Bible Readings for September 22, 2013

Today our passages are Isaiah 39:1–41:16; Ephesians 1:1-23; Psalm 66:1-20; and Proverbs 23:26-28. The readings are the Contemporary English Version.

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Isaiah 39-41:16 (Contemporary English Version)

Isaiah 39

Isaiah Speaks the LORD's Message to Hezekiah

(2 Kings 20.12-19)

 ¹Merodach Baladan, the son of Baladan, was now king of Babylonia. And when he learned that Hezekiah was well, he sent messengers with letters and a gift for him. ²Hezekiah welcomed the messengers and showed them all the silver, the gold, the spices, and the fine oils that were in his storehouse. He even showed them where he kept his weapons. Nothing in his palace or in his entire kingdom was kept hidden from them.     ³I asked Hezekiah, "Where did these men come from? What did they want?"
   "They came all the way from Babylonia," Hezekiah answered.
    ⁴"What did you show them?" I asked.
   Hezekiah answered, "I showed them everything in my kingdom."
    ⁵Then I told Hezekiah:
   I have a message for you from the LORD All-Powerful. ⁶One day everything you and your ancestors have stored up will be taken to Babylonia. The LORD has promised that nothing will be left. ⁷Some of your own sons will be taken to Babylonia, where they will be disgraced and made to serve in the king's palace.
    ⁸Hezekiah thought, "At least our nation will be at peace for a while." So he told me, "The message you brought from the LORD is good."
   

Isaiah 40

Encourage God's People

 ¹Our God has said:    "Encourage my people!
   Give them comfort.
    ²Speak kindly to Jerusalem
   and announce:
   Your slavery is past;
   your punishment is over.
   I, the LORD, made you pay
   double for your sins."
    ³Someone is shouting:
   "Clear a path in the desert!
   Make a straight road
   for the LORD our God.
    ⁴Fill in the valleys;
   flatten every hill
   and mountain.
   Level the rough
   and rugged ground.
    ⁵Then the glory of the LORD
   will appear for all to see.
   The LORD has promised this!"
    ⁶Someone told me to shout,
   and I asked,
   "What should I shout?"
   We humans are merely grass,
   and we last no longer
   than wild flowers.
    ⁷At the LORD's command,
   flowers and grass disappear,
   and so do we.
    ⁸Flowers and grass fade away,
   but what our God has said
   will never change.
   

Your God Is Here!

 ⁹There is good news    for the city of Zion.
   Shout it as loud as you can ^[a] from the highest mountain.
   Don't be afraid to shout
   to the towns of Judah,
   "Your God is here!"
    ¹⁰Look! The powerful LORD God
   is coming
   to rule
   with his mighty arm.
   He brings with him
   what he has taken in war,
   and he rewards his people.
    ¹¹The LORD cares for his nation,
   just as shepherds care
   for their flocks.
   He carries the lambs
   in his arms,
   while gently leading
   the mother sheep.
   

Who Compares with God?

 ¹²Did any of you measure    the ocean by yourself
   or stretch out the sky
   with your own hands?
   Did you put the soil
   of the earth in a bucket
   or weigh the hills and mountains
   on balance scales?
    ¹³Has anyone told the LORD ^[b] what he must do
   or given him advice?
    ¹⁴Did the LORD ask anyone
   to teach him wisdom
   and justice?
   Who gave him knowledge
   and understanding?
    ¹⁵To the LORD, all nations
   are merely a drop in a bucket
   or dust on balance scales;
   all of the islands
   are but a handful of sand.
    ¹⁶The cattle
   on Lebanon's mountains
   would not be enough
   to offer
   as a sacrifice to God,
   and the trees would not
   be enough for the fire.
    ¹⁷God thinks of the nations
   as far less than nothing.
    ¹⁸Who compares with God?
   Is anything like him?
    ¹⁹Is an idol at all like God?
   It is made of bronze
   with a thin layer of gold,
   and decorated with silver.
    ²⁰Or special wood may be chosen ^[c] because it doesn't rot--
   then skilled hands
   take care to make an idol
   that won't fall on its face.
   

God Rules the Whole Earth

 ²¹Don't you know?    Haven't you heard?
   Isn't it clear that God
   created the world? ^{[d] 22}God is the one who rules
   the whole earth,
   and we that live here
   are merely insects.
   He spread out the heavens
   like a curtain or an open tent.
    ²³God brings down rulers
   and turns them into nothing.
    ²⁴They are like flowers
   freshly sprung up
   and starting to grow.
   But when God blows on them,
   they wilt
   and are carried off
   like straw in a storm.
    ²⁵The holy God asks,
   "Who compares with me?
   Is anyone my equal?"
    ²⁶Look at the evening sky!
   Who created the stars?
   Who gave them each a name?
   Who leads them like an army?
   The LORD is so powerful
   that none of the stars
   are ever missing.
   

The LORD Gives Strength

 ²⁷You people of Israel, say,    "God pays no attention to us!
   He doesn't care if we
   are treated unjustly."
   But how can you say that?
    ²⁸Don't you know?
   Haven't you heard?
   The LORD is the eternal God,
   Creator of the earth.
   He never gets weary or tired;
   his wisdom cannot be measured.
    ²⁹The LORD gives strength
   to those who are weary.
    ³⁰Even young people get tired,
   then stumble and fall.
    ³¹But those who trust the LORD
   will find new strength.
   They will be strong like eagles
   soaring upward on wings;
   they will walk and run
   without getting tired.
   

Isaiah 41

The LORD Controls Human Events

 ¹Be silent and listen,    every island in the sea.
   Have courage and come near,
   every one of you nations.
   Let's settle this matter!
    ²Who appointed this ruler
   from the east? ^[e] Who puts nations and kings
   in his power? ^[f] His sword and his arrows
   turn them to dust
   blown by the wind.
    ³He goes after them so quickly
   that his feet
   barely touch the ground--
   he doesn't even get hurt.
    ⁴Who makes these things happen?
   Who controls human events?
   I do! I am the LORD.
   I was there at the beginning;
   I will be there at the end.
    ⁵Islands and foreign nations
   saw what I did
   and trembled
   as they came near.
   

What Can Idols Do?

 ⁶Worshipers of idols    comfort each other,
   saying, "Don't worry!"
    ⁷Woodcarvers, goldsmiths,
   and other workers ^[g] encourage one another and say,
   "We've done a great job!"
   Then they nail the idol down,
   so it won't fall over.
   

The LORD's Chosen Servant

 ⁸Israel, you are my servant.    I chose you,
   the family
   of my friend Abraham.
    ⁹From far across the earth
   I brought you here and said,
   "You are my chosen servant.
   I haven't forgotten you."
    ¹⁰Don't be afraid. I am with you.
   Don't tremble with fear.
   I am your God.
   I will make you strong,
   as I protect you with my arm
   and give you victories.
    ¹¹Everyone who hates you
   will be terribly disgraced;
   those who attack
   will vanish into thin air.
    ¹²You will look around
   for those brutal enemies,
   but you won't find them
   because they will be gone.
    ¹³I am the LORD your God.
   I am holding your hand,
   so don't be afraid.
   I am here to help you.
    ¹⁴People of Israel, don't worry,
   though others may say,
   "Israel is only a worm!"
   I am the holy God of Israel,
   who saves and protects you.
    ¹⁵I will let you be like a log
   covered with sharp spikes. ^[h] You will grind and crush
   every mountain and hill ^[i] until they turn to dust.
    ¹⁶A strong wind will scatter them
   in all directions.
   Then you will celebrate
   and praise me, your LORD,
   the holy God of Israel.
   

Footnotes:

1. Isaiah 40:9 There. . . can: Or "City of Jerusalem, you have good news. Shout it as loud as you can."
2. Isaiah 40:13 the LORD: Or "the LORD's Spirit."
3. Isaiah 40:20 Or. . . chosen: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. Two kinds of idols seem to be described: bronze idols covered with gold (verse 19) and wooden idols (verse 20).
4. Isaiah 40:21 Isn't. . . world: Or "Hasn't it been clear since the time of creation?"
5. Isaiah 41:2 ruler from the east: Probably Cyrus (see 44.28; 45.1; 48.14).
6. Isaiah 41:2 Who puts. . . power: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
7. Isaiah 41:7 and other workers: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
8. Isaiah 41:15 I will let. . . sharp spikes: In ancient times a heavy object was sometimes dragged over wheat or barley to separate the grain from the husk. This was called threshing.
9. Isaiah 41:15 mountain and hill: These stand for the power and pride of Israel's enemies.

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Ephesians 1:1-23 (Contemporary English Version)

Ephesians 1

 ¹From Paul, chosen by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus.    To God's people who live in Ephesus and ^[a] are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. ²I pray that God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you and will bless you with peace!
   

Christ Brings Spiritual Blessings

 ³Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for the spiritual blessings that Christ has brought us from heaven! ⁴Before the world was created, God had Christ choose us to live with him and to be his holy and innocent and loving people. ⁵God was kind ^[b] and decided that Christ would choose us to be God's own adopted children. ⁶God was very kind to us because of the Son he dearly loves, and so we should praise God. ^7-8Christ sacrificed his life's blood to set us free, which means that our sins are now forgiven. Christ did this because God was so kind to us. God has great wisdom and understanding, ⁹and by what Christ has done, God has shown us his own mysterious ways. ¹⁰Then when the time is right, God will do all that he has planned, and Christ will bring together everything in heaven and on earth.     ¹¹God always does what he plans, and that's why he appointed Christ to choose us. ¹²He did this so that we Jews would bring honor to him and be the first ones to have hope because of him. ¹³Christ also brought you the truth, which is the good news about how you can be saved. You put your faith in Christ and were given the promised Holy Spirit to show that you belong to God. ¹⁴The Spirit also makes us sure that we will be given what God has stored up for his people. Then we will be set free, and God will be honored and praised.
   

Paul's Prayer

 ¹⁵I have heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God's people. ¹⁶So I never stop being grateful for you, as I mention you in my prayers. ¹⁷I ask the glorious Father and God of our Lord Jesus Christ to give you his Spirit. The Spirit will make you wise and let you understand what it means to know God. ¹⁸My prayer is that light will flood your hearts and that you will understand the hope that was given to you when God chose you. Then you will discover the glorious blessings that will be yours together with all of God's people.     ¹⁹I want you to know about the great and mighty power that God has for us followers. It is the same wonderful power he used ²⁰when he raised Christ from death and let him sit at his right side ^[c] in heaven. ²¹There Christ rules over all forces, authorities, powers, and rulers. He rules over all beings in this world and will rule in the future world as well. ²²God has put all things under the power of Christ, and for the good of the church he has made him the head of everything. ²³The church is Christ's body and is filled with Christ who completely fills everything. ^[d]

Footnotes:

1. Ephesians 1:1 live in Ephesus and: Some manuscripts do not have these words.
2. Ephesians 1:5 holy and innocent and loving people. !sr5God was kind: Or holy and innocent people. God was loving !sr5and kind.
3. Ephesians 1:20 right side: The place of power and honor.
4. Ephesians 1:23 and is filled with Christ who completely fills everything: Or which completely fills Christ and fully completes his work.

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Psalm 66:1-20 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 66

(A song and a psalm for the music leader.)

Shout Praises to God

 ¹Tell everyone on this earth    to shout praises to God!
    ²Sing about his glorious name.
   Honor him with praises.
    ³Say to God, "Everything you do
   is fearsome,
   and your mighty power makes
   your enemies come crawling.
    ⁴You are worshiped by everyone!
   We all sing praises to you."
    ⁵Come and see the fearsome things
   our God has done!
    ⁶When God made the sea dry up,
   our people walked across,
   and because of him,
   we celebrated there.
    ⁷His mighty power rules forever,
   and nothing the nations do
   can be hidden from him.
   So don't turn against God.
    ⁸All of you people,
   come praise our God!
   Let his praises be heard.
    ⁹God protects us from death
   and keeps us steady.
    ¹⁰Our God, you tested us,
   just as silver is tested.
    ¹¹You trapped us in a net
   and gave us heavy burdens.
    ¹²You sent war chariots
   to crush our skulls.
   We traveled through fire
   and through floods,
   but you brought us
   to a land of plenty.
    ¹³I will bring sacrifices
   into your house, my God,
   and I will do what I promised
    ¹⁴when I was in trouble.
    ¹⁵I will sacrifice my best sheep
   and offer bulls and goats
   on your altar.
    ¹⁶All who worship God,
   come here and listen;
   I will tell you everything
   God has done for me.
    ¹⁷I prayed to the Lord,
   and I praised him.
    ¹⁸If my thoughts had been sinful,
   he would have refused
   to hear me.
    ¹⁹But God did listen
   and answered my prayer.
    ²⁰Let's praise God!
   He listened when I prayed,
   and he is always kind.

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Proverbs 23:26-28 (Contemporary English Version)

-17-

 ²⁶ My son, pay close attention,    and gladly follow
   my example.
    ²⁷Bad women and unfaithful wives
   are like a deep pit--
    ²⁸they are waiting to attack you
   like a gang of robbers
   with victim after victim.

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Verse of the Day

“[The Good News Is for Jews and Gentiles]Honor God by accepting each other, as Christ has accepted you.” - Romans 15:7

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

Ernest Renan, French expert of Middle East ancient languages and civilizations, philosopher and writer, wrote, “Our opinions become fixed at the point where we stop thinking.”