the Week of Proper 19 / Ordinary 24
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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
December 10 - Bible-in-a-Year
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Ezekiel 16
Chapter 16
Parable of God's Adulterous Wife
1 The word of the Lord came to me again: 2 "Son of man, explain Jerusalem's detestable practices to her.(a) 3 You are to say: This is what the Lord God says to Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth were in the land of the Canaanites. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.(b) 4 As for your birth, your umbilical cord wasn't cut on the day you were born,(c) and you weren't washed clean[a] with water. You were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths.(d) 5 No one cared enough about you to do even one of these things out of compassion for you. But you were thrown out into the open field because you were despised on the day you were born.
6 "I passed by you and saw you lying in your blood, and I said to you as you lay in your blood: Live! Yes, I said to you as you lay in your blood: Live![b] 7 I made you thrive[c] like plants of the field.(e) You grew up and matured and became very beautiful.[d] Your breasts were formed and your hair grew, but you were stark naked.
8 "Then I passed by you and saw you, and you were indeed at the age for love. So I spread the edge of My garment over you and covered your nakedness.(f) I pledged Myself to you,(g) entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine."(h) This is the declaration of the Lord God . 9 "I washed you with water, rinsed off your blood, and anointed you with oil. 10 I clothed you in embroidered cloth and provided you with leather sandals. I also wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I adorned you with jewelry, putting bracelets on your wrists and a chain around your neck. 12 I put a ring in your nose,(i) earrings on your ears, and a beautiful tiara on your head. 13 So you were adorned with gold and silver,(j) and your clothing was made of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour, honey, and oil. You became extremely beautiful and attained royalty. 14 Your fame spread among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through My splendor,(k) which I had bestowed on you." This is the declaration of the Lord God .
15 "But you were confident in your beauty and acted like a prostitute because of your fame.(l) You lavished your sexual favors on everyone who passed by.(m) Your beauty became his.[e] 16 You took some of your garments and made colorful high places for yourself, and you engaged in prostitution on them. These places should not have been built, and this should never have happened![f] 17 You also took your beautiful jewelry made from the gold and silver I had given you,(n) and you made male images so that you could engage in prostitution with them. 18 Then you took your embroidered garments to cover them, and set My oil and incense before them. 19 You also set before them as a pleasing aroma the food I gave you—the fine flour, oil, and honey that I fed you.(o) That is what happened." This is the declaration of the Lord God .
20 "You even took your sons and daughters you bore to Me and sacrificed them to these images as food.(p) Wasn't your prostitution enough? 21 You slaughtered My children and gave them up when you passed them through the fire(q) to the images. 22 In all your detestable practices and acts of prostitution, you did not remember the days of your youth(r) when you were stark naked and lying in your blood.
23 "Then after all your evil—Woe, woe to you!"—the declaration of the Lord God — 24 "you built yourself a mound and made yourself an elevated place in every square.(s) 25 You built your elevated place at the head of every street(t) and turned your beauty into a detestable thing. You spread your legs to everyone who passed by and increased your prostitution. 26 You engaged in promiscuous acts with Egyptian men, your well-endowed neighbors, and increased your prostitution(u) to provoke Me to anger.
27 "Therefore, I stretched out My hand against you and reduced your provisions. I gave you over to the desire of those who hate you, the Philistine women,(v) who were embarrassed by your indecent behavior. 28 Then you engaged in prostitution with the Assyrian men because you were not satisfied.(w) Even though you did this with them, you were still not satisfied. 29 So you extended your prostitution to Chaldea,(x) the land of merchants, but you were not even satisfied with this!
30 "How your heart was inflamed with lust"—the declaration of the Lord God —"when you did all these things, the acts of a brazen prostitute, 31 building your mound at the head of every street and making your elevated place in every square. But you were unlike a prostitute because you scorned payment.(y) 32 You adulterous wife, who receives strangers instead of her husband! 33 Men give gifts to all prostitutes, but you gave gifts to all your lovers. You bribed them to come to you from all around for your sexual favors. 34 So you were the opposite of other women in your acts of prostitution; no one solicited you. When you paid a fee instead of one being paid to you, you were the opposite.
35 "Therefore, you prostitute, hear the word of the Lord ! 36 This is what the Lord God says: Because your lust was poured out and your nakedness exposed by your acts of prostitution with your lovers, and because of all your detestable idols and the blood of your children that you gave to them,(z) 37 I am therefore going to gather all the lovers you pleased(aa)—all those you loved as well as all those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and expose your nakedness(ab) to them so they see you completely naked. 38 I will judge you the way adulteresses and those who shed blood are judged.(ac) Then I will bring about your bloodshed in wrath and jealousy.(ad) 39 I will hand you over to them, and they will level your mounds and tear down your elevated places. They will strip off your clothes,(ae) take your beautiful jewelry, and leave you stark naked. 40 They will bring a mob against you(af) to stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords. 41 Then they will burn down your houses and execute judgments against you in the sight of many women. I will stop you from being a prostitute,(ag) and you will never again pay fees for lovers. 42 So I will satisfy My wrath against you,(ah) and My jealousy will turn away from you. Then I will be silent and no longer angry. 43 Because you did not remember the days(ai) of your youth but enraged Me with all these things, I will also bring your actions down on your own head."(aj) This is the declaration of the Lord God . "Haven't you committed immoral acts in addition to all your detestable practices?
44 "Look, everyone who uses proverbs will say this proverb about you:
Like mother, like daughter.
45 You are the daughter of your mother, who despised her husband and children. You are the sister of your sisters,(ak) who despised their husbands and children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.(al) 46 Your older sister was Samaria,(am) who lived with her daughters to the north of you, and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to the south of you. 47 Didn't you walk in their ways and do their detestable practices? It was only a short time before you behaved more corruptly than they did.[g](an)
48 "As I live"—the declaration of the Lord God —"your sister Sodom and her daughters have not behaved as you and your daughters have.(ao) 49 Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, plenty of food,(ap) and comfortable security, but didn't support the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did detestable things before Me, so I removed them when I saw this.[h](aq) 51 But Samaria did not commit even half your sins. You have multiplied your detestable practices beyond theirs and made your sisters appear righteous by all the detestable things you have committed. 52 You must also bear your disgrace, since you have been an advocate for your sisters. For they appear more righteous than you because of your sins, which you committed more abhorrently than they did. So you also, be ashamed and bear your disgrace, since you have made your sisters appear righteous.
53 "I will restore their fortunes,(ar) the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and those of Samaria and her daughters. I will also restore[i] your fortunes among them,(as) 54 so you will bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all you did when you comforted them.(at) 55 As for your sisters, Sodom and her daughters and Samaria and her daughters will return to their former state. You and your daughters will also return to your former state. 56 Didn't you treat your sister Sodom as an object of scorn when you were proud, 57 before your wickedness was exposed? It was like the time you were scorned by the daughters of Aram[j](au) and all those around her, and by the daughters of the Philistines—those who treated you with contempt from every side. 58 You yourself must bear the consequences of your indecency and detestable practices"(av)—this is the Lord 's declaration.
59 "For this is what the Lord God says: I will deal with you according to what you have done, since you have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.(aw) 60 But I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.(ax) 61 Then you will remember your ways(ay) and be ashamed when you[k] receive your older and younger sisters. I will give them to you as daughters, but not because of your covenant. 62 I will establish My covenant with you,(az) and you will know that I am Yahweh, 63 so that when I make atonement for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed,(ba) and never open your mouth again because of your disgrace."(bb) This is the declaration of the Lord God .
Isaiah 45
Chapter 45
1 The
Lord
says this to Cyrus, His anointed,(a)
whose right hand I have grasped(b)
to subdue nations before him,
to disarm[a] kings,(c)
to open the doors before him
and the gates will not be shut:
2 "I will go before you
and level the uneven places;[b](d)
I will shatter the bronze doors
and cut the iron bars in two.(e)
3 I will give you the treasures of darkness
and riches from secret places,(f)
so that you may know that I, Yahweh,
the God of Israel call you by your name.(g)
4 I call you by your name,
because of Jacob My servant(h)
and Israel My chosen one.
I give a name to you,
though you do not know Me.
5 I am Yahweh, and there is no other;(i)
there is no God but Me.(j)
I will strengthen[c] you,
though you do not know Me,
6 so that all may know from the rising of the sun to its setting
that there is no one but Me.(k)
I am Yahweh, and there is no other.
7 I form light and create darkness,(l)
I make success and create disaster;(m)
I, Yahweh, do all these things.
8 "Heavens, sprinkle from above,
and let the skies shower righteousness.(n)
Let the earth open up
so that salvation will sprout
and righteousness will spring up with it.(o)
I, Yahweh, have created it.
9 "Woe to the one who argues with his Maker—
one clay pot among many.[d]
Does clay say to the one forming it,
‘What are you making?'(p)
Or does your work say,
‘He has no hands'?[e]
10 How absurd is the one who says to his father,
‘What are you fathering?'
or to his mother,
‘What are you giving birth to?'"
11 This is what the
Lord
,
the Holy One of Israel(q) and its Maker, says:
"Ask Me what is to happen to[f] My sons,(r)
and instruct Me about the work of My hands.(s)
12 I made the earth,
and created man on it.
It was My hands that stretched out the heavens,(t)
and I commanded all their host.
13 I have raised him up in righteousness,(u)
and will level all roads for him.
He will rebuild My city,(v)
and set My exiles free,(w)
not for a price or a bribe,"
says the
Lord
of Hosts.
God Alone is the Savior
14 This is what the Lord says:
The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush
and the Sabeans, men of stature,(x)
will come over to you(y)
and will be yours;
they will follow you,
they will come over in chains
and bow down to you.
They will confess[g] to you:
God is indeed with you,(z) and there is no other;
there is no other God.
15 Yes, You are a God who hides Himself,(aa)
God of Israel, Savior.(ab)
16 All of them are put to shame, even humiliated;(ac)
the makers of idols go in humiliation together.
17 Israel will be saved by the
Lord
with an everlasting salvation;
you will not be put to shame or humiliated
for all eternity.(ad)
18 For this is what the
Lord
says—
God is the Creator of the heavens.
He formed the earth and made it.
He established it;
He did not create it to be empty,
but formed it to be inhabited(ae)—
"I am Yahweh,
and there is no other.
19 I have not spoken in secret,(af)
somewhere in a land of darkness.
I did not say to the descendants of Jacob:
Seek Me in a wasteland.(ag)
I, Yahweh, speak truthfully;(ah)
I say what is right.
20 "Come, gather together,
and draw near, you fugitives of the nations.
Those who carry their wooden idols,
and pray to a god who cannot save,(ai)
have no knowledge.(aj)
21 Speak up and present your case[h](ak)—
yes, let them take counsel together.
Who predicted this long ago?
Who announced it from ancient times?
Was it not I, Yahweh?
There is no other God but Me,
a righteous God and Savior;(al)
there is no one except Me.(am)
22 Turn to Me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth.
For I am God,
and there is no other.
23 By Myself I have sworn;(an)
Truth has gone from My mouth,(ao)
a word that will not be revoked:
Every knee will bow(ap) to Me,
every tongue will swear allegiance.
24 It will be said to Me: Righteousness and strength
is only in the
Lord
."
All who are enraged against Him
will come to Him and be put to shame.(aq)
25 All the descendants of Israel
will be justified and find glory through the
Lord
.
Ephesians 5:21-33
Chapter 5
21 submitting to one another
in the fear of Christ.(z)
Wives and Husbands
22 Wives,(aa) submit[f](ab) to your own husbands(ac) as to the Lord, 23 for the husband is the head of the wife(ad) as Christ is the head(ae) of the church. He is the Savior of the body.(af) 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so wives are to submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives,(ag) just as Christ loved(ah) the church and gave Himself(ai) for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing[g] her with the washing of water by the word. 27 He did this to present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless.(aj) 28 In the same way, husbands are to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hates his own flesh but provides and cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, 30 since we are members of His body.[h]
31
For this reason a man will leave
his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
(ak)
and the two will become one flesh.
(al)[i]
32 This mystery(am) is profound, but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 To sum up, each one of you is to love his wife as himself, and the wife is to respect her husband.
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