not in sympathy with this modern morbid pessimistic way of talking. It has a very ill sound, and nothing whatever is to be gained by it.”