Month: August 2023

Posted on

8/23/2023 DAB Transcript pt2

And we can probably even remember back when we were reading through the book of Acts, this is, this is the defense Paul used when he was hauled before the Sanhedrin and it caused conflict among the Sanhedrin and the Pharisees started like, basically defending Paul. Jesus resurrection. That was the game changer for Paul, because that proved for Paul that resurrection is true. Jesus resurrection was the centerpiece for all hope, and it was the proof that God was doing something new in the world. And so, everything for Paul hinges on the resurrection of Jesus from the dead and the resurrection to come. Paul’s so passionate about it, let me just quote from Paul. “If I preached that Christ has been raised from the dead. How is it that some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead. If there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is pointless and your faith is pointless too. Then we are even guilty of giving false testimony about God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ. Who He did not raise if it were true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile, you are still in your sins. Then it also follows that those who fall asleep in Christ, perished. If our hope in Christ, applies only to this life, we are the most pitiful people of all. Right, so Paul clearly hopes in resurrection and for Paul, Jesus resurrection signified not only the continuation of…of the Hebrew story, but the human story. Through Jesus, God was inaugurating like a new kind of species, a new kind of human, one that was reunited with God in spirit. And Paul tells us that Jesus was the first or the first one, and we are following him into this new life. So, let’s think about that today, the implications of the resurrection. I mean, that’s our hope as Christians. And as Paul said, if this is not true then…then we’re going in the wrong direction. Thankfully we believe Jesus indeed rose from the dead, and that shows us what is to come, and that gives us a hope that is certain forever.

Prayer:

And so, Holy Spirit, come into that, plant that deep within us that there is a hope, no matter what is happening in this life that there is a hope that can never go away. Plant this deep within our soul that we might live from this place. We ask in Jesus name, amen.

Prayer and Encouragements:

Hello DAB family, this is Mary, calling in from the teeny, tiny state of Connecticut. This is my first year listening to the Daily Audio Bible. I actually started late last year, listening to Jill and China. And that was lovely. And I thought, for this full year, I’d like to try listening to Brian. My life is super, super busy. And I thought, this could be a good tool with helping keep up my walk with the Lord. And it really has been. I can listen to the Bible when I’m driving, when I’m walking my dog. Those are two things that I do quite a bit. And you know, initially when I started listening, I though, I would just listen to the scripture readings and to Brian’s commentary and prayer. But I’m like, yeah, I don’t really need to take the time to listen to the people calling in and praying because I don’t even know these people. And it’s not a big deal. But I wanna say, I was wrong. I was definitely wrong. Listening to the callers at the end of the podcast has been absolutely amazing to me. It shows me, I just see this display, this display of believers following God’s most important instructions to us. And that is just to love God above all else and to love our neighbors as ourselves. So, I wanna thank you Brian, all the DAB family and just let you know that I am very, very honored to be part of this group. God bless all of you.

Good morning Daily Audio Bible family, this is Agent of Grace from Kentucky. I know it’s been a while since I’ve called in. I am not doing well right now. Very hurt, just feel very broken right now. I just, I’m trying to love my husband through all the issues he’s having alcoholism, so destructive to marriages and families, and it’s hurting me, it’s hurting my children. But I just feel so unloved right now. I feel very alone. And I know I’m not alone, I know the Lord is with me. But it’s really hard when you feel like the person that was supposed to love you the most and that you’re the closest to and that you’ve built that union with, it’s just unkind to you and makes you feel small all the time. And I just, I’m just, feel like I’m damaged goods right now. Just trying to move forward and know what to do and seeking God and asking for His wisdom. Basically, just deciding if the best thing to do is to separate. Which I don’t believe in divorce so it wouldn’t be that type of separation but even that he’s been ugly about. So, there just doesn’t seem to be a good choice. Anyway, I could use prayer. Love you.

Hello Daily Audio Bible family. My name is Hannah and I’m calling from the gulf coast of Australia. I have got a message for Angie, from North Devan. She called in on the 16th of August and I just wanted to say that my heart really goes out for you. What you’re going through is so tough. I don’t know what your experience is like, I haven’t lived it. I only know my own. And it really is that it’s just so tough. And I know what it’s like to feel like you have no answers. And to just be questioning so many things and just to feel so heartbroken and like, you’re alone and that nobody understands. And as I said, I don’t know, like I can’t understand your experience but just know that my heart goes out to you. And I know that somehow God’s plan will be revealed to you. And I pray that, that will be revealed to you very soon. So, I’m sending you lots and lots of love. And a great big hug and just know that I’ll be praying for you.

Hello everyone, this is Cece from North Carolina. I’m calling in today to give some encouragement to whoever needs to hear this. Looking at the events going on around the world is really disheartening and puts a real damper on the spirit. And the following week I have been overcome with a lot of emotion. And the Holy Spirit has implored on my heart that I need to get back into my Bible and start reading His word more in my own time. And I say that because you need to build up your relationship with the Lord so you can discern things that are not meant for you and things that are meant for you. I implore you everyday to start your day with a prayer, put on the full armor of God and walk your day with your head held high and know that you are a child of God. And the enemy is only lurking around to make you feel like you are nothing, you are worthless and that nothing you can do can change anything. But just know that you can be a light in someone’s life who might need it and any given time. And what better way to prepare for that, than to read His word and be filled with the Holy Spirit every day. I love you guys. And I hope ya’ll all have a great day.

Posted on

8/23/2023 DAB Transcript pt1

Job 8:1-11:20, 1 Corinthians 15:1-28, Psalm 38:1-22, Proverbs 21:28-29

Today is the 23rd day of August, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian and as is true every day, it is great to be here with you around the Global Campfire as we gather and get cozy and take the next step forward. And I’m glad that we can be together as we take these next steps forward. As we’re move through the book of Job, and turning our focus and attention because this is where the Bible is leading us into human suffering. And one of the greatest things to know when we’re dealing with hardship, is that we’re not alone. So, it is wonderful that we can take this next step forward together, and so let’s do that. Let’s jump in, today Job, chapter 8 through 11.

Commentary:

Okay so, in our reading for first Corinthians today, Paul is discussing the resurrection of Jesus, and we can hear the passion in his voice, and there’s a reason for it. And it goes back into his story. Paul was a Pharisee and that’s his religious training. And even though he counted all of that as filthy rags, so they could know Jesus, this was his, this is his background. And during the time of like Jesus, Jesus lifetime and Paul’s lifetime, there were different schools of thoughts in Judaism. So, on the one hand we have the Sadducees, and they were, they were the most powerful. They were extremely conservative. They were the elite among the Jews and they basically consider themselves like the true descendants of the priests of Israel. And they mostly were centered in Jerusalem, where the, where the power was situated and they used their power, we watched that happen in the story of Jesus. On the other side, there were the Pharisees, and they were, they were more plentiful, they were spread out throughout the land. They were out among the people teaching. And so, they were more in touch with the people. And then collectively, councils that were made up of Sadducees and Pharisees would be called the Sanhedrin and they would wrestle with Torah, interpret, and enforce Mosaic law. And one of the big distinctions between the Sadducees and the Pharisees was that they had a different, a differing opinion on resurrection from the dead. Sadducees did not believe that the dead would rise again, when a person died, they, they returned to God. That was, that’s that. Pharisees hoped in the resurrection from the dead. So, as a training to Pharisee, Paul always hoped in the resurrection, just in resurrection from God would raise people back to life from the dead. But even though he believed that Paul, would’ve continued his pursuit of destroying the church of Jesus, had he not met the resurrected Christ.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday August 23, 2023 (NIV)

Job 8-11

Bildad’s First Response to Job

8 Then Bildad the Shuhite replied to Job:

2 “How long will you go on like this?
You sound like a blustering wind.
3 Does God twist justice?
Does the Almighty twist what is right?
4 Your children must have sinned against him,
so their punishment was well deserved.
5 But if you pray to God
and seek the favor of the Almighty,
6 and if you are pure and live with integrity,
he will surely rise up and restore your happy home.
7 And though you started with little,
you will end with much.

8 “Just ask the previous generation.
Pay attention to the experience of our ancestors.
9 For we were born but yesterday and know nothing.
Our days on earth are as fleeting as a shadow.
10 But those who came before us will teach you.
They will teach you the wisdom of old.

11 “Can papyrus reeds grow tall without a marsh?
Can marsh grass flourish without water?
12 While they are still flowering, not ready to be cut,
they begin to wither more quickly than grass.
13 The same happens to all who forget God.
The hopes of the godless evaporate.
14 Their confidence hangs by a thread.
They are leaning on a spider’s web.
15 They cling to their home for security, but it won’t last.
They try to hold it tight, but it will not endure.
16 The godless seem like a lush plant growing in the sunshine,
its branches spreading across the garden.
17 Its roots grow down through a pile of stones;
it takes hold on a bed of rocks.
18 But when it is uprooted,
it’s as though it never existed!
19 That’s the end of its life,
and others spring up from the earth to replace it.

20 “But look, God will not reject a person of integrity,
nor will he lend a hand to the wicked.
21 He will once again fill your mouth with laughter
and your lips with shouts of joy.
22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
and the home of the wicked will be destroyed.”

Job’s Third Speech: A Response to Bildad

9 Then Job spoke again:

2 “Yes, I know all this is true in principle.
But how can a person be declared innocent in God’s sight?
3 If someone wanted to take God to court,[a]
would it be possible to answer him even once in a thousand times?
4 For God is so wise and so mighty.
Who has ever challenged him successfully?

5 “Without warning, he moves the mountains,
overturning them in his anger.
6 He shakes the earth from its place,
and its foundations tremble.
7 If he commands it, the sun won’t rise
and the stars won’t shine.
8 He alone has spread out the heavens
and marches on the waves of the sea.
9 He made all the stars—the Bear and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the southern sky.
10 He does great things too marvelous to understand.
He performs countless miracles.

11 “Yet when he comes near, I cannot see him.
When he moves by, I do not see him go.
12 If he snatches someone in death, who can stop him?
Who dares to ask, ‘What are you doing?’
13 And God does not restrain his anger.
Even the monsters of the sea[b] are crushed beneath his feet.

14 “So who am I, that I should try to answer God
or even reason with him?
15 Even if I were right, I would have no defense.
I could only plead for mercy.
16 And even if I summoned him and he responded,
I’m not sure he would listen to me.
17 For he attacks me with a storm
and repeatedly wounds me without cause.
18 He will not let me catch my breath,
but fills me instead with bitter sorrows.
19 If it’s a question of strength, he’s the strong one.
If it’s a matter of justice, who dares to summon him[c] to court?
20 Though I am innocent, my own mouth would pronounce me guilty.
Though I am blameless, it[d] would prove me wicked.

21 “I am innocent,
but it makes no difference to me—
I despise my life.
22 Innocent or wicked, it is all the same to God.
That’s why I say, ‘He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.’
23 When a plague[e] sweeps through,
he laughs at the death of the innocent.
24 The whole earth is in the hands of the wicked,
and God blinds the eyes of the judges.
If he’s not the one who does it, who is?

25 “My life passes more swiftly than a runner.
It flees away without a glimpse of happiness.
26 It disappears like a swift papyrus boat,
like an eagle swooping down on its prey.
27 If I decided to forget my complaints,
to put away my sad face and be cheerful,
28 I would still dread all the pain,
for I know you will not find me innocent, O God.
29 Whatever happens, I will be found guilty.
So what’s the use of trying?
30 Even if I were to wash myself with soap
and clean my hands with lye,
31 you would plunge me into a muddy ditch,
and my own filthy clothing would hate me.

32 “God is not a mortal like me,
so I cannot argue with him or take him to trial.
33 If only there were a mediator between us,
someone who could bring us together.
34 The mediator could make God stop beating me,
and I would no longer live in terror of his punishment.
35 Then I could speak to him without fear,
but I cannot do that in my own strength.

Job Frames His Plea to God

10 “I am disgusted with my life.
Let me complain freely.
My bitter soul must complain.
2 I will say to God, ‘Don’t simply condemn me—
tell me the charge you are bringing against me.
3 What do you gain by oppressing me?
Why do you reject me, the work of your own hands,
while smiling on the schemes of the wicked?
4 Are your eyes like those of a human?
Do you see things only as people see them?
5 Is your lifetime only as long as ours?
Is your life so short
6 that you must quickly probe for my guilt
and search for my sin?
7 Although you know I am not guilty,
no one can rescue me from your hands.

8 “‘You formed me with your hands; you made me,
yet now you completely destroy me.
9 Remember that you made me from dust—
will you turn me back to dust so soon?
10 You guided my conception
and formed me in the womb.[f]
11 You clothed me with skin and flesh,
and you knit my bones and sinews together.
12 You gave me life and showed me your unfailing love.
My life was preserved by your care.

13 “‘Yet your real motive—
your true intent—
14 was to watch me, and if I sinned,
you would not forgive my guilt.
15 If I am guilty, too bad for me;
and even if I’m innocent, I can’t hold my head high,
because I am filled with shame and misery.
16 And if I hold my head high, you hunt me like a lion
and display your awesome power against me.
17 Again and again you witness against me.
You pour out your growing anger on me
and bring fresh armies against me.

18 “‘Why, then, did you deliver me from my mother’s womb?
Why didn’t you let me die at birth?
19 It would be as though I had never existed,
going directly from the womb to the grave.
20 I have only a few days left, so leave me alone,
that I may have a moment of comfort
21 before I leave—never to return—
for the land of darkness and utter gloom.
22 It is a land as dark as midnight,
a land of gloom and confusion,
where even the light is dark as midnight.’”

Zophar’s First Response to Job

11 Then Zophar the Naamathite replied to Job:

2 “Shouldn’t someone answer this torrent of words?
Is a person proved innocent just by a lot of talking?
3 Should I remain silent while you babble on?
When you mock God, shouldn’t someone make you ashamed?
4 You claim, ‘My beliefs are pure,’
and ‘I am clean in the sight of God.’
5 If only God would speak;
if only he would tell you what he thinks!
6 If only he would tell you the secrets of wisdom,
for true wisdom is not a simple matter.
Listen! God is doubtless punishing you
far less than you deserve!

7 “Can you solve the mysteries of God?
Can you discover everything about the Almighty?
8 Such knowledge is higher than the heavens—
and who are you?
It is deeper than the underworld[g]—
what do you know?
9 It is broader than the earth
and wider than the sea.
10 If God comes and puts a person in prison
or calls the court to order, who can stop him?
11 For he knows those who are false,
and he takes note of all their sins.
12 An empty-headed person won’t become wise
any more than a wild donkey can bear a human child.[h]

13 “If only you would prepare your heart
and lift up your hands to him in prayer!
14 Get rid of your sins,
and leave all iniquity behind you.
15 Then your face will brighten with innocence.
You will be strong and free of fear.
16 You will forget your misery;
it will be like water flowing away.
17 Your life will be brighter than the noonday.
Even darkness will be as bright as morning.
18 Having hope will give you courage.
You will be protected and will rest in safety.
19 You will lie down unafraid,
and many will look to you for help.
20 But the wicked will be blinded.
They will have no escape.
Their only hope is death.”

Footnotes:

  1. 9:3 Or If God wanted to take someone to court.
  2. 9:13 Hebrew the helpers of Rahab, the name of a mythical sea monster that represents chaos in ancient literature.
  3. 9:19 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads me.
  4. 9:20 Or he.
  5. 9:23 Or disaster.
  6. 10:10 Hebrew You poured me out like milk / and curdled me like cheese.
  7. 11:8 Hebrew than Sheol.
  8. 11:12 Or than a wild male donkey can bear a tame colt.
New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


1 Corinthians 15:1-28

The Resurrection of Christ

15 Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters,[a] of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2 It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.[b]

3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. 5 He was seen by Peter[c] and then by the Twelve. 6 After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers[d] at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7 Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. 9 For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I’m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God’s church.

10 But whatever I am now, it is all because God poured out his special favor on me—and not without results. For I have worked harder than any of the other apostles; yet it was not I but God who was working through me by his grace. 11 So it makes no difference whether I preach or they preach, for we all preach the same message you have already believed.

The Resurrection of the Dead

12 But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? 13 For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 15 And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. 16 And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.

20 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.

21 So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. 22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.

24 After that the end will come, when he will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having destroyed every ruler and authority and power. 25 For Christ must reign until he humbles all his enemies beneath his feet. 26 And the last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For the Scriptures say, “God has put all things under his authority.”[e] (Of course, when it says “all things are under his authority,” that does not include God himself, who gave Christ his authority.) 28 Then, when all things are under his authority, the Son will put himself under God’s authority, so that God, who gave his Son authority over all things, will be utterly supreme over everything everywhere.

Footnotes:

  1. 15:1 Greek brothers; also in 15:31, 50, 58.
  2. 15:2 Or unless you never believed it in the first place.
  3. 15:5 Greek Cephas.
  4. 15:6 Greek the brothers.
  5. 15:27 Ps 8:6.
New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Psalm 38

Psalm 38

A psalm of David, asking God to remember him.

1 O Lord, don’t rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your rage!
2 Your arrows have struck deep,
and your blows are crushing me.
3 Because of your anger, my whole body is sick;
my health is broken because of my sins.
4 My guilt overwhelms me—
it is a burden too heavy to bear.
5 My wounds fester and stink
because of my foolish sins.
6 I am bent over and racked with pain.
All day long I walk around filled with grief.
7 A raging fever burns within me,
and my health is broken.
8 I am exhausted and completely crushed.
My groans come from an anguished heart.

9 You know what I long for, Lord;
you hear my every sigh.
10 My heart beats wildly, my strength fails,
and I am going blind.
11 My loved ones and friends stay away, fearing my disease.
Even my own family stands at a distance.
12 Meanwhile, my enemies lay traps to kill me.
Those who wish me harm make plans to ruin me.
All day long they plan their treachery.

13 But I am deaf to all their threats.
I am silent before them as one who cannot speak.
14 I choose to hear nothing,
and I make no reply.
15 For I am waiting for you, O Lord.
You must answer for me, O Lord my God.
16 I prayed, “Don’t let my enemies gloat over me
or rejoice at my downfall.”

17 I am on the verge of collapse,
facing constant pain.
18 But I confess my sins;
I am deeply sorry for what I have done.
19 I have many aggressive enemies;
they hate me without reason.
20 They repay me evil for good
and oppose me for pursuing good.
21 Do not abandon me, O Lord.
Do not stand at a distance, my God.
22 Come quickly to help me,
O Lord my savior.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Proverbs 21:28-29

28 A false witness will be cut off,
but a credible witness will be allowed to speak.

29 The wicked bluff their way through,
but the virtuous think before they act.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday August 22, 2023 (NIV)

Job 4-7

Eliphaz’s First Response to Job

4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied to Job:

2 “Will you be patient and let me say a word?
For who could keep from speaking out?

3 “In the past you have encouraged many people;
you have strengthened those who were weak.
4 Your words have supported those who were falling;
you encouraged those with shaky knees.
5 But now when trouble strikes, you lose heart.
You are terrified when it touches you.
6 Doesn’t your reverence for God give you confidence?
Doesn’t your life of integrity give you hope?

7 “Stop and think! Do the innocent die?
When have the upright been destroyed?
8 My experience shows that those who plant trouble
and cultivate evil will harvest the same.
9 A breath from God destroys them.
They vanish in a blast of his anger.
10 The lion roars and the wildcat snarls,
but the teeth of strong lions will be broken.
11 The fierce lion will starve for lack of prey,
and the cubs of the lioness will be scattered.

12 “This truth was given to me in secret,
as though whispered in my ear.
13 It came to me in a disturbing vision at night,
when people are in a deep sleep.
14 Fear gripped me,
and my bones trembled.
15 A spirit[a] swept past my face,
and my hair stood on end.[b]
16 The spirit stopped, but I couldn’t see its shape.
There was a form before my eyes.
In the silence I heard a voice say,
17 ‘Can a mortal be innocent before God?
Can anyone be pure before the Creator?’

18 “If God does not trust his own angels
and has charged his messengers with foolishness,
19 how much less will he trust people made of clay!
They are made of dust, crushed as easily as a moth.
20 They are alive in the morning but dead by evening,
gone forever without a trace.
21 Their tent-cords are pulled and the tent collapses,
and they die in ignorance.

Eliphaz’s Response Continues

5 “Cry for help, but will anyone answer you?
Which of the angels[c] will help you?
2 Surely resentment destroys the fool,
and jealousy kills the simple.
3 I have seen that fools may be successful for the moment,
but then comes sudden disaster.
4 Their children are abandoned far from help;
they are crushed in court with no one to defend them.
5 The hungry devour their harvest,
even when it is guarded by brambles.[d]
The thirsty pant after their wealth.[e]
6 But evil does not spring from the soil,
and trouble does not sprout from the earth.
7 People are born for trouble
as readily as sparks fly up from a fire.

8 “If I were you, I would go to God
and present my case to him.
9 He does great things too marvelous to understand.
He performs countless miracles.
10 He gives rain for the earth
and water for the fields.
11 He gives prosperity to the poor
and protects those who suffer.
12 He frustrates the plans of schemers
so the work of their hands will not succeed.
13 He traps the wise in their own cleverness
so their cunning schemes are thwarted.
14 They find it is dark in the daytime,
and they grope at noon as if it were night.
15 He rescues the poor from the cutting words of the strong,
and rescues them from the clutches of the powerful.
16 And so at last the poor have hope,
and the snapping jaws of the wicked are shut.

17 “But consider the joy of those corrected by God!
Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin.
18 For though he wounds, he also bandages.
He strikes, but his hands also heal.
19 From six disasters he will rescue you;
even in the seventh, he will keep you from evil.
20 He will save you from death in time of famine,
from the power of the sword in time of war.
21 You will be safe from slander
and have no fear when destruction comes.
22 You will laugh at destruction and famine;
wild animals will not terrify you.
23 You will be at peace with the stones of the field,
and its wild animals will be at peace with you.
24 You will know that your home is safe.
When you survey your possessions, nothing will be missing.
25 You will have many children;
your descendants will be as plentiful as grass!
26 You will go to the grave at a ripe old age,
like a sheaf of grain harvested at the proper time!

27 “We have studied life and found all this to be true.
Listen to my counsel, and apply it to yourself.”

Job’s Second Speech: A Response to Eliphaz

6 Then Job spoke again:

2 “If my misery could be weighed
and my troubles be put on the scales,
3 they would outweigh all the sands of the sea.
That is why I spoke impulsively.
4 For the Almighty has struck me down with his arrows.
Their poison infects my spirit.
God’s terrors are lined up against me.
5 Don’t I have a right to complain?
Don’t wild donkeys bray when they find no grass,
and oxen bellow when they have no food?
6 Don’t people complain about unsalted food?
Does anyone want the tasteless white of an egg?[f]
7 My appetite disappears when I look at it;
I gag at the thought of eating it!

8 “Oh, that I might have my request,
that God would grant my desire.
9 I wish he would crush me.
I wish he would reach out his hand and kill me.
10 At least I can take comfort in this:
Despite the pain,
I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
11 But I don’t have the strength to endure.
I have nothing to live for.
12 Do I have the strength of a stone?
Is my body made of bronze?
13 No, I am utterly helpless,
without any chance of success.

14 “One should be kind to a fainting friend,
but you accuse me without any fear of the Almighty.[g]
15 My brothers, you have proved as unreliable as a seasonal brook
that overflows its banks in the spring
16 when it is swollen with ice and melting snow.
17 But when the hot weather arrives, the water disappears.
The brook vanishes in the heat.
18 The caravans turn aside to be refreshed,
but there is nothing to drink, so they die.
19 The caravans from Tema search for this water;
the travelers from Sheba hope to find it.
20 They count on it but are disappointed.
When they arrive, their hopes are dashed.
21 You, too, have given no help.
You have seen my calamity, and you are afraid.
22 But why? Have I ever asked you for a gift?
Have I begged for anything of yours for myself?
23 Have I asked you to rescue me from my enemies,
or to save me from ruthless people?
24 Teach me, and I will keep quiet.
Show me what I have done wrong.
25 Honest words can be painful,
but what do your criticisms amount to?
26 Do you think your words are convincing
when you disregard my cry of desperation?
27 You would even send an orphan into slavery[h]
or sell a friend.
28 Look at me!
Would I lie to your face?
29 Stop assuming my guilt,
for I have done no wrong.
30 Do you think I am lying?
Don’t I know the difference between right and wrong?

7 “Is not all human life a struggle?
Our lives are like that of a hired hand,
2 like a worker who longs for the shade,
like a servant waiting to be paid.
3 I, too, have been assigned months of futility,
long and weary nights of misery.
4 Lying in bed, I think, ‘When will it be morning?’
But the night drags on, and I toss till dawn.
5 My body is covered with maggots and scabs.
My skin breaks open, oozing with pus.

Job Cries Out to God

6 “My days fly faster than a weaver’s shuttle.
They end without hope.
7 O God, remember that my life is but a breath,
and I will never again feel happiness.
8 You see me now, but not for long.
You will look for me, but I will be gone.
9 Just as a cloud dissipates and vanishes,
those who die[i] will not come back.
10 They are gone forever from their home—
never to be seen again.

11 “I cannot keep from speaking.
I must express my anguish.
My bitter soul must complain.
12 Am I a sea monster or a dragon
that you must place me under guard?
13 I think, ‘My bed will comfort me,
and sleep will ease my misery,’
14 but then you shatter me with dreams
and terrify me with visions.
15 I would rather be strangled—
rather die than suffer like this.
16 I hate my life and don’t want to go on living.
Oh, leave me alone for my few remaining days.

17 “What are people, that you should make so much of us,
that you should think of us so often?
18 For you examine us every morning
and test us every moment.
19 Why won’t you leave me alone,
at least long enough for me to swallow!
20 If I have sinned, what have I done to you,
O watcher of all humanity?
Why make me your target?
Am I a burden to you?[j]
21 Why not just forgive my sin
and take away my guilt?
For soon I will lie down in the dust and die.
When you look for me, I will be gone.”

Footnotes:

  1. 4:15a Or wind; also in 4:16.
  2. 4:15b Or its wind sent shivers up my spine.
  3. 5:1 Hebrew the holy ones.
  4. 5:5a The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  5. 5:5b As in Greek and Syriac versions; Hebrew reads A snare snatches their wealth.
  6. 6:6 Or the tasteless juice of the mallow plant?
  7. 6:14 Or friend, / or he might lose his fear of the Almighty.
  8. 6:27 Hebrew even gamble over an orphan.
  9. 7:9 Hebrew who go down to Sheol.
  10. 7:20 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads target, so that I am a burden to myself?
New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


1 Corinthians 14:18-40

18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you. 19 But in a church meeting I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language.

20 Dear brothers and sisters, don’t be childish in your understanding of these things. Be innocent as babies when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind. 21 It is written in the Scriptures[a]:

“I will speak to my own people
through strange languages
and through the lips of foreigners.
But even then, they will not listen to me,”[b]
says the Lord.

22 So you see that speaking in tongues is a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers. Prophecy, however, is for the benefit of believers, not unbelievers. 23 Even so, if unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your church meeting and hear everyone speaking in an unknown language, they will think you are crazy. 24 But if all of you are prophesying, and unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your meeting, they will be convicted of sin and judged by what you say. 25 As they listen, their secret thoughts will be exposed, and they will fall to their knees and worship God, declaring, “God is truly here among you.”

A Call to Orderly Worship

26 Well, my brothers and sisters, let’s summarize. When you meet together, one will sing, another will teach, another will tell some special revelation God has given, one will speak in tongues, and another will interpret what is said. But everything that is done must strengthen all of you.

27 No more than two or three should speak in tongues. They must speak one at a time, and someone must interpret what they say. 28 But if no one is present who can interpret, they must be silent in your church meeting and speak in tongues to God privately.

29 Let two or three people prophesy, and let the others evaluate what is said. 30 But if someone is prophesying and another person receives a revelation from the Lord, the one who is speaking must stop. 31 In this way, all who prophesy will have a turn to speak, one after the other, so that everyone will learn and be encouraged. 32 Remember that people who prophesy are in control of their spirit and can take turns. 33 For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people.[c]

34 Women should be silent during the church meetings. It is not proper for them to speak. They should be submissive, just as the law says. 35 If they have any questions, they should ask their husbands at home, for it is improper for women to speak in church meetings.[d]

36 Or do you think God’s word originated with you Corinthians? Are you the only ones to whom it was given? 37 If you claim to be a prophet or think you are spiritual, you should recognize that what I am saying is a command from the Lord himself. 38 But if you do not recognize this, you yourself will not be recognized.[e]

39 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and don’t forbid speaking in tongues. 40 But be sure that everything is done properly and in order.

Footnotes:

  1. 14:21a Greek in the law.
  2. 14:21b Isa 28:11-12.
  3. 14:33 The phrase as in all the meetings of God’s holy people could instead be joined to the beginning of 14:34.
  4. 14:35 Some manuscripts place verses 34-35 after 14:40.
  5. 14:38 Some manuscripts read If you are ignorant of this, stay in your ignorance.
New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Psalm 37:30-40

30 The godly offer good counsel;
they teach right from wrong.
31 They have made God’s law their own,
so they will never slip from his path.

32 The wicked wait in ambush for the godly,
looking for an excuse to kill them.
33 But the Lord will not let the wicked succeed
or let the godly be condemned when they are put on trial.

34 Put your hope in the Lord.
Travel steadily along his path.
He will honor you by giving you the land.
You will see the wicked destroyed.

35 I have seen wicked and ruthless people
flourishing like a tree in its native soil.
36 But when I looked again, they were gone!
Though I searched for them, I could not find them!

37 Look at those who are honest and good,
for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace.
38 But the rebellious will be destroyed;
they have no future.

39 The Lord rescues the godly;
he is their fortress in times of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them,
rescuing them from the wicked.
He saves them,
and they find shelter in him.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Proverbs 21:27

27 The sacrifice of an evil person is detestable,
especially when it is offered with wrong motives.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.


Posted on

8/21/2023 DAB Transcript

Job 1:1-3:26, 1 Corinthians 14:1-17, Psalm 37:12-29, Proverbs 21:25-26

Today is the 21st day of August, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is wonderful to be here with you today as we dive into our week and move forward together on our adventure through the Scriptures this year. And our step forward yesterday brought us to the conclusion of a book and that was the book of Esther. And that can only mean, pretty much, one thing, that we have some new territory to move into as we take the next step forward. And this new territory that we are moving into today, and we’ll camp out in for a little while, is called the book of Job.

Introduction to the Book of Job:

And Job is one of the most beautiful pieces of literature in the Bible, many believe in all of the world in all of history, but underneath it all, it’s dealing with a problem, the problem of evil and human suffering, begging for the answer why me and then groping for an answer. The origins of Job are interesting because they’re disputed and because they’re pretty much unknown for certain, there isn’t any historical context in the book, and it doesn’t name any historical figures that can be searched and give clues. So, there is much conjecture and there are varying opinions, even in Jewish tradition. So, some scholars believe that because of the Hebrew that’s used in the book of Job, it’s archaic and there are many unique words that are used anywhere else in the Bible, that that Job might’ve been a contemporary of Abraham, going back that far or maybe a contemporary of Jacob. Then others believe that the book is much newer than that, that it was probably written by a scribe that was returning from exile and we spent plenty of time in the season of the exile. So, a scribe coming back from exile whose native tongue wasn’t Hebrew. And then many follow the tradition that Job was collected, at least collected if not written by Moses. And if that were true, then he was probably writing down oral traditions that were passed down maybe for a long, long time. Or maybe writing a theological explanation, it’s dealing with the issue of suffering, so that the book of Job becomes a parable. But regardless it’s a beautifully written book that we’re going to read, and it deals and allows us to wrestle with the issue of suffering. And as we get into Job, we’ll certainly right away find out what happened to Job, what happened to him. And we’ll find out that what did happen to him was indeed terribly traumatic and we’ll watch how he responds and how he deals with that. And then some friends, we’ll year of what has happened to Job, and they will come, and they will sit with him and just sit, saying nothing. Nobody saying anything for a week. They’re just being present to Job in his suffering. And then finally Job starts speaking. And when he does it’s a conversation from that point forward, a back and forth between Job and his friends. Job claims that he is innocent before God and doesn’t deserve what has happened to him and his life. And he wants to talk to God, straight to God, about it. While his friends are offering human wisdom in the face of suffering, so many of the things that Job’s friends say we can find them to be echoes of the kinds of things that we might find ourselves saying to a person in suffering who is claiming to be innocent. In the end, nobody knew what they were talking about. But God does show up and then we’ll get a chance to see what Job thinks about it all. After having his meeting with God. And so, with that we begin Job chapters 1, 2 and 3 today.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word and as we navigate now through the Book of Esther and into the Book of Job, we certainly notice a change in tone and complexion and we’re navigating now into some of the deeper and more difficult aspects of life. Things that give us some of the largest questions. And so, Holy Spirit, come, as we navigate through the Book of Job. Open our eyes that we can see what we need to see. Open our ears that we can hear what we need to hear. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com that is home base and is where you can find out what’s happening, so check that out. The Daily Audio Bible app does that and a lot more and that can be downloaded free from the App Store that works with your device. And so, certainly, certainly check that out. And while you’re checking out, you can check out the Community Section. This is where there are different links to social media that we participate in. But this is also where the Prayer Wall lives and the Prayer Wall is here for the Global Campfire. It’s something that’s always there, always available. We can always pray there, we can always ask for prayer there, and that can be found in the Community Section. And so, so certainly, certainly be aware of that.

And if you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible. Thank you, thank you, we wouldn’t be here. We couldn’t be here if we weren’t in this together and so thank you, humbly, for your partnership. There is a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app, you can press the Give button, that’s in the upper right-hand corner. Or the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

And as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the Hotline button in the app or you can dial 877-942-4253.

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

Prayer and Encouragements:

Hello DAB family, my name is Bob from Connecticut, first-time caller, six your listener. Brian from Indiana, I heard your message on August 14th. You lost your job in healthcare industry and were asking for prayers for clarity and the Lord’s will. You shared that you had some anxiety around the waiting. Brian, I wanted to share my testimony with you around a similar story. I was in an industry for over three decades thriving, had some tremendous opportunities, really loved it. And in early 2020, I found myself let go and it really rocked my world and my, my wife’s world. Later that year, I found another job in the same industry, but the pandemic was doing a real number on my field and lost that job as well. The Lord led me to First Peter 5 verses six and seven. Humble yourselves therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up into time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. And Brian, I can remember reading that verse and it just so deeply impacted me that the Lord saw my situation, and He had good plans for me and that He cares for me personally. And make a long story short, in the period of like 23 months, I had been let go three times. And I had a supernatural peace at that point that the Lord was closing the door and He was about to open another one for me. And it wasn’t a week later that a career coach on LinkedIn, who happened to be a believer, reached out to me. And he ended up helping me talk through a number of things. And today, I find myself in a completely different field, something I never would’ve imagined myself doing. Couldn’t be happier. Brian, He has good plans for your brother. You can cast all your cares upon him.

Eloha, my name is Kuna. And I am from Maui. It is August 16th. It’s a week and a day from the wildfires that we’ve had here on Maui. We have the whole town of Lahina that was decimated. Over a hundred people have been found dead. I am lifting up the island of Maui, the communities of Lihina, Kula, Kehay, wherever we have had these horrific fires. I’m praying for organization in the efforts to help and I’m asking for prayer from the Daily Audio Bible community, for all of those that have been affected. Please help us and keep us all in prayer. Mahalo, thank you.

I’m calling in to pray for the ladies that prayer request was aired on August 7th and her brother-in-law had had an aneurism and was on life support. And her sister called and was really antagonistic to the Lord, she was agnostic and was saying don’t, don’t bring your Jesus to me. And also, she had a sister who died of cancer and her son who had chosen Islam. And oh, my goodness, sister, I can hear the hurt in your voice and the desperation, and I can also hear your conviction to speak the name of Jesus and to stand in for your family that doesn’t know Jesus. But man, I just, I pray for you. I lift you up. I pray that the peace of Christ, that peace that passes all understanding, would guard your heart and your mind. And I think the key to that is that is passes all understanding. We don’t have to understand, we just have to let the peace of the Lord be with us. And also, in John 14 verse 27 it says, Peace, I leave with you, my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not let them be afraid. And so, sister, I pray for you. Jesus, would You come to this sister of mine and would You cause Your peace to rest upon her. I lift up the hurt and the brokenness in her family. I lift up the family who has chosen things other than you. Family that is antagonistic towards You. And I pray that You would move in that family. That You would cause healing and restoration that You would bring light, life God and that You would bring them to know You. And I pray for this sister, that she would be tuned to Your spirit in regards to her family. That she would know when to speak and when to stay silent. And that she would know how to love as only You can love. Bless you sister.

Hello all, this is Matt, Plant it by the Water from Tennessee. I’m calling in response to Angie’s prayer for support during her adoption process. And Angie, I’m an adoptive dad. I’ve been where you’ve been. And I’m just praying for you and want you to not give up. Angie, that you can trust God’s plans. James 1:2-4 talks about consider it pure joy when you encounter various trials because they make you mature and complete. And I can say, when I went through those trials, adopting, that God was making me stronger because if you have an adopted child, they face more challenges than a biological child. So, just know we’re praying for you. And I also just want to encourage you to think of 1 Chronicles 20 where it says, we do not know what to do but our eyes are on You. So, Angie, we’re praying for you. Sending our love your way and just don’t give up. Hang in there.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday August 21, 2023 (NIV)

Job 1-3

Satan Tests Job

1 There was a man named Job, living in the land of Uz,[a] who worshiped God and was faithful to him. He was a good man, careful not to do anything evil. 2 He had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, one thousand head of cattle, and five hundred donkeys. He also had a large number of servants and was the richest man in the East.

4 Job's sons used to take turns giving a feast, to which all the others would come, and they always invited their three sisters to join them. 5 The morning after each feast, Job would get up early and offer sacrifices for each of his children in order to purify them. He always did this because he thought that one of them might have sinned by insulting God unintentionally.

6 (A)When the day came for the heavenly beings[b] to appear before the Lord, Satan[c] was there among them. 7 The Lord asked him, “What have you been doing?”

Satan answered, “I have been walking here and there, roaming around the earth.”

8 “Did you notice my servant Job?” the Lord asked. “There is no one on earth as faithful and good as he is. He worships me and is careful not to do anything evil.”

9 (B)Satan replied, “Would Job worship you if he got nothing out of it? 10 You have always protected him and his family and everything he owns. You bless everything he does, and you have given him enough cattle to fill the whole country. 11 But now suppose you take away everything he has—he will curse you to your face!”

12 “All right,” the Lord said to Satan, “everything he has is in your power, but you must not hurt Job himself.” So Satan left.

Job's Children and Wealth Are Destroyed

13 One day when Job's children were having a feast at the home of their oldest brother, 14 a messenger came running to Job. “We were plowing the fields with the oxen,” he said, “and the donkeys were in a nearby pasture. 15 Suddenly the Sabeans[d] attacked and stole them all. They killed every one of your servants except me. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

16 Before he had finished speaking, another servant came and said, “Lightning struck the sheep and the shepherds and killed them all. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

17 Before he had finished speaking, another servant came and said, “Three bands of Chaldean[e] raiders attacked us, took away the camels, and killed all your servants except me. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

18 Before he had finished speaking, another servant came and said, “Your children were having a feast at the home of your oldest son, 19 when a storm swept in from the desert. It blew the house down and killed them all. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

20 Then Job got up and tore his clothes in grief. He shaved his head and threw himself face downward on the ground. 21 (C)He said, “I was born with nothing, and I will die with nothing. The Lord gave, and now he has taken away. May his name be praised!”

22 In spite of everything that had happened, Job did not sin by blaming God.

Satan Tests Job Again

2 When the day came for the heavenly beings to appear before the Lord again, Satan was there among them. 2 The Lord asked him, “Where have you been?”

Satan answered, “I have been walking here and there, roaming around the earth.”

3 “Did you notice my servant Job?” the Lord asked. “There is no one on earth as faithful and good as he is. He worships me and is careful not to do anything evil. You persuaded me to let you attack him for no reason at all, but Job is still as faithful as ever.”

4 Satan replied, “A person will give up everything in order to stay alive. 5 But now suppose you hurt his body—he will curse you to your face!”

6 So the Lord said to Satan, “All right, he is in your power, but you are not to kill him.”

7 Then Satan left the Lord's presence and made sores break out all over Job's body. 8 Job went and sat by the garbage dump and took a piece of broken pottery to scrape his sores. 9 His wife said to him, “You are still as faithful as ever, aren't you? Why don't you curse God and die?”

10 Job answered, “You are talking nonsense! When God sends us something good, we welcome it. How can we complain when he sends us trouble?” Even in all this suffering Job said nothing against God.

Job's Friends Come

11 Three of Job's friends were Eliphaz, from the city of Teman, Bildad, from the land of Shuah, and Zophar, from the land of Naamah. When they heard how much Job had been suffering, they decided to go and comfort him. 12 While they were still a long way off they saw Job, but did not recognize him. When they did, they began to weep and wail, tearing their clothes in grief and throwing dust into the air and on their heads. 13 Then they sat there on the ground with him for seven days and nights without saying a word, because they saw how much he was suffering.

Job's Complaint to God

3 (D)Finally Job broke the silence and cursed the day on which he had been born.

Job

2-3 (E)O God, put a curse on the day I was born;
put a curse on the night when I was conceived!
4 Turn that day into darkness, God.
Never again remember that day;
never again let light shine on it.
5 Make it a day of gloom and thick darkness;
cover it with clouds, and blot out the sun.
6 Blot that night out of the year,
and never let it be counted again;
7 make it a barren, joyless night.
8 Tell the sorcerers to curse that day,
those who know how to control Leviathan.[f]
9 Keep the morning star from shining;
give that night no hope of dawn.
10 Curse that night for letting me be born,
for exposing me to trouble and grief.

11 I wish I had died in my mother's womb
or died the moment I was born.
12 Why did my mother hold me on her knees?
Why did she feed me at her breast?
13 If I had died then, I would be at rest now,
14 sleeping like the kings and rulers
who rebuilt ancient palaces.
15 Then I would be sleeping like princes
who filled their houses with gold and silver,
16 or sleeping like a stillborn child.
17 In the grave wicked people stop their evil,
and tired workers find rest at last.
18 Even prisoners enjoy peace,
free from shouts and harsh commands.
19 Everyone is there, the famous and the unknown,
and slaves at last are free.

20 Why let people go on living in misery?
Why give light to those in grief
21 (F)They wait for death, but it never comes;
they prefer a grave to any treasure.
22 They are not happy till they are dead and buried;
23 God keeps their future hidden
and hems them in on every side.
24 Instead of eating, I mourn,
and I can never stop groaning.
25 Everything I fear and dread comes true.
26 I have no peace, no rest,
and my troubles never end.

Footnotes:

  1. Job 1:1 UZ: An area whose exact location is unknown.
  2. Job 1:6 Supernatural beings who serve God in heaven.
  3. Job 1:6 A supernatural being whose name indicates he was regarded as the opponent of human beings.
  4. Job 1:15 A tribe of wandering raiders from the south.
  5. Job 1:17 A tribe of wandering raiders from the north.
  6. Job 3:8 Some take this to be the crocodile, others a legendary monster. Magicians were thought to be able to make him cause eclipses of the sun.

Cross references:

  1. Job 1:6 : Gen 6:2
  2. Job 1:9 : Rev 12:10
  3. Job 1:21 : Sir 40:1; Job 11:14
  4. Job 3:1 : Jer 20:14-Jer 20:18
  5. Job 3:2 : Sir 23:14
  6. Job 3:21 : Rev 9:6
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

1 Corinthians 14:1-17

More about Gifts from the Spirit

14 It is love, then, that you should strive for. Set your hearts on spiritual gifts, especially the gift of proclaiming God's message. 2 Those who speak in strange tongues do not speak to others but to God, because no one understands them. They are speaking secret truths by the power of the Spirit. 3 But those who proclaim God's message speak to people and give them help, encouragement, and comfort. 4 Those who speak in strange tongues help only themselves, but those who proclaim God's message help the whole church.

5 I would like for all of you to speak in strange tongues; but I would rather that you had the gift of proclaiming God's message. For the person who proclaims God's message is of greater value than the one who speaks in strange tongues—unless there is someone present who can explain what is said, so that the whole church may be helped. 6 So when I come to you, my friends, what use will I be to you if I speak in strange tongues? Not a bit, unless I bring you some revelation from God or some knowledge or some inspired message or some teaching.

7 Take such lifeless musical instruments as the flute or the harp—how will anyone know the tune that is being played unless the notes are sounded distinctly? 8 And if the one who plays the bugle does not sound a clear call, who will prepare for battle? 9 In the same way, how will anyone understand what you are talking about if your message given in strange tongues is not clear? Your words will vanish in the air! 10 There are many different languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning. 11 But if I do not know the language being spoken, those who use it will be foreigners to me and I will be a foreigner to them. 12 Since you are eager to have the gifts of the Spirit, you must try above everything else to make greater use of those which help to build up the church.

13 The person who speaks in strange tongues, then, must pray for the gift to explain what is said. 14 For if I pray in this way, my spirit prays indeed, but my mind has no part in it. 15 What should I do, then? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray also with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will sing also with my mind. 16 When you give thanks to God in spirit only, how can ordinary people taking part in the meeting say “Amen” to your prayer of thanksgiving? They have no way of knowing what you are saying. 17 Even if your prayer of thanks to God is quite good, other people are not helped at all.

Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Psalm 37:12-29

12 The wicked plot against good people
and glare at them with hate.
13 But the Lord laughs at wicked people,
because he knows they will soon be destroyed.

14 The wicked draw their swords and bend their bows
to kill the poor and needy,
to slaughter those who do what is right;
15 but they will be killed by their own swords,
and their bows will be smashed.

16 The little that a good person owns
is worth more than the wealth of all the wicked,
17 because the Lord will take away the strength of the wicked,
but protect those who are good.

18 The Lord takes care of those who obey him,
and the land will be theirs forever.
19 They will not suffer when times are bad;
they will have enough in time of famine.
20 But the wicked will die;
the enemies of the Lord will vanish like wild flowers;
they will disappear like smoke.

21 The wicked borrow and never pay back,
but good people are generous with their gifts.
22 Those who are blessed by the Lord will possess the land,
but those who are cursed by him will be driven out.

23 The Lord guides us in the way we should go
and protects those who please him.
24 If they fall, they will not stay down,
because the Lord will help them up.

25 I am old now; I have lived a long time,
but I have never seen good people abandoned by the Lord
or their children begging for food.
26 At all times they give freely and lend to others,
and their children are a blessing.

27 Turn away from evil and do good,
and your descendants will always live in the land;
28 for the Lord loves what is right
and does not abandon his faithful people.
He protects them forever,
but the descendants of the wicked will be driven out.
29 The righteous will possess the land
and live in it forever.

Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Proverbs 21:25-26

25 Lazy people who refuse to work are only killing themselves; 26 all they do is think about what they would like to have. The righteous, however, can give, and give generously.

Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday August 20, 2023 (NIV)

Esther 8-10

The Jews Are Told to Fight Back

8 That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther all the property of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. Esther told the king that Mordecai was related to her, and from then on Mordecai was allowed to enter the king's presence. 2 The king took off his ring with his seal on it (which he had taken back from Haman) and gave it to Mordecai. Esther put Mordecai in charge of Haman's property.

3 Then Esther spoke to the king again, throwing herself at his feet and crying. She begged him to do something to stop the evil plot that Haman, the descendant of Agag,[a] had made against the Jews. 4 The king held out the gold scepter to her, so she stood up and said, 5 “If it please Your Majesty, and if you care about me and if it seems right to you, please issue a proclamation to keep Haman's orders from being carried out—those orders that the son of Hammedatha the descendant of Agag gave for the destruction of all the Jews in the empire. 6 How can I endure it if this disaster comes on my people, and my own relatives are killed?”

7 King Xerxes then said to Queen Esther and Mordecai, the Jew, “Look, I have hanged Haman for his plot against the Jews, and I have given Esther his property. 8 But a proclamation issued in the king's name and stamped with the royal seal cannot be revoked. You may, however, write to the Jews whatever you like; and you may write it in my name and stamp it with the royal seal.”

9 This happened on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. Mordecai called the king's secretaries and dictated letters to the Jews and to the governors, administrators, and officials of all the 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia.[b] The letters were written to each province in its own language and system of writing and to the Jews in their language and system of writing. 10 Mordecai had the letters written in the name of King Xerxes, and he stamped them with the royal seal. They were delivered by riders mounted on fast horses from the royal stables.

11 These letters explained that the king would allow the Jews in every city to organize for self-defense. If armed men of any nationality in any province attacked the Jewish men, their children, or their women, the Jews could fight back and destroy the attackers; they could slaughter them to the last man and take their possessions. 12 This decree was to take effect throughout the Persian Empire on the day set for the slaughter of the Jews, the thirteenth of Adar, the twelfth month. 13 It was to be proclaimed as law and made known to everyone in every province, so that the Jews would be ready to take revenge on their enemies when that day came. 14 At the king's command the riders mounted royal horses and rode off at top speed. The decree was also made public in Susa, the capital city.

15 Mordecai left the palace, wearing royal robes of blue and white, a cloak of fine purple linen, and a magnificent gold crown. Then the streets of Susa rang with cheers and joyful shouts. 16 For the Jews there was joy and relief, happiness and a sense of victory. 17 In every city and province, wherever the king's proclamation was read, the Jews held a joyful holiday with feasting and happiness. In fact, many other people became Jews, because they were afraid of them now.

The Jews Destroy Their Enemies

9 The thirteenth day of Adar came, the day on which the royal proclamation was to take effect, the day when the enemies of the Jews were hoping to get them in their power. But instead, the Jews triumphed over them. 2 In the Jewish quarter of every city[c] in the empire the Jews organized to attack anyone who tried to harm them. People everywhere were afraid of them, and no one could stand against them. 3 In fact, all the provincial officials—governors, administrators, and royal representatives—helped the Jews because they were all afraid of Mordecai. 4 It was well-known throughout the empire that Mordecai was now a powerful man in the palace and was growing more powerful. 5 So the Jews could do what they wanted with their enemies. They attacked them with swords and slaughtered them.

6 In Susa, the capital city itself, the Jews killed five hundred people. 7-10 Among them were the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews: Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. However, there was no looting.

11 That same day the number of people killed in Susa was reported to the king. 12 He then said to Queen Esther, “In Susa alone the Jews have killed five hundred people, including Haman's ten sons. What must they have done out in the provinces! What do you want now? You shall have it. Tell me what else you want, and you shall have it.”

13 Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty, let the Jews in Susa do again tomorrow what they were allowed to do today. And have the bodies of Haman's ten sons hung from the gallows.” 14 The king ordered this to be done, and the proclamation was issued in Susa. The bodies of Haman's ten sons were publicly displayed. 15 On the fourteenth day of Adar the Jews of Susa got together again and killed three hundred more people in the city. But again, they did no looting.

16 The Jews in the provinces also organized and defended themselves. They rid themselves of their enemies by killing seventy-five thousand people who hated them. But they did no looting. 17 This was on the thirteenth day of Adar. On the next day, the fourteenth, there was no more killing, and they made it a joyful day of feasting. 18 The Jews of Susa, however, made the fifteenth a holiday, since they had slaughtered their enemies on the thirteenth and fourteenth and then stopped on the fifteenth. 19 This is why Jews who live in small towns observe the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a joyous holiday, a time for feasting and giving gifts of food to one another.

The Festival of Purim

20 Mordecai had these events written down and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, throughout the Persian Empire, 21 telling them to observe the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar as holidays every year. 22 These were the days on which the Jews had rid themselves of their enemies; this was a month that had been turned from a time of grief and despair into a time of joy and happiness. They were told to observe these days with feasts and parties, giving gifts of food to one another and to the poor. 23 So the Jews followed Mordecai's instructions, and the celebration became an annual custom.

24 [d]Haman son of Hammedatha—the descendant of Agag and the enemy of the Jewish people—had cast lots (“purim,” they were called) to determine the day for destroying the Jews; he had planned to wipe them out. 25 But Esther went to the king, and the king issued written orders with the result that Haman suffered the fate he had planned for the Jews—he and his sons were hanged from the gallows. 26 That is why the holidays are called Purim. Because of Mordecai's letter and because of all that had happened to them, 27 the Jews made it a rule for themselves, their descendants, and anyone who might become a Jew, that at the proper time each year these two days would be regularly observed according to Mordecai's instructions. 28 It was resolved that every Jewish family of every future generation in every province and every city should remember and observe the days of Purim for all time to come.

29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai, also wrote a letter, putting her full authority behind the letter about Purim, which Mordecai had written earlier. 30 The letter was addressed to all the Jews, and copies were sent to all the 127 provinces of the Persian Empire. It wished the Jews peace and security 31 and directed them and their descendants to observe the days of Purim at the proper time, just as they had adopted rules for the observance of fasts and times of mourning. This was commanded by both Mordecai and Queen Esther. 32 Esther's command, confirming the rules for Purim, was written down on a scroll.

The Greatness of Xerxes and Mordecai

10 King Xerxes imposed forced labor on the people of the coastal regions of his empire as well as on those of the interior. 2 All the great and wonderful things he did, as well as the whole story of how he promoted Mordecai to high office, are recorded in the official records of the kings of Persia and Media. 3 Mordecai the Jew was second in rank only to King Xerxes himself. He was honored and well-liked by his fellow Jews. He worked for the good of his people and for the security of all their descendants.

Footnotes:

  1. Esther 8:3 See 3.1.
  2. Esther 8:9 Hebrew Cush: Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
  3. Esther 9:2 In the Jewish quarter of every city; or In every Jewish city.
  4. Esther 9:24 AddEsth 3:7
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

1 Corinthians 12:27-13:13

27 All of you are Christ's body, and each one is a part of it. 28 (A)In the church God has put all in place: in the first place apostles, in the second place prophets, and in the third place teachers; then those who perform miracles, followed by those who are given the power to heal or to help others or to direct them or to speak in strange tongues. 29 They are not all apostles or prophets or teachers. Not everyone has the power to work miracles 30 or to heal diseases or to speak in strange tongues or to explain what is said. 31 Set your hearts, then, on the more important gifts.

Best of all, however, is the following way.

Love

13 I may be able to speak the languages of human beings and even of angels, but if I have no love, my speech is no more than a noisy gong or a clanging bell. 2 (B)I may have the gift of inspired preaching; I may have all knowledge and understand all secrets; I may have all the faith needed to move mountains—but if I have no love, I am nothing. 3 I may give away everything I have, and even give up my body to be burned[a]—but if I have no love, this does me no good.

4 Love is patient and kind; it is not jealous or conceited or proud; 5 love is not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs; 6 love is not happy with evil, but is happy with the truth. 7 Love never gives up; and its faith, hope, and patience never fail.

8 Love is eternal. There are inspired messages, but they are temporary; there are gifts of speaking in strange tongues, but they will cease; there is knowledge, but it will pass. 9 For our gifts of knowledge and of inspired messages are only partial; 10 but when what is perfect comes, then what is partial will disappear.

11 When I was a child, my speech, feelings, and thinking were all those of a child; now that I am an adult, I have no more use for childish ways. 12 What we see now is like a dim image in a mirror; then we shall see face-to-face. What I know now is only partial; then it will be complete—as complete as God's knowledge of me.

13 Meanwhile these three remain: faith, hope, and love; and the greatest of these is love.

Footnotes:

  1. 1 Corinthians 13:3 to be burned; some manuscripts have in order to boast.

Cross references:

  1. 1 Corinthians 12:28 : Eph 4:11
  2. 1 Corinthians 13:2 : Matt 17:20; 1Cor 21:21; Mark 11:23
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Psalm 37:1-11

The Destiny of the Wicked and of the Good[a]

37 Don't be worried on account of the wicked;
don't be jealous of those who do wrong.
2 They will soon disappear like grass that dries up;
they will die like plants that wither.

3 Trust in the Lord and do good;
live in the land and be safe.
4 Seek your happiness in the Lord,
and he will give you your heart's desire.

5 Give yourself to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will help you;
6 he will make your righteousness shine like the noonday sun.

7 Be patient and wait for the Lord to act;
don't be worried about those who prosper
or those who succeed in their evil plans.

8 Don't give in to worry or anger;
it only leads to trouble.
9 Those who trust in the Lord will possess the land,
but the wicked will be driven out.

10 Soon the wicked will disappear;
you may look for them, but you won't find them;
11 (A)but the humble will possess the land
and enjoy prosperity and peace.

Footnotes:

  1. Psalm 37:1 HEBREW TITLE: By David.

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 37:11 : Matt 5:5
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Proverbs 21:23-24

23 If you want to stay out of trouble, be careful what you say.

24 Show me a conceited person and I will show you someone who is arrogant, proud, and inconsiderate.

Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Posted on

8/19/2023 DAB Transcript

Esther 4:1-7:10, 1 Corinthians 12:1-26, Psalm 36:1-12, Proverbs 21:21-22

Today is the 19th day of August, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. How are you today? I’m fine. I am fine. It’s hot here in Tennessee. But things are going well. I hope they are well, wherever you might be, and that we might all remember that it is the joy of the Lord, that is our strength, and may we find it and maybe walk in it, as we take the next step forward together. Yesterday, we began the book of Esther and we talked about that. Today, we will take the next step forward in Esther and then tomorrow we will conclude the book of Esther. And so, we kinda have the lay of the land. A queen of Persia named Vashti was deposed. A Jewish queen was installed in her place. Her name was Hadassah or Esther, but nobody knows she’s a Jew. Her uncle Mordecai has saved the life of the king. He too, is a Jew but a man named Haman has been elevated to very, very high rank in the kingdom and everybody supposed to bow down to Haman. Mordecai won’t do that. Haman decides to destroy all the Jews in the Persian Empire, the king of Persia has agreed not understanding fully, that he has a Jewish queen at his side. And so, edicts are sent out throughout the Empire telling of this day, the 13th day of the 12 month, where everybody supposed to kill the Jews and take all their stuff. And so, we left our reading yesterday with…with the city of Susa, the Citadel capital city in an uproar over this edict, that has been sent out throughout the Empire, while the king and Haman sit down to drink. And that’s where you pick up the story. Today, Esther chapters 4 through 7.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word, we thank You for bringing us through another one of the weeks that we get to spend together, and all that You have deposited into our minds and hearts throughout this week. And even as we continue through this mighty story of the book of Esther. We see a mighty dramatic rescue, when all seemed hopeless, there You were in the middle of it. And we are encouraged because this has always been true. You are in the middle of it and sometimes You call us for such a time as this. May we be awake and aware; we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is home base, that’s where you find out what’s happening. So, find out what’s happening anytime you want, anytime you can. Check out the Daily Audio Bible app as well. That puts everything very conveniently in the palm of your hand and just so much more, you can track your progress as we navigate through the Scriptures. Just check it out, so much more. And the app is free, it can be found from the App Store that works with your device. So, check it out. And check out the different sections, like the Community Section. This is where to get connected on social media. This is where the Prayer Wall lives. Check out the Daily Audio Bible Shop. There are resources that can take us deeper into the locations of the Bible or deeper into different aspects of our faith or things to wear, things to journal with, the Daily Audio Bible journal that we crafted over years to create the…the best journal, the right size, everything, to just kinda carry around. At least, in our opinion. All of our writing resources because we definitely encourage journaling our way. If God’s gonna speak and we’re gonna spend a year in His word, then we should probably write some things down that we need to remember. So, all these kinds of resources can be found in the Daily Audio Bible Shop, so check it out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible. Thank you, humbly, there would be no Global Campfire if we weren’t here together and thank God, we are. So, thank you for your partnership. There is 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 the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

And as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement you can hit the Hotline button in the app or you can dial 877-942-4253

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

Prayer and Encouragements: Will be posted later this evening.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday August 19, 2023 (NIV)

Esther 4-7

Mordecai Asks for Esther's Help

4 When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes in anguish. Then he dressed in sackcloth, covered his head with ashes, and walked through the city, wailing loudly and bitterly, 2 until he came to the entrance of the palace. He did not go in because no one wearing sackcloth was allowed inside. 3 Throughout all the provinces, wherever the king's proclamation was made known, there was loud mourning among the Jews. They fasted, wept, wailed, and most of them put on sackcloth and lay in ashes.

4 When Esther's servant women and eunuchs told her what Mordecai was doing, she was deeply disturbed. She sent Mordecai some clothes to put on instead of the sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then she called Hathach, one of the palace eunuchs appointed as her servant by the king, and told him to go to Mordecai and find out what was happening and why. 6 Hathach went to Mordecai in the city square at the entrance of the palace. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him and just how much money Haman had promised to put into the royal treasury if all the Jews were killed. 8 He gave Hathach a copy of the proclamation that had been issued in Susa, ordering the destruction of the Jews. Mordecai asked him to take it to Esther, explain the situation to her, and have her go and plead with the king and beg him to have mercy on her people. 9 Hathach did this, 10 and Esther gave him this message to take back to Mordecai: 11 “If anyone, man or woman, goes to the inner courtyard and sees the king without being summoned, that person must die. That is the law; everyone, from the king's advisers to the people in the provinces, knows that. There is only one way to get around this law: if the king holds out his gold scepter to someone, then that person's life is spared. But it has been a month since the king sent for me.”

12 When Mordecai received Esther's message, 13 he sent her this warning: “Don't imagine that you are safer than any other Jew just because you are in the royal palace. 14 If you keep quiet at a time like this, help will come from heaven to the Jews, and they will be saved, but you will die and your father's family will come to an end. Yet who knows—maybe it was for a time like this that you were made queen!”

15 Esther sent Mordecai this reply: 16 “Go and get all the Jews in Susa together; hold a fast and pray for me. Don't eat or drink anything for three days and nights. My servant women and I will be doing the same. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. If I must die for doing it, I will die.”

17 Mordecai then left and did everything that Esther had told him to do.

Esther Invites the King and Haman to a Banquet

5 On the third day of her fast Esther put on her royal robes and went and stood in the inner courtyard of the palace, facing the throne room. The king was inside, seated on the royal throne, facing the entrance. 2 When the king saw Queen Esther standing outside, she won his favor, and he held out to her the gold scepter. She then came up and touched the tip of it. 3 “What is it, Queen Esther?” the king asked. “Tell me what you want, and you shall have it—even if it is half my empire.”

4 Esther replied, “If it please Your Majesty, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tonight at a banquet I am preparing for you.”

5 The king then ordered Haman to come quickly, so that they could be Esther's guests. So the king and Haman went to Esther's banquet. 6 Over the wine the king asked her, “Tell me what you want, and you shall have it. I will grant your request, even if you ask for half my empire.”

7 Esther replied, 8 “If Your Majesty is kind enough to grant my request, I would like you and Haman to be my guests tomorrow at another banquet that I will prepare for you. At that time I will tell you what I want.”

Haman Plots to Kill Mordecai

9 When Haman left the banquet he was happy and in a good mood. But then he saw Mordecai at the entrance of the palace, and when Mordecai did not rise or show any sign of respect as he passed, Haman was furious with him. 10 But he controlled himself and went on home. Then he invited his friends to his house and asked his wife Zeresh to join them. 11 He boasted to them about how rich he was, how many sons he had, how the king had promoted him to high office, and how much more important he was than any of the king's other officials. 12 “What is more,” Haman went on, “Queen Esther gave a banquet for no one but the king and me, and we are invited back tomorrow. 13 But none of this means a thing to me as long as I see that Jew Mordecai sitting at the entrance of the palace.”

14 So his wife and all his friends suggested, “Why don't you have a gallows built, seventy-five feet tall? Tomorrow morning you can ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on it, and then you can go to the banquet happy.”

Haman thought this was a good idea, so he had the gallows built.

The King Honors Mordecai

6 That same night the king could not get to sleep, so he had the official records of the empire brought and read to him. 2 [a]The part they read included the account of how Mordecai had uncovered a plot to assassinate the king—the plot made by Bigthana and Teresh, the two palace eunuchs who had guarded the king's rooms. 3 The king asked, “How have we honored and rewarded Mordecai for this?”

His servants answered, “Nothing has been done for him.”

4 “Are any of my officials in the palace?” the king asked.

Now Haman had just entered the courtyard; he had come to ask the king to have Mordecai hanged on the gallows that was now ready. 5 So the servants answered, “Haman is here, waiting to see you.”

“Show him in,” said the king.

6 So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “There is someone I wish very much to honor. What should I do for this man?”

Haman thought to himself, “Now who could the king want to honor so much? Me, of course.”

7-8 So he answered the king, “Have royal robes brought for this man—robes that you yourself wear. Have a royal ornament[b] put on your own horse. 9 Then have one of your highest noblemen dress the man in these robes and lead him, mounted on the horse, through the city square. Have the nobleman announce as they go: ‘See how the king rewards someone he wishes to honor!’”

10 Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry and get the robes and the horse, and provide these honors for Mordecai the Jew. Do everything for him that you have suggested. You will find him sitting at the entrance of the palace.”

11 So Haman got the robes and the horse, and he put the robes on Mordecai. Mordecai got on the horse, and Haman led him through the city square, announcing to the people as they went: “See how the king rewards a man he wishes to honor!”

12 Mordecai then went back to the palace entrance while Haman hurried home, covering his face in embarrassment. 13 He told his wife and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then she and those wise friends of his told him, “You are beginning to lose power to Mordecai. He is a Jew, and you cannot overcome him. He will certainly defeat you.”

Haman Is Put to Death

14 While they were still talking, the palace eunuchs arrived in a hurry to take Haman to Esther's banquet.

7 And so the king and Haman went to eat with Esther 2 for a second time. Over the wine the king asked her again, “Now, Queen Esther, what do you want? Tell me and you shall have it. I'll even give you half the empire.”

3 Queen Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty to grant my humble request, my wish is that I may live and that my people may live. 4 My people and I have been sold for slaughter. If it were nothing more serious than being sold into slavery, I would have kept quiet and not bothered you about it;[c] but we are about to be destroyed—exterminated!”

5 Then King Xerxes asked Queen Esther, “Who dares to do such a thing? Where is this man?”

6 Esther answered, “Our enemy, our persecutor, is this evil man Haman!”

Haman faced the king and queen with terror. 7 The king got up in a fury, left the room, and went outside to the palace gardens. Haman could see that the king was determined to punish him for this, so he stayed behind to beg Queen Esther for his life. 8 He had just thrown himself down on Esther's couch to beg for mercy, when the king came back into the room from the gardens. Seeing this, the king cried out, “Is this man going to rape the queen right here in front of me, in my own palace?”

The king had no sooner said this than the eunuchs covered Haman's head. 9 Then one of them, who was named Harbonah, said, “Haman even went so far as to build a gallows at his house so that he could hang Mordecai, who saved Your Majesty's life. And it's seventy-five feet tall!”

“Hang Haman on it!” the king commanded.

10 So Haman was hanged on the gallows that he had built for Mordecai. Then the king's anger cooled down.

Footnotes:

  1. Esther 6:2 AddEsth 2:21; AddEsth 2:22
  2. Esther 6:7 Probably a type of crown.
  3. Esther 7:4 Probable text and not … it; Hebrew unclear.
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

1 Corinthians 12:1-26

Gifts from the Holy Spirit

12 Now, concerning what you wrote about the gifts from the Holy Spirit.

I want you to know the truth about them, my friends. 2 You know that while you were still heathen, you were led astray in many ways to the worship of lifeless idols. 3 I want you to know that no one who is led by God's Spirit can say “A curse on Jesus!” and no one can confess “Jesus is Lord,” without being guided by the Holy Spirit.

4 (A)There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit gives them. 5 There are different ways of serving, but the same Lord is served. 6 There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service. 7 The Spirit's presence is shown in some way in each person for the good of all. 8 The Spirit gives one person a message full of wisdom, while to another person the same Spirit gives a message full of knowledge. 9 One and the same Spirit gives faith to one person, while to another person he gives the power to heal. 10 The Spirit gives one person the power to work miracles; to another, the gift of speaking God's message; and to yet another, the ability to tell the difference between gifts that come from the Spirit and those that do not. To one person he gives the ability to speak in strange tongues, and to another he gives the ability to explain what is said. 11 But it is one and the same Spirit who does all this; as he wishes, he gives a different gift to each person.

One Body with Many Parts

12 (B)Christ is like a single body, which has many parts; it is still one body, even though it is made up of different parts. 13 In the same way, all of us, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether slaves or free, have been baptized into the one body by the same Spirit, and we have all been given the one Spirit to drink.

14 For the body itself is not made up of only one part, but of many parts. 15 If the foot were to say, “Because I am not a hand, I don't belong to the body,” that would not keep it from being a part of the body. 16 And if the ear were to say, “Because I am not an eye, I don't belong to the body,” that would not keep it from being a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were just an eye, how could it hear? And if it were only an ear, how could it smell? 18 As it is, however, God put every different part in the body just as he wanted it to be. 19 There would not be a body if it were all only one part! 20 As it is, there are many parts but one body.

21 So then, the eye cannot say to the hand, “I don't need you!” Nor can the head say to the feet, “Well, I don't need you!” 22 On the contrary, we cannot do without the parts of the body that seem to be weaker; 23 and those parts that we think aren't worth very much are the ones which we treat with greater care; while the parts of the body which don't look very nice are treated with special modesty, 24 which the more beautiful parts do not need. God himself has put the body together in such a way as to give greater honor to those parts that need it. 25 And so there is no division in the body, but all its different parts have the same concern for one another. 26 If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it; if one part is praised, all the other parts share its happiness.

Cross references:

  1. 1 Corinthians 12:4 : Rom 12:6-Rom 12:8
  2. 1 Corinthians 12:12 : Rom 12:4; Rom 12:5
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Psalm 36

Human Wickedness[a]

36 (A)Sin speaks to the wicked deep in their hearts;
they reject God and do not have reverence for him.
2 Because they think so highly of themselves,
they think that God will not discover their sin and condemn it.
3 Their speech is wicked and full of lies;
they no longer do what is wise and good.
4 They make evil plans as they lie in bed;
nothing they do is good,
and they never reject anything evil.

The Goodness of God

5 Lord, your constant love reaches the heavens;
your faithfulness extends to the skies.
6 Your righteousness is towering like the mountains;
your justice is like the depths of the sea.
People and animals are in your care.

7 How precious, O God, is your constant love!
We find[b] protection under the shadow of your wings.
8 We feast on the abundant food you provide;
you let us drink from the river of your goodness.
9 You are the source of all life,
and because of your light we see the light.

10 Continue to love those who know you
and to do good to those who are righteous.
11 Do not let proud people attack me
or the wicked make me run away.

12 See where evil people have fallen.
There they lie, unable to rise.

Footnotes:

  1. Psalm 36:1 HEBREW TITLE: By David, the Lord's servant.
  2. Psalm 36:7 precious, O God, is … find; or precious is your constant love! Gods and people find.

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 36:1 : Rom 3:18
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Proverbs 21:21-22

21 Be kind and honest and you will live a long life; others will respect you and treat you fairly.

22 A shrewd general can take a city defended by strong men, and destroy the walls they relied on.

Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday August 18, 2023 (NIV)

Esther 1-3

Queen Vashti Defies King Xerxes

1 (A)1-2 From his royal throne in Persia's capital city of Susa, King Xerxes ruled 127 provinces, all the way from India to Ethiopia.[a]

3 In the third year of his reign he gave a banquet for all his officials and administrators. The armies of Persia and Media were present, as well as the governors and noblemen of the provinces. 4 For six whole months he made a show of the riches of the imperial court with all its splendor and majesty.

5 After that, the king gave a banquet for all the people in the capital city of Susa, rich and poor alike. It lasted a whole week and was held in the gardens of the royal palace. 6 The courtyard there was decorated with blue and white cotton curtains, tied by cords of fine purple linen to silver rings on marble columns. Couches made of gold and silver had been placed in the courtyard, which was paved with white marble, red feldspar, shining mother-of-pearl, and blue turquoise. 7 Drinks were served in gold cups, no two of them alike, and the king was generous with the royal wine. 8 There were no limits on the drinks; the king had given orders to the palace servants that everyone could have as much as they wanted.[b]

9 Meanwhile, inside the royal palace Queen Vashti was giving a banquet for the women.

10 On the seventh day of his banquet the king was drinking and feeling happy, so he called in the seven eunuchs who were his personal servants, Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carkas. 11 He ordered them to bring in Queen Vashti, wearing her royal crown. The queen was a beautiful woman, and the king wanted to show off her beauty to the officials and all his guests. 12 But when the servants told Queen Vashti of the king's command, she refused to come. This made the king furious.

13 Now it was the king's custom to ask for expert opinion on questions of law and order, so he called for his advisers, who would know what should be done. 14 Those he most often turned to for advice were Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan—seven officials of Persia and Media who held the highest offices in the kingdom. 15 He said to these men, “I, King Xerxes, sent my servants to Queen Vashti with a command, and she refused to obey it! What does the law say that we should do with her?”

16 Then Memucan declared to the king and his officials: “Queen Vashti has insulted not only the king but also his officials—in fact, every man in the empire! 17 Every woman in the empire will start looking down on her husband as soon as she hears what the queen has done. They'll say, ‘King Xerxes commanded Queen Vashti to come to him, and she refused.’ 18 When the wives of the royal officials of Persia and Media hear about the queen's behavior, they will be telling their husbands about it before the day is out. Wives everywhere will have no respect for their husbands, and husbands will be angry with their wives. 19 If it please Your Majesty, issue a royal proclamation that Vashti may never again appear before the king. Have it written into the laws of Persia and Media, so that it can never be changed. Then give her place as queen to some better woman. 20 When your proclamation is made known all over this huge empire, every woman will treat her husband with proper respect, whether he's rich or poor.”

21 The king and his officials liked this idea, and the king did what Memucan suggested. 22 To each of the royal provinces he sent a message in the language and the system of writing of that province, saying[c] that every husband should be the master of his home and speak with final authority.

Esther Becomes Queen

2 Later, even after the king's anger had cooled down, he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and about his proclamation against her. 2 So some of the king's advisers who were close to him suggested, “Why don't you make a search to find some beautiful young virgins? 3 You can appoint officials in every province of the empire and have them bring all these beautiful young women to your harem here in Susa, the capital city. Put them in the care of Hegai, the eunuch who is in charge of your women, and let them be given a beauty treatment. 4 Then take the young woman you like best and make her queen in Vashti's place.”

The king thought this was good advice, so he followed it.

5 There in Susa lived a Jew named Mordecai son of Jair; he was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei. 6 (B)When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took King Jehoiachin of Judah into exile from Jerusalem, along with a group of captives, Mordecai was among them. 7 He had a cousin, Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah; she was a beautiful young woman, and had a good figure. At the death of her parents, Mordecai had adopted her and brought her up as his own daughter.

8 When the king had issued his new proclamation and many young women were being brought to Susa, Esther was among them. She too was put in the royal palace in the care of Hegai, who had charge of the harem. 9 Hegai liked Esther, and she won his favor. He lost no time in beginning her beauty treatment of massage and special diet. He gave her the best place in the harem and assigned seven young women specially chosen from the royal palace to serve her.

10 Now, on the advice of Mordecai, Esther had kept it secret that she was Jewish. 11 Every day Mordecai would walk back and forth in front of the courtyard of the harem, in order to find out how she was getting along and what was going to happen to her.

12 The regular beauty treatment for the women lasted a year—massages with oil of myrrh for six months and with oil of balsam for six more. After that, each woman would be taken in turn to King Xerxes. 13 When she went from the harem to the palace, she could wear whatever she wanted. 14 She would go there in the evening, and the next morning she would be taken to another harem and put in the care of Shaashgaz, the eunuch in charge of the king's concubines. She would not go to the king again unless he liked her enough to ask for her by name.

15 The time came for Esther to go to the king. Esther—the daughter of Abihail and the cousin of Mordecai, who had adopted her as his daughter; Esther—admired by everyone who saw her. When her turn came, she wore just what Hegai, the eunuch in charge of the harem, advised her to wear. 16 So in Xerxes' seventh year as king, in the tenth month, the month of Tebeth, Esther was brought to King Xerxes in the royal palace. 17 The king liked her more than any of the other women, and more than any of the others she won his favor and affection. He placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in place of Vashti. 18 Then the king gave a great banquet in Esther's honor and invited all his officials and administrators. He proclaimed a holiday[d] for the whole empire and distributed gifts worthy of a king.

Mordecai Saves the King's Life

19 Meanwhile Mordecai had been appointed by the king to an administrative position. 20 As for Esther, she had still not let it be known that she was Jewish. Mordecai had told her not to tell anyone, and she obeyed him in this, just as she had obeyed him when she was a little girl under his care.

21 During the time that Mordecai held office in the palace, Bigthana and Teresh, two of the palace eunuchs who guarded the entrance to the king's rooms, became hostile to King Xerxes and plotted to assassinate him. 22 Mordecai learned about it and told Queen Esther, who then told the king what Mordecai had found out. 23 There was an investigation, and it was discovered that the report was true, so both men were hanged on the gallows. The king ordered an account of this to be written down in the official records of the empire.

Haman Plots to Destroy the Jews

3 Some time later King Xerxes promoted a man named Haman to the position of prime minister. Haman was the son of Hammedatha, a descendant of Agag.[e] 2 The king ordered all the officials in his service to show their respect for Haman by kneeling and bowing to him. They all did so, except for Mordecai, who refused to do it. 3 The other officials in the royal service asked him why he was disobeying the king's command; 4 day after day they urged him to give in, but he would not listen to them. “I am a Jew,” he explained, “and I cannot bow to Haman.” So they told Haman about this, wondering if he would tolerate Mordecai's conduct. 5 Haman was furious when he realized that Mordecai was not going to kneel and bow to him, 6 and when he learned that Mordecai was a Jew, he decided to do more than punish Mordecai alone. He made plans to kill every Jew in the whole Persian Empire.

7 In the twelfth year of King Xerxes' rule, in the first month, the month of Nisan, Haman ordered the lots to be cast (“purim,” they were called) to find out the right day and month to carry out his plot. The thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, was decided on.

8 (C)So Haman told the king, “There is a certain race of people scattered all over your empire and found in every province. They observe customs that are not like those of any other people. Moreover, they do not obey the laws of the empire, so it is not in your best interests to tolerate them. 9 If it please Your Majesty, issue a decree that they are to be put to death. If you do, I guarantee that I will be able to put 375 tons of silver into the royal treasury for the administration of the empire.”

10 The king took off his ring, which was used to stamp proclamations and make them official, and gave it to the enemy of the Jewish people, Haman son of Hammedatha, the descendant of Agag. 11 The king told him, “The people and their money are yours; do as you like with them.”

12 So on the thirteenth day of the first month Haman called the king's secretaries and dictated a proclamation to be translated into every language and system of writing used in the empire and to be sent to all the rulers, governors, and officials. It was issued in the name of King Xerxes and stamped with his ring. 13 Runners took this proclamation to every province of the empire. It contained the instructions that on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, all Jews—young and old, women and children—were to be killed. They were to be slaughtered without mercy and their belongings were to be taken. 14 The contents of the proclamation were to be made public in every province, so that everyone would be prepared when that day came.

15 At the king's command the decree was made public in the capital city of Susa, and runners carried the news to the provinces. The king and Haman sat down and had a drink while the city of Susa was being thrown into confusion.

Footnotes:

  1. Esther 1:1 Hebrew Cush: Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
  2. Esther 1:8 There were no limits … wanted; or But no one was forced to drink; the king had given orders to the palace servants that everyone could have as much or as little as they wanted.
  3. Esther 1:22 saying; or in order.
  4. Esther 2:18 holiday; or remission of taxes.
  5. Esther 3:1 An Amalekite king; his people were traditional enemies of the people of Israel.

Cross references:

  1. Esther 1:1 : Ezra 4:6
  2. Esther 2:6 : 2Kgs 24:10-2Kgs 24:16; 2Chr 36:10
  3. Esther 3:8 : Wis 2:14; Wis 2:15
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

The Lord's Supper(A)

17 In the following instructions, however, I do not praise you, because your meetings for worship actually do more harm than good. 18 In the first place, I have been told that there are opposing groups in your meetings; and this I believe is partly true. (19 No doubt there must be divisions among you so that the ones who are in the right may be clearly seen.) 20 When you meet together as a group, it is not the Lord's Supper that you eat. 21 For as you eat, you each go ahead with your own meal, so that some are hungry while others get drunk. 22 Don't you have your own homes in which to eat and drink? Or would you rather despise the church of God and put to shame the people who are in need? What do you expect me to say to you about this? Shall I praise you? Of course I don't!

23 For I received from the Lord the teaching that I passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread, 24 gave thanks to God, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in memory of me.” 25 (B)In the same way, after the supper he took the cup and said, “This cup is God's new covenant, sealed with my blood. Whenever you drink it, do so in memory of me.”

26 This means that every time you eat this bread and drink from this cup you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. 27 It follows that if one of you eats the Lord's bread or drinks from his cup in a way that dishonors him, you are guilty of sin against the Lord's body and blood. 28 So then, you should each examine yourself first, and then eat the bread and drink from the cup. 29 For if you do not recognize the meaning of the Lord's body when you eat the bread and drink from the cup, you bring judgment on yourself as you eat and drink. 30 That is why many of you are sick and weak, and several have died. 31 If we would examine ourselves first, we would not come under God's judgment. 32 But we are judged and punished by the Lord, so that we shall not be condemned together with the world.

33 So then, my friends, when you gather together to eat the Lord's Supper, wait for one another. 34 And if any of you are hungry, you should eat at home, so that you will not come under God's judgment as you meet together. As for the other matters, I will settle them when I come.

Cross references:

  1. 1 Corinthians 11:17 : Matt 26:26-Matt 26:29; Mark 14:22-Mark 14:25; Luke 22:14-Luke 22:20
  2. 1 Corinthians 11:25 : Exod 24:8; Jer 31:31-Jer 31:34; 1Cor 11:25; Exod 24:6-Exod 24:8
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Psalm 35:17-28

17 How much longer, Lord, will you just look on?
Rescue me from their attacks;
save my life from these lions!
18 Then I will thank you in the assembly of your people;
I will praise you before them all.

19 (A)Don't let my enemies, those liars,
gloat over my defeat.
Don't let those who hate me for no reason
smirk with delight over my sorrow.

20 They do not speak in a friendly way;
instead they invent all kinds of lies about peace-loving people.
21 They accuse me, shouting,
“We saw what you did!”
22 But you, O Lord, have seen this.
So don't be silent, Lord;
don't keep yourself far away!
23 Rouse yourself, O Lord, and defend me;
rise up, my God, and plead my cause.
24 You are righteous, O Lord, so declare me innocent;
don't let my enemies gloat over me.
25 Don't let them say to themselves,
“We are rid of him!
That's just what we wanted!”

26 May those who gloat over my suffering
be completely defeated and confused;
may those who claim to be better than I am
be covered with shame and disgrace.

27 May those who want to see me acquitted
shout for joy and say again and again,
“How great is the Lord!
He is pleased with the success of his servant.”
28 Then I will proclaim your righteousness,
and I will praise you all day long.

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 35:19 : Ps 69:4; John 15:25
Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.

Proverbs 21:19-20

19 Better to live out in the desert than with a nagging, complaining wife.

20 Wise people live in wealth and luxury, but stupid people spend their money as fast as they get it.

Good News Translation (GNT)

Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.