Bible Readings for October 23, 2019

Today our passages are Jeremiah 42:1–44:23; 2 Timothy 2:1-21; Psalm 92:1–93:5; and Proverbs 26:3-5. 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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Jeremiah 42-44:23 (Contemporary English Version)

Jeremiah 42

The People Ask Jeremiah To Pray for Them

 ¹Johanan, Jezaniah, ^a] the other army officers, and everyone else in the group, came to me ²and said, "Please pray to the LORD your God for us. Judah used to have many people, but as you can see, only a few of us are left. ³Ask the LORD to tell us where he wants us to go and what he wants us to do." ⁴"All right," I answered, "I will pray to the LORD your God, and I will tell you everything he says."    ⁵They answered, "The LORD himself will be our witness that we promise to do whatever he says, ⁶even if it isn't what we want to do. We will obey the LORD so that all will go well for us."
    ⁷Ten days later, the LORD gave me an answer for ⁸Johanan, the officers, and the other people. So I called them together ⁹and told them that the LORD God of Israel had said:
   You asked Jeremiah to pray and find out what you should do. ¹⁰I am sorry that I had to punish you, and so I now tell you to stay here in Judah, where I will plant you and build you up, instead of tearing you down and uprooting you. ¹¹Don't be afraid of the King of Babylonia. I will protect you from him, ¹²and I will even force him to have mercy on you and give back your farms.
    ¹³But you might keep on saying, "We won't stay here in Judah, and we won't obey the LORD our God. ¹⁴We are going to Egypt, where there is plenty of food and no danger of war."
    ¹⁵People of Judah, you survived when the Babylonian army attacked. Now you are planning to move to Egypt, and if you do go, this is what will happen. ^16-17You are afraid of war, starvation, and disease here in Judah, but they will follow you to Egypt and kill you there. None of you will survive the disasters I will send.
    ¹⁸I, the LORD, was angry with the people of Jerusalem and punished them. And if you go to Egypt, I will be angry and punish you the same way. You will never again see your homeland. People will be horrified at what I do to you, and they will use the name of your city as a curse word.   

Jeremiah Gives a Warning

 ¹⁹I told the people:   You escaped the disaster that struck Judah, but now the LORD warns you to stay away from Egypt. ²⁰You asked me to pray and find out what the LORD our God wants you to do, and you promised to obey him. But that was a terrible mistake, ²¹because now that I have given you the LORD's answer, you refuse to obey him. ²²And so, you will die in Egypt from war, hunger, and disease.
   

Jeremiah 43

The People Go to Egypt

 ¹I told the people everything the LORD had told me. ²But Azariah, Johanan ^b]and some other arrogant men said to me, "You're lying! The LORD didn't tell you to say that we shouldn't go to Egypt. ³Baruch son of Neriah must have told you to say that. He wants the Babylonians to capture us, so they can take us away to Babylonia or even kill us." ⁴Johanan, the other army officers, and everyone else refused to stay in Judah in spite of the LORD's command. ⁵So Johanan and the officers led us away toward Egypt. The group that left Judah included those who had been scattered in other countries and who had then come back to live in Judah. ⁶Baruch and I and others in the group had been staying with Gedaliah, because Nebuzaradan, the Babylonian officer in charge of the guard, had ordered him to take care of the king's daughters and quite a few men, women, and children.    ⁷The people disobeyed the LORD and went to Egypt. The group had settled in Tahpanhes, ⁸when the LORD told me:
    ⁹Jeremiah, carry some large stones to the entrance of the government building in Tahpanhes. Bury the stones underneath the brick pavement ^c] and be sure the Jews are watching. ¹⁰Then tell them that I, the LORD All-Powerful, the God of Israel, have sent for my servant, Nebuchadnezzar ^d] of Babylonia. I will bring him here and have him set up his throne and his royal tent over these stones that I told you to bury. ¹¹He will attack Egypt and kill many of its people; others will die of disease or be dragged away as prisoners. ^12-13I will have him set Egypt's temples on fire, and he will either burn or carry off their idols. He will destroy the sacred monuments at the temple of the sun-god. ^e] Then Nebuchadnezzar will pick the land clean, just like a shepherd picking the lice off his clothes. And he will return safely home.

Jeremiah 44

The LORD Will Destroy the People of Judah

 ¹The LORD told me to speak with the Jews who were living in the towns of Migdol, Tahpanhes, and Memphis in northern Egypt, and also to those living in southern Egypt. He told me to tell them:    ²I am the LORD All-Powerful, the God of Israel. You saw how I destroyed Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. They lie empty and in ruins today, ³because the people of Judah made me angry by worshiping gods that had never helped them or their ancestors.
    ⁴Time after time I sent my servants the prophets to tell the people of Judah how much I hated their disgusting sins. The prophets warned them to stop sinning, ⁵but they refused to listen and would not stop worshiping other gods. ⁶Finally, my anger struck like a raging flood, and today Jerusalem and the towns of Judah are nothing but empty ruins.
    ⁷Why do you now insist on heading for another disaster? A disaster that will destroy not only you, but also your children and babies. ⁸You have made me angry by worshiping idols and burning incense to other gods after you came here to Egypt. You will die such a disgusting death, that other nations will use the name of Judah as a curse word. ⁹When you were living in Jerusalem and Judah, you followed the example of your ancestors in doing evil things, just like your kings and queens. ¹⁰Even now, your pride keeps you from respecting me and obeying the laws and teachings I gave you and your ancestors.
    ¹¹I, the LORD All-Powerful, have decided to wipe you out with disasters. ¹²There were only a few of you left in Judah, and you decided to go to Egypt. But you will die such horrible deaths in war or from starvation, that people of other countries will use the name of Judah as a curse word. ¹³I punished Jerusalem with war, hunger, and disease, and that's how I will punish you. ¹⁴None of you will survive. You may hope to return to Judah someday, but only a very few of you will escape death and be able to go back.   

The People Refuse To Worship the LORD

 ¹⁵A large number of Jews from both northern and southern Egypt listened to me as I told them what the LORD had said. Most of the men in the crowd knew that their wives often burned incense to other gods. So they and their wives shouted:    ¹⁶Jeremiah, what do we care if you speak in the LORD's name? We refuse to listen! ¹⁷We have promised to worship the goddess Astarte, the Queen of Heaven, ^f] and that is exactly what we are going to do. We will burn incense and offer sacrifices of wine to her, just as we, our ancestors, our kings, and our leaders did when we lived in Jerusalem and the other towns of Judah. We had plenty of food back then. We were well off, and nothing bad ever happened to us. ¹⁸But since the time we stopped burning incense and offering wine sacrifices to her, we have been dying from war and hunger. ¹⁹Then the women said, "When we lived in Judah, we worshiped the Queen of Heaven and offered sacrifices of wine and special loaves of bread shaped like her. Our husbands knew what we were doing, and they approved of it."
    ²⁰Then I told the crowd:
    ²¹Don't you think the LORD knew that you and your ancestors, your leaders and kings, and the rest of the people were burning incense to other gods in Jerusalem and everywhere else in Judah? ²²And when he could no longer put up with your disgusting sins, he placed a curse on your land and turned it into a desert, as it is today. ²³This disaster happened because you worshiped other gods and rebelled against the LORD by refusing to obey him or follow his laws and teachings. 

Footnotes:

1. Jeremiah 42:1 Jezaniah: Hebrew "Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah"; one ancient translation "Azariah son of Hoshaiah" (see also 43.2 and the note there).
2. Jeremiah 43:2 Azariah, Johanan: Hebrew "Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah."
3. Jeremiah 43:9 underneath the brick pavement: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
4. Jeremiah 43:10 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2.
5. Jeremiah 43:12 at the temple of the sun-god: Or "in the city of Heliopolis."
6. Jeremiah 44:17 the goddess Astarte, the Queen of Heaven: The Hebrew text has "the queen of heaven," which probably refers to the goddess Astarte.

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2 Timothy 2:1-21 (Contemporary English Version)

2 Timothy 2

A Good Soldier of Christ Jesus

 ¹Timothy, my child, Christ Jesus is kind, and you must let him make you strong. ²You have often heard me teach. Now I want you to tell these same things to followers who can be trusted to tell others.    ³As a good soldier of Christ Jesus you must endure your share of suffering. ⁴Soldiers on duty don't work at outside jobs. They try only to please their commanding officer. ⁵No one wins an athletic contest without obeying the rules.⁶And farmers who work hard are the first to eat what grows in their field. ⁷If you keep in mind what I have told you, the Lord will help you understand completely.
    ⁸Keep your mind on Jesus Christ! He was from the family of David and was raised from death, just as my good news says. ⁹And because of this message, I am locked up in jail and treated like a criminal. But God's good news isn't locked in jail, ¹⁰and so I am willing to put up with anything. Then God's special people will be saved. They will be given eternal glory because they belong to Christ Jesus. ¹¹Here is a true message:
   "If we died with Christ,
   we will live with him.
    ¹²If we don't give up,
   we will rule with him.
   If we deny
   that we know him,
   he will deny
   that he knows us.
    ¹³If we are not faithful,
   he will still be faithful.
   Christ cannot deny
   who he is."   

An Approved Worker

 ¹⁴Don't let anyone forget these things. And with God ^a] as your witness, you must warn them not to argue about words. These arguments don't help anyone. In fact, they ruin everyone who listens to them. ¹⁵Do your best to win God's approval as a worker who doesn't need to be ashamed and who teaches only the true message. ¹⁶Keep away from worthless and useless talk. It only leads people farther away from God. ¹⁷That sort of talk is like a sore that won't heal. And Hymenaeus and Philetus have been talking this way ¹⁸by teaching that the dead have already been raised to life. This is far from the truth, and it is destroying the faith of some people.    ¹⁹But the foundation that God has laid is solid. On it is written, "The Lord knows who his people are. So everyone who worships the Lord must turn away from evil."
    ²⁰In a large house some dishes are made of gold or silver, while others are made of wood or clay. Some of these are special, and others are not. ²¹That's also how it is with people. The ones who stop doing evil and make themselves pure will become special. Their lives will be holy and pleasing to their Master, and they will be able to do all kinds of good deeds. 

Footnotes:

1. 2 Timothy 2:14 God: Some manuscripts have "the Lord," and others have "Christ."

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Psalm 92-93:5 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 92

(A psalm and a song for the Sabbath.)

Sing Praises to the LORD

 ¹It is wonderful to be grateful   and to sing your praises,
   LORD Most High!
    ²It is wonderful each morning
   to tell about your love
   and at night to announce
   how faithful you are.
    ³I enjoy praising your name
   to the music of harps,
    ⁴because everything you do
   makes me happy,
   and I sing joyful songs.
    ⁵You do great things, LORD.
   Your thoughts are too deep
    ⁶for an ignorant fool
   to know or understand.
    ⁷Though the wicked sprout
   and spread like grass,
   they will be pulled up
   by their roots.
    ⁸But you will rule
   over all of us forever,
    ⁹and your hateful enemies
   will be scattered
   and then destroyed.
    ¹⁰You have given me
   the strength of a wild ox,
   and you have chosen me
   to be your very own.
    ¹¹My eyes have seen,
   and my ears have heard
   the doom and destruction
   of my terrible enemies.
    ¹²Good people will prosper
   like palm trees,
   and they will grow strong
   like the cedars of Lebanon.
    ¹³They will take root
   in your house, LORD God,
   and they will do well.
    ¹⁴They will be like trees
   that stay healthy and fruitful,
   even when they are old.
    ¹⁵And they will say about you,
   "The LORD always does right!
   God is our mighty rock." ^a]

Psalm 93

The LORD Is King

 ¹Our LORD, you are King!   Majesty and power
   are your royal robes.
   You put the world in place,
   and it will never be moved.
    ²You have always ruled,
   and you are eternal.
    ³The ocean is roaring, LORD!
   The sea is pounding hard.
    ⁴Its mighty waves are majestic,
   but you are more majestic,
   and you rule over all.
    ⁵Your decisions are firm,
   and your temple will always
   be beautiful and holy. 

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 92:15 mighty rock: See the note at 18.2.

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Proverbs 26:3-5 (Contemporary English Version)

³Horses and donkeys
   must be beaten and bridled--
   and so must fools.
    ⁴Don't make a fool of yourself
   by answering a fool.
    ⁵But if you answer any fools,
   show how foolish they are,
   so they won't feel smart.

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Verse of the Day

“You obey the law of Christ when you offer each other a helping hand.” - Galatians 6:2

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

English writer, literary historian, scholar, critic and wine connoisseur, George Saintsbury wrote, “To pass to the deluge, and beyond it, and to come to close quarters with our proper division, the origin of Romance itself is a very debatable subject, or rather it is a subject which the wiser mind will hardly care to debate much.”

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A Joke for Today

Bubba & Earl were in the local bar enjoying a beer when the decided to get in on the weekly charity raffle. They bought five tickets each at a dollar a pop.

The following week, when the raffle was drawn, each had won a prize. Earl won 1st prize, a year's supply of gourmet spaghetti sauce and extra-long spaghetti. Bubba won 6th prize, a toilet brush.

About a week or so had passed when the men met back in the neighborhood bar for a couple of beers. Bubba asked Earl how he liked his prize, to which Earl replied, "Great, I love spaghetti! How about you, how's that toilet brush?"

"Not so good," replied Bubba, "I reckon I'm gonna go back to paper."