the Week of Proper 19 / Ordinary 24
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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
November 23 - Bible-in-a-Year
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Jeremiah 41-42
Chapter 41
Gedaliah Assassinated by Ishmael
1 In the seventh month, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family and one of the king's chief officers, came with 10 men to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah. They ate a meal together there in Mizpah, 2 but then Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the 10 men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, with the sword; he killed the one the king of Babylon had appointed in the land. 3 Ishmael also struck down all the Judeans who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, as well as the Chaldean soldiers who were there.(a)
4 On the second day after he had killed Gedaliah, when no one knew yet, 5 80 men came from Shechem, Shiloh,(b) and Samaria(c) who had shaved their beards,(d) torn their garments, and gashed themselves, and who were carrying grain and incense offerings to bring to the temple of the Lord .(e) 6 Ishmael son of Nethaniah came out of Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he came. When he encountered them, he said: "Come to Gedaliah son of Ahikam!" 7 But when they came into the city, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the men with him slaughtered them and threw them into[a] a cistern.
8 However, there were 10 men among them who said to Ishmael, "Don't kill us, for we have hidden treasure in the field—wheat, barley, oil, and honey!" So he stopped and did not kill them along with their companions. 9 Now the cistern where Ishmael had thrown all the corpses of the men he had struck down was a large one[b] that King Asa had made in the encounter with Baasha king of Israel.(f) Ishmael son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain.
10 Then Ishmael took captive all the remnant of the people of Mizpah including the daughters of the king—all those who remained in Mizpah over whom Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam. Ishmael son of Nethaniah took them captive and set off to cross over to the Ammonites.(g)
The Captives Rescued by Johanan
11 When Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the armies(h) with him heard of all the evil that Ishmael son of Nethaniah had done, 12 they took all their men and went to fight with Ishmael son of Nethaniah and found him by the great pool in Gibeon.(i) 13 When all the people with Ishmael saw Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the army with him, they rejoiced, 14 and all the people whom Ishmael had taken captive from Mizpah turned around and rejoined Johanan son of Kareah. 15 But Ishmael son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men and went to the Ammonites. 16 Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the armies with him then took from Mizpah all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael son of Nethaniah after Ishmael had killed Gedaliah son of Ahikam—men, soldiers, women, children, and court officials whom he brought back from Gibeon. 17 They left, stopping in Geruth Chimham,(j) which is near Bethlehem, in order to make their way into Egypt, 18 away from the Chaldeans. For they feared them because Ishmael son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had appointed in the land.(k)
Chapter 42
The People Seek Jeremiah's Counsel
1 Then all the commanders of the armies, along with Johanan son of Kareah,(a) Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest,(b) approached 2 Jeremiah the prophet and said, "May our petition come before you;(c) pray to the Lord your God on our behalf,(d) on behalf of this entire remnant (for few of us remain out of the many,(e) as you can see with your own eyes), 3 that the Lord your God may tell us the way we should walk and the thing we should do."
4 So Jeremiah the prophet said to them, "I have heard. I will now pray to the Lord your God according to your words, and every word that the Lord answers you I will tell you; I won't withhold a word from you."(f)
5 And they said to Jeremiah, "As for every word the Lord your God sends you to tell us, if we don't act accordingly, may the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us.(g) 6 Whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you so that it may go well with us.(h) We will certainly obey the voice of the Lord our God!"
Jeremiah's Advice to Stay
7 Now at the end of 10 days, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, 8 and he summoned Johanan son of Kareah, all the commanders of the armies who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest.
9 He said to them, "This is what the Lord says, the God of Israel to whom you sent me to bring your petition before Him: 10 ‘If you will indeed stay in this land, then I will rebuild and not demolish you,(i) and I will plant and not uproot you, because I relent concerning the disaster(j) that I have brought on you. 11 Don't be afraid of the king of Babylon(k) whom you now fear; don't be afraid of him'—this is the Lord 's declaration—‘because I am with you to save you(l) and deliver you from him. 12 I will grant you compassion,(m) and he[a] will have compassion on you and allow you to return to your own soil. 13 But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,'(n) so as not to obey the voice of the Lord your God, 14 and if you say, ‘No, instead we'll go to the land of Egypt(o) where we will not see war or hear the sound of the ram's horn(p) or hunger for food, and we'll live there,' 15 then hear the word of the Lord , remnant of Judah! This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: If you are firmly resolved to go to Egypt(q) and live there for a while, 16 then the sword(r) you fear will overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine you are worried about will follow on your heels[b] there to Egypt, and you will die there. 17 All who resolve to go to Egypt to live there for a while will die by the sword, famine, and plague. They will have no one escape or survive from the disaster I will bring on them.'
18 "For this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Just as My anger and fury were poured out on Jerusalem's residents,(s) so will My fury pour out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become an object of cursing, scorn,(t) execration, and disgrace, and you will never see this place again.' 19 The Lord has spoken concerning you, remnant of Judah: ‘Don't go to Egypt.' Know for certain that I have warned you today!(u) 20 You have led your own selves astray because you are the ones who sent me to the Lord your God, saying, ‘Pray to the Lord our God on our behalf, and as for all that the Lord our God says, tell it to us, and we'll act accordingly.' 21 For I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of the Lord your God in everything He has sent me to tell you. 22 Now therefore, know for certain that by the sword, famine, and plague you will die in the place where you desired to go to live for a while."
Psalms 139
Chapter 139
Psalm 139
The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.
1
Lord
, You have searched me and known me.(a)
2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
You understand my thoughts from far away.(b)
3 You observe my travels and my rest;
You are aware of all my ways.(c)
4 Before a word is on my tongue,
You know all about it,
Lord
.(d)
5 You have encircled me;
You have placed Your hand on me.(e)
6 This extraordinary knowledge is beyond me.
It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.(f)
7 Where can I go to escape Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?(g)
8 If I go up to heaven, You are there;(h)
if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.(i)
9 If I live at the eastern horizon
or settle at the western limits,[a]
10 even there Your hand will lead me;
Your right hand will hold on to me.(j)
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night"(k)—
12 even the darkness is not dark to You.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to You.(l)
13 For it was You who created my inward parts;[b]
You knit me together in my mother's womb.(m)
14 I will praise You
because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.[c][d]
Your works are wonderful,
and I know this very well.(n)
15 My bones were not hidden from You
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.(o)
16 Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in Your book and planned
before a single one of them began.(p)
17 God, how difficult[e] Your thoughts are
for me to comprehend;
how vast their sum is!
18 If I counted them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;(q)
when I wake up,[f] I am still with You.(r)
19 God, if only You would kill the wicked—
you bloodthirsty men, stay away from me(s)—
20 who invoke You deceitfully.
Your enemies swear by You falsely.(t)
21
Lord
, don't I hate those who hate You,
and detest those who rebel against You?
22 I hate them with extreme hatred;
I consider them my enemies.(u)
23 Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my concerns.(v)
24 See if there is any offensive[g] way in me;
lead me in the everlasting way.(w)
2 Peter 1
Chapter 1
Greeting
1 Simeon[a] Peter,(a) a slave and an apostle(b) of Jesus Christ:
To those who have obtained a faith of equal privilege with ours[b] through the righteousness(c) of our God and Savior(d) Jesus Christ.
2 May grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God(e) and of Jesus our Lord.
Growth in the Faith
3 His[c] divine power(f) has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge(g) of Him who called(h) us by[d] His own glory and goodness. 4 By these He has given us very great and precious promises,(i) so that through them you may share in the divine nature,(j) escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desires. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, 6 knowledge with self-control,(k) self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, 7 godliness with brotherly affection,(l) and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they will keep you from being useless(m) or unfruitful(n) in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 The person who lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten the cleansing from his past sins. 10 Therefore, brothers, make every effort to confirm your calling and election,(o) because if you do these things you will never stumble. 11 For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom(p) of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly supplied to you.
12 Therefore I will always remind you about these things, even though you know them and are established in the truth(q) you have. 13 I consider it right, as long as I am in this bodily tent,[e](r) to wake you up with a reminder, 14 knowing that I will soon lay aside my tent, as our Lord Jesus Christ has also shown me.(s) 15 And I will also make every effort that you may be able to recall these things at any time after my departure.[f]
The Trustworthy Prophetic Word
16 For we did not follow cleverly contrived myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ;(t) instead, we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.(u) 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, a voice came to Him from the Majestic Glory:
This is My beloved Son.[g]
I take delight in Him
18 And we heard this voice when it came from heaven while we were with Him on the holy mountain.(w) 19 So we have the prophetic word strongly confirmed. You will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dismal place,(x) until the day dawns(y) and the morning star(z) rises in your hearts. 20 First of all, you should know this: No prophecy of Scripture comes from one's own interpretation, 21 because no prophecy ever came by the will of man;(aa) instead, men spoke from God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.(ab)
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