Bible Readings for May 11, 2019

Today our passages are 1 Samuel 10:1–11:15; John 6:43-71; Psalm 107:1-43; and Proverbs 15:1-3. 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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1 Samuel 10-11:15 (Contemporary English Version)

1 Samuel 10

Samuel Tells Saul He Will Be King

 ¹Samuel took a small jar of olive oil and poured it on Saul's head. Then he kissed ^{a<="" value="[a]" >[]} Saul and told him: The LORD has chosen you to be the leader and ruler of his people. ^[b<="">] 2When you leave me today, you'll meet two men near Rachel's tomb at Zelzah in the territory of Benjamin. They'll tell you, "The donkeys you've been looking for have been found. Your father has forgotten about them, and now he's worrying about you! He's wondering how he can find you." ³Go on from there until you reach the big oak tree at Tabor, where you'll meet three men on their way to worship God at Bethel. One of them will be leading three young goats, another will be carrying three round loaves of bread, and the last one will be carrying a clay jar of wine. ⁴After they greet you, they'll give you two loaves of bread.     ⁵Next, go to Gibeah, ^[c<="">] where the Philistines have an army camp. As you're going into the town, you'll meet a group of prophets coming down from the place of worship. They'll be going along prophesying while others are walking in front of them, playing small harps, small drums, and flutes. ⁶The Spirit of the LORD will suddenly take control of you.^[d<="">] You'll become a different person and start prophesying right along with them. ⁷After these things happen, do whatever you think is right! God will help you. ⁸Then you should go to Gilgal. I'll come a little later, so wait for me. It may even take a week for me to get there, but when I come, I'll offer sacrifices and offerings to the LORD. I'll also tell you what to do next.     

Saul Goes Back Home

 ⁹As Saul turned around to leave Samuel, God made Saul feel like a different person. That same day, everything happened just as Samuel had said. ¹⁰When Saul arrived at Gibeah, a group of prophets met him. The Spirit of God suddenly took control of him, ^[e<="">] and right there in the middle of the group he began prophesying. ¹¹Some people who had known Saul for a long time saw that he was speaking and behaving like a prophet. They said to each other, "What's happened? How can Saul be a prophet?"     ¹²"Why not?" one of them answered. "Saul has as much right to be a prophet as anyone else!" ^[f<="">] That's why everyone started saying, "How can Saul be a prophet?" ¹³After Saul stopped prophesying, he went to the place of worship.
    ¹⁴Later, Saul's uncle asked him, "Where have you been?"
   Saul answered, "Looking for the donkeys. We couldn't find them, so we went to talk with Samuel."
    ¹⁵"And what did he tell you?" Saul's uncle asked.
    ¹⁶Saul answered, "He told us the donkeys had been found." But Saul didn't mention that Samuel had chosen him to be king.     

The LORD Shows Israel that Saul Will Be King

 ¹⁷Samuel sent messengers to tell the Israelites to come to Mizpah and meet with the LORD. ¹⁸When everyone had arrived, Samuel said:    The LORD God of Israel told me to remind you that he had rescued you from the Egyptians and from the other nations that abused you.
    ¹⁹God has rescued you from your troubles and hard times. But you have rejected your God and have asked for a king. Now each tribe and clan must come near the place of worship so the LORD can choose a king.
    ²⁰Samuel brought each tribe, one after the other, to the altar, and the LORD chose the Benjamin tribe. ²¹Next, Samuel brought each clan of Benjamin there, and the LORD chose the Matri clan. Finally, Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when they looked for him, he was nowhere to be found.
    ²²The people prayed, "Our LORD, is Saul here?"
   "Yes," the LORD answered, "he is hiding behind the baggage."
    ²³The people ran and got Saul and brought him into the middle of the crowd. He was more than a head taller than anyone else. ²⁴"Look closely at the man the LORD has chosen!" Samuel told the crowd. "There is no one like him!"
   The crowd shouted, "Long live the king!"
    ²⁵Samuel explained the rights and duties of a king and wrote them all in a book. He put the book in a temple building at one of the places where the LORD was worshiped. Then Samuel sent everyone home.
    ²⁶God had encouraged some young men to become followers of Saul, and when he returned to his hometown of Gibeah, they went with him. ²⁷But some worthless fools said, "How can someone like Saul rescue us from our enemies?" They did not want Saul to be their king, and so they didn't bring him any gifts. But Saul kept calm.
    

1 Samuel 11

Saul Rescues the Town of Jabesh in Gilead

 ¹About this time, ^[g<="">] King Nahash of Ammon came with his army and surrounded the town of Jabesh in Gilead. The people who lived there told Nahash, "If you will sign a peace treaty with us, you can be our ruler, and we will pay taxes to you." ²Nahash answered, "Sure, I'll sign a treaty! But not before I insult Israel by poking out the right eye of every man who lives in Jabesh."     ³The town leaders said, "Give us seven days so we can send messengers everywhere in Israel to ask for help. If no one comes here to save us, we will surrender to you."
    ⁴Some of the messengers went to Gibeah, Saul's hometown. They told what was happening at Jabesh, and everyone in Gibeah started crying. ⁵Just then, Saul came in from the fields, walking behind his oxen.
   "Why is everyone crying?" Saul asked.
   They told him what the men from Jabesh had said. ⁶Then the Spirit of God suddenly took control of Saul and made him furious. ⁷Saul killed two of his oxen, cut them up in pieces, and gave the pieces to the ^[h<="">] messengers. He told them to show the pieces to everyone in Israel and say, "Saul and Samuel are getting an army together. Come and join them. If you don't, this is what will happen to your oxen!" The LORD made the people of Israel terribly afraid. So all the men came together ⁸at Bezek. Saul had them organized and counted. There were three hundred thousand from Israel and thirty thousand ^[i<="">] from Judah. ⁹Saul and his officers sent the messengers back to Jabesh with this promise: "We will rescue you tomorrow afternoon." The messengers went back to the people at Jabesh and told them that they were going to be rescued.
   Everyone was encouraged! ¹⁰So they told the Ammonites, "We will surrender to you tomorrow, and then you can do whatever you want to."
    ¹¹The next day, Saul divided his army into three groups and attacked before daylight. They started killing Ammonites and kept it up until afternoon. A few Ammonites managed to escape, but they were scattered far from each other.
    ¹²The Israelite soldiers went to Samuel and demanded, "Where are the men who said they didn't want Saul to be king? Bring them to us, and we will put them to death!"
    ¹³"No you won't!" Saul told them. "The LORD rescued Israel today, and no one will be put to death."     

Saul Is Accepted as King

 ¹⁴"Come on!" Samuel said. "Let's go to Gilgal and make an agreement that Saul will continue to be our king."     ¹⁵Everyone went to the place of worship at Gilgal, where they agreed that Saul would be their king. Saul and the people sacrificed animals to ask for the LORD's blessing, ^[j<="">] and they had a big celebration. 

Footnotes:

1. 1 Samuel 10:1 kissed: Relatives or close friends often greeted one another with a kiss. But this may have been a ceremonial kiss after Samuel poured oil on Saul's head to show that he was to be the king.
2. 1 Samuel 10:1 people: One ancient translation adds "You will rule the LORD's people and save them from their enemies who are all around them. These things will prove that what I say is true."
3. 1 Samuel 10:5 Gibeah: The Hebrew text has "Gibeah of God," which may or may not have been the same Gibeah as Saul's hometown.
4. 1 Samuel 10:6 take. . . you: Or "will take control of you in a powerful way."
5. 1 Samuel 10:10 suddenly. . . him: Or "came over him in a powerful way."
6. 1 Samuel 10:12 Why not. . . anyone else: Or "Sure he is! He's probably the leader of the prophets!" or "How can he be? Those prophets are nobodies!"
7. 1 Samuel 11:1 But Saul. . . time: The Standard Hebrew Text; the Dead Sea Scrolls add "King Nahash of Ammon was making the people of Gad and Reuben miserable. He was poking out everyone's right eye, and no one in Israel could stop him. He had poked out the right eye of every Israelite man who lived east of the Jordan River. Only seven thousand men had escaped from the Ammonites, and they had gone into the town of Jabesh in Gilead. About a month later. . . "
8. 1 Samuel 11:7 the: Or "some other."
9. 1 Samuel 11:8 three hundred thousand. . . thirty thousand: The Dead Sea Scrolls and some ancient translations have different numbers.
10. 1 Samuel 11:15 sacrificed. . . blessing: This kind of sacrifice is described in Leviticus 3; 7.11-36; 19.5-8. People who offered these sacrifices were allowed to eat most of the meat, and they could invite others to share it with them.

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John 6:43-71 (Contemporary English Version)

⁴³Jesus told them:
   Stop grumbling! ⁴⁴No one can come to me, unless the Father who sent me makes them want to come. But if they do come, I will raise them to life on the last day. ⁴⁵One of the prophets wrote, "God will teach all of them." And so everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him will come to me.
    ⁴⁶The only one who has seen the Father is the one who has come from him. No one else has ever seen the Father.⁴⁷I tell you for certain that everyone who has faith in me has eternal life.
    ⁴⁸I am the bread that gives life! ⁴⁹Your ancestors ate manna ^{a<="" value="[a]" >[]} in the desert, and later they died. ⁵⁰But the bread from heaven has come down, so that no one who eats it will ever die. ⁵¹I am that bread from heaven! Everyone who eats it will live forever. My flesh is the life-giving bread that I give to the people of this world. ⁵²They started arguing with each other and asked, "How can he give us his flesh to eat?"
    ⁵³Jesus answered:
   I tell you for certain that you won't live unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man. ⁵⁴But if you do eat my flesh and drink my blood, you will have eternal life, and I will raise you to life on the last day. ⁵⁵My flesh is the true food, and my blood is the true drink. ⁵⁶If you eat my flesh and drink my blood, you are one with me, and I am one with you.
    ⁵⁷The living Father sent me, and I have life because of him. Now everyone who eats my flesh will live because of me. ⁵⁸The bread that comes down from heaven isn't like what your ancestors ate. They died, but whoever eats this bread will live forever.
    ⁵⁹Jesus was teaching in a Jewish place of worship in Capernaum when he said these things.     

The Words of Eternal Life

 ⁶⁰Many of Jesus' disciples heard him and said, "This is too hard for anyone to understand."     ⁶¹Jesus knew that his disciples were grumbling. So he asked, "Does this bother you? ⁶²What if you should see the Son of Man go up to heaven where he came from? ⁶³The Spirit is the one who gives life! Human strength can do nothing. The words that I have spoken to you are from that life-giving Spirit. ⁶⁴But some of you refuse to have faith in me." Jesus said this, because from the beginning he knew who would have faith in him. He also knew which one would betray him.
    ⁶⁵Then Jesus said, "You cannot come to me, unless the Father makes you want to come. That is why I have told these things to all of you."
    ⁶⁶Because of what Jesus said, many of his disciples turned their backs on him and stopped following him. ⁶⁷Jesus then asked his twelve disciples if they were going to leave him. ⁶⁸Simon Peter answered, "Lord, there is no one else that we can go to! Your words give eternal life. ⁶⁹We have faith in you, and we are sure that you are God's Holy One."
    ⁷⁰Jesus told his disciples, "I chose all twelve of you, but one of you is a demon!" ⁷¹Jesus was talking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. ^[b<="">] He would later betray Jesus, even though he was one of the twelve disciples. 

Footnotes:

1. John 6:49 manna: See the note at 6.31.
2. John 6:71 Iscariot: This may mean " a man from Kerioth" (a place in Judea). But more probably it means " a man who was a liar" or " a man who was a betrayer."

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Psalm 107:1-43 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 107

BOOK V

(Psalms 107-150)

The LORD Is Good to His People

 ¹Shout praises to the LORD!    He is good to us,
   and his love never fails.
    ²Everyone the LORD has rescued
   from trouble
   should praise him,
    ³everyone he has brought
   from the east and the west,
   the north and the south. ^{a<="" value="[a]" >[] 4}Some of you were lost
   in the scorching desert,
   far from a town.
    ⁵You were hungry and thirsty
   and about to give up.
    ⁶You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ⁷Right away he brought you
   to a town.
    ⁸You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ⁹To everyone who is thirsty,
   he gives something to drink;
   to everyone who is hungry,
   he gives good things to eat.
    ¹⁰Some of you were prisoners
   suffering in deepest darkness
   and bound by chains,
    ¹¹because you had rebelled
   against God Most High
   and refused his advice.
    ¹²You were worn out
   from working like slaves,
   and no one came to help.
    ¹³You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ¹⁴He brought you out
   of the deepest darkness
   and broke your chains.
    ¹⁵You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ¹⁶He breaks down bronze gates
   and shatters iron locks.
    ¹⁷Some of you had foolishly
   committed a lot of sins
   and were in terrible pain.
    ¹⁸The very thought of food
   was disgusting to you,
   and you were almost dead.
    ¹⁹You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ²⁰By the power of his own word,
   he healed you
   and saved you
   from destruction.
    ²¹You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ²²You should celebrate
   by offering sacrifices
   and singing joyful songs
   to tell what he has done.
    ²³Some of you made a living
   by sailing the mighty sea,
    ²⁴and you saw the miracles
   the LORD performed there.
    ²⁵At his command a storm arose,
   and waves covered the sea.
    ²⁶You were tossed to the sky
   and to the ocean depths,
   until things looked so bad
   that you lost your courage.
    ²⁷You staggered like drunkards
   and gave up all hope.
    ²⁸You were in serious trouble,
   but you prayed to the LORD,
   and he rescued you.
    ²⁹He made the storm stop
   and the sea be quiet.
    ³⁰You were happy because of this,
   and he brought you to the port
   where you wanted to go.
    ³¹You should praise the LORD
   for his love
   and for the wonderful things
   he does for all of us.
    ³²Honor the LORD
   when you
   and your leaders
   meet to worship.
    ³³If you start doing wrong,
   the LORD will turn rivers
   into deserts,
    ³⁴flowing streams
   into scorched land,
   and fruitful fields
   into beds of salt.
    ³⁵But the LORD can also turn
   deserts into lakes
   and scorched land
   into flowing streams.
    ³⁶If you are hungry,
   you can settle there
   and build a town.
    ³⁷You can plant fields
   and vineyards
   that produce
   a good harvest.
    ³⁸The LORD will bless you
   with many children
   and with herds of cattle.
    ³⁹Sometimes you may be crushed
   by troubles and sorrows,
   until only a few of you
   are left to survive.
    ⁴⁰But the LORD will take revenge
   on those who conquer you,
   and he will make them wander
   across desert sands.
    ⁴¹When you are suffering
   and in need,
   he will come to your rescue,
   and your families will grow
   as fast as a herd of sheep.
    ⁴²You will see this because
   you obey the LORD,
   but everyone who is wicked
   will be silenced.
    ⁴³Be wise! Remember this
   and think about the kindness
   of the LORD.
    

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 107:3 south: The Hebrew text has " sea," probably referring to the Mediterranean Sea.

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Proverbs 15:1-3 (Contemporary English Version)

Proverbs 15

The LORD Sees Everything

 ¹A kind answer    soothes angry feelings,
   but harsh words
   stir them up.
    ²Words of wisdom
   come from the wise,
   but fools speak foolishness.
    ³The LORD sees everything,
   whether good or bad. 

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Verse of the Day

“Instead, be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ.” - Ephesians 4:32 

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

American composer and lyricist, Irving Berlin wrote, “Talent is only the starting point.”

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A Joke for Today

A doctor, a consultant, a little boy scout and a pastor were out for a Sunday afternoon flight on a small private plane.

Suddenly, the plane developed engine trouble. In spite of the best efforts of the pilot, the plane started to go down.

Finally, the pilot grabbed a parachute, yelled to the passengers that they had better jump, and bailed out.

Unfortunately there were only three parachutes remaining.

The doctor grabbed one and said "I'm a doctor, I save lives, so I must live," and jumped out.

The consultant then said "I'm the smartest man in the world, I deserve to live!" He grabbed a parachute and jumped, also.

The pastor looked at the little boy scout and said, "My son, I've lived a long and full life. You are young and have your whole life ahead of you. Take the last parachute and live in peace."

The little boy scout handed the parachute back to the pastor and said "Not to worry, Preacher. 'The smartest man in the world' just jumped out with my back pack."

Bible Readings for June 29, 2016

Today our passages are 2 Kings 15:1–16:20; Acts 19:13-41; Psalm 147:1-20; and Proverbs 18:4-5. The readings are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. If you missed a day, you can find all the readings at our blog, The Bible in a Year. 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 15-16:20 (The Message)

2 Kings 15

Azariah (Uzziah) of Judah

 ^1-5 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah became king in Judah. He was sixteen years old when he began his rule and he was king for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jecoliah. She was from Jerusalem. He did well in the eyes of God, following in the footsteps of his father Amaziah. But he also failed to get rid of the local sex-and-religion shrines; they continued to be popular with the people. God afflicted the king with a bad skin disease until the day of his death. He lived in the palace but no longer acted as king; his son Jotham ran the government and ruled the country.  ^6-7 The rest of the life and times of Azariah, everything he accomplished, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Azariah died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. Jotham his son was king after him.

Zechariah of Israel

^8-9 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king over Israel in Samaria. He lasted only six months. He lived a bad life before God, no different from his ancestors. He continued in the line of Jeroboam son of Nebat who led Israel into a life of sin.  ¹⁰ Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against him, assassinated him in public view, and took over as king.
 ^11-12 The rest of the life and times of Zechariah is written plainly in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. That completed the word of God that was given to Jehu, namely, "For four generations your sons will sit on the throne of Israel." Zechariah was the fourth.

Shallum of Israel

¹³ Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah. He was king in Samaria for only a month.  ¹⁴ Menahem son of Gadi came up from Tirzah to Samaria. He attacked Shallum son of Jabesh and killed him. He then became king.
 ¹⁵ The rest of the life and times of Shallum and the account of the conspiracy are written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

Menahem of Israel

¹⁶ Using Tirzah as his base, Menahem opened his reign by smashing Tiphsah, devastating both the town and its suburbs because they didn't welcome him with open arms. He savagely ripped open all the pregnant women.  ^17-18 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king over Israel. He ruled from Samaria for ten years. As far as God was concerned he lived an evil life. Sin for sin, he repeated the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.
 ^19-20 Then Tiglath-Pileser III king of Assyria showed up and attacked the country. But Menahem made a deal with him: He bought his support by handing over about thirty-seven tons of silver. He raised the money by making every landowner in Israel pay fifty shekels to the king of Assyria. That satisfied the king of Assyria, and he left the country.
 ^21-22 The rest of the life and times of Menahem, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. Menahem died and joined his ancestors. His son Pekahiah became the next king.

Pekahiah of Israel

^23-24 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for two years. In God's eyes he lived an evil life. He stuck to the old sin tracks of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.  ²⁵ And then his military aide Pekah son of Remaliah conspired against him—killed him in cold blood while he was in his private quarters in the royal palace in Samaria. He also killed Argob and Arieh. Fifty Gadites were in on the conspiracy with him. After the murder he became the next king.
 ²⁶ The rest of the life and times of Pekahiah, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

Pekah of Israel

^27-28 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Samaria. He ruled for twenty years. In God's view he lived an evil life; he didn't deviate so much as a hair's breadth from the path laid down by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin.  ²⁹ During the reign of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser III king of Assyria invaded the country. He captured Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, Galilee—the whole country of Naphtali—and took everyone captive to Assyria.
 ³⁰ But then Hoshea son of Elah mounted a conspiracy against Pekah son of Remaliah. He assassinated him and took over as king. This was in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah.
 ³¹ The rest of the life and times of Pekah, everything he did, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

Jotham of Judah

^32-35 In the second year of Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah became king in Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. He acted well in God's eyes, following in the steps of his father Uzziah. But he didn't interfere with the traffic to the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines; they continued, as popular as ever. The construction of the High Gate to The Temple of God was his work.  ^36-38 The rest of the life and times of Jotham, the record of his work, is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. It was during these years that God began sending Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah to attack Judah. Jotham died and joined his ancestors. They buried him in the family cemetery in the City of David. His son Ahaz was the next king.

2 Kings 16

Ahaz of Judah

 ^1-4 In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah, Ahaz son of Jotham became king of Judah. Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king and he ruled for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He didn't behave in the eyes of his God; he wasn't at all like his ancestor David. Instead he followed in the track of the kings of Israel. He even indulged in the outrageous practice of "passing his son through the fire"—a truly abominable act he picked up from the pagans God had earlier thrown out of the country. He also participated in the activities of the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines that flourished all over the place.  ⁵ Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel ganged up against Jerusalem, throwing a siege around the city, but they couldn't make further headway against Ahaz.
 ⁶ At about this same time and on another front, the king of Edom recovered the port of Elath and expelled the men of Judah. The Edomites occupied Elath and have been there ever since.
 ^7-8 Ahaz sent envoys to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria with this message: "I'm your servant and your son. Come and save me from the heavy-handed invasion of the king of Aram and the king of Israel. They're attacking me right now." Then Ahaz robbed the treasuries of the palace and The Temple of God of their gold and silver and sent them to the king of Assyria as a bribe.
 ⁹ The king of Assyria responded to him. He attacked and captured Damascus. He deported the people to Nineveh as exiles. Rezin he killed.
 ^10-11 King Ahaz went to meet Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria in Damascus. The altar in Damascus made a great impression on him. He sent back to Uriah the priest a drawing and set of blueprints of the altar. Uriah the priest built the altar to the specifications that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus. By the time the king returned from Damascus, Uriah had completed the altar.
 ^12-14 The minute the king saw the altar he approached it with reverence and arranged a service of worship with a full course of offerings: Whole-Burnt-Offerings with billows of smoke, Grain-Offerings, libations of Drink-Offerings, the sprinkling of blood from the Peace-Offerings—the works. But the old bronze Altar that signaled the presence of God he displaced from its central place and pushed it off to the side of his new altar.
 ¹⁵ Then King Ahaz ordered Uriah the priest: "From now on offer all the sacrifices on the new altar, the great altar: morning Whole-Burnt-Offerings, evening Grain-Offerings, the king's Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Grain-Offerings, the people's Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Grain-Offerings, and also their Drink-Offerings. Splash all the blood from the burnt offerings and sacrifices against this altar. The old bronze Altar will be for my personal use.
 ¹⁶ The priest Uriah followed King Ahaz's orders to the letter.
 ^17-18 Then King Ahaz proceeded to plunder The Temple furniture of all its bronze. He stripped the bronze from The Temple furnishings, even salvaged the four bronze oxen that supported the huge basin, The Sea, and set The Sea unceremoniously on the stone pavement. Finally, he removed any distinctive features from within The Temple that were offensive to the king of Assyria.
 ^19-20 The rest of the life and times of Ahaz is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Ahaz died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. His son Hezekiah became the next king.

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Acts 19:13-41 (The Message)

 ^13-16Some itinerant Jewish exorcists who happened to be in town at the time tried their hand at what they assumed to be Paul's "game." They pronounced the name of the Master Jesus over victims of evil spirits, saying, "I command you by the Jesus preached by Paul!" The seven sons of a certain Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were trying to do this on a man when the evil spirit talked back: "I know Jesus and I've heard of Paul, but who are you?" Then the possessed man went berserk—jumped the exorcists, beat them up, and tore off their clothes. Naked and bloody, they got away as best they could.
 ^17-20It was soon news all over Ephesus among both Jews and Greeks. The realization spread that God was in and behind this. Curiosity about Paul developed into reverence for the Master Jesus. Many of those who thus believed came out of the closet and made a clean break with their secret sorceries. All kinds of witches and warlocks came out of the woodwork with their books of spells and incantations and made a huge bonfire of them. Someone estimated their worth at fifty thousand silver coins. In such ways it became evident that the Word of the Master was now sovereign and prevailed in Ephesus.

The Goddess Artemis

 ^21-22After all this had come to a head, Paul decided it was time to move on to Macedonia and Achaia provinces, and from there to Jerusalem. "Then," he said, "I'm off to Rome. I've got to see Rome!" He sent two of his assistants, Timothy and Erastus, on to Macedonia and then stayed for a while and wrapped things up in Asia.  ^23-26But before he got away, a huge ruckus occurred over what was now being referred to as "the Way." A certain silversmith, Demetrius, conducted a brisk trade in the manufacture of shrines to the goddess Artemis, employing a number of artisans in his business. He rounded up his workers and others similarly employed and said, "Men, you well know that we have a good thing going here—and you've seen how Paul has barged in and discredited what we're doing by telling people that there's no such thing as a god made with hands. A lot of people are going along with him, not only here in Ephesus but all through Asia province.
 ²⁷"Not only is our little business in danger of falling apart, but the temple of our famous goddess Artemis will certainly end up a pile of rubble as her glorious reputation fades to nothing. And this is no mere local matter—the whole world worships our Artemis!"
 ^28-31That set them off in a frenzy. They ran into the street yelling, "Great Artemis of the Ephesians! Great Artemis of the Ephesians!" They put the whole city in an uproar, stampeding into the stadium, and grabbing two of Paul's associates on the way, the Macedonians Gaius and Aristarchus. Paul wanted to go in, too, but the disciples wouldn't let him. Prominent religious leaders in the city who had become friendly to Paul concurred: "By no means go near that mob!"
 ^32-34Some were yelling one thing, some another. Most of them had no idea what was going on or why they were there. As the Jews pushed Alexander to the front to try to gain control, different factions clamored to get him on their side. But he brushed them off and quieted the mob with an impressive sweep of his arms. But the moment he opened his mouth and they knew he was a Jew, they shouted him down: "Great Artemis of the Ephesians! Great Artemis of the Ephesians!"—on and on and on, for over two hours.
 ^35-37Finally, the town clerk got the mob quieted down and said, "Fellow citizens, is there anyone anywhere who doesn't know that our dear city Ephesus is protector of glorious Artemis and her sacred stone image that fell straight out of heaven? Since this is beyond contradiction, you had better get hold of yourselves. This is conduct unworthy of Artemis. These men you've dragged in here have done nothing to harm either our temple or our goddess.
 ^38-41"So if Demetrius and his guild of artisans have a complaint, they can take it to court and make all the accusations they want. If anything else is bothering you, bring it to the regularly scheduled town meeting and let it be settled there. There is no excuse for what's happened today. We're putting our city in serious danger. Rome, remember, does not look kindly on rioters." With that, he sent them home.

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Psalm 147:1-20 (The Message)

Psalm 147

    Hallelujah! It's a good thing to sing praise to our God;
      praise is beautiful, praise is fitting.

 ^2-6 God's the one who rebuilds Jerusalem,
      who regathers Israel's scattered exiles.
   He heals the heartbroken
      and bandages their wounds.
   He counts the stars
      and assigns each a name.
   Our Lord is great, with limitless strength;
      we'll never comprehend what he knows and does.
   God puts the fallen on their feet again
      and pushes the wicked into the ditch.

 ^7-11 Sing to God a thanksgiving hymn,
      play music on your instruments to God,
   Who fills the sky with clouds,
      preparing rain for the earth,
   Then turning the mountains green with grass,
      feeding both cattle and crows.
   He's not impressed with horsepower;
      the size of our muscles means little to him.
   Those who fear God get God's attention;
      they can depend on his strength.

 ^12-18 Jerusalem, worship God!
      Zion, praise your God!
   He made your city secure,
      he blessed your children among you.
   He keeps the peace at your borders,
      he puts the best bread on your tables.
   He launches his promises earthward—
      how swift and sure they come!
   He spreads snow like a white fleece,
      he scatters frost like ashes,
   He broadcasts hail like birdseed—
      who can survive his winter?
   Then he gives the command and it all melts;
      he breathes on winter—suddenly it's spring!

 ^19-20 He speaks the same way to Jacob,
      speaks words that work to Israel.
   He never did this to the other nations;
      they never heard such commands.
   Hallelujah!

 

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Proverbs 18:4-5 (The Message)

 ⁴ Many words rush along like rivers in flood,
   but deep wisdom flows up from artesian springs.

 ⁵ It's not right to go easy on the guilty,
   or come down hard on the innocent.

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Verse of the Day
“You, LORD, will always treat me with kindness. Your love never fails. You have made us what we are. Don't give up on us now!” - Psalm 138:8

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

American composer and lyricist, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history, Irving Berlin wrote, “Life is 10 percent what you make it, and 90 percent how you take it.”