Today our passages are 1 Kings 14:1–15:24; Acts 10:1-23a; Psalm 132:1-3; and Proverbs 17:7-8. 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.
1 Kings 14-15:24 (Contemporary English Version)
1 Kings 14
Jeroboam's Son Dies
1About the same time, Abijah son of Jeroboam got sick. 2-3Jeroboam told his wife: Disguise yourself so no one will know you're my wife, then go to Shiloh, where the prophet Ahijah lives. Take him ten loaves of bread, some small cakes, and honey, and ask him what will happen to our son. He can tell you, because he's the one who told me I would become king.4She got ready and left for Ahijah's house in Shiloh.
Ahijah was now old and blind, 5but the LORD told him, "Jeroboam's wife is coming to ask about her son. I will tell you what to say to her."
Jeroboam's wife came to Ahijah's house, pretending to be someone else. 6But when Ahijah heard her walking up to the door, he said:
Come in! I know you're Jeroboam's wife--why are you pretending to be someone else? I have some bad news for you. 7Give your husband this message from the LORD God of Israel: "Jeroboam, you know that I, the LORD, chose you over anyone else to be the leader of my people Israel. 8I even took David's kingdom away from his family and gave it to you. But you are not like my servant David. He always obeyed me and did what was right.
9"You have made me very angry by rejecting me and making idols out of gold. Jeroboam, you have done more evil things than any king before you.
10"Because of this, I will destroy your family by killing every man and boy in it, whether slave or free. I will wipe out your family, just as fire burns up trash. 11Dogs will eat the bodies of your relatives who die in town, and vultures will eat the bodies of those who die in the country. I, the LORD, have spoken and will not change my mind!"
12That's the LORD's message to your husband. As for you, go back home, and right after you get there, your son will die. 13Everyone in Israel will mourn at his funeral. But he will be the last one from Jeroboam's family to receive a proper burial, because he's the only one the LORD God of Israel is pleased with.
14The LORD will soon choose a new king of Israel, who will destroy Jeroboam's family. And I mean very soon. [a]15The people of Israel have made the LORD angry by setting up sacred poles [b] for worshiping the goddess Asherah. So the LORD will punish them until they shake like grass in a stream. He will take them out of the land he gave to their ancestors, then scatter them as far away as the Euphrates River. 16Jeroboam sinned and caused the Israelites to sin. Now the LORD will desert Israel. 17Jeroboam's wife left and went back home to the town of Tirzah. As soon as she set foot in her house, her son died. 18Everyone in Israel came and mourned at his funeral, just as the LORD's servant Ahijah had said.
Jeroboam Dies
19Everything else Jeroboam did while he was king, including the battles he won, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 20He was king of Israel for twenty-two years, then he died, and his son Nadab became king.King Rehoboam of Judah
(2 Chronicles 11.5--12.16)
21Rehoboam son of Solomon was forty-one years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled seventeen years from Jerusalem, the city where the LORD had chosen to be worshiped. His mother Naamah was from Ammon. 22The people of Judah disobeyed the LORD and made him even angrier than their ancestors had. 23They also built their own local shrines [c] and stone images of foreign gods, and they set up sacred poles [d] for worshiping the goddess Asherah on every hill and in the shade of large trees. 24Even worse, they allowed prostitutes [e] at the shrines, and followed the disgusting customs of the foreign nations that the LORD had forced out of Canaan. 25After Rehoboam had been king for four years, King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. 26He took everything of value from the temple and the palace, including Solomon's gold shields.27Rehoboam had bronze shields made to replace the gold ones, and he ordered the guards at the city gates to keep them safe. 28Whenever Rehoboam went to the LORD's temple, the guards carried the shields. But they always took them back to the guardroom as soon as he was finished.
29Everything else Rehoboam did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 30He and Jeroboam were constantly at war. 31Rehoboam's mother Naamah was from Ammon, but when Rehoboam died, he was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem. [f] His son Abijam then became king.
1 Kings 15
King Abijam of Judah
(2 Chronicles 13.1-22)
1Abijam became king of Judah in Jeroboam's eighteenth year as king of Israel, 2and he ruled from Jerusalem for three years. His mother was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. 3Abijam did not truly obey the LORD his God as his ancestor David had done. Instead, he was sinful just like his father Rehoboam. 4-5David had always obeyed the LORD's commands by doing right, except in the case of Uriah. [g] And since Abijam was David's great-grandson, the LORD kept Jerusalem safe and let Abijam have a son who would be the next king. 6-7The war that had broken out between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continued during the time that Abijam was king.Everything else Abijam did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 8Abijam died and was buried in Jerusalem, [h] and his son Asa became king.
King Asa of Judah
(2 Chronicles 15.16--16.6,11-13)
9Asa became king of Judah in the twentieth year of Jeroboam's rule in Israel, 10and he ruled forty-one years from Jerusalem. His grandmother was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. 11Asa obeyed the LORD, as David had done. 12He forced the prostitutes [i] at the shrines to leave the country, and he got rid of the idols his ancestors had made. 13His own grandmother Maacah had made an idol of Asherah, and Asa took it and burned it in Kidron Valley. Then he removed Maacah from her position as queen mother. [j] 14As long as Asa lived, he was completely faithful to the LORD, even though he did not destroy the local shrines. 15He placed in the temple all the silver and gold objects that he and his father had dedicated to the LORD.16Asa was always at war with King Baasha of Israel. 17One time, Baasha invaded Judah and captured the town of Ramah. He started making the town stronger, so he could put troops there to stop people from going in and out of Judah.
18When Asa heard about this, he took the silver and gold from his palace and from the LORD's temple. He gave it to some of his officials and sent them to Damascus with this message for King Benhadad [k] of Syria: 19"Our fathers signed a peace treaty. Why don't we do the same thing? This silver and gold is a present for you. So, would you please break your treaty with Baasha and force him to leave my country?" 20Benhadad did what Asa asked and sent the Syrian army into Israel. They captured the towns of Ijon, Dan, and Abel-Bethmaacah, and the territories of Chinneroth and Naphtali. 21When Baasha heard about it, he left Ramah and went back to Tirzah.
22Asa ordered everyone in Judah to carry away the stones and wood Baasha had used to strengthen the town of Ramah. Then he used these same stones and wood to fortify the town of Geba in the territory of Benjamin and the town of Mizpah.
23Everything else Asa did while he was king, including his victories and the towns he rebuilt, is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. When he got older, he had a foot disease. 24Asa died and was buried in the tomb of his ancestors in Jerusalem. [l] His son Jehoshaphat then became king.
Footnotes:
- 1 Kings 14:14 And I mean very soon: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 1 Kings 14:15 sacred poles: Or "trees," used as symbols of Asherah, the goddess of fertility.
- 1 Kings 14:23 local shrines: See the note at 3.2.
- 1 Kings 14:23 sacred poles: See the note at 14.15.
- 1 Kings 14:24 prostitutes: Men and women sometimes served at the local shrines as prostitutes in the worship of Canaanite gods, but the LORD had forbidden the people of Israel to worship in this way (see Deuteronomy 23.17,18).
- 1 Kings 14:31 Jerusalem: See the note at 2.10,11.
- 1 Kings 15:4 Uriah: A Hittite who served in David's army; David had him killed so he could marry his wife Bathsheba (see 2 Samuel 11.1-27).
- 1 Kings 15:8 Jerusalem: See the note at 2.10,11.
- 1 Kings 15:12 prostitutes: See the note at 14.24.
- 1 Kings 15:13 queen mother: Or "the mother of the king," an important position in biblical times (see 2.19).
- 1 Kings 15:18 Benhadad: Hebrew "Benhadad son of Tabrimmon son of Hezion."
- 1 Kings 15:24 Jerusalem: Hebrew "the city of David his ancestor."
Acts 10:1-23 (Contemporary English Version)
Acts 10
Peter and Cornelius
1In Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, who was the captain of a group of soldiers called "The Italian Unit." 2Cornelius was a very religious man. He worshiped God, and so did everyone else who lived in his house. He had given a lot of money to the poor and was always praying to God. 3One afternoon at about three o'clock, [a] Cornelius had a vision. He saw an angel from God coming to him and calling him by name. 4Cornelius was surprised and stared at the angel. Then he asked, "What is this all about?" The angel answered, "God has heard your prayers and knows about your gifts to the poor. 5Now send some men to Joppa for a man named Simon Peter. 6He is visiting with Simon the leather maker, who lives in a house near the sea." 7After saying this, the angel left.Cornelius called in two of his servants and one of his soldiers who worshiped God. 8He explained everything to them and sent them off to Joppa.
9The next day about noon these men were coming near Joppa. Peter went up on the roof [b] of the house to pray 10and became very hungry. While the food was being prepared, he fell sound asleep and had a vision. 11He saw heaven open, and something came down like a huge sheet held up by its four corners. 12In it were all kinds of animals, snakes, and birds. 13A voice said to him, "Peter, get up! Kill these and eat them." 14But Peter said, "Lord, I can't do that! I've never eaten anything that is unclean and not fit to eat." [c] 15The voice spoke to him again, "When God says that something can be used for food, don't say it isn't fit to eat."
16This happened three times before the sheet was suddenly taken back to heaven.
17Peter was still wondering what all of this meant, when the men sent by Cornelius came and stood at the gate. They had found their way to Simon's house 18and were asking if Simon Peter was staying there.
19While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Holy Spirit said to him, "Three [d] men are here looking for you. 20Hurry down and go with them. Don't worry, I sent them." 21Peter went down and said to the men, "I am the one you are looking for. Why have you come?"
22They answered, "Captain Cornelius sent us. He is a good man who worships God and is liked by the Jewish people. One of God's holy angels told Cornelius to send for you, so he could hear what you have to say." 23Peter invited them to spend the night.
The next morning, Peter and some of the Lord's followers in Joppa left with the men who had come from Cornelius.
Footnotes:
- Acts 10:3 at about three o'clock: Probably while he was praying (see 3.1 and the note there).
- Acts 10:9 roof: In Palestine the houses usually had a flat roof. Stairs on the outside led up to the roof, which was made of beams and boards covered with packed earth.
- Acts 10:14 unclean and not fit to eat: The Law of Moses taught that some foods were not fit to eat.
- Acts 10:19 Three: One manuscript has "two;" some manuscripts have "some."
Psalm 132:1-3 (Contemporary English Version)
Psalm 132
(A song for worship.)
The LORD Is Always with His People
1Our LORD, don't forget David and how he suffered.2Mighty God of Jacob,
remember how he promised:
3"I won't go home
or crawl into bed
Proverbs 17:7-8 (Contemporary English Version)
7It sounds strange for a fool
to talk sensibly,
but it's even worse
for a ruler to tell lies.
8A bribe works miracles
like a magic charm
that brings good luck.
Verse of the Day
“Make your father truly happy by living right and showing sound judgment.” - Proverbs 23:24
to talk sensibly,
but it's even worse
for a ruler to tell lies.
8A bribe works miracles
like a magic charm
that brings good luck.
Verse of the Day
“Make your father truly happy by living right and showing sound judgment.” - Proverbs 23:24
Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.
Thought for the Day
American Democratic politician, Mario Cuomo wrote, “I think it's already apparent that a good part of this Nation understands — if only instinctively — that anything which seems to suggest that God favors a political party or the establishment of a state church, is wrong and dangerous. Way down deep the American people are afraid of an entangling relationship between formal religions — or whole bodies of religious belief — and government. Apart from constitutional law and religious doctrine, there is a sense that tells us it's wrong to presume to speak for God or to claim God's sanction of our particular legislation and His rejection of all other positions. Most of us are offended when we see religion being trivialized by its appearance in political throw-away pamphlets. The American people need no course in philosophy or political science or church history to know that God should not be made into a celestial party chairman.”
A Joke for Today
A new preacher wanted to rent a house in the country but the only one available was rumored to be haunted. That didn’t bother the preacher since he didn’t believe in such things. He went ahead and rented the place.Soon the ghost made its appearance. The preacher told his friends about the ghost, but they didn’t believe him. They told him the only way they would believe was if he took a picture of the ghost.The preacher went home and called for the ghost. When it appeared, the preacher explained the situation and asked the ghost if it would mind having its picture taken. The ghost agreed.
When the picture was developed, the ghost wasn’t visible. Feeling disappointed, the preacher called again for the ghost. When it appeared, the preacher showed it the picture and wanted to know why the ghost wasn’t in it. The ghost thought a minute and replied, “Well, I guess the spirit was willing, but the flash was weak.”
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