December 2024 – A Walk Through The Word

December 31, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday December 31, 2024 (NIV)

Malachi 3-4

3 “I will send my messenger,^(A) who will prepare the way before me.^(B) Then suddenly the Lord^(C) you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant,^(D) whom you desire,^(E) will come,” says the Lord Almighty.

²But who can endure^(F) the day of his coming?^(G) Who can stand^(H) when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire^(I) or a launderer’s soap.^(J) ³He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver;^(K) he will purify^(L) the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.^(M) Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,^(N) ⁴and the offerings^(O) of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.^(P)

⁵“So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers,^(Q) adulterers^(R) and perjurers,^(S) against those who defraud laborers of their wages,^(T) who oppress the widows^(U) and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners^(V) among you of justice, but do not fear^(W) me,” says the Lord Almighty.

Breaking Covenant by Withholding Tithes

⁶“I the Lord do not change.^(X) So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.^(Y) ⁷Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away^(Z) from my decrees and have not kept them. Return^(AA) to me, and I will return to you,”^(AB) says the Lord Almighty.

“But you ask,^(AC) ‘How are we to return?’

⁸“Will a mere mortal rob^(AD) God? Yet you rob me.

“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’

“In tithes^(AE) and offerings. ⁹You are under a curse^(AF)—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. ¹⁰Bring the whole tithe^(AG) into the storehouse,^(AH) that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates^(AI) of heaven and pour out^(AJ) so much blessing^(AK) that there will not be room enough to store it.^(AL) ¹¹I will prevent pests from devouring^(AM) your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,^(AN)” says the Lord Almighty. ¹²“Then all the nations will call you blessed,^(AO) for yours will be a delightful land,”^(AP) says the Lord Almighty.^(AQ)

Israel Speaks Arrogantly Against God

¹³“You have spoken arrogantly^(AR) against me,” says the Lord.

“Yet you ask,^(AS) ‘What have we said against you?’

¹⁴“You have said, ‘It is futile^(AT) to serve^(AU) God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements^(AV) and going about like mourners^(AW) before the Lord Almighty? ¹⁵But now we call the arrogant^(AX) blessed. Certainly evildoers^(AY) prosper,^(AZ) and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.’”

The Faithful Remnant

¹⁶Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard.^(BA) A scroll^(BB) of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared^(BC) the Lord and honored his name.

¹⁷“On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty, “they will be my^(BD) treasured possession.^(BE) I will spare^(BF) them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son^(BG) who serves him. ¹⁸And you will again see the distinction between the righteous^(BH) and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.^(BI)

Judgment and Covenant Renewal

4 ^[a]“Surely the day is coming;^(BJ) it will burn like a furnace.^(BK) All the arrogant^(BL) and every evildoer will be stubble,^(BM) and the day that is coming will set them on fire,^(BN)” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch^(BO) will be left to them. ²But for you who revere my name,^(BP) the sun of righteousness^(BQ) will rise with healing^(BR) in its rays. And you will go out and frolic^(BS) like well-fed calves. ³Then you will trample^(BT) on the wicked; they will be ashes^(BU) under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty.

⁴“Remember the law^(BV) of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb^(BW) for all Israel.^(BX)

⁵“See, I will send the prophet Elijah^(BY) to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.^(BZ) ⁶He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children,^(CA) and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike^(CB) the land with total destruction.”^(CC)

Footnotes:

Malachi 4:1 In Hebrew texts 4:1-6 is numbered 3:19-24.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 22

Eden Restored

22 Then the angel showed me the river^(A) of the water of life,^(B) as clear as crystal,^(C) flowing^(D) from the throne of God and of the Lamb ²down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life,^(E) bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.^(F) ³No longer will there be any curse.^(G) The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.^(H) ⁴They will see his face,^(I) and his name will be on their foreheads.^(J) ⁵There will be no more night.^(K) They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light.^(L) And they will reign for ever and ever.^(M)

John and the Angel

⁶The angel said to me,^(N) “These words are trustworthy and true.^(O) The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets,^(P) sent his angel^(Q) to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

⁷“Look, I am coming soon!^(R) Blessed^(S) is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”^(T)

⁸I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things.^(U) And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet^(V) of the angel who had been showing them to me. ⁹But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll.^(W) Worship God!”^(X)

¹⁰Then he told me, “Do not seal up^(Y) the words of the prophecy of this scroll,^(Z) because the time is near.^(AA) ¹¹Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”^(AB)

Epilogue: Invitation and Warning

¹²“Look, I am coming soon!^(AC) My reward is with me,^(AD) and I will give to each person according to what they have done.^(AE) ¹³I am the Alpha and the Omega,^(AF) the First and the Last,^(AG) the Beginning and the End.^(AH)

¹⁴“Blessed are those who wash their robes,^(AI) that they may have the right to the tree of life^(AJ) and may go through the gates^(AK) into the city.^(AL) ¹⁵Outside^(AM) are the dogs,^(AN) those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

¹⁶“I, Jesus,^(AO) have sent my angel^(AP) to give you^[a] this testimony for the churches.^(AQ) I am the Root^(AR) and the Offspring of David,^(AS) and the bright Morning Star.”^(AT)

¹⁷The Spirit^(AU) and the bride^(AV) say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.^(AW)

¹⁸I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll:^(AX) If anyone adds anything to them,^(AY) God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll.^(AZ) ¹⁹And if anyone takes words away^(BA) from this scroll of prophecy,^(BB) God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life^(BC) and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.

²⁰He who testifies to these things^(BD) says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”^(BE)

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.^(BF)

²¹The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people.^(BG) Amen.

Footnotes:

Revelation 22:16 The Greek is plural.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 150

¹Praise the Lord.^[a]^(A)

Praise God in his sanctuary;^(B)
praise him in his mighty heavens.^(C)
²Praise him for his acts of power;^(D)
praise him for his surpassing greatness.^(E)
³Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,^(F)
praise him with the harp and lyre,^(G)
⁴praise him with timbrel and dancing,^(H)
praise him with the strings^(I) and pipe,^(J)
⁵praise him with the clash of cymbals,^(K)
praise him with resounding cymbals.

⁶Let everything^(L) that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

Footnotes:

Psalm 150:1 Hebrew Hallelu Yah; also in verse 6

Cross references:

Psalm 150:1 : S Ps 112:1
Psalm 150:1 : Ps 68:24-26; 73:17; 102:19
Psalm 150:1 : S Ps 148:1
Psalm 150:2 : S Dt 3:24
Psalm 150:2 : S Ex 15:7
Psalm 150:3 : S Nu 10:2
Psalm 150:3 : S Ps 57:8
Psalm 150:4 : S Ex 15:20
Psalm 150:4 : S Ps 45:8
Psalm 150:4 : S Ge 4:21
Psalm 150:5 : S 2Sa 6:5
Psalm 150:6 : S Ps 103:22

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 31:25-31

²⁵She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.
²⁶She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.^(A)
²⁷She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
²⁹“Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.”
³⁰Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
³¹Honor her for all that her hands have done,
and let her works bring her praise^(B) at the city gate.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

December 30, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday December 30, 2024 (NIV)

Malachi 1-2

1 A prophecy:^(A) The word^(B) of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.^[a]

Israel Doubts God’s Love

²“I have loved^(C) you,” says the Lord.

“But you ask,^(D) ‘How have you loved us?’

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob,^(E) ³but Esau I have hated,^(F) and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland^(G) and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.^(H)”

⁴Edom^(I) may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild^(J) the ruins.”

But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish.^(K) They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord.^(L) ⁵You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great^(M) is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’^(N)

Breaking Covenant Through Blemished Sacrifices

⁶“A son honors his father,^(O) and a slave his master.^(P) If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect^(Q) due me?” says the Lord Almighty.^(R)

“It is you priests who show contempt for my name.

“But you ask,^(S) ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’

⁷“By offering defiled food^(T) on my altar.

“But you ask,^(U) ‘How have we defiled you?’

“By saying that the Lord’s table^(V) is contemptible. ⁸When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals,^(W) is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased^(X) with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.^(Y)

⁹“Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings^(Z) from your hands, will he accept^(AA) you?”—says the Lord Almighty.

¹⁰“Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors,^(AB) so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased^(AC) with you,” says the Lord Almighty, “and I will accept^(AD) no offering^(AE) from your hands. ¹¹My name will be great^(AF) among the nations,^(AG) from where the sun rises to where it sets.^(AH) In every place incense^(AI) and pure offerings^(AJ) will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord Almighty.

¹²“But you profane it by saying, ‘The Lord’s table^(AK) is defiled,’ and, ‘Its food^(AL) is contemptible.’ ¹³And you say, ‘What a burden!’^(AM) and you sniff at it contemptuously,^(AN)” says the Lord Almighty.

“When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices,^(AO) should I accept them from your hands?”^(AP) says the Lord. ¹⁴“Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal^(AQ) to the Lord. For I am a great king,^(AR)” says the Lord Almighty,^(AS) “and my name is to be feared^(AT) among the nations.^(AU)

Additional Warning to the Priests

2 “And now, you priests, this warning is for you.^(AV) ²If you do not listen,^(AW) and if you do not resolve to honor^(AX) my name,” says the Lord Almighty, “I will send a curse^(AY) on you, and I will curse your blessings.^(AZ) Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not resolved to honor me.

³“Because of you I will rebuke your descendants^[b]; I will smear on your faces the dung^(BA) from your festival sacrifices, and you will be carried off with it.^(BB) ⁴And you will know that I have sent you this warning so that my covenant with Levi^(BC) may continue,” says the Lord Almighty. ⁵“My covenant was with him, a covenant^(BD) of life and peace,^(BE) and I gave them to him; this called for reverence^(BF) and he revered me and stood in awe of my name. ⁶True instruction^(BG) was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked^(BH) with me in peace^(BI) and uprightness,^(BJ) and turned many from sin.^(BK)

⁷“For the lips of a priest^(BL) ought to preserve knowledge, because he is the messenger^(BM) of the Lord Almighty and people seek instruction from his mouth.^(BN) ⁸But you have turned from the way^(BO) and by your teaching have caused many to stumble;^(BP) you have violated the covenant^(BQ) with Levi,”^(BR) says the Lord Almighty. ⁹“So I have caused you to be despised^(BS) and humiliated^(BT) before all the people, because you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality^(BU) in matters of the law.”^(BV)

Breaking Covenant Through Divorce

¹⁰Do we not all have one Father^[c]?^(BW) Did not one God create us?^(BX) Why do we profane the covenant^(BY) of our ancestors by being unfaithful^(BZ) to one another?

¹¹Judah has been unfaithful. A detestable^(CA) thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves^(CB) by marrying^(CC) women who worship a foreign god.^(CD) ¹²As for the man who does this, whoever he may be, may the Lord remove^(CE) him from the tents of Jacob^[d]^(CF)—even though he brings an offering^(CG) to the Lord Almighty.

¹³Another thing you do: You flood the Lord’s altar with tears.^(CH) You weep and wail^(CI) because he no longer looks with favor^(CJ) on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.^(CK) ¹⁴You ask,^(CL) “Why?” It is because the Lord is the witness^(CM) between you and the wife of your youth.^(CN) You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.^(CO)

¹⁵Has not the one God made you?^(CP) You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.^[e]^(CQ) So be on your guard,^(CR) and do not be unfaithful^(CS) to the wife of your youth.

¹⁶“The man who hates and divorces his wife,^(CT)” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “does violence to the one he should protect,”^[f]^(CU) says the Lord Almighty.

So be on your guard,^(CV) and do not be unfaithful.

Breaking Covenant Through Injustice

¹⁷You have wearied^(CW) the Lord with your words.

“How have we wearied him?” you ask.^(CX)

By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord, and he is pleased^(CY) with them” or “Where is the God of justice?^(CZ)”

Footnotes:

Malachi 1:1 Malachi means my messenger.
Malachi 2:3 Or will blight your grain
Malachi 2:10 Or father
Malachi 2:12 Or ¹²May the Lord remove from the tents of Jacob anyone who gives testimony in behalf of the man who does this
Malachi 2:15 The meaning of the Hebrew for the first part of this verse is uncertain.
Malachi 2:16 Or “I hate divorce,” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “because the man who divorces his wife covers his garment with violence,”

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 21

A New Heaven and a New Earth

21 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”^[a]^(A) for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,^(B) and there was no longer any sea. ²I saw the Holy City,^(C) the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,^(D) prepared as a bride^(E) beautifully dressed for her husband. ³And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.^(F) They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.^(G) ⁴‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes.^(H) There will be no more death’^[b]^(I) or mourning or crying or pain,^(J) for the old order of things has passed away.”^(K)

⁵He who was seated on the throne^(L) said, “I am making everything new!”^(M) Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”^(N)

⁶He said to me: “It is done.^(O) I am the Alpha and the Omega,^(P) the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost^(Q) from the spring of the water of life.^(R) ⁷Those who are victorious^(S) will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.^(T) ⁸But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars^(U)—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.^(V) This is the second death.”^(W)

The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb

⁹One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues^(X) came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride,^(Y) the wife of the Lamb.” ¹⁰And he carried me away^(Z) in the Spirit^(AA) to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.^(AB) ¹¹It shone with the glory of God,^(AC) and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper,^(AD) clear as crystal.^(AE) ¹²It had a great, high wall with twelve gates,^(AF) and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.^(AG) ¹³There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. ¹⁴The wall of the city had twelve foundations,^(AH) and on them were the names of the twelve apostles^(AI) of the Lamb.

¹⁵The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod^(AJ) of gold to measure the city, its gates^(AK) and its walls. ¹⁶The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia^[c] in length, and as wide and high as it is long. ¹⁷The angel measured the wall using human^(AL) measurement, and it was 144 cubits^[d] thick.^[e] ¹⁸The wall was made of jasper,^(AM) and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.^(AN) ¹⁹The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone.^(AO) The first foundation was jasper,^(AP) the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ²⁰the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby,^(AQ) the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.^[f] ²¹The twelve gates^(AR) were twelve pearls,^(AS) each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.^(AT)

²²I did not see a temple^(AU) in the city, because the Lord God Almighty^(AV) and the Lamb^(AW) are its temple. ²³The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God^(AX) gives it light,^(AY) and the Lamb^(AZ) is its lamp. ²⁴The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.^(BA) ²⁵On no day will its gates^(BB) ever be shut,^(BC) for there will be no night there.^(BD) ²⁶The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.^(BE) ²⁷Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful,^(BF) but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.^(BG)

Footnotes:

Revelation 21:1 Isaiah 65:17
Revelation 21:4 Isaiah 25:8
Revelation 21:16 That is, about 1,400 miles or about 2,200 kilometers
Revelation 21:17 That is, about 200 feet or about 65 meters
Revelation 21:17 Or high
Revelation 21:20 The precise identification of some of these precious stones is uncertain.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 149

¹Praise the Lord.^[a]^(A)

Sing to the Lord a new song,^(B)
his praise in the assembly^(C) of his faithful people.

²Let Israel rejoice^(D) in their Maker;^(E)
let the people of Zion be glad in their King.^(F)
³Let them praise his name with dancing^(G)
and make music to him with timbrel and harp.^(H)
⁴For the Lord takes delight^(I) in his people;
he crowns the humble with victory.^(J)
⁵Let his faithful people rejoice^(K) in this honor
and sing for joy on their beds.^(L)

⁶May the praise of God be in their mouths^(M)
and a double-edged^(N) sword in their hands,^(O)
⁷to inflict vengeance^(P) on the nations
and punishment^(Q) on the peoples,
⁸to bind their kings with fetters,^(R)
their nobles with shackles of iron,^(S)
⁹to carry out the sentence written against them—^(T)
this is the glory of all his faithful people.^(U)

Praise the Lord.

Footnotes:

Psalm 149:1 Hebrew Hallelu Yah; also in verse 9

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 31:10-24

Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character

¹⁰^[a]A wife of noble character^(A) who can find?^(B)
She is worth far more than rubies.
¹¹Her husband^(C) has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.^(D)
¹²She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
¹³She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.^(E)
¹⁴She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.
¹⁵She gets up while it is still night;
she provides food for her family
and portions for her female servants.
¹⁶She considers a field and buys it;
out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.
¹⁸She sees that her trading is profitable,
and her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers.
²⁰She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.^(F)
²¹When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
²²She makes coverings for her bed;
she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
²³Her husband is respected at the city gate,
where he takes his seat among the elders^(G) of the land.
²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 31:10 Verses 10-31 are an acrostic poem, the verses of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

December 29, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday December 29, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 14

The Lord Comes and Reigns

14 A day of the Lord^(A) is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions^(B) will be plundered and divided up within your very walls.

²I will gather all the nations^(C) to Jerusalem to fight against it;^(D) the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped.^(E) Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.^(F) ³Then the Lord will go out and fight^(G) against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle.^(H) ⁴On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,^(I) east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split^(J) in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. ⁵You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake^[a]^(K) in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come,^(L) and all the holy ones with him.^(M)

⁶On that day there will be neither sunlight^(N) nor cold, frosty darkness. ⁷It will be a unique^(O) day—a day known only to the Lord—with no distinction between day and night.^(P) When evening comes, there will be light.^(Q)

⁸On that day living water^(R) will flow^(S) out from Jerusalem, half of it east^(T) to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter.^(U)

⁹The Lord will be king^(V) over the whole earth.^(W) On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name.^(X)

¹⁰The whole land, from Geba^(Y) to Rimmon,^(Z) south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah. But Jerusalem will be raised up^(AA) high from the Benjamin Gate^(AB) to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate,^(AC) and from the Tower of Hananel^(AD) to the royal winepresses, and will remain in its place.^(AE) ¹¹It will be inhabited;^(AF) never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure.^(AG)

¹²This is the plague with which the Lord will strike^(AH) all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.^(AI) ¹³On that day people will be stricken by the Lord with great panic.^(AJ) They will seize each other by the hand and attack one another.^(AK) ¹⁴Judah^(AL) too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected^(AM)—great quantities of gold and silver and clothing. ¹⁵A similar plague^(AN) will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps.

¹⁶Then the survivors^(AO) from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship^(AP) the King,^(AQ) the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.^(AR) ¹⁷If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship^(AS) the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain.^(AT) ¹⁸If the Egyptian people do not go up and take part, they will have no rain. The Lord^[b] will bring on them the plague^(AU) he inflicts on the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.^(AV) ¹⁹This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.^(AW)

²⁰On that day holy to the Lord^(AX) will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, and the cooking pots^(AY) in the Lord’s house will be like the sacred bowls^(AZ) in front of the altar. ²¹Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy^(BA) to the Lord Almighty, and all who come to sacrifice will take some of the pots and cook in them. And on that day^(BB) there will no longer be a Canaanite^[c]^(BC) in the house^(BD) of the Lord Almighty.^(BE)

Footnotes:

Zechariah 14:5 Or ⁵My mountain valley will be blocked and will extend to Azel. It will be blocked as it was blocked because of the earthquake
Zechariah 14:18 Or part, then the Lord
Zechariah 14:21 Or merchant

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 20

The Thousand Years

20 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven,^(A) having the key^(B) to the Abyss^(C) and holding in his hand a great chain. ²He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan,^(D) and bound him for a thousand years.^(E) ³He threw him into the Abyss,^(F) and locked and sealed^(G) it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations^(H) anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.

⁴I saw thrones^(I) on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge.^(J) And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded^(K) because of their testimony about Jesus^(L) and because of the word of God.^(M) They^[a] had not worshiped the beast^(N) or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands.^(O) They came to life and reigned^(P) with Christ a thousand years. ⁵(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.^(Q) ⁶Blessed^(R) and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death^(S) has no power over them, but they will be priests^(T) of God and of Christ and will reign with him^(U) for a thousand years.

The Judgment of Satan

⁷When the thousand years are over,^(V) Satan will be released from his prison ⁸and will go out to deceive the nations^(W) in the four corners of the earth^(X)—Gog and Magog^(Y)—and to gather them for battle.^(Z) In number they are like the sand on the seashore.^(AA) ⁹They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded^(AB) the camp of God’s people, the city he loves.^(AC) But fire came down from heaven^(AD) and devoured them. ¹⁰And the devil, who deceived them,^(AE) was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur,^(AF) where the beast^(AG) and the false prophet^(AH) had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.^(AI)

The Judgment of the Dead

¹¹Then I saw a great white throne^(AJ) and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence,^(AK) and there was no place for them. ¹²And I saw the dead, great and small,^(AL) standing before the throne, and books were opened.^(AM) Another book was opened, which is the book of life.^(AN) The dead were judged^(AO) according to what they had done^(AP) as recorded in the books. ¹³The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades^(AQ) gave up the dead^(AR) that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.^(AS) ¹⁴Then death^(AT) and Hades^(AU) were thrown into the lake of fire.^(AV) The lake of fire is the second death.^(AW) ¹⁵Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life^(AX) was thrown into the lake of fire.

Footnotes:

Revelation 20:4 Or God; I also saw those who

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 148

¹Praise the Lord.^[a]^(A)

Praise the Lord from the heavens;^(B)
praise him in the heights above.
²Praise him, all his angels;^(C)
praise him, all his heavenly hosts.^(D)
³Praise him, sun^(E) and moon;
praise him, all you shining stars.
⁴Praise him, you highest heavens^(F)
and you waters above the skies.^(G)

⁵Let them praise the name^(H) of the Lord,
for at his command^(I) they were created,
⁶and he established them for ever and ever—
he issued a decree^(J) that will never pass away.

⁷Praise the Lord^(K) from the earth,
you great sea creatures^(L) and all ocean depths,^(M)
⁸lightning and hail,^(N) snow and clouds,
stormy winds that do his bidding,^(O)
⁹you mountains and all hills,^(P)
fruit trees and all cedars,
¹⁰wild animals^(Q) and all cattle,
small creatures and flying birds,
¹¹kings^(R) of the earth and all nations,
you princes and all rulers on earth,
¹²young men and women,
old men and children.

¹³Let them praise the name of the Lord,^(S)
for his name alone is exalted;
his splendor^(T) is above the earth and the heavens.^(U)
¹⁴And he has raised up for his people a horn,^[b]^(V)
the praise^(W) of all his faithful servants,^(X)
of Israel, the people close to his heart.^(Y)

Praise the Lord.

Footnotes:

Psalm 148:1 Hebrew Hallelu Yah; also in verse 14
Psalm 148:14 Horn here symbolizes strength.

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 31:8-9

⁸Speak^(A) up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
⁹Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.^(B)

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

December 28, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday December 28, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 12-13

The Lord Will Give Victory to Jerusalem

12 An oracle, the word of the Lord concerning Israel. This is what the Lord declares, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the spirit of a man within him:

²Look! I will make Jerusalem a cup that causes all the surrounding peoples to stagger. When there is a siege against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. ³On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will be seriously injured, and all the nations of the earth will be gathered together against it.

⁴On that day, declares the Lord, I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness. But I will keep my eye on the house of Judah, and I will strike with blindness every horse that belongs to the other peoples. ⁵Each of the leaders of the clans of Judah will say in his heart, “The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength through the Lord of Armies, their God.”

⁶On that day I will make the leaders of the clans of Judah like a firepot that ignites the woods, and like a flaming torch among the sheaves. They will devour all the surrounding peoples, on the right and on the left. The people of Jerusalem will once again live in their own place—in Jerusalem!

⁷The Lord also will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will not become greater than that of Judah. ⁸On that day the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Anyone among them who is feeble will be like David on that day, and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the Lord, before them. ⁹On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

They Will Mourn for the One They Pierced

¹⁰“I^[a] will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace, who pleads for mercy.^[b] Then they will look at me, the one they have pierced.”

They will mourn for him^[c] as one mourns for an only child. They will grieve bitterly for him, as one grieves over his firstborn. ¹¹On that day there will be great mourning in Jerusalem, as great as the mourning for Hadad Rimmon^[d] in the plain of Megiddo. ¹²The land will mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan^[e] by itself, and their wives by themselves; ¹³the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of Shimei^[f] by itself, and their wives by themselves; ¹⁴all the families that remain, each family by itself, and their wives by themselves.

A Fountain to Wash Away Sin

13 On that day^[g] a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.

²In that day, declares the Lord of Armies, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. I will also remove the prophets and the impure spirit from the land. ³If anyone still prophesies, his father and his mother who gave birth to him will tell him, “You shall not live, because you have spoken lies in the name of the Lord!” Then his father and his mother who gave birth to him will stab him when he prophesies.

⁴In that day each of those prophets will be ashamed of his vision. When he prophesies, he will not put on a prophet’s garment made of hair in order to deceive. ⁵Instead he will say, “I am not a prophet. I have been a tiller of the soil since my youth, when a man bought me.” ⁶Someone will ask him, “What are these wounds on your body?”^[h] He will reply, “I received these wounds in the house of my friends.”

Strike the Shepherd, and the Sheep Will Be Scattered

⁷Awake, O sword, against my shepherd,
and against the man who is my associate, declares the Lord of Armies.
Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered,
and I will turn my hand against the little ones.^[i]

⁸This will take place in the whole land, declares the Lord:
Two thirds of those who remain in it will be cut off and perish,
but one third will be left in it.
⁹I will put that third into the fire,
and I will refine them as silver is refined,
and I will test them as gold is tested.
They will call on my name, and I will answer them.
I will say, “This is my people.”
And they will say, “The Lord is my God.”

Footnotes:

Zechariah 12:10 The speaker is the coming Messiah.
Zechariah 12:10 Or a spirit that pleads for grace and mercy
Zechariah 12:10 Sudden, unmarked shifts from first person (look at me) to third person (mourn for him) are not unusual in prophecy. The words set off by quotation marks are the words of the Messiah. The following words are commentary spoken by the prophet.
Zechariah 12:11 Or at Hadad Rimmon. Hadad Rimmon may be the name of a heathen god, whose death was mourned like the death of Tammuz. Or it may be the name of a place where Israel mourned the death of Josiah.
Zechariah 12:12 Not the well-known prophet Nathan, but Nathan the son of David who was an ancestor of Jesus (Luke 3:31)
Zechariah 12:13 One of the divisions of the Levites
Zechariah 13:1 This may refer specifically to Good Friday (see 3:9) or it may refer to the New Testament era.
Zechariah 13:6 Heathen priests gashed themselves as part of their frenzied prayers.
Zechariah 13:7 Or but I will turn my hand back to the little ones

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Revelation 19

The Church’s Victory

19 After these things I heard what seemed to be the loud sound of an immense crowd in heaven, saying:

Alleluia!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
²for his judgments are true and just,
because he has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
and he has avenged his servants’ blood that was shed by her hand.

³A second time they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke goes up forever and ever.”

⁴Then the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures bowed down and worshipped God, who sits on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!”

⁵And from the throne came a voice that said, “Praise our God, all you his servants and you who fear him, small and great.”

The Wedding Supper of the Lamb

⁶And I heard what seemed to be the roar of a large crowd or the roar of many waters or the sound of loud rumblings of thunder, saying:

Alleluia!
For the Lord our^[a] God, the Almighty, reigns.
⁷Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory,
because the wedding of the Lamb has come.
His bride has made herself ready,
⁸and she was given bright, clean, fine linen to wear.
(In fact, the fine linen is the “not guilty” verdicts pronounced on the saints.)

⁹The angel said to me, “Write: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb.” He also said to me, “These are the true words of God.” ¹⁰And I bowed down at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers, who have the testimony about Jesus. Worship God. For the testimony about Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

The Rider on the White Horse

¹¹I saw heaven standing open, and there was a white horse! Its rider is called Faithful and True, and he judges and makes war in righteousness. ¹²His eyes are like blazing flames, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him, which no one knows except he himself. ¹³He is also clothed in a garment that had been dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. ¹⁴The armies in heaven, which were clothed with white, clean, fine linen, were following him on white horses. ¹⁵Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will shepherd them with an iron staff. He himself is going to trample the winepress of the fierce anger of the Almighty God. ¹⁶On his garment and on his thigh this name is written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

¹⁷I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he called out with a loud voice to all the birds that were flying in the middle of the sky. He said:

Come, gather together for God’s great supper,
¹⁸so that you can eat the flesh of kings,
and the flesh of military leaders,
and the flesh of mighty men,
and the flesh of horses and of their riders,
and the flesh of all people, both free and slave, and small and great.

¹⁹Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. ²⁰The beast was captured along with the false prophet who performed miracles on his behalf, with which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and had worshipped its image. These two were thrown alive into the Lake of Fire, which burns with sulfur. ²¹The rest were killed with the sword that comes out of the mouth of the rider on the horse. And all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.

Footnotes:

Revelation 19:6 A few witnesses to the text omit our.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Psalm 147

Praise Him for Providing for His People

The Creator Restores His People

¹Praise the Lord.^[a]

How good it is to make music to our God.
Yes, praise is pleasant and fitting!
²The one who builds Jerusalem is the Lord.
He assembles the outcasts of Israel.
³He is the one who heals the brokenhearted
and who bandages their wounds.
⁴He counts the number of the stars.
He calls them all by name.
⁵Great is our Lord and mighty in power.
To his understanding there is no limit.
⁶The one who sustains the humble is the Lord.
He pushes the wicked down to the ground.

The Creator Loves His People

⁷Respond to the Lord with thanksgiving.
Make music to our God on the lyre.
⁸He is the one who covers the sky with clouds.
He determines rain for the earth.
He makes grass sprout on the mountains.
⁹He gives their food to the cattle
and to the young ravens when they call.
¹⁰He is not impressed by the strength of the horse.
He is not pleased with the legs of a man.
¹¹The Lord is pleased with those who fear him,
those who wait for his mercy.

The Creator Reveals His Word

¹²Worship the Lord, O Jerusalem.
Praise your God, O Zion,
¹³because he strengthens the bars on your gates.
He blesses your children within you.
¹⁴He brings peace to your borders.
He satisfies you with the best wheat.
¹⁵He sends his message to the earth.
His word runs swiftly.
¹⁶He gives snow like wool.
He scatters frost like ashes.
¹⁷He sends his hail like pieces of bread.
Who can stand in the face of his cold winds?
¹⁸He sends his word, and the ice melts.
He breathes on the snow.^[b] The waters flow.^[c]
¹⁹He reveals his words to Jacob,
his statutes and his judgments to Israel.
²⁰He has not done this for any other nation.
They do not know his judgments.

Praise the Lord.

Footnotes:

Psalm 147:1 Hebrew hallelu Yah
Psalm 147:18 Or he sends his wind on them
Psalm 147:18 The words ice and snow are added to clarify the antecedents.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Proverbs 31:1-7

The Sayings of Lemuel

31 The words of Lemuel, a king.
An oracle^[a] that his mother used, to teach him discipline:

²What are you doing,^[b] my son!
What are you doing, son from my womb!
What are you doing, son of my vows!
³Do not give your strength to women.
Do not give your ways to those who destroy kings.
⁴It is not for kings, Lemuel,
it is not for kings to drink wine,
nor for rulers to crave beer.
⁵If he does, he will drink and forget what is decreed.
He will change the legal rights of all the oppressed.
⁶Give beer to someone who is perishing
and wine to one whose soul is bitter.
⁷He will drink and forget his poverty,
and he will no longer remember his trouble.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 31:1 The word translated an oracle may also be translated of Massa and placed with the preceding line.
Proverbs 31:2 The Hebrew has only the single word What.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

December 27, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday December 27, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 10-11

The Lord Will Provide

10 Ask the Lord, who makes storm clouds,
to give rain at the right time for the spring rains,
and he will provide showers of rain,
and there will be crops in the field for everyone.

²But household gods speak wicked deception,
and the omen readers see illusions.
They report trivial dreams
and give false comfort.
That is why the people wander like sheep.
They are in trouble^[a] because they have no shepherd.

The Lord’s Warning and Promise

³My anger burns against the shepherds,
and I will punish the leaders of the flock,
because the Lord of Armies cares for his flock, the house of Judah,
and he will make them like his majestic horse in battle.
⁴From him will come the cornerstone,
from him the tent peg,
from him the battle bow,
from him every commander.
⁵Together they will be like strong warriors,
going out into battle, trampling the enemy into the mud of the streets.
They will fight, because the Lord is with them,
and those who ride horses will be put to shame.

⁶I will strengthen the house of Judah
and save the house of Joseph.
I will restore them,
because I have compassion on them.
It will be as if I had not rejected them,
because I am the Lord their God, and I will answer them.
⁷Then Ephraim will become like a strong warrior,
and their hearts will be glad as if from wine.
Their children will see it and be glad.
Their hearts will rejoice in the Lord.
⁸I will whistle for them and gather them in,
for I have redeemed them.
They will be as numerous as they were in the past.
⁹Though I scattered them among the peoples,
yet in distant places they will remember me.
They will survive and return with their children.
¹⁰I will bring them back from the land of Egypt,
and I will gather them from Assyria.
I will bring them to the land of Gilead and Lebanon,
and there will not be enough room for them.
¹¹They^[b] will pass through the sea of distress,
but the Lord will strike the waves in the sea.
All the depths of the Nile will become dry.
The pride of Assyria will be brought low.
The scepter of Egypt will depart.
¹²I will make them strong in the Lord,
and they will walk in his name, declares the Lord.

11 Open your doors, Lebanon,
so that fire may devour your cedars.
²Wail, you fir trees, because the cedars have fallen.
The majestic trees have been destroyed.
Wail, oaks of Bashan,
for the impenetrable forest has been felled.
³There is a sound of shepherds wailing,
because their splendor has been destroyed.
There is a sound of young lions roaring,
for the dense thickets of the Jordan have been destroyed.

The Rejection of the Good Shepherd

⁴This is what the Lord, my God, said.

Shepherd the flock which is to be slaughtered. ⁵Those who buy them slaughter them and are not held accountable, and those who sell them say, “Bless the Lord! I have become rich!” Their own shepherds show them no compassion, ⁶because I will no longer show compassion to the people of the land, declares the Lord.

Look, I will bring it about that each one of them will fall into the hand of his neighbor and into the hand of his king. They will crush the land, and I will rescue no one from their hands.

⁷So I^[c] shepherded the flock which is to be slaughtered, especially the most afflicted of the flock. I took two staffs for myself. One I called Favor and the other Union. Then I shepherded the flock. ⁸I removed three shepherds in one month. I grew very impatient with the flock, and they really detested me. ⁹So I said, “I will not shepherd you. Whatever is dying, let it die. Whatever is being destroyed, let it be destroyed. And let those who remain devour one another’s flesh.”

¹⁰I took my staff, Favor, and I broke it in two, to cancel my covenant that I had made with all the peoples. ¹¹So it was cancelled on that day, and the most miserable of the flock, who were watching me, knew that this was the word of the Lord.

¹²Then I said to them, “If it seems good to you, pay me my wages. But if it does not, withhold them.” So they weighed out thirty pieces of silver as my wages.

¹³Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter, this magnificent price at which they valued me.” So I took the thirty pieces of silver, and I threw them into the House of the Lord, to the potter.

¹⁴Then I broke my second staff, Union, to break the brotherhood between the house of Judah and the house of Israel.

A Foolish Shepherd

¹⁵Then the Lord said to me:

Take up once again the equipment of a foolish shepherd.
¹⁶Watch closely. I myself am going to raise up a shepherd in the land, one who will pay no attention to those who are being lost, who will not search for the scattered, who will not heal the injured, who will not nourish those who remain standing, but who nevertheless will devour the meat of the fat sheep and even tear off their hoofs.
¹⁷Woe to my worthless shepherd,
the one who deserts the flock.
May the sword strike his arm and his right eye!
May his arm wither away to nothing,
and his right eye become completely blind.

Footnotes:

Zechariah 10:2 Or are miserable
Zechariah 10:11 Or he. The Hebrew verb is singular.
Zechariah 11:7 The pronoun I refers, first of all, to Zechariah, who serves as a type of Christ, the Good Shepherd. This incident seems to lead up to the death of Zechariah in the temple. The ultimate fulfillment is in Jesus the Good Shepherd, who was betrayed for thirty pieces of silver. The bad shepherds in the next section are the unfaithful priests and spiritual leaders of Israel and ultimately the Antichrist.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Revelation 18

Babylon Has Fallen

18 After these things I saw another angel coming down out of heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was given light by his glory. ²He called out with a loud voice, saying:

Fallen, fallen, is Babylon the Great.
She has become a dwelling place for demons,
and a prison for every unclean spirit,
and a prison for every unclean bird,^[a]
and a prison for every unclean and hated beast.
³For all the nations have drunk from^[b] the wine of her adulterous desire,
and the kings of the earth committed adultery with her,
and the merchants of the earth became rich from the abundance of her luxury.

⁴And I heard another voice from heaven say:

Come out of her, my people,
so that you will not share in her sins,
and so that you will not receive any of her plagues,
⁵because her sins have reached heaven
and God has remembered her crimes.
⁶Pay her back even as she has paid.
Pay her back double for what she has done.
In the cup that she mixed, mix her a double portion.
⁷As much glory and luxury as she gave herself,
give that much torture and grief to her,
because in her heart she says:
I sit as a queen,
I am not a widow, and
I will never mourn.
⁸For this reason her plagues will come on a single day:
death, mourning, and famine,
and she will be burned in fire,
because the Lord God, who judges her, is powerful.

Some Mourn Babylon’s Destruction

⁹“The kings of the earth who committed adultery and lived in luxury with her will weep and mourn for her when they see the smoke from her burning. ¹⁰They will stand far away because of terror at her torment and say:

Woe, woe, the great city,
Babylon, the strong city!
For your judgment came in a single hour.

¹¹“The merchants of the earth also weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargo anymore, ¹²a cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet fabric, every kind of aromatic wood and ivory article, and every article made of precious wood, brass, iron, and marble; ¹³also cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, high quality flour, grain, cattle, sheep, horses, and carriages, as well as bodies and souls of people.

¹⁴“The fruit your soul desired has left you. All your costly and splendid things have passed away from you. No one will ever find them again.

¹⁵“The merchants who sold those things and were made rich by Babylon will stand far away out of terror at her torment. They are going to weep and mourn, ¹⁶saying:

Woe, woe to the great city that was clothed in fine linen
and purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls,
¹⁷because such great wealth was made a wasteland in a single hour.

“Every ship captain and all the ocean travelers and the sailors and those who make their living on the sea stood far away ¹⁸and cried out when they saw the smoke rise from her burning. They said, ‘Who is like the great city?’ ¹⁹They threw dust on their heads and cried out as they wept and mourned, saying:

Woe, woe to the great city
by whom all who have ships on the sea were made rich from her treasures,
because she was made a wasteland in a single hour.
²⁰Rejoice over her, heaven,
also you saints, apostles, and prophets,
because God has judged her for the judgment you received from her.”

²¹A mighty angel picked up a stone like a large millstone and, as he threw it into the sea, he said:

This is the way Babylon, the great city,
will be overthrown with violence and
will never again be found.
²²The sound of harpists and musicians, flutists and trumpeters,
will never be heard in you again.
No craftsman of any trade
will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
will never be heard in you again.
²³The light of a lamp
will never shine in you again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in you again,
because your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
because your witchcraft led all the nations astray,
²⁴and the blood of prophets and saints was found in this city,^[c]
along with the blood of all those who were slain on the earth.

Footnotes:

Revelation 18:2 Some witnesses to the text read unclean and hated bird and omit and a prison for every unclean and hated beast.
Revelation 18:3 Some witnesses to the text read For all the nations have fallen as a result of.
Revelation 18:24 Literally in her

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Psalm 146

Praise Him for Protection

Praise for Protection

¹Praise the Lord.^[a]

A Lifetime of Praise

Praise the Lord, O my soul.
²I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will make music to my God as long as I exist.

No Help in Humans

³Do not trust in human helpers,^[b]
in a mortal man who cannot save you.
⁴His spirit departs.
He returns to the ground he came from.
On that day, his plans have perished.

Help in the Lord

⁵Blessed is everyone who has the God of Jacob as his help.
His hope is in the Lord his God,
⁶the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything which is in them.
He is the one who stays faithful forever.
⁷He obtains justice for the oppressed.
He gives food to the hungry.
The Lord releases prisoners.
⁸The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down.
The Lord loves the righteous.
⁹The Lord watches over the aliens.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but he turns aside the way of the wicked.

An Eternity for Praise

¹⁰The Lord reigns forever.
Your God, O Zion, rules for all generations.
Praise the Lord.

Footnotes:

Psalm 146:1 Hebrew hallelu Yah
Psalm 146:3 The Hebrew word refers to rich people who have the willingness and the means to help the needy.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Proverbs 30:33

³³because just as pressing milk produces cheese,^[a]
and pressing a nose brings forth blood,
so pressing one’s anger produces a fight.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 30:33 Or churning milk produces butter

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

December 26, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 26, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 9

Judgment on Israel’s Enemies

9 A prophecy:^(A)

The word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrak
and will come to rest on Damascus^(B)—
for the eyes of all people and all the tribes of Israel
are on the Lord—^[a]
²and on Hamath^(C) too, which borders on it,
and on Tyre^(D) and Sidon,^(E) though they are very skillful.
³Tyre has built herself a stronghold;
she has heaped up silver like dust,
and gold like the dirt of the streets.^(F)
⁴But the Lord will take away her possessions
and destroy^(G) her power on the sea,
and she will be consumed by fire.^(H)
⁵Ashkelon^(I) will see it and fear;
Gaza will writhe in agony,
and Ekron too, for her hope will wither.
Gaza will lose her king
and Ashkelon will be deserted.
⁶A mongrel people will occupy Ashdod,
and I will put an end^(J) to the pride of the Philistines.
⁷I will take the blood from their mouths,
the forbidden food from between their teeth.
Those who are left will belong to our God^(K)
and become a clan in Judah,
and Ekron will be like the Jebusites.^(L)
⁸But I will encamp^(M) at my temple
to guard it against marauding forces.^(N)
Never again will an oppressor overrun my people,
for now I am keeping watch.^(O)

The Coming of Zion’s King

⁹Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!^(P)
Shout,^(Q) Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,^(R)
righteous and victorious,^(S)
lowly and riding on a donkey,^(T)
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.^(U)
¹⁰I will take away the chariots from Ephraim
and the warhorses from Jerusalem,
and the battle bow will be broken.^(V)
He will proclaim peace^(W) to the nations.
His rule will extend from sea to sea
and from the River^[b] to the ends of the earth.^(X)
¹¹As for you, because of the blood of my covenant^(Y) with you,
I will free your prisoners^(Z) from the waterless pit.^(AA)
¹²Return to your fortress,^(AB) you prisoners of hope;
even now I announce that I will restore twice^(AC) as much to you.
¹³I will bend Judah as I bend my bow^(AD)
and fill it with Ephraim.^(AE)
I will rouse your sons, Zion,
against your sons, Greece,^(AF)
and make you like a warrior’s sword.^(AG)

The Lord Will Appear

¹⁴Then the Lord will appear over them;^(AH)
his arrow will flash like lightning.^(AI)
The Sovereign Lord will sound the trumpet;^(AJ)
he will march in the storms^(AK) of the south,
¹⁵and the Lord Almighty will shield^(AL) them.
They will destroy
and overcome with slingstones.^(AM)
They will drink and roar as with wine;^(AN)
they will be full like a bowl^(AO)
used for sprinkling^[c] the corners^(AP) of the altar.
¹⁶The Lord their God will save his people on that day^(AQ)
as a shepherd saves his flock.
They will sparkle in his land
like jewels in a crown.^(AR)
¹⁷How attractive and beautiful they will be!
Grain will make the young men thrive,
and new wine the young women.

Footnotes:

Zechariah 9:1 Or Damascus. / For the eye of the Lord is on all people, / as well as on the tribes of Israel,
Zechariah 9:10 That is, the Euphrates
Zechariah 9:15 Or bowl, / like

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 17

Babylon, the Prostitute on the Beast

17 One of the seven angels^(A) who had the seven bowls^(B) came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment^(C) of the great prostitute,^(D) who sits by many waters.^(E) ²With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”^(F)

³Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit^(G) into a wilderness.^(H) There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet^(I) beast that was covered with blasphemous names^(J) and had seven heads and ten horns.^(K) ⁴The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls.^(L) She held a golden cup^(M) in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.^(N) ⁵The name written on her forehead was a mystery:^(O)

babylon the great^(P)

the mother of prostitutes^(Q)

and of the abominations of the earth.

⁶I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people,^(R) the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.

When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. ⁷Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery^(S) of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns.^(T) ⁸The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss^(U) and go to its destruction.^(V) The inhabitants of the earth^(W) whose names have not been written in the book of life^(X) from the creation of the world will be astonished^(Y) when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.

⁹“This calls for a mind with wisdom.^(Z) The seven heads^(AA) are seven hills on which the woman sits. ¹⁰They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. ¹¹The beast who once was, and now is not,^(AB) is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction.

¹²“The ten horns^(AC) you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour^(AD) will receive authority as kings along with the beast. ¹³They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast.^(AE) ¹⁴They will wage war^(AF) against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over^(AG) them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings^(AH)—and with him will be his called, chosen^(AI) and faithful followers.”

¹⁵Then the angel said to me, “The waters^(AJ) you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages.^(AK) ¹⁶The beast and the ten horns^(AL) you saw will hate the prostitute.^(AM) They will bring her to ruin^(AN) and leave her naked;^(AO) they will eat her flesh^(AP) and burn her with fire.^(AQ) ¹⁷For God has put it into their hearts^(AR) to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority,^(AS) until God’s words are fulfilled.^(AT) ¹⁸The woman you saw is the great city^(AU) that rules over the kings of the earth.”

Cross references:

Revelation 17:1 : S Rev 15:1
Revelation 17:1 : Rev 15:7
Revelation 17:1 : Rev 16:19
Revelation 17:1 : ver 5, 15, 16; Isa 23:17; Rev 19:2
Revelation 17:1 : Jer 51:13
Revelation 17:2 : S Rev 14:8
Revelation 17:3 : S Rev 1:10
Revelation 17:3 : Rev 12:6, 14
Revelation 17:3 : Rev 18:12, 16
Revelation 17:3 : Rev 13:1
Revelation 17:3 : S Rev 12:3
Revelation 17:4 : Eze 28:13; Rev 18:16
Revelation 17:4 : Jer 51:7; Rev 18:6
Revelation 17:4 : ver 2; S Rev 14:8
Revelation 17:5 : ver 7
Revelation 17:5 : S Rev 14:8
Revelation 17:5 : ver 1, 2
Revelation 17:6 : Rev 16:6; 18:24
Revelation 17:7 : ver 5
Revelation 17:7 : ver 3; S Rev 12:3
Revelation 17:8 : S Lk 8:31
Revelation 17:8 : Rev 13:10
Revelation 17:8 : S Rev 3:10
Revelation 17:8 : S Rev 20:12
Revelation 17:8 : Rev 13:3
Revelation 17:9 : Rev 13:18
Revelation 17:9 : ver 3
Revelation 17:11 : ver 8
Revelation 17:12 : S Rev 12:3
Revelation 17:12 : Rev 18:10, 17, 19
Revelation 17:13 : ver 17
Revelation 17:14 : S Rev 16:14
Revelation 17:14 : S Jn 16:33
Revelation 17:14 : S 1Ti 6:15
Revelation 17:14 : Mt 22:14
Revelation 17:15 : ver 1; Isa 8:7; Jer 47:2
Revelation 17:15 : S Rev 13:7
Revelation 17:16 : S Rev 12:3
Revelation 17:16 : ver 1
Revelation 17:16 : Rev 18:17, 19
Revelation 17:16 : Eze 16:37, 39
Revelation 17:16 : Rev 19:18
Revelation 17:16 : Rev 18:8
Revelation 17:17 : 2Co 8:16
Revelation 17:17 : ver 13
Revelation 17:17 : Jer 39:16; Rev 10:7
Revelation 17:18 : Rev 16:19; 18:10, 18, 19, 21

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 145

Psalm 145^[a]

A psalm of praise. Of David.

¹I will exalt you,^(A) my God the King;^(B)
I will praise your name^(C) for ever and ever.
²Every day I will praise^(D) you
and extol your name^(E) for ever and ever.

³Great^(F) is the Lord and most worthy of praise;^(G)
his greatness no one can fathom.^(H)
⁴One generation^(I) commends your works to another;
they tell^(J) of your mighty acts.^(K)
⁵They speak of the glorious splendor^(L) of your majesty—
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.^[b]^(M)
⁶They tell^(N) of the power of your awesome works—^(O)
and I will proclaim^(P) your great deeds.^(Q)
⁷They celebrate your abundant goodness^(R)
and joyfully sing^(S) of your righteousness.^(T)

⁸The Lord is gracious and compassionate,^(U)
slow to anger and rich in love.^(V)

⁹The Lord is good^(W) to all;
he has compassion^(X) on all he has made.
¹⁰All your works praise you,^(Y) Lord;
your faithful people extol^(Z) you.^(AA)
¹¹They tell of the glory of your kingdom^(AB)
and speak of your might,^(AC)
¹²so that all people may know of your mighty acts^(AD)
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.^(AE)
¹³Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,^(AF)
and your dominion endures through all generations.

The Lord is trustworthy^(AG) in all he promises^(AH)
and faithful in all he does.^[c]
¹⁴The Lord upholds^(AI) all who fall
and lifts up all^(AJ) who are bowed down.^(AK)
¹⁵The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food^(AL) at the proper time.
¹⁶You open your hand
and satisfy the desires^(AM) of every living thing.

¹⁷The Lord is righteous^(AN) in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.^(AO)
¹⁸The Lord is near^(AP) to all who call on him,^(AQ)
to all who call on him in truth.
¹⁹He fulfills the desires^(AR) of those who fear him;^(AS)
he hears their cry^(AT) and saves them.^(AU)
²⁰The Lord watches over^(AV) all who love him,^(AW)
but all the wicked he will destroy.^(AX)

²¹My mouth will speak^(AY) in praise of the Lord.
Let every creature^(AZ) praise his holy name^(BA)
for ever and ever.

Footnotes:

Psalm 145:1 This psalm is an acrostic poem, the verses of which (including verse 13b) begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
Psalm 145:5 Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac (see also Septuagint); Masoretic Text On the glorious splendor of your majesty / and on your wonderful works I will meditate
Psalm 145:13 One manuscript of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac (see also Septuagint); most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text do not have the last two lines of verse 13.

Cross references:

Psalm 145:1 : Ps 30:1; 34:1
Psalm 145:1 : Ps 2:6; 5:2
Psalm 145:1 : S Ps 54:6
Psalm 145:2 : S Ps 71:6
Psalm 145:2 : Ps 34:1; Isa 25:1; 26:8
Psalm 145:3 : S Ps 95:3
Psalm 145:3 : S 2Sa 22:4; Ps 96:4
Psalm 145:3 : S Job 5:9
Psalm 145:4 : Ps 22:30
Psalm 145:4 : S Dt 11:19
Psalm 145:4 : S Ps 71:16
Psalm 145:5 : Ps 96:6; 148:13
Psalm 145:5 : S Ps 75:1
Psalm 145:6 : Ps 78:4
Psalm 145:6 : S Ps 66:3
Psalm 145:6 : S Dt 32:3
Psalm 145:6 : Ps 75:1; 106:22
Psalm 145:7 : S Ex 18:9; S Ps 27:13
Psalm 145:7 : S Ps 5:11; S 101:1
Psalm 145:7 : S Ps 138:5
Psalm 145:8 : S Ps 86:15; 103:8
Psalm 145:8 : S Ps 86:5
Psalm 145:9 : S 1Ch 16:34; S Ps 136:1; Mt 19:17; Mk 10:18
Psalm 145:9 : Ps 103:13-14
Psalm 145:10 : S Ps 8:6; S 103:22; S 139:14
Psalm 145:10 : Ps 30:4; 148:14; 149:9
Psalm 145:10 : Ps 115:17-18
Psalm 145:11 : ver 12-13; S Ex 15:2; Mt 6:33
Psalm 145:11 : Ps 21:13
Psalm 145:12 : S Ps 75:1; 105:1
Psalm 145:12 : ver 11; Ps 103:19; Isa 2:10, 19, 21
Psalm 145:13 : S Ex 15:18; 1Ti 1:17; 2Pe 1:11; Rev 11:15
Psalm 145:13 : S Dt 7:9; S 1Co 1:9
Psalm 145:13 : S Jos 23:14
Psalm 145:14 : S Ps 37:17
Psalm 145:14 : S 1Sa 2:8; Ps 146:8
Psalm 145:14 : S Ps 38:6
Psalm 145:15 : S Ge 1:30; S Job 28:5; S Ps 37:25; S Mt 6:26
Psalm 145:16 : S Ps 90:14; S 104:28
Psalm 145:17 : S Ex 9:27; S Ezr 9:15
Psalm 145:17 : ver 13
Psalm 145:18 : S Nu 23:21; S Ps 46:1; Php 4:5
Psalm 145:18 : Ps 18:6; 80:18
Psalm 145:19 : S Ps 20:4
Psalm 145:19 : S Job 22:28
Psalm 145:19 : S Ps 31:22; S 40:1
Psalm 145:19 : S 1Sa 10:19; Ps 7:10; 34:18
Psalm 145:20 : S Ps 1:6
Psalm 145:20 : Ps 31:23; 91:14; 97:10
Psalm 145:20 : S Ps 94:23
Psalm 145:21 : Ps 71:8
Psalm 145:21 : Ps 65:2; 150:6
Psalm 145:21 : S Ex 3:15; S Ps 30:4; S 99:3

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 30:32

³²“If you play the fool and exalt yourself,
or if you plan evil,
clap your hand over your mouth!^(A)

Cross references:

Proverbs 30:32 : S Job 29:9

New International Version (NIV)

December 25, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday December 25, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 8

The Lord Will Save His People

8 The word of the Lord of Armies came:

²This is what the Lord of Armies says. I am zealous for Zion with great zeal, and with great wrath I am zealous for her.

³This is what the Lord says. I will certainly return to Zion, and I will dwell in the middle of Jerusalem. Jerusalem will be called the faithful city, and the mountain of the Lord of Armies will be called the holy mountain.

⁴This is what the Lord of Armies says. Old men and old women will again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, all of them with canes^[a] in their hand due to old age. ⁵Then the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing in its streets.

⁶This is what the Lord of Armies says. Although in those days this may seem unattainable to the surviving remnant of this people, will it also seem unattainable to me? declares the Lord of Armies.

⁷This is what the Lord of Armies says. Look, I will save my people from the land where the sun rises and from the land where the sun sets, ⁸and I will bring them to settle in the midst of Jerusalem. They will be my people, and I will be their God, in faithfulness and in righteousness.

⁹This is what the Lord of Armies says. Let your hands be strong so that the temple may be built—you who in these days are listening to these words from the mouths of the prophets, who were present on the day when the foundation of the house of the Lord of Armies was laid. ¹⁰For before those days, there was no one who could pay for workmen or for animals. There was no peace from the adversary for anyone who went out or came in, because I had set every man against his neighbor. ¹¹But now I will not treat the surviving remnant of this people as in earlier days, declares the Lord of Armies.

¹²Sowing will take place in peace. The vine will yield its fruit. The earth will yield its produce. The sky will provide its dew. I will give all these things as a possession to the surviving remnant of this people. ¹³Just as you once were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so now I will save you. You will be a blessing. Do not be afraid. Let your hands be strong.

¹⁴For this is what the Lord of Armies^[b] says. Just as I planned to bring disaster upon you when your fathers made me angry, says the Lord of Armies, so that I did not relent, ¹⁵so in these days I plan to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah once again. Do not be afraid.

¹⁶These are the things that you are to do: Speak the truth to one another. Render judgments that uphold truth, justice, and peace in your gates. ¹⁷Do not plot evil in your hearts against each other. Do not love false oaths. Indeed I hate all these things, declares the Lord.

¹⁸The word of the Lord of Armies came to me:

¹⁹This is what the Lord of Armies says. The fasts of the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months will become times of rejoicing, joy, and gladness for the house of Judah. Therefore, all of you are to love truth and peace.

²⁰This is what the Lord of Armies says. People will still come as the inhabitants of many cities. ²¹Then the inhabitants of one city will go to another and say, “Let us go immediately to plead for the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of Armies. I myself will go.” ²²Then many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek the Lord of Armies in Jerusalem and to plead for the favor of the Lord.

²³This is what the Lord of Armies says. In those days, ten men from among the speakers of every language of the nations will take firm hold of the hem of a Jew’s garment and say, “Let us go along with you, because we have heard that God is with you.”

Footnotes:

Zechariah 8:4 Or staffs
Zechariah 8:14 Traditionally Lord of Hosts or Lord of Sebaoth

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Revelation 16

The First Five Bowls

16 I heard a loud voice from the temple say to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.”

²The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and horrible and painful sores came on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshipped his image.

³The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man, and every living creature in the sea died.

⁴The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and the springs of water, and they^[a] turned into blood. ⁵And I heard the angel of the waters say:

You are righteous, the one who is and who was, the Holy One,^[b]
because you have made these judgments.
⁶Because they poured out the blood of saints and prophets,
you have given them blood to drink.
They deserve it.

⁷And I heard the incense altar, saying,^[c] “Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments.”

⁸The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to burn people with fire. ⁹People were scorched by the fierce heat. Then they blasphemed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues, but they did not repent and give him praise.

¹⁰The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast. The beast’s kingdom was darkened. People gnawed their tongues in their torment. ¹¹They blasphemed the God of heaven because of their torments and their sores. But they did not repent of their deeds.

The Sixth Bowl: The Battle of Armageddon

¹²The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates. Its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings coming from the east. ¹³I saw three unclean spirits, like frogs, which came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. ¹⁴They are, in fact, miracle-working, demonic spirits, which go out to the kings of the whole earth^[d] to bring them together for the battle on the great day of the Almighty God.

¹⁵“Look: I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes on, so that he does not walk around naked and his shame is not seen.”

¹⁶Then they brought them together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

The Seventh Bowl: The End of the World

¹⁷The seventh angel poured out his bowl on the air. And a loud voice came out of the temple^[e] from the throne, saying, “It is done.” ¹⁸There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, and crashes of thunder. There was also a great earthquake of a kind that has not occurred since mankind has been^[f] on the earth.

¹⁹And the great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. Babylon the Great was remembered by God, and he gave her the wine cup filled with his fierce wrath. ²⁰Every island vanished, and the mountains could no longer be found. ²¹Massive hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell on people from the sky. And the people blasphemed God because of the plague of hail, because the plague was so severe.

Footnotes:

Revelation 16:4 Some witnesses to the text read it.
Revelation 16:5 A few witnesses to the text read and who will be instead of the Holy One.
Revelation 16:7 A few witnesses to the text read And I heard another, saying from the altar.
Revelation 16:14 A few witnesses to the text read the kings of the earth and of the whole world.
Revelation 16:17 A few witnesses to the text add of heaven.
Revelation 16:18 Some witnesses to the text read man has been.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Psalm 144

A Prayer for the Nation

Heading
By David.

Praise

¹Blessed be the Lord my Rock,
who trains my hands for battle,
my fingers for war.
²He shows me mercy.
He is my stronghold, my high fortress.
He is my deliverer and my shield,
so I take refuge in him.
He subdues peoples^[a] under me.

Need

³Lord, what is man that you notice him,
the son of man that you consider him?
⁴Man is like a breath.^[b]
His days are like a passing shadow.

Petition

⁵Lord, rip open your heavens and come down.
Touch the mountains so that they smoke.
⁶Send out lightning and scatter them.
Shoot your arrows and rout them.
⁷Reach down your hand from on high.
Rescue me and snatch me from the mighty waters,
from the hand of foreigners ⁸whose mouths speak lies,
who raise their right hands to a false oath.^[c]

Praise

⁹God, I will sing a new song to you.
On the ten-stringed harp I will make music to you,
¹⁰to you who gives victory to kings,
to you who delivers David his servant from the evil sword.

Petition

¹¹Rescue me and snatch me from the hand of foreigners
whose mouths speak lies,
who raise their right hands to a false oath.

The Results of Victory

¹²Then our sons in their youth will be like full-grown plants.
Our daughters will be like corner pillars carved to decorate a palace.
¹³Our storehouses will be filled with produce of every kind.
Our flocks will increase by thousands,
by tens of thousands in our countryside.
¹⁴Our oxen will pull heavy loads.
There will be no breaking through our walls,
no exile into captivity,
no cry of distress in our city squares.
¹⁵How blessed are the people for whom this is so.
How blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.

Footnotes:

Psalm 144:2 Hebrew variant. The main Hebrew reading is my people.
Psalm 144:4 Or vapor
Psalm 144:8 Literally their right hand a right hand of falseness

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Proverbs 30:29-31

²⁹Three things strut impressively.
Four walk with dignity:
³⁰a lion, which is the mightiest among the animals,
does not turn away from anything,
³¹a strutting rooster,^[a]
a male goat,
and a king reviewing his troops.^[b]

Footnotes:

Proverbs 30:31 The meaning of the Hebrew phrase girt of loins is uncertain. It may refer to a strutting animal, such as a rooster, or to a dandy, decked out in fine clothes.
Proverbs 30:31 The meaning of the last phrase is uncertain.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

December 24, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday December 24, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 6-7

The Eighth Vision: Four Chariots

6 Then I turned and lifted up my eyes and looked again. There were four chariots coming out from between two mountains. The mountains were made of bronze. ²The first chariot had red horses. The second chariot had black horses. ³The third chariot had white horses. The fourth chariot had dappled horses. All of them were powerful. ⁴So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”

⁵The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits^[a] of the heavens, going forth from their stations to present themselves to the Lord of all the earth. ⁶The driver with the black horses is going toward the land of the north, and the one with the white horses is following after them, and the one with the dappled horses is going toward the land of the south.”

⁷Now the powerful horses came out, and they were eager to range throughout the earth. He said, “Go! Range throughout the earth.” So they ranged throughout the earth.

⁸Then he called out to me and told me, “Look! Those who are going out toward the land of the north have caused my Spirit to rest in the land of the north.”

The Crowning of Joshua

⁹The word of the Lord came to me:

¹⁰Take an offering from the exiles—from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have come from Babylon—and on that very day go into the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. ¹¹Take the silver and gold and make a crown, and place it on the head of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest.

¹²Tell him that this is what the Lord of Armies says:

There is a man whose name is the Branch, because he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord. ¹³He is the one who will build the temple of the Lord. He will be clothed with majesty, and he will sit and rule on his throne. He will be a priest on his throne, and there will be peaceful relations between the two offices.^[b]

¹⁴The crown will be kept in the temple as a memorial^[c] for Helem^[d] and Tobijah and Jedaiah and Hen,^[e] son of Zephaniah.

¹⁵Those who are far away will come and build the temple of the Lord, and you will know that the Lord of Armies has sent me to you. This will happen if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord your God.

The Reason the Land Became Desolate

7 In the fourth year of King Darius,^[f] the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Kislev.^[g]

²The people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem Melek with their men to plead for the favor of the Lord ³by asking the priests who were at the house of the Lord of Armies and the prophets, “Should I mourn and fast in the fifth month, as I have done these many years?”

⁴Then the word of the Lord of Armies came to me:

⁵Speak to all the people of the land and to the priests.

When you fasted and lamented during the fifth and seventh months for these seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted? ⁶And when you eat and drink, is it not for yourselves that you eat and drink? ⁷Weren’t these the words that the Lord proclaimed through the earlier prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and when the Negev and the Shephelah^[h] were inhabited?

⁸Then the word of the Lord came to Zechariah:

⁹This is what the Lord of Armies says. Execute true justice. Each man is to show kindness and compassion to his brother. ¹⁰Do not oppress the widow, the fatherless child, the foreigner living among you, or the poor. Make sure that none of you plan evil in your heart against your brother.

¹¹But they refused to pay attention. They turned a stubborn shoulder and covered their ears so that they would not hear. ¹²They made their hearts like the hardest rock^[i] so that they would not hear the law and the words that the Lord of Armies sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. As a result, the fierce anger from the Lord of Armies was great.

¹³When I called, they would not listen. So when they called, I would not listen, says the Lord of Armies. ¹⁴I scattered them with a windstorm, among all the nations which they did not know. So the land was left desolate behind them. No one traveled back and forth through it. They made the pleasant land desolate.

Footnotes:

Zechariah 6:5 Or winds
Zechariah 6:13 Joshua, who receives the crown, did not himself hold the two offices of priest and king, but as a type, he points to Christ, who did hold both offices.
Zechariah 6:14 Or reminder
Zechariah 6:14 Probably another name for Heldai (verse 10)
Zechariah 6:14 Or the gracious one, probably another name for Josiah (verse 10)
Zechariah 7:1 That is, 518 bc
Zechariah 7:1 That is, November/December
Zechariah 7:7 The Negev and Shephelah are the dry southland and the western foothills of Judah.
Zechariah 7:12 Perhaps diamond or flint

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Revelation 15

The Angels With the Seven Last Plagues

15 Then I saw another great and remarkable sign in heaven: seven angels with seven plagues—the last plagues, because in them God’s wrath is completed.

²And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire. I also saw those who had won the victory over the beast and his image^[a] and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass. They held the harps of God, ³and they were singing the song of Moses, God’s servant, and the song of the Lamb. They said:

Great and marvelous are your works, Lord God Almighty.
Just and true are your ways, King of the Nations.^[b]
⁴Who will not fear you,^[c] Lord,
and who will not praise your name?
You alone are holy!
All the nations will come and will bow down before you,
because your righteous verdicts have been revealed.

⁵After these things I looked, and the sanctuary of the Tent of the Testimony was opened in heaven. ⁶The seven angels who hold the seven plagues came out of the sanctuary. They were clothed with clean bright linen, and they wore gold sashes around their chests.

⁷One of the four living creatures gave the seven angels the seven gold bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. ⁸And the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power. No one was able to enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.

Footnotes:

Revelation 15:2 A few witnesses to the text add and his mark.
Revelation 15:3 Some witnesses to the text read ages. A few witnesses read saints.
Revelation 15:4 A few witnesses to the text omit you.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Psalm 143

Do Not Bring Your Servant Into Judgment

Heading
A psalm by David.

Prayer for Forgiveness

¹Lord, hear my prayer.
Give ear to my cry for mercy.
In your faithfulness, answer me in your righteousness.
²Do not bring charges against your servant,
because no one living can be righteous before you.

The Problem

³For the enemy pursues my soul.
He crushes my life to the ground.
He makes me dwell in dark places like those long dead,
⁴so my spirit grows faint inside me.
Within me my heart is devastated.

The Reason for Hope

⁵I remember the days of long ago.
I meditate on all your works,
and I consider what your hands have done.
⁶I spread out my hands to you. Interlude
My soul thirsts for you like a weary land.

The Prayer

⁷Hurry! Answer me, Lord.
My spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me,
or I will be like those who go down to the pit.
⁸Let me hear about your mercy in the morning,
for I trust in you.
Teach me the way that I should go,
for I lift up my soul to you.
⁹Rescue me from my enemies, O Lord,
for I hide myself in you.
¹⁰Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God.
May your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
¹¹For the sake of your name, O Lord, preserve my life.
In your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.
¹²In your mercy, wipe out my enemies,
and destroy all who threaten my life,
for I am your servant.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Proverbs 30:24-28

²⁴Four things are small on the earth,
yet they are wiser than the wisest people:
²⁵Ants are a species without strength,
but they store their food in summer.
²⁶Rock badgers are a species without power,
but they make their home in a cliff.
²⁷Locusts have no king,
but they all march ahead in ranks.
²⁸Lizards can be caught in your hands,
but they live in kings’ palaces.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

December 23, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday December 23, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 4-5

The Fifth Vision: A Lampstand and Two Olive Trees

4 Then the angel who was speaking with me returned and woke me up in the same way that a man is awakened from sleep. ²He said to me, “What do you see?”

I said, “Look! Right there, I see a lampstand, made entirely of gold, with a basin on top of it, with seven lamps on it, and there are seven channels leading to the lamps that are on top of it.^[a] ³There are two olive trees beside it, one to the right of the bowl, and one to its left.”

⁴I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”

⁵The angel who was speaking with me answered me, “Don’t you know what these are?”

I answered, “No, my lord.”

⁶So he said to me:

This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel. Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Armies. ⁷What are you, you great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a level plain. Then he will bring out the capstone with shouts of “Grace! Grace be with it!”

⁸Then the word of the Lord came to me:

⁹The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house, and his hands will also finish it. Then you will know that the Lord of Armies has sent me to you.

¹⁰For who despises the day of small things? They will rejoice to see the plumb line^[b] in the hand of Zerubbabel.

These seven are the eyes of the Lord that range throughout the whole earth.

¹¹Then I asked him, “What are these two olive trees to the right and left of the lampstand?” ¹²I asked him a second time, “What are the two olive branches that are beside the two gold conduits that pour out the golden oil?”

¹³He said to me, “Don’t you know what these are?”

I said, “No, my lord.”

¹⁴Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones^[c] who stand by the Lord of all the earth.”

The Sixth Vision: A Flying Scroll

5 Again I lifted up my eyes and looked. I saw a flying scroll!

²He asked me, “What do you see?”

I said, “I see a flying scroll! It is thirty feet long and fifteen feet wide.”^[d]

³Then he said to me, “This is the curse that is going out over the face of the whole earth: On the basis of the curse, everyone who steals will be expelled in one direction, and everyone who swears falsely will be expelled in the other direction.^[e] ⁴I will send it out, declares the Lord of Armies, and it will go to the house of the thief and to the house of the one who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in his house and consume it, both wood and stone.”

The Seventh Vision: A Woman in a Basket

⁵Then the angel who was speaking with me came forward and said to me, “Lift up your eyes, now, and see what is going out.”

⁶So I asked, “What is it?”

He replied, “This is the basket^[f] that is going out.”

He also said, “This is their guilt^[g] in all the earth.”

⁷As I watched, the lead cover was lifted, and I saw that there was a woman sitting inside the basket.

⁸He said, “This is Wickedness.” Then he pushed her down inside the basket, and he pushed the lead weight onto its opening.

⁹Then I lifted up my eyes and looked again. There were two women coming toward me! The wind was in their wings. They had wings like the wings of a stork. They lifted up the basket between the earth and the heavens.

¹⁰So I said to the angel who was speaking with me, “Where are they taking the basket?”

¹¹He told me, “To build a house for it in the land of Shinar.^[h] When it is ready, it will be set there on its foundation.”

Footnotes:

Zechariah 4:2 Or perhaps there are seven spouts and seven wicks on each lamp. The details concerning the construction of the lampstand are uncertain.
Zechariah 4:10 The builder uses the plumb line to show that the walls he has built are straight, not leaning. The modern equivalent is a level.
Zechariah 4:14 Literally sons of oil
Zechariah 5:2 Twenty cubits by ten cubits
Zechariah 5:3 Another interpretation is that this verse refers to writing on two sides of the scroll, rather than to two directions.
Zechariah 5:6 Hebrew ephah, here and in verses 7-11
Zechariah 5:6 The translation follows Greek and Syriac manuscripts and one Hebrew manuscript. Other Hebrew manuscripts read their eyes. In Hebrew script the words eye and guilt look very much alike.
Zechariah 5:11 That is, Babylon

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Revelation 14

The Lamb and the 144,000

14 Then I looked, and there was the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads. ²And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of a loud thunderclap. The sound that I heard was also like the sound of harpists playing their harps. ³They were singing^[a] a new song in front of the throne and the four living creatures and the elders. No one was able to learn that song except the 144,000, who had been purchased from the earth. ⁴These are the ones who were not defiled with women, because they are virgins. They continually follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb. ⁵And no lie was found in their mouths. They are blameless.^[b]

The Three Angels

⁶Then I saw another angel flying in the middle of the sky. He had the everlasting gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth, to every nation, tribe, language, and people. ⁷He said with a loud voice:

Fear God and give him glory,
because the hour of his judgment has come.
Worship him who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and the springs of water.

⁸Another angel, a second,^[c] followed. He said, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the Great,^[d] who made every nation drink from the wine of her adulterous desire.”

⁹Another angel, a third one, followed them. He said with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, ¹⁰he will also drink from the wine of God’s wrath, which has been poured undiluted^[e] into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb. ¹¹And the smoke of their torment is going to rise forever and ever. Those who worship the beast and his image, and anyone who receives the mark of his name, are going to have no rest day and night.”

¹²Here patient endurance is needed by the saints, who hold on to the commands of God and their faith in Jesus. ¹³And I heard a voice from heaven say,^[f] “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “because they will rest from their labors, for their works follow them.”

The Harvest

¹⁴Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man. He had a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. ¹⁵Another angel came out of the temple and cried with a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud, “Swing your sickle and begin reaping, for the time to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is very ripe.” ¹⁶And the one sitting on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.

¹⁷Another angel, who also had a sharp sickle, came out of the temple, which is in heaven. ¹⁸And another angel, who was in charge of the fire, came from the altar and cried with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle and harvest the grape clusters from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.” ¹⁹Then the angel swung his sickle over the earth, and he harvested the earth’s vine and threw it into the great winepress of God’s wrath. ²⁰The winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia.^[g]

Footnotes:

Revelation 14:3 A few witnesses to the text add as it were.
Revelation 14:5 A few witnesses to the text add before the throne of God.
Revelation 14:8 A few witnesses to the text omit a second.
Revelation 14:8 A few witnesses to the text add city.
Revelation 14:10 Wine was often mixed with water in the ancient world in order to dilute it.
Revelation 14:13 A few witnesses to the text add to me.
Revelation 14:20 Stadia is plural for the Greek stadion. Each stadion was about 606 feet. The distance here would be more than 180 miles.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Psalm 142

When My Spirit Grows Faint

Heading

A maskil^[a] by David. When he was in the cave.^[b] A prayer.

A Prayer for the Weary

¹With my voice I cry out to the Lord.
With my voice I call to the Lord for mercy.
²I pour out my complaint before him.
I tell my distress before him.
³When my spirit grows faint within me,
you are the one who knows my course.
On the path where I walk they have hidden a snare for me.
⁴Look to my right and see.
There is no one who recognizes me.
There is no escape for me.
No one cares about my life.
⁵I cry out to you, Lord.
I say, “You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living.”
⁶Pay attention to my loud cry,
because I am very weak.
Rescue me from those who pursue me,
because they are too strong for me.
⁷Set me free from my prison,
so I can give thanks to your name.
Then the righteous will gather around me,
because you have accomplished your purpose for me.

Footnotes:

Psalm 142:1 A maskil is a type of hymn. It means a song that makes one wise or a skillful song.
Psalm 142:1 The cave at Adullam in 1 Samuel 22 or the cave at En Gedi in 1 Samuel 24

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Proverbs 30:21-23

²¹Three things make the earth tremble.
There are four things it cannot endure:
²²a servant when he becomes king,
an arrogant fool when he is filled with food,
²³a woman who is hated when she is married,
and a slave girl when she replaces her master’s wife.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

December 22, 2024

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday December 22, 2024 (NIV)

Zechariah 2-3

The Third Vision: A Man With a Measuring Line

2 Then I looked up, and I saw a man standing there with a measuring line in his hand.^[a] ²I asked him, “Where are you going?”

He answered me, “To measure Jerusalem, to determine its width and its length.”

³At that moment, when the angel who was speaking with me was about to leave, another angel came to meet him and ⁴said, “Run and tell this young man that Jerusalem will be inhabited as a city without walls because of the large number of people and livestock in it. ⁵For I myself will be a wall of fire around it, declares the Lord, and I will be the glory within it.”

⁶Attention! This is urgent! Flee from the land of the north, declares the Lord, for I have scattered you as the four winds of the heavens, declares the Lord.

⁷Attention, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon. ⁸For this is what the Lord of Armies says. For the sake of his glory he sent me to the nations that plundered you, because whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye.^[b]^[c] ⁹Yes, I myself will swing my hand over them, and they will become plunder for their own slaves. Then you will know that the Lord of Armies has sent me.

¹⁰Sing loudly and rejoice, daughter of Zion. Yes, look! I am coming, and I will dwell among you, declares the Lord. ¹¹Many nations will be joined to the Lord on that day, and they will become my people. I will dwell among you, and you will know that the Lord of Armies has sent me to you. ¹²Then the Lord will take possession of Judah as his special portion of the holy soil, and he will again choose Jerusalem. ¹³Keep silent before the Lord, all flesh, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.

The Fourth Vision: Joshua and Satan Stand Before the Angel of the Lord

3 Then he showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan was standing at his right hand to accuse him.

²The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Isn’t this man a burning stick plucked from a fire?”

³Now Joshua was clothed in filthy clothing and was standing in front of the Angel. ⁴Then the Angel of the Lord spoke to those who were standing in front of him: “Remove his filthy clothing.”

Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken your guilt away from you, so that I may clothe you in a special robe.”

⁵I said,^[d] “Let them place a clean turban on his head.” So they placed a clean turban on his head and got him dressed, while the Angel of the Lord was standing by.

⁶Then the Angel of the Lord spoke solemnly to Joshua:

⁷This is what the Lord of Armies says. If you will walk in my ways and carry out my ministry, then you will also govern my house and watch over my courts, and I will give you access among those who are standing here.

⁸Now listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates who sit in front of you—because these men are a sign. Look! I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. ⁹Look carefully at the stone that I placed in front of Joshua! On one stone with seven facets^[e] I will engrave an inscription, declares the Lord of Armies, and I will remove the guilt of this land in a single day.

¹⁰On that day, declares the Lord of Armies, each one of you will invite his neighbor to join him under his vine and under his fig tree.

Footnotes:

Zechariah 2:1 English verses 2:1-13 are verses 2:5-17 in Hebrew.
Zechariah 2:8 The term apple of the eye is an old English idiom for the pupil of the eye. Literally, the Hebrew reads daughter or gate of the eye.
Zechariah 2:8 His eye is the reading in the main body of the Hebrew text. This reading could be understood as a statement of an angel referring to God’s eye or as the Angel of the Lord referring to the eye of God the Father. An alternate Hebrew reading is my eye. This would likely refer to the Angel of the Lord speaking of himself. A secondary issue in regard to the variant is whether some scribes had an aversion to speaking of touching God’s eye.
Zechariah 3:5 This seems to be an interjection by the prophet Zechariah.
Zechariah 3:9 Literally eyes

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Revelation 13

The Beast From the Sea

13 I saw a beast rising out of the sea. He had ten horns with ten crowns on his horns, and seven heads with blasphemous names^[a] on his heads. ²The beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth was like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power, his throne, and great authority. ³One of his heads seemed to have been fatally wounded,^[b] but his fatal wound was healed.

And the whole world that followed the beast was amazed. ⁴They worshipped the dragon because he gave authority to the beast. They worshipped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can go to war against him?” ⁵The beast was also given a mouth that spoke arrogant and blasphemous things. He was given authority to do these things for forty-two months.

⁶The beast opened his mouth to speak blasphemies against God: to blaspheme his name, his dwelling, and^[c] those who dwell in heaven. ⁷He was also given permission to wage war against the saints and to overcome them, as well as authority over every tribe and people and language and nation. ⁸All those who make their home on the earth will worship the beast—those whose names have^[d] not been written from the beginning of the world in the Book of Life, which belongs to the Lamb that was slain.^[e]

⁹If anyone has an ear, let him hear:

¹⁰If anyone is to be imprisoned,^[f] he is going to be imprisoned.
If anyone is to be killed^[g] with a sword, he is going to be killed with a sword.

Here patient endurance and confidence are needed by the saints.

The Beast From the Earth

¹¹Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth. He had two horns like the Lamb, and he spoke like the dragon. ¹²He exercises all the authority of the first beast on his behalf. He causes the earth and those who make their home on it to worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. ¹³He performs great miracles, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of people. ¹⁴He also deceives those who make their home on the earth because of the miracles that he was permitted to perform on behalf of the beast, telling those who make their home on the earth to make an image for the beast who had been wounded by the sword but lived.

¹⁵This beast was also given the ability to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast spoke and caused whoever did not worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶He also makes all people, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, ¹⁷in order that no one may buy or sell unless he has the mark—the name of the beast or the number of his name. ¹⁸Here is wisdom: Let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, because it is the number of a man. His number is 666.

Footnotes:

Revelation 13:1 Some witnesses to the text read a blasphemous name.
Revelation 13:3 Literally slaughtered to death
Revelation 13:6 Or namely or that is.
Revelation 13:8 Some witnesses to the text read the one whose name has.
Revelation 13:8 Or written in the Book of Life, which belongs to the Lamb that was slain from the beginning of the world.
Revelation 13:10 A few witnesses to the text read The person who leads someone into prison.
Revelation 13:10 A few witnesses to the text read If anyone kills.

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Psalm 141

Guard My Lips and Heart

Heading
A psalm by David.

Accept My Prayer

¹Lord, I call to you. Hurry to me.
Turn your ear toward my voice when I call to you.
²May my prayer linger before you like incense,
the lifting up of my hands like an evening offering.

Guard My Heart and Mouth

³Set a guard over my mouth, Lord.
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
⁴Do not let my heart turn toward anything evil,
to take part in wicked deeds with men who do evil.
Let me not taste their delicacies.

Correct Me

⁵Let a righteous man strike me—it is mercy.
Let him rebuke me—it is lotion^[a] on my head.
My head will not refuse it.

Reject the Wicked

But my prayer is still against their evil deeds.
⁶Their rulers will be thrown down by the sides of the cliff,
and they will hear that my words were pleasant.
⁷They will say,^[b] “As one splits and breaks up the earth,
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”

Closing Plea

⁸But my eyes look to you, Lord God.^[c]
In you I take refuge. Do not take away my life.
⁹Keep me from the snares they have set for me,
from the traps of the evildoers.
¹⁰Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I pass by safely.

Footnotes:

Psalm 141:5 Literally oil
Psalm 141:7 The words they will say are added to clarify who is speaking.
Psalm 141:8 Yahweh Adonai, which the Jews read as if it was God the Lord

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)

Proverbs 30:18-20

¹⁸Three things are too wonderful for me,
and four I cannot understand:
¹⁹the way of an eagle in the sky,
the way of a snake on a rock,
the way of a ship on the high seas,
and the way of a man with a virgin.

²⁰This is the way of a woman who commits adultery:
She eats and wipes her mouth,
and she says, “I haven’t done anything wrong.”

Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)