Bible Readings for February 1, 2017

Today our passages are Exodus 13:17–15:18; Matthew 21:23-46; Psalm 26:1-12; and Proverbs 6:16-19. The readings are 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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Exodus 13:17-15:18 (Contemporary English Version)

The LORD Leads His People

 ¹⁷After the king ^[a] had finally let the people go, the LORD did not lead them through Philistine territory, ^[b] though that was the shortest way. God had said, " If they are attacked, they may decide to return to Egypt." ¹⁸So he led them around through the desert and toward the Red Sea. ^[c] The Israelites left Egypt, prepared for battle.     ¹⁹Moses had them take along the bones of Joseph, whose dying words had been, " God will come to your rescue, and when he does, be sure to take along my bones."
    ²⁰The people of Israel left Succoth and camped at Etham at the border of Egypt near the desert. ^21-22During the day the LORD went ahead of his people in a thick cloud, and during the night he went ahead of them in a flaming fire. That way the LORD could lead them at all times, whether day or night.
   

Exodus 14

The Israelites Cross the Red Sea

 ¹At Etham the LORD said to Moses:     ²Tell the people of Israel to turn back and camp across from Pi-Hahiroth near Baal-Zephon, between Migdol and the Red Sea. ^[d] ³The king ^[e] will think they were afraid to cross the desert and that they are wandering around, trying to find another way to leave the country. ⁴I will make the king stubborn again, and he will try to catch you. Then I will destroy him and his army. People everywhere will praise me for my victory, and the Egyptians will know that I really am the LORD. The Israelites obeyed the LORD and camped where he told them.
    ⁵When the king of Egypt heard that the Israelites had finally left, he and his officials changed their minds and said, " Look what we have done! We let them get away, and they will no longer be our slaves."
    ⁶The king got his war chariot and army ready. ⁷He commanded his officers in charge of his six hundred best chariots and all his other chariots to start after the Israelites. ⁸The LORD made the king so stubborn that he went after them, even though the Israelites proudly ^[f] went on their way. ⁹But the king's horses and chariots and soldiers caught up with them while they were camping by the Red Sea near Pi-Hahiroth and Baal-Zephon. ¹⁰When the Israelites saw the king coming with his army, they were frightened and begged the LORD for help. ¹¹They also complained to Moses, " Wasn't there enough room in Egypt to bury us? Is that why you brought us out here to die in the desert? Why did you bring us out of Egypt anyway? ¹²While we were there, didn't we tell you to leave us alone? We had rather be slaves in Egypt than die in this desert!"
    ¹³But Moses answered, " Don't be afraid! Be brave, and you will see the LORD save you today. These Egyptians will never bother you again. ¹⁴The LORD will fight for you, and you won't have to do a thing."
    ¹⁵The LORD said to Moses, " Why do you keep calling out to me for help? Tell the Israelites to move forward. ¹⁶Then hold your walking stick over the sea. The water will open up and make a road where they can walk through on dry ground. ¹⁷I will make the Egyptians so stubborn that they will go after you. Then I will be praised because of what happens to the king and his chariots and cavalry. ¹⁸The Egyptians will know for sure that I am the LORD."
    ¹⁹All this time God's angel had gone ahead of Israel's army, but now he moved behind them. A large cloud had also gone ahead of them, ²⁰but now it moved between the Egyptians and the Israelites. The cloud gave light to the Israelites, but made it dark for the Egyptians, and during the night they could not come any closer.
    ²¹Moses stretched his arm over the sea, and the LORD sent a strong east wind that blew all night until there was dry land where the water had been. The sea opened up, ²²and the Israelites walked through on dry land with a wall of water on each side.
    ²³The Egyptian chariots and cavalry went after them. ²⁴But before daylight the LORD looked down at the Egyptian army from the fiery cloud and made them panic. ²⁵Their chariot wheels got stuck, ^[g] and it was hard for them to move. So the Egyptians said to one another, " Let's leave these people alone! The LORD is on their side and is fighting against us." ²⁶The LORD told Moses, " Stretch your arm toward the sea--the water will cover the Egyptians and their cavalry and chariots." ²⁷Moses stretched out his arm, and at daybreak the water rushed toward the Egyptians. They tried to run away, but the LORD drowned them in the sea. ²⁸The water came and covered the chariots, the cavalry, and the whole Egyptian army that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them was left alive. ²⁹But the sea had made a wall of water on each side of the Israelites; so they walked through on dry land.
    ³⁰On that day, when the Israelites saw the bodies of the Egyptians washed up on the shore, they knew that the LORD had saved them. ³¹Because of the mighty power he had used against the Egyptians, the Israelites worshiped him and trusted him and his servant Moses.
   

Exodus 15

The Song of Moses

 ¹Moses and the Israelites sang this song in praise of the LORD:    I sing praises to the LORD
   for his great victory!
   He has thrown the horses
   and their riders
   into the sea.
    ²The LORD is my strength,
   the reason for my song,
   because he has saved me.
   I praise and honor the LORD--
   he is my God
   and the God
   of my ancestors.
    ³The LORD is his name,
   and he is a warrior!
    ⁴He threw the chariots and army
   of Egypt's king ^[h] into the Red Sea, ^[i] and he drowned the best
   of the king's officers.
    ⁵They sank to the bottom
   just like stones.
    ⁶With the tremendous force
   of your right arm, our LORD,
   you crushed your enemies.
    ⁷What a great victory was yours,
   as you defeated everyone
   who opposed you.
   Your fiery anger wiped them out,
   as though they were straw.
    ⁸You were so furious
   that the sea piled up
   like a wall,
   and the ocean depths
   curdled like cheese.
    ⁹Your enemies boasted
   that they would
   pursue and capture us,
   divide up our possessions,
   treat us as they wished,
   then take out their swords
   and kill us right there.
    ¹⁰But when you got furious,
   they sank like lead,
   swallowed by ocean waves.
    ¹¹Our LORD, no other gods
   compare with you--
   Majestic and holy!
   Fearsome and glorious!
   Miracle worker!
    ¹²When you signaled
   with your right hand,
   your enemies were swallowed
   deep into the earth.
    ¹³The people you rescued
   were led by your powerful love
   to your holy place.
    ¹⁴Nations learned of this
   and trembled--
   Philistines shook with horror.
    ¹⁵The leaders of Edom and of Moab
   were terrified.
   Everyone in Canaan fainted,
    ¹⁶struck down by fear.
   Our LORD, your powerful arm
   kept them still as a rock
   until the people you rescued
   for your very own
   had marched by.
    ¹⁷You will let your people settle
   on your chosen mountain,
   where you built your home
   and your temple.
    ¹⁸Our LORD, you will rule forever!
   

Footnotes:

1. Exodus 13:17 Philistine territory: The shortest land route from the Nile Delta to Canaan; it was the southern section of the
2. Exodus 13:17 mmajor road that led to Megiddo and then on to Mesopotamia by way of Asia Minor.
3. Exodus 13:18 Red Sea: Hebrew yam suph " Sea of Reeds," one of the marshes or fresh water lakes, near the eastern part of the Nile Delta. This identification is based on Exodus 13.17--14.9, which lists the towns on the route of the Israelites before crossing the sea. In the Greek translation of the Scriptures made about 200 B.C., the " Sea of Reeds" was named " Red Sea."
4. Exodus 14:2 Red Sea: Hebrew hayyam " the Sea," understood as yam suph, " Sea of Reeds" (see also the note at 13.18).
5. Exodus 14:3 The king: See the note at 1.11.
6. Exodus 14:8 proudly: Or " victoriously."
7. Exodus 14:25 stuck: The Samaritan Hebrew text and two ancient translations; Hebrew " came off."
8. Exodus 15:4 Egypt's king: See the note at 1.11.
9. Exodus 15:4 Red Sea: See the note at 13.18.

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Matthew 21:23-46 (Contemporary English Version)

A Question about Jesus' Authority

(Mark 11.27-33; Luke 20.1-8)

 ²³Jesus had gone into the temple and was teaching when the chief priests and the leaders of the people came up to him. They asked, "What right do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?"     ²⁴Jesus answered, "I have just one question to ask you. If you answer it, I will tell you where I got the right to do these things. ²⁵Who gave John the right to baptize? Was it God in heaven or merely some human being?"
   They thought it over and said to each other, "We can't say that God gave John this right. Jesus will ask us why we didn't believe John. ²⁶On the other hand, these people think that John was a prophet, and we are afraid of what they might do to us. That's why we can't say that it was merely some human who gave John the right to baptize." ²⁷So they told Jesus, "We don't know."
   Jesus said, "Then I won't tell you who gave me the right to do what I do."
   

A Story about Two Sons

 ²⁸Jesus said:    I will tell you a story about a man who had two sons. Then you can tell me what you think. The father went to the older son and said, "Go work in the vineyard today!" ²⁹His son told him that he would not do it, but later he changed his mind and went. ³⁰The man then told his younger son to go work in the vineyard. The boy said he would, but he didn't go. ³¹Which one of the sons obeyed his father?
   "The older one," the chief priests and leaders answered.
   Then Jesus told them:
   You can be sure that tax collectors ^[a] and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you ever will! ³²When John the Baptist showed you how to do right, you would not believe him. But these evil people did believe. And even when you saw what they did, you still would not change your minds and believe.

Renters of a Vineyard

(Mark 12.1-12; Luke 20.9-19)

 ³³Jesus told the chief priests and leaders to listen to this story:    A land owner once planted a vineyard. He built a wall around it and dug a pit to crush the grapes in. He also built a lookout tower. Then he rented out his vineyard and left the country.
    ³⁴When it was harvest time, the owner sent some servants to get his share of the grapes. ³⁵But the renters grabbed those servants. They beat up one, killed one, and stoned one of them to death. ³⁶He then sent more servants than he did the first time. But the renters treated them in the same way.
    ³⁷Finally, the owner sent his own son to the renters, because he thought they would respect him. ³⁸But when they saw the man's son, they said, "Someday he will own the vineyard. Let's kill him! Then we can have it all for ourselves." ³⁹So they grabbed him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
    ⁴⁰Jesus asked, "When the owner of that vineyard comes, what do you suppose he will do to those renters?"
    ⁴¹The chief priests and leaders answered, "He will kill them in some horrible way. Then he will rent out his vineyard to people who will give him his share of grapes at harvest time."
    ⁴²Jesus replied, "You surely know that the Scriptures say,
   `The stone that the builders
   tossed aside
   is now the most important
   stone of all.
   This is something
   the Lord has done,
   and it is amazing to us.'
    ⁴³I tell you that God's kingdom will be taken from you and given to people who will do what he demands. ⁴⁴Anyone who stumbles over this stone will be crushed, and anyone it falls on will be smashed to pieces." ^[b] ⁴⁵When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard these stories, they knew that Jesus was talking about them. ⁴⁶So they looked for a way to arrest Jesus. But they were afraid to, because the people thought he was a prophet.
   

Footnotes:

1. Matthew 21:31 tax collectors: See the note at 5.46.
2. Matthew 21:44 pieces: Verse 44 is not in some manuscripts.

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Psalm 26:1-12 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 26

(By David.)

The Prayer of an Innocent Person

 ¹Show that I am right, LORD!    I stay true to myself,
   and I have trusted you
   without doubting.
    ²Test my thoughts and find out
   what I am like.
    ³I never forget your kindness,
   and I am always faithful
   to you. ^[a] ⁴I don't spend my time
   with worthless liars
    ⁵or go with evil crowds.
    ⁶I wash my hands, LORD,
   to show my innocence,
   and I worship at your altar,
    ⁷while gratefully singing
   about your wonders.
    ⁸I love the temple
   where you live,
   and where
   your glory shines.
    ⁹Don't sweep me away,
   as you do sinners.
   Don't punish me with death
   as you do those people
   who are brutal
    ¹⁰or full of meanness
   or who bribe others.
    ¹¹I stay true to myself.
   Be kind and rescue me.
    ¹²Now I stand on solid ground!
   And when your people meet,
   I will praise you, LORD.
   

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 26:3 I am. . . to you: Or " I trust your faithfulness."

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Proverbs 6:16-19 (Contemporary English Version)

¹⁶There are six or seven
   kinds of people
   the LORD doesn't like:
    ¹⁷Those who are too proud
   or tell lies or murder,
    ¹⁸those who make evil plans
   or are quick to do wrong,
    ¹⁹those who tell lies in court
   or stir up trouble
   in a family.

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Verse of the Day

Listen, Israel! The LORD our God is the only true God! So love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, and strength.” - Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

American author, political activist, and lecturer, Helen Keller wrote, “One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.”

Bible Readings for September 12, 2016

Today our passages are Isaiah 10:1–11:16; 2 Corinthians 12:11-21; Psalm 56:1-13; and Proverbs 23:6-8. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. 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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Isaiah 10-11:16 (The Message)

Isaiah 10

You Who Legislate Evil

 ^1-4 Doom to you who legislate evil, who make laws that make victims— Laws that make misery for the poor,
   that rob my destitute people of dignity,
Exploiting defenseless widows,
   taking advantage of homeless children.
What will you have to say on Judgment Day,
   when Doomsday arrives out of the blue?
Who will you get to help you?
   What good will your money do you?
A sorry sight you'll be then, huddled with the prisoners,
   or just some corpses stacked in the street.
Even after all this, God is still angry,
   his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.

Doom to Assyria!

 ^5-11"Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger.
   My wrath is a cudgel in his hands!
I send him against a godless nation,
   against the people I'm angry with.
I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind,
   and then push their faces in the mud and leave them.
But Assyria has another agenda;
   he has something else in mind.
He's out to destroy utterly,
   to stamp out as many nations as he can.
Assyria says, 'Aren't my commanders all kings?
   Can't they do whatever they like?
Didn't I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish?
   Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus?
I've eliminated kingdoms full of gods
   far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria.
So what's to keep me from destroying Jerusalem
   in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?'"  ^12-13When the Master has finished dealing with Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he'll say, "Now it's Assyria's turn. I'll punish the bragging arrogance of the king of Assyria, his high and mighty posturing, the way he goes around saying,
 ^13-14"'I've done all this by myself.
   I know more than anyone.
I've wiped out the boundaries of whole countries.
   I've walked in and taken anything I wanted.
I charged in like a bull
   and toppled their kings from their thrones.
I reached out my hand and took all that they treasured
   as easily as a boy taking a bird's eggs from a nest.
Like a farmer gathering eggs from the henhouse,
   I gathered the world in my basket,
And no one so much as fluttered a wing
   or squawked or even chirped.'"
 ^15-19Does an ax take over from the one who swings it?
   Does a saw act more important than the sawyer?
As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger!
   As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails!
Therefore the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
   will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters.
Under the canopy of God's bright glory
   a fierce fire will break out.
Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration.
   The Holy will explode into a firestorm,
And in one day burn to cinders
   every last Assyrian thornbush.
God will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens.
   The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing
   like a disease-ridden invalid.
A child could count what's left of the trees
   on the fingers of his two hands.
 ^20-23And on that Day also, what's left of Israel, the ragtag survivors of Jacob, will no longer be fascinated by abusive, battering Assyria. They'll lean on God, The Holy—yes, truly. The ragtag remnant—what's left of Jacob—will come back to the Strong God. Your people Israel were once like the sand on the seashore, but only a scattered few will return. Destruction is ordered, brimming over with righteousness. For the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, will finish here what he started all over the globe.
 ^24-27Therefore the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says: "My dear, dear people who live in Zion, don't be terrorized by the Assyrians when they beat you with clubs and threaten you with rods like the Egyptians once did. In just a short time my anger against you will be spent and I'll turn my destroying anger on them. I, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, will go after them with a cat-o'-nine-tails and finish them off decisively—as Gideon downed Midian at the rock Oreb, as Moses turned the tables on Egypt. On that day, Assyria will be pulled off your back, and the yoke of slavery lifted from your neck."
 ^27-32Assyria's on the move: up from Rimmon,
   on to Aiath,
through Migron,
   with a bivouac at Micmash.
They've crossed the pass,
   set camp at Geba for the night.
Ramah trembles with fright.
   Gibeah of Saul has run off.
Cry for help, daughter of Gallim!
   Listen to her, Laishah!
   Do something, Anathoth!
Madmenah takes to the hills.
   The people of Gebim flee in panic.
The enemy's soon at Nob—nearly there!
   In sight of the city he shakes his fist
At the mount of dear daughter Zion,
   the hill of Jerusalem.
 ^33-34But now watch this: The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
   swings his ax and lops the branches,
Chops down the giant trees,
   lays flat the towering forest-on-the-march.
His ax will make toothpicks of that forest,
   that Lebanon-like army reduced to kindling.

Isaiah 11

A Green Shoot from Jesse's Stump

 ^1-5 A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse's stump, from his roots a budding Branch.
The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,
   the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength,
   the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God
   will be all his joy and delight.
He won't judge by appearances,
   won't decide on the basis of hearsay.
He'll judge the needy by what is right,
   render decisions on earth's poor with justice.
His words will bring everyone to awed attention.
   A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.
Each morning he'll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots,
   and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.

A Living Knowledge of God

 ^6-9The wolf will romp with the lamb,
   the leopard sleep with the kid.
Calf and lion will eat from the same trough,
   and a little child will tend them.
Cow and bear will graze the same pasture,
   their calves and cubs grow up together,
   and the lion eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens,
   the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.
Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill
   on my holy mountain.
The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
   a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.  ¹⁰On that day, Jesse's Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.
 ¹¹Also on that day, the Master for the second time will reach out to bring back what's left of his scattered people. He'll bring them back from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Sinar, Hamath, and the ocean islands.
 ^12-16And he'll raise that rallying banner high, visible to all nations,
   gather in all the scattered exiles of Israel,
Pull in all the dispersed refugees of Judah
   from the four winds and the seven seas.
The jealousy of Ephraim will dissolve,
   the hostility of Judah will vanish—
Ephraim no longer the jealous rival of Judah,
   Judah no longer the hostile rival of Ephraim!
Blood brothers united, they'll pounce on the Philistines in the west,
   join forces to plunder the people in the east.
They'll attack Edom and Moab.
   The Ammonites will fall into line.
God will once again dry up Egypt's Red Sea,
   making for an easy crossing.
He'll send a blistering wind
   down on the great River Euphrates,
Reduce it to seven mere trickles.
   None even need get their feet wet!
In the end there'll be a highway all the way from Assyria,
   easy traveling for what's left of God's people—
A highway just like the one Israel had
   when he marched up out of Egypt.

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2 Corinthians 12:11-21 (The Message)

 ^11-13Well, now I've done it! I've made a complete fool of myself by going on like this. But it's not all my fault; you put me up to it. You should have been doing this for me, sticking up for me and commending me instead of making me do it for myself. You know from personal experience that even if I'm a nobody, a nothing, I wasn't second-rate compared to those big-shot apostles you're so taken with. All the signs that mark a true apostle were in evidence while I was with you through both good times and bad: signs of portent, signs of wonder, signs of power. Did you get less of me or of God than any of the other churches? The only thing you got less of was less responsibility for my upkeep. Well, I'm sorry. Forgive me for depriving you.
 ^14-15Everything is in readiness now for this, my third visit to you. But don't worry about it; you won't have to put yourselves out. I'll be no more of a bother to you this time than on the other visits. I have no interest in what you have—only in you. Children shouldn't have to look out for their parents; parents look out for the children. I'd be most happy to empty my pockets, even mortgage my life, for your good. So how does it happen that the more I love you, the less I'm loved?
 ^16-18And why is it that I keep coming across these whiffs of gossip about how my self-support was a front behind which I worked an elaborate scam? Where's the evidence? Did I cheat or trick you through anyone I sent? I asked Titus to visit, and sent some brothers along. Did they swindle you out of anything? And haven't we always been just as aboveboard, just as honest?
 ¹⁹I hope you don't think that all along we've been making our defense before you, the jury. You're not the jury; God is the jury—God revealed in Christ—and we make our case before him. And we've gone to all the trouble of supporting ourselves so that we won't be in the way or get in the way of your growing up.
 ^20-21I do admit that I have fears that when I come you'll disappoint me and I'll disappoint you, and in frustration with each other everything will fall to pieces—quarrels, jealousy, flaring tempers, taking sides, angry words, vicious rumors, swelled heads, and general bedlam. I don't look forward to a second humiliation by God among you, compounded by hot tears over that crowd that keeps sinning over and over in the same old ways, who refuse to turn away from the pigsty of evil, sexual disorder, and indecency in which they wallow.

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Psalm 56:1-13 (The Message)

Psalm 56

 ^1-4 Take my side, God—I'm getting kicked around, stomped on every day.
   Not a day goes by
      but somebody beats me up;
   They make it their duty
      to beat me up.
   When I get really afraid
      I come to you in trust.
   I'm proud to praise God;
      fearless now, I trust in God.
      What can mere mortals do?

 ^5-6 They don't let up—
      they smear my reputation
      and huddle to plot my collapse.
   They gang up,
      sneak together through the alleys
   To take me by surprise,
      wait their chance to get me.

 ⁷ Pay them back in evil!
      Get angry, God!
      Down with these people!

 ⁸ You've kept track of my every toss and turn
      through the sleepless nights,
   Each tear entered in your ledger,
      each ache written in your book.

 ⁹ If my enemies run away,
      turn tail when I yell at them,
   Then I'll know
      that God is on my side.

 ^10-11 I'm proud to praise God,
      proud to praise God.
   Fearless now, I trust in God;
      what can mere mortals do to me?

 ^12-13 God, you did everything you promised,
      and I'm thanking you with all my heart.
   You pulled me from the brink of death,
      my feet from the cliff-edge of doom.
   Now I stroll at leisure with God
      in the sunlit fields of life.

 

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Proverbs 23:6-8 (The Message)

8

 ^6-8 Don't accept a meal from a tightwad;
   don't expect anything special.
He'll be as stingy with you as he is with himself;
   he'll say, "Eat! Drink!" but won't mean a word of it.
His miserly serving will turn your stomach
   when you realize the meal's a sham.

 

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Verse of the Day

 

“Always be glad because of the Lord! I will say it again: Be glad.” - Philippians 4:4

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

American author, political activist, and lecturer, Helen Keller wrote, “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.”

Bible Readings for June 27, 2016

Today our passages are 2 Kings 10:32–12:21; Acts 18:1-22; Psalm 145:1-21; and Proverbs 18:1. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. 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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2 Kings 10:32-12:21 (The Message)

 ^32-33 It was about this time that God began to shrink Israel. Hazael hacked away at the borders of Israel from the Jordan to the east—all the territory of Gilead, Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh from Aroer near the Brook Arnon. In effect, all Gilead and Bashan.
 ^34-36 The rest of the life and times of Jehu, his accomplishments and fame, are written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. Jehu died and was buried in the family plot in Samaria. His son Jehoahaz was the next king. Jehu ruled Israel from Samaria for twenty-eight years.

2 Kings 11

Athaliah of Judah

 ^1-3Athaliah was the mother of Ahaziah. When she saw that her son was dead, she took over. She began by massacring the entire royal family. But Jehosheba, daughter of King Joram and sister of Ahaziah, took Ahaziah's son Joash and kidnapped him from among the king's sons slated for slaughter. She hid him and his nurse in a private room away from Athaliah. He didn't get killed. He was there with her, hidden away for six years in The Temple of God. Athaliah, oblivious to his existence, ruled the country.  ⁴ In the seventh year Jehoiada sent for the captains of the bodyguards and the Palace Security Force. They met him in The Temple of God. He made a covenant with them, swore them to secrecy, and only then showed them the young prince.
 ^5-8 Then he commanded them, "These are your instructions: Those of you who come on duty on the Sabbath and guard the palace, and those of you who go off duty on the Sabbath and guard The Temple of God, are to join forces at the time of the changing of the guard and form a ring around the young king, weapons at the ready. Kill anyone who tries to break through your ranks. Your job is to stay with the king at all times and places, coming and going."
 ^9-11 The captains obeyed the orders of Jehoiada the priest. Each took his men, those who came on duty on the Sabbath and those who went off duty on the Sabbath, and presented them to Jehoiada the priest. The priest armed the officers with spears and shields originally belonging to King David, stored in The Temple of God. Well-armed, the guards took up their assigned positions for protecting the king, from one end of The Temple to the other, surrounding both Altar and Temple.
 ¹² Then the priest brought the prince into view, crowned him, handed him the scroll of God's covenant, and made him king. As they anointed him, everyone applauded and shouted, "Long live the king!"
 ^13-14 Athaliah heard the shouting of guards and people and came to the crowd gathered at The Temple of God. Astonished, she saw the king standing beside the throne, flanked by the captains and heralds, with everybody beside themselves with joy, trumpets blaring. Athaliah ripped her robes in dismay and shouted, "Treason! Treason!"
 ^15-16 Jehoiada the priest ordered the military officers, "Drag her outside and kill anyone who tries to follow her!" (The priest had said, "Don't kill her inside The Temple of God.") So they dragged her out to the palace's horse corral; there they killed her.
 ¹⁷ Jehoiada now made a covenant between God and the king and the people: They were God's people. Another covenant was made between the king and the people.
 ^18-20 The people poured into the temple of Baal and tore it down, smashing altar and images to smithereens. They killed Mattan the priest in front of the altar.
    Jehoiada then stationed sentries in The Temple of God. He arranged for the officers of the bodyguard and the palace security, along with the people themselves, to escort the king down from The Temple of God through the Gate of the Guards and into the palace. There he sat on the royal throne. Everybody celebrated the event. And the city was safe and undisturbed—they had killed Athaliah with the royal sword.
 ²¹ Joash was seven years old when he became king.

2 Kings 12

Joash of Judah

 ¹ In the seventh year of Jehu, Joash began his kingly rule. He was king for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Gazelle. She was from Beersheba.  ^2-3 Taught and trained by Jehoiada the priest, Joash did what pleased God for as long as he lived. (Even so, he didn't get rid of the sacred fertility shrines—people still frequented them, sacrificing and burning incense.)
 ^4-5 Joash instructed the priests: "Take the money that is brought into The Temple of God for holy offerings—both mandatory offerings and freewill offerings—and, keeping a careful accounting, use them to renovate The Temple wherever it has fallen into disrepair."
 ⁶ But by the twenty-third year of Joash's rule, the priests hadn't done one thing—The Temple was as dilapidated as ever.
 ⁷ King Joash called Jehoiada the priest and the company of priests and said, "Why haven't you renovated this sorry-looking Temple? You are forbidden to take any more money for Temple repairs—from now on, hand over everything you get."
 ⁸ The priests agreed not to take any more money or to be involved in The Temple renovation.
 ^9-16 Then Jehoiada took a single chest and bored a hole in the lid and placed it to the right of the main entrance into The Temple of God. All the offerings that were brought to The Temple of God were placed in the chest by the priests who guarded the entrance. When they saw that a large sum of money had accumulated in the chest, the king's secretary and the chief priest would empty the chest and count the offerings. They would give the money accounted for to the managers of The Temple project; they in turn would pay the carpenters, construction workers, masons, stoneworkers, and the buyers of timber and quarried stone for the repair and renovation of The Temple of God—any expenses connected with fixing up The Temple. But none of the money brought into The Temple of God was used for liturgical "extras" (silver chalices, candle snuffers, trumpets, various gold and silver vessels, etc.). It was given to the workmen to pay for their repairing God's Temple. And no one even had to check on the men who handled the money given for the project—they were honest men. Offerings designated for Compensation Offerings and Absolution Offerings didn't go into the building project—those went directly to the priests.
 ^17-18 Around this time Hazael king of Aram ventured out and attacked Gath, and he captured it. Then he decided to try for Jerusalem. Joash king of Judah countered by gathering up all the sacred memorials—gifts dedicated for holy use by his ancestors, the kings of Judah, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah, along with the holy memorials he himself had received, plus all the gold that he could find in the temple and palace storerooms—and sent it to Hazael king of Aram. Appeased, Hazael went on his way and didn't bother Jerusalem.
 ^19-21 The rest of the life and times of Joash and all that he did are written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. At the last his palace staff formed a conspiracy and assassinated Joash as he was strolling along the ramp of the fortified outside city wall. Jozabad son of Shimeath and Jehozabad son of Shomer were the assassins. And so Joash died and was buried in the family plot in the City of David. His son Amaziah was king after him.

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Acts 18:1-22 (The Message)

Acts 18

Corinth

 ^1-4After Athens, Paul went to Corinth. That is where he discovered Aquila, a Jew born in Pontus, and his wife, Priscilla. They had just arrived from Italy, part of the general expulsion of Jews from Rome ordered by Claudius. Paul moved in with them, and they worked together at their common trade of tentmaking. But every Sabbath he was at the meeting place, doing his best to convince both Jews and Greeks about Jesus.  ^5-6When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia, Paul was able to give all his time to preaching and teaching, doing everything he could to persuade the Jews that Jesus was in fact God's Messiah. But no such luck. All they did was argue contentiously and contradict him at every turn. Totally exasperated, Paul had finally had it with them and gave it up as a bad job. "Have it your way, then," he said. "You've made your bed; now lie in it. From now on I'm spending my time with the other nations."
 ^7-8He walked out and went to the home of Titius Justus, a God-fearing man who lived right next to the Jews' meeting place. But Paul's efforts with the Jews weren't a total loss, for Crispus, the meeting-place president, put his trust in the Master. His entire family believed with him.
 ^8-11In the course of listening to Paul, a great many Corinthians believed and were baptized. One night the Master spoke to Paul in a dream: "Keep it up, and don't let anyone intimidate or silence you. No matter what happens, I'm with you and no one is going to be able to hurt you. You have no idea how many people I have on my side in this city." That was all he needed to stick it out. He stayed another year and a half, faithfully teaching the Word of God to the Corinthians.
 ^12-13But when Gallio was governor of Achaia province, the Jews got up a campaign against Paul, hauled him into court, and filed charges: "This man is seducing people into acts of worship that are illegal."
 ^14-16Just as Paul was about to defend himself, Gallio interrupted and said to the Jews, "If this was a matter of criminal conduct, I would gladly hear you out. But it sounds to me like one more Jewish squabble, another of your endless hairsplitting quarrels over religion. Take care of it on your own time. I can't be bothered with this nonsense," and he cleared them out of the courtroom.
 ¹⁷Now the street rabble turned on Sosthenes, the new meeting-place president, and beat him up in plain sight of the court. Gallio didn't raise a finger. He could not have cared less.

Ephesus

 ¹⁸Paul stayed a while longer in Corinth, but then it was time to take leave of his friends. Saying his good-byes, he sailed for Syria, Priscilla and Aquila with him. Before boarding the ship in the harbor town of Cenchrea, he had his head shaved as part of a vow he had taken.  ^19-21They landed in Ephesus, where Priscilla and Aquila got off and stayed. Paul left the ship briefly to go to the meeting place and preach to the Jews. They wanted him to stay longer, but he said he couldn't. But after saying good-bye, he promised, "I'll be back, God willing."
 ^21-22From Ephesus he sailed to Caesarea. He greeted the church there, and then went on to Antioch, completing the journey.

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Psalm 145:1-21 (The Message)

Psalm 145

David's Praise

 ¹ I lift you high in praise, my God, O my King! and I'll bless your name into eternity.

 ² I'll bless you every day,
      and keep it up from now to eternity.
 ³ God is magnificent; he can never be praised enough.
      There are no boundaries to his greatness.
 ⁴ Generation after generation stands in awe of your work;
      each one tells stories of your mighty acts.
 ⁵ Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking;
      I compose songs on your wonders.
 ⁶ Your marvelous doings are headline news;
      I could write a book full of the details of your greatness.
 ⁷ The fame of your goodness spreads across the country;
      your righteousness is on everyone's lips.

 ⁸ God is all mercy and grace—
      not quick to anger, is rich in love.

 ⁹ God is good to one and all;
      everything he does is suffused with grace.

 ^10-11 Creation and creatures applaud you, God;
      your holy people bless you.    They talk about the glories of your rule,
      they exclaim over your splendor,

 ¹² Letting the world know of your power for good,
      the lavish splendor of your kingdom.

 ¹³ Your kingdom is a kingdom eternal;
      you never get voted out of office.
   God always does what he says,
      and is gracious in everything he does.

 ¹⁴ God gives a hand to those down on their luck,
      gives a fresh start to those ready to quit.

 ¹⁵ All eyes are on you, expectant;
      you give them their meals on time.

 ¹⁶ Generous to a fault,
      you lavish your favor on all creatures.

 ¹⁷ Everything God does is right—
      the trademark on all his works is love.

 ¹⁸ God's there, listening for all who pray,
      for all who pray and mean it.

 ¹⁹ He does what's best for those who fear him—
      hears them call out, and saves them.

 ²⁰ God sticks by all who love him,
      but it's all over for those who don't.

 ²¹ My mouth is filled with God's praise.
      Let everything living bless him,
      bless his holy name from now to eternity!

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Proverbs 18:1 (The Message)

Proverbs 18

Words Kill, Words Give Life

 ¹ Loners who care only for themselves spit on the common good.

 

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Verse of the Day

 

“If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” - Matthew 16:25

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

American author, political activist, and lecturer, Helen Keller wrote, “Every optimist moves along with progress and hastens it, while every pessimist would keep the world at a standstill. The consequence of pessimism in the life of a nation is the same as in the life of the individual. Pessimism kills the instinct that urges men to struggle against poverty, ignorance and crime, and dries up all the fountains of joy in the world.”

Bible Readings for December 24, 2014

Today our passages are Zechariah 6:1–7:14; Revelation 15:1-8; Psalm 143:1-12; and Proverbs 30:24-28. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson.

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Zechariah 6-7:14 (The Message)

Zechariah 6

Eighth Vision: Four Chariots

 ¹ Once again I looked up—another strange sight! Four chariots charging out from between two mountains. The mountains were bronze. ^2-3The first chariot was drawn by red horses, the second chariot by black horses, the third chariot by white horses, and the fourth chariot by dappled horses. All the horses were powerful.  ⁴I asked the Messenger-Angel, "Sir, what's the meaning here?"
 ^5-7The angel answered, "These are the four winds of heaven, which originate with the Master of the whole earth. The black horses are headed north with the white ones right after them. The dappled horses are headed south." The powerful horses galloped out, bursting with energy, eager to patrol through the earth. The Messenger-Angel commanded: "On your way! Survey the earth!" and they were off in every direction.
 ⁸Then he called to me and said, "Look at them go! The ones going north are conveying a sense of my Spirit, serene and secure. No more trouble from that direction."

A Man Named Branch

 ^9-12Then this Message from God came to me: "Take up a collection from the exiles. Target Heldai, Tobiah, and Jedaiah. They've just arrived from Babylon. You'll find them at the home of Josiah son of Zephaniah. Collect silver and gold from them and fashion crowns. Place one on the head of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and give him this message:  ^12-13"'A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies. Be alert. We have a man here whose name is Branch. He will branch out from where he is and build the Temple of God. Yes, he's the one. He'll build the Temple of God. Then he'll assume the role of royalty, take his place on the throne and rule—a priest sitting on the throne!—showing that king and priest can coexist in harmony.'
 ¹⁴"The other crown will be in the Temple of God as a symbol of royalty, under the custodial care of Helem, Tobiah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah.
 ¹⁵"People will come from faraway places to pitch in and rebuild the Temple of God. This will confirm that God-of-the-Angel-Armies did, in fact, send me to you. All this follows as you put your minds to a life of responsive obedience to the voice of your God."

Zechariah 7

"You're Interested in Religion, I'm Interested in People"

 ¹ On the fourth day of the ninth month, in the fourth year of the reign of King Darius, God's Message again came to Zechariah.  ^2-3The town of Bethel had sent a delegation headed by Sarezer and Regem-Melech to pray for God's blessing and to confer with the priests of the Temple of God-of-the-Angel-Armies, and also with the prophets. They posed this question: "Should we plan for a day of mourning and abstinence next August, the seventieth anniversary of Jerusalem's fall, as we have been doing all these years?" ^4-6God-of-the-Angel-Armies gave me this Message for them, for all the people and for the priests: "When you held days of fasting every fifth and seventh month all these seventy years, were you doing it for me? And when you held feasts, was that for me? Hardly. You're interested in religion, I'm interested in people.
 ^7-10"There's nothing new to say on the subject. Don't you still have the message of the earlier prophets from the time when Jerusalem was still a thriving, bustling city and the outlying countryside, the Negev and Shephelah, was populated? [This is the message that God gave Zechariah.] Well, the message hasn't changed. God-of-the-Angel-Armies said then and says now:

   "'Treat one another justly.
   Love your neighbors.
   Be compassionate with each other.
   Don't take advantage of widows, orphans, visitors, and the poor.
   Don't plot and scheme against one another—that's evil.'
 ^11-13"But did your ancestors listen? No, they set their jaws in defiance. They shut their ears. They steeled themselves against God's revelation and the Spirit-filled sermons preached by the earlier prophets by order of God-of-the-Angel-Armies. And God became angry, really angry, because he told them everything plainly and they wouldn't listen to a word he said.
 ^13-14"So [this is what God-of-the-Angel-Armies said] if they won't listen to me, I won't listen to them. I scattered them to the four winds. They ended up strangers wherever they were. Their 'promised land' became a vacant lot—weeds and tin cans and thistles. Not a sign of life. They turned a dreamland into a wasteland."

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Revelation 15:1-8 (The Message)

Revelation 15

The Song of Moses, the Song of the Lamb

 ¹ I saw another Sign in Heaven, huge and breathtaking: seven Angels with seven disasters. These are the final disasters, the wrap-up of God's wrath. ^2-4I saw something like a sea made of glass, the glass all shot through with fire. Carrying harps of God, triumphant over the Beast, its image, and the number of its name, the saved ones stood on the sea of glass. They sang the Song of Moses, servant of God; they sang the Song of the Lamb:

   Mighty your acts and marvelous,
      O God, the Sovereign-Strong!
   Righteous your ways and true,
      King of the nations!
   Who can fail to fear you, God,
      give glory to your Name?
   Because you and you only are holy,
      all nations will come and worship you,
      because they see your judgments are right.  ^5-8Then I saw the doors of the Temple, the Tent of Witness in Heaven, open wide. The Seven Angels carrying the seven disasters came out of the Temple. They were dressed in clean, bright linen and wore gold vests. One of the Four Animals handed the Seven Angels seven gold bowls, brimming with the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. Smoke from God's glory and power poured out of the Temple. No one was permitted to enter the Temple until the seven disasters of the Seven Angels were finished.

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Psalm 143:1-12 (The Message)

Psalm 143

A David Psalm

 ^1-2 Listen to this prayer of mine, God; pay attention to what I'm asking.
   Answer me—you're famous for your answers!
      Do what's right for me.
   But don't, please don't, haul me into court;
      not a person alive would be acquitted there.

 ^3-6 The enemy hunted me down;
      he kicked me and stomped me within an inch of my life.
   He put me in a black hole,
      buried me like a corpse in that dungeon.
   I sat there in despair, my spirit draining away,
      my heart heavy, like lead.
   I remembered the old days,
      went over all you've done, pondered the ways you've worked,
   Stretched out my hands to you,
      as thirsty for you as a desert thirsty for rain.

 ^7-10 Hurry with your answer, God!
      I'm nearly at the end of my rope.
   Don't turn away; don't ignore me!
      That would be certain death.
   If you wake me each morning with the sound of your loving voice,
      I'll go to sleep each night trusting in you.
   Point out the road I must travel;
      I'm all ears, all eyes before you.
   Save me from my enemies, God—
      you're my only hope!
   Teach me how to live to please you,
      because you're my God.
   Lead me by your blessed Spirit
      into cleared and level pastureland.

 ^11-12 Keep up your reputation, God—give me life!
      In your justice, get me out of this trouble!
   In your great love, vanquish my enemies;
      make a clean sweep of those who harass me.
   And why? Because I'm your servant.

 

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Proverbs 30:24-28 (The Message)

Four Small Wonders

 ^24-28 There are four small creatures,
   wisest of the wise they are—
      ants—frail as they are,
   get plenty of food in for the winter;
      marmots—vulnerable as they are,
         manage to arrange for rock-solid homes;
      locusts—leaderless insects,
         yet they strip the field like an army regiment;
      lizards—easy enough to catch,
         but they sneak past vigilant palace guards.

 

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Verse of the Day

 

“They hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and they saw the baby lying on a bed of hay. When the shepherds saw Jesus, they told his parents what the angel had said about him. Everyone listened and was surprised. But Mary kept thinking about all this and wondering what it meant. As the shepherds returned to their sheep, they were praising God and saying wonderful things about him. Everything they had seen and heard was just as the angel had said.” - Luke 2:16-20

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

 

American author, political activist, and lecturer, Helen Keller wrote, “Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light.”