Bible Readings for May 20, 2016

Today our passages are 1 Samuel 26:1–28:25; John 11:1-53; Psalm 117:1-2; and Proverbs 15:22-23. 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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1 Samuel 26-28:25 (The Message)

1 Samuel 26

Obsessed with a Single Flea

 ^1-3 Some Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah and said, "Did you know that David is hiding out on the Hakilah Hill just opposite Jeshimon?" Saul was on his feet in a minute and on his way to the wilderness of Ziph, taking three thousand of his best men, the pick of the crop, to hunt for David in that wild desert. He camped just off the road at the Hakilah Hill, opposite Jeshimon.  ^3-5 David, still out in the backcountry, knew Saul had come after him. He sent scouts to determine his precise location. Then David set out and came to the place where Saul had set up camp and saw for himself where Saul and Abner, son of Ner, his general, were staying. Saul was safely inside the camp, encircled by the army.
 ⁶ Taking charge, David spoke to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother: "Who will go down with me and enter Saul's camp?"
    Abishai whispered, "I'll go with you."
 ⁷ So David and Abishai entered the encampment by night, and there he was—Saul, stretched out asleep at the center of the camp, his spear stuck in the ground near his head, with Abner and the troops sound asleep on all sides.
 ⁸ Abishai said, "This is the moment! God has put your enemy in your grasp. Let me nail him to the ground with his spear. One hit will do it, believe me; I won't need a second!"
 ⁹ But David said to Abishai, "Don't you dare hurt him! Who could lay a hand on God's anointed and even think of getting away with it?"
 ^10-11 He went on, "As God lives, either God will strike him, or his time will come and he'll die in bed, or he'll fall in battle, but God forbid that I should lay a finger on God's anointed. Now, grab the spear at his head and the water jug and let's get out of here."
 ¹² David took the spear and water jug that were right beside Saul's head, and they slipped away. Not a soul saw. Not a soul knew. No one woke up! They all slept through the whole thing. A blanket of deep sleep from God had fallen on them.
 ^13-14 Then David went across to the opposite hill and stood far away on the top of the mountain. With this safe distance between them, he shouted across to the army and Abner son of Ner, "Hey, Abner! How long do I have to wait for you to wake up and answer me?"
    Abner said, "Who's calling?"
 ^15-16 "Aren't you in charge there?" said David. "Why aren't you minding the store? Why weren't you standing guard over your master the king, when a soldier came to kill the king your master? Bad form! As God lives, your life should be forfeit, you and the entire bodyguard. Look what I have—the king's spear and water jug that were right beside his head!"
 ^17-20 By now, Saul had recognized David's voice and said, "Is that you, my son David?"
    David said, "Yes, it's me, O King, my master. Why are you after me, hunting me down? What have I done? What crime have I committed? Oh, my master, my king, listen to this from your servant: If God has stirred you up against me, then I gladly offer my life as a sacrifice. But if it's men who have done it, let them be banished from God's presence! They've expelled me from my rightful place in God's heritage, sneering, 'Out of here! Go get a job with some other god!' But you're not getting rid of me that easily; you'll not separate me from God in life or death. The absurdity! The king of Israel obsessed with a single flea! Hunting me down—a mere partridge—out in the hills!"
 ²¹ Saul confessed, "I've sinned! Oh, come back, my dear son David! I won't hurt you anymore. You've honored me this day, treating my life as most precious. And I've acted the fool—a moral dunce, a real clown."
 ^22-24 David answered, "See what I have here? The king's spear. Let one of your servants come and get it. It's God's business to decide what to do with each of us in regard to what's right and who's loyal. God put your life in my hands today, but I wasn't willing to lift a finger against God's anointed. Just as I honored your life today, may God honor my life and rescue me from all trouble."
 ²⁵ Saul said to David, "Bless you, dear son David! Yes, do what you have to do! And, yes, succeed in all you attempt!"
    Then David went on his way, and Saul went home.

1 Samuel 27

 ¹ David thought to himself, "Sooner or later, Saul's going to get me. The best thing I can do is escape to Philistine country. Saul will count me a lost cause and quit hunting me down in every nook and cranny of Israel. I'll be out of his reach for good."  ^2-4 So David left; he and his six hundred men went to Achish son of Maoch, king of Gath. They moved in and settled down in Gath, with Achish. Each man brought his household; David brought his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, widow of Nabal of Carmel. When Saul was told that David had escaped to Gath, he called off the hunt.
 ⁵ Then David said to Achish, "If it's agreeable to you, assign me a place in one of the rural villages. It doesn't seem right that I, your mere servant, should be taking up space in the royal city."
 ^6-7 So Achish assigned him Ziklag. (This is how Ziklag got to be what it is now, a city of the kings of Judah.) David lived in Philistine country a year and four months.
 ^8-9 From time to time David and his men raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites—these people were longtime inhabitants of the land stretching toward Shur and on to Egypt. When David raided an area he left no one alive, neither man nor woman, but took everything else: sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, clothing—the works. Then he'd return to Achish.
 ^10-11 Achish would ask, "And whom did you raid today?"
    David would tell him, "Oh, the Negev of Judah," or "The Negev of Jerahmeel," or "The Negev of the Kenites." He never left a single person alive lest one show up in Gath and report what David had really been doing. This is the way David operated all the time he lived in Philistine country.
 ¹² Achish came to trust David completely. He thought, "He's made himself so repugnant to his people that he'll be in my camp forever."

1 Samuel 28

 ¹ During this time the Philistines mustered their troops to make war on Israel. Achish said to David, "You can count on this: You're marching with my troops, you and your men."  ² And David said, "Good! Now you'll see for yourself what I can do!"
   "Great!" said Achish. "I'm making you my personal bodyguard—for life!"

Saul Prayed, but God Didn't Answer

³ Samuel was now dead. All Israel had mourned his death and buried him in Ramah, his hometown. Saul had long since cleaned out all those who held séances with the dead.  ^4-5 The Philistines had mustered their troops and camped at Shunem. Saul had assembled all Israel and camped at Gilboa. But when Saul saw the Philistine troops, he shook in his boots, scared to death.
 ⁶ Saul prayed to God, but God didn't answer—neither by dream nor by sign nor by prophet.
 ⁷ So Saul ordered his officials, "Find me someone who can call up spirits so I may go and seek counsel from those spirits."
    His servants said, "There's a witch at Endor."
 ⁸ Saul disguised himself by putting on different clothes. Then, taking two men with him, he went under the cover of night to the woman and said, "I want you to consult a ghost for me. Call up the person I name."
 ⁹ The woman said, "Just hold on now! You know what Saul did, how he swept the country clean of mediums. Why are you trying to trap me and get me killed?"
 ¹⁰ Saul swore solemnly, "As God lives, you won't get in any trouble for this."
 ¹¹ The woman said, "So whom do you want me to bring up?"
    "Samuel. Bring me Samuel."
 ¹² When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out loudly to Saul, "Why did you lie to me? You're Saul!"
 ¹³ The king told her, "You have nothing to fear ...but what do you see?"
    "I see a spirit ascending from the underground."
 ¹⁴ "And what does he look like?" Saul asked.
    "An old man ascending, robed like a priest."
    Saul knew it was Samuel. He fell down, face to the ground, and worshiped.
 ¹⁵ Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by calling me up?"
    "Because I'm in deep trouble," said Saul. "The Philistines are making war against me and God has deserted me—he doesn't answer me any more, either by prophet or by dream. And so I'm calling on you to tell me what to do."
 ^16-19 "Why ask me?" said Samuel. "God has turned away from you and is now on the side of your neighbor. God has done exactly what he told you through me—ripped the kingdom right out of your hands and given it to your neighbor. It's because you did not obey God, refused to carry out his seething judgment on Amalek, that God does to you what he is doing today. Worse yet, God is turning Israel, along with you, over to the Philistines. Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. And, yes, indeed, God is giving Israel's army up to the Philistines."
 ^20-22 Saul dropped to the ground, felled like a tree, terrified by Samuel's words. There wasn't an ounce of strength left in him—he'd eaten nothing all day and all night. The woman, realizing that he was in deep shock, said to him, "Listen to me. I did what you asked me to do, put my life in your hands in doing it, carried out your instructions to the letter. It's your turn to do what I tell you: Let me give you some food. Eat it. It will give you strength so you can get on your way."
 ^23-25 He refused. "I'm not eating anything."
    But when his servants joined the woman in urging him, he gave in to their pleas, picked himself up off the ground, and sat on the bed. The woman moved swiftly. She butchered a grain-fed calf she had, and took some flour, kneaded it, and baked some flat bread. Then she served it all up for Saul and his servants. After dining handsomely, they got up from the table and were on their way that same night.

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John 11:1-53 (The Message)

John 11

The Death of Lazarus

 ^1-3Aman was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. This was the same Mary who massaged the Lord's feet with aromatic oils and then wiped them with her hair. It was her brother Lazarus who was sick. So the sisters sent word to Jesus, "Master, the one you love so very much is sick."

 ⁴When Jesus got the message, he said, "This sickness is not fatal. It will become an occasion to show God's glory by glorifying God's Son."

 ^5-7Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, but oddly, when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed on where he was for two more days. After the two days, he said to his disciples, "Let's go back to Judea."

 ⁸They said, "Rabbi, you can't do that. The Jews are out to kill you, and you're going back?"

 ^9-10Jesus replied, "Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in daylight doesn't stumble because there's plenty of light from the sun. Walking at night, he might very well stumble because he can't see where he's going."

 ¹¹He said these things, and then announced, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. I'm going to wake him up."

 ^12-13The disciples said, "Master, if he's gone to sleep, he'll get a good rest and wake up feeling fine." Jesus was talking about death, while his disciples thought he was talking about taking a nap.

 ^14-15Then Jesus became explicit: "Lazarus died. And I am glad for your sakes that I wasn't there. You're about to be given new grounds for believing. Now let's go to him."

 ¹⁶That's when Thomas, the one called the Twin, said to his companions, "Come along. We might as well die with him."

 ^17-20When Jesus finally got there, he found Lazarus already four days dead. Bethany was near Jerusalem, only a couple of miles away, and many of the Jews were visiting Martha and Mary, sympathizing with them over their brother. Martha heard Jesus was coming and went out to meet him. Mary remained in the house.

 ^21-22Martha said, "Master, if you'd been here, my brother wouldn't have died. Even now, I know that whatever you ask God he will give you."

 ²³Jesus said, "Your brother will be raised up."

 ²⁴Martha replied, "I know that he will be raised up in the resurrection at the end of time."

 ^25-26"You don't have to wait for the End. I am, right now, Resurrection and Life. The one who believes in me, even though he or she dies, will live. And everyone who lives believing in me does not ultimately die at all. Do you believe this?"

 ²⁷"Yes, Master. All along I have believed that you are the Messiah, the Son of God who comes into the world."

 ²⁸After saying this, she went to her sister Mary and whispered in her ear, "The Teacher is here and is asking for you."

 ^29-32The moment she heard that, she jumped up and ran out to him. Jesus had not yet entered the town but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When her sympathizing Jewish friends saw Mary run off, they followed her, thinking she was on her way to the tomb to weep there. Mary came to where Jesus was waiting and fell at his feet, saying, "Master, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died."

 ^33-34When Jesus saw her sobbing and the Jews with her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him. He said, "Where did you put him?"

 ^34-35"Master, come and see," they said. Now Jesus wept.

 ³⁶The Jews said, "Look how deeply he loved him."

 ³⁷Others among them said, "Well, if he loved him so much, why didn't he do something to keep him from dying? After all, he opened the eyes of a blind man."

 ^38-39Then Jesus, the anger again welling up within him, arrived at the tomb. It was a simple cave in the hillside with a slab of stone laid against it. Jesus said, "Remove the stone."

   The sister of the dead man, Martha, said, "Master, by this time there's a stench. He's been dead four days!"

 ⁴⁰Jesus looked her in the eye. "Didn't I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

 ^41-42Then, to the others, "Go ahead, take away the stone."

   They removed the stone. Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and prayed, "Father, I'm grateful that you have listened to me. I know you always do listen, but on account of this crowd standing here I've spoken so that they might believe that you sent me."

 ^43-44Then he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And he came out, a cadaver, wrapped from head to toe, and with a kerchief over his face.

   Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him loose."

The Man Who Creates God-Signs

 ^45-48That was a turnaround for many of the Jews who were with Mary. They saw what Jesus did, and believed in him. But some went back to the Pharisees and told on Jesus. The high priests and Pharisees called a meeting of the Jewish ruling body. "What do we do now?" they asked. "This man keeps on doing things, creating God-signs. If we let him go on, pretty soon everyone will be believing in him and the Romans will come and remove what little power and privilege we still have."

 ^49-52Then one of them—it was Caiaphas, the designated Chief Priest that year—spoke up, "Don't you know anything? Can't you see that it's to our advantage that one man dies for the people rather than the whole nation be destroyed?" He didn't say this of his own accord, but as Chief Priest that year he unwittingly prophesied that Jesus was about to die sacrificially for the nation, and not only for the nation but so that all God's exile-scattered children might be gathered together into one people.

 ^53-54From that day on, they plotted to kill him. So Jesus no longer went out in public among the Jews. He withdrew into the country bordering the desert to a town called Ephraim and secluded himself there with his disciples.

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Psalm 117:1-2 (The Message)

Psalm 117

    Praise God, everybody! Applaud God, all people!
   His love has taken over our lives;
   God's faithful ways are eternal.
      Hallelujah!

 

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Proverbs 15:22-23 (The Message)

 ²² Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail;
   take good counsel and watch them succeed.

 ²³ Congenial conversation—what a pleasure!
   The right word at the right time—beautiful!

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Verse of the Day

“God is the one who makes us patient and cheerful. I pray that he will help you live at peace with each other, as you follow Christ. Then all of you together will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” - Romans 15:5-6

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

English philosopher, political economist and civil servant, John Stuart Mill wrote, “When an opinion is true, it may be extinguished once, twice, or many times, but in the course of ages there will generally be found persons to rediscover it, until some one of its reappearances falls on a time when from favourable circumstances it escapes persecution until it has made such head as to withstand all subsequent attempts to suppress it.”

Bible Readings for May 20, 2015

Today our passages are 1 Samuel 26:1–28:25; John 11:1-53; Psalm 117:1-2; and Proverbs 15:22-23. The readings are the Contemporary English Version. 

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1 Samuel 26-28:25 (Contemporary English Version)

1 Samuel 26

David Again Lets Saul Live

 ¹Once again, ^[a] some people from Ziph went to Gibeah to talk with Saul. "David has a hideout on Mount Hachilah near Jeshimon out in the desert," they told him. ²Saul took three thousand of Israel's best soldiers and went to look for David there in Ziph Desert. ³Saul set up camp on Mount Hachilah, which is across the road from Jeshimon. But David was hiding out in the desert.    When David heard that Saul was following him, ⁴he sent some spies to find out if it was true. ⁵Then he sneaked up to Saul's camp. He noticed that Saul and his army commander Abner the son of Ner were sleeping in the middle of the camp, with soldiers sleeping all around them. ⁶David asked Ahimelech the Hittite and Joab's brother Abishai, ^[b] "Which one of you will go with me into Saul's camp?" "I will!" Abishai answered.
    ⁷That same night, David and Abishai crept into the camp. Saul was sleeping, and his spear was stuck in the ground not far from his head. Abner and the soldiers were sound asleep all around him.
    ⁸Abishai whispered, "This time God has let you get your hands on your enemy! I'll pin him to the ground with one thrust of his own spear."
    ⁹"Don't kill him!" David whispered back. "The LORD will punish anyone who kills his chosen king. ¹⁰As surely as the LORD lives, the LORD will kill Saul, or Saul will die a natural death or be killed in battle. ¹¹But I pray that the LORD will keep me from harming his chosen king. Let's grab his spear and his water jar and get out of here!"
    ¹²David took the spear and the water jar, then left the camp. None of Saul's soldiers knew what had happened or even woke up--the LORD had made all of them fall sound asleep. ¹³David and Abishai crossed the valley and went to the top of the next hill, where they were at a safe distance. ¹⁴"Abner!" David shouted toward Saul's army. "Can you hear me?"
   Abner shouted back. "Who dares disturb the king?"
    ¹⁵"Abner, what kind of a man are you?" David replied. "Aren't you supposed to be the best soldier in Israel? Then why didn't you protect your king? Anyone who went into your camp could have killed him tonight. ^{[c] 16}You're a complete failure! I swear by the living LORD that you and your men deserve to die for not protecting the LORD's chosen king. Look and see if you can find the king's spear and the water jar that were near his head." ¹⁷Saul could tell it was David's voice, and he called out, "David, my son! Is that you?"
   "Yes it is, Your Majesty. ¹⁸Why are you after me? Have I done something wrong, or have I committed a crime? ¹⁹Please listen to what I have to say. If the LORD has turned you against me, maybe a sacrifice will make him change his mind. But if some people have turned you against me, I hope the LORD will punish them! They have forced me to leave the land that belongs to the LORD and have told me to worship foreign gods. ^{[d] 20}Don't let me die in a land far away from the LORD. I'm no more important than a flea! Why should the king of Israel hunt me down as if I were a bird in the mountains?" ²¹"David, you had the chance to kill me today. But you didn't. I was very wrong about you. It was a terrible mistake for me to try to kill you. I've acted like a fool, but I'll never try to harm you again. You're like a son to me, so please come back."
    ²²"Your Majesty, here's your spear! Have one of your soldiers come and get it. ²³The LORD put you in my power today, but you are his chosen king and I wouldn't harm you. The LORD rewards people who are faithful and live right. ²⁴I saved your life today, and I pray that the LORD will protect me and keep me safe."
    ²⁵"David, my son, I pray that the Lord will bless you and make you successful!"
   Saul went back home. David also left,
   

1 Samuel 27

David in Philistia

 ¹but he thought to himself, "One of these days, Saul is going to kill me. The only way to escape from him is to go to Philistia. Then I'll be outside of Israel, and Saul will give up trying to catch me."     ^2-3David and his six hundred men went across the border to stay in Gath with King Achish the son of Maoch. His men brought their families with them. David brought his wife Ahinoam whose hometown was Jezreel, and he also brought his wife Abigail who had been married to Nabal from Carmel. ⁴When Saul found out that David had run off to Gath, he stopped trying to catch him.
    ⁵One day, David was talking with Achish and said, "If you are happy with me, then let me live in one of the towns in the countryside. I'm not important enough to live here with you in the royal city."
    ⁶Achish gave David the town of Ziklag that same day, and Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah ever since.
    ⁷David was in Philistia for a year and four months. ⁸The Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites lived in the area from Telam to Shur ^[e] and on as far as Egypt, and David often attacked their towns. ⁹Whenever David and his men attacked a town, they took the sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and the clothing, and killed everyone who lived there. After he returned from a raid, David always went to see Achish, ¹⁰who would ask, "Where did you attack today?" ^[f] David would answer, "Oh, we attacked some desert town that belonged to the Judah tribe." Sometimes David would say, "Oh, we attacked a town in the desert where the Jerahmeel clan lives" or "We attacked a town in the desert where the Kenites ^[g] live." ¹¹That's why David killed everyone in the towns he attacked. He thought, "If I let any of them live, they might come to Gath and tell what I've really been doing." David made these raids all the time he was in Philistia. ¹²But Achish trusted David and thought, "David's people must be furious with him. From now on he will have to take orders from me."
   

1 Samuel 28

Saul Talks with Samuel's Ghost

 ^1-3Samuel had died some time earlier, ^[h] and people from all over Israel had attended his funeral in his hometown of Ramah. Meanwhile, Saul had been trying to get rid of everyone who spoke with the spirits of the dead. ^[i] But one day the Philistines brought their soldiers together to attack Israel. Achish told David, "Of course, you know that you and your men must fight as part of our Philistine army."    David answered, "That will give you a chance to see for yourself just how well we can fight!"
   "In that case," Achish said, "you and your men will always be my bodyguards."
    ⁴The Philistines went to Shunem and set up camp. Saul called the army of Israel together, and they set up their camp in Gilboa. ⁵Saul took one look at the Philistine army and started shaking with fear. ⁶So he asked the LORD what to do. But the LORD would not answer, either in a dream or by a priest or a prophet. ⁷Then Saul told his officers, "Find me a woman who can talk to the spirits of the dead. I'll go to her and find out what's going to happen."
   His servants told him, "There's a woman at Endor who can talk to spirits of the dead."
    ⁸That night, Saul put on different clothing so nobody would recognize him. Then he and two of his men went to the woman, and asked, "Will you bring up the ghost of someone for us?"
    ⁹The woman said, "Why are you trying to trick me and get me killed? You know King Saul has gotten rid of everyone who talks to the spirits of the dead!"
    ¹⁰Saul replied, "I swear by the living LORD that nothing will happen to you because of this."
    ¹¹"Who do you want me to bring up?" she asked.
   "Bring up the ghost of Samuel," he answered.
    ¹²When the woman saw Samuel, she screamed. Then she turned to Saul and said, "You've tricked me! You're the king!"
    ¹³"Don't be afraid," Saul replied. "Just tell me what you see."
   She answered, "I see a spirit rising up out of the ground."
    ¹⁴"What does it look like?"
   "It looks like an old man wearing a robe."
   Saul knew it was Samuel, so he bowed down low.
    ¹⁵"Why are you bothering me by bringing me up like this?" Samuel asked.
   "I'm terribly worried," Saul answered. "The Philistines are about to attack me. God has turned his back on me and won't answer any more by prophets or by dreams. What should I do?"
    ¹⁶Samuel said:
   If the LORD has turned away from you and is now your enemy, don't ask me what to do. ¹⁷I've already told you: The LORD has sworn to take the kingdom from you and give it to David. And that's just what he's doing! ¹⁸When the LORD was angry with the Amalekites, he told you to destroy them, but you didn't do it. That's why the LORD is doing this to you. ¹⁹Tomorrow the LORD will let the Philistines defeat Israel's army, then you and your sons will join me down here in the world of the dead.
    ²⁰At once, Saul collapsed and lay stretched out on the floor, terrified at what Samuel had said. He was weak because he had not eaten anything since the day before.
    ²¹The woman came over to Saul, and when she saw that he was completely terrified, she said, "Your Majesty, I listened to you and risked my life to do what you asked. ²²Now please listen to me. Let me get you a little something to eat. It will give you strength for your walk back to camp."
    ²³"No, I won't eat!"
   But his officers and the woman kept on urging Saul, until he finally agreed. He got up off the floor and sat on the bed. ²⁴Right away the woman killed a calf that she had been fattening up. She cooked part of the meat and baked some thin bread. ^{[j] 25}Then she served the food to Saul and his officers, who ate and left before daylight.

Footnotes:

1. 1 Samuel 26:1 again: See 23.19.
2. 1 Samuel 26:6 Abishai: Hebrew "Abishai the son of Zeruiah." Zeruiah was David's older sister, so Abishai and Joab were David's nephews (see 1 Chronicles 2.12-17; 2 Samuel 17.25 and the note there).
3. 1 Samuel 26:15 Anyone. . . tonight: Or "Someone went into your camp to kill him tonight."
4. 1 Samuel 26:19 gods: In ancient times it was often believed that gods (even the God of Israel) could only be properly worshiped in their own countries, and only a country's gods should be worshiped in that country.
5. 1 Samuel 27:8 lived. . . Shur: One ancient translation; Hebrew "had lived for a long time in Shur."
6. 1 Samuel 27:10 Where. . . today: A few Hebrew manuscripts, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and three ancient translations; most Hebrew manuscripts "Didn't you make a raid today?"
7. 1 Samuel 27:10 Jerahmeel. . . Kenites: These were clans of the Judah tribe.
8. 1 Samuel 28:1 earlier: See 25.1.
9. 1 Samuel 28:1 dead: Many people believed that it was possible to talk to spirits of the dead, and that these spirits could tell the future.
10. 1 Samuel 28:24 thin bread: Bread made without yeast, since there was no time for the bread to rise.

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John 11:1-53 (Contemporary English Version)

John 11

The Death of Lazarus

 ^1-2A man by the name of Lazarus was sick in the village of Bethany. He had two sisters, Mary and Martha. This was the same Mary who later poured perfume on the Lord's head and wiped his feet with her hair. ³The sisters sent a message to the Lord and told him that his good friend Lazarus was sick.     ⁴When Jesus heard this, he said, "His sickness won't end in death. It will bring glory to God and his Son."
    ⁵Jesus loved Martha and her sister and brother. ⁶But he stayed where he was for two more days. ⁷Then he said to his disciples, "Now we will go back to Judea."
    ⁸"Teacher," they said, "the people there want to stone you to death! Why do you want to go back?"
    ⁹Jesus answered, "Aren't there twelve hours in each day? If you walk during the day, you will have light from the sun, and you won't stumble. ¹⁰But if you walk during the night, you will stumble, because you don't have any light." ¹¹Then he told them, "Our friend Lazarus is asleep, and I am going there to wake him up."
    ¹²They replied, "Lord, if he is asleep, he will get better." ¹³Jesus really meant that Lazarus was dead, but they thought he was talking only about sleep.
    ¹⁴Then Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead! ¹⁵I am glad that I wasn't there, because now you will have a chance to put your faith in me. Let's go to him."
    ¹⁶Thomas, whose nickname was "Twin," said to the other disciples, "Come on. Let's go, so we can die with him."
   

Jesus Brings Lazarus to Life

 ¹⁷When Jesus got to Bethany, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. ¹⁸Bethany was only about two miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁹and many people had come from the city to comfort Martha and Mary because their brother had died.     ²⁰When Martha heard that Jesus had arrived, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed in the house. ²¹Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²²Yet even now I know that God will do anything you ask."
    ²³Jesus told her, "Your brother will live again!"
    ²⁴Martha answered, "I know that he will be raised to life on the last day, ^[a] when all the dead are raised." ²⁵Jesus then said, "I am the one who raises the dead to life! Everyone who has faith in me will live, even if they die. ²⁶And everyone who lives because of faith in me will never really die. Do you believe this?"
    ²⁷"Yes, Lord!" she replied. "I believe that you are Christ, the Son of God. You are the one we hoped would come into the world."
    ²⁸After Martha said this, she went and privately said to her sister Mary, "The Teacher is here, and he wants to see you." ²⁹As soon as Mary heard this, she got up and went out to Jesus. ³⁰He was still outside the village where Martha had gone to meet him. ³¹Many people had come to comfort Mary, and when they saw her quickly leave the house, they thought she was going out to the tomb to cry. So they followed her.
    ³²Mary went to where Jesus was. Then as soon as she saw him, she knelt at his feet and said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."
    ³³When Jesus saw that Mary and the people with her were crying, he was terribly upset ³⁴and asked, "Where have you put his body?"
   They replied, "Lord, come and you will see."
    ³⁵Jesus started crying, ³⁶and the people said, "See how much he loved Lazarus."
    ³⁷Some of them said, "He gives sight to the blind. Why couldn't he have kept Lazarus from dying?"
    ³⁸Jesus was still terribly upset. So he went to the tomb, which was a cave with a stone rolled against the entrance. ³⁹Then he told the people to roll the stone away. But Martha said, "Lord, you know that Lazarus has been dead four days, and there will be a bad smell."
    ⁴⁰Jesus replied, "Didn't I tell you that if you had faith, you would see the glory of God?"
    ⁴¹After the stone had been rolled aside, Jesus looked up toward heaven and prayed, "Father, I thank you for answering my prayer. ⁴²I know that you always answer my prayers. But I said this, so that the people here would believe that you sent me."
    ⁴³When Jesus had finished praying, he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" ⁴⁴The man who had been dead came out. His hands and feet were wrapped with strips of burial cloth, and a cloth covered his face.
   Jesus then told the people, "Untie him and let him go."
   

The Plot To Kill Jesus

(Matthew 26.1-5; Mark 14.1,2; Luke 22.1,2)

 ⁴⁵Many of the people who had come to visit Mary saw the things that Jesus did, and they put their faith in him. ⁴⁶Others went to the Pharisees and told what Jesus had done. ⁴⁷Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called the council together and said, "What should we do? This man is working a lot of miracles. ^{[b] 48}If we don't stop him now, everyone will put their faith in him. Then the Romans will come and destroy our temple and our nation." ^{[c] 49}One of the council members was Caiaphas, who was also high priest that year. He spoke up and said, "You people don't have any sense at all! ⁵⁰Don't you know it is better for one person to die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed?" ⁵¹Caiaphas did not say this on his own. As high priest that year, he was prophesying that Jesus would die for the nation. ⁵²Yet Jesus would not die just for the Jewish nation. He would die to bring together all of God's scattered people. ⁵³From that day on, the council started making plans to put Jesus to death.    

Footnotes:

1. John 11:24 the last day: When God will judge all people.
2. John 11:47 miracles: See the note at 2.11.
3. John 11:48 destroy our temple and our nation: The Jewish leaders were afraid that Jesus would lead his followers to rebel against Rome and that the Roman army would then destroy their nation.

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Psalm 117:1-2 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 117

Come Praise the LORD

 ¹All of you nations,    come praise the LORD!
   Let everyone praise him.
    ²His love for us is wonderful;
   his faithfulness never ends.
   Shout praises to the LORD!

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Proverbs 15:22-23 (Contemporary English Version)

²²Without good advice
   everything goes wrong--
   it takes careful planning
   for things to go right.
    ²³Giving the right answer
   at the right time
   makes everyone happy.

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Verse of the Day

“God is the one who makes us patient and cheerful. I pray that he will help you live at peace with each other, as you follow Christ. Then all of you together will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” - Romans 15:5-6

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

 

British philosopher, political economist and civil servant, John Stuart Mill wrote, “Let not any one pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part, and forms no opinion. Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing. He is not a good man who, without a protest, allows wrong to be committed in his name, and with the means which he helps to supply, because he will not trouble himself to use his mind on the subject.”