The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday December 26, 2018 (NIV)

Zechariah 9

Judgment of Zion’s Enemies

A pronouncement:

The word of the Lord
is against the land of Hadrach,
and Damascus(A) is its resting place—
for the eyes of humanity
and all the tribes of Israel
are on the Lord[a]
and also against Hamath,(B) which borders it,
as well as Tyre(C) and Sidon,(D)
though they are very shrewd.
Tyre has built herself a fortress;
she has heaped up silver like dust
and gold like the dirt of the streets.
Listen! The Lord will impoverish her
and cast her wealth into the sea;
she herself will be consumed by fire.(E)
Ashkelon will see it and be afraid;
Gaza too, and will writhe in great pain,
as will Ekron, for her hope will fail.
There will cease to be a king in Gaza,
and Ashkelon will become uninhabited.
A mongrel people will live in Ashdod,
and I will destroy the pride of the Philistines.(F)
I will remove the blood from their mouths
and the abhorrent things(G)
from between their teeth.
Then they too will become a remnant for our God;
they will become like a clan in Judah
and Ekron like the Jebusites.(H)
I will encamp at my house as a guard,
against those who march back and forth,
and no oppressor will march against them again,
for now I have seen with my own eyes.

The Coming of Zion’s King

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem!
Look, your King is coming to you;
he is righteous and victorious,[b]
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.(I)
10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the horse from Jerusalem.
The bow of war will be removed,
and he will proclaim peace to the nations.
His dominion will extend from sea to sea,
from the Euphrates River
to the ends of the earth.(J)
11 As for you,
because of the blood of your covenant,(K)
I will release your prisoners
from the waterless cistern.(L)
12 Return to a stronghold,
you prisoners who have hope;
today I declare that I will restore double to you.(M)
13 For I will bend Judah as my bow;
I will fill that bow with Ephraim.
I will rouse your sons, Zion,
against your sons, Greece.[c](N)
I will make you like a warrior’s sword.
14 Then the Lord will appear over them,
and his arrow will fly like lightning.
The Lord God will sound the trumpet
and advance with the southern storms.(O)
15 The Lord of Armies will defend them.
They will consume and conquer with slingstones;
they will drink and be rowdy as if with wine.(P)
They will be as full as the sprinkling basin,(Q)
like those at the corners of the altar.(R)
16 The Lord their God will save them on that day
as the flock of his people;(S)
for they are like jewels in a crown,(T)
sparkling over his land.
17 How lovely and beautiful!
Grain will make the young men flourish,
and new wine, the young women.

Footnotes:

  1. 9:1 Or eyes of the Lord are on mankind—
  2. 9:9 Or and has salvation
  3. 9:13 Lit Javan
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.

Revelation 17

The Woman and the Scarlet Beast

17 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls(A) came and spoke with me: “Come, I will show you the judgment of the notorious prostitute[a](B) who is seated on many[b] waters.(C) The kings of the earth(D) committed sexual immorality with her, and those who live on the earth became drunk on the wine of her sexual immorality.”(E) Then he carried me away in the Spirit[c](F) to a wilderness.

I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered[d] with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.(G) The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold, jewels, and pearls.(H) She had a golden cup in her hand filled with everything detestable(I) and with the impurities of her[e] prostitution. On her forehead was written a name, a mystery:(J) Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes and of the Detestable Things of the Earth. Then I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the witnesses to Jesus.(K) When I saw her, I was greatly astonished.

The Meaning of the Woman and of the Beast

Then the angel said to me, “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast, with the seven heads and the ten horns, that carries her. The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up from the abyss(L) and go to destruction.(M) Those who live on the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world(N) will be astonished when they see the beast that was, and is not, and is to come.(O) This calls for a mind that has wisdom.[f](P)

“The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated. They are also seven kings: 10 Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes, he must remain for only a little while. 11 The beast that was and is not, is itself an eighth king, but it belongs to the seven and is going to destruction. 12 The ten horns you saw are ten kings(Q) who have not yet received a kingdom, but they will receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.(R) 13 These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast. 14 These will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings.(S) Those with him are called, chosen, and faithful.”(T)

15 He also said to me, “The waters you saw,(U) where the prostitute was seated, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages.(V) 16 The ten horns you saw, and the beast, will hate the prostitute.(W) They will make her desolate and naked, devour her flesh, and burn her up with fire.(X) 17 For God has put it into their hearts to carry out his plan by having one purpose(Y) and to give their kingdom[g] to the beast until the words of God are fulfilled.(Z) 18 And the woman you saw is the great city that has royal power over the kings of the earth.”

Footnotes:

  1. 17:1 Traditionally translated the great whore
  2. 17:1 Or by many
  3. 17:3 Or in spirit
  4. 17:3 Or was filled
  5. 17:4 Other mss read earth’s
  6. 17:9 Or Here is the mind of wisdom
  7. 17:17 Or sovereignty
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.

Psalm 145

Psalm 145

Praising God’s Greatness

A hymn of David.

I[a] exalt you, my God the King,
and bless your name forever and ever.(A)
I will bless you every day;
I will praise your name forever and ever.(B)

The Lord is great and is highly praised;(C)
his greatness is unsearchable.(D)
One generation will declare your works to the next
and will proclaim your mighty acts.(E)
I[b] will speak of your splendor and glorious majesty
and[c] your wondrous works.(F)
They will proclaim the power of your awe-inspiring acts,
and I will declare your greatness.[d](G)
They will give a testimony of your great goodness
and will joyfully sing of your righteousness.(H)

The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and great in faithful love.(I)
The Lord is good to everyone;(J)
his compassion rests on all he has made.(K)
10 All you have made will thank you, Lord;
the[e] faithful will bless you.(L)
11 They will speak of the glory of your kingdom
and will declare your might,(M)
12 informing all people of your mighty acts
and of the glorious splendor of your[f] kingdom.(N)
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule is for all generations.(O)
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and gracious in all his actions.[g](P)

14 The Lord helps all who fall;
he raises up all who are oppressed.[h](Q)
15 All eyes look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.(R)
16 You open your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.(S)

17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all his acts.(T)
18 The Lord is near all who call out to him,
all who call out to him with integrity.(U)
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry for help and saves them.(V)
20 The Lord guards all those who love him,
but he destroys all the wicked.(W)
21 My mouth will declare the Lord’s praise;
let every living thing
bless his holy name forever and ever.(X)

Footnotes:

  1. 145:1 The lines of this poem form an acrostic.
  2. 145:5 LXX, Syr read They
  3. 145:5 LXX, Syr read and they will tell of
  4. 145:6 Alt Hb tradition, Jer read great deeds
  5. 145:10 Lit your
  6. 145:12 LXX, Syr, Jer; MT reads his
  7. 145:13 One Hb ms, DSS, LXX, Syr; some Hb mss omit The Lord is faithful in all his words and gracious in all his actions.
  8. 145:14 Lit bowed down
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.

Proverbs 30:32

32 If you have been foolish by exalting yourself
or if you’ve been scheming,
put your hand over your mouth.(A)

Cross references:

  1. 30:32 : Jb 21:5; Mc 7:16
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)

The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.