October 11 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 57:14-60:16

• Psalm 119:1-4

• Proverbs 24:17-18

• Philippians 2:12-30

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Isaiah 57:14-60:16

And it will be said:  “Build up, build up, prepare the road!  Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.”  15 For this is what the high and lofty One says— he who lives forever, whose name is holy:“  I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite. 16 I will not accuse forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the spirit of man would grow faint before me— the breath of man that I have created. 17 I was enraged by his sinful greed; I punished him, and hid my face in anger, yet he kept on in his willful ways. 18 I have seen his ways, but I will heal him;  I will guide him and restore comfort to him, 19 creating praise on the lips of the mourners in Israel. Peace, peace, to those far and near,” says the Lord.  “And I will heal them.” 20 But the wicked are like the tossing sea, which cannot rest,  whose waves cast up mire and mud. 21 “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”

Isaiah 58

True Fasting

“Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins. 2 For day after day they seek me out;  they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them. 3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,  ‘and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves,  and you have not noticed?’

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. 4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today  and expect your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,  only a day for a man to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed and for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast,  a day acceptable to the Lord?

6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice  and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry  and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;  you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,  with the pointing finger and malicious talk, 10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry  and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness,  and your night will become like the noonday. 11 The Lord will guide you always;  he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land  and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden,  like a spring whose waters never fail. 12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins  and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,  Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way  and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 14 then you will find your joy in the Lord,  and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land  and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” The mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Isaiah 59

Sin, Confession and Redemption

Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save,  nor his ear too dull to hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated  you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. 3 For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken lies,  and your tongue mutters wicked things. 4 No one calls for justice;  no one pleads his case with integrity. They rely on empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil. 5 They hatch the eggs of vipers  and spin a spider’s web.  Whoever eats their eggs will die,  and when one is broken, an adder is hatched. 6 Their cobwebs are useless for clothing; they cannot cover themselves with what they make. Their deeds are evil deeds,  and acts of violence are in their hands. 7 Their feet rush into sin;  they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are evil thoughts;  ruin and destruction mark their ways. 8 The way of peace they do not know;  there is no justice in their paths. They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks in them will know peace.

9 So justice is far from us,  and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but all is darkness;  for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows. 10 Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like men without eyes. At midday we stumble as if it were twilight;  among the strong, we are like the dead.  11 We all growl like bears;  we moan mournfully like doves. We look for justice, but find none;  for deliverance, but it is far away.

12 For our offenses are many in your sight,  and our sins testify against us. Our offenses are ever with us,  and we acknowledge our iniquities: 13 rebellion and treachery against the Lord, turning our backs on our God, fomenting oppression and revolt,  uttering lies our hearts have conceived. 14 So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance; truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty cannot enter. 15 Truth is nowhere to be found,  and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey.

The Lord looked and was displeased  that there was no justice. 16 He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him. 17 He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance  and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak. 18 According to what they have done,  so will he repay wrath to his enemies  and retribution to his foes;  he will repay the islands their due. 19 From the west, men will fear the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun, they will revere his glory. For he will come like a pent-up flood  that the breath of the Lord drives along.

20 “The Redeemer will come to Zion,  to those in Jacob who repent of their sins,” declares the Lord.

21 “As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord. “My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of their descendants from this time on and forever,” says the Lord.

Isaiah 60

The Glory of Zion

“Arise, shine, for your light has come,  and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. 2 See, darkness covers the earth  and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you  and his glory appears over you. 3 Nations will come to your light,  and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

4 “Lift up your eyes and look about you:   All assemble and come to you; your sons come from afar,  and your daughters are carried on the arm. 5 Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come. 6 Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah. And all from Sheba will come,  bearing gold and incense  and proclaiming the praise of the Lord. 7 All Kedar’s flocks will be gathered to you,  the rams of Nebaioth will serve you; they will be accepted as offerings on my altar,  and I will adorn my glorious temple.

8 “Who are these that fly along like clouds,  like doves to their nests? 9 Surely the islands look to me;   in the lead are the ships of Tarshish, bringing your sons from afar, with their silver and gold, to the honor of the Lord your God,  the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor. 10 “Foreigners will rebuild your walls,  and their kings will serve you. Though in anger I struck you,  in favor I will show you compassion. 11 Your gates will always stand open,  they will never be shut, day or night, so that men may bring you the wealth of the nations— their kings led in triumphal procession. 12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish;  it will be utterly ruined.

13 “The glory of Lebanon will come to you,  the pine, the fir and the cypress together, to adorn the place of my sanctuary;  and I will glorify the place of my feet. 14 The sons of your oppressors will come bowing before you;  all who despise you will bow down at your feet and will call you the City of the Lord,  Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15 “Although you have been forsaken and hated,  with no one traveling through, I will make you the everlasting pride  and the joy of all generations. 16 You will drink the milk of nations  and be nursed at royal breasts. Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior,  your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

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Psalm 119:1-4

1 Blessed are they whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.

2 Blessed are they who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart.

3 They do nothing wrong; they walk in his ways.  4 You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed.

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Proverbs 24:17-18

17 Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice, 18 or the Lord will see and disapprove and turn his wrath away from him.

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Philippians 2:12-30

Shining as Stars

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.

14 Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe 16 as you hold out the word of life—in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing. 17 But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.  18 So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

Timothy and Epaphroditus

19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. 20 I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. 21 For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. 23 I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me.  24 And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.

25 But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. 26 For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. 28 Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. 29 Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, 30 because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 10 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 54:4-57:13

• Psalm 118:22-29

• Proverbs 24:15-16

• Philippians 1:21-2:11

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Isaiah 54:4-57:13 

“Do not be afraid; you will not suffer shame.   Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood. 5 For your Maker is your husband—the Lord Almighty is his name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer;  he is called the God of all the earth. 6 The Lord will call you back  as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit—a wife who married young, only to be rejected,” says your God. 7 “For a brief moment I abandoned you,  but with deep compassion I will bring you back. 8 In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,”  says the Lord your Redeemer. 9 “To me this is like the days of Noah,  when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. 10 Though the mountains be shaken  and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,”  says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

11 “O afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted,  I will build you with stones of turquoise,  your foundations with sapphires. 12 I will make your battlements of rubies,  your gates of sparkling jewels, and all your walls of precious stones. 13 All your sons will be taught by the Lord,  and great will be your children’s peace. 14 In righteousness you will be established: Tyranny will be far from you; you will have nothing to fear. Terror will be far removed;  it will not come near you. 15 If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing;  whoever attacks you will surrender to you.

16 “See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame  and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to work havoc; 17  no weapon forged against you will prevail,  and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,  and this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord.

Isaiah 55

Invitation to the Thirsty

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money,  come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,  and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. 3 Give ear and come to me;  hear me, that your soul may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David. 4 See, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander of the peoples. 5 Surely you will summon nations you know not, and nations that do not know you will hasten to you, because of the Lord your God,  the Holy One of Israel,  for he has endowed you with splendor.”

6 Seek the Lord while he may be found;  call on him while he is near. 7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him,  and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. 9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,  so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish,  so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:  It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire  and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. 12 You will go out in joy  and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field  will clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn bush will grow the pine tree, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the Lord’s renown,  for an everlasting sign,  which will not be destroyed.”

Isaiah 56

Salvation for Others

This is what the Lord says:

“Maintain justice  and do what is right, for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed. 2 Blessed is the man who does this,  the man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath without desecrating it,  and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”

3 Let no foreigner who has bound himself to the Lord say,  “The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.” And let not any eunuch complain,  “I am only a dry tree.” 4 For this is what the Lord says: “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,  who choose what pleases me  and hold fast to my covenant—5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name  that will not be cut off. 6 And foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord to serve him, to love the name of the Lord,  and to worship him, all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it  and who hold fast to my covenant—7 these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” 8 The Sovereign Lord declares— he who gathers the exiles of Israel: “I will gather still others to them  besides those already gathered.”  

God’s Accusation Against the Wicked

9 Come, all you beasts of the field,  come and devour, all you beasts of the forest! 10 Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they lie around and dream, they love to sleep. 11 They are dogs with mighty appetites;  they never have enough. They are shepherds who lack understanding;  they all turn to their own way,  each seeks his own gain. 12 “Come,” each one cries, “let me get wine!   Let us drink our fill of beer! And tomorrow will be like today, or even far better.”

Isaiah 57

The righteous perish,  and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away,  and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. 2 Those who walk uprightly  enter into peace;  they find rest as they lie in death.

3 “But you—come here, you sons of a sorceress,  you offspring of adulterers and prostitutes! 4 Whom are you mocking?   At whom do you sneer and stick out your tongue? Are you not a brood of rebels, the offspring of liars? 5 You burn with lust among the oaks  and under every spreading tree; you sacrifice your children in the ravines and under the overhanging crags. 6 The idols among the smooth stones of the ravines are your portion;  they, they are your lot. Yes, to them you have poured out drink offerings  and offered grain offerings.    In the light of these things, should I relent?7 You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill;  there you went up to offer your sacrifices. 8 Behind your doors and your doorposts  you have put your pagan symbols. Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed,  you climbed into it and opened it wide; you made a pact with those whose beds you love, and you looked on their nakedness. 9 You went to Molech with olive oil  and increased your perfumes. You sent your ambassadors far away;  you descended to the grave itself! 10 You were wearied by all your ways, but you would not say, ‘It is hopeless.’ You found renewal of your strength,  and so you did not faint.

11 “Whom have you so dreaded and feared  that you have been false to me, and have neither remembered me  nor pondered this in your hearts? Is it not because I have long been silent that you do not fear me? 12 I will expose your righteousness and your works, and they will not benefit you. 13 When you cry out for help, let your collection of idols save you! The wind will carry all of them off, a mere breath will blow them away. But the man who makes me his refuge will inherit the land and possess my holy mountain.”

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Psalm 118:22-29

22 The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone;

23 the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.

24 This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

25 O Lord, save us; O Lord, grant us success.

26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.

27 The Lord is God, and he has made his light shine upon us. With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar.

28 You are my God, and I will give you thanks; you are my God, and I will exalt you.

29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

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Proverbs 24:15-16

15 Do not lie in wait like an outlaw against a righteous man’s house, do not raid his dwelling place;

16 for though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.

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Philippians 1:21-2:11

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me.

27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. 29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.

Philippians 2

Imitating Christ’s Humility

If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in very nature God,  did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man,  he humbled himself and became obedient to death—  even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 9 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 51:1-54:3

• Psalm 118:15-21

• Proverbs 24:13-14

• Philippians 1:1-20

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Isaiah 51:1-54:3

“Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the Lord: Look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn; 2 look to Abraham, your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth. When I called him he was but one, and I blessed him and made him many. 3 The Lord will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden,  her wastelands like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in her,  thanksgiving and the sound of singing.

4 “Listen to me, my people;  hear me, my nation: The law will go out from me;  my justice will become a light to the nations. 5 My righteousness draws near speedily,  my salvation is on the way, and my arm will bring justice to the nations. The islands will look to me  and wait in hope for my arm. 6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever,  my righteousness will never fail.

7 “Hear me, you who know what is right,  you people who have my law in your hearts: Do not fear the reproach of men  or be terrified by their insults. 8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment;  the worm will devour them like wool. But my righteousness will last forever,  my salvation through all generations.”

9 Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength,  O arm of the Lord; awake, as in days gone by, as in generations of old. Was it not you who cut Rahab to pieces, who pierced that monster through? 10 Was it not you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep, who made a road in the depths of the sea  so that the redeemed might cross over? 11 The ransomed of the Lord will return.  They will enter Zion with singing;  everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them,  and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

12 “I, even I, am he who comforts you.   Who are you that you fear mortal men, the sons of men, who are but grass, 13 that you forget the Lord your Maker,  who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, that you live in constant terror every day because of the wrath of the oppressor, who is bent on destruction? For where is the wrath of the oppressor? 14  The cowering prisoners will soon be set free; they will not die in their dungeon,  nor will they lack bread. 15 For I am the Lord your God,  who churns up the sea so that its waves roar— the Lord Almighty is his name. 16 I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand—I who set the heavens in place,  who laid the foundations of the earth, and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’”

The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath

17 Awake, awake!   Rise up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord  the cup of his wrath, you who have drained to its dregs the goblet that makes men stagger. 18 Of all the sons she bore there was none to guide her; of all the sons she reared there was none to take her by the hand. 19 These double calamities have come upon you— who can comfort you? —ruin and destruction, famine and sword— who can console you? 20 Your sons have fainted;  they lie at the head of every street,  like antelope caught in a net. They are filled with the wrath of the Lord and the rebuke of your God.

21 Therefore hear this, you afflicted one, made drunk, but not with wine. 22 This is what your Sovereign Lord says,  your God, who defends his people: “See, I have taken out of your hand  the cup that made you stagger; from that cup, the goblet of my wrath, you will never drink again. 23 I will put it into the hands of your tormentors, who said to you,  ‘Fall prostrate that we may walk over you.’ And you made your back like the ground, like a street to be walked over.”

Isaiah 52

Awake, awake, O Zion,  clothe yourself with strength. Put on your garments of splendor,  O Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised and defiled will not enter you again. 2 Shake off your dust;  rise up, sit enthroned, O Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck,  O captive Daughter of Zion.

3 For this is what the Lord says:

“You were sold for nothing, and without money you will be redeemed.”

4 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“At first my people went down to Egypt to live; lately, Assyria has oppressed them.

5 “And now what do I have here?” declares the Lord.

“For my people have been taken away for nothing, and those who rule them mock,” declares the Lord. “And all day long my name is constantly blasphemed. 6 Therefore my people will know my name;  therefore in that day they will know that it is I who foretold it.  Yes, it is I.”

7 How beautiful on the mountains  are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings,  who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion,  “Your God reigns!” 8 Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices;  together they shout for joy. When the Lord returns to Zion,  they will see it with their own eyes. 9 Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem. 10 The Lord will lay bare his holy arm  in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.

11 Depart, depart, go out from there!  Touch no unclean thing! Come out from it and be pure, you who carry the vessels of the Lord. 12 But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you,  the God of Israel will be your rear guard.

The Suffering and Glory of the Servant

13 See, my servant will act wisely;  he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted. 14 Just as there were many who were appalled at him— his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man  and his form marred beyond human likeness—15 so will he sprinkle many nations,  and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see,  and what they have not heard, they will understand.

Isaiah 53

Who has believed our message  and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,  nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men,  a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces  he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God,  smitten by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,  he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,  each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him  the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away.  And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living;  for the transgression of my people he was stricken. 9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,  and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.

10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,  and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days,  and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. 11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,  and he will bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,  and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death,  and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many,  and made intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 54

The Future Glory of Zion

“Sing, O barren woman,  you who never bore a child; burst into song, shout for joy,  you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman  than of her who has a husband, ”says the Lord. 2 “Enlarge the place of your tent,  stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords,  strengthen your stakes. 3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left;  your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.

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Psalm 118:15-21

15 Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous:

“The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!

16 he Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!”

17 I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done.

18 The Lord has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death.

19 Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.

20 This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter.

21 I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.

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Proverbs 24:13-14

13 Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.

14 Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.

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Philippians 1:1-20

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons:

2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. 8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

Paul’s Chains Advance the Gospel

12 Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.

15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.

Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. 20 I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 8 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 48:12-50:11

• Psalm 118:10-14

• Proverbs 24:10-12

• Ephesians 6:1-24
  

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Isaiah 48:12-50:11

 “Listen to me, O Jacob,  Israel, whom I have called: I am he;  I am the first and I am the last. 13 My own hand laid the foundations of the earth,  and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they all stand up together.

14 “Come together, all of you, and listen:   Which of the idols has foretold these things? The Lord’s chosen ally will carry out his purpose against Babylon;  his arm will be against the Babylonians. 15 I, even I, have spoken;  yes, I have called him. I will bring him,  and he will succeed in his mission.

16 “Come near me and listen to this:

“From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret;  at the time it happens, I am there.”

And now the Sovereign Lord has sent me, with his Spirit.

17 This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. 18 If only you had paid attention to my commands,  your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea. 19 Your descendants would have been like the sand, your children like its numberless grains; their name would never be cut off nor destroyed from before me.”

20 Leave Babylon, flee from the Babylonians! Announce this with shouts of joy and proclaim it. Send it out to the ends of the earth; say, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob.” 21 They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts;  he made water flow for them from the rock; he split the rock and water gushed out.

22 “There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”

Isaiah 49

The Servant of the Lord

Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born the Lord called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. 2 He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver. 3 He said to me, “You are my servant,  Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.” 4 But I said, “I have labored to no purpose;  I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing. Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand,  and my reward is with my God.”

5 And now the Lord says— he who formed me in the womb to be his servant to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself, for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord  and my God has been my strength—6 he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles,  that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”

7 This is what the Lord says— the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel—to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the servant of rulers: “Kings will see you and rise up, princes will see and bow down, because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

Restoration of Israel

8 This is what the Lord says:

“In the time of my favor I will answer you,  and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you  to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances, 9 to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’

“They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill. 10 They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them. He who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them beside springs of water. 11 I will turn all my mountains into roads, and my highways will be raised up. 12 See, they will come from afar—some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan.”

13 Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth;  burst into song, O mountains! For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.

14 But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me,  the Lord has forgotten me.”

15 “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget,  I will not forget you! 16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;  your walls are ever before me. 17 Your sons hasten back, and those who laid you waste depart from you. 18 Lift up your eyes and look around;  all your sons gather and come to you. As surely as I live,” declares the Lord, “you will wear them all as ornaments; you will put them on, like a bride. 19 “Though you were ruined and made desolate and your land laid waste, now you will be too small for your people, and those who devoured you will be far away. 20 The children born during your bereavement will yet say in your hearing, ‘This place is too small for us; give us more space to live in.’ 21 Then you will say in your heart,  ‘Who bore me these? I was bereaved and barren;  I was exiled and rejected.   Who brought these up? I was left all alone,  but these—where have they come from?’”

22 This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“See, I will beckon to the Gentiles,  I will lift up my banner to the peoples; they will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their shoulders. 23 Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord;  those who hope in me will not be disappointed.”

24 Can plunder be taken from warriors,  or captives rescued from the fierce?

25 But this is what the Lord says:

“Yes, captives will be taken from warriors,  and plunder retrieved from the fierce; I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save. 26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh; they will be drunk on their own blood, as with wine. Then all mankind will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior,  your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Isaiah 50

Israel’s Sin and the Servant’s Obedience

This is what the Lord says:

“Where is your mother’s certificate of divorce  with which I sent her away? Or to which of my creditors  did I sell you? Because of your sins you were sold;  because of your transgressions your mother was sent away. 2 When I came, why was there no one?   When I called, why was there no one to answer? Was my arm too short to ransom you?   Do I lack the strength to rescue you? By a mere rebuke I dry up the sea,  I turn rivers into a desert; their fish rot for lack of water  and die of thirst. 3 I clothe the sky with darkness  and make sackcloth its covering.”

4 The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue,  to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning,  wakens my ear to listen like one being taught. 5 The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears, and I have not been rebellious;  I have not drawn back. 6 I offered my back to those who beat me,  my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face  from mocking and spitting. 7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,  I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint,  and I know I will not be put to shame. 8 He who vindicates me is near.  Who then will bring charges against me?  Let us face each other! Who is my accuser?    Let him confront me! 9 It is the Sovereign Lord who helps me.  Who is he that will condemn me? They will all wear out like a garment;  the moths will eat them up.

10 Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the word of his servant? Let him who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord  and rely on his God. 11 But now, all you who light fires and provide yourselves with flaming torches, go, walk in the light of your fires and of the torches you have set ablaze. This is what you shall receive from my hand:  You will lie down in torment.

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Psalm 118:10-14

10 All the nations surrounded me, but in the name of the Lord I cut them off.

11 They surrounded me on every side, but in the name of the Lord I cut them off.

12 They swarmed around me like bees, but they died out as quickly as burning thorns; in the name of the Lord I cut them off.

13 I was pushed back and about to fall, but the Lord helped me.

14 The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.

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Proverbs 24:10-12

10 If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!

11 Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.

12 If you say, “But we knew nothing about this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?

Does not he who guards your life know it?  Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?

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Ephesians 6:1-24

Children and Parents

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3 “that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

Slaves and Masters

5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.

9 And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.

The Armor of God

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

19 Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

Final Greetings

21 Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing. 22 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you.

23 Peace to the brothers, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 7 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 45:11-48:11

• Psalm 118:5-9

• Proverbs 24:7-9

• Ephesians 5:15-35

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Isaiah 45:11-48:11

“This is what the Lord says— the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands? 12 It is I who made the earth and created mankind upon it. My own hands stretched out the heavens;  I marshaled their starry hosts. 13 I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness:  I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city  and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward,  says the Lord Almighty.”

14 This is what the Lord says:

“The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,  and those tall Sabeans—they will come over to you and will be yours; they will trudge behind you, coming over to you in chains. They will bow down before you and plead with you, saying, ‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god.’”

15 Truly you are a God who hides himself,  O God and Savior of Israel. 16 All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced; they will go off into disgrace together. 17 But Israel will be saved by the Lord  with an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced, to ages everlasting.

18 For this is what the Lord says—he who created the heavens,  he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth,  he founded it; he did not create it to be empty,  but formed it to be inhabited—he says: “I am the Lord,  and there is no other. 19 I have not spoken in secret,  from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob’s descendants,  ‘Seek me in vain.’ I, the Lord, speak the truth;  I declare what is right.

20 “Gather together and come;  assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood,  who pray to gods that cannot save. 21 Declare what is to be, present it— let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the Lord?    And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior;  there is none but me.

22 “Turn to me and be saved,  all you ends of the earth;  for I am God, and there is no other. 23 By myself I have sworn,  my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow;  by me every tongue will swear. 24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone are righteousness and strength.’” All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. 25 But in the Lord all the descendants of Israel  will be found righteous and will exult. 

Isaiah 46

Gods of Babylon

Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low; their idols are borne by beasts of burden. The images that are carried about are burdensome,  a burden for the weary. 2 They stoop and bow down together; unable to rescue the burden, they themselves go off into captivity.

3 “Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth. 4 Even to your old age and gray hairs  I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.

5 “To whom will you compare me or count me equal?   To whom will you liken me that we may be compared? 6 Some pour out gold from their bags  and weigh out silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmith to make it into a god,  and they bow down and worship it. 7 They lift it to their shoulders and carry it;  they set it up in its place, and there it stands.   From that spot it cannot move. Though one cries out to it, it does not answer;  it cannot save him from his troubles.

8 “Remember this, fix it in mind,  take it to heart, you rebels. 9 Remember the former things, those of long ago;  I am God, and there is no other;  I am God, and there is none like me. 10 I make known the end from the beginning,  from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand,  and I will do all that I please. 11 From the east I summon a bird of prey;  from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that will I bring about;  what I have planned, that will I do. 12 Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted,  you who are far from righteousness. 13 I am bringing my righteousness near,  it is not far away;  and my salvation will not be delayed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel.

Isaiah 47

The Fall of Babylon

“Go down, sit in the dust, Virgin Daughter of Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne,  Daughter of the Babylonians.No more will you be called  tender or delicate. 2 Take millstones and grind flour;  take off your veil. Lift up your skirts, bare your legs,  and wade through the streams. 3 Your nakedness will be exposed  and your shame uncovered. I will take vengeance; I will spare no one.”

4 Our Redeemer—the Lord Almighty is his name— is the Holy One of Israel.

5 “Sit in silence, go into darkness,  Daughter of the Babylonians; no more will you be called  queen of kingdoms. 6 I was angry with my people    and desecrated my inheritance; I gave them into your hand, and you showed them no mercy. Even on the aged you laid a very heavy yoke. 7 You said, ‘I will continue forever— the eternal queen!’ But you did not consider these things  or reflect on what might happen.

8 “Now then, listen, you wanton creature, lounging in your security and saying to yourself,  ‘I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or suffer the loss of children.’ 9 Both of these will overtake you  in a moment, on a single day:  loss of children and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and all your potent spells. 10 You have trusted in your wickedness and have said, ‘No one sees me. ’Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you when you say to yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’ 11 Disaster will come upon you,  and you will not know how to conjure it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom; a catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you.

12 “Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed,  perhaps you will cause terror. 13 All the counsel you have received has only worn you out!    Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, let them save you from what is coming upon you. 14 Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot even save themselves  from the power of the flame. Here are no coals to warm anyone; here is no fire to sit by. 15 That is all they can do for you— these you have labored with and trafficked with since childhood. Each of them goes on in his error; there is not one that can save you.

Isaiah 48

Stubborn Israel

“Listen to this, O house of Jacob,  you who are called by the name of Israel and come from the line of Judah, you who take oaths in the name of the Lord and invoke the God of Israel— but not in truth or righteousness— 2 you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city and rely on the God of Israel— the Lord Almighty is his name: 3 I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass. 4 For I knew how stubborn you were;  the sinews of your neck were iron, your forehead was bronze. 5 Therefore I told you these things long ago;  before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say,  ‘My idols did them; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’ 6 You have heard these things; look at them all.  Will you not admit them?

“From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you. 7 They are created now, and not long ago;  you have not heard of them before today. So you cannot say, ‘Yes, I knew of them.’ 8 You have neither heard nor understood; from of old your ear has not been open. Well do I know how treacherous you are; you were called a rebel from birth. 9 For my own name’s sake I delay my wrath;  for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you, so as not to cut you off. 10 See, I have refined you, though not as silver;  I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. 11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this.  How can I let myself be defamed?  I will not yield my glory to another.

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Psalm 118:5-9

5 In my anguish I cried to the Lord, and he answered by setting me free.

6 The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

7 The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies.

8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.

9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

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Proverbs 24:7-9

7 Wisdom is too high for a fool; in the assembly at the gate he has nothing to say.

8 He who plots evil will be known as a schemer.

9 The schemes of folly are sin, and men detest a mocker.

 ———————-

Ephesians 5:15-35

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. 19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. 

Wives and Husbands

22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 6 Bible Reading

References

• Isaiah 43:14-45:10

• Psalm 117:1-118:4

• Proverbs 24:5-6

• Ephesians 4:25-5:14

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Isaiah 43:14-45:10

This is what the Lord says—  your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:  “For your sake I will send to Babylon  and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians,  in the ships in which they took pride.  15 I am the Lord, your Holy One,  Israel’s Creator, your King.”

16 This is what the Lord says—  he who made a way through the sea,  a path through the mighty waters,  17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again,  extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: 18 “Forget the former things;  do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the desert  and streams in the wasteland.  20 The wild animals honor me,  the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert  and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, 21  the people I formed for myself  that they may proclaim my praise.

22 “Yet you have not called upon me, O Jacob,  you have not wearied yourselves for me, O Israel. 23 You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings,  nor honored me with your sacrifices.  I have not burdened you with grain offerings  nor wearied you with demands for incense. 24 You have not bought any fragrant calamus for me,  or lavished on me the fat of your sacrifices.  But you have burdened me with your sins  and wearied me with your offenses.

25 “I, even I, am he who blots out  your transgressions, for my own sake,  and remembers your sins no more.  26 Review the past for me,  let us argue the matter together; state the case for your innocence.  27 Your first father sinned;  your spokesmen rebelled against me.  28 So I will disgrace the dignitaries of your temple,  and I will consign Jacob to destruction  and Israel to scorn.

Isaiah 44

Israel the Chosen

“But now listen, O Jacob, my servant,  Israel, whom I have chosen.  2 This is what the Lord says—  he who made you, who formed you in the womb,  and who will help you:  Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant,  Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.  3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land,  and streams on the dry ground;  I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.  4 They will spring up like grass in a meadow,  like poplar trees by flowing streams.  5 One will say, ‘I belong to the Lord’;  another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’  and will take the name Israel.

The Lord, Not Idols

6 “This is what the Lord says—  Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last;  apart from me there is no God.  7 Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it.  Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people,  and what is yet to come—  yes, let him foretell what will come.  8 Do not tremble, do not be afraid.  Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago?  You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me?   No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”

9 All who make idols are nothing,  and the things they treasure are worthless.  Those who would speak up for them are blind;  they are ignorant, to their own shame.  10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol,  which can profit him nothing?  11 He and his kind will be put to shame;  craftsmen are nothing but men.  Let them all come together and take their stand;  they will be brought down to terror and infamy.

12 The blacksmith takes a tool  and works with it in the coals; he shapes an idol with hammers,  he forges it with the might of his arm.  He gets hungry and loses his strength;  he drinks no water and grows faint.  13 The carpenter measures with a line  and makes an outline with a marker; he roughs it out with chisels  and marks it with compasses.  He shapes it in the form of man,  of man in all his glory,  that it may dwell in a shrine.  14 He cut down cedars,  or perhaps took a cypress or oak.  He let it grow among the trees of the forest,  or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow.  15 It is man’s fuel for burning;  some of it he takes and warms himself,   he kindles a fire and bakes bread.  But he also fashions a god and worships it;  he makes an idol and bows down to it.  16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire;  over it he prepares his meal,  he roasts his meat and eats his fill.  He also warms himself and says,   “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.”  17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol;  he bows down to it and worships.  He prays to it and says,  “Save me; you are my god.”  18 They know nothing, they understand nothing;  their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see,  and their minds closed so they cannot understand.  19 No one stops to think,  no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, “Half of it I used for fuel;  I even baked bread over its coals,  I roasted meat and I ate.  Shall I make a detestable thing from what is left?   Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”  20 He feeds on ashes, a deluded heart misleads him;  he cannot save himself, or say,   “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”

21 “Remember these things, O Jacob,  for you are my servant, O Israel.  I have made you, you are my servant;    O Israel, I will not forget you.  22 I have swept away your offenses like a cloud,  your sins like the morning mist.  Return to me,  for I have redeemed you.”

23 Sing for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done this;  shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains,  you forests and all your trees, for the Lord has redeemed Jacob,  he displays his glory in Israel.

Jerusalem to Be Inhabited

24 “This is what the Lord says—  your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb:  I am the Lord, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, 25 who foils the signs of false prophets  and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise  and turns it into nonsense, 26 who carries out the words of his servants  and fulfills the predictions of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, ‘It shall be inhabited,’  of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be built,’  and of their ruins, ‘I will restore them,’ 27 who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry,  and I will dry up your streams,’  28 who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd  and will accomplish all that I please;  he will say of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,”    and of the temple, “Let its foundations be laid.”’

Isaiah 45

“This is what the Lord says to his anointed,  to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him  and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him  so that gates will not be shut: 2 I will go before you  and will level the mountains;  I will break down gates of bronze  and cut through bars of iron.  3 I will give you the treasures of darkness,  riches stored in secret places,so that you may know that I am the Lord,  the God of Israel, who summons you by name.  4 For the sake of Jacob my servant,  of Israel my chosen,  I summon you by name  and bestow on you a title of honor,  though you do not acknowledge me.  5 I am the Lord, and there is no other;  apart from me there is no God.  I will strengthen you,  though you have not acknowledged me, 6 so that from the rising of the sun  to the place of its setting men may know there is none besides me.    I am the Lord, and there is no other.  7 I form the light and create darkness,  I bring prosperity and create disaster;  I, the Lord, do all these things.

8 “You heavens above, rain down righteousness;  let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide,  let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it;  I, the Lord, have created it.  9 “Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker,  to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground.  Does the clay say to the potter,  ‘What are you making?’  Does your work say,   ‘He has no hands’?  10 Woe to him who says to his father,  ‘What have you begotten?’ or to his mother,  ‘What have you brought to birth?’

 ———————-

Psalm 117:1-118:4

1 Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples.

2 For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord.

Psalm 118

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.

2 Let Israel say: “His love endures forever.”

3 Let the house of Aaron say: “His love endures forever.”  4 Let those who fear the Lord say: “His love endures forever.”

———————-

Proverbs 24:5-6

5 A wise man has great power, and a man of knowledge increases strength; 

6 for waging war you need guidance, and for victory many advisers.

  ———————-

Ephesians 4:25-5:14

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.  26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Ephesians 5

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them.

8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14 for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said:

“Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

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October 5 Bible Reading

References

• Isaiah 41:21-43:13

• Psalm 116:15-19

• Proverbs 24:3-4

• Ephesians 4:1-24

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Isaiah 41:21-43:13

“Present your case,” says the Lord.    “Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King. 22 “Bring in your idols to tell us  what is going to happen. Tell us what the former things were,  so that we may consider them and know their final outcome. Or declare to us the things to come, 23  tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods. Do something, whether good or bad, so that we will be dismayed and filled with fear. 24 But you are less than nothing and your works are utterly worthless;  he who chooses you is detestable.

25 “I have stirred up one from the north, and he comes— one from the rising sun who calls on my name. He treads on rulers as if they were mortar, as if he were a potter treading the clay. 26 Who told of this from the beginning, so we could know, or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’? No one told of this, no one foretold it, no one heard any words from you. 27 I was the first to tell Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’  I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good tidings. 28 I look but there is no one— no one among them to give counsel, no one to give answer when I ask them. 29 See, they are all false!   Their deeds amount to nothing; their images are but wind and confusion.

Isaiah 42

The Servant of the Lord

“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,  my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. 2 He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. 3 A bruised reed he will not break,  and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; 4 he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth.  In his law the islands will put their hope.”

5 This is what God the Lord says—he who created the heavens and stretched them out,  who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people,  and life to those who walk on it: 6 “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;  I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, 7 to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.

8 “I am the Lord; that is my name!    I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. 9 See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.”

Song of Praise to the Lord

10 Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,  you islands, and all who live in them. 11 Let the desert and its towns raise their voices;  let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice. Let the people of Sela sing for joy;  let them shout from the mountaintops. 12 Let them give glory to the Lord  and proclaim his praise in the islands. 13 The Lord will march out like a mighty man,  like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies.

14 “For a long time I have kept silent,  I have been quiet and held myself back. But now, like a woman in childbirth,  I cry out, I gasp and pant. 15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills  and dry up all their vegetation; I will turn rivers into islands and dry up the pools. 16 I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them  and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do;  I will not forsake them. 17 But those who trust in idols,  who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’  will be turned back in utter shame.

Israel Blind and Deaf

18 “Hear, you deaf;  look, you blind, and see! 19 Who is blind but my servant,  and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one committed to me,  blind like the servant of the Lord? 20 You have seen many things, but have paid no attention;  your ears are open, but you hear nothing.” 21 It pleased the Lord  for the sake of his righteousness to make his law great and glorious. 22 But this is a people plundered and looted,  all of them trapped in pits  or hidden away in prisons. They have become plunder,  with no one to rescue them; they have been made loot,  with no one to say, “Send them back.”

23 Which of you will listen to this  or pay close attention in time to come? 24 Who handed Jacob over to become loot,  and Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the Lord,  against whom we have sinned? For they would not follow his ways;  they did not obey his law. 25 So he poured out on them his burning anger, the violence of war. It enveloped them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.

Isaiah 43

Israel’s Only Savior

But now, this is what the Lord says—  he who created you, O Jacob,  he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you;  I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters,  I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers,  they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire,  you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the Lord, your God,  the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. 4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight,  and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you,  and people in exchange for your life. 5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. 6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar  and my daughters from the ends of the earth— 7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory,  whom I formed and made.”

8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind,  who have ears but are deaf. 9 All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of them foretold this  and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right,  so that others may hear and say, “It is true.” 10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord,  “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me  and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed,  nor will there be one after me. 11 I, even I, am the Lord,  and apart from me there is no savior. 12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—  I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God. 13  Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand.   When I act, who can reverse it?”

 ———————-

Psalm 116:15-19

15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.

16 O Lord, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains.

17 I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord.

18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people,

19 in the courts of the house of the Lord— in your midst, O Jerusalem.

Praise the Lord.

———————- 

Proverbs 24:3-4

3 By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established;

4 through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.

 ———————-

Ephesians 4:1-24

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says:

“When he ascended on high,    he led captives in his train  and gave gifts to men.”

9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Living as Children of Light

17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.

20 You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. 21 Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 4 Bible Reading

REFERENCES

• Isaiah 40:1-41:20

• Psalm 116:8-14

• Proverbs 24:1-2

• Ephesians 3:1-21

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Isaiah 40:1-41:20

Comfort, comfort my people,  says your God.  2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,  and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed,  that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand  double for all her sins.

3 A voice of one calling: “In the desert prepare  the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness  a highway for our God.  4 Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level,  he rugged places a plain.  5 And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,  and all mankind together will see it.  For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

6 A voice says, “Cry out.”   

And I said, “What shall I cry?”

“All men are like grass,  and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.  7 The grass withers and the flowers fall,  because the breath of the Lord blows on them.  Surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers and the flowers fall,  but the word of our God stands forever.”

9 You who bring good tidings to Zion,  go up on a high mountain. You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem,  lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid;  say to the towns of Judah,  “Here is your God!”  10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes with power,  and his arm rules for him.  See, his reward is with him,  and his recompense accompanies him.  11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:  He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart;  he gently leads those that have young.

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?  Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales  and the hills in a balance?  13 Who has understood the mind of the Lord, or instructed him as his counselor?  14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way?  Who was it that taught him knowledge  or showed him the path of understanding?

15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;  they are regarded as dust on the scales;  he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.  16 Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires,  nor its animals enough for burnt offerings.  17 Before him all the nations are as nothing;  they are regarded by him as worthless  and less than nothing.

18 To whom, then, will you compare God?    What image will you compare him to?  19 As for an idol, a craftsman casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold  and fashions silver chains for it.  20 A man too poor to present such an offering  selects wood that will not rot. He looks for a skilled craftsman  to set up an idol that will not topple.

21 Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  Has it not been told you from the beginning?    Have you not understood since the earth was founded?  22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,  and its people are like grasshoppers.  He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,  and spreads them out like a tent to live in.  23 He brings princes to naught  and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.  24 No sooner are they planted,  no sooner are they sown,  no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither,  and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

25 “To whom will you compare me?    Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.  26 Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:  Who created all these?  He who brings out the starry host one by one,  and calls them each by name.  Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,  and complain, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord;  my cause is disregarded by my God”?  28 Do you not know?    

Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God,  the Creator of the ends of the earth.  He will not grow tired or weary,  and his understanding no one can fathom.  29 He gives strength to the weary  and increases the power of the weak.  30 Even youths grow tired and weary,  and young men stumble and fall; 31 but those who hope in the Lord  will renew their strength.   They will soar on wings like eagles;  they will run and not grow weary,  they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 41

The Helper of Israel

“Be silent before me, you islands!   Let the nations renew their strength!  Let them come forward and speak;  let us meet together at the place of judgment.

2 “Who has stirred up one from the east, calling him in righteousness to his service?  He hands nations over to him  and subdues kings before him.  He turns them to dust with his sword,  to windblown chaff with his bow.  3 He pursues them and moves on unscathed,  by a path his feet have not traveled before.  4 Who has done this and carried it through,  calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord—with the first of them  and with the last—I am he.”

5 The islands have seen it and fear; the ends of the earth tremble.  They approach and come forward;  6  each helps the other  and says to his brother, “Be strong!”  7 The craftsman encourages the goldsmith,  and he who smooths with the hammer  spurs on him who strikes the anvil.  He says of the welding, “It is good.”    He nails down the idol so it will not topple.

8 “But you, O Israel, my servant,  Jacob, whom I have chosen,  you descendants of Abraham my friend, 9 I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you.  I said, ‘You are my servant’; I have chosen you and have not rejected you.  10 So do not fear, for I am with you;  do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you;  I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

11 “All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you  will be as nothing and perish.  12 Though you search for your enemies,  you will not find them. Those who wage war against you  will be as nothing at all.  13 For I am the Lord, your God,  who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear;  I will help you.  14 Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob,   O little Israel, for I myself will help you,” declares the Lord,  your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.  15 “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,  new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them,  and reduce the hills to chaff.  16 You will winnow them, the wind will pick them up,  and a gale will blow them away. But you will rejoice in the Lord  and glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 “The poor and needy search for water,  but there is none;  their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them;  I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.  18 I will make rivers flow on barren heights,  and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water,  and the parched ground into springs.  19 I will put in the desert  the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set pines in the wasteland,  the fir and the cypress together, 20 so that people may see and know,  may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this,  that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

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Psalm 116:8-14

8 For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling,

9 that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living.

10 I believed; therefore I said, “I am greatly afflicted.”

11 And in my dismay I said, “All men are liars.”

12 How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me?

13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.

14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people.

 ———————-

Proverbs 24:1-2

1 Do not envy wicked men, do not desire their company;

2 for their hearts plot violence, and their lips talk about making trouble.

 ———————-

Ephesians 3:1-21

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—

2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. 4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.

7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. 8 Although I am less than the least of all God’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, 11 according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. 13 I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.

A Prayer for the Ephesians

14 For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or click

October 3 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 37:21-39:8

• Psalm 116:1-7

• Proverbs 23:33-35

• Ephesians 2:1-22

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Isaiah 37:21-39:8

Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria,  22 this is the word the Lord has spoken against him:

“The Virgin Daughter of Zion  despises and mocks you.  The Daughter of Jerusalem  tosses her head as you flee.  23 Who is it you have insulted and blasphemed?   Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes in pride?   Against the Holy One of Israel!  24 By your messengers  you have heaped insults on the Lord.  And you have said,    ‘With my many chariotsI have ascended the heights of the mountains,  the utmost heights of Lebanon.  I have cut down its tallest cedars,  the choicest of its pines.  I have reached its remotest heights,  the finest of its forests.  25 I have dug wells in foreign lands and drunk the water there.  With the soles of my feet  I have dried up all the streams of Egypt.’

26 “Have you not heard?    Long ago I ordained it.  In days of old I planned it;  now I have brought it to pass, that you have turned fortified cities  into piles of stone.  27 Their people, drained of power,  are dismayed and put to shame.  They are like plants in the field,  like tender green shoots, like grass sprouting on the roof,  scorched before it grows up.

28 “But I know where you stay  and when you come and go and how you rage against me.  29 Because you rage against me and because your insolence has reached my ears,  I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth, and I will make you return  by the way you came.

30 “This will be the sign for you, O Hezekiah:

“This year you will eat what grows by itself, and the second year what springs from that.  But in the third year sow and reap,  plant vineyards and eat their fruit.  31 Once more a remnant of the house of Judah will take root below and bear fruit above.  32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant,  and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.  The zeal of the Lord Almighty  will accomplish this.

33 “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:

“He will not enter this city  or shoot an arrow here.  He will not come before it with shield  or build a siege ramp against it.  34 By the way that he came he will return;  he will not enter this city,” declares the Lord.  35 “I will defend this city and save it,  for my sake and for the sake of David my servant!”

36 Then the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!  37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there.

38 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son succeeded him as king.

Isaiah 38

Hezekiah’s Illness

In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”

2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3 “Remember, O Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4 Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: 5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life. 6 And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city.

7 “‘This is the Lord’s sign to you that the Lord will do what he has promised: 8 I will make the shadow cast by the sun go back the ten steps it has gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.’” So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had gone down.

9 A writing of Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:

10 I said, “In the prime of my life  must I go through the gates of death  and be robbed of the rest of my years?”  11 I said, “I will not again see the Lord,  the Lord, in the land of the living; no longer will I look on mankind,  or be with those who now dwell in this world.  12 Like a shepherd’s tent my house  has been pulled down and taken from me.  Like a weaver I have rolled up my life, and he has cut me off from the loom;  day and night you made an end of me.  13 I waited patiently till dawn, but like a lion he broke all my bones;  day and night you made an end of me. 14 I cried like a swift or thrush, I moaned like a mourning dove.  My eyes grew weak as I looked to the heavens.  I am troubled; O Lord, come to my aid!”

15 But what can I say?    He has spoken to me, and he himself has done this.  I will walk humbly all my years because of this anguish of my soul.  16 Lord, by such things men live;  and my spirit finds life in them too.  You restored me to health  and let me live.  17 Surely it was for my benefit  that I suffered such anguish. In your love you kept me  from the pit of destruction; you have put all my sins  behind your back.  18 For the grave cannot praise you, death cannot sing your praise;  those who go down to the pit cannot hope for your faithfulness.  19 The living, the living—they praise you,  as I am doing today; fathers tell their children  about your faithfulness.

20 The Lord will save me,  and we will sing with stringed instruments all the days of our lives  in the temple of the Lord.

21 Isaiah had said, “Prepare a poultice of figs and apply it to the boil, and he will recover.”

22 Hezekiah had asked, “What will be the sign that I will go up to the temple of the Lord?”

Isaiah 39

Envoys From Babylon

At that time Merodach-Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylon sent Hezekiah letters and a gift, because he had heard of his illness and recovery. 2 Hezekiah received the envoys gladly and showed them what was in his storehouses—the silver, the gold, the spices, the fine oil, his entire armory and everything found among his treasures. There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them.

3 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked, “What did those men say, and where did they come from?”

“From a distant land,” Hezekiah replied. “They came to me from Babylon.”

4 The prophet asked, “What did they see in your palace?”

“They saw everything in my palace,” Hezekiah said. “There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.”

5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord Almighty: 6 The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your fathers have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the Lord. 7 And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”

8 “The word of the Lord you have spoken is good,” Hezekiah replied. For he thought, “There will be peace and security in my lifetime.”

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Psalm 116:1-7

1 I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy.

2 Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.

3 The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow.

4 Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, save me!”

5 The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.

6 The Lord protects the simple hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me.

7 Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.

 ———————-

Proverbs 23:33-35

33 Your eyes will see strange sights and your mind imagine confusing things.

34 You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging.

35 “They hit me,” you will say, “but I’m not hurt! They beat me, but I don’t feel it!  When will I wake up so I can find another drink?”

 ———————-

Ephesians 2:1-22

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

One in Christ

11 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

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For previous Bible reading, click the right arrow at the bottom of this page, or clikc

October 2 Bible Reading

REFERENCES:

• Isaiah 35:1 - 37:20

• Psalm 115:14-18

• Proverb 23:31-32

• Ephesians 1:1-23

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Isaiah 35:1-37:20

The desert and the parched land will be glad;  the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus,  2 it will burst into bloom;  it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,  the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the Lord,  the splendor of our God.

3 Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; 4 say to those with fearful hearts,  “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come,  he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution  he will come to save you.”

5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened  and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness  and streams in the desert. 7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay,  grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.

8 And a highway will be there;  it will be called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not journey on it;  it will be for those who walk in that Way;  wicked fools will not go about on it. 9 No lion will be there,  nor will any ferocious beast get up on it;  they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there, 10 and the ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing;  everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them,  and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Isaiah 36

Sennacherib Threatens Jerusalem

In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. 2 Then the king of Assyria sent his field commander with a large army from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. When the commander stopped at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Washerman’s Field, 3 Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went out to him.

4 The field commander said to them, “Tell Hezekiah,

“‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: On what are you basing this confidence of yours? 5 You say you have strategy and military strength—but you speak only empty words. On whom are you depending, that you rebel against me? 6 Look now, you are depending on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff, which pierces a man’s hand and wounds him if he leans on it! Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who depend on him. 7 And if you say to me, “We are depending on the Lord our God”—isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship before this altar”?

8 “‘Come now, make a bargain with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses—if you can put riders on them! 9 How then can you repulse one officer of the least of my master’s officials, even though you are depending on Egypt for chariots and horsemen? 10 Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this land without the Lord? The Lord himself told me to march against this country and destroy it.’”

11 Then Eliakim, Shebna and Joah said to the field commander, “Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall.” 12 But the commander replied, “Was it only to your master and you that my master sent me to say these things, and not to the men sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own filth and drink their own urine?” 13 Then the commander stood and called out in Hebrew, “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! 

14 This is what the king says: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you. He cannot deliver you! 15 Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord when he says, ‘The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’ 16 “Do not listen to Hezekiah. This is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then every one of you will eat from his own vine and fig tree and drink water from his own cistern, 17 until I come and take you to a land like your own—a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.

18 “Do not let Hezekiah mislead you when he says, ‘The Lord will deliver us.’ Has the god of any nation ever delivered his land from the hand of the king of Assyria? 19 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they rescued Samaria from my hand? 20 Who of all the gods of these countries has been able to save his land from me? How then can the Lord deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”

21 But the people remained silent and said nothing in reply, because the king had commanded, “Do not answer him.” 22 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder went to Hezekiah, with their clothes torn, and told him what the field commander had said.  

Isaiah 37

Jerusalem’s Deliverance Foretold

When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the Lord. 2 He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. 3 They told him, “This is what Hezekiah says: This day is a day of distress and rebuke and disgrace, as when children come to the point of birth and there is no strength to deliver them. 4 It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the field commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to ridicule the living God, and that he will rebuke him for the words the Lord your God has heard. Therefore pray for the remnant that still survives.”

5 When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah, 6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. 7 Listen! I am going to put a spirit in him so that when he hears a certain report, he will return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down with the sword.’” 8 When the field commander heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish, he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.

9 Now Sennacherib received a report that Tirhakah, the Cushite king of Egypt, was marching out to fight against him. When he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah with this word: 10 “Say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let the god you depend on deceive you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.’ 11 Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered? 12 Did the gods of the nations that were destroyed by my forefathers deliver them—the gods of Gozan, Haran, Rezeph and the people of Eden who were in Tel Assar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of Sepharvaim, or of Hena or Ivvah?”

Hezekiah’s Prayer

14 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: 16 “O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 17 Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God.

18 “It is true, O Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands. 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. 20 Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.”

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Psalm 115:14-18

14 May the Lord make you increase, both you and your children.

15 May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

16 The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to man.

17 It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to silence;

18 it is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore.

Praise the Lord.

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Proverbs 23:31-32

31 Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly!

32 In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper.

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Ephesians 1:1-23

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:

2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 

7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 

18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

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October 1 Bible Reading

References:

• Isaiah 32:11 - 34:17

• Psalm 115:9-13

• Proverb 23:29-30

• Galatians 5:19 - 6:18

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Isaiah 32:11-34:17

Tremble, you complacent women;  shudder, you daughters who feel secure! Strip off your clothes,  put sackcloth around your waists. 12 Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields,  for the fruitful vines 13 and for the land of my people,  a land overgrown with thorns and briers—yes, mourn for all houses of merriment  and for this city of revelry. 14 The fortress will be abandoned,  the noisy city deserted; citadel and watchtower will become a wasteland forever,  the delight of donkeys, a pasture for flocks, 15 till the Spirit is poured upon us from on high,  and the desert becomes a fertile field,  and the fertile field seems like a forest. 16 Justice will dwell in the desert  and righteousness live in the fertile field. 17 The fruit of righteousness will be peace;  the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. 18 My people will live in peaceful dwelling places,  in secure homes,  in undisturbed places of rest. 19 Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, 20 how blessed you will be,  sowing your seed by every stream,  and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.

Isaiah 33

Distress and Help

Woe to you, O destroyer,  you who have not been destroyed! Woe to you, O traitor,  you who have not been betrayed! When you stop destroying  you will be destroyed; when you stop betraying,  you will be betrayed.

2 O Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning,  our salvation in time of distress. 3 At the thunder of your voice, the peoples flee; when you rise up, the nations scatter. 4 Your plunder, O nations, is harvested as by young locusts;  like a warm of locusts men pounce on it.

5 The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;  he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness. 6 He will be the sure foundation for your times,  a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.

7 Look, their brave men cry aloud in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly.  8 The highways are deserted,  no travelers are on the roads. The treaty is broken,  its witnesses are despised,  no one is respected. 9 The land mourns and wastes away,  Lebanon is ashamed and withers; Sharon is like the Arabah,  and Bashan and Carmel drop their leaves.

10 “Now will I arise,” says the Lord.    “Now will I be exalted;  now will I be lifted up. 11 You conceive chaff,  you give birth to straw;  your breath is a fire that consumes you. 12 The peoples will be burned as if to lime;  like cut thorn bushes they will be set ablaze.”

13 You who are far away, hear what I have done;   you who are near, acknowledge my power! 14 The sinners in Zion are terrified;  trembling grips the godless: “Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire?  Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?” 15 He who walks righteously  and speaks what is right, who rejects gain from extortion  and keeps his hand from accepting bribes, who stops his ears against plots of murder  and shuts his eyes against contemplating evil—16 this is the man who will dwell on the heights,  whose refuge will be the mountain fortress. His bread will be supplied,  and water will not fail him.

17 Your eyes will see the king in his beauty  and view a land that stretches afar. 18 In your thoughts you will ponder the former terror:   “Where is that chief officer?   Where is the one who took the revenue?   Where is the officer in charge of the towers?” 19 You will see those arrogant people no more,  those people of an obscure speech,  with their strange, incomprehensible tongue.

20 Look upon Zion, the city of our festivals;  your eyes will see Jerusalem,  a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up,  nor any of its ropes broken. 21 There the Lord will be our Mighty One.  It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams. No galley with oars will ride them, no mighty ship will sail them. 22 For the Lord is our judge,  the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king;  it is he who will save us.

23 Your rigging hangs loose:  The mast is not held secure, the sail is not spread.  Then an abundance of spoils will be divided  and even the lame will carry off plunder.  24 No one living in Zion will say, “I am ill”; and the sins of those who dwell there will be forgiven.

 Isaiah 34

Judgment Against the Nations

Come near, you nations, and listen;  pay attention, you peoples!  Let the earth hear, and all that is in it,  the world, and all that comes out of it!   2 The Lord is angry with all nations; his wrath is upon all their armies.   He will totally destroy them,  he will give them over to slaughter.  3 Their slain will be thrown out,  their dead bodies will send up a stench;  the mountains will be soaked with their blood.  4 All the stars of the heavens will be dissolved and the sky rolled up like a scroll; all the starry host will fall  like withered leaves from the vine,  like shriveled figs from the fig tree.

5 My sword has drunk its fill in the heavens;  see, it descends in judgment on Edom,  the people I have totally destroyed.  6 The sword of the Lord is bathed in blood,  it is covered with fat—the blood of lambs and goats,  fat from the kidneys of rams.  For the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah  and a great slaughter in Edom.  7 And the wild oxen will fall with them,  the bull calves and the great bulls.  Their land will be drenched with blood,  and the dust will be soaked with fat.

8 For the Lord has a day of vengeance,  a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause.  9 Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch,  her dust into burning sulfur;  her land will become blazing pitch!  10 It will not be quenched night and day;  its smoke will rise forever.From generation to generation it will lie desolate;  no one will ever pass through it again.  11 The desert owl and screech owl will possess it;  the great owl and the raven will nest there.  God will stretch out over Edom  the measuring line of chaos  and the plumb line of desolation.  12 Her nobles will have nothing there to be called a kingdom,  all her princes will vanish away.  13 Thorns will overrun her citadels,  nettles and brambles her strongholds.  She will become a haunt for jackals,  a home for owls.  14 Desert creatures will meet with hyenas, and wild goats will bleat to each other; there the night creatures will also repose  and find for themselves places of rest.  15 The owl will nest there and lay eggs,  she will hatch them, and care for her young under the shadow of her wings; there also the falcons will gather,  each with its mate.

16 Look in the scroll of the Lord and read: None of these will be missing,  not one will lack her mate.  For it is his mouth that has given the order,  and his Spirit will gather them together.  17 He allots their portions;  his hand distributes them by measure.  They will possess it forever  and dwell there from generation to generation.

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Psalm 115:9-13

9 O house of Israel, trust in the Lord— he is their help and shield.

10 O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord—  he is their help and shield.

11 You who fear him, trust in the Lord—  he is their help and shield.

12 The Lord remembers us and will bless us: He will bless the house of Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron,

13 he will bless those who fear the Lord—  small and great alike.

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Proverbs 23:29-30

29 Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

30 Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.

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Galatians 5:19-6:18

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

Galatians 6

Doing Good to All

Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5 for each one should carry his own load.

6 Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.

7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Not Circumcision but a New Creation

11 See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!

12 Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13 Not even those who are circumcised obey the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your flesh. 14 May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. 16 Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.

17 Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.

18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.

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