06/30/2019 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 17:1-18:12, Acts 20:1-38, Psalms 148:1-14, Proverbs 18:6-7

Today is June 30th. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian and it is great to be here with you today as we enter a brand-new, sparkly, shiny week, but also this is the last day of the sixth month of the year. So, this is kinda the point where we’re halfway through the Bible. Well done for making it six months every day through the Scriptures. And we have another six months out in front of us as we reach for the end of the year and reach for all that God has for us in the second half of the year through His Word. So, let’s dive in and get this week off to a good start knowing that we will enter the seventh month of the year beginning tomorrow. This week we’ll read from the Christian Standard Bible, and we’ll be picking up where we left off in the book of second Kings today. Chapter 18…sorry…17 verse 1 through 18 verse 12.

Commentary:

Okay. So, even as we conclude our reading for the first six months of the year and even as we prepare tomorrow to kinda turn the page and move into the back half, the second six months of the year, some pretty big things have happened today that we should know, kinda going forward. And these things are things that we will refer back to, but this is the place where we encountered them in the Bible. So, in the book of second Kings today, we’ve been tracking…and you gotta pay attention…because we’re moving through the kings of Israel, which is the northern kingdom, and the kings of Judah, which is the southern kingdom. So, today, what we just read was the end of the northern kingdom of Israel. Like, it will never be the northern kingdom of Israel again. It never was again. Assyria captured Samaria, the capital city of the northern kingdom and deported all of its inhabitants, which, as we have referred to before, is the way that they built the empires back then. Like, displacing people so that they didn’t have a homeland outside of the empire, and so that over the course of generations they would forget where they came from. And, so, what we watched in today’s reading was that the children of Israel were displaced from the Promised Land, 10 of the tribes were deported to other lands while many other conquered peoples from different places were moved in, right? And, so, they’re like, we don’t know how to worship these gods and there were lions and all of this. What we are seeing happen now is the earliest versions of what would later be known in Jesus time as Samaritans, right? So, the capital city of the northern kingdom was Samaria, but the Israelites were deported, and new people were moved in. They sent for a priest who already was worshiping false idols and he began to teach them, and they began to mix all of their cultures together creating a new way of worshiping God unlike Moses teachings and over time they became the Samaritans. And, so, the people of Judah, they will get conquered, but they will get to come back and they will believe that they are holding onto the true traditions. And, so, those people up in the north near the Galilee area, they will be known as Samaritans because although they worship Yahweh they don’t worship him the same. They don’t have the same understanding of Him at all. And, so, we will…it won’t be the last time that we interact with people of the north near the Galilee. But at this point in second Kings we are well before of the Roman Empire came in and controlled the area.

So, then in the book of Acts we’re obviously moving into the New Testament, moving forward in time considerably. So, are at a time where Paul is moving around the Roman empire, but these returned exiles who have come back to Judah and control Jerusalem, the remnant, the remainder of these people are trying to hold onto some influence and power. Paul has been moving around the empire sharing the gospel, but in Jerusalem they want Paul dead, right? He’s an apostate as far as they’re concerned, he has left is faith and has begun these crazy teachings about this guy Jesus. So, he deserves to die under Mosaic law…they want Paul to die. And now Paul’s on his way to Jerusalem where people want him dead, but the Holy Spirit has told him to come. And, so, we see this final meeting between Paul and the brothers and sisters, the Ephesians who have come to see him at the docks and we see this tearful farewell where he’s like, “I have to go back to Jerusalem. I don’t know exactly what’s gonna happen. The Holy Spirit just keeps telling me I have to go back there and that I will experience chains and affliction and I know that I’ll never see you…you will never see me again.” So, it’s a bittersweet moment to say the least. And we’ll continue to track with Paul, obviously, for quite a while, but we’ll see where this story leads because he’s on his way to Jerusalem and the complexion of his ministry is gonna change dramatically.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word. And here we are at the end of the first half of the year and at the precipice of the second half of the year and we invite Your Holy Spirit into that second half of the year, into all that is out in front of us and we ask that You speak to us and transform us and change us, so that as we complete this year we don’t even recognize the person that we once were. You have changed our hearts from within. And we look back and we’re thankful for all the work that You have done in our lives this first six months. We are so grateful. We are so thankful. And as we move through the center of the year, even as we prepare for the Daily Audio Bible long walk, just to reset and live into this second half of the year, next week, we invite Your Holy Spirit. Come Jesus we pray. In Your mighty name, we ask. Amen.

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday June 30, 2019 (NIV)

2 Kings 17:1-18:12

Israel’s King Hoshea

17 In the twelfth year of Judah’s King Ahaz, Hoshea(A) son of Elah became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years. He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him.(B)

King Shalmaneser(C) of Assyria attacked him,(D) and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. But the king of Assyria caught Hoshea in a conspiracy: He had sent envoys to So king of Egypt(E) and had not paid tribute to the king of Assyria as in previous years.[a] Therefore the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison. The king of Assyria invaded the whole land, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years.(F)

The Fall of Samaria

In the ninth year of Hoshea,(G) the king of Assyria captured Samaria. He deported(H) the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah, along the Habor (Gozan’s river), and in the cities of the Medes.(I)

Why Israel Fell

This disaster happened because the people of Israel sinned against the Lord their God who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt(J) and because they worshiped[b] other gods.(K) They lived according to the customs of the nations that the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites(L) and according to what the kings of Israel did.(M) The Israelites secretly did things[c] against the Lord their God that were not right. They built high places in all their towns from watchtower(N) to fortified city. 10 They set up for themselves sacred pillars(O) and Asherah poles(P) on every high hill and under every green tree.(Q) 11 They burned incense there on all the high places just like the nations that the Lord had driven out before them had done. They did evil things, angering the Lord. 12 They served idols, although the Lord had told them, “You must not do this.”(R) 13 Still, the Lord warned(S) Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commands and statutes according to the whole law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my servants the prophets.”(T)

14 But they would not listen. Instead they became obstinate like[d] their ancestors who did not believe the Lord their God.(U) 15 They rejected his statutes and his covenant he had made with their ancestors(V) and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves,(W) following the surrounding nations the Lord had commanded them not to imitate.(X)

16 They abandoned all the commands of the Lord their God. They made cast images(Y) for themselves, two calves, and an Asherah pole.(Z) They bowed in worship to all the stars in the sky(AA) and served Baal.(AB) 17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire[e](AC) and practiced divination and interpreted omens.(AD) They devoted themselves to do what was evil in the Lord’s sight and angered him.(AE)

18 Therefore, the Lord was very angry with Israel, and he removed them from his presence.(AF) Only the tribe of Judah remained.(AG) 19 Even Judah did not keep the commands of the Lord their God(AH) but lived according to the customs Israel had practiced.(AI) 20 So the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel, punished them, and handed them over to plunderers until he had banished them from his presence.(AJ)

Summary of Israel’s History

21 When the Lord tore(AK) Israel from the house of David, Israel made Jeroboam son of Nebat king.(AL) Then Jeroboam led Israel away from following the Lord and caused them to commit immense sin. 22 The Israelites persisted in all the sins that Jeroboam committed and did not turn away from them.(AM) 23 Finally, the Lord removed Israel from his presence just as he had declared through all his servants the prophets. So Israel has been exiled to Assyria from their homeland to this very day.(AN)

Foreign Refugees in Israel

24 Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim and settled them in place of the Israelites in the cities of Samaria. The settlers took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.(AO) 25 When they first lived there, they did not fear the Lord. So the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them.(AP) 26 The settlers said to the king of Assyria, “The nations that you have deported and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the god of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them that are killing them because the people don’t know the requirements of the god of the land.”

27 Then the king of Assyria issued a command: “Send back one of the priests you deported.(AQ) Have him go and live there so he can teach them the requirements of the god of the land.” 28 So one of the priests they had deported came and lived in Bethel,(AR) and he began to teach them how they should fear the Lord.

29 But the people of each nation were still making their own gods in the cities where they lived and putting them in the shrines of the high places that the people of Samaria had made.(AS) 30 The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire(AT) to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. 32 They feared the Lord, but they also made from their ranks priests for the high places, who were working for them at the shrines of the high places.(AU) 33 They feared the Lord, but they also worshiped their own gods(AV) according to the practice of the nations from which they had been deported.

34 They are still observing the former practices to this day. None of them fear the Lord or observe the statutes and ordinances, the law and commandments that the Lord had commanded the descendants of Jacob, whom he had given the name Israel.(AW) 35 The Lord made a covenant with Jacob’s descendants and commanded them, “Do not fear other gods; do not bow in worship to them;(AX) do not serve them; do not sacrifice to them.(AY) 36 Instead fear the Lord, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power(AZ) and an outstretched arm.(BA) You are to bow down to him, and you are to sacrifice to him. 37 You are to be careful always(BB) to observe the statutes, the ordinances, the law, and the commandments he wrote for you; do not fear other gods. 38 Do not forget the covenant that I have made with you.(BC) Do not fear other gods, 39 but fear the Lord your God, and he will rescue you from all your enemies.”(BD)

40 However, these nations would not listen but continued observing their former practices. 41 They feared the Lord but also served their idols. Still today, their children and grandchildren continue doing as their fathers did.(BE)

Judah’s King Hezekiah

18 In the third year of Israel’s King Hoshea(BF) son of Elah, Hezekiah(BG) son of Ahaz became king of Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abi[f] daughter of Zechariah. He did what was right in the Lord’s sight just as his ancestor David had done.(BH) He removed the high places, shattered the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles.(BI) He broke into pieces the bronze snake that Moses made,(BJ) for until then the Israelites were burning incense to it. It was called Nehushtan.[g]

Hezekiah relied on the Lord God of Israel;(BK) not one of the kings of Judah was like him, either before him or after him.(BL) He remained faithful to the Lord(BM) and did not turn from following him but kept the commands the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Lord was with him, and wherever he went he prospered.(BN) He rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.(BO) He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and its borders,(BP) from watchtower(BQ) to fortified city.

Review of Israel’s Fall

In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Israel’s King Hoshea son of Elah, Assyria’s King Shalmaneser marched against Samaria and besieged it.(BR) 10 The Assyrians captured it at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Israel’s King Hoshea, Samaria was captured. 11 The king of Assyria deported the Israelites to Assyria and put them in Halah, along the Habor (Gozan’s river), and in the cities of the Medes,(BS) 12 because they did not listen to the Lord their God but violated his covenant—all he had commanded Moses the servant of the Lord. They did not listen, and they did not obey.(BT)

Footnotes:

  1. 17:4 Lit as year by year
  2. 17:7 Lit feared
  3. 17:9 Or Israelites spoke words
  4. 17:14 Lit they stiffened their neck like the neck of
  5. 17:17 Lit They made their sons and daughters pass through the fire
  6. 18:2 = Abijah in 2Ch 29:1
  7. 18:4 = A Bronze Thing

Cross references:

  1. 17:1 : 2Kg 15:30
  2. 17:2 : 2Kg 15:24,28
  3. 17:3 : Hs 10:14
  4. 17:3 : 2Kg 18:9-12
  5. 17:4 : Is 31:1
  6. 17:5 : 2Kg 18:9-10; Hs 13:16
  7. 17:6 : Hs 1:4; 13:16
  8. 17:6 : Dt 28:64; 29:27-28
  9. 17:6 : 1Ch 5:26
  10. 17:7 : Jos 24:5-7
  11. 17:7 : Jdg 6:10
  12. 17:8 : Lv 18:3; Dt 18:9
  13. 17:8 : 2Kg 16:3; 17:19
  14. 17:9 : 2Kg 18:8
  15. 17:10 : Ex 23:24
  16. 17:10 : 1Kg 14:15,23; 15:13; 2Kg 18:4
  17. 17:10 : Dt 12:2
  18. 17:12 : Ex 20:4-5
  19. 17:13 : Neh 9:29-30
  20. 17:13 : 1Kg 9:6-9; 18:18-21
  21. 17:14 : Ex 32:9; 33:3; Nm 14:11
  22. 17:15 : Ex 24:6-8
  23. 17:15 : Jr 2:5; Rm 1:21-23
  24. 17:15 : Dt 12:30-31
  25. 17:16 : 1Kg 12:28
  26. 17:16 : 1Kg 14:15,23
  27. 17:16 : 2Kg 21:3
  28. 17:16 : 1Kg 16:31-33; Am 5:26; Zph 1:5
  29. 17:17 : 2Kg 16:3
  30. 17:17 : Lv 19:26; Dt 18:10-12; 2Kg 16:3
  31. 17:17 : 1Kg 21:20
  32. 17:18 : 2Kg 17:6
  33. 17:18 : 1Kg 11:13,32,36
  34. 17:19 : 1Kg 14:22-23
  35. 17:19 : 2Kg 16:3
  36. 17:20 : 2Kg 15:29; 17:6
  37. 17:21 : 1Kg 11:11,31
  38. 17:21 : 1Kg 12:20
  39. 17:21-22 : 1Kg 12:28-33
  40. 17:23 : 2Kg 17:6,13
  41. 17:24 : Ezr 4:10
  42. 17:25 : 1Kg 13:24
  43. 17:27 : 2Kg 17:6
  44. 17:28 : 1Kg 12:29,32-33
  45. 17:29 : 1Kg 12:31; 13:32
  46. 17:31 : 2Kg 17:17
  47. 17:32 : Jdg 17:5-13; 1Kg 12:31; 13:33
  48. 17:33 : Zph 1:5
  49. 17:34 : Gn 32:28; 35:10
  50. 17:35 : Ex 20:5; Dt 5:9; Jdg 6:10
  51. 17:35 : Dt 5:9
  52. 17:36 : Ex 14:15-30
  53. 17:36 : Ex 6:6; 9:15
  54. 17:37 : Dt 5:32
  55. 17:38 : Dt 4:23; 6:12
  56. 17:39 : Ex 23:22; Dt 20:1-4; 23:14
  57. 17:41 : 1Kg 18:21; Ezr 4:2; Mt 6:24
  58. 18:1 : 2Kg 17:1
  59. 18:1 : 2Ch 28:27
  60. 18:2-3 : 2Ch 29:1-2
  61. 18:4 : 2Kg 17:10; 18:22; 2Ch 31:1
  62. 18:4 : Nm 21:5-9
  63. 18:5 : 2Kg 19:10
  64. 18:5 : 1Kg 3:12; 2Kg 23:25
  65. 18:6 : Dt 10:20; Jos 23:8
  66. 18:7 : Gn 39:2-3; 1Sm 18:14
  67. 18:7 : 2Kg 16:7
  68. 18:8 : 2Ch 28:18; Is 14:29
  69. 18:8 : 2Kg 17:9
  70. 18:9 : 2Kg 17:3-7
  71. 18:10-11 : 2Kg 17:6; 1Ch 5:26
  72. 18:12 : 1Kg 9:6; 2Kg 17:7-18; Dn 9:6,10
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.

Acts 20

Paul in Macedonia

20 After the uproar was over, Paul sent for the disciples, encouraged them, and after saying farewell, departed to go to Macedonia.(A) And when he had passed through those areas and offered them many words of encouragement, he came to Greece and stayed three months. The Jews plotted against him when he was about to set sail for Syria, and so he decided to go back through Macedonia.(B) He was accompanied[a] by Sopater son of Pyrrhus[b] from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy,(C) and Tychicus(D) and Trophimus(E) from the province of Asia. These men went on ahead and waited for us in Troas,(F) but we sailed away from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread.(G) In five days we reached them at Troas, where we spent seven days.

Eutychus Revived at Troas

On the first day of the week, we[c] assembled to break bread.(H) Paul spoke to them, and since he was about to depart the next day, he kept on talking until midnight. There were many lamps in the room upstairs where we were assembled, and a young man named Eutychus was sitting on a window sill and sank into a deep sleep as Paul kept on talking. When he was overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was picked up dead. 10 But Paul went down, bent over him, embraced him, and said, “Don’t be alarmed, because he’s alive.”(I) 11 After going upstairs, breaking the bread, and eating, Paul talked a long time until dawn. Then he left. 12 They brought the boy home alive and were greatly comforted.

From Troas to Miletus

13 We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul on board, because these were his instructions, since he himself was going by land. 14 When he met us at Assos, we took him on board and went on to Mitylene. 15 Sailing from there, the next day we arrived off Chios. The following day we crossed over to Samos, and[d] the day after, we came to Miletus.(J) 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, because he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, for the day of Pentecost.(K)

Farewell Address to the Ephesian Elders

17 Now from Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and summoned the elders of the church. 18 When they came to him, he said to them: “You know, from the first day I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time,(L) 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with tears, and during the trials that came to me through the plots of the Jews.(M) 20 You know that I did not avoid proclaiming to you anything that was profitable or from teaching you publicly and from house to house. 21 I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God(N) and faith in our Lord Jesus.(O)

22 “And now I am on my way to Jerusalem, compelled by the Spirit,[e] not knowing what I will encounter there,(P) 23 except that in every town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions are waiting for me.(Q) 24 But I consider my life of no value to myself; my purpose is to finish my course[f] and the ministry(R) I received from the Lord Jesus,(S) to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.

25 “And now I know that none of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will ever see me again. 26 Therefore I declare to you this day that I am innocent[g] of the blood of all of you,(T) 27 because I did not avoid declaring to you the whole plan of God.(U) 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock(V) of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers,(W) to shepherd the church of God,[h] which he purchased with his own blood.(X) 29 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Men will rise up even from your own number and distort the truth to lure the disciples into following them.(Y) 31 Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I never stopped warning each one of you with tears.(Z)

32 “And now[i] I commit you to God and to the word of his grace,(AA) which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance(AB) among all who are sanctified. 33 I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.(AC) 34 You yourselves know that I worked with my own hands to support myself and those who are with me.(AD) 35 In every way I’ve shown you that it is necessary to help the weak by laboring like this and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, because he said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’

36 After he said this, he knelt down and prayed with all of them.(AE) 37 There were many tears shed by everyone. They embraced Paul and kissed him, 38 grieving most of all over his statement that they would never see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship.(AF)

Footnotes:

  1. 20:4 Other mss add to Asia
  2. 20:4 Other mss omit son of Pyrrhus
  3. 20:7 Other mss read the disciples
  4. 20:15 Other mss add after staying at Trogyllium
  5. 20:22 Or in my spirit
  6. 20:24 Other mss add with joy
  7. 20:26 Lit clean
  8. 20:28 Some mss read church of the Lord; other mss read church of the Lord and God
  9. 20:32 Other mss add brothers and sisters
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 148

Psalm 148

Creation’s Praise of the Lord

Hallelujah!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
praise him in the heights.(A)
Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his heavenly armies.(B)
Praise him, sun and moon;
praise him, all you shining stars.(C)
Praise him, highest heavens,
and you waters above the heavens.(D)
Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for he commanded, and they were created.(E)
He set them in position forever and ever;
he gave an order that will never pass away.(F)

Praise the Lord from the earth,
all sea monsters and ocean depths,(G)
lightning[a] and hail, snow and cloud,
stormy wind that executes his command,(H)
mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars,(I)
10 wild animals and all cattle,
creatures that crawl and flying birds,(J)
11 kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all judges of the earth,(K)
12 young men as well as young women,
old and young together.(L)
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted.
His majesty covers heaven and earth.(M)
14 He has raised up a horn for his people,
resulting in praise to all his faithful ones,
to the Israelites, the people close to him.(N)
Hallelujah!

Footnotes:

  1. 148:8 Or fire
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 18:6-7

A fool’s lips lead to strife,
and his mouth provokes a beating.(A)

A fool’s mouth is his devastation,
and his lips are a trap for his life.(B)

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.

06/29/2019 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 15:1-16:20, Acts 19:13-41, Psalms 147:1-20, Proverbs 18:4-5

Today is the 29th day of June. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It’s great to be here with you as we reach the conclusion of another one of our weeks together. And we only have one more day left. We’ll start our week in the month of June and end our week in the month of July coming up. So, we are here at the center of the year together. Well done. So, we’ve been reading from the Contemporary English Version this week and it’s still this week. So, we’ll continue to do that today. And we’re continuing working our way through the book of second Kings. Today, second Kings, chapters 15 and 16.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for another week in Your word, we thank You for bringing us here to the center of the year. And as we move forward we’ll be moving out of this month and into the seventh month of the year. So, we look with anticipation for all that You will do but we also stand here quietly and reflect about all that You have already done, as You’ve brought us this far, day by day step-by-step. Your word has counseled and spoken to us and has shifted so many things from within. Come Holy Spirit and continue the work that You’ve begun in us. I pray these things in the name of Jesus, our beloved. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, which is home base, and it’s, of course, where you find out what’s going on around here.

Daily Audio Bible long walk is coming up a week from tomorrow. The 7th of July is our Daily Audio Bible holiday as a community. It’s like our own thing and we’ve doing it for over a decade. It’s just a day set aside. This happens to be on a Sunday this year. So, it’s relatively easy to do. Set aside the whole day. Go out somewhere beautiful, whether you’re just walking down the street or whether you’re driving across town or across your state or wherever…wherever you find compelling and beautiful and spend the day with God just walking. Remember when you fall in love and you can just go for these walks for hours and it’s like five minutes has gone by and you’re just so into each other and what each other is saying? Yeah, that’s what we’re talking about. It’s the middle of the year. Have you ever spent a day like that with God where you are uninterrupted, and nothing was distracting you, when you got to say everything you needed to say, you could actually fully pour out your heart, and you gave space and time, your phone wasn’t blowing up, your inbox wasn’t blowing up, your obligations, you weren’t running behind all day or in life, it was a day that didn’t have time and you set aside the space for God to pour out his heart to you too? What a way to regroup and get ready for the second half of the year. So, Make plans for that. That’s coming up next Sunday and it’ll be…you know…you might be like, “what…where…how do I do this?” It’s an individual process. Like this is between you and God. So, go wherever you want to go and spend that day. What makes it a community experience is that you can just take pictures. Like, take a picture or shoot a little video with your phone or whatever, wherever you go, whatever you’re doing, and you can post that to our Facebook page. It’s facebook.com/dailyaudiobible. All the sudden, then we are each able to look into a glimpse of where you are and what the beauty of the world looks like in your part of the world. It’s a beautiful thing. It’s a wonderful tradition and it’s always rewarding because it is a reset as we move into the second half of the year. So, plan for that long. The long walk, a week from tomorrow, next Sunday the 7th of July.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com. There is a link and that link lives on the homepage. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address, if you prefer, is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

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

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

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hi family, it’s Marylynn calling from New Brunswick and I have a couple of prayer requests. A little bit along the serious line but not for myself. Our church family here in Milton has been made aware of the fact that there seems to be some spiritual darkness, spiritual attacks, not happening now but possibly pending. We had community prayer this morning with our pastor who is wise beyond anything I have ever seen. His name is Pastor Joel and he commissioned everybody a community prayer this morning under the authority of Jesus Christ to have authority over these spirits. So, I’m asking this community, particularly the warriors that I hear regularly, asking you to lift up our church. We prayed around the perimeter of the building this morning, the whole property inside and out. We prayed in front of all the entrances and we just really…I just really feel is that this is a legitimate concern that has been brought before us and I would really covet the community joining us in this. Also, I have a new client. They are wonderful people. They are nonbelievers. They are educators and they are very much…kind of worshipers of knowledge and intellect but they’re wonderful people and they both suffer from some health issues, but when I am there one of the items in their house…they have a lot oh __  stuff in their house but on their wall in the dining room they have an encircled pentagram with a sculpture and it really bothers me. I don’t see any evidence that there is Satanic activity in his family, but I have been praying that that thing would fall off the wall and break. So, if you would join me in that as well I would appreciate that. Know that you are all loved, and your prayers are appreciated, and you are lifted up. Thank you so much family for listening to all of this…

Good morning DAB family may the Lord bless each and every one of you. I am calling for the women in Dubai who needs to get her life back together. Knowing that you have been in a dark relationship, that you want to end that and give yourself to God. Know that there’s nothing that God cannot do, and He will restore your life as you continue to surrender your life to Him. Sheila from Texas, you know, you’re calling in to encourage everyone and I am in agreement with you as the DAB platform has enriched our lives may we sew into is as much as possible when possible in the name of Jesus, you know. Also the woman who called to pray for another woman who is married to a nonbeliever, God bless you, you know, and the woman who is married to that nonbeliever for 26 years know, know, know that there’s nothing that God cannot change. You know, just keep giving it to the Lord. He will…He will restore that you know. He will make you equally yoked, I truly believe that. Natalie and Doug going through depression and anxiety, you know. I am so sorry that you are all suffering that from this but know that the struggle is real but keep continuing going forward, keep continuing praying and surrendering to the Lord. Jamie from Nebraska I know you’re going through challenges but know that the Lord is with you. The sick pastor who lost his wife, I am so sorry but know that I’m praying for you and know that there’s nothing that the Lord cannot do. You know, we face these challenges and we don’t often know why but we know that we serve a mighty God and God will do what He will only those Father God that he has already have a plan. Just trust in Him, continue to trust in Him. This is Esther from Flushing Queens. God bless you.

Hi family this is His lLttle Cherry in Canada. I am so grateful for everyone who prayed for my daughter’s wedding, which was this past Saturday, June 22nd. I have been talking about this wedding for probably a year and gearing up for it and I had requested prayer specifically for the weather. My daughter Joy had her heart set on having an outdoor wedding. And, so, we chose the venue for that reason. There was rain in the forecast the whole week of her wedding. And, so, thank you for praying for whether specifically. The day before the wedding was torrential rain. The day after the wedding was rainy as well. But miraculously the day of the wedding was beautiful and apparently there was rain all around us that day, but we had lovely blue skies and Joy was able to have her wedding outside in the trees and it was…it was gorgeous, it was a beautiful wedding. I’ve posted a picture on the DAB friends page. There were so many miracles that happened the weekend of the wedding I’m so grateful that you prayed. I specifically was fairly well, and my health is a big issue, but I was feeling well the weekend of the wedding as if I was 20 years younger and able to run around and do all the organizing that I needed to do. And, so, thank you family. I am so grateful. I am absolutely grateful. I wish I had a better way to say it. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I love you guys. Bless you. Bye for now.

Hi Daily Audio Bible family this is your sister Julie calling from Southern California. Natalie, oh sweet Natalie, you’re talking to a sister that has suffered from anorexia and bulimia for…it was for 35 years and now I’m 58 and by the grace of God I have two beautiful children, two beautiful grandchildren. I no longer struggle with it…with those disorders at all. I’m not perfect by any means. I still struggle with some other things but…and I also wanted to take the opportunity to thank Loralee for praying for me and my struggle right now. And I will be reaching out to you. But Natalie, and Loralee, whoever is struggling with addiction or whatever and just please know that you’re not alone. Oh, my goodness I think there’s more of us that struggle with addictions than don’t and my….my…reach out to me please -  justbreathing1@gmail.com. And Natalie take your Bible with you sweetheart when you go to the inpatient care. And honey just know that…oh my gosh…you are deeply loved. Falling in love with Jesus and knowing how much he loved me…knowing how much he loved me actually was my cure. Just know…oh…I just hope that you can absorb every second of his love and every bit of it. And I love you and I’m praying for you and pulling for you and I know you’re not alone sweetheart. You are gonna do great and marvelous things for the kingdom in Jesus’ name. God bless you sweetheart and God bless you all my family. I love you. Brian thank you and have a wonderful day. Love you all. Bye-bye.

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday June 29, 2019 (NIV)

2 Kings 15-16

King Azariah of Judah

15 Azariah son of Amaziah became king of Judah in Jeroboam’s twenty-seventh year as king of Israel. He was only sixteen years old when he became king, and he ruled fifty-two years from Jerusalem, which was also the hometown of his mother Jecoliah.

Azariah obeyed the Lord by doing right, as his father Amaziah had done. But Azariah did not destroy the local shrines,[a] and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

The Lord punished Azariah with leprosy[b] for the rest of his life. He wasn’t allowed to live in the royal palace, so his son Jotham lived there and ruled in his place.

Everything else Azariah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. Azariah died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem. His son Jotham then became king.

King Zechariah of Israel

Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Azariah’s rule in Judah, but he ruled only six months from Samaria. Like his ancestors, Zechariah disobeyed the Lord by following the evil ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

10 Shallum son of Jabesh plotted against Zechariah and killed him in public.[c] Shallum then became king. 11-12 So the Lord had kept his promise to Jehu that the next four kings of Israel would come from his family.[d]

Everything else Zechariah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Shallum of Israel

13 Shallum became king of Israel in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah’s[e] rule in Judah. But only one month after Shallum became king, 14-16 Menahem son of Gadi came to Samaria from Tirzah and killed him. Menahem then became king. The town of Tiphsah would not surrender to him, so he destroyed it and all the surrounding towns as far as Tirzah. He killed everyone living in Tiphsah, and with his sword he even ripped open pregnant women.

Everything else Shallum did while he was king, including his plot against Zechariah, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Menahem of Israel

17 Menahem became king of Israel in Azariah’s thirty-ninth year as king of Judah, and he ruled Israel ten years from Samaria. 18 He constantly disobeyed the Lord by following the example of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

19 During Menahem’s rule, King Tiglath Pileser[f] of Assyria invaded Israel. He agreed to help Menahem keep control of his kingdom, if Menahem would pay him over thirty tons of silver. 20 So Menahem ordered every rich person in Israel to give him at least one pound of silver, and he gave it all to Tiglath Pileser, who stopped his attack and left Israel.

21 Everything else Menahem did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 22 Menahem died, and his son Pekahiah became king.

King Pekahiah of Israel

23 Pekahiah became king of Israel in the fiftieth year of Azariah’s rule in Judah, and he ruled two years from Samaria. 24 He disobeyed the Lord and caused the Israelites to sin, just as Jeroboam son of Nebat had done.

25 Pekah son of Remaliah was Pekahiah’s chief officer, but he made plans to kill the king. So he and fifty men from Gilead broke into the strongest part of the palace in Samaria and murdered Pekahiah, together with Argob and Arieh.[g] Pekah then became king.

26 Everything else Pekahiah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Pekah of Israel

27 Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Azariah’s fifty-second year as king of Judah, and he ruled twenty years from Samaria. 28 He disobeyed the Lord and followed the evil example of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

29 During Pekah’s rule, King Tiglath Pileser of Assyria marched into Israel. He captured the territories of Gilead and Galilee, including the towns of Ijon, Abel-Bethmaacah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor, as well as the entire territory of Naphtali. Then he took Israelites from those regions to Assyria as prisoners.[h]

30 In the twentieth year of Jotham’s rule in Judah, Hoshea son of Elah plotted against Pekah and murdered him. Hoshea then became king of Israel.

31 Everything else Pekah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Jotham of Judah

32 Jotham son of Azariah[i] became king of Judah in the second year of Pekah’s rule in Israel. 33 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled sixteen years from Jerusalem. His mother Jerusha was the daughter of Zadok.

34 Jotham followed the example of his father by obeying the Lord and doing right. 35 It was Jotham who rebuilt the Upper Gate that led into the court around the Lord’s temple. But the local shrines were not destroyed, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

36 Everything else Jotham did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 37 During his rule, the Lord let King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel start attacking Judah. 38 Jotham died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem, and his son Ahaz became king.

King Ahaz of Judah

16 Ahaz son of Jotham became king of Judah in the seventeenth year of Pekah’s rule in Israel. He was twenty years old at the time, and he ruled from Jerusalem for sixteen years.

Ahaz wasn’t like his ancestor David. Instead, he disobeyed the Lord and was even more sinful than the kings of Israel. He sacrificed his own son, which was a disgusting custom of the nations that the Lord had forced out of Israel. Ahaz offered sacrifices at the local shrines, as well as on every hill and in the shade of large trees.

5-6 While Ahaz was ruling Judah, the king of Edom recaptured the town of Elath from Judah and forced out the people of Judah. Edomites[j] then moved into Elath, and they still live there.

About the same time, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel marched to Jerusalem and attacked, but they could not capture it.

Ahaz sent a message to King Tiglath Pileser of Assyria that said, “Your Majesty, King Rezin and King Pekah are attacking me, your loyal servant. Please come and rescue me.” Along with the message, Ahaz sent silver and gold from the Lord’s temple and from the palace treasury as a gift for the Assyrian king.

As soon as Tiglath Pileser received the message, he and his troops marched to Syria. He captured the capital city of Damascus, then he took the people living there to the town of Kir as prisoners and killed King Rezin.[k]

10 Later, Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath Pileser. And while Ahaz was there, he saw an altar and sent a model of it back to Uriah the priest, along with the plans for building one. 11 Uriah followed the plans and built an altar exactly like the one in Damascus, finishing it just before Ahaz came back.

12 When Ahaz returned, he went to see the altar and to offer sacrifices on it. He walked up to the altar 13 and poured wine over it. Then he offered sacrifices to please the Lord, to give him thanks, and to ask for his blessings.[l] 14 After that, he had the bronze altar moved aside,[m] so his new altar would be right in front of the Lord’s temple. 15 He told Uriah the priest:

From now on, the morning and evening sacrifices as well as all gifts of grain and wine are to be offered on this altar. The sacrifices for the people and for the king must also be offered here. Sprinkle the blood from all the sacrifices on it, but leave the bronze altar for me to use for prayer and finding out what God wants me to do.

16 Uriah did everything Ahaz told him.

17 Ahaz also had the side panels and the small bowls taken off the movable stands in the Lord’s temple. He had the large bronze bowl, called the Sea, removed from the bronze bulls on which it rested and had it placed on a stand made of stone. 18 He took down the special tent that was used for worship on the Sabbath[n] and closed up the private entrance that the kings of Judah used for going into the temple. He did all these things to please Tiglath Pileser.

19 Everything else Ahaz did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 20 Ahaz died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem,[o] and his son Hezekiah became king.

Footnotes:

  1. 15.4 local shrines: See the note at 12.3.
  2. 15.5 leprosy: See the note at 5.1.
  3. 15.10 in public: Hebrew; some manuscripts of one ancient translation “in Ibleam.”
  4. 15.11,12 So the Lord. . . family: See 10.28-31.
  5. 15.13 Azariah’s: The Hebrew text has “Uzziah’s,” another spelling of the name.
  6. 15.19 Tiglath Pileser: The Hebrew text has “Pul,” another name for Tiglath Pileser, who ruled Assyria from 745 to 727 B.C.
  7. 15.25 together with Argob and Arieh: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  8. 15.29 prisoners: The events in this verse probably took place around 733 B.C.
  9. 15.32 Azariah: See the note at 15.13.
  10. 16.5,6 the king of Edom. . . Edomites: The Hebrew text has “King Rezin of Syria. . . Syrians”; in Hebrew, there is only one letter difference between “Edom” and “Aram,” which is the usual Hebrew name for Syria in the Bible (see also 2 Chronicles 28.17).
  11. 16.9 King Rezin: This probably took place around 734 B.C., before the events in 15.29.
  12. 16.13 offered. . . blessings: In traditional translations, these sacrifices are usually called “whole burnt offerings,” “grain offerings,” and “peace offerings.” These are described in Leviticus 1—3.
  13. 16.14 aside: Hebrew “to the north.”
  14. 16.18 the special tent. . . Sabbath: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  15. 16.20 Jerusalem: See the note at 8.24.

Acts 19:13-41

13 Some Jewish men started going around trying to force out evil spirits by using the name of the Lord Jesus. They said to the spirits, “Come out in the name of that same Jesus that Paul preaches about!”

14 Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this, 15 when an evil spirit said to them, “I know Jesus! And I have heard about Paul. But who are you?” 16 Then the man with the evil spirit jumped on them and beat them up. They ran out of the house, naked and bruised.

17 When the Jews and Gentiles[a] in Ephesus heard about this, they were so frightened that they praised the name of the Lord Jesus. 18 Many who were followers now started telling everyone about the evil things they had been doing. 19 Some who had been practicing witchcraft even brought their books and burned them in public. These books were worth about fifty thousand silver coins. 20 So the Lord’s message spread and became even more powerful.

The Riot in Ephesus

21 After all of this had happened, Paul decided[b] to visit Macedonia and Achaia on his way to Jerusalem. Paul had said, “From there I will go on to Rome.” 22 So he sent his two helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia. But he stayed on in Asia for a while.

23 At that time there was serious trouble because of the Lord’s Way.[c] 24 A silversmith named Demetrius had a business that made silver models of the temple of the goddess Artemis. Those who worked for him earned a lot of money. 25 Demetrius brought together everyone who was in the same business and said:

Friends, you know that we make a good living at this. 26 But you have surely seen and heard how this man Paul is upsetting a lot of people, not only in Ephesus, but almost everywhere in Asia. He claims that the gods we humans make are not really gods at all. 27 Everyone will start saying terrible things about our business. They will stop respecting the temple of the goddess Artemis, who is worshiped in Asia and all over the world. Our great goddess will be forgotten!

28 When the workers heard this, they got angry and started shouting, “Great is Artemis, the goddess of the Ephesians!” 29 Soon the whole city was in a riot, and some men grabbed Gaius and Aristarchus, who had come from Macedonia with Paul. Then everyone in the crowd rushed to the place where the town meetings were held.

30 Paul wanted to go out and speak to the people, but the Lord’s followers would not let him. 31 A few of the local officials were friendly to Paul, and they sent someone to warn him not to go.

32 Some of the people in the meeting were shouting one thing, and others were shouting something else. Everyone was completely confused, and most of them did not even know why they were there.

33 Several of the Jewish leaders pushed a man named Alexander to the front of the crowd and started telling him what to say. He motioned with his hand and tried to explain what was going on. 34 But when the crowd saw that he was Jewish, they all shouted for two hours, “Great is Artemis, the goddess of the Ephesians!”

35 Finally, a town official made the crowd be quiet. Then he said:

People of Ephesus, who in the world doesn’t know that our city is the center for worshiping the great goddess Artemis? Who doesn’t know that her image which fell from heaven is right here? 36 No one can deny this, and so you should calm down and not do anything foolish. 37 You have brought men in here who have not robbed temples or spoken against our goddess.

38 If Demetrius and his workers have a case against these men, we have courts and judges. Let them take their complaints there. 39 But if you want to do more than that, the matter will have to be brought before the city council. 40 We could easily be accused of starting a riot today. There is no excuse for it! We cannot even give a reason for this uproar.

41 After saying this, he told the people to leave.

Footnotes:

  1. 19.10,17 Gentile(s): The text has “Greek(s)” (see the note at 14.1).
  2. 19.21 Paul decided: Or “Paul was led by the Holy Spirit.”
  3. 19.23 the Lord’s Way: See the note at 9.2.

Psalm 147

Sing and Praise the Lord

147 Shout praises to the Lord!
Our God is kind,
and it is right and good
to sing praises to him.
The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem
and brings the people of Israel
back home again.
He renews our hopes
and heals our bodies.
He decided how many stars
there would be in the sky
and gave each one a name.
Our Lord is great and powerful!
He understands everything.
The Lord helps the poor,
but he smears the wicked
in the dirt.

Celebrate and sing!
Play your harps
for the Lord our God.
He fills the sky with clouds
and sends rain to the earth,
so that the hills
will be green with grass.
He provides food for cattle
and for the young ravens,
when they cry out.
10 The Lord doesn’t care about
the strength of horses
or powerful armies.
11 The Lord is pleased only
with those who worship him
and trust his love.

12 Everyone in Jerusalem,
come and praise
the Lord your God!
13 He makes your city gates strong
and blesses your people
by giving them children.
14 God lets you live in peace,
and he gives you
the very best wheat.

15 As soon as God speaks,
the earth obeys.
16 He covers the ground with snow
like a blanket of wool,
and he scatters frost
like ashes on the ground.
17 God sends down hailstones
like chips of rocks.
Who can stand the cold?
18 At his command the ice melts,
the wind blows,
and streams begin to flow.

19 God gave his laws and teachings
to the descendants of Jacob,
the nation of Israel.
20 But he has not given his laws
to any other nation.
Shout praises to the Lord!

Proverbs 18:4-5

Words of wisdom
are a stream
that flows
from a deep fountain.
It’s wrong to favor the guilty
and keep the innocent
from getting justice.

06/28/2019 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 13:1-14:29, Acts 18:23-19:12, Psalms 146:1-10, Proverbs 18:2-3

Today is the 28th day of June. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It is always a joy to be here with you, always good to come around the global campfire and just relax and let God’s word speak to us, always a pleasure. So, we’re moving into the end of the week now. We’ve been reading from the Contemporary English Version this week and we’ll continue that as we continue our journey through the book of second Kings. Today we’ll read chapters 13 and 14 as we continue through the kings, the stories of the kings of Israel, the northern kingdom, and Judah, the southern kingdom.

Commentary:

Okay. So, as we end another one of our workweeks together and continue to journey through the book of second Kings we’re seeing, you know, the back-and-forth between the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the northern and the southern kingdoms. So, at times, they’re allies with each other and they go to battle with each other and at other times they’re enemies with each other and battling against one another. And, of course, this is…you know…the whole dynamic of the situation is influenced by who is the king, whose the king of Israel, whose the king of Judah, and then the prophetic voices played a role in all of this mix as well, even though the people usually ignored them. But we did say goodbye today to one of those very influential voices, the man of God, the prophet Elisha died after giving a final prophetic word to Jehoash who was king of the northern kingdom of Israel.A

And then we move into the book of Acts and Paul is beginning his third missionary journey and working his way into Ephesus where he spent two years, and this is Paul’s final recorded missionary journey and we’ll see why soon enough. But we also see that his opportunities to share the gospel and to have influence will only grow even though he’s not traveling around the known world anymore. And it’s gonna be in the most counterintuitive ways. And, so, we’ll see that as we continue with the story

And in Proverbs today gives us plenty to think about as it relates to our opinions. So, we probably all have people in our lives who have or seem to have an opinion about just about everything that there is and then they love to give that opinion without permission, right, unsolicited and it doesn’t even matter like what the topic is, they just seem to have an opinion on everything from politics to relationship advice to parenting to you name it without actually taking the time to form and fully understand and create a well-rounded collection of thoughts. They just spout off whatever’s happening at the top of their mind and they seem to know very well what everybody else should be doing. A lot of times we take a look at those people’s lives though and they don’t know what they’re doing. They just seem to know what everybody else should be doing. So, this is strong medicine here. This is a big teaspoonful full of something bitter. According to the Proverbs, those people are fools. It’ not understanding that they’re looking for. Its hearing themselves talk that they’re looking for. So, let’s use today, and as we move into the weekend and change the flow of our lives for a few days. Let’s observe ourselves. Let’s watch for what it is that causes us to offer an opinion. Are we asked for an opinion or are we just offering our opinions where they don’t belong because we might catch ourselves moving into foolish, foolish territory and places that are not healthy, but the good news is that this is how we actually become wise. We catch ourselves. We watch ourselves. We hear the words of wisdom spoken from the Proverbs and then we watch ourselves and then when we can catch ourselves like being pulled toward throwing in our opinion into the mix when it’s not necessary or not invited or not even welcomed and we really don’t know the situation. We can invite the Holy Spirit. That’s gonna guide us away from being foolish and back onto the path of wisdom.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit come into that. We are all guilty of stepping into foolishness. We are all guilty of playing the fool in these areas. And, so, we ask that You would come and You would help us observe our own behaviors, the things that trigger us, the things that pull us in these directions and we ask that we would be able to pause before we open our mouth and begin a dialogue with You. What is this about? Why am I about to jump into this? Why am I often finding myself jumping into these things? We invite You Holy Spirit into these questions and into these observations. Come Jesus we pray. In Your mighty name, we ask. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, home base, it’s where you find out what’s going on around here. So, stay tuned, stay connected.

One of the things that we’re talking about is July 7th and that’s coming up pretty quick here, a week from this Sunday. So, July 7th is kind of like our own little Daily Audio Bible holiday. It’s a day that we’ve been setting aside for 11 years we’ve done this. It’s what we call the Daily Audio Bible long walk and it happens every seventh of July and it’s just a day to commemorate the fact that we are moving through the middle of the year, an opportunity to regroup and go for a long walk with God. We’ve been allowing God’s word to speak into our lives for half a year and it’s time to regroup. And, so, it’s an individual experience. Go somewhere beautiful whether near or far, and go for a long walk with God, uninterrupted. Like, set the time, set the day aside so that all other obligations and responsibilities are just off the calendar. Like, this is a day that you get to spend however you want to with God. Go somewhere beautiful. Say everything that you need to say. Listen to everything that he needs to tell you, advanced words about how the second half of your year should look and where you should be aiming yourself. And just enjoy the serenity that comes as a result of just taking the one day. It’s incredible. And, so, yeah, it’s an individual experience, you’re doing this by yourself, but take your camera or whatever, your phone or whatever and snap a picture or take a little video wherever you go and post that back to the Facebook page for Daily Audio Bible facebook.com/dailyaudiobible and all of the sudden we have this mosaic, all these windows opening into each other’s lives all over the world where we can experience all over the world what the world looks like today as we move through our day on the long walk. So, that’s coming up the 7th of July, put that on your calendar.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com. There is a link on the homepage. Thank you humbly, thank you profoundly for your partnership, especially as we move in and through the summer time. Appreciate your partnership more than I can possibly articulate. The literal reality is that we wouldn’t be here if we weren’t here together. That’s the beautiful thing about this community, we’re here together. So, there’s a link on the homepage. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

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

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

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday June 28, 2019 (NIV)

2 Kings 13-14

King Jehoahaz of Israel

13 Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king of Israel in the twenty-third year of Joash’s rule in Judah. Jehoahaz ruled seventeen years from Samaria and disobeyed the Lord by doing wrong. He never stopped following the example of Jeroboam, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

The Lord was angry at the Israelites, so he let King Hazael of Syria and his son Benhadad rule over them for a long time. Jehoahaz prayed to the Lord for help, and the Lord saw how terribly Hazael was treating the Israelites. He answered Jehoahaz by sending Israel a leader who rescued them from the Syrians,[a] and the Israelites lived in peace as they had before. 6-7 But Hazael had defeated Israel’s army so badly that Jehoahaz had only ten chariots, fifty cavalry troops, and ten thousand regular soldiers left in his army.

The Israelites kept sinning and following the example of Jeroboam’s family. They did not tear down the sacred poles[b] that had been set up in Samaria for the worship of the goddess Asherah.

Everything else Jehoahaz did while he was king, including his brave deeds, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. Jehoahaz died and was buried in Samaria, and his son Jehoash became king.

King Jehoash of Israel

10 Jehoash became king of Israel in the thirty-seventh year of Joash’s rule in Judah, and he ruled sixteen years from Samaria. 11 He disobeyed the Lord by doing just like Jeroboam, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

12 Everything else Jehoash did while he was king, including his war against King Amaziah of Judah, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 13 Jehoash died and was buried in Samaria beside the other Israelite kings. His son Jeroboam then became king.

Elisha the Prophet Dies

14 Some time before the death of King Jehoash, Elisha the prophet was very sick and about to die. Jehoash went in and stood beside him, crying. He said, “Master, what will Israel’s chariots and cavalry be able to do without you?”[c]

15-16 “Grab a bow and some arrows,” Elisha told him, “and hold them in your hand.” Jehoash grabbed the bow and arrows and held them. Elisha placed his hand on the king’s hand 17 and said, “Open the window facing east.” When it was open, Elisha shouted, “Now shoot!” Jehoash shot an arrow and Elisha said, “That arrow is a sign that the Lord will help you completely defeat the Syrian army at Aphek.”

18 Elisha said, “Pick up the arrows and hit the ground with them.” Jehoash grabbed the arrows and hit the ground three times, then stopped. 19 Elisha became angry at the king and exclaimed, “If you had struck it five or six times, you would completely wipe out the Syrians. Now you will defeat them only three times.”

20 Elisha died and was buried.

Every year in the spring, Moab’s leaders sent raiding parties into Israel. 21 Once, while some Israelites were burying a man’s body, they saw a group of Moabites. The Israelites quickly threw the body into Elisha’s tomb and ran away. As soon as the man’s body touched the bones of Elisha, the man came back to life and stood up.

Israel Defeats Syria

22 Israel was under the power of King Hazael of Syria during the entire rule of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was kind to the Israelites and showed them mercy because of his solemn agreement with their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In fact, he has never turned his back on them or let them be completely destroyed.

24 Hazael died, and his son Benhadad then became king of Syria. 25 King Jehoash of Israel attacked and defeated the Syrian army three times. He took back from Benhadad all the towns Hazael had captured in battle from his father Jehoahaz.

King Amaziah of Judah

14 Amaziah son of Joash became king of Judah in the second year of Jehoash’s rule in Israel. Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled twenty-nine years from Jerusalem, which was also the hometown of his mother Jehoaddin.

Amaziah followed the example of his father Joash by obeying the Lord and doing right. But he was not as faithful as his ancestor David. Amaziah did not destroy the local shrines, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

As soon as Amaziah had control of Judah, he arrested and killed the officers who had murdered his father. But the children of those officers were not killed. The Lord had commanded in the Law of Moses that only the people who sinned were to be punished, not their parents or children.[d]

While Amaziah was king, he killed ten thousand Edomite soldiers in Salt Valley. He captured the town of Sela and renamed it Joktheel, which is still its name.

One day, Amaziah sent a message to King Jehoash of Israel: “Come out and face me in battle!”

Jehoash sent back this reply:

Once upon a time, a small thornbush in Lebanon announced that his son was going to marry the daughter of a large cedar tree. But a wild animal came along and trampled the small bush.

10 Amaziah, you think you’re so powerful because you defeated Edom. Go ahead and celebrate—but stay at home. If you cause any trouble, both you and your kingdom of Judah will be destroyed.

11 But Amaziah refused to listen. So Jehoash and his troops marched to the town of Beth-Shemesh in Judah to attack Amaziah and his troops. 12 During the battle, Judah’s army was crushed. Every soldier from Judah ran back home, 13 and Jehoash captured Amaziah.

Jehoash then marched to Jerusalem and broke down the city wall from Ephraim Gate to Corner Gate, a section about six hundred feet long. 14 He took the gold and silver, as well as everything of value from the Lord’s temple and the king’s treasury. He took hostages, then returned to Samaria.

15 Everything else Jehoash did while he was king, including his brave deeds and how he defeated King Amaziah of Judah, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 16 Jehoash died and was buried in Samaria beside the other Israelite kings. His son Jeroboam then became king.

17 Fifteen years after Jehoash died, 18-20 some people in Jerusalem plotted against Amaziah. He was able to escape to the town of Lachish, but another group of people caught him and killed him there. His body was taken back to Jerusalem on horseback and buried beside his ancestors.

Everything else Amaziah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 21 After his death the people of Judah made his son Azariah king, even though he was only sixteen at the time. 22 Azariah was the one who later recaptured and rebuilt the town of Elath.

King Jeroboam the Second of Israel

23 Jeroboam son of Jehoash became king of Israel in the fifteenth year of Amaziah’s rule in Judah. Jeroboam ruled forty-one years from Samaria. 24 He disobeyed the Lord by following the evil example of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused the Israelites to sin.

25 Jeroboam extended the boundaries of Israel from Lebo-Hamath in the north to the Dead Sea in the south, just as the Lord had promised his servant Jonah son of Amittai, who was a prophet from Gath-Hepher. 26 The Lord helped Jeroboam do this because he had seen how terribly the Israelites were suffering, whether slave or free, and no one was left to help them. 27 And since the Lord had promised that he would not let Israel be completely destroyed, he helped Jeroboam rescue them.

28 Everything else Jeroboam did while he was king, including his brave deeds and how he recaptured the towns of Damascus and Hamath,[e] is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 29 Jeroboam died and was buried, and his son Zechariah became king.

Footnotes:

  1. 13.5 by sending. . . the Syrians: The name of this leader is not given, but it may refer to Elisha the prophet, King Jehoash of Israel, or his son King Jeroboam.
  2. 13.6,7 sacred poles: Or “trees,” used as symbols of Asherah, the goddess of fertility.
  3. 13.14 Master. . . without you: Or “Master, you were like chariots and cavalry for Israel!”
  4. 14.6 The Lord had commanded. . . children: See Deuteronomy 24.16.
  5. 14.28 how he recaptured. . . Hamath: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

Acts 18:23-19:12

23 After staying there for a while, he left and visited several places in Galatia and Phrygia. He helped the followers there to become stronger in their faith.

Apollos in Ephesus

24 A Jewish man named Apollos came to Ephesus. Apollos had been born in the city of Alexandria. He was a very good speaker and knew a lot about the Scriptures. 25 He also knew much about the Lord’s Way,[a] and he spoke about it with great excitement. What he taught about Jesus was right, but all he knew was John’s message about baptism.

26 Apollos started speaking bravely in the Jewish meeting place. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him to their home and helped him understand God’s Way even better.

27 Apollos decided to travel through Achaia. So the Lord’s followers wrote letters, encouraging the followers there to welcome him. After Apollos arrived in Achaia, he was a great help to everyone who had put their faith in the Lord Jesus because of God’s kindness. 28 He got into fierce arguments with the Jewish people, and in public he used the Scriptures to prove that Jesus is the Messiah.

Paul in Ephesus

19 While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled across the hill country to Ephesus, where he met some of the Lord’s followers. He asked them, “When you put your faith in Jesus, were you given the Holy Spirit?”

“No!” they answered. “We have never even heard of the Holy Spirit.”

“Then why were you baptized?” Paul asked.

They answered, “Because of what John taught.”[b]

Paul replied, “John baptized people so that they would turn to God. But he also told them that someone else was coming, and that they should put their faith in him. Jesus is the one that John was talking about.” After the people heard Paul say this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Paul placed his hands on them. The Holy Spirit was given to them, and they spoke unknown languages and prophesied. There were about twelve men in this group.

For three months Paul went to the Jewish meeting place and talked bravely with the people about God’s kingdom. He tried to win them over, but some of them were stubborn and refused to believe. In front of everyone they said terrible things about God’s Way. Paul left and took the followers with him to the lecture hall of Tyrannus. He spoke there every day 10 for two years, until every Jew and Gentile[c] in Asia had heard the Lord’s message.

The Sons of Sceva

11 God gave Paul the power to work great miracles. 12 People even took handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul’s body, and they carried them to everyone who was sick. All of the sick people were healed, and the evil spirits went out.

Footnotes:

  1. 18.25 the Lord’s Way: See the note at 9.2.
  2. 19.3 Then why were you baptized?. . . Because of what John taught: Or “In whose name were you baptized?. . . We were baptized in John’s name.”
  3. 19.10,17 Gentile(s): The text has “Greek(s)” (see the note at 14.1).

Psalm 146

Shout Praises to the Lord

146 Shout praises to the Lord!
With all that I am,
I will shout his praises.
I will sing
and praise
the Lord God
for as long as I live.

You can’t depend on anyone,
not even a great leader.
Once they die and are buried,
that will be the end
of all their plans.

The Lord God of Jacob blesses
everyone
who trusts him
and depends on him.
God made heaven and earth;
he created the sea
and everything else.
God always keeps his word.
He gives justice to the poor
and food to the hungry.

The Lord sets prisoners free
and heals blind eyes.
He gives a helping hand
to everyone who falls.
The Lord loves good people
and looks after strangers.
He defends the rights
of orphans and widows,
but destroys the wicked.

10 The Lord God of Zion
will rule forever!
Shout praises to the Lord!

Proverbs 18:2-3

Fools have no desire to learn;
they would much rather
give their own opinion.
Wrongdoing leads to shame
and disgrace.

06/27/2019 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 10:32-12:21, Acts 18:1-22, Psalms 145:1-21, Proverbs 18:1

Today is the 27th day of June. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is pleasure, of course, and an honor and a joy to walk in here and sit down around the global campfire together and just kinda come in out of whatever’s going on and let it recede and fade and allow this peaceful place to begin to take hold as God’s word speaks into our lives. So, we’ve been reading from the Contemporary English Version this week. We’ll continue that. And we’ve been working our way through the book of second Kings, which is what we’ll continue with today. Today chapters 10 verse 32 through 12 verse 21.

Commentary:

Okay. So, we’re working our way through the book of Acts, which obviously comes immediately after the Gospels. So, we had been spending our entire year in the New Testament with Jesus. And now in the book of Acts we’re mostly looking at what came next through the ministries of the apostle Peter and then the conversion and the ministry of the apostle Paul. And Paul has been on these missionary journeys sharing the good news wherever he goes. That’s why he’s on these journeys and we’ve watched Paul kind of be an attraction. Like he’s ground zero for something. Like he’s saying these things and people are beginning to wrestle with and think about. And, so, for some, their hearts are awakening to Jesus, while for others they’re rejecting this and like looking at the disruption that Paul’s causing in   these cities and inciting riots against him and so on and so forth. And we’ve watched the apostle Paul adapt, adapt to the people that he’s speaking to, so that they can actually have a dialogue instead of something more confrontational. And we get to this point in the book of Acts, and we have a little bit of ground underneath our feet now about how it was that the early church began to form. And, so it’s about here every year that we get to this point that we have to reframe what we might have thought the early church was like. I have been all over the place. I have been all over…I’ve traveled and traveled and traveled and many of you have too, but it’s often that I encounter people who will say something like, “I just wish that we could go back to the beginning. Like, this faith, this religion, it’s bloated. It’s different than it was. I wish we had it more true back then when the Holy Spirit was working the way he was and just paving the way.” As if the formation of the church were an easier, more joyous time, but somehow the Holy Spirit was working in a way that he doesn’t work today. It was a more powerful time. That is a miscalculation. Like, that’s a false assumption and the book of Acts completely and clearly shows us that the Paul’s missionary journeys…like…he wasn’t on vacation, right? Like he’s not sailing around on a cruise ship docking and going and doing these fun events where he’s sharing about Jesus and then gets back on the boat in luxury and sails to the next port. Everywhere Paul goes, he certainly shares the gospel, but it also causes disruption and all of the early believers were experiencing this. What Jesus had invited people into was a clash of kingdoms, where a kingdom, the kingdom of God, that is within and among us is being revealed. And kingdoms don’t clash without disruption. So, in today’s reading Paul’s in Corinth and he’s ministering to his fellow Hebrews, the Jewish people, trying his best, over and over and over and over to explain the implications of Jesus life in the Hebrew context and all he got was opposition and insult. So, he had to shake the dust off of his feet and he’s like, “look, I have tried, I’m innocent, like I’ve tried. Your blood is on your head. I’m going to preach to the Gentiles.” That’s pretty much what Paul does for the rest of his life and when we get into Paul’s writings we’ll see exactly what he thinks about his Jewish heritage as well as the Gentile people been welcomed into God’s kingdom. The irony in Corinth, though, is that Paul didn’t leave town, right? Like, so many times a mob has been stirred up against Paul or he’s been thrown into jail or beaten or whatever and then they leave. In Corinth, he’d been spending time in the synagogue, but he was getting nowhere. And, so, he shook the dust and is like, “your blood is upon your own heads”, but all he did was go next door to the home of Titius Justice who was a Gentile, who worshiped God. He just happened to live next the synagogue. And, so, Paul moves next door, so Jew and Gentile alike can hear what he has to say. But the point is, this was all experienced through challenge and disruption and hardship. And we need to remember that as we continue to bring the good news to the world. When we’re engaged with the gospel we’re at the clash of kingdoms where light and darkness are colliding. So, that’s gonna be disruptive, but we need to remember that we’re running a race that that were planning on finishing and that’s language. That’s the kind of language that Paul will use as we move into his writings. And, so, let’s remember what the Lord spoke to the apostle Paul and apply it to our own lives. “Don’t be afraid. Speak out. Don’t be silent. I’m with you. No one will attack or harm you. Many people in this city belong to me.”

Prayer:

Father, we acknowledge that we’ve often looked at the stories in the Scriptures through rose colored glasses, especially here in the New Testament as if all things were easy and if we could just go back to an easier time it would be better when it’s never been easy and that’s essentially what You said all of the time about this faith and about what we’re participating in battling darkness. Not just battling darkness in the world but battling our own darkness so that we are children of the light and can shine light into the darkness. So, come Holy Spirit, help us understand that we are a part of a long line of brothers and sisters who have carried this message forward thousands of years and we are still struggling - darkness and light. And You’ve given us an irreversible role to play in that story. Come Holy Spirit, may we live true, and in the light today in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is the website, it is home base, it’s where you find out what’s going on around here. So, be sure to always stay tuned and connected in any way that you can.

We have July 7th coming up on the radar here. And July 7th is our own little internal holiday here for the Daily Audio Bible. It will be our…I believe…11th annual Daily Audio Bible long walk. So, every 7th of July we give ourselves permission to just realize we are in the middle of the year and it’s time to regroup. It’s time to take a day and set it aside and actually spend it with God. And the idea is just go somewhere beautiful, whether you’re walking down the street to a park or whether you’re getting in your car and driving for hours. Go somewhere that you find compelling and beautiful and quiet and serene and go for a long walk and become amazed at how much life is happening when you’re being still and quiet. And realize that now you’ve just carved out the space to say everything needed to say, right? All the chaos that swirls around life, all the obligations and responsibilities, all of the depression and anxiety that are attached to things inside of us that we can’t find any more because we’re moving too fast, so we can’t deal with anything. What If we took a day with God and dealt with some things? How would that affect the rest of the year? Do you think that the one day with God where you regrouped would pay off in dividends far worth more than a day? Of course! We’re learning to walk with God, His Word is revealing Him to us. So now let’s do it. Let take a day. And, yah, its individual. Like, when I go on my long walk, usually by myself…I’ve done it one year…one year with my wife, we do both do it, but usually it’s an individual experience. And, so, I’ll be doing it by myself, but I won’t be doing it alone. It’s just like the Daily Audio Bible community. Yeah, you might be listening to this right now solitary, but you are not alone, and you are not listening alone. So, this is what we do, just go somewhere, spend the day with God, snap a picture or take a video wherever you go, post it back to our Facebook page, which is facebook.com/dailyaudiobible and we open windows into each other’s lives and get to enjoy the beauty of God’s earth all around us all on the same day. It’s great. So, make plans for that. That’s the Daily Audio Bible long walk this 7th of July, which is a Sunday this year.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, thank you. We would not be a community, we wouldn’t have a global camp fire burning, we wouldn’t be doing what we’re doing if we didn’t do this together and we’ve always done this together. So, if what we’re doing together - bringing the spoken word of God read fresh every day and offer it to the world to anyone who will listen to it anytime, anywhere. If that's…if that is the kingdom…that is light and good news for you then thank you, thank you for your partnership as we navigate and move through the summer time. So, there’s a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the at the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

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

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

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday June 27, 2019 (NIV)

2 Kings 10:32-12:21

Jehu Dies

32 In those days the Lord began to reduce the size of Israel’s territory. King Hazael of Syria defeated the Israelites and took control 33 of the regions of Gilead and Bashan east of the Jordan River and north of the town of Aroer near the Arnon River. This was the land where the tribes of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh had once lived.

34 Everything else Jehu did while he was king, including his brave deeds, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 35 Jehu died and was buried in Samaria, and his son Jehoahaz became king. 36 Jehu had ruled Israel twenty-eight years from Samaria.

Queen Athaliah of Judah

11 As soon as Athaliah heard that her son King Ahaziah was dead, she decided to kill any relative who could possibly become king. She would have done that, but Jehosheba rescued Joash son of Ahaziah just as he was about to be murdered. Jehosheba, who was Jehoram’s[a] daughter and Ahaziah’s half sister, hid her nephew Joash and his personal servant in a bedroom in the Lord’s temple where he was safe from Athaliah. Joash hid in the temple with Jehosheba[b] for six years while Athaliah ruled as queen of Judah.

Jehoiada Makes Joash King of Judah

Joash son of Ahaziah had hidden in the Lord’s temple six years. Then in the seventh year, Jehoiada the priest sent for the commanders of the king’s special bodyguards[c] and the commanders of the palace guards. They met him at the temple, and he asked them to make a promise in the name of the Lord. Then he brought out Joash and said to them:

Here’s what I want you to do. Three of your guard units will be on duty on the Sabbath. I want one unit to guard the palace. Another unit will guard Sur Gate, and the third unit will guard the palace gate and relieve the palace guards.

The other two guard units are supposed to be off duty on the Sabbath. But I want both of them to stay here at the temple and protect King Joash. Make sure they follow him wherever he goes, and have them keep their swords ready to kill anyone who tries to get near him.

The commanders followed Jehoiada’s orders. Each one called together his guards—those coming on duty and those going off duty. 10 Jehoiada brought out the swords and shields that had belonged to King David and gave them to the commanders. 11 Then they gave the weapons to their guards, who took their positions around the temple and the altar to protect Joash on every side.

12 Jehoiada brought Joash outside, where he placed the crown on his head and gave him a copy of instructions for ruling the nation. Olive oil was poured on his head to show that he was now king, while the crowd clapped and shouted, “Long live the king!”

13 Queen Athaliah heard the crowd and went to the temple. 14 There she saw Joash standing by one of the columns, which was the usual place for the king. The singers[d] and the trumpet players were standing next to him, and the people were celebrating and blowing trumpets. Athaliah tore her clothes in anger and shouted, “You betrayed me, you traitors!”

15 Right away, Jehoiada said to the army commanders, “Kill her! But don’t do it anywhere near the Lord’s temple. Take her out in front of the troops and kill anyone who is with her!” 16 So the commanders dragged her to the gate where horses are led into the palace, and they killed her there.

17 Jehoiada the priest asked King Joash and the people to promise that they would be faithful to each other and to the Lord. 18 Then the crowd went to the temple built to honor Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars and idols and killed Mattan the priest of Baal right in front of the altars.

After Jehoiada had placed guards around the Lord’s temple, 19 he called together all the commanders, the king’s special bodyguards,[e] the palace guards, and the people. They led Joash from the temple, through the Guards' Gate, and into the palace. He took his place on the throne and became king of Judah. 20 Everyone celebrated because Athaliah had been killed and Jerusalem was peaceful again. 21 Joash was only seven years old when this happened.

King Joash of Judah

12 Joash[f] became king of Judah in Jehu’s seventh year as king of Israel, and he ruled forty years from Jerusalem. His mother Zibiah was from the town of Beersheba.

Jehoiada the priest taught Joash what was right, and so for the rest of his life Joash obeyed the Lord. But even Joash did not destroy the local shrines,[g] and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

One day, Joash said to the priests, “Collect all the money that has been given to the Lord’s temple, whether from taxes or gifts, and use it to repair the temple. You priests can contribute your own money too.”[h]

But the priests never started repairing the temple. So in the twenty-third year of his rule, Joash called for Jehoiada and the other priests and said, “Why aren’t you using the money to repair the temple? Don’t take any more money for yourselves. It is only to be used to pay for the repairs.” The priests agreed that they would not collect any more money or be in charge of the temple repairs.

Jehoiada found a wooden box; he cut a hole in the top of it and set it on the right side of the altar where people went into the temple. Whenever someone gave money to the temple, the priests guarding the entrance would put it into this box. 10 When the box was full of money, the king’s secretary and the chief priest would count the money and put it in bags. 11 Then they would give it to the men supervising the repairs to the temple. Some of the money was used to pay the builders, the woodworkers, 12 the stonecutters, and the men who built the walls. And some was used to buy wood and stone and to pay any other costs for repairing the temple.

13 While the repairs were being made, the money that was given to the temple was not used to make silver bowls, lamp snuffers, small sprinkling bowls, trumpets, or anything gold or silver for the temple. 14 It went only to pay for repairs. 15 The men in charge were honest, so no one had to keep track of the money.

16 The fines that had to be paid along with the sacrifices to make things right and the sacrifices for sin did not go to the temple. This money belonged only to the priests.

17 About the same time, King Hazael of Syria attacked the town of Gath and captured it. Next, he decided to attack Jerusalem. 18 So Joash collected everything he and his ancestors Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah had dedicated to the Lord, as well as the gold in the storage rooms in the temple and palace. He sent it all to Hazael as a gift, and when Hazael received it, he ordered his troops to leave Jerusalem.

19 Everything else Joash did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 20-21 At the end of his rule, some of his officers rebelled against him. Jozabad[i] son of Shimeath and Jehozabad son of Shomer murdered him in a building where the land was filled in on the east side of Jerusalem,[j] near the road to Silla. Joash was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem,[k] and his son Amaziah became king.

Footnotes:

  1. 11.2 Jehoram’s: The Hebrew text has “Joram’s,” another spelling of the name.
  2. 11.3 Jehosheba: Jehosheba was the wife of Jehoiada the priest (see 2 Chronicles 22.11), which is why she could hide Joash in one of the private bedrooms used only by the priests.
  3. 11.4 the king’s special bodyguards: The Hebrew text has “the Carites,” who were probably foreign soldiers hired to serve as royal bodyguards.
  4. 11.14 singers: Two ancient translations; Hebrew “commanders.”
  5. 11.19 the king’s special bodyguards: See the note at verse 4.
  6. 12.1 Joash: The Hebrew text has “Jehoash,” another spelling of the name.
  7. 12.3 local shrines: The Hebrew text has “high places,” which were local places to worship God or foreign gods.
  8. 12.5 You priests. . . money too: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  9. 12.20,21 Jozabad: Some manuscripts of the Hebrew text; other manuscripts “Jozacar.”
  10. 12.20,21 where. . . Jerusalem: The Hebrew text has “on the Millo,” which probably refers to a landfill to strengthen and extend the hill where the city was built.
  11. 12.20,21 Jerusalem: See the note at 8.24.

Acts 18:1-22

Paul in Corinth

18 Paul left Athens and went to Corinth, where he met Aquila, a Jewish man from Pontus. Not long before this, Aquila had come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Emperor Claudius had ordered the Jewish people to leave Rome.[a] Paul went to see Aquila and Priscilla and found out that they were tent makers. Paul was a tent maker too. So he stayed with them, and they worked together.

Every Sabbath, Paul went to the Jewish meeting place. He spoke to Jews and Gentiles[b] and tried to win them over. But after Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, he spent all his time preaching to the Jews about Jesus the Messiah. Finally, they turned against him and insulted him. So he shook the dust from his clothes[c] and told them, “Whatever happens to you will be your own fault! I am not to blame. From now on I am going to preach to the Gentiles.”

Paul then moved into the house of a man named Titius Justus, who worshiped God and lived next door to the Jewish meeting place. Crispus was the leader of the meeting place. He and everyone in his family put their faith in the Lord. Many others in Corinth also heard the message, and all the people who had faith in the Lord were baptized.

One night, Paul had a vision, and in it the Lord said, “Don’t be afraid to keep on preaching. Don’t stop! 10 I am with you, and you won’t be harmed. Many people in this city belong to me.” 11 Paul stayed on in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching God’s message to the people.

12 While Gallio was governor of Achaia, some of the Jewish leaders got together and grabbed Paul. They brought him into court 13 and said, “This man is trying to make our people worship God in a way that is against our Law!”

14 Even before Paul could speak, Gallio said, “If you were charging this man with a crime or some other wrong, I would have to listen to you. 15 But since this concerns only words, names, and your own law, you will have to take care of it. I refuse to judge such matters.” 16 Then he sent them out of the court. 17 The crowd grabbed Sosthenes, the Jewish leader, and beat him up in front of the court. But none of this mattered to Gallio.

Paul Returns to Antioch in Syria

18 After Paul had stayed for a while with the Lord’s followers in Corinth, he told them good-by and sailed on to Syria with Aquila and Priscilla. But before he left, he had his head shaved[d] at Cenchreae because he had made a promise to God.

19 The three of them arrived in Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He then went into the Jewish meeting place to talk with the people there. 20 They asked him to stay longer, but he refused. 21 He told them good-by and said, “If God lets me, I will come back.”

22 Paul sailed to Caesarea, where he greeted the church. Then he went on to Antioch.

Footnotes:

  1. 18.2 Emperor Claudius had ordered all the Jewish people to leave Rome: Probably A.D. 49, though it may have been A.D. 41.
  2. 18.4 Gentiles: Here the word is “Greeks.” But see the note at 14.1.
  3. 18.6 shook the dust from his clothes: This means the same as shaking dust from the feet (see the note at 13.51).
  4. 18.18 he had his head shaved: Paul had promised to be a “Nazirite” for a while. This meant that for the time of the promise, he could not cut his hair or drink wine. When the time was over, he would have to cut his hair and offer a sacrifice to God.

Psalm 145

(By David for praise.)

The Lord Is Kind and Merciful

145 I will praise you,
my God and King,
and always honor your name.
I will praise you each day
and always honor your name.
You are wonderful, Lord,
and you deserve all praise,
because you are much greater
than anyone can understand.

Each generation will announce
to the next
your wonderful
and powerful deeds.
I will keep thinking about
your marvelous glory
and your mighty miracles.[a]
Everyone will talk about
your fearsome deeds,
and I will tell all nations
how great you are.
They will celebrate and sing
about your matchless mercy
and your power to save.

You are merciful, Lord!
You are kind and patient
and always loving.
You are good to everyone,
and you take care
of all your creation.

10 All creation will thank you,
and your loyal people
will praise you.
11 They will tell about
your marvelous kingdom
and your power.
12 Then everyone will know about
the mighty things you do
and your glorious kingdom.
13 Your kingdom will never end,
and you will rule forever.

Our Lord, you keep your word
and do everything you say.[b]
14 When someone stumbles or falls,
you give a helping hand.
15 Everyone depends on you,
and when the time is right,
you provide them with food.
16 By your own hand
you satisfy
the desires of all who live.

17 Our Lord, everything you do
is kind and thoughtful,
18 and you are near to everyone
whose prayers are sincere.
19 You satisfy the desires
of all your worshipers,
and you come to save them
when they ask for help.
20 You take care of everyone
who loves you,
but you destroy the wicked.

21 I will praise you, Lord,
and everyone will respect
your holy name forever.

Footnotes:

  1. 145.5 and. . . miracles: One Hebrew manuscript and two ancient translations have “as others tell about your mighty miracles.”
  2. 145.13 Our. . . say: These words are found in one Hebrew manuscript and two ancient translations.

Proverbs 18:1

It’s Wrong to Favor the Guilty

18 It’s selfish and stupid
to think only of yourself
and to sneer at people
who have sense.[a]

Footnotes:

  1. 18.1 sense: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 1.

06/26/2019 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 9:14-10:31, Acts 17:1-34, Psalms 144:1-15, Proverbs 17:27-28

Today is the 26th day of June. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible, I am Brian and its great to be here with you as we move through the center of the week, which I guess is why it’s called hump day, we’re getting over the hump and moving to the back half of the week. But no matter what part of the week we’re in we’re always taking the next step forward through the Scriptures, which would take us back into the book of second Kings. We’re reading from the Contemporary English Version this week. Second Kings Chapter 9 verse 14 through 10 verse 31 today.

Commentary:

Alright. So, in the book of Acts we’re continuing along with Paul on his second missionary journey and we should note the way that Paul adapts what he’s saying to who he’s saying it to. So, in Thessalonica Paul’s in the synagogue, he’s opening the Scriptures and he’s explaining how Jesus is a part of the Jewish story and a part of the Jewish heritage. And, so, many come to faith in Jesus and others are against him because they’re envious or jealous and angry mob kicks Paul and Silas out of town. So, they go to Berea. Paul’s in the synagogue again. The Berean’s are diligently searching the Scriptures. And, so, Paul’s right there to interpret. Many come to faith, many get jealous. The they’re out of town again. So, then Paul’s in Athens where spirituality is very diverse but very open and he’s talking about the unknown God because they worship many, many gods, including any unknown God that they may not have known about and Paul offers to them very concise, very simple explanation of how he sees the gospel. And, so, let’s look at that again. Let’s listen to what Paul says as if we’re in Athens and we don’t have any of the background of the Bible, we don’t know other than just sensing that there’s a God out there. This is how Paul explains to a person who worships an unknown God. The thing is, we’ll all agree with it, we’re reading it out of the Bible. But consider, do you functionally believe this? Do you live as if this were the truth? So, Paul says, “I want to tell you about this God that you’re worshiping that you don’t know. This God made the world and everything in it. “He’s the Lord of heaven and earth, and He doesn’t live in temples built by human hands. He doesn’t need help from anyone. He gives life, breath, and everything else to all people. From one person, God made all nations who live on the earth, and He decided when and where every nation would be. God has done all this so that we will look for Him and reach out and find Him. He isn’t far from any of us and He gives us the power to live to move and to be who we are. We are His children, just to some of your poets have said. And since we are God’s children must not think that He’s like an idle made out of gold or silver or stone. He isn’t like anything that humans have thought up and made. In the past God forgave all this because people did not know what they were doing but now He says that everyone everywhere must turn to Him. He has set a day when He will judge the world’s people with fairness and He has chosen the man Jesus to do the judging for Him. God has given proof of this to all of us by raising Jesus from death.” So, there you go. We should find great comfort in that, great encouragement in that, but also put ourselves in the position of somebody who’s never heard this before so that we understand the kinds of people that Paul is trying to reach and we should also notice that Paul adapts the way that he interacts with people based on who it is that he’s trying to talk to, which doesn’t mean he is trying to change his message, it means he’s trying to enter a person’s story from where they’re coming from instead of trying to force-feed where he’s coming from. A pretty invaluable lesson for us in this day and age.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for this simple concise truth of the gospel from the apostle Paul here in the book of Acts. It reminds us of the fact that we are Your children. We also acknowledge the fact that we don’t know all that we think that we do and a posture of humility in entering into each other’s stories is the way of Your kingdom. Come Holy Spirit we pray. And we ask in Jesus’ name expectantly as we surrender, as we allow You to have space and access to our hearts and our day and our actions. Come Holy Spirit we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements:

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Coming up in less than two weeks, the 7th of July, is our annual Daily Audio Bible long walk. It’s happening on a Sunday this year so it kind of makes it easier. And we do this every July 7th. It’s a day to give ourselves permission to say, “look, “I’m in the middle of the year, I have journeyed halfway through this year and come to this point with the rhythm of the Scriptures being in my life.” And by now we can see what the Bible does as we put it in our lives every day. So, it’s a day to regroup and go for a long walk with the God of the Bible who is revealing himself to us through the Scriptures. Yeah, just to spend the day saying all of the things that there just aren’t time to say. Like we’re just too overcommitted, too out of balance, we’re running too hard. So, we take this one day and go for a long walk, go somewhere beautiful whether near or far and go for a long walk and we can say everything that needs to be said and to allow space because the Lord has some things He’s been wanting but we’re just too busy to listen. So, what if we took a day and gave it to listening and just spending time with God and appreciating that life is happening all around us and we’re ignoring it. That’s the 7th of July and yeah, it’s a very individual thing, but it’s also a very communal thing that we’re doing as a community all over the world. And you just take your phone. You probably have your phone or something with you anyway. Snap a picture of wherever it is you go or take a little video of wherever it is you go and post it up to our Facebook page, facebook.com/dailyaudiobible and then we’ll post them up and they become these beautiful little moments that we get to share with each other, little windows into each other’s lives and where it is that we are on the planet and where it is that’s beautiful where we are and we get this wonderful picture of God’s beauty all over the world on one day. So, make plans for that the 7th of July.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible as we navigate the summer months, then thank you profoundly for your partnership. There’s a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

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

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

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday June 26, 2019 (NIV)

2 Kings 9:14-10:31

Jehu Kills Joram and Ahaziah

14-16 King Joram[a] of Israel had been badly wounded in the battle at Ramoth, trying to defend it against King Hazael and the Syrian army. Joram was now recovering in Jezreel, and King Ahaziah of Judah was there, visiting him.

Meanwhile, Jehu was in Ramoth, making plans to kill Joram. He said to his officers, “If you want me to be king, then don’t let anyone leave this town. They might go to Jezreel and tell Joram.” Then Jehu got in his chariot and rode to Jezreel.

17 When the guard in the watchtower at Jezreel saw Jehu and his men riding up, he shouted to the king, “I see a bunch of men coming this way.”

Joram ordered, “Send someone out to ask them if this is a friendly visit.”

18 One of the soldiers rode out and said to Jehu, “King Joram wants to know if this is a friendly visit.”

“What’s it to you?” Jehu asked. “Just stay behind me with the rest of my troops!”

About the same time the guard in the watchtower said, “Your Majesty, the rider got there, but he isn’t coming back.”

19 So Joram sent out another rider, who rode up to Jehu and said, “The king wants to know if this is a friendly visit.”

“What’s it to you?” Jehu asked. “Just get behind me with the rest of my troops!”

20 The guard in the watchtower said, “Your Majesty, the rider got there, but he isn’t coming back either. Wait a minute! That one man is a reckless chariot driver—it must be Jehu!”

21 Joram commanded, “Get my chariot ready.” Then he and Ahaziah got in their chariots and rode out to meet Jehu. They all met on the land that had belonged to Naboth.[b] 22 Joram asked, “Jehu, is this a peaceful visit?”

“How can there be peace?” Jehu asked. “Your mother Jezebel has caused everyone to worship idols and practice witchcraft.”

23 “Ahaziah, let’s get out of here!” Joram yelled. “It’s a trap!” As Joram tried to escape, 24 Jehu shot an arrow. It hit Joram between his shoulders, then it went through his heart and came out his chest. He fell over dead in his chariot.

25-26 Jehu commanded his assistant Bidkar, “Get Joram’s body and throw it in the field that Naboth once owned. Do you remember when you and I used to ride side by side behind Joram’s father Ahab? It was then that the Lord swore to Ahab that he would be punished in the same field where he had killed Naboth and his sons. So throw Joram’s body there, just as the Lord said.”

27 Ahaziah saw all of this happen and tried to escape to the town of Beth-Haggan, but Jehu caught up with him and shouted, “Kill him too!” So his troops shot Ahaziah with an arrow while he was on the road to Gur near Ibleam. He went as far as Megiddo, where he died. 28 Ahaziah’s officers put his body in a chariot and took it back to Jerusalem, where they buried him beside his ancestors.

29 Ahaziah had become king of Judah in the eleventh year of the rule of Ahab’s son Joram.

Jehu Kills Jezebel

30 Jehu headed toward Jezreel, and when Jezebel heard he was coming, she put on eye shadow and brushed her hair. Then she stood at the window, waiting for him to arrive. 31 As he walked through the city gate, she shouted down to him, “Why did you come here, you murderer? To kill the king? You’re no better than Zimri!”[c]

32 He looked up toward the window and asked, “Is anyone up there on my side?” A few palace workers stuck their heads out of a window, 33 and Jehu shouted, “Throw her out the window!” They threw her down, and her blood splattered on the walls and on the horses that trampled her body.[d]

34 Jehu left to get something to eat and drink. Then he told some workers, “Even though she was evil, she was a king’s daughter,[e] so make sure she has a proper burial.”

35 But when they went out to bury her body, they found only her skull, her hands, and her feet. 36 They reported this to Jehu, and he said, “The Lord told Elijah the prophet that Jezebel’s body would be eaten by dogs right here in Jezreel. 37 And he warned that her bones would be spread all over the ground like manure, so that no one could tell who it was.”

Jehu Kills All of Ahab’s Descendants

10 Ahab still had seventy descendants living in Samaria. So Jehu wrote a letter to each of the important leaders and officials of the town,[f] and to those who supported Ahab. In the letters he wrote:

Your town is strong, and you’re protected by chariots and an armed cavalry. And I know that King Ahab’s descendants live there with you. So as soon as you read this letter, choose the best person for the job and make him the next king. Then be prepared to defend Ahab’s family.

The officials and leaders read the letters and were very frightened. They said to each other, “Jehu has already killed King Joram and King Ahaziah! We have to do what he says.” The prime minister, the mayor of the city, as well as the other leaders and Ahab’s supporters, sent this answer to Jehu, “We are your servants, Your Majesty, and we will do whatever you tell us. But it’s not our place to choose someone to be king. You do what you think is best.”

Jehu then wrote another letter which said, “If you are on my side and will obey me, then prove it. Bring me the heads of the descendants of Ahab! And be here in Jezreel by this time tomorrow.”

The seventy descendants of King Ahab were living with some of the most important people of the city. And when these people read Jehu’s second letter, they called together all seventy of Ahab’s descendants. They killed them, put their heads in baskets, and sent them to Jezreel.

When Jehu was told what had happened, he said, “Put the heads in two piles at the city gate, and leave them there until morning.”

The next morning, Jehu went out and stood where everyone could hear him, and he said, “You people are not guilty of anything. I’m the one who plotted against Joram and had him killed. But who killed all these men? 10 Listen to me. Everything the Lord’s servant Elijah promised about Ahab’s family will come true.”[g]

11 Then Jehu killed the rest of Ahab’s relatives living in Jezreel, as well as his highest officials, his priests, and his closest friends. No one in Ahab’s family was left alive in Jezreel.

12-13 Jehu left for Samaria, and along the way, he met some relatives of King Ahaziah of Judah at a place where shepherds meet.[h] He asked, “Who are you?”

“We are relatives of Ahaziah,” they answered. “We’re going to visit his family.”

14 “Take them alive!” Jehu said to his officers. So they grabbed them and led them to the well near the shepherds' meeting place, where they killed all forty-two of them.

15 As Jehu went on, he saw Jehonadab son of Rechab[i] coming to meet him. Jehu greeted him, then said, “Jehonadab, I’m on your side. Are you on mine?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Then give me your hand,” Jehu answered. He helped Jehonadab into his chariot 16 and said, “Come with me and see how faithful I am to the Lord.”

They rode together in Jehu’s chariot 17 to Samaria. Jehu killed everyone there who belonged to Ahab’s family, as well as all his officials. Everyone in his family was now dead, just as the Lord had promised Elijah.

Jehu Kills All the Worshipers of Baal

18 Jehu called together the people in Samaria and said:

King Ahab sometimes worshiped Baal, but I will be completely faithful to Baal. 19 I’m going to offer a huge sacrifice to him. So invite his prophets and priests, and be sure everyone who worships him is there. Anyone who doesn’t come will be killed.

But this was a trick—Jehu was really planning to kill the worshipers of Baal. 20 He said, “Announce a day of worship for Baal!” After the day had been announced, 21 Jehu sent an invitation to everyone in Israel. All the worshipers of Baal came, and the temple was filled from one end to the other. 22 Jehu told the official in charge of the sacred robes to make sure that everyone had a robe to wear.

23 Jehu and Jehonadab went into the temple, and Jehu said to the crowd, “Look around and make sure that only the worshipers of Baal are here. No one who worships the Lord is allowed in.” 24 Then they began to offer sacrifices to Baal.

Earlier, Jehu had ordered eighty soldiers to wait outside the temple. He had warned them, “I will get all these worshipers here, and if any of you let even one of them escape, you will be killed instead!”

25 As soon as Jehu finished offering the sacrifice, he told the guards and soldiers, “Come in and kill them! Don’t let anyone escape.” They slaughtered everyone in the crowd and threw the bodies outside. Then they went back into the temple 26 and carried out the image of Baal. They burned it 27 and broke it into pieces, then they completely destroyed Baal’s temple. And since that time, it’s been nothing but a public toilet.[j]

28 That’s how Jehu stopped the worship of Baal in Israel. 29 But he did not stop the worship of the gold statues of calves at Dan and Bethel that Jeroboam had made for the people to worship.[k]

30 Later the Lord said, “Jehu, you have done right by destroying Ahab’s entire family, just as I had planned. So I will make sure that the next four kings of Israel will come from your own family.”

31 But Jehu did not completely obey the commands of the Lord God of Israel. Instead, he kept doing the sinful things that Jeroboam had caused the Israelites to do.

Footnotes:

  1. 9.14-16 Joram: The Hebrew text has “Jehoram,” another spelling of the name.
  2. 9.21 the land. . . Naboth: See 1 Kings 21.
  3. 9.31 Zimri: An Israelite king who killed King Elah and his family so he could become king, but who ruled only seven days (see 1 Kings 16.8-20).
  4. 9.33 horses. . . her body: Two ancient translations; Hebrew “horses. Then Jehu trampled her body.”
  5. 9.34 she. . . daughter: Her father was King Ethbaal of Sidon (see 1 Kings 16.31).
  6. 10.1 the town: Two ancient translations; Hebrew “Jezreel.”
  7. 10.10 Everything. . . come true: See 1 Kings 21.17-24.
  8. 10.12,13 at a place where shepherds meet: Or “at Betheked of the Shepherds.”
  9. 10.15 Jehonadab son of Rechab: Or “Jehonadab the chariot driver.”
  10. 10.27 public toilet: Or “garbage dump.”
  11. 10.29 gold statues. . . to worship: See 1 Kings 12.26-30.

Acts 17

Trouble in Thessalonica

17 After Paul and his friends had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they went on to Thessalonica. A Jewish meeting place was in that city. So as usual, Paul went there to worship, and on three Sabbaths he spoke to the people. He used the Scriptures to show them that the Messiah had to suffer, but that he would rise from death. Paul also told them that Jesus is the Messiah he was preaching about. Some of them believed what Paul had said, and they became followers with Paul and Silas. Some Gentiles[a] and many important women also believed the message.

The Jewish leaders were jealous and got some worthless bums who hung around the marketplace to start a riot in the city. They wanted to drag Paul and Silas out to the mob, and so they went straight to Jason’s home. But when they did not find them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the Lord’s followers. They took them to the city authorities and shouted, “Paul and Silas have been upsetting things everywhere. Now they have come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his home. All of them break the laws of the Roman Emperor by claiming that someone named Jesus is king.”

The officials and the people were upset when they heard this. So they made Jason and the other followers pay bail before letting them go.

People in Berea Welcome the Message

10 That same night the Lord’s followers sent Paul and Silas on to Berea, and after they arrived, they went to the Jewish meeting place. 11 The people in Berea were much nicer than those in Thessalonica, and they gladly accepted the message. Day after day they studied the Scriptures to see if these things were true. 12 Many of them put their faith in the Lord, including some important Greek women and several men.

13 When the Jewish leaders in Thessalonica heard that Paul had been preaching God’s message in Berea, they went there and caused trouble by turning the crowds against Paul.

14 Right away the followers sent Paul down to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea. 15 Some men went with Paul as far as Athens, and then returned with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.

Paul in Athens

16 While Paul was waiting in Athens, he was upset to see all the idols in the city. 17 He went to the Jewish meeting place to speak to the Jews and to anyone who worshiped with them. Day after day he also spoke to everyone he met in the market. 18 Some of them were Epicureans[b] and some were Stoics,[c] and they started arguing with him.

People were asking, “What is this know-it-all trying to say?”

Some even said, “Paul must be preaching about foreign gods! That’s what he means when he talks about Jesus and about people rising from death.”[d]

19 They brought Paul before a council called the Areopagus, and said, “Tell us what your new teaching is all about. 20 We have heard you say some strange things, and we want to know what you mean.”

21 More than anything else the people of Athens and the foreigners living there loved to hear and to talk about anything new. 22 So Paul stood up in front of the council and said:

People of Athens, I see that you are very religious. 23 As I was going through your city and looking at the things you worship, I found an altar with the words, “To an Unknown God.” You worship this God, but you don’t really know him. So I want to tell you about him. 24 This God made the world and everything in it. He is Lord of heaven and earth, and he doesn’t live in temples built by human hands. 25 He doesn’t need help from anyone. He gives life, breath, and everything else to all people. 26 From one person God made all nations who live on earth, and he decided when and where every nation would be.

27 God has done all this, so that we will look for him and reach out and find him. He isn’t far from any of us, 28 and he gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are. “We are his children,” just as some of your poets have said.

29 Since we are God’s children, we must not think that he is like an idol made out of gold or silver or stone. He isn’t like anything that humans have thought up and made. 30 In the past, God forgave all this because people did not know what they were doing. But now he says that everyone everywhere must turn to him. 31 He has set a day when he will judge the world’s people with fairness. And he has chosen the man Jesus to do the judging for him. God has given proof of this to all of us by raising Jesus from death.

32 As soon as the people heard Paul say that a man had been raised from death, some of them started laughing. Others said, “We will hear you talk about this some other time.” 33 When Paul left the council meeting, 34 some of the men put their faith in the Lord and went with Paul. One of them was a council member named Dionysius. A woman named Damaris and several others also put their faith in the Lord.

Footnotes:

  1. 17.4 Gentiles: See the note at 14.1.
  2. 17.18 Epicureans: People who followed the teaching of a man named Epicurus, who taught that happiness should be the main goal in life.
  3. 17.18 Stoics: Followers of a man named Zeno, who taught that people should learn self-control and be guided by their consciences.
  4. 17.18 people rising from death: Or “a goddess named ‘Rising from Death.’”

Psalm 144

(By David.)

A Prayer for the Nation

144 I praise you, Lord!
You are my mighty rock,[a]
and you teach me
how to fight my battles.
You are my friend,
and you are my fortress
where I am safe.
You are my shield,
and you made me the ruler
of our people.[b]

Why do we humans mean anything
to you, our Lord?
Why do you care about us?
We disappear like a breath;
we last no longer
than a faint shadow.

Open the heavens like a curtain
and come down, Lord.
Touch the mountains
and make them send up smoke.
Use your lightning as arrows
to scatter my enemies
and make them run away.
Reach down from heaven
and set me free.
Save me from the mighty flood
of those lying foreigners
who can’t tell the truth.

In praise of you, our God,
I will sing a new song,
while playing my harp.
10 By your power, kings win wars,
and your servant David is saved
from deadly swords.
11 Won’t you keep me safe
from those lying foreigners
who can’t tell the truth?

12 Let’s pray that our young sons
will grow like strong plants
and that our daughters
will be as lovely
as columns
in the corner of a palace.
13 May our barns be filled
with all kinds of crops.
May our fields be covered
with sheep by the thousands,
14 and every cow have calves.[c]
Don’t let our city be captured
or any of us be taken away,
and don’t let cries of sorrow
be heard in our streets.

15 Our Lord and our God,
you give these blessings
to all who worship you.

Footnotes:

  1. 144.1 mighty rock: See the note at 18.2.
  2. 144.2 of our people: Some Hebrew manuscripts and ancient translations have “of the nations.”
  3. 144.14 have calves: Or “grow fat.”

Proverbs 17:27-28

27 It makes a lot of sense
to be a person of few words
and to stay calm.
28 Even fools seem smart
when they are quiet.