February 2017 – Page 2 – A Walk Through The Word

February 23, 2017

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday February 23, 2017 (NIV)

Leviticus 14

Cleansing after Skin Diseases

14 The Lord spoke to Moses, ²“These are the instructions for making a person clean after a skin disease. He must be taken to the priest. ³The priest will go outside the camp and examine him. If the person is healed, ⁴the priest will order someone to get two living, clean birds, some cedar wood, red yarn, and a hyssop sprig to use for the cleansing. ⁵Then the priest will order someone to kill one bird over a clay bowl containing fresh water. ⁶The priest will take the living bird, the cedar wood, the red yarn, and the hyssop sprig and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water. ⁷He will sprinkle the blood seven times on the one to be cleansed and will declare that person clean. Then he will let the living bird fly away into the open country.

⁸“The one to be cleansed must wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and wash. Then he will be clean. After that he may go into the camp. However, for seven days he will live outside his tent. ⁹On the seventh day he must shave off all the hair on his head, his beard, and his eyebrows, and he must wash his clothes and body. Then he will be clean.

¹⁰“On the eighth day he must take two male lambs that have no defects and a one-year-old female lamb that has no defects. He must also take eight cups of flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering along with a quart of olive oil. ¹¹The priest who will declare him clean must bring the person and his offerings into the Lord’s presence at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ¹²The priest will take one of the male lambs and the quart of olive oil and present them to the Lord as a guilt offering. ¹³He will slaughter the lamb in the holy place where he slaughters the offering for sin and the burnt offering. He will do this because the guilt offering, like the offering for sin, belongs to the priest. It is very holy. ¹⁴Then the priest will take some of the blood from the guilt offering and put it on the right ear lobe, on the right thumb, and on the big toe of the right foot of the one to be cleansed. ¹⁵The priest will also take some of the olive oil and pour it into his own left hand. ¹⁶He will dip his right finger in the oil in his left hand, and with his finger sprinkle some of the oil seven times in the Lord’s presence. ¹⁷The priest will put some of the oil that is still in his hand on the right ear lobe, on the right thumb, and on the big toe of the right foot of the one to be cleansed. These are the same places he had put the blood of the guilt offering. ¹⁸The priest will put the rest of the oil in his hand on the head of the one to be cleansed. So he will make peace with the Lord for that person in the Lord’s presence. ¹⁹The priest will also sacrifice the offering for sin to make peace with the Lord for the one who is being cleansed from his impurity. After that, he will slaughter the burnt offering. ²⁰The priest will sacrifice the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. So the priest will make peace with the Lord for that person, and the person who had the skin disease will be clean.

Cleansing for a Poor Person after a Skin Disease

²¹“But if the one to be cleansed is poor and cannot afford that much, he must take one male lamb, present it to make peace with the Lord for himself, and use it for his guilt offering. He will take only eight cups of flour mixed with olive oil as a grain offering, a quart of olive oil, ²²and two mourning doves or two pigeons (whatever he can afford). The one will be an offering for sin and the other a burnt offering. ²³On the eighth day he will take them to the priest for his cleansing at the entrance to the tent of meeting in the Lord’s presence. ²⁴The priest will take the lamb for the guilt offering and the quart of olive oil and present them to the Lord. ²⁵He will slaughter the lamb as a guilt offering. Then the priest will take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right ear lobe, on the right thumb, and on the big toe of the right foot of the one to be cleansed. ²⁶The priest will pour some of the olive oil into his own left hand. ²⁷With his right finger he will sprinkle some of the oil seven times in the Lord’s presence. ²⁸The priest will put some of the oil that is in his hand on the right ear lobe, on the right thumb, and on the big toe of the right foot of the one to be cleansed. These are the same places he had put the blood of the guilt offering. ²⁹In the Lord’s presence, the priest will pour the rest of the oil in his hand on the head of the one to be cleansed in order to make a payment for him. ³⁰Then the one to be cleansed must take one of the mourning doves or pigeons (whichever he can afford), ^[a] ³¹and sacrifice it as an offering for sin. He will take the other and sacrifice it as a burnt offering together with the grain offering. So in the Lord’s presence the priest will make peace with the Lord for the one who is being cleansed. ³²These are the instructions for one who has an infectious skin disease but cannot afford what is needed for his cleansing.”

Mildew in Houses

³³The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, ³⁴“When you come to Canaan that I am going to give to you, mildew may appear in a house. ³⁵The owner of that house must come and tell the priest that there is something that looks like mildew in his house.

³⁶“Before the priest examines the house, he will order everything taken out of it so that nothing in the house will become unclean. Then the priest will go inside to examine the house. ³⁷He will examine the mildew area on the walls. If it is green and red in sunken areas that are deeper than the rest of the wall, ³⁸the priest will go out to the door of the house and close up the house for seven days. ³⁹On the seventh day the priest will go back and examine it again. If the mildew in the walls of the house has spread, ⁴⁰the priest must order the stones that have the mildew to be torn out and thrown outside the city in an unclean place. ⁴¹He must have the entire inside of the house scraped. The plaster dust scraped off the walls must be dumped in an unclean place outside the city. ⁴²The stones must be replaced, and the house must be plastered again. ⁴³If the mildew develops again in the house after all this, ⁴⁴the priest will examine it one more time. If it is a spreading type of mildew, the house is unclean. ⁴⁵The house—stones, wood, and all the plaster—must be torn down and taken to an unclean place outside the city. ⁴⁶Whoever goes into the house any time it is closed up will be unclean until evening. ⁴⁷Whoever sleeps or eats in the house must wash his clothes. ⁴⁸But if the priest comes and makes an examination and the mildew has not spread in the house after it is plastered again, the priest must declare the house clean. The mildew is gone.

⁴⁹“The priest must take two birds, cedar wood, red yarn, and a hyssop sprig and use them to make the house clean. ⁵⁰He must kill the one bird over a clay bowl containing fresh water. ⁵¹He must take the cedar wood, the hyssop sprig, the red yarn, and the living bird and dip them in the fresh water containing the blood of the bird that was killed. He must sprinkle the house seven times. ⁵²So he must use the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the living bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the red yarn to make the house clean. ⁵³Then he will let the living bird fly from the city into the open country. He will make peace with the Lord for the house, and it will be clean.

⁵⁴“These are the instructions for any kind of mildew or fungus ⁵⁵that infects clothing or houses ⁵⁶and for skin diseases where there is a sore, a rash, or an irritated area. ⁵⁷These instructions for skin diseases and mildew help you distinguish between what is clean and what is unclean.”

Footnotes:

Leviticus 14:31 Greek, Syriac; Masoretic Text repeats “whichever he can afford.”

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Mark 6:30-56

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand^(A)

³⁰The apostles gathered around Jesus. They reported to him everything they had done and taught. ³¹So he said to them, “Let’s go to a place where we can be alone to rest for a while.” Many people were coming and going, and Jesus and the apostles didn’t even have a chance to eat.

³²So they went away in a boat to a place where they could be alone. ³³But many people saw them leave and recognized them. The people ran from all the cities and arrived ahead of them. ³⁴When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw a large crowd and felt sorry for them. They were like sheep without a shepherd. So he spent a lot of time teaching them.

³⁵When it was late, his disciples came to him. They said, “No one lives around here, and it’s already late. ³⁶Send the people to the closest farms and villages to buy themselves something to eat.”

³⁷Jesus replied, “You give them something to eat.”

They said to him, “Should we go and spend about a year’s wages on bread to feed them?”

³⁸He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”

When they found out, they told him, “Five loaves of bread and two fish.”

³⁹Then he ordered all of them to sit down in groups on the green grass. ⁴⁰They sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties.

⁴¹After he took the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed the food. He broke the loaves apart and kept giving them to the disciples to give to the people. He also gave pieces of the two fish to everyone. ⁴²All of them ate as much as they wanted. ⁴³When they picked up the leftover pieces, they filled twelve baskets with bread and fish. ⁴⁴There were 5,000 men who had eaten the bread.

Jesus Walks on the Sea^(B)

⁴⁵Jesus quickly made his disciples get into a boat and cross to Bethsaida ahead of him while he sent the people away. ⁴⁶After saying goodbye to them, he went up a mountain to pray. ⁴⁷When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land.

⁴⁸Jesus saw that they were in a lot of trouble as they rowed, because they were going against the wind. Between three and six o’clock in the morning, he came to them. He was walking on the sea. He wanted to pass by them. ⁴⁹When they saw him walking on the sea, they thought, “It’s a ghost!” and they began to scream. ⁵⁰All of them saw him and were terrified.

Immediately, he said, “Calm down! It’s me. Don’t be afraid!” ⁵¹He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped blowing. The disciples were astounded. ⁵²(They didn’t understand what had happened with the loaves of bread. Instead, their minds were closed.)

⁵³They crossed the sea, came to shore at Gennesaret, and anchored there.

⁵⁴As soon as they stepped out of the boat, the people recognized Jesus. ⁵⁵They ran all over the countryside and began to carry the sick on cots to any place where they heard he was. ⁵⁶Whenever he would go into villages, cities, or farms, people would put their sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch the edge of his clothes. Everyone who touched his clothes was made well.

Cross references:

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Psalm 40:1-10

Psalm 40

For the choir director; a psalm by David.

¹I waited patiently for the Lord.
He turned to me and heard my cry for help.
²He pulled me out of a horrible pit,
out of the mud and clay.
He set my feet on a rock
and made my steps secure.
³He placed a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see this and worship.
They will trust the Lord.
⁴Blessed is the person
who places his confidence in the Lord
and does not rely on arrogant people
or those who follow lies.
⁵You have done many miraculous things, O Lord my God.
You have made many wonderful plans for us.
No one compares to you!
I will tell others about your miracles,
which are more than I can count.

⁶You were not pleased with sacrifices and offerings.
You have dug out two ears for me.^[a]
You did not ask for burnt offerings or sacrifices for sin.
⁷Then I said, “I have come!
(It is written about me in the scroll of the book.)
⁸I am happy to do your will, O my God.”
Your teachings are deep within me.
⁹I will announce the good news of righteousness
among those assembled for worship.
I will not close my lips.
You know that, O Lord.
¹⁰I have not buried your righteousness deep in my heart.
I have been outspoken about your faithfulness and your salvation.
I have not hidden your mercy and your truth
from those assembled for worship.

Footnotes:

Psalm 40:6 Hebrew meaning of this line uncertain.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Proverbs 10:11-12

¹¹The mouth of a righteous person is a fountain of life,
but the mouths of wicked people conceal violence.
¹²Hate starts quarrels,
but love covers every wrong.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

February 22, 2017

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday February 22, 2017 (NIV)

Leviticus 13

Skin Diseases

13 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, ²“If anyone has a sore, a rash, or an irritated area on his skin that turns into an infectious skin disease, he must be taken to the priest Aaron or to one of his sons who are also priests. ³The priest will examine the disease. If the hair in the diseased area has turned white, and the diseased area looks deeper than the rest of his skin, it is an infectious skin disease. When the priest has examined him, he must declare him unclean. ⁴But if the irritated area is white and does not look deeper than the rest of the skin, and the hair has not turned white, the priest must put him in isolation for seven days. ⁵On the seventh day the priest will examine him again. If the disease looks the same and has not spread, the priest must put him in isolation for another seven days. ⁶On the seventh day the priest will examine him again. If the diseased area has faded and not spread, the priest must declare him clean. It is only a rash. The person must wash his clothes and will be clean. ⁷But if the rash has spread after he has shown himself to the priest to be declared clean, he must show himself to the priest again. ⁸The priest will examine him one more time, and if the rash has spread, the priest must declare him unclean. It is an infectious skin disease.

⁹“If anyone has an infectious skin disease, he must be taken to the priest. ¹⁰The priest will examine him. If there is a white sore that has turned the hair white, and if there is raw flesh in the sore, ¹¹he has a chronic skin disease. Without putting him in isolation, the priest must declare him unclean because he is unclean. ¹²If skin disease develops and covers the whole person from head to foot (so far as the priest can see), ¹³the priest will examine him. If the disease does cover his whole body, the priest must declare the diseased person clean. His body has turned white. The person is clean. ¹⁴But if raw flesh appears, he will be unclean. ¹⁵The priest will examine the raw flesh and declare him unclean. The raw flesh is unclean. It is an infectious skin disease. ¹⁶But if the raw flesh turns white again, he must go to the priest. ¹⁷The priest will examine him again, and if the diseased area has turned white, the priest must declare the diseased person clean. He is clean.

¹⁸“If a boil on the skin has healed ¹⁹and in its place there is a white sore or a pink area, it must be shown to the priest. ²⁰The priest will examine it. If it looks deeper than the rest of the skin and its hair has turned white, the priest must declare the person unclean. An infectious skin disease has developed in the boil. ²¹But if the priest examines the affected area and the hair in it is not white or the affected area is not deeper than the rest of the skin but has faded, the priest must put him in isolation for seven days. ²²If the area has spread, the priest must declare him unclean. It is a skin disease. ²³But if the irritated area has not spread, it is a scar caused by the boil. The priest must declare him clean.

²⁴“If anyone has a burn on his skin and the raw flesh of the burn turns into a pink or bright white area, ²⁵the priest will examine it. If the hair on the affected area has turned white and the affected area looks deeper than the rest of the skin, an infectious skin disease has developed in the burn. The priest must declare him unclean. It is an infectious skin disease. ²⁶But if the priest examines it and the hair in it is not white and the affected area is not deeper than the rest of the skin but has faded, the priest must put him in isolation for seven days. ²⁷On the seventh day the priest will examine him again. If the area has spread, the priest must declare him unclean. It is an infectious skin disease. ²⁸If the irritated area does not spread but has faded, it is only a sore caused by the burn. The priest must declare him clean, because it is a scar caused by the burn.

²⁹“If a man or a woman has some disease on the head or chin, ³⁰the priest will examine the disease. If it looks deeper than the rest of the skin and there is thin yellow hair on it, the priest must declare the person unclean. It is a scab, a disease on the head or the chin. ³¹But if the priest examines the scabby disease and it does not look deeper than the rest of the skin and there is no black hair in it, the priest must put the person with the scabby disease in isolation for seven days. ³²On the seventh day the priest will examine the disease. If the scab has not spread, there is no yellow hair on it, and the scab does not look deeper than the rest of the skin, ³³the person will shave everything except the scab. The priest will put the person with the scab in isolation for another seven days. ³⁴On the seventh day the priest will examine the scab again. If the scab has not spread on the skin and does not look deeper than the rest of the skin, the priest must declare him clean. When he has washed his clothes, he will be clean. ³⁵But if the scab spreads after the person has been declared clean, ³⁶the priest will make another examination. If the scab has spread on the skin, the priest does not have to look for yellow hair. The person is unclean. ³⁷But if he sees that the scab hasn’t spread and black hair grows on it, the scab is healed. The person is clean, so the priest must declare him clean.

³⁸“If a man or a woman has white irritated areas of skin, ³⁹the priest will make an examination. If the irritated areas on the skin are pale white, a rash has developed on the skin. The person is clean.

⁴⁰“If a man loses his hair, he is clean, even though he is bald. ⁴¹If he loses the hair on the front of his head, he is clean, even though he is bald on the forehead. ⁴²But if there is a pink patch on the bald places in back or in front, a skin disease is developing in those places. ⁴³The priest will examine him. If the sore from the disease in the bald places in back or in front is pink like a skin disease somewhere else on the body, ⁴⁴the man has come down with an infectious skin disease. He is unclean. The priest must declare him unclean because of the skin disease on his head.

⁴⁵“People who come down with a skin disease must wear torn clothes and leave their hair uncombed. They must cover their upper lips and call out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ ⁴⁶As long as they have the skin disease, they are unclean. They must live outside the camp.

Mildew in Clothing or Leather Articles

⁴⁷“Now about clothing—if there is a green or red area on a piece of clothing ⁴⁸that is woven or knitted from linen or wool or on any leather article, ⁴⁹it is mildew. It must be shown to the priest. ⁵⁰The priest will examine the mildew and will put the clothing in a separate place for seven days. ⁵¹On the seventh day he will examine the area again. If the spot is spreading, it is unclean. ⁵²He must burn the piece of clothing or the leather article because the mildew is growing. ⁵³But if the priest sees that the area has not spread, ⁵⁴he must order the area to be washed and put the clothing in a separate place for seven more days. ⁵⁵The priest will examine the area again after it is washed. If it doesn’t look any different and the mildew has not spread, it is still unclean. It must be burned, whether the area is on the outside or the inside. ⁵⁶If the priest sees that the area is pale after washing, he will tear it out of the clothing or the leather. ⁵⁷However, if it shows up again, you must burn the clothing or the leather article. ⁵⁸But if the area disappears from the woven or knitted clothing or any leather article when it is washed, wash it again, and it will be clean.

⁵⁹“These are the instructions for deciding whether mildew in clothing that is woven or knitted from linen or wool or in any leather article is clean or unclean.”

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Mark 6:1-29

Nazareth Rejects Jesus^(A)

6 Jesus left that place and went to his hometown. His disciples followed him. ²When the day of rest—a holy day came, he began to teach in the synagogue. He amazed many who heard him. They asked, “Where did this man get these ideas? Who gave him this kind of wisdom and the ability to do such great miracles? ³Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” So they took offense at him.

⁴But Jesus told them, “The only place a prophet isn’t honored is in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his own house.” ⁵He couldn’t work any miracles there except to lay his hands on a few sick people and cure them. ⁶Their unbelief amazed him.

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve^(B)

Then Jesus went around to the villages and taught.

⁷He called the twelve apostles, sent them out two by two, and gave them authority over evil spirits. ⁸He instructed them to take nothing along on the trip except a walking stick. They were not to take any food, a traveling bag, or money in their pockets. ⁹They could wear sandals but could not take along a change of clothes.

¹⁰He told them, “Whenever you go into a home, stay there until you’re ready to leave that place. ¹¹Wherever people don’t welcome you or listen to you, leave and shake the dust from your feet as a warning to them.”

¹²So the apostles went and told people that they should turn to God and change the way they think and act. ¹³They also forced many demons out of people and poured oil on many who were sick to cure them.

Recalling John’s Death^(C)

¹⁴King Herod heard about Jesus, because Jesus’ name had become well-known. Some people were saying, “John the Baptizer has come back to life. That’s why he has the power to perform these miracles.” ¹⁵Others said, “He is Elijah.” Still others said, “He is a prophet like one of the other prophets.” ¹⁶But when Herod heard about it, he said, “I had John’s head cut off, and he has come back to life!”

¹⁷Herod had sent men who had arrested John, tied him up, and put him in prison. Herod did that for Herodias, whom he had married. (She used to be his brother Philip’s wife.) ¹⁸John had been telling Herod, “It’s not right for you to be married to your brother’s wife.”

¹⁹So Herodias held a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she wasn’t allowed to do it ²⁰because Herod was afraid of John. Herod knew that John was a fair and holy man, so he protected him. When he listened to John, he would become very disturbed, and yet he liked to listen to him.

²¹An opportunity finally came on Herod’s birthday. Herod gave a dinner for his top officials, army officers, and the most important people of Galilee. ²²His daughter, that is, Herodias’ daughter, came in and danced. Herod and his guests were delighted with her. The king told the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.” ²³He swore an oath to her: “I’ll give you anything you ask for, up to half of my kingdom.”

²⁴So she went out and asked her mother, “What should I ask for?”

Her mother said, “Ask for the head of John the Baptizer.”

²⁵So the girl hurried back to the king with her request. She said, “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptizer on a platter at once.”

²⁶The king deeply regretted his promise. But because of his oath and his guests, he didn’t want to refuse her. ²⁷Immediately, the king sent a guard and ordered him to bring John’s head. The guard cut off John’s head in prison. ²⁸Then he brought the head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother.

²⁹When John’s disciples heard about this, they came for his body and laid it in a tomb.

Cross references:

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Psalm 39

For the choir director; for Jeduthun; a psalm by David.

¹I said,
“I will watch my ways so that I do not sin with my tongue.
I will bridle my mouth while wicked people are in my presence.”
²I remained totally speechless.
I kept silent, although it did me no good.
While I was deep in thought, my pain grew worse.
³My heart burned like a fire flaring up within me.
Then I spoke with my tongue:
⁴“Teach me, O Lord, about the end of my life.
Teach me about the number of days I have left
so that I may know how temporary my life is.
⁵Indeed, you have made the length of my days only a few inches.
My life span is nothing compared to yours.
Certainly, everyone alive is like a whisper in the wind. Selah
⁶Each person who walks around is like a shadow.
They are busy for no reason.
They accumulate riches without knowing who will get them.”

⁷And now, Lord, what am I waiting for?
My hope is in you!
⁸Rescue me from all my rebellious acts.
Do not disgrace me in front of godless fools.
⁹I remained speechless.
I did not open my mouth
because you are the one who has done this.
¹⁰Remove the sickness you laid upon me.
My life is over because you struck me with your hand.
¹¹With stern warnings you discipline people for their crimes.
Like a moth you eat away at what is dear to them.
Certainly, everyone is like a whisper in the wind. Selah

¹²Listen to my prayer, O Lord.
Open your ear to my cry for help.
Do not be deaf to my tears,
for I am a foreign resident with you,
a stranger like all my ancestors.
¹³Look away from me so that I may smile again
before I go away and am no more.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Proverbs 10:10

¹⁰Whoever winks with his eye causes heartache.
The one who talks foolishly will be thrown down headfirst.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

February 22, 2017

02/22/2017 DAB Transcript

Leviticus 13:1-59 ~ Mark 6:1-29 ~ Psalm 39:1-13 ~ Proverbs 10:10

Today is the 22^nd day of February. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. How are you doing? How is this day going for you? I hope whether it’s just getting started or whether it is ending, that it is good. Things are pretty good here in the rolling hills of Tennessee. Got my nice cup of Windfarm coffee here to my left, which is always a sign of a good morning. And we’ve got the word of God here in front of us, which is a good sign that whatever has been going on, whatever kind of day this has been, whether it has been serene and pleasant or crazy and chaotic, there is a space that we’ve created that we can step into and it’s peaceful and we’re here together around a global campfire and we can release all of that. It will still be there, but our context and perspective on it may have changed. We have this space to just let all that go, so that is what we do. We exhale. We let it go and we focus our affection and our attention on what God will speak to us through his word today. Leviticus chapter 13, verse 1 through 59, and we’re reading from the God’s Word translation today.

Commentary

In the book of Leviticus we’re in riveting territory – infectious skin diseases, page-turner stuff here. Isn’t this where if we forged this far in the past, we were like, ‘I just don’t know what is going on here. Boils, rashes, irritated areas, skin disease in the Bible. I don’t know how to apply that to my life today.’ I get that because that was my story every time. Every time I tried to read the Bible. And that is where context is so important. I mean, I have over these years come to believe the Bible, out of its context, I mean, definitely leaves you wondering what is going on and why it is important, which is why we’ve worked so hard to keep the context in front of us. These people are in the wilderness and everything about them, everything about them is being transformed. Their spiritual identity, their very presence on the face of the earth, how they conduct themselves toward each other and those who are from the outside, everything is being reframed. Everything.

There are practical reasons for where we are in the story. It is a practical thing to pay attention to something that is infectious among a nomadic people who are traveling around a desert and moving from place to place Bedouin like. If infection were to spread through the camp, it could be utterly devastating. So that is very practical. But everything that is being instituted in this culture is also a constant reminder of their new identity.

So they go to the priest because this is not just a physical matter. It could also be a spiritual matter. Isn’t it interesting when we begin to look at it in that context? Is this deeper than skin deep? If this goes below the surface of the skin, this is a bigger deal. Does this have mold or mildew on it? Is it growing or is it just present? Can it be washed away or has it gotten into the fibers of the article? Is it taking over? Then it’s unclean and it needs to not be here because it will infect other things, other articles. Even today you get mold in your house. That’s a big deal to get rid of. You’ve got mildew everywhere, you know you have a bit of a problem. And then you’re looking, right? How deep does this thing go? Is this surface? Is this a bigger deal? What do we have going on here? In spiritual terms the implications are so present that we don’t even have to think that long. All we have to do is begin to invite the Holy Spirit. Is this skin deep? Is this deeper than that? What is going on inside me?

And then we get into the book of Mark and Jesus goes home. He goes to his childhood hometown, Nazareth, and teaches in the synagogue. Everyone is pretty impressed with what he has to say, but they are not buying it because they saw this kid grow up. So they can’t figure out how he got the wisdom and knowledge and power that he has, but they know who he is and they know his family. What is interesting is Mark 6:5: He couldn’t work any miracles there except to lay his hands on a few sick people and cure them. Their unbelief amazed him.

If you think about the miracles of Jesus, you can focus on these as supernatural events, but what does he usually say to someone who has been healed in some way? Go in peace. Your faith has made you well. Which lets us know pretty clearly that the miraculous is a collaboration. There is a participation involved in the stories of Jesus’ miracles. And we get the other side of that today. He couldn’t work any miracles there. Their unbelief amazed him. So what is going on here? Maybe spiritual mildew? Maybe spiritual infectious disease that is eating away at the fabric of these people’s faith? Because faith is the activator of all of this. In fact, it is so important that the Bible says without faith it is impossible to please God. How can we even know God but through faith and belief? So even Jesus, faced with a crowd of people who did not believe, could not do what he came to do.

So what inside of us is more than just a scab on the surface of the skin? What is more than skin deep but has become infected and unclean? What is covered in mold and mildew that is more than just surface deep? Because when we invite the Holy Spirit into that question, we’re inviting the Holy Spirit into what is unclean and there is no other way to become clean than by the power of God. These places of doubt, these patches of doubt that we have and we all do, they are an indicator. They are a symptom of something going on that is deeper. On those days where we’re ready to chuck our faith altogether and go ‘I just don’t know if I can believe all this,’ that is a symptom, an indicator. And if we look back at our life, we see the hand of God in it all, but all of a sudden we’re sick. We’re unclean. If we look at how we got there, we see that it was systematic choices on our own.

May our unbelief not be an amazing thing to Jesus in a bad way like the people of Nazareth. May we invite Jesus, our High Priest. May we take those things that are infected and moldy and sick and infectious. And don’t think they’re not just because they’re not on your physical body. Don’t think that your sickness spiritually can’t be infectious to those around you because it can. Like the children of Israel in the wilderness, may we take these things to our High Priest and let him examine them. Because what is the point? The point is wholeness. The point is to get well in every way, spirit, mind, will, body, everything. Everything about us set apart and made holy to God. That is what we were created for. That is what we are supposed to look like. And it is available.

Prayer

Jesus, we see how the portions of scripture that at one time were tedious are vibrant and alive and relevant and speaking to some deep things in us and we’ve spent a couple days on this and we’re looking at these things. What have we touched that is unclean? What has become infected and has made us unclean? What is moldy and mildewed and has become unclean? We can’t fix it so we come to you, our High Priest, and we ask your Holy Spirit to examine us and show us what to do, what to get rid of and burn because it is not supposed to be a part of our lives anymore, it is perpetually unclean and it needs to be gone. Or places that you need to touch and we need to let you touch those soft places of doubt and fear and anxiety and depression, all of the things that lead back to one place, fear. Fear that we can’t trust you. We’re trusting you now. We’re coming with these things to you and inviting you to examine them. Show us what needs to be removed and touch us in the places that need to be healed. Come Holy Spirit, we pray. In the name of Jesus, and by his authority we ask. Amen.

Announcements

Www.DailyAudioBible.com – that’s home. I guess that is where the global campfire is burning, although it is burning wherever we are, but I guess that is home base. It is home base. It is where you find out what is going on around here, what people are posting on the Prayer Wall, things people need prayer for and the encouragement that comes from that. Resources are available there. All the information about the More Gathering for Women that we’ve been talking about is there, so check it out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible in the mission of our community that we share, the family that we are, to bring God’s spoken word to whoever will listen, anywhere on this planet, any time of day or night, and to build community around that rhythm so that we know we’re not alone, if that resonates, then thank you for your partnership. There is a link on the home page. If you’re using the app, you can press the More button in the lower right-hand corner. Or if you prefer, the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996, Spring Hill, TN 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, (877) 942-4253 is the number to dial.

And that’s it for today. I’m Brian. I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer Requests and Praise Reports

Hey, this call is for Charles in Florida, the brother who just lost his wife. I just want you to know, man, I’m here for you. I’m praying for you. We all love you and are praying for you and lifting you and your family up. Keep us updated and stay strong. We’re here for you and God’s got you, brother. God bless you. Love you and I will talk to you guys all later. Bye.

Hi, this is Lou from Minnesota and a year since I called, but I listen every day and I lift everybody up in prayer. I am just calling because the Daily Audio Bible changed my life. When I first started to listen, oh maybe six or seven years ago, I was very broken emotionally and physically. Just by listening to the word of God every day has healed me, has made me feel like a complete person. I have Daily Audio Bible cards in my purse and I give them out to everyone. I never give my name and address or telephone number without sharing a Daily Audio Bible card. I just know that if people listen to God’s word and apply it, don’t even think about applying it because it will happen automatically, God is so good and I’m just so thankful for the Daily Audio Bible. So I just wanted to share that tonight. I’ve been meaning to call for quite a while. I’m one of those silent pray-ers, but I lift people up in prayer. I’ve been praying for the woman who has lost both her legs. She has been on my mind and I have told my friends about her and I just admire her courage and know that God is going to lift her into an even more higher place and closer place in him. Thank you everyone who makes Daily Audio Bible possible. I love you and I lift you up in prayer. God bless you. Louella.

Hello Daily Audio Bible. This is Nathan, Gift of God from Bloomington, IL. Hey, I want to thank you, Brian, for waking me up. In Leviticus and part of Exodus, I listened to it and I’m thinking ‘Okay, I’m listening. This really isn’t my most favorite part of the Bible, blah-blah-blah.’ I would grow complacent, but I would listen and I listened to, okay, for this kind of sin, sacrifice this, do this, sprinkle the blood there, burn the body there, if you can’t afford this, then buy this and do this, and it seems like they were doing something to atone for their sins, so I’ve got to do something to atone for my sin, for my this or for my that, and then Brian said something that put it all together and I think it was because the Old Testament and the New Testament kind of went together. That when Jesus died on the cross, I no longer have to do that. I didn’t have to atone for my sins. I had to account for them, of course, ask for forgiveness, but Jesus was that sacrifice. And yes, I’ve heard that before, but it was the transition from me having to do the sacrificing, providing this for my sacrifice and this for that sacrifice to now God being that offering on the altar for me, for my sin. I know that is so, you know… I mean, everyone knows that, but it just hit me so different – that I didn’t have to do it. I have to accept it, though. I just thought I would share that with my family. Have a great day. Make it a great day.

This is Doneen K. and I just heard Patrick S. call and my heart is broken and I want to pray for him right now. Lord Jesus, Father in Heaven, I pray that you’ll heal this man like you did the man on the mat. Lord, I pray for his healing from his head to his toes. God, I pray that you will help his wife and his son. Help him deal with this whole issue. God, he has been a member of this family for five years and he has only called twice and he has so much going on. Lord, please hear our prayers. I beg of you, Lord. Heal this man’s body. In your precious name, amen.

Hi family. Today is the 19^th of February. I’m just listening to the 18^th of February podcast, because being in Australia, I always have to listen a day behind because we’re a day ahead. I just wanted to pray for the gentleman who called in and said he has been suffering from depression and you said it’s been a bad bout for about four months. I just wanted to let you know you’re in my prayers. My heart goes out to all people who suffer depression, so I just want to let you know that I’m lifting you up in my prayers. I’m trusting and believing that God will help you defeat this bout and you will walk into great victory and joy and fullness of life. You’re in my prayers and may God bless you and shine his light upon you. Have a good day.

Hi DAB family. It’s James here from the UK. It’s been a long time since I’ve called, but I just wanted to connect in and catch up with you guys and just let you know that I’m just so blessed right now. I’m so… I’m just on fire. The Holy Spirit is just pulsing through. He’s coursing through my veins. The blessings of just seeing him at work is amazing and yesterday we went on a men’s retreat at Ascot Priory and I guess there was about 14 of us there and just listening to the stories of these guys and what is going on in their lives, their marriages, their families, the challenges that we all face. We followed the story of the prodigal son and just Jesus showed up big time. The Holy Spirit took us places where, wow, I just wasn’t even sure we could go as guys in terms of sharing our challenges, our struggles. You know, Brian, I want to say a big thank you personally because I just didn’t think I would be able to get to this place maybe a few years ago after my dad had his stroke. Two years ago we actually did the same session together, my dad led, and it was painful in some ways to lead the session this time without him there, but I don’t even know how to say it. Jesus has taken me on to the next level, I guess, and I was up so early this morning just praying about the guys that were there and thinking about the things that had been shared and just…

February 21, 2017

02/21/2017 DAB Transcript

Leviticus 11:1-12:8 ~ Mark 5:21-43 ~ Psalm 38:1-22 ~ Proverbs 10:8-9

Today is the 21^st day of February. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It’s great, of course, to be here with you today, and it’s great that we can take this next step together as we move further and further into the word of God this year. What a year it’s been so far, right? Amazing things that God is revealing through his word. So we will go back out where we’ve been spending considerable time in the wilderness among the children of Israel as their culture is being formed and their customs and rituals and laws are being given, Leviticus 11:1 through 12:8 today, and we’re reading from the God’s Word translation this week.

Commentary

As we’re moving through the book of Leviticus and the law is being given, today we investigate and are informed of the concept of clean and unclean. So what is clean and what is not clean? The underlying theme to all of that is that God is holy and they are invited to become holy because they are set apart as his people. So we can look at this list and go, ‘Well, what makes the lizard unclean? What makes a gecko unclean for eating?’ but that is somewhat beside the point. And we can look at these customs and say, “Man, kind of rigid, isn’t it? Kind of rigid’ but let’s not forget what is going on here. This is a horde of people, massive, over a million, and as far back as they can basically remember, for centuries they have been generational slaves. So this is all new stuff for them. God is establishing this rhythm of life that in everything and in every way is reminding them of the story of their new identity, chosen people set aside by God to be his chosen people.

So as the law is given, you can say, ‘Yeah, that’s kind of rigid. We wouldn’t do that today. Why? Why is all this clean and unclean?’ but embedded into the fabric of the culture is the story that there is a difference between being set apart and being holy and not being those things. So yes, some of these things are for sanitation. Some of these things are for health and not transmitting diseases to each other. Certainly that is embedded in here, but spiritually what is embedded inside of this is the story of their identity. They are reminded of it in just about everything that they do and it is intended to and will have a profound effect on how they live their lives and how they conduct themselves in relation to one another and how they conduct themselves in relation to God.

So we get to the New Testament and this becomes really fascinating because Jesus is invited to come and heal a synagogue leader’s 12-year-old daughter and he agrees and he’s on his way to do just that when the whole scene gets hijacked by a woman who has been perpetually bleeding for 12 years. So she has been bleeding since this little girl that Jesus is going to heal was born. The thing is, she is unclean under Mosaic Law. She has been unclean perpetually for 12 years, unable to participate in holy things and anything that she touches while she is unclean becomes unclean. So for her to have faith well up inside herself and reach out and touch a rabbi on purpose, making him unclean on purpose, that is a no-no. But she did it. She felt like ‘If I could just brush up against his clothes, if I could just reach out and touch is clothes, I think I would be healed” and she did it. That was a risk because had Jesus stopped and said “Who touched me? Who made me unclean?” well, she could have had a bad day, but Jesus didn’t react that way. He wasn’t lost in the rules. He had given the rules and he knew what they were supposed to point to. They had become a cage of ritual when they were supposed to be reminders of identity. The woman was healed and Jesus said, “Go in peace. Your faith has made you well.” It’s really, really beautiful. Striking.

So we can get hung up on the rules. We can call our freedom in Christ and say we can do just about whatever we want because we’re free from all of that and that is fine. But may we understand even in our faith journey there are things that are clean and there are things that are not. There are things that are unclean. If we’re going to dally in the unclean, if we’re going to touch the unclean, then we’re going to be unclean. And we don’t really have to unpack that very much. We know this. It may not be under Mosaic Law, but if we live our lives touching the unclean on purpose, being involved in what is unclean on purpose, then we will be unclean.

Yeah, we’re supposed to be holy and in a way these people that we’re reading about in Leviticus could have never become because we are not only set apart and made holy. We are partakers in the divine nature of God. We shouldn’t be unclean in that. So may we, like this woman, reach out and touch the hem of the garment of the Risen Christ and be made whole again and be made clean. May we hear the voice of Jesus telling us “Go in peace. Your faith has made you well. Be cured.”

Prayer

Jesus, that is what we long for. Put in these terms, we can see clean and unclean everywhere. And we know where we’ve been unclean. So while we don’t bring lambs and sacrifice them to be restored to you, we do lay our own lives down as a living sacrifice in order to be restored to you, and we ask your forgiveness of the unclean in us. It is not supposed to mix with what is holy. And that explains so much of our lives. That explains so much of why things don’t work and why we get mad and estranged from you when you’re not jumping to attention because we’ve called. It explains a lot and it forces us to own our part of this relationship. You are holy and the only way we can walk with you is in holiness and that you have provided even that for us if we will simply partake and participate. And so we do. We invite your Holy Spirit to well up within us and the divine nature of the Risen Christ to overwhelm everything that is unclean in us, crowding it out and sending it away because we have been set apart as holy and we must be holy. So come Holy Spirit, because without you we can’t. There is no possible way. So we invite you. Make us holy as you are holy. And we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements

Www.DailyAudioBible.com is the website. It’s home base. It’s where you find out what is going on around here and mostly we’re talking about the More Gathering that is coming up in April for women. I think Jill and I have both unpacked it sufficiently, sufficiently that you know what is going on and what it is. If it is kind of the thing that keeps coming to mind, you keep being drawn toward it, then at least check out the details. You can find out everything that you would want to know at www.DailyAudioBible.com. Just look for the More Gathering. You’ll find it fairly easily. And we will look forward to seeing you there.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can do that at www.DailyAudioBible.com. There is a link. It is right on the home page. Thank you. Thank you for your partnership in allowing us to continue in this journey that we are on together of building community centered around the rhythm of the scriptures every day. If that has been life-giving to you, then thank you for your partnership. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible App, you can press the More button. It’s in the lower right-hand corner of the main screen. Or if you prefer, the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996, Spring Hill, TN 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, (877) 942-4253 is the number to dial.

And that’s it for today. I’m Brian. I love you. I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer Requests and Praise Reports

Hi Daily Audio Bible family. This is Christine from Washington State. I’ve called in a few times for prayer requests for my marriage and I actually am seeing some progress there with my husband. He still isn’t a believer, so I still need prayers, but he is changing. I think I changed coming closer to God and I just wanted to call in and give a testament to the women’s conference, the More Gathering. I for the first couple years, this is my fifth year through the Bible, I heard about the More Gathering and I wanted to go really bad, but I wanted to go and I didn’t act on it. So two years ago, it was like one of the lowest points in my life and I signed up and everybody is like, “Is somebody going with you?” I went by myself because I could only deal with myself and it was good because I could focus on Jesus and myself and getting closer with him. It was a life-changing experience. I went again last year and then signed up this year. Satan tried to stop me. He tried but I went and it was amazing. I met some of the most beautiful people there and still stay in contact with them, so I urge you. If anyone is on the fence or afraid to go alone, you’re not alone when you get there and you are surrounded by people that love you. And Jesus is there. So I just say that if you’re thinking about it at all, just do it and don’t let anything stop you. You just do it because it is the best thing for your spirit. I love you all, Daily Audio Bible. Have a good day.

As I speak, my niece Jody is dying of brain cancer. She knows God’s plan for salvation, but to my knowledge has never accepted. Please pray in her final thoughts she will reach out to the only one who can save her and her unbelieving family will somehow know. Thank you.

Hi, my name is Lloyd. I’m calling out of California. It’s February 16^th. I’ve been listening to Daily Audio Bible for a year now and I’m calling about… Well, I’m calling for prayer. It’s been such a tough couple years of my life. I just need prayer, please. I’ve been struggling. I haven’t been faithful in going to church. I just need Jesus right now to move in my life and my family’s life, so I ask, please, the Daily Audio Bible community, please lift me up in prayer. I need help. Thank you.

Hi Daily Audio Bible family. This is Marcia from West Virginia and I was just listening to the February 15^th podcast and I heard Cory from Newhaven, WV. In this little state of ours, when we hear West Virginia, our heads perk up and we take an extra special time to listen and I just wanted to encourage Cory that my husband and I have been married 43 years and it is not always easy. I just want to say don’t give up. Do whatever it takes. And just I want you to know that I will be praying for you, as one West Virginian to another. Cory, God bless you and your family. Like I said before, just don’t give up. Thanks. Bye-bye.

Good morning Daily Audio Bible family. This is Tamberly calling again. I heard Bill B. call in and I just want to pray now for him. He’s been such a blessing to all of us and the work that he’s doing with young men. So anyway, if we could pray for him. Father God, thank you so much for this man of God. Thank you for the love that he shows others. Thank you for the life that he has lived. And Lord, we thank you for the blessing that he has been to us, the strength, the voice of positivity and a beacon of light for you. Lord, we pray now that you would give Bill comfort, Lord. Help him breathe better. Help his heart heal. Lord Jesus and Father, we pray that you would just surround him with your love. Father, help him know in his heart that we’ll all thinking about him and we wish we could be there in San Antonio to help him out with whatever he might need. O God, we just thank you for these mighty men of God, the example that they give us and the example they give to our young men. We’re just so thankful for that. And so Lord, we just ask a hedge of protection around Bill. Thank you, Father, for just loving him and loving us right where we’re at. In your Son’s name I pray, amen.

Good morning guys. This is Jen in SoCal, aka Prayer Warrior Princess and I have a tiny testimony for you. So I’m working this basic fraction problem in the tutoring office with all the kids around me and I’m wondering ‘Why was I unable to do math before, given how easily it is coming to me now?’ and the Holy Spirit starts to minister to me and he reminds me this concept is from fourth grade when you were 9 years old. And then like a flood, his compassion starts washing over me because I know. I made the connection why I couldn’t do math before. From ages 9 through 11, I was being sexually abused at home and there was a lot of other crazy stuff happening and I couldn’t do homework. But I got by in all the other school subjects, but math requires a lot of practice and a grasp of the foundational skills so you can keep moving through the higher problem-solving concepts. And I just couldn’t keep up. So the Holy Spirit started speaking into my heart “It wasn’t your fault. You did the best you could do in those circumstances and I’m really proud of you. I gave you this love for learning. I’m a God of order and logic. I created math and I’m going to teach you how to do it now. I love you. You’re precious to me and I am going to redeem this for you. For everything there is a season. Forty-one years and now it is harvest time for math and for you to see yet again how creatively I redeem and restore everything that is mine.” In five days I learned 4-½ years’ worth of math concepts and before this, on the sample test, I couldn’t even answer one question. I took the test on Monday and I answered 18 correctly. I look up to the mountains. Where does my help come from? It comes from the God of order and logic who created math and restores what the swarming locusts have eaten.

February 21, 2017

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday February 21, 2017 (NIV)

Leviticus 11-12

Laws about Animals the Israelites May and May Not Eat^(A)

11 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, ²“Tell the Israelites: Here are the kinds of land animals you may eat: ³all animals that have completely divided hoofs and that also chew their cud. ⁴However, from those that either chew their cud or have divided hoofs, these are the kinds you must never eat: You must never eat camels. (Camels are unclean because they chew their cud but do not have divided hoofs.) ⁵You must never eat rock badgers. (Rock badgers are unclean because they chew their cud but do not have divided hoofs.) ⁶You must never eat rabbits. (Rabbits are unclean because they chew their cud but do not have divided hoofs.) ⁷You must never eat pigs. (Because pigs have completely divided hoofs but do not chew their cud, they are also unclean.) ⁸Never eat the meat of these animals or touch their dead bodies. They are unclean for you.

⁹“Here are the kinds of creatures that live in the water which you may eat—anything in the seas and streams that has fins and scales. ¹⁰However, you must consider all swarming creatures living in the seas or the streams that have no fins or scales disgusting. ¹¹They must remain disgusting to you. Never eat their meat. Consider their dead bodies disgusting. ¹²Every creature in the water without fins or scales is disgusting to you.

¹³“Here are the kinds of birds you must consider disgusting and must not eat. They are eagles, bearded vultures, black vultures, ¹⁴kites, all types of buzzards, ¹⁵all types of crows, ¹⁶ostriches, nighthawks, seagulls, all types of falcons, ¹⁷little owls, cormorants, great owls, ¹⁸barn owls, pelicans, ospreys, ¹⁹storks, all types of herons, hoopoes, and bats.

²⁰“Every swarming, winged insect that walks across the ground like a four-legged animal is disgusting to you. ²¹However, you may eat winged insects that swarm if they use their legs to hop on the ground. ²²You may eat any kind of locust, cricket, katydid, or grasshopper. ²³Every kind of winged insect that walks across the ground like a four-legged animal is disgusting to you.

²⁴“Regarding the creatures mentioned above, this is how you would become unclean: Whoever touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening. ²⁵Whoever carries any part of their dead bodies must wash his clothes. He will be unclean until evening. ²⁶All animals whose hoofs are not completely divided or that don’t chew their cud are unclean for you. Whoever touches them is unclean. ²⁷All four-legged animals that walk on their paws are unclean for you. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening. ²⁸Those who carry the dead body of any of these animals must wash their clothes and will be unclean until evening. These animals are unclean for you.

²⁹“The following swarming creatures that move on the ground are unclean for you—moles, mice, and all types of lizards: ³⁰geckos, monitors, lizards, skinks, and chameleons. ³¹Among all the swarming creatures that move on the ground, these are unclean for you. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening. ³²When the dead body of one of these creatures falls on something, that thing will be unclean. It may be a wooden article, clothing, leather, a sack, or anything used for any purpose. It should be put in water and will be unclean until evening. Then it will be clean again.

³³“If any of these creatures falls into a piece of pottery, break the pottery because everything in it is unclean. ³⁴If water from that pottery touches any food, the food is unclean. Any liquid that you drink from that pottery is unclean. ³⁵Anything on which their dead bodies fall is unclean. If it is an oven or a stove, smash it. It is unclean and will remain unclean for you. ³⁶However, a spring or a cistern holding water will remain clean. But anyone who touches their dead bodies will be unclean. ³⁷If their dead bodies fall on seed that is to be planted, the seed is clean. ³⁸But if water is poured on the seed and their dead bodies fall on it, the seed is unclean for you.

³⁹“When any animal that you are allowed to eat dies, whoever touches its dead body will be unclean until evening. ⁴⁰Those who eat any of its dead body must wash their clothes and will be unclean until evening. Those who carry its dead body away will wash their clothes and will be unclean until evening.

⁴¹“Any creature that swarms on the ground is disgusting and must not be eaten. ⁴²Don’t eat any creature with many legs that goes on its belly or on the ground like a four-legged animal, or any creature that swarms on the ground. Consider them disgusting. ⁴³Don’t become disgusting by eating anything that swarms on the ground. Never allow yourselves to become unclean because of them.

⁴⁴“Here is the reason: I am the Lord your God. You must live holy lives. Be holy because I am holy. Never become unclean by touching anything that swarms or crawls on the ground. ⁴⁵Here is the reason again: I am the Lord. I brought you out of Egypt to be your God. Be holy because I am holy.

⁴⁶“These are the instructions about animals, birds, and every living creature that swims in the water and every creature that swarms on the ground. ⁴⁷These instructions help you distinguish between clean and unclean, the animals you may eat and those you may not eat.”

Instructions for Women after Childbirth

12 The Lord spoke to Moses, ²“Tell the Israelites: When a woman gives birth to a boy, she will be unclean for seven days. This is the same number of days she is unclean for her monthly period. ³The boy must be circumcised when he is eight days old. ⁴Then she must stay at home for 33 days in order to be made clean from her bleeding. She must not touch anything holy or go into the holy place until the days needed to make her clean are over.

⁵“When a woman gives birth to a girl, she will be unclean as in her monthly period. However, she will be unclean for two weeks. Then she must stay at home for 66 days in order to be made clean from her bleeding.

⁶“When the days needed to make her clean are over, she must bring a one-year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a pigeon or a mourning dove as an offering for sin. She must bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ⁷The priest will offer them in the Lord’s presence to make peace with the Lord for her. Then she will be clean from her flow of blood.

“These are the instructions for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl. ⁸If she cannot afford a lamb, she must use two mourning doves or two pigeons. One will be the burnt offering and the other the offering for sin. So the priest will make peace with the Lord for her, and she will be clean.”

Cross references:

Leviticus 11:1 : Deuteronomy 14:3–20

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Mark 5:21-43

Jairus’ Daughter and a Woman with Chronic Bleeding^(A)

²¹Jesus again crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee in a boat. A large crowd gathered around him by the seashore.

²²A synagogue leader named Jairus also arrived. When he saw Jesus, he quickly bowed down in front of him. ²³He begged Jesus, “My little daughter is dying. Come, lay your hands on her so that she may get well and live.”

²⁴Jesus went with the man. A huge crowd followed Jesus and pressed him on every side.

²⁵In the crowd was a woman who had been suffering from chronic bleeding for twelve years. ²⁶Although she had been under the care of many doctors and had spent all her money, she had not been helped at all. Actually, she had become worse. ²⁷Since she had heard about Jesus, she came from behind in the crowd and touched his clothes. ²⁸She said, “If I can just touch his clothes, I’ll get well.” ²⁹Her bleeding stopped immediately. She felt cured from her illness.

³⁰At that moment Jesus felt power had gone out of him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”

³¹His disciples said to him, “How can you ask, ‘Who touched me,’ when you see the crowd pressing you on all sides?”

³²But he kept looking around to see the woman who had done this. ³³The woman trembled with fear. She knew what had happened to her. So she quickly bowed in front of him and told him the whole truth.

³⁴Jesus told her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace! Be cured from your illness.”

³⁵While Jesus was still speaking to her, some people came from the synagogue leader’s home. They told the synagogue leader, “Your daughter has died. Why bother the teacher anymore?”

³⁶When Jesus overheard what they said, he told the synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid! Just believe.”

³⁷Jesus allowed no one to go with him except Peter and the two brothers James and John. ³⁸When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a noisy crowd there. People were crying and sobbing loudly. ³⁹When he came into the house, he asked them, “Why are you making so much noise and crying? The child isn’t dead. She’s just sleeping.”

⁴⁰They laughed at him. So he made all of them go outside. Then he took the child’s father, mother, and his three disciples and went to the child. ⁴¹Jesus took the child’s hand and said to her, “Talitha, koum!” which means, “Little girl, I’m telling you to get up!”

⁴²The girl got up at once and started to walk. (She was twelve years old.) They were astonished.

⁴³Jesus ordered them not to let anyone know about this. He also told them to give the little girl something to eat.

Cross references:

Mark 5:21 : Matthew 9:18–26; Luke 8:40–56

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Psalm 38

A psalm by David; to be kept in mind.^[a]

¹O Lord, do not angrily punish me
or discipline me in your wrath.
²Your arrows have struck me.
Your hand has struck me hard.
³No healthy spot is left on my body
because of your rage.
There is no peace in my bones
because of my sin.

⁴My guilt has overwhelmed me.
Like a heavy load, it is more than I can bear.
⁵My wounds smell rotten.
They fester because of my stupidity.
⁶I am bent over and bowed down very low.
All day I walk around in mourning.
⁷My insides are filled with burning pain,
and no healthy spot is left on my body.
⁸I am numb and completely devastated.
I roar because my heart’s in turmoil.
⁹You know all my desires, O Lord,
and my groaning has not been hidden from you.
¹⁰My heart is pounding.
I have lost my strength.
Even the light of my eyes has left me.

¹¹My loved ones and my friends keep their distance
and my relatives stand far away because of my sickness.
¹²Those who seek my life lay traps for me.
Those who are out to harm me talk about ruining me.
All day long they think of ways to deceive me.
¹³But I am like a person who cannot hear
and like a person who cannot speak.
¹⁴I am like one who cannot hear
and who can offer no arguments.

¹⁵But I wait with hope for you, O Lord.
You will answer, O Lord, my God.
¹⁶I said, “Do not let them gloat over me.
When my foot slips,
do not let them promote themselves at my expense.”
¹⁷I am ready to fall.
I am continually aware of my pain.
¹⁸I confess my guilt.
My sin troubles me.

¹⁹My mortal enemies are growing stronger.
Many hate me for no reason.
²⁰They pay me back with evil instead of good,
and they accuse me because I try to do what is good.

²¹Do not abandon me, O Lord.
O my God, do not be so distant from me.
²²Come quickly to help me, O Lord, my savior.

Footnotes:

Psalm 38:1 Hebrew meaning of “to be kept in mind” uncertain.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Proverbs 10:8-9

Proverbs Concerning the Mouth

⁸The one who is truly wise accepts commands,
but the one who talks foolishly will be thrown down headfirst.
⁹Whoever lives honestly will live securely,
but whoever lives dishonestly will be found out.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

February 20, 2017

02/20/2017 DAB Transcript

Leviticus 9:7-10:20 ~ Mark 4:26-5:20 ~ Psalm 37:30-40 ~ Proverbs 10:6-7

Today is February 20^th. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It is great to be here with you today, I in the rolling hills of Tennessee and you in the flat plains or rolling hills or big mountains or lush valleys of wherever you are. Whether in shower or in car or on train or on bus, we’re all in this together and we all do this together and it is great to be here with you today. So we will zoom our way back out into the desert and continue forward in the book of Leviticus as the laws and customs and rituals, the complexion and texture of this culture that is emerging out of the desert – I mean, these people, this mass of people covering the desert floor who left Egypt with an identity of slaves are being reshaped and reformed into something entirely new, a new culture rising up out of the dust of the wilderness and it is beautiful to see. Leviticus chapter 9 verse 7 through 10:20 today and we’re reading from the God’s Word translation this week.

Commentary

This story that we come to in the book of Mark today where Jesus throws a legion of demons into a herd of swine, that is like one of the most popular stories about Jesus that I can remember. I mean, I remember it my whole life. It is like one of the greatest Sunday school stories of all time because it is so dramatic. Even as I’m reading it, I’m thinking back to Cursi. This is the name of the place that this happened and it is kind of on the northeastern side of the Sea of Galilee. So where Jesus did most of his work and ministry and where he lived was the northwestern side of the Sea of Galilee. That is where Capernaum and Corazon and Bethsaida, those towns that he kind of frequented are. So it is miles away. The Sea of Galilee is not like this ocean of water. It is like a good size lake. So on the other side of the lake is where this takes place. There are a lot of ancient shrines and ruins of monasteries and chapels and stuff that were there in the Byzantine era and it’s called Cursi.

I’ve walked around there lots of times and just kind of moved things from the flannel board to real life and walked around thinking what that would have been like. I have never not stopped in my tracks at this point when I come to this story ever. It is always the same thing for me. This story always becomes a mirror into my own soul where I’m looking at myself going, who am I in this story? Because it is so dramatic. A man is set free and pigs are down floating and bobbing in the Sea of Galilee. People are streaming off the mountain. Hippos Sussita, the Decapolis cities up on top of the mountain there, I can just imagine what that would have been like and just how freaked out… Like, if I didn’t know who Jesus was, if I had just heard rumors from the other side of the lake that there is this holy man who has powers but I don’t really know anything else about him, I don’t really participate in Jewish religion, I’m just like a Roman person in the Roman empire being my Roman self, if I come down of that mountain, I’m going to see that something miraculous has happened. And they do. They do see that something miraculous has happened. It’s the response that pierces me sometimes. They just asked Jesus to leave.

They saw this guy and they knew who he was and they knew he was troubled and out of his mind and possessed and he was free and they saw it and they did not embrace it. They asked Jesus to leave. That is what we do sometimes. That is what I do sometimes. Anything that starts disrupting the way we think we know what we know, we send it away. God can move in any way that he wants, but if he moves in a way that is not in our box of theology or he moves in a way that is disruptive to our lives, we immediately want to pace the whole thing. We can cry out for Jesus to come, invade our hearts, walk with us, lead us, be our mouthpiece, do everything, until he does. Because when he does, things start shaking. Because in the presence of Jesus, everything that is false shakes and falls away. All of a sudden we find ourselves really attached to some of that and really uncomfortable in the disruption. We can pray for God to move in our lives, and then he does and it is disruptive and then we’re blaming God for the disruption and he’s like, “You invited me. You said you wanted to be free, but you don’t really. Not really, because freedom would change so much.”

So in our thoughts and words and deeds, we ask him to leave too. We want the freedom that he offers. We want sanctification and holiness, but it only works one way and that is all or nothing. There is no half-hearted entrance into this kingdom that Jesus keeps talking about. It’s all or nothing. And lest we think that God has the easy way on this, all we have to do is look at Jesus. He was all or nothing on our behalf, all the way to the point that there were spikes through his wrists and ankles. He had been beaten bloody silly. It is so inhumane to look at the cross from a human perspective, just to understand the torture. He was all or nothing all the way till death, so this relationship isn’t anything less. That is the narrow path that leads to life. As Jesus said, “Few find it.”

So I look at this story and I’m like, ‘darn it! I do this too.’ I think we all do. But that doesn’t mean it’s okay. That doesn’t mean because we all are like this it’s okay. It’s not okay.

Prayer

Holy Spirit, we invite you to show us the ways that we have asked you to leave even as we ask you to stay. How is it that we’re so tangled up that we forget our source of life or we want to actually be the sovereign in this relationship, that we want to be the yes or no person? And you’ve given us that power, that yes or no power. We can choose not to follow you. At any point we can walk away, but we don’t want to say yes when we don’t mean yes. We don’t want to invite you and then try to govern the whole thing, how much of your presence we will allow, how much disruption we will take, how much of our hearts we will actually open to you and your work because our thoughts, words and deeds are telling the truth about that story. What we want is that your presence is so evident in our lives that we have no idea how to breathe without you, that we have no idea how to live and move and have our being without you. We wouldn’t even know what that looked like anymore. Help us, Holy Spirit, to see what that actually is, that we trying to be in charge of everything in our own lives, our own sovereign god, is our denial of your work in our lives and your presence and blatant evidence of the fall in us. But you came to reverse all of that, so rather than sending you away, we need to be running toward you naked and flailing, just like this man came running toward you. So help us, Jesus. Come, Holy Spirit, and let us see things as they really are. And let us own what we’ve been doing when we’ve been sending you away and acknowledge that that is not healthy, there is no margin in that, and it is sin to us. It is poison for our souls. Separated from you, we are nothing. So come, we ask you to come. We’re not sending you away. We’re drawing near. Come Jesus, we pray in your precious name, amen.

SONG played on today’s DAB “Land of the Living” Matthew Perryman Jones http://apple.co/2kcSKz6

February 20, 2017

02/19/2017 DAB Transcript

Leviticus 7:28-9:6 ~ Mark 3:31-4:25 ~ Psalm 37:12-29 ~ Proverbs 10:5

Today is the 19^th day of February. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It is great to be here with you at the threshold of this brand new week that will unfold before us, and we’re doing the right thing by centering ourselves in the scriptures as we move into this week. So steaming cup of Windfarm coffee to my left, and words in front of me, with a microphone, of course, to my right, and off we go, back out into the desert with the children of Israel as their customs and rituals and laws and festivals are all being put into place, things that will over time create a completely different culture than had ever existed, one chosen and instructed and informed by God himself. Leviticus chapter 7, verse 28 through 9:6 and we’ll read from the God’s Word translation this week.

Prayer

Father, we thank you for another week in your word and as we move forward, the story begins to fill in and have texture and complexion and nuance. These people that we’re getting to know, we find ourselves in their stories, and so we thank you. As we move through this threshold into the next week, we invite you into everything about us, everything that we’ll say this week. May our tongues be guided by the power of your Holy Spirit. Everything that we have to think and process and reason out this week, we ask for your holy counsel, and all of the choices that we need to make, we ask for your wisdom. In every interaction that we have with another person this week, we invite your Holy Spirit. Speak through us to our spouses. Speak through us to our children. Speak through us to our coworkers and those that we attend church with and everyone that we come into contact with. We want your essence to be the main thing that people see about us. So we invite you fully. We long for intimacy with you this week, to walk with you in a friendship that is loyal and true. We want to be delighted by your presence in our lives. So come, Holy Spirit. We offer this week in advance to you. Come Jesus, we pray in your name. Amen.

Announcements

Www.DailyAudioBible.com is the website. It’s home base. It is where you find out what’s going on around here, what people are posting on the Prayer Wall, resources that are available, events that are coming up like the More Gathering for Women that we’ve been talking about that is coming up this April, April 6-9. You can register for that now while there is still some space and we’d love to see you there at the More Gathering in April. All the details that you would want to know are at www.DailyAudioBible.com. Just look for the More Gathering. You’ll find it pretty easily. Every detail is there, so check it out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, thank you. There is a link that is on the home page at www.DailyAudioBible.com. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible App, you can press the More button in the lower right-hand corner. Or if you prefer, the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996, Spring Hill, TN 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, (877) 942-4253 is the number to dial.

And that’s it for today. I’m Brian. I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer Requests and Praise Reports

Hi family. This is Salvation is Mine in San Leandro, CA. I was just listening to the February 12^th podcast and heard Gigi. Oh my gosh, little one, oh, I am so, so, so, so happy for you, that you are healed in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and it got me to thinking the faith of a child is so strong and you could hear it in Gigi’s voice. You could hear how much she loves the Lord. You could hear how much she believed that he was going to heal her and He did. So who are we as adults to have such doubt? I’m talking about me with my cancer diagnosis. I have been stressing and having panic attacks and upset and mad and angry and just a whole bunch of emotions, then here comes our sweet little Gigi just knowing that God was going to take care of her. So who are we as adults not to have the faith of a child? A child will lead them, right? So Gigi, thank you for leading us older ones. Thank you for believing in our Lord Jesus Christ probably a little bit more than we do sometimes. Thank you for being a light in this darkness that we are in. We just appreciate you and we love on you and we praise God for you and we want to continue to hear your testimonies and your call ins from time to time letting us know how you are. Family, God bless you all. Take care. I’m going to start stepping out on bigger faith, wider faith as of today. Thank you so much. God bless you. Bye-bye.

Hello DAB family. This is Joe from Connecticut, a long time listener and first time caller. First, I would like to remind everyone to continue our financial support of the DAB. Without our support, there would be no DAB community, so let’s help Brian reach more and more people by supporting this great ministry as much as we can. If you haven’t made the commitment yet, pray on it and let God speak to your heart. So l listen to the Daily Audio Bible every day and pray for those on the prayer line. I never felt I was in a position to ask for prayer. My family and friends are all physically healthy, so I didn’t feel worthy to call in just for my spiritual and mental health. I’m finally recognizing that spiritual warfare we all face can be just as deadly if not more deadly than a physical illness and the evil one knows our weaknesses and never gives up, especially as we move forward into a closer relationship with God. Now I’m coming to you, my DAB family, this incredible and amazing group of prayer warriors, to pray for me and my children, Megan, Caitlin and Ryan, that we may overcome all the spiritual warfare in our lives and rise above the lies, deceit and distractions that come into our lives every day. Please pray for my children to realize that they are perfect just the way they are, the way God created them, and that they would be less anxious about everything and be able to focus on moving forward in a positive direction and to a relationship with God. And lastly, please pray for me and the men traveling to the Wild at Heart Advanced Conference this weekend in Colorado, that God will heal our hearts and lead us into a closer relationship with him. Thank you, DAB family. I’m glad I finally called. I love you.

Hey Daily Audio Bible. This is Billy from Montgomery. I would like to put a prayer request out there for myself and my wife and my two boys, Billy, Natalie and Taylor and Connor, that we all come to know Jesus and God and all start listening to the Daily Audio Bible to get to know God better and to get to know Jesus better. I have purchased the e-book of Reframe and I’m reading that now. I would like to go back and buy the audio version of it to listen to it. Just love listening to stuff, listening to Brian and all that. Anyhow, I just wanted to put that prayer request out there, that we all come to know God better and Jesus better in my family and that is all. I just want to put that prayer request out there. I will talk to you all later. Love you guys. Talk to you later. Bye.

Hi Daily Audio Bible. This is Lisa in Springfield, MO. I’m a first time caller. I just finished my first year with Daily Audio Bible and I’m so grateful to my sister Sherry for letting me know about it. It has been a huge blessing, so thank you, Brian and Jill and staff for this ministry. I have a prayer request. My dear friend Christine is dying. She has been diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease which is a degenerative brain disorder and it has given her 6-12 months to live. She is a wonderful wife and friend and mother and grandmother and this is not what she certainly wanted, how she wanted her days on earth to end, so we’re still believing for a miracle and I thought perhaps if the Daily Audio Bible family would join in prayer, we just might see that because our God is faithful. Everybody have a blessed day and Brian, thanks again for this wonderful ministry. God bless. Bye-bye.

Hi everybody. This is Alisha calling from Kansas. I’m calling to ask for prayer. Today is February the 15^th and on February the 11^th, coming home from church Saturday night I was in a major motor vehicle accident. If you’d like to see the pictures, please feel free to go to my Facebook Page, Alisha B. I hit a cement wall going 60 miles an hour after a drunk driver hit another car and that car hit me, sending me going in front of four lanes of traffic without being hit by a single car and then I could hear God telling me to get out of the car which usually they tell you to stay in the car. I got out of the car, got away from the car and my car was struck again. I’m praising God for don’t have hardly any injuries. It’s a miracle. I’m just asking for prayer for quick healing and glasses. My glasses were lost. I’m wearing my sunglasses which are also prescription. I thank you all so much for your prayers, for your faithfulness. I wanted to say real quick, Charles that lost his wife, the matriarch of the family, I’m praying for you. David from Kansas, I’ve missed a few days. I’ve missed you. Salvation is Mine, everybody, I love you all. I’m so grateful for this ministry and for all of you. I hope you all have a blessed day. Thank you. Bye-bye.

Good morning Dabbers. I’m a burning bush that will not be devoured for the glory of our Lord and King. This morning I’m calling to pray for Reggie from Kenya, Charles from Florida and the loved missionary, Bill B., and also for Lisa’s dad Martin. Father God, we come before you this morning. We love you and we thank you for this family. We thank you, God, for the faith that you’ve given us, O Lord, knowing that whatever we ask you in your name you will grant it. Father Lord, we commit Reggie before you, Lord. God, you have his life in your hands. I pray that you will give him favor, O Lord, that you will open doors for him, doors that were shut closed, Lord. That you will lead him into the job that is fulfilling and that is going to provide for his family, in the name of Jesus. I pray for Charles from Florida, God. I pray that you heal his heart and comfort his family after the loss of his wife. God, I pray that you will just be with him, be closer with him, bring him closer to you during this time of her departure, Lord, and remind him that he is not alone. I pray for missionary Bill B. Lord, I pray for healing of his body. I thank you that he can continue ministering even though he’s not feeling well, Lord. I pray that in the name of Jesus. That you will make your presence known in his life, that you will bring people around him to show him love daily and that as you’re healing his body, God, that you continue to pour into him, pour into his spirit. I thank you for Lisa’s dad, Martin, God, and I thank you, Lord Jesus, for salvation, in the name of Jesus. Amen. I love you guys. Victorious Soldier, I love you and I’m thinking of you today. God bless you.

February 20, 2017

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday February 20, 2017 (NIV)

Leviticus 9:7-10:20

⁷Moses told Aaron, “Come to the altar and sacrifice an offering for sin and a burnt offering to make peace with the Lord for your sins and the sins of the people. Also make an offering for the people, to make peace with the Lord for them as the Lord commanded.”

⁸Aaron came to the altar and slaughtered the calf as his own offering for sin. ⁹Aaron’s sons brought him the blood. He dipped his finger in the blood and put it on the horns of the altar. Then he poured out the blood at the bottom of the altar. ¹⁰On the altar he burned the fat, kidneys, and lobe of the liver from the offering for sin as the Lord had commanded Moses. ¹¹He burned the meat and the skin outside the camp.

¹²He slaughtered the animal for the burnt offering. Aaron’s sons gave him the blood, and he threw it against the altar on all sides. ¹³They also gave him the burnt offering, which was cut in pieces and included the head. He burned it on the altar. ¹⁴He washed the internal organs and the legs and laid them on top of the burnt offering on the altar.

¹⁵He brought the people’s offerings. He took the male goat for the people’s offering for sin and slaughtered it. He sacrificed it to take away sins as he had done before. ¹⁶Following the proper procedures, he brought forward the burnt offering and sacrificed it. ¹⁷He also brought the grain offering. He took a handful of grain and burned it on the altar in addition to the morning burnt offering. ¹⁸He slaughtered the bull and the ram for the people’s fellowship offering. Aaron’s sons gave him the blood, which he threw against the altar on all sides. ¹⁹However, the fat from the bull and the ram (the fat from the tail, the layer of fat, the kidneys, and the lobe of the liver) ²⁰they placed on the breasts. Aaron burned them all on the altar. ²¹However, he first took the breasts and the right thighs and presented them to the Lord as Moses commanded.

²²Then Aaron raised his hands toward the people and blessed them. He sacrificed the offering for sin, the burnt offering, and the fellowship offering. Then he came down from the altar. ²³Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people. Then the Lord’s glory appeared to all the people. ²⁴Fire came out from the Lord’s presence and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar. When all the people saw this, they shouted and bowed with their faces touching the ground.

Improper Conduct for Priests

10 Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took an incense burner and put burning coals and incense in it. Then in the Lord’s presence they offered this unauthorized fire. ²A fire flashed from the Lord and burned them, and they died in the presence of the Lord.

³Moses said to Aaron, “This is exactly what the Lord said:

‘I will show my holiness among those who come to me.
I will show my glory to all the people.’”

Aaron was speechless.

⁴Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Aaron’s uncle, Uzziel. He told them, “Come and take your relatives away from in front of the holy place. Take them outside the camp.” ⁵So they came and took them away to a place outside the camp, as Moses told them. The dead men were still in their linen robes.

⁶Moses told Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar: “Do not mourn by leaving your hair uncombed or tearing your clothes. If you do, you will die and the Lord will become angry with the whole congregation. All the other Israelites may cry over the fire the Lord sent, but you may not. ⁷You must not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting or else you, too, will die, because the Lord has anointed you with his oil.” They obeyed Moses.

Proper Conduct for Priests

⁸The Lord spoke to Aaron, ⁹“You and your sons must not drink any wine or liquor when you go into the tent of meeting, or you will die. This is a permanent law for generations to come. ¹⁰Teach them the difference between what is holy and what is unholy, what is clean and what is unclean. ^[a] ¹¹Also teach the Israelites all the laws that I gave them through Moses.”

¹²Moses told Aaron and his surviving sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Take the grain offering left over from the offering by fire to the Lord. Make unleavened bread, and eat it next to the altar because it is very holy. ¹³Eat it in a holy place because it is the part of the offering by fire to the Lord that belongs to you and your children. That is the command I received. ¹⁴Also eat the breast presented to the Lord and the thigh that was given as a contribution. You and your sons and daughters may eat them in a clean place because they are your part of the fellowship offerings from the Israelites. ¹⁵They will bring the thigh given as a contribution, the breast presented to the Lord, and the fat that is to be burned and present them to the Lord. These parts will belong to you and your children. This will be a permanent law, as the Lord has commanded.”

Eleazar and Ithamar Sacrifice the Offering for Sin

¹⁶Moses tried to find out what had happened to the male goat that was supposed to be the offering for sin. To his surprise, it had already been burned. So he became angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s surviving sons. ¹⁷He asked them, “Why didn’t you eat the offering for sin in the holy place? It is very holy and was given to you to take away the sins of the congregation and to make peace with the Lord for them. ¹⁸Since its blood was not brought inside the holy place, you certainly should have eaten it there, as I commanded.”

¹⁹Aaron answered Moses, “Today they sacrificed their offering for sin and their burnt offering in the Lord’s presence, and look what happened to me. If I had eaten the offering for sin today, would the Lord have approved?”

²⁰When Moses heard this, he was satisfied.

Footnotes:

Leviticus 10:11 “Clean” refers to anything that is presentable to God. “Unclean” refers to anything that is not presentable to God.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Mark 4:26-5:20

A Story about Seeds That Grow

²⁶Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seeds on the ground. ²⁷He sleeps at night and is awake during the day. The seeds sprout and grow, although the man doesn’t know how. ²⁸The ground produces grain by itself. First the green blade appears, then the head, then the head full of grain. ²⁹As soon as the grain is ready, he cuts it with a sickle, because harvest time has come.”

A Story about a Mustard Seed^(A)

³⁰Jesus asked, “How can we show what God’s kingdom is like? To what can we compare it? ³¹It’s like a mustard seed planted in the ground. The mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds on earth. ³²However, when planted, it comes up and becomes taller than all the garden plants. It grows such large branches that birds can nest in its shade.”

³³Jesus spoke God’s word to them using many illustrations like these. In this way people could understand what he taught. ³⁴He did not speak to them without using an illustration. But when he was alone with his disciples, he explained everything to them.

Jesus Calms the Sea^(B)

³⁵That evening, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side.”

³⁶Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus along in a boat just as he was. Other boats were with him.

³⁷A violent windstorm came up. The waves were breaking into the boat so that it was quickly filling up. ³⁸But he was sleeping on a cushion in the back of the boat.

So they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to die?”

³⁹Then he got up, ordered the wind to stop, and said to the sea, “Be still, absolutely still!” The wind stopped blowing, and the sea became very calm.

⁴⁰He asked them, “Why are you such cowards? Don’t you have any faith yet?”

⁴¹They were overcome with fear and asked each other, “Who is this man? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”

Jesus Cures a Demon-Possessed Man^(C)

5 They arrived in the territory of the Gerasenes on the other side of the Sea of Galilee. ²As Jesus stepped out of the boat, a man came out of the tombs and met him. The man was controlled by an evil spirit ³and lived among the tombs. No one could restrain him any longer, not even with a chain. ⁴He had often been chained hand and foot. However, he snapped the chains off his hands and broke the chains from his feet. No one could control him. ⁵Night and day he was among the tombs and on the mountainsides screaming and cutting himself with stones.

⁶The man saw Jesus at a distance. So he ran to Jesus, bowed down in front of him, ⁷and shouted, “Why are you bothering me now, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me.” ⁸He shouted this because Jesus said, “You evil spirit, come out of the man.”

⁹Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

He told Jesus, “My name is Legion [Six Thousand], because there are many of us.” ¹⁰He begged Jesus not to send them out of the territory.

¹¹A large herd of pigs was feeding on a mountainside nearby. ¹²The demons begged him, “Send us into the pigs! Let us enter them!”

¹³Jesus let them do this. The evil spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs. The herd of about two thousand pigs rushed down the cliff into the sea and drowned.

¹⁴Those who took care of the pigs ran away. In the city and countryside they reported everything that had happened. So the people came to see what had happened. ¹⁵They came to Jesus and saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons. The man was sitting there dressed and in his right mind. The people were frightened. ¹⁶Those who saw this told what had happened to the demon-possessed man and the pigs. ¹⁷Then the people began to beg Jesus to leave their territory.

¹⁸As Jesus stepped into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged him, “Let me stay with you.” ¹⁹But Jesus would not allow it. Instead, he told the man, “Go home to your family, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been to you.”

²⁰So the man left. He began to tell how much Jesus had done for him in the Ten Cities.^[a] Everyone was amazed.

Footnotes:

Mark 5:20 A federation of ten Greek city states east and west of the Jordan River.

Cross references:

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Psalm 37:30-40

³⁰The mouth of the righteous person reflects on wisdom.
His tongue speaks what is fair.
³¹The teachings of his God are in his heart.
His feet do not slip.
³²The wicked person watches the righteous person
and seeks to kill him.
³³But the Lord will not abandon him to the wicked person’s power
or condemn him when he is brought to trial.
³⁴Wait with hope for the Lord, and follow his path,
and he will honor you by giving you the land.
When wicked people are cut off, you will see it.

³⁵I have seen a wicked person acting like a tyrant,
spreading himself out like a large cedar tree.
³⁶But he moved on, and now there is no trace of him.
I searched for him, but he could not be found.
³⁷Notice the innocent person,
and look at the decent person,
because the peacemaker has a future.
³⁸But rebels will be completely destroyed.
The future of wicked people will be cut off.
³⁹The victory for righteous people comes from the Lord.
He is their fortress in times of trouble.
⁴⁰The Lord helps them and rescues them.
He rescues them from wicked people.
He saves them because they have taken refuge in him.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Proverbs 10:6-7

⁶Blessings cover the head of a righteous person,
but violence covers the mouths of wicked people.

⁷The name of a righteous person remains blessed,
but the names of wicked people will rot away.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

February 20, 2017

02/18/2017 DAB Transcript

Leviticus 6:1-7:27 ~ Mark 3:7-30 ~ Psalm 37:1-11 ~ Proverbs 10:3-4

Today is February 18^th. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It’s great to be here with you today from the rolling hills of Tennessee, and wherever you are, I hope it’s a lovely morning or afternoon or evening and that you’ve come here to just unplug from everything else that is going on and center yourself in the rhythm that we have as a community based on a step a day in the word of God.

So we’re in the book of Leviticus. We were talking about the different sacrifices yesterday and how to embrace this, so we move back into the things that God is telling his chosen people that form and create the culture that they live in. We’re reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible this week. We’ve been doing that all this week. Here we are at the end of another week already and we’ll move on to another translation tomorrow, but for today, Leviticus chapter 6, verse 1 through 7:27.

Commentary

A couple things. Jesus, in the book of Mark, appoints his apostles, his disciples, the 12 and then he is healing people and throwing out evil spirits and the religious leaders come and essentially say he is possessed himself, he is possessed by the devil himself. He drives out demons by the ruler of demons. This is where Jesus says, “look, listen, that doesn’t make any sense. Right? How can a kingdom divided against itself go forward forcefully? That is civil war. If a house is divided against itself, that house can’t stand. So if I’m throwing out demons because I’m demon-possessed, how does that make any sense?”

Then Jesus talks about what, as a kid, I was told was the unpardonable sin, blaspheming against the Holy Spirit. Man, all of my childhood I always was worried that I had somehow done that and I was doomed. But I didn’t know what it was. It was just this esoteric thing out there. What is that? What is the one thing you can do that you cannot be forgiven for? Jesus was telling the religious leaders who were making these accusations against him that this is what they were doing. They were blaspheming against the Holy Spirit by calling the Holy Spirit within Jesus Beelzebul, an unclean spirit. They were declaring the Holy Spirit an unclean spirit. That is blasphemy. Once I realized that, it was like, okay, well I would never call the Holy Spirit an unclean spirit. But I can tell you something that Jesus said is unforgiveable. That is when we withhold forgiveness ourselves.

Jesus said if we won’t forgive, then we won’t be forgiven. That is a big deal, because this good Holy Spirit of the living God is within us and we have been forgiven much, but when we are withholding forgiveness, then we are bringing that spirit of God and essentially saying ‘you do not have the final authority in my life.’ Friends, the sobering reality is that is blasphemy. Anytime we are operating out of our own strength and will in rebellion to God, we are denying with our very actions the Holy Spirit within.

May we contemplate that as I re-read a bit of the psalm today, because David lays out the posture of heart we must have:

Do not be agitated by evil-doers. Do not envy those who do wrong. They will wither quickly like grass and wilt like tender green plants. Trust in the Lord and do what is good. Dwell in the land and live securely. Take delight in the Lord and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in him and he will act, making your righteousness shine like the dawn, your justice like the noonday. Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for him. Do not be agitated by one who prospers in his way, by the man who carries out evil plans. Refrain from anger and give up your rage. Do not be agitated. It can only bring harm. For evildoers will be destroyed, but those who put their hope in the Lord will inherit the land. A little while and the wicked person will be no more. Though you look for him, he will not be there. But the humble will inherit the land and will enjoy abundant prosperity.

Prayer

Father, this is sobering. This is sobering because it really does touch every thought, word, and deed of our lives. It very clearly shows us that this faith journey that we’re taking, it’s not a little stroll. It’s an all or nothing proposition. It consumes us entirely. It binds us to you in ways that there is no way to find where you begin and we end. We are intertwined and we are on a mission in this world to reclaim what has been lost for thousands of years, to bring your kingdom, to be your kingdom. We didn’t sign up to get a free pass from hell. You have invited us to offer our lives as a living sacrifice. We no longer have to offer you sacrifices. We are the sacrifice, our lives poured out for you, to you, because of you, in hope of you, in faith of you. And in return you have given us your Holy Spirit that animates the trajectory of our days. So we give you this day and offer it to you as a living sacrifice. Come Holy Spirit. Well up within us, we ask in the powerful and strong name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements

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If you are willing to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, if Daily Audio Bible and the community that we are is life-giving to you, then thank you for helping us keep it going. This has always been a community affair, a family affair. Things that we’ve done, we’ve done together. Thank you for your partnership. There is a link on the home page of www.DailyAudioBible.com. If you’re using the app, you can push the More button in the lower right-hand corner. Or if you prefer, the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996, Spring Hill, TN 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment, (877) 942-4253 is the number to dial.

And that’s it for today. I’m Brian. I love you. I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer Requests and Praise Reports

Hi, this is Kelly from Pennsylvania. I have not called in over a year and I listen to all the prayers and I pray in quiet in my own car on my long commute to work every single morning, so I just felt like I really needed to call in and pray for a couple people. Patricia in New Orleans, I’ve been praying for you for a very long time and I’m so sorry that the oppression against you has not ceased. I am so sorry that you are still suffering and I will continue to pray for you, Patricia. I will pray for you against the oppression and I just wish I could give you a hug, Patricia. I’m also praying for Rebecca in Michigan. Rebecca, I pray for you a lot. I think about you a lot and I pray that God will just lead you to where he wants you to be, where you can minister to him and to his people. I pray that he will give you ways in which you use the gifts that you have and, whatever he does, I pray that he will give you a feeling of being content in whatever job you may get, whatever change may be coming, that you will thrive and that you will be full of joy. Finally, Jacqueline, Salvation is Mine, I hope that you’re recent surgery went well. I know it has got to be terrifying coming up to your new surgery. I really pray that God will surround you with real physical people who can help you through your next recovery. Again, I love you all. I pray for you all even though I never call, so if you don’t hear your name, I’m sitting here in my car praying.

Hi family. Drew from the Bay Area. I want to first say thank you for all your prayers, Abba, Father of the Most High, with the Father of the Most High. Thank you so much for your prayer and I am going through the smoke and I’ve been through this smoke before. This smoke is, yes, to protect us, but more importantly, it is show us that we have nothing to fear, that beyond the smoke there is no fire. Having gone through so many things, I should know this, but I don’t. I still try to go on my own strength and I’m so happy for your prayers, Salvation is Mine. It brought tears to me. I’ve got to go into work now and the Lord showed me I’m just to wait. Wait on him and not wait patiently, but wait as the best wait you’ve ever had in your life is to do the right things. I just love you guys. One of my managers told me I have no friends and not to trust anybody where I work. That hurt. And I think that was directly from the enemy. I don’t believe that. But you are my friends, you are my family and I love you and I pray for all of you and I pray without ceasing. Sometimes I just want to rest and then something comes to my mind and I’m praying for one of you. I love you. I love you. You are loved.

Lord of heaven and earth, I pray for men. I pray especially for men today. We struggle with anger, with fear, with self-esteem issues and any other defect or sin that sends them into a tirade, that sends them into tantrums, that sends them into anger, to sin. Lord of heaven and earth, I pray that you put in them the spirit of humility and meekness and understanding that they, that we men are powerless over our anger and our rage, save you, O God of heaven, for only you can bring us into the peace and the stillness that you want us to be in. So I pray for men today. Men out there, seek God first. Seek God first for wisdom. Seek God first for peace. Seek God first for love and all things will be added to that, that you, men, we men will walk this earth with peace and humility, kindness and love for their fellow brothers, men, and towards our sisters and wives and the women of this world. I ask all this in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Howdy DAB family. This is Darin from College Station, TX. Calling asking for some urgent prayer for myself. I’m going through a pretty strong bout of depression that leads to insomnia and where I can’t sleep, so I’m in this cycle of can’t sleep, can’t eat and no motivation to improve or get things done. It’s a cycle that I’ve been in for about four months right now and previously in the past two years I’ve gone through bouts of depression as well. I just need help. I need prayer that I hear God’s word and that I follow it, because right now I’m not following anything. I appreciate you all’s prayers. Thank you.

Hi, my name is Patrick S. and I’m from San Clemente, CA and I’ve been listening to the Daily Audio Bible for probably seven years now. And this is only the second time that I’ve called in. Forgive me if I don’t make it through this. I’m having a tough day today. I was injured in a spinal cord injury accident 20 years ago and because of that, I have just really terrible neuropathic pain, to the point that a lot of days it is difficult to get out of bed and because of that, I had to take a lot of pain medication over the years and I’m going off that medication now because it’s messed up my stomach in a pretty bad way. I’ve lost a lot of weight and I could really use your prayers not only for me, but for my wife and my 9-year-old son. It’s just been really difficult as we don’t know what the solution is and need some guidance from God to know where to turn next. I don’t want to run out of time. I thank you for your prayers and love you guys. I think you’re an amazing community.

Hi Dabbers. This is He has Shown Me Mercy in Colorado. I wanted to reach out and pray on behalf of those who are experiencing despair, depression or just the numbness that Salvation is Mine spoke of recently. So let’s pray. Sovereign Lord, you are a loving Father. You are a good Father and it is not your will for your children to be in despair or to feel disconnected from you in any way. You want us to experience joy, not just happiness which is temporary, but the joy that only comes from knowing you. Your word says that when the righteous call out to you for help, that you hear us and deliver us from our troubles. And that you are near to the broken-hearted and you save the crushed in spirit. Father, we just pray for all of those who are experiencing this hopelessness and despair and just ask that you just send your Holy Spirit to give them your comfort and hope. We pray especially for those who are feeling disconnected from you because of sin in their lives, either past or present. Lord, we just want you to remind them that you forgive and you save. Again, your word tells us that we may draw near to the throne of grace boldly with confidence that we may receive mercy and find grace in times of need. Lord, help us all to find daily renewed life in you. We ask this with the precious blood of your son, Jesus. Amen.

February 19, 2017

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday February 19, 2017 (NIV)

Leviticus 7:28-9:6

Dividing the Fellowship Offering between the People and the Priests

²⁸The Lord spoke to Moses, ²⁹“Tell the Israelites: Anyone who offers the Lord a fellowship offering must bring a part of that sacrifice as a gift to the Lord. ³⁰Bring the sacrifices by fire made to the Lord yourself. Bring the fat with the breast. Take the breast and present it to the Lord.

³¹“The priest will burn the fat on the altar. However, the breast will belong to Aaron and his sons. ³²You will also give the priest the right thigh as a contribution. ³³When any of Aaron’s sons offer the blood and fat of the fellowship offering, the right thigh will belong to him as his share. ³⁴From the fellowship offerings of the Israelites, I have taken the breast that was presented to me and the thigh from the contribution offering. I have given them to the priest Aaron and his sons. This is a permanent law for generations to come.

³⁵“This is the share for Aaron and his sons from the sacrifices by fire made to the Lord. It was given to them on the day Moses ordained them to serve the Lord as priests. ³⁶The Lord commanded the Israelites to give it to them on the day he anointed them. This is a permanent law for generations to come.”

Summary of Offerings

³⁷These are the instructions for the burnt offering, the grain offering, the offering for sin, the guilt offering, the ordination offering, and the fellowship offering. ³⁸On Mount Sinai the Lord gave Moses commands about these offerings at the same time that he commanded the Israelites to bring their offerings to him in the Sinai Desert.

Aaron and His Sons Made Priests^(A)

8 The Lord spoke to Moses, ²“Take Aaron and his sons, the priests’ clothes, the anointing oil, the bull that will be the offering for sin, the two rams, and the basket of unleavened bread. ³Gather the whole congregation at the entrance to the tent of meeting.”

⁴Moses did as the Lord commanded him, and the congregation gathered at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ⁵Moses told the congregation, “The Lord has commanded that this is what you must do.”

⁶Moses had Aaron and his sons come forward, and he washed them. ⁷He put the linen robe on Aaron and fastened the belt around him. He also dressed him in the robe that is worn with the ephod.^[a] He fastened the ephod to it. ⁸Then he put the breastplate on him, and into it he placed the Urim and Thummim. ^[b] ⁹He put the turban on him and fastened the gold medallion (the holy crown) to the front of the turban as the Lord had commanded Moses.

¹⁰Moses took the anointing oil to anoint the tent and everything in it and dedicate them. ¹¹He sprinkled some of the oil on the altar seven times and anointed the altar, all the utensils, and the basin with its stand to dedicate them.

¹²He also poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him to set him apart for his holy duties.

¹³Moses had Aaron’s sons come forward. He put linen robes on them, fastened their belts around them, and put turbans on them as the Lord had commanded Moses.

¹⁴He brought the bull that was the offering for sin. Aaron and his sons placed their hands on its head. ¹⁵When it was slaughtered, Moses took the blood and put it on the horns of the altar all around with his finger and cleansed the altar from sins. He poured the rest of the blood at the bottom of the altar and declared it holy so that priests could use it to make peace with the Lord. ¹⁶Moses took all the fat that was on the internal organs, the lobe of the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and he burned them on the altar. ¹⁷He burned the rest of the bull, its skin, meat, and excrement outside the camp, as the Lord commanded him.

¹⁸He brought forward the ram for the burnt offering. Aaron and his sons placed their hands on the ram’s head. ¹⁹Moses slaughtered it and threw the blood against the altar on all sides. ²⁰When the ram was cut into pieces, Moses burned the head with the other pieces and the fat. ²¹He washed the internal organs and the legs. Then Moses burned the whole ram on the altar as the Lord commanded him. It was a burnt offering, a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to the Lord.

²²He brought forward the second ram for the ordination offering. Aaron and his sons placed their hands on the ram’s head. ²³Moses slaughtered it, took some of the blood, and put it on Aaron’s right ear lobe, on his right thumb, and on the big toe of his right foot. ²⁴Moses also brought Aaron’s sons forward. He put some of the blood on their right ear lobes, on their right thumbs, and on the big toes of their right feet. Moses threw the rest of the blood against all the sides of the altar. ²⁵He took the fat, the fat from the tail, all the fat on the internal organs, the lobe of the liver, the two kidneys with their fat, and the right thigh. ²⁶He took a loaf of unleavened bread, a ring of bread made with olive oil, and a wafer from the basket of unleavened bread which was in the Lord’s presence. He put them on the fat and the right thigh. ²⁷Then he placed all these things in the hands of Aaron and his sons. Moses presented all these things to the Lord as an offering. ²⁸Then he took them from their hands and burned them on top of the burnt offering on the altar. These were ordination offerings, offerings by fire, a soothing aroma to the Lord. ²⁹Moses also took the breast from the ram of the ordination offering and presented it to the Lord. It was Moses’ share, as the Lord had commanded.

³⁰Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood that was on the altar, sprinkled it on Aaron and his clothes and on his sons and their clothes. In this way he dedicated Aaron, his clothes, his sons, and their clothes.

³¹Moses told Aaron and his sons: “Cook the meat at the entrance to the tent of meeting. Take the meat and the bread in the basket of the ordination offering. Eat them there as I commanded when I said, ‘Aaron and his sons will eat it.’ ³²You must burn any meat or bread that is left over. ³³You will not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting for seven days, not until the last day of your ordination is over. It will take seven days to ordain you. ³⁴I did today what the Lord commanded me to make peace with the Lord for you. ³⁵You will stay at the entrance to the tent of meeting day and night for seven days and serve as the Lord tells you. Then you will not die. This is what I was commanded.”

³⁶So Aaron and his sons did everything the Lord commanded through Moses.

Aaron’s First Sacrifices

9 On the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the leaders of Israel. ²He told Aaron, “Take a calf that has no defects for yourself as an offering for sin and a ram that has no defects as a burnt offering. Sacrifice them in the Lord’s presence. ³Also tell the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat as an offering for sin, a calf and a lamb (each one year old and without defects) as a burnt offering, ⁴a bull and a ram as a fellowship offering, and a grain offering mixed with olive oil to sacrifice in the Lord’s presence. The Lord will appear to you today.’”

⁵So they took the things Moses commanded and brought them in front of the tent of meeting. The whole congregation came and stood in the Lord’s presence.

⁶Moses said, “The Lord has commanded you to offer these sacrifices so that you may see the Lord’s glory.”

Footnotes:

Leviticus 8:7 Ephod is a technical term for part of the priest’s clothes. Its exact usage and shape are unknown.
Leviticus 8:9 The Urim and Thummim were used by the chief priest to determine God’s answer to questions.

Cross references:

Leviticus 8:1 : Exodus 29:1–45

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Mark 3:31-4:25

The True Family of Jesus^(A)

³¹Then his mother and his brothers arrived. They stood outside and sent someone to ask him to come out. ³²The crowd sitting around Jesus told him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you.”

³³He replied to them, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” ³⁴Then looking at those who sat in a circle around him, he said, “Look, here are my mother and my brothers. ³⁵Whoever does what God wants is my brother and sister and mother.”

A Story about a Farmer^(B)

4 Jesus began to teach again by the Sea of Galilee. A very large crowd gathered around him, so he got into a boat and sat in it. The boat was in the water while the entire crowd lined the shore. ²He used stories as illustrations to teach them many things.

While he was teaching them, he said, ³“Listen! A farmer went to plant seed. ⁴Some seeds were planted along the road, and birds came and devoured them. ⁵Other seeds were planted on rocky ground, where there wasn’t much soil. The plants sprouted quickly because the soil wasn’t deep. ⁶When the sun came up, they were scorched. They didn’t have any roots, so they withered. ⁷Other seeds were planted among thornbushes. The thornbushes grew up and choked them, and they didn’t produce anything. ⁸But other seeds were planted on good ground, sprouted, and produced thirty, sixty, or one hundred times as much as was planted.” ⁹He added, “Let the person who has ears listen!”

¹⁰When he was alone with his followers and the twelve apostles, they asked him about the stories.

¹¹Jesus replied to them, “The mystery about God’s kingdom has been given directly to you. To those on the outside, it is given in stories:

¹²‘They see clearly but don’t perceive.
They hear clearly but don’t understand.
They never return to me
and are never forgiven.’”

¹³Jesus asked them, “Don’t you understand this story? How, then, will you understand any of the stories I use as illustrations?

¹⁴“The farmer plants the word. ¹⁵Some people are like seeds that were planted along the road. Whenever they hear the word, Satan comes at once and takes away the word that was planted in them. ¹⁶Other people are like seeds that were planted on rocky ground. Whenever they hear the word, they accept it at once with joy. ¹⁷But they don’t develop any roots. They last for a short time. When suffering or persecution comes along because of the word, they immediately fall from faith. ¹⁸Other people are like seeds planted among thornbushes. They hear the word, ¹⁹but the worries of life, the deceitful pleasures of riches, and the desires for other things take over. They choke the word so that it can’t produce anything. ²⁰Others are like seeds planted on good ground. They hear the word, accept it, and produce crops—thirty, sixty, or one hundred times as much as was planted.”

A Story about a Lamp

²¹Jesus said to them, “Does anyone bring a lamp into a room to put it under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it put on a lamp stand? ²²There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed. There is nothing kept secret that will not come to light. ²³Let the person who has ears listen!”

²⁴He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you’re listening to! Knowledge will be measured out to you by the measure of attention you give. This is the way knowledge increases. ²⁵Those who understand these mysteries will be given more knowledge. However, some people don’t understand these mysteries. Even what they understand will be taken away from them.”

Cross references:

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Psalm 37:12-29

¹²The wicked person plots against a righteous one
and grits his teeth at him.
¹³The Lord laughs at him
because he has seen that his time is coming.
¹⁴Wicked people pull out their swords and bend their bows
to kill oppressed and needy people,
to slaughter those who are decent.
¹⁵But their own swords will pierce their hearts,
and their bows will be broken.
¹⁶The little that the righteous person has is better
than the wealth of many wicked people.
¹⁷The arms of wicked people will be broken,
but the Lord continues to support righteous people.
¹⁸The Lord knows the daily struggles of innocent people.
Their inheritance will last forever.
¹⁹They will not be put to shame in trying times.
Even in times of famine they will be satisfied.
²⁰But wicked people will disappear.
The Lord’s enemies will vanish like the best part of a meadow.
They will vanish like smoke.
²¹A wicked person borrows, but he does not repay.
A righteous person is generous and giving.
²²Those who are blessed by him will inherit the land.
Those who are cursed by him will be cut off.

²³A person’s steps are directed by the Lord,
and the Lord delights in his way.
²⁴When he falls, he will not be thrown down headfirst
because the Lord holds on to his hand.
²⁵I have been young, and now I am old,
but I have never seen a righteous person abandoned
or his descendants begging for food.
²⁶He is always generous and lends freely.
His descendants are a blessing.
²⁷Avoid evil, do good, and live forever.
²⁸The Lord loves justice,
and he will not abandon his godly ones.
They will be kept safe forever,
but the descendants of wicked people will be cut off.
²⁹Righteous people will inherit the land
and live there permanently.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Proverbs 10:5

⁵Whoever gathers in the summer is a wise son.
Whoever sleeps at harvest time brings shame.

GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Leviticus 14

Cleansing after Skin Diseases

Cleansing for a Poor Person after a Skin Disease

Mildew in Houses

Footnotes:

Mark 6:30-56

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand(A)

Jesus Walks on the Sea(B)

Cross references:

Psalm 40:1-10

Psalm 40

For the choir director; a psalm by David.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 10:11-12

Leviticus 13

Skin Diseases

Mildew in Clothing or Leather Articles

Mark 6:1-29

Nazareth Rejects Jesus(A)

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve(B)

Recalling John’s Death(C)

Cross references:

Psalm 39

Psalm 39

For the choir director; for Jeduthun; a psalm by David.

Proverbs 10:10

Leviticus 11-12

Laws about Animals the Israelites May and May Not Eat(A)

Instructions for Women after Childbirth

Cross references:

Mark 5:21-43

Jairus’ Daughter and a Woman with Chronic Bleeding(A)

Cross references:

Psalm 38

Psalm 38

A psalm by David; to be kept in mind.[a]

Footnotes:

Proverbs 10:8-9

Proverbs Concerning the Mouth

Leviticus 9:7-10:20

Improper Conduct for Priests

Proper Conduct for Priests

Eleazar and Ithamar Sacrifice the Offering for Sin

Footnotes:

Mark 4:26-5:20

A Story about Seeds That Grow

A Story about a Mustard Seed(A)

Jesus Calms the Sea(B)

Jesus Cures a Demon-Possessed Man(C)

Footnotes:

Cross references:

Psalm 37:30-40

Proverbs 10:6-7

Leviticus 7:28-9:6

Dividing the Fellowship Offering between the People and the Priests

Summary of Offerings

Aaron and His Sons Made Priests(A)

Aaron’s First Sacrifices

Footnotes:

Cross references:

Mark 3:31-4:25

The True Family of Jesus(A)

A Story about a Farmer(B)

A Story about a Lamp

Cross references:

Psalm 37:12-29

Proverbs 10:5

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand^(A)

Jesus Walks on the Sea^(B)

Nazareth Rejects Jesus^(A)

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve^(B)

Recalling John’s Death^(C)

Laws about Animals the Israelites May and May Not Eat^(A)

Jairus’ Daughter and a Woman with Chronic Bleeding^(A)

A psalm by David; to be kept in mind.^[a]

A Story about a Mustard Seed^(A)

Jesus Calms the Sea^(B)

Jesus Cures a Demon-Possessed Man^(C)

Aaron and His Sons Made Priests^(A)

The True Family of Jesus^(A)

A Story about a Farmer^(B)