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December 21, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday December 21, 2018 (NIV)

Zechariah 1

A Call to Return to the Lord

1 In November^[a] of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the Lord gave this message to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo:

²“I, the Lord, was very angry with your ancestors. ³Therefore, say to the people, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.’ ⁴Don’t be like your ancestors who would not listen or pay attention when the earlier prophets said to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Turn from your evil ways, and stop all your evil practices.’

⁵“Where are your ancestors now? They and the prophets are long dead. ⁶But everything I said through my servants the prophets happened to your ancestors, just as I said. As a result, they repented and said, ‘We have received what we deserved from the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. He has done what he said he would do.’”

A Man among the Myrtle Trees

⁷Three months later, on February 15,^[b] the Lord sent another message to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo.

⁸In a vision during the night, I saw a man sitting on a red horse that was standing among some myrtle trees in a small valley. Behind him were riders on red, brown, and white horses. ⁹I asked the angel who was talking with me, “My lord, what do these horses mean?”

“I will show you,” the angel replied.

¹⁰The rider standing among the myrtle trees then explained, “They are the ones the Lord has sent out to patrol the earth.”

¹¹Then the other riders reported to the angel of the Lord, who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have been patrolling the earth, and the whole earth is at peace.”

¹²Upon hearing this, the angel of the Lord prayed this prayer: “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, for seventy years now you have been angry with Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. How long until you again show mercy to them?” ¹³And the Lord spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.

¹⁴Then the angel said to me, “Shout this message for all to hear: ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: My love for Jerusalem and Mount Zion is passionate and strong. ¹⁵But I am very angry with the other nations that are now enjoying peace and security. I was only a little angry with my people, but the nations inflicted harm on them far beyond my intentions.

¹⁶“‘Therefore, this is what the Lord says: I have returned to show mercy to Jerusalem. My Temple will be rebuilt, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, and measurements will be taken for the reconstruction of Jerusalem.^[c]’

¹⁷“Say this also: ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: The towns of Israel will again overflow with prosperity, and the Lord will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem as his own.’”

Four Horns and Four Blacksmiths

¹⁸^[d]Then I looked up and saw four animal horns. ¹⁹“What are these?” I asked the angel who was talking with me.

He replied, “These horns represent the nations that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”

²⁰Then the Lord showed me four blacksmiths. ²¹“What are these men coming to do?” I asked.

The angel replied, “These four horns—these nations—scattered and humbled Judah. Now these blacksmiths have come to terrify those nations and throw them down and destroy them.”

Footnotes:

1:1 Hebrew In the eighth month. A number of dates in Zechariah can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Persian records and related accurately to our modern calendar. This month of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred within the months of October and November 520 B.c.
1:7 Hebrew On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius. This event occurred on February 15, 519 B.c.; also see note on 1:1.
1:16 Hebrew and the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem.
1:18 Verses 1:18-21 are numbered 2:1-4 in Hebrew text.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 12

The Woman and the Dragon

12 Then I witnessed in heaven an event of great significance. I saw a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. ²She was pregnant, and she cried out because of her labor pains and the agony of giving birth.

³Then I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads. ⁴His tail swept away one-third of the stars in the sky, and he threw them to the earth. He stood in front of the woman as she was about to give birth, ready to devour her baby as soon as it was born.

⁵She gave birth to a son who was to rule all nations with an iron rod. And her child was snatched away from the dragon and was caught up to God and to his throne. ⁶And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place to care for her for 1,260 days.

⁷Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. ⁸And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. ⁹This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.

¹⁰Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens,

“It has come at last—
salvation and power
and the Kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Christ.^[a]
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters^[b]
has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them
before our God day and night.
¹¹And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
that they were afraid to die.
¹²Therefore, rejoice, O heavens!
And you who live in the heavens, rejoice!
But terror will come on the earth and the sea,
for the devil has come down to you in great anger,
knowing that he has little time.”

¹³When the dragon realized that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴But she was given two wings like those of a great eagle so she could fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness. There she would be cared for and protected from the dragon^[c] for a time, times, and half a time.

¹⁵Then the dragon tried to drown the woman with a flood of water that flowed from his mouth. ¹⁶But the earth helped her by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that gushed out from the mouth of the dragon. ¹⁷And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus.

¹⁸Then the dragon took his stand^[d] on the shore beside the sea.

Footnotes:

12:10a Or his Messiah.
12:10b Greek brothers.
12:14 Greek the serpent; also in 12:15. See 12:9.
12:18 Greek Then he took his stand; some manuscripts read Then I took my stand. Some translations put this entire sentence into 13:1.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 140

For the choir director: A psalm of David.

¹O Lord, rescue me from evil people.
Protect me from those who are violent,
²those who plot evil in their hearts
and stir up trouble all day long.
³Their tongues sting like a snake;
the venom of a viper drips from their lips. Interlude

⁴O Lord, keep me out of the hands of the wicked.
Protect me from those who are violent,
for they are plotting against me.
⁵The proud have set a trap to catch me;
they have stretched out a net;
they have placed traps all along the way. Interlude

⁶I said to the Lord, “You are my God!”
Listen, O Lord, to my cries for mercy!
⁷O Sovereign Lord, the strong one who rescued me,
you protected me on the day of battle.
⁸Lord, do not let evil people have their way.
Do not let their evil schemes succeed,
or they will become proud. Interlude

⁹Let my enemies be destroyed
by the very evil they have planned for me.
¹⁰Let burning coals fall down on their heads.
Let them be thrown into the fire
or into watery pits from which they can’t escape.
¹¹Don’t let liars prosper here in our land.
Cause great disasters to fall on the violent.

¹²But I know the Lord will help those they persecute;
he will give justice to the poor.
¹³Surely righteous people are praising your name;
the godly will live in your presence.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:17

¹⁷The eye that mocks a father
and despises a mother’s instructions
will be plucked out by ravens of the valley
and eaten by vultures.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 20, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 20, 2018 (NIV)

Haggai 1-2

A Call to Rebuild the Temple

1 On August 29^[a] of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the Lord gave a message through the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua^[b] son of Jehozadak, the high priest.

²“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: The people are saying, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.’”

³Then the Lord sent this message through the prophet Haggai: ⁴“Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins? ⁵This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! ⁶You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!

⁷“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! ⁸Now go up into the hills, bring down timber, and rebuild my house. Then I will take pleasure in it and be honored, says the Lord. ⁹You hoped for rich harvests, but they were poor. And when you brought your harvest home, I blew it away. Why? Because my house lies in ruins, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, while all of you are busy building your own fine houses. ¹⁰It’s because of you that the heavens withhold the dew and the earth produces no crops. ¹¹I have called for a drought on your fields and hills—a drought to wither the grain and grapes and olive trees and all your other crops, a drought to starve you and your livestock and to ruin everything you have worked so hard to get.”

Obedience to God’s Call

¹²Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of God’s people began to obey the message from the Lord their God. When they heard the words of the prophet Haggai, whom the Lord their God had sent, the people feared the Lord. ¹³Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, gave the people this message from the Lord: “I am with you, says the Lord!”

¹⁴So the Lord sparked the enthusiasm of Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the enthusiasm of Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the enthusiasm of the whole remnant of God’s people. They began to work on the house of their God, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, ¹⁵on September 21^[c] of the second year of King Darius’s reign.

The New Temple’s Diminished Splendor

2 Then on October 17 of that same year,^[d] the Lord sent another message through the prophet Haggai. ²“Say this to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua^[e] son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of God’s people there in the land: ³‘Does anyone remember this house—this Temple—in its former splendor? How, in comparison, does it look to you now? It must seem like nothing at all! ⁴But now the Lord says: Be strong, Zerubbabel. Be strong, Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people still left in the land. And now get to work, for I am with you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. ⁵My Spirit remains among you, just as I promised when you came out of Egypt. So do not be afraid.’

⁶“For this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: In just a little while I will again shake the heavens and the earth, the oceans and the dry land. ⁷I will shake all the nations, and the treasures of all the nations will be brought to this Temple. I will fill this place with glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. ⁸The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. ⁹The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”

Blessings Promised for Obedience

¹⁰On December 18^[f] of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the Lord sent this message to the prophet Haggai: ¹¹“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says. Ask the priests this question about the law: ¹²‘If one of you is carrying some meat from a holy sacrifice in his robes and his robe happens to brush against some bread or stew, wine or olive oil, or any other kind of food, will it also become holy?’”

The priests replied, “No.”

¹³Then Haggai asked, “If someone becomes ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person and then touches any of these foods, will the food be defiled?”

And the priests answered, “Yes.”

¹⁴Then Haggai responded, “That is how it is with this people and this nation, says the Lord. Everything they do and everything they offer is defiled by their sin. ¹⁵Look at what was happening to you before you began to lay the foundation of the Lord’s Temple. ¹⁶When you hoped for a twenty-bushel crop, you harvested only ten. When you expected to draw fifty gallons from the winepress, you found only twenty. ¹⁷I sent blight and mildew and hail to destroy everything you worked so hard to produce. Even so, you refused to return to me, says the Lord.

¹⁸“Think about this eighteenth day of December, the day^[g] when the foundation of the Lord’s Temple was laid. Think carefully. ¹⁹I am giving you a promise now while the seed is still in the barn.^[h] You have not yet harvested your grain, and your grapevines, fig trees, pomegranates, and olive trees have not yet produced their crops. But from this day onward I will bless you.”

Promises for Zerubbabel

²⁰On that same day, December 18,^[i] the Lord sent this second message to Haggai: ²¹“Tell Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah, that I am about to shake the heavens and the earth. ²²I will overthrow royal thrones and destroy the power of foreign kingdoms. I will overturn their chariots and riders. The horses will fall, and their riders will kill each other.

²³“But when this happens, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, I will honor you, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, my servant. I will make you like a signet ring on my finger, says the Lord, for I have chosen you. I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”

Footnotes:

1:1a Hebrew On the first day of the sixth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. A number of dates in Haggai can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Persian records and related accurately to our modern calendar. This event occurred on August 29, 520 B.c.
1:1b Hebrew Joshua, a variant spelling of Jeshua; also in 1:12, 14.
1:15 Hebrew on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This event occurred on September 21, 520 B.c.; also see note on 1:1a.
2:1 Hebrew on the twenty-first day of the seventh month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This event (in the second year of Darius’s reign) occurred on October 17, 520 B.c.; also see note on 1:1a.
2:2 Hebrew Joshua, a variant spelling of Jeshua; also in 2:4.
2:10 Hebrew On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar (similarly in 2:18). This event occurred on December 18, 520 B.c.; also see note on 1:1a.
2:18 Or On this eighteenth day of December, think about the day.
2:19 Hebrew Is the seed yet in the barn?
2:20 Hebrew On the twenty-fourth day of the [ninth] month; see note on 2:10.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 11

The Two Witnesses

11 Then I was given a measuring stick, and I was told, “Go and measure the Temple of God and the altar, and count the number of worshipers. ²But do not measure the outer courtyard, for it has been turned over to the nations. They will trample the holy city for 42 months. ³And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will be clothed in burlap and will prophesy during those 1,260 days.”

⁴These two prophets are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of all the earth. ⁵If anyone tries to harm them, fire flashes from their mouths and consumes their enemies. This is how anyone who tries to harm them must die. ⁶They have power to shut the sky so that no rain will fall for as long as they prophesy. And they have the power to turn the rivers and oceans into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they wish.

⁷When they complete their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the bottomless pit^[a] will declare war against them, and he will conquer them and kill them. ⁸And their bodies will lie in the main street of Jerusalem,^[b] the city that is figuratively called “Sodom” and “Egypt,” the city where their Lord was crucified. ⁹And for three and a half days, all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will stare at their bodies. No one will be allowed to bury them. ¹⁰All the people who belong to this world will gloat over them and give presents to each other to celebrate the death of the two prophets who had tormented them.

¹¹But after three and a half days, God breathed life into them, and they stood up! Terror struck all who were staring at them. ¹²Then a loud voice from heaven called to the two prophets, “Come up here!” And they rose to heaven in a cloud as their enemies watched.

¹³At the same time there was a terrible earthquake that destroyed a tenth of the city. Seven thousand people died in that earthquake, and everyone else was terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

¹⁴The second terror is past, but look, the third terror is coming quickly.

The Seventh Trumpet Brings the Third Terror

¹⁵Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices shouting in heaven:

“The world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ,^[c]
and he will reign forever and ever.”

¹⁶The twenty-four elders sitting on their thrones before God fell with their faces to the ground and worshiped him. ¹⁷And they said,

“We give thanks to you, Lord God, the Almighty,
the one who is and who always was,
for now you have assumed your great power
and have begun to reign.
¹⁸The nations were filled with wrath,
but now the time of your wrath has come.
It is time to judge the dead
and reward your servants the prophets,
as well as your holy people,
and all who fear your name,
from the least to the greatest.
It is time to destroy
all who have caused destruction on the earth.”

¹⁹Then, in heaven, the Temple of God was opened and the Ark of his covenant could be seen inside the Temple. Lightning flashed, thunder crashed and roared, and there was an earthquake and a terrible hailstorm.

Footnotes:

11:7 Or the abyss, or the underworld.
11:8 Greek the great city.
11:15 Or his Messiah.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 139

For the choir director: A psalm of David.

¹O Lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
²You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
³You see me when I travel
and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
⁴You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
⁵You go before me and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
⁶Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to understand!

⁷I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
⁸If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave,^[a] you are there.
⁹If I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
¹⁰even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
¹¹I could ask the darkness to hide me
and the light around me to become night—
¹²but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.

¹³You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
¹⁵You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
¹⁶You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.

¹⁷How precious are your thoughts about me,^[b] O God.
They cannot be numbered!
¹⁸I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!

¹⁹O God, if only you would destroy the wicked!
Get out of my life, you murderers!
²⁰They blaspheme you;
your enemies misuse your name.
²¹O Lord, shouldn’t I hate those who hate you?
Shouldn’t I despise those who oppose you?
²²Yes, I hate them with total hatred,
for your enemies are my enemies.

²³Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
²⁴Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

Footnotes:

139:8 Hebrew to Sheol.
139:17 Or How precious to me are your thoughts.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:15-16

¹⁵The leech has two suckers
that cry out, “More, more!”^[a]

There are three things that are never satisfied—
no, four that never say, “Enough!”:
¹⁶the grave,^[b]
the barren womb,
the thirsty desert,
the blazing fire.

Footnotes:

30:15 Hebrew two daughters who cry out, “Give, give!”
30:16 Hebrew Sheol.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 20, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 20, 2018 (NIV)

Haggai 1-2

A Call to Rebuild the Temple

²“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: The people are saying, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.’”

Obedience to God’s Call

The New Temple’s Diminished Splendor

Blessings Promised for Obedience

The priests replied, “No.”

¹³Then Haggai asked, “If someone becomes ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person and then touches any of these foods, will the food be defiled?”

And the priests answered, “Yes.”

Promises for Zerubbabel

Footnotes:

1:1a Hebrew On the first day of the sixth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. A number of dates in Haggai can be cross-checked with dates in surviving Persian records and related accurately to our modern calendar. This event occurred on August 29, 520 B.c.
1:1b Hebrew Joshua, a variant spelling of Jeshua; also in 1:12, 14.
1:15 Hebrew on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This event occurred on September 21, 520 B.c.; also see note on 1:1a.
2:1 Hebrew on the twenty-first day of the seventh month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar. This event (in the second year of Darius’s reign) occurred on October 17, 520 B.c.; also see note on 1:1a.
2:2 Hebrew Joshua, a variant spelling of Jeshua; also in 2:4.
2:10 Hebrew On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar (similarly in 2:18). This event occurred on December 18, 520 B.c.; also see note on 1:1a.
2:18 Or On this eighteenth day of December, think about the day.
2:19 Hebrew Is the seed yet in the barn?
2:20 Hebrew On the twenty-fourth day of the [ninth] month; see note on 2:10.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 11

The Two Witnesses

¹⁴The second terror is past, but look, the third terror is coming quickly.

The Seventh Trumpet Brings the Third Terror

¹⁵Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices shouting in heaven:

“The world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ,^[c]
and he will reign forever and ever.”

¹⁶The twenty-four elders sitting on their thrones before God fell with their faces to the ground and worshiped him. ¹⁷And they said,

Footnotes:

11:7 Or the abyss, or the underworld.
11:8 Greek the great city.
11:15 Or his Messiah.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 139

For the choir director: A psalm of David.

¹⁷How precious are your thoughts about me,^[b] O God.
They cannot be numbered!
¹⁸I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!

²³Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
²⁴Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

Footnotes:

139:8 Hebrew to Sheol.
139:17 Or How precious to me are your thoughts.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:15-16

¹⁵The leech has two suckers
that cry out, “More, more!”^[a]

There are three things that are never satisfied—
no, four that never say, “Enough!”:
¹⁶the grave,^[b]
the barren womb,
the thirsty desert,
the blazing fire.

Footnotes:

30:15 Hebrew two daughters who cry out, “Give, give!”
30:16 Hebrew Sheol.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 19, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday December 19, 2018 (NIV)

Zephaniah 1-3

1 The Lord gave this message to Zephaniah when Josiah son of Amon was king of Judah. Zephaniah was the son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah.

Coming Judgment against Judah

²“I will sweep away everything
from the face of the earth,” says the Lord.
³“I will sweep away people and animals alike.
I will sweep away the birds of the sky and the fish in the sea.
I will reduce the wicked to heaps of rubble,^[a]
and I will wipe humanity from the face of the earth,” says the Lord.
⁴“I will crush Judah and Jerusalem with my fist
and destroy every last trace of their Baal worship.
I will put an end to all the idolatrous priests,
so that even the memory of them will disappear.
⁵For they go up to their roofs
and bow down to the sun, moon, and stars.
They claim to follow the Lord,
but then they worship Molech,^[b] too.
⁶And I will destroy those who used to worship me
but now no longer do.
They no longer ask for the Lord’s guidance
or seek my blessings.”

⁷Stand in silence in the presence of the Sovereign Lord,
for the awesome day of the Lord’s judgment is near.
The Lord has prepared his people for a great slaughter
and has chosen their executioners.^[c]
⁸“On that day of judgment,”
says the Lord,
“I will punish the leaders and princes of Judah
and all those following pagan customs.
⁹Yes, I will punish those who participate in pagan worship ceremonies,
and those who fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.

¹⁰“On that day,” says the Lord,
“a cry of alarm will come from the Fish Gate
and echo throughout the New Quarter of the city.^[d]
And a great crash will sound from the hills.
¹¹Wail in sorrow, all you who live in the market area,^[e]
for all the merchants and traders will be destroyed.

¹²“I will search with lanterns in Jerusalem’s darkest corners
to punish those who sit complacent in their sins.
They think the Lord will do nothing to them,
either good or bad.
¹³So their property will be plundered,
their homes will be ransacked.
They will build new homes
but never live in them.
They will plant vineyards
but never drink wine from them.

¹⁴“That terrible day of the Lord is near.
Swiftly it comes—
a day of bitter tears,
a day when even strong men will cry out.
¹⁵It will be a day when the Lord’s anger is poured out—
a day of terrible distress and anguish,
a day of ruin and desolation,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness,
¹⁶a day of trumpet calls and battle cries.
Down go the walled cities
and the strongest battlements!

¹⁷“Because you have sinned against the Lord,
I will make you grope around like the blind.
Your blood will be poured into the dust,
and your bodies will lie rotting on the ground.”

¹⁸Your silver and gold will not save you
on that day of the Lord’s anger.
For the whole land will be devoured
by the fire of his jealousy.
He will make a terrifying end
of all the people on earth.^[f]

A Call to Repentance

2 Gather together—yes, gather together,
you shameless nation.
²Gather before judgment begins,
before your time to repent is blown away like chaff.
Act now, before the fierce fury of the Lord falls
and the terrible day of the Lord’s anger begins.
³Seek the Lord, all who are humble,
and follow his commands.
Seek to do what is right
and to live humbly.
Perhaps even yet the Lord will protect you—
protect you from his anger on that day of destruction.

Judgment against Philistia

⁴Gaza and Ashkelon will be abandoned,
Ashdod and Ekron torn down.
⁵And what sorrow awaits you Philistines^[g]
who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan,
for this judgment is against you, too!
The Lord will destroy you
until not one of you is left.
⁶The Philistine coast will become a wilderness pasture,
a place of shepherd camps
and enclosures for sheep and goats.
⁷The remnant of the tribe of Judah will pasture there.
They will rest at night in the abandoned houses in Ashkelon.
For the Lord their God will visit his people in kindness
and restore their prosperity again.

Judgment against Moab and Ammon

⁸“I have heard the taunts of the Moabites
and the insults of the Ammonites,
mocking my people
and invading their borders.
⁹Now, as surely as I live,”
says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,
“Moab and Ammon will be destroyed—
destroyed as completely as Sodom and Gomorrah.
Their land will become a place of stinging nettles,
salt pits, and eternal desolation.
The remnant of my people will plunder them
and take their land.”

¹⁰They will receive the wages of their pride,
for they have scoffed at the people of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
¹¹The Lord will terrify them
as he destroys all the gods in the land.
Then nations around the world will worship the Lord,
each in their own land.

Judgment against Ethiopia and Assyria

¹²“You Ethiopians^[h] will also be slaughtered
by my sword,” says the Lord.

¹³And the Lord will strike the lands of the north with his fist,
destroying the land of Assyria.
He will make its great capital, Nineveh, a desolate wasteland,
parched like a desert.
¹⁴The proud city will become a pasture for flocks and herds,
and all sorts of wild animals will settle there.
The desert owl and screech owl will roost on its ruined columns,
their calls echoing through the gaping windows.
Rubble will block all the doorways,
and the cedar paneling will be exposed to the weather.
¹⁵This is the boisterous city,
once so secure.
“I am the greatest!” it boasted.
“No other city can compare with me!”
But now, look how it has become an utter ruin,
a haven for wild animals.
Everyone passing by will laugh in derision
and shake a defiant fist.

Jerusalem’s Rebellion and Redemption

3 What sorrow awaits rebellious, polluted Jerusalem,
the city of violence and crime!
²No one can tell it anything;
it refuses all correction.
It does not trust in the Lord
or draw near to its God.
³Its leaders are like roaring lions
hunting for their victims.
Its judges are like ravenous wolves at evening time,
who by dawn have left no trace of their prey.
⁴Its prophets are arrogant liars seeking their own gain.
Its priests defile the Temple by disobeying God’s instructions.
⁵But the Lord is still there in the city,
and he does no wrong.
Day by day he hands down justice,
and he does not fail.
But the wicked know no shame.

⁶“I have wiped out many nations,
devastating their fortress walls and towers.
Their streets are now deserted;
their cities lie in silent ruin.
There are no survivors—
none at all.
⁷I thought, ‘Surely they will have reverence for me now!
Surely they will listen to my warnings.
Then I won’t need to strike again,
destroying their homes.’
But no, they get up early
to continue their evil deeds.
⁸Therefore, be patient,” says the Lord.
“Soon I will stand and accuse these evil nations.
For I have decided to gather the kingdoms of the earth
and pour out my fiercest anger and fury on them.
All the earth will be devoured
by the fire of my jealousy.

⁹“Then I will purify the speech of all people,
so that everyone can worship the Lord together.
¹⁰My scattered people who live beyond the rivers of Ethiopia^[i]
will come to present their offerings.
¹¹On that day you will no longer need to be ashamed,
for you will no longer be rebels against me.
I will remove all proud and arrogant people from among you.
There will be no more haughtiness on my holy mountain.
¹²Those who are left will be the lowly and humble,
for it is they who trust in the name of the Lord.
¹³The remnant of Israel will do no wrong;
they will never tell lies or deceive one another.
They will eat and sleep in safety,
and no one will make them afraid.”

¹⁴Sing, O daughter of Zion;
shout aloud, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
¹⁵For the Lord will remove his hand of judgment
and will disperse the armies of your enemy.
And the Lord himself, the King of Israel,
will live among you!
At last your troubles will be over,
and you will never again fear disaster.
¹⁶On that day the announcement to Jerusalem will be,
“Cheer up, Zion! Don’t be afraid!
¹⁷For the Lord your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
With his love, he will calm all your fears.^[j]
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

¹⁸“I will gather you who mourn for the appointed festivals;
you will be disgraced no more.^[k]
¹⁹And I will deal severely with all who have oppressed you.
I will save the weak and helpless ones;
I will bring together
those who were chased away.
I will give glory and fame to my former exiles,
wherever they have been mocked and shamed.
²⁰On that day I will gather you together
and bring you home again.
I will give you a good name, a name of distinction,
among all the nations of the earth,
as I restore your fortunes before their very eyes.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”

Footnotes:

1:3 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
1:5 Hebrew Malcam, a variant spelling of Molech; or it could possibly mean their king.
1:7 Hebrew has prepared a sacrifice and sanctified his guests.
1:10 Or the Second Quarter, a newer section of Jerusalem. Hebrew reads the Mishneh.
1:11 Or in the valley, a lower section of Jerusalem. Hebrew reads the Maktesh.
1:18 Or the people living in the land.
2:5 Hebrew Kerethites.
2:12 Hebrew Cushites.
3:10 Hebrew Cush.
3:17 Or He will be silent in his love. Greek and Syriac versions read He will renew you with his love.
3:18 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 10

The Angel and the Small Scroll

10 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, surrounded by a cloud, with a rainbow over his head. His face shone like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire. ²And in his hand was a small scroll^[a] that had been opened. He stood with his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land. ³And he gave a great shout like the roar of a lion. And when he shouted, the seven thunders answered.

⁴When the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Keep secret^[b] what the seven thunders said, and do not write it down.”

⁵Then the angel I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand toward heaven. ⁶He swore an oath in the name of the one who lives forever and ever, who created the heavens and everything in them, the earth and everything in it, and the sea and everything in it. He said, “There will be no more delay. ⁷When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious plan will be fulfilled. It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets.”

⁸Then the voice from heaven spoke to me again: “Go and take the open scroll from the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”

⁹So I went to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll. “Yes, take it and eat it,” he said. “It will be sweet as honey in your mouth, but it will turn sour in your stomach!” ¹⁰So I took the small scroll from the hand of the angel, and I ate it! It was sweet in my mouth, but when I swallowed it, it turned sour in my stomach.

¹¹Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”

Footnotes:

10:2 Or book; also in 10:8, 9, 10.
10:4 Greek Seal up.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 138

A psalm of David.

¹I give you thanks, O Lord, with all my heart;
I will sing your praises before the gods.
²I bow before your holy Temple as I worship.
I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness;
for your promises are backed
by all the honor of your name.
³As soon as I pray, you answer me;
you encourage me by giving me strength.

⁴Every king in all the earth will thank you, Lord,
for all of them will hear your words.
⁵Yes, they will sing about the Lord’s ways,
for the glory of the Lord is very great.
⁶Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble,
but he keeps his distance from the proud.

⁷Though I am surrounded by troubles,
you will protect me from the anger of my enemies.
You reach out your hand,
and the power of your right hand saves me.
⁸The Lord will work out his plans for my life—
for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.
Don’t abandon me, for you made me.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:11-14

¹¹Some people curse their father
and do not thank their mother.
¹²They are pure in their own eyes,
but they are filthy and unwashed.
¹³They look proudly around,
casting disdainful glances.
¹⁴They have teeth like swords
and fangs like knives.
They devour the poor from the earth
and the needy from among humanity.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 18, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday December 18, 2018 (NIV)

Habakkuk 1-3

1 This is the message that the prophet Habakkuk received in a vision.

Habakkuk’s Complaint

²How long, O Lord, must I call for help?
But you do not listen!
“Violence is everywhere!” I cry,
but you do not come to save.
³Must I forever see these evil deeds?
Why must I watch all this misery?
Wherever I look,
I see destruction and violence.
I am surrounded by people
who love to argue and fight.
⁴The law has become paralyzed,
and there is no justice in the courts.
The wicked far outnumber the righteous,
so that justice has become perverted.

The Lord’s Reply

⁵The Lord replied,

“Look around at the nations;
look and be amazed!^[a]
For I am doing something in your own day,
something you wouldn’t believe
even if someone told you about it.
⁶I am raising up the Babylonians,^[b]
a cruel and violent people.
They will march across the world
and conquer other lands.
⁷They are notorious for their cruelty
and do whatever they like.
⁸Their horses are swifter than cheetahs^[c]
and fiercer than wolves at dusk.
Their charioteers charge from far away.
Like eagles, they swoop down to devour their prey.

⁹“On they come, all bent on violence.
Their hordes advance like a desert wind,
sweeping captives ahead of them like sand.
¹⁰They scoff at kings and princes
and scorn all their fortresses.
They simply pile ramps of earth
against their walls and capture them!
¹¹They sweep past like the wind
and are gone.
But they are deeply guilty,
for their own strength is their god.”

Habakkuk’s Second Complaint

¹²O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal—
surely you do not plan to wipe us out?
O Lord, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us,
to punish us for our many sins.
¹³But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil.
Will you wink at their treachery?
Should you be silent while the wicked
swallow up people more righteous than they?

¹⁴Are we only fish to be caught and killed?
Are we only sea creatures that have no leader?
¹⁵Must we be strung up on their hooks
and caught in their nets while they rejoice and celebrate?
¹⁶Then they will worship their nets
and burn incense in front of them.
“These nets are the gods who have made us rich!”
they will claim.
¹⁷Will you let them get away with this forever?
Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests?

2 I will climb up to my watchtower
and stand at my guardpost.
There I will wait to see what the Lord says
and how he^[d] will answer my complaint.

The Lord’s Second Reply

²Then the Lord said to me,

“Write my answer plainly on tablets,
so that a runner can carry the correct message to others.
³This vision is for a future time.
It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled.
If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently,
for it will surely take place.
It will not be delayed.

⁴“Look at the proud!
They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked.
But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.^[e]
⁵Wealth^[f] is treacherous,
and the arrogant are never at rest.
They open their mouths as wide as the grave,^[g]
and like death, they are never satisfied.
In their greed they have gathered up many nations
and swallowed many peoples.

⁶“But soon their captives will taunt them.
They will mock them, saying,
‘What sorrow awaits you thieves!
Now you will get what you deserve!
You’ve become rich by extortion,
but how much longer can this go on?’
⁷Suddenly, your debtors will take action.
They will turn on you and take all you have,
while you stand trembling and helpless.
⁸Because you have plundered many nations,
now all the survivors will plunder you.
You committed murder throughout the countryside
and filled the towns with violence.

⁹“What sorrow awaits you who build big houses
with money gained dishonestly!
You believe your wealth will buy security,
putting your family’s nest beyond the reach of danger.
¹⁰But by the murders you committed,
you have shamed your name and forfeited your lives.
¹¹The very stones in the walls cry out against you,
and the beams in the ceilings echo the complaint.

¹²“What sorrow awaits you who build cities
with money gained through murder and corruption!
¹³Has not the Lord of Heaven’s Armies promised
that the wealth of nations will turn to ashes?
They work so hard,
but all in vain!
¹⁴For as the waters fill the sea,
the earth will be filled with an awareness
of the glory of the Lord.

¹⁵“What sorrow awaits you who make your neighbors drunk!
You force your cup on them
so you can gloat over their shameful nakedness.
¹⁶But soon it will be your turn to be disgraced.
Come, drink and be exposed!^[h]
Drink from the cup of the Lord’s judgment,
and all your glory will be turned to shame.
¹⁷You cut down the forests of Lebanon.
Now you will be cut down.
You destroyed the wild animals,
so now their terror will be yours.
You committed murder throughout the countryside
and filled the towns with violence.

¹⁸“What good is an idol carved by man,
or a cast image that deceives you?
How foolish to trust in your own creation—
a god that can’t even talk!
¹⁹What sorrow awaits you who say to wooden idols,
‘Wake up and save us!’
To speechless stone images you say,
‘Rise up and teach us!’
Can an idol tell you what to do?
They may be overlaid with gold and silver,
but they are lifeless inside.
²⁰But the Lord is in his holy Temple.
Let all the earth be silent before him.”

Habakkuk’s Prayer

3 This prayer was sung by the prophet Habakkuk^[i]:

²I have heard all about you, Lord.
I am filled with awe by your amazing works.
In this time of our deep need,
help us again as you did in years gone by.
And in your anger,
remember your mercy.

³I see God moving across the deserts from Edom,^[j]
the Holy One coming from Mount Paran.^[k]
His brilliant splendor fills the heavens,
and the earth is filled with his praise.
⁴His coming is as brilliant as the sunrise.
Rays of light flash from his hands,
where his awesome power is hidden.
⁵Pestilence marches before him;
plague follows close behind.
⁶When he stops, the earth shakes.
When he looks, the nations tremble.
He shatters the everlasting mountains
and levels the eternal hills.
He is the Eternal One!^[l]
⁷I see the people of Cushan in distress,
and the nation of Midian trembling in terror.

⁸Was it in anger, Lord, that you struck the rivers
and parted the sea?
Were you displeased with them?
No, you were sending your chariots of salvation!
⁹You brandished your bow
and your quiver of arrows.
You split open the earth with flowing rivers.
¹⁰The mountains watched and trembled.
Onward swept the raging waters.
The mighty deep cried out,
lifting its hands in submission.
¹¹The sun and moon stood still in the sky
as your brilliant arrows flew
and your glittering spear flashed.

¹²You marched across the land in anger
and trampled the nations in your fury.
¹³You went out to rescue your chosen people,
to save your anointed ones.
You crushed the heads of the wicked
and stripped their bones from head to toe.
¹⁴With his own weapons,
you destroyed the chief of those
who rushed out like a whirlwind,
thinking Israel would be easy prey.
¹⁵You trampled the sea with your horses,
and the mighty waters piled high.

¹⁶I trembled inside when I heard this;
my lips quivered with fear.
My legs gave way beneath me,^[m]
and I shook in terror.
I will wait quietly for the coming day
when disaster will strike the people who invade us.
¹⁷Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
and there are no grapes on the vines;
even though the olive crop fails,
and the fields lie empty and barren;
even though the flocks die in the fields,
and the cattle barns are empty,
¹⁸yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!
¹⁹The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
He makes me as surefooted as a deer,^[n]
able to tread upon the heights.

(For the choir director: This prayer is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)

Footnotes:

1:5 Greek version reads Look, you mockers; / look and be amazed and die. Compare Acts 13:41.
1:6 Or Chaldeans.
1:8 Or leopards.
2:1 As in Syriac version; Hebrew reads I.
2:3b-4 Greek version reads If the vision is delayed, wait patiently, / for it will surely come and not delay. / ⁴I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away. / But the righteous person will live by my faith. Compare Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11; Heb 10:37-38.
2:5a As in Dead Sea Scroll 1QpHab; other Hebrew manuscripts read Wine.
2:5b Hebrew as Sheol.
2:16 Dead Sea Scrolls and Greek and Syriac versions read and stagger!
3:1 Hebrew adds according to shigionoth, probably indicating the musical setting for the prayer.
3:3a Hebrew Teman.
3:3b Hebrew adds selah; also in 3:9, 13. The meaning of this Hebrew term is uncertain; it is probably a musical or literary term.
3:6 Or The ancient paths belong to him.
3:16 Hebrew Decay entered my bones.
3:19 Or He gives me the speed of a deer.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 9

The Fifth Trumpet Brings the First Terror

9 Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen to earth from the sky, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.^[a] ²When he opened it, smoke poured out as though from a huge furnace, and the sunlight and air turned dark from the smoke.

³Then locusts came from the smoke and descended on the earth, and they were given power to sting like scorpions. ⁴They were told not to harm the grass or plants or trees, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. ⁵They were told not to kill them but to torture them for five months with pain like the pain of a scorpion sting. ⁶In those days people will seek death but will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them!

⁷The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. They had what looked like gold crowns on their heads, and their faces looked like human faces. ⁸They had hair like women’s hair and teeth like the teeth of a lion. ⁹They wore armor made of iron, and their wings roared like an army of chariots rushing into battle. ¹⁰They had tails that stung like scorpions, and for five months they had the power to torment people. ¹¹Their king is the angel from the bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon—the Destroyer.

¹²The first terror is past, but look, two more terrors are coming!

The Sixth Trumpet Brings the Second Terror

¹³Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice speaking from the four horns of the gold altar that stands in the presence of God. ¹⁴And the voice said to the sixth angel who held the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great Euphrates River.” ¹⁵Then the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were turned loose to kill one-third of all the people on earth. ¹⁶I heard the size of their army, which was 200 million mounted troops.

¹⁷And in my vision, I saw the horses and the riders sitting on them. The riders wore armor that was fiery red and dark blue and yellow. The horses had heads like lions, and fire and smoke and burning sulfur billowed from their mouths. ¹⁸One-third of all the people on earth were killed by these three plagues—by the fire and smoke and burning sulfur that came from the mouths of the horses. ¹⁹Their power was in their mouths and in their tails. For their tails had heads like snakes, with the power to injure people.

²⁰But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood—idols that can neither see nor hear nor walk! ²¹And they did not repent of their murders or their witchcraft or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Footnotes:

9:1 Or the abyss, or the underworld; also in 9:11.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 137

¹Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept
as we thought of Jerusalem.^[a]
²We put away our harps,
hanging them on the branches of poplar trees.
³For our captors demanded a song from us.
Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn:
“Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!”
⁴But how can we sing the songs of the Lord
while in a pagan land?

⁵If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget how to play the harp.
⁶May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
if I fail to remember you,
if I don’t make Jerusalem my greatest joy.

⁷O Lord, remember what the Edomites did
on the day the armies of Babylon captured Jerusalem.
“Destroy it!” they yelled.
“Level it to the ground!”
⁸O Babylon, you will be destroyed.
Happy is the one who pays you back
for what you have done to us.
⁹Happy is the one who takes your babies
and smashes them against the rocks!

Footnotes:

137:1 Hebrew Zion; also in 137:3.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:10

¹⁰Never slander a worker to the employer,
or the person will curse you, and you will pay for it.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 17, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday December 17, 2018 (NIV)

Nahum 1-3

1 This message concerning Nineveh came as a vision to Nahum, who lived in Elkosh.

The Lord’s Anger against Nineveh

²The Lord is a jealous God,
filled with vengeance and rage.
He takes revenge on all who oppose him
and continues to rage against his enemies!
³The Lord is slow to get angry, but his power is great,
and he never lets the guilty go unpunished.
He displays his power in the whirlwind and the storm.
The billowing clouds are the dust beneath his feet.
⁴At his command the oceans dry up,
and the rivers disappear.
The lush pastures of Bashan and Carmel fade,
and the green forests of Lebanon wither.
⁵In his presence the mountains quake,
and the hills melt away;
the earth trembles,
and its people are destroyed.
⁶Who can stand before his fierce anger?
Who can survive his burning fury?
His rage blazes forth like fire,
and the mountains crumble to dust in his presence.

⁷The Lord is good,
a strong refuge when trouble comes.
He is close to those who trust in him.
⁸But he will sweep away his enemies^[a]
in an overwhelming flood.
He will pursue his foes
into the darkness of night.

⁹Why are you scheming against the Lord?
He will destroy you with one blow;
he won’t need to strike twice!
¹⁰His enemies, tangled like thornbushes
and staggering like drunks,
will be burned up like dry stubble in a field.
¹¹Who is this wicked counselor of yours
who plots evil against the Lord?

¹²This is what the Lord says:
“Though the Assyrians have many allies,
they will be destroyed and disappear.
O my people, I have punished you before,
but I will not punish you again.
¹³Now I will break the yoke of bondage from your neck
and tear off the chains of Assyrian oppression.”

¹⁴And this is what the Lord says concerning the Assyrians in Nineveh:
“You will have no more children to carry on your name.
I will destroy all the idols in the temples of your gods.
I am preparing a grave for you
because you are despicable!”

¹⁵^[b]Look! A messenger is coming over the mountains with good news!
He is bringing a message of peace.
Celebrate your festivals, O people of Judah,
and fulfill all your vows,
for your wicked enemies will never invade your land again.
They will be completely destroyed!

The Fall of Nineveh

2 ^[c]Your enemy is coming to crush you, Nineveh.
Man the ramparts! Watch the roads!
Prepare your defenses! Call out your forces!

²Even though the destroyer has destroyed Judah,
the Lord will restore its honor.
Israel’s vine has been stripped of branches,
but he will restore its splendor.

³Shields flash red in the sunlight!
See the scarlet uniforms of the valiant troops!
Watch as their glittering chariots move into position,
with a forest of spears waving above them.^[d]
⁴The chariots race recklessly along the streets
and rush wildly through the squares.
They flash like firelight
and move as swiftly as lightning.
⁵The king shouts to his officers;
they stumble in their haste,
rushing to the walls to set up their defenses.
⁶The river gates have been torn open!
The palace is about to collapse!
⁷Nineveh’s exile has been decreed,
and all the servant girls mourn its capture.
They moan like doves
and beat their breasts in sorrow.
⁸Nineveh is like a leaking water reservoir!
The people are slipping away.
“Stop, stop!” someone shouts,
but no one even looks back.
⁹Loot the silver!
Plunder the gold!
There’s no end to Nineveh’s treasures—
its vast, uncounted wealth.
¹⁰Soon the city is plundered, empty, and ruined.
Hearts melt and knees shake.
The people stand aghast,
their faces pale and trembling.

¹¹Where now is that great Nineveh,
that den filled with young lions?
It was a place where people—like lions and their cubs—
walked freely and without fear.
¹²The lion tore up meat for his cubs
and strangled prey for his mate.
He filled his den with prey,
his caverns with his plunder.

¹³“I am your enemy!”
says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“Your chariots will soon go up in smoke.
Your young men^[e] will be killed in battle.
Never again will you plunder conquered nations.
The voices of your proud messengers will be heard no more.”

The Lord’s Judgment against Nineveh

3 What sorrow awaits Nineveh,
the city of murder and lies!
She is crammed with wealth
and is never without victims.
²Hear the crack of whips,
the rumble of wheels!
Horses’ hooves pound,
and chariots clatter wildly.
³See the flashing swords and glittering spears
as the charioteers charge past!
There are countless casualties,
heaps of bodies—
so many bodies that
people stumble over them.
⁴All this because Nineveh,
the beautiful and faithless city,
mistress of deadly charms,
enticed the nations with her beauty.
She taught them all her magic,
enchanting people everywhere.

⁵“I am your enemy!”
says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“And now I will lift your skirts
and show all the earth your nakedness and shame.
⁶I will cover you with filth
and show the world how vile you really are.
⁷All who see you will shrink back and say,
‘Nineveh lies in ruins.
Where are the mourners?’
Does anyone regret your destruction?”

⁸Are you any better than the city of Thebes,^[f]
situated on the Nile River, surrounded by water?
She was protected by the river on all sides,
walled in by water.
⁹Ethiopia^[g] and the land of Egypt
gave unlimited assistance.
The nations of Put and Libya
were among her allies.
¹⁰Yet Thebes fell,
and her people were led away as captives.
Her babies were dashed to death
against the stones of the streets.
Soldiers threw dice^[h] to get Egyptian officers as servants.
All their leaders were bound in chains.

¹¹And you, Nineveh, will also stagger like a drunkard.
You will hide for fear of the attacking enemy.
¹²All your fortresses will fall.
They will be devoured like the ripe figs
that fall into the mouths
of those who shake the trees.
¹³Your troops will be as weak
and helpless as women.
The gates of your land will be opened wide to the enemy
and set on fire and burned.
¹⁴Get ready for the siege!
Store up water!
Strengthen the defenses!
Go into the pits to trample clay,
and pack it into molds,
making bricks to repair the walls.

¹⁵But the fire will devour you;
the sword will cut you down.
The enemy will consume you like locusts,
devouring everything they see.
There will be no escape,
even if you multiply like swarming locusts.
¹⁶Your merchants have multiplied
until they outnumber the stars.
But like a swarm of locusts,
they strip the land and fly away.
¹⁷Your guards^[i] and officials are also like swarming locusts
that crowd together in the hedges on a cold day.
But like locusts that fly away when the sun comes up,
all of them will fly away and disappear.

¹⁸Your shepherds are asleep, O Assyrian king;
your princes lie dead in the dust.
Your people are scattered across the mountains
with no one to gather them together.
¹⁹There is no healing for your wound;
your injury is fatal.
All who hear of your destruction
will clap their hands for joy.
Where can anyone be found
who has not suffered from your continual cruelty?

Footnotes:

1:8 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads sweep away her place.
1:15 Verse 1:15 is numbered 2:1 in Hebrew text.
2:1 Verses 2:1-13 are numbered 2:2-14 in Hebrew text.
2:3 Greek and Syriac versions read into position, / the horses whipped into a frenzy.
2:13 Hebrew young lions.
3:8 Hebrew No-amon; also in 3:10.
3:9 Hebrew Cush.
3:10 Hebrew They cast lots.
3:17 Or princes.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 8

The Lamb Breaks the Seventh Seal

8 When the Lamb broke the seventh seal on the scroll,^[a] there was silence throughout heaven for about half an hour. ²I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets.

³Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold altar before the throne. ⁴The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out. ⁵Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake.

The First Four Trumpets

⁶Then the seven angels with the seven trumpets prepared to blow their mighty blasts.

⁷The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. One-third of the earth was set on fire, one-third of the trees were burned, and all the green grass was burned.

⁸Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. One-third of the water in the sea became blood, ⁹one-third of all things living in the sea died, and one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed.

¹⁰Then the third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from the sky, burning like a torch. It fell on one-third of the rivers and on the springs of water. ¹¹The name of the star was Bitterness.^[b] It made one-third of the water bitter, and many people died from drinking the bitter water.

¹²Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet, and one-third of the sun was struck, and one-third of the moon, and one-third of the stars, and they became dark. And one-third of the day was dark, and also one-third of the night.

¹³Then I looked, and I heard a single eagle crying loudly as it flew through the air, “Terror, terror, terror to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.”

Footnotes:

8:1 Or book.
8:11 Greek Wormwood.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 136

¹Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love endures forever.
²Give thanks to the God of gods.
His faithful love endures forever.
³Give thanks to the Lord of lords.
His faithful love endures forever.

⁴Give thanks to him who alone does mighty miracles.
His faithful love endures forever.
⁵Give thanks to him who made the heavens so skillfully.
His faithful love endures forever.
⁶Give thanks to him who placed the earth among the waters.
His faithful love endures forever.
⁷Give thanks to him who made the heavenly lights—
His faithful love endures forever.
⁸the sun to rule the day,
His faithful love endures forever.
⁹and the moon and stars to rule the night.
His faithful love endures forever.

¹⁰Give thanks to him who killed the firstborn of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹¹He brought Israel out of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹²He acted with a strong hand and powerful arm.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹³Give thanks to him who parted the Red Sea.^[a]
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁴He led Israel safely through,
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁵but he hurled Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁶Give thanks to him who led his people through the wilderness.
His faithful love endures forever.

¹⁷Give thanks to him who struck down mighty kings.
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁸He killed powerful kings—
His faithful love endures forever.
¹⁹Sihon king of the Amorites,
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁰and Og king of Bashan.
His faithful love endures forever.
²¹God gave the land of these kings as an inheritance—
His faithful love endures forever.
²²a special possession to his servant Israel.
His faithful love endures forever.

²³He remembered us in our weakness.
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁴He saved us from our enemies.
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁵He gives food to every living thing.
His faithful love endures forever.
²⁶Give thanks to the God of heaven.
His faithful love endures forever.

Footnotes:

136:13 Hebrew sea of reeds; also in 136:15.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:7-9

⁷O God, I beg two favors from you;
let me have them before I die.
⁸First, help me never to tell a lie.
Second, give me neither poverty nor riches!
Give me just enough to satisfy my needs.
⁹For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?”
And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 16, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday December 16, 2018 (NIV)

Micah 5-7

5 ^[a]Mobilize! Marshal your troops!
The enemy is laying siege to Jerusalem.
They will strike Israel’s leader
in the face with a rod.

A Ruler from Bethlehem

²^[b]But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
are only a small village among all the people of Judah.
Yet a ruler of Israel,
whose origins are in the distant past,
will come from you on my behalf.
³The people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies
until the woman in labor gives birth.
Then at last his fellow countrymen
will return from exile to their own land.
⁴And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord’s strength,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
Then his people will live there undisturbed,
for he will be highly honored around the world.
⁵And he will be the source of peace.

When the Assyrians invade our land
and break through our defenses,
we will appoint seven rulers to watch over us,
eight princes to lead us.
⁶They will rule Assyria with drawn swords
and enter the gates of the land of Nimrod.
He will rescue us from the Assyrians
when they pour over the borders to invade our land.

The Remnant Purified

⁷Then the remnant left in Israel^[c]
will take their place among the nations.
They will be like dew sent by the Lord
or like rain falling on the grass,
which no one can hold back
and no one can restrain.
⁸The remnant left in Israel
will take their place among the nations.
They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest,
like a strong young lion among flocks of sheep and goats,
pouncing and tearing as they go
with no rescuer in sight.
⁹The people of Israel will stand up to their foes,
and all their enemies will be wiped out.

¹⁰“In that day,” says the Lord,
“I will slaughter your horses
and destroy your chariots.
¹¹I will tear down your walls
and demolish your defenses.
¹²I will put an end to all witchcraft,
and there will be no more fortune-tellers.
¹³I will destroy all your idols and sacred pillars,
so you will never again worship the work of your own hands.
¹⁴I will abolish your idol shrines with their Asherah poles
and destroy your pagan cities.
¹⁵I will pour out my vengeance
on all the nations that refuse to obey me.”

The Lord’s Case against Israel

6 Listen to what the Lord is saying:

“Stand up and state your case against me.
Let the mountains and hills be called to witness your complaints.
²And now, O mountains,
listen to the Lord’s complaint!
He has a case against his people.
He will bring charges against Israel.

³“O my people, what have I done to you?
What have I done to make you tired of me?
Answer me!
⁴For I brought you out of Egypt
and redeemed you from slavery.
I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to help you.
⁵Don’t you remember, my people,
how King Balak of Moab tried to have you cursed
and how Balaam son of Beor blessed you instead?
And remember your journey from Acacia Grove^[d] to Gilgal,
when I, the Lord, did everything I could
to teach you about my faithfulness.”

⁶What can we bring to the Lord?
Should we bring him burnt offerings?
Should we bow before God Most High
with offerings of yearling calves?
⁷Should we offer him thousands of rams
and ten thousand rivers of olive oil?
Should we sacrifice our firstborn children
to pay for our sins?

⁸No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good,
and this is what he requires of you:
to do what is right, to love mercy,
and to walk humbly with your God.

Israel’s Guilt and Punishment

⁹Fear the Lord if you are wise!
His voice calls to everyone in Jerusalem:
“The armies of destruction are coming;
the Lord is sending them.^[e]
¹⁰What shall I say about the homes of the wicked
filled with treasures gained by cheating?
What about the disgusting practice
of measuring out grain with dishonest measures?^[f]
¹¹How can I tolerate your merchants
who use dishonest scales and weights?
¹²The rich among you have become wealthy
through extortion and violence.
Your citizens are so used to lying
that their tongues can no longer tell the truth.

¹³“Therefore, I will wound you!
I will bring you to ruin for all your sins.
¹⁴You will eat but never have enough.
Your hunger pangs and emptiness will remain.
And though you try to save your money,
it will come to nothing in the end.
You will save a little,
but I will give it to those who conquer you.
¹⁵You will plant crops
but not harvest them.
You will press your olives
but not get enough oil to anoint yourselves.
You will trample the grapes
but get no juice to make your wine.
¹⁶You keep only the laws of evil King Omri;
you follow only the example of wicked King Ahab!
Therefore, I will make an example of you,
bringing you to complete ruin.
You will be treated with contempt,
mocked by all who see you.”

Misery Turned to Hope

7 How miserable I am!
I feel like the fruit picker after the harvest
who can find nothing to eat.
Not a cluster of grapes or a single early fig
can be found to satisfy my hunger.
²The godly people have all disappeared;
not one honest person is left on the earth.
They are all murderers,
setting traps even for their own brothers.
³Both their hands are equally skilled at doing evil!
Officials and judges alike demand bribes.
The people with influence get what they want,
and together they scheme to twist justice.
⁴Even the best of them is like a brier;
the most honest is as dangerous as a hedge of thorns.
But your judgment day is coming swiftly now.
Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion.
⁵Don’t trust anyone—
not your best friend or even your wife!
⁶For the son despises his father.
The daughter defies her mother.
The daughter-in-law defies her mother-in-law.
Your enemies are right in your own household!

⁷As for me, I look to the Lord for help.
I wait confidently for God to save me,
and my God will certainly hear me.
⁸Do not gloat over me, my enemies!
For though I fall, I will rise again.
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be my light.
⁹I will be patient as the Lord punishes me,
for I have sinned against him.
But after that, he will take up my case
and give me justice for all I have suffered from my enemies.
The Lord will bring me into the light,
and I will see his righteousness.
¹⁰Then my enemies will see that the Lord is on my side.
They will be ashamed that they taunted me, saying,
“So where is the Lord—
that God of yours?”
With my own eyes I will see their downfall;
they will be trampled like mud in the streets.

¹¹In that day, Israel, your cities will be rebuilt,
and your borders will be extended.
¹²People from many lands will come and honor you—
from Assyria all the way to the towns of Egypt,
from Egypt all the way to the Euphrates River,^[g]
and from distant seas and mountains.
¹³But the land^[h] will become empty and desolate
because of the wickedness of those who live there.

The Lord’s Compassion on Israel

¹⁴O Lord, protect your people with your shepherd’s staff;
lead your flock, your special possession.
Though they live alone in a thicket
on the heights of Mount Carmel,^[i]
let them graze in the fertile pastures of Bashan and Gilead
as they did long ago.

¹⁵“Yes,” says the Lord,
“I will do mighty miracles for you,
like those I did when I rescued you
from slavery in Egypt.”

¹⁶All the nations of the world will stand amazed
at what the Lord will do for you.
They will be embarrassed
at their feeble power.
They will cover their mouths in silent awe,
deaf to everything around them.
¹⁷Like snakes crawling from their holes,
they will come out to meet the Lord our God.
They will fear him greatly,
trembling in terror at his presence.

¹⁸Where is another God like you,
who pardons the guilt of the remnant,
overlooking the sins of his special people?
You will not stay angry with your people forever,
because you delight in showing unfailing love.
¹⁹Once again you will have compassion on us.
You will trample our sins under your feet
and throw them into the depths of the ocean!
²⁰You will show us your faithfulness and unfailing love
as you promised to our ancestors Abraham and Jacob long ago.

Footnotes:

5:1 Verse 5:1 is numbered 4:14 in Hebrew text.
5:2 Verses 5:2-15 are numbered 5:1-14 in Hebrew text.
5:7 Hebrew in Jacob; also in 5:8. See note on 1:5a.
6:5 Hebrew Shittim.
6:9 Hebrew “Listen to the rod. / Who appointed it?”
6:10 Hebrew of using the short ephah? The ephah was a unit for measuring grain.
7:12 Hebrew the river.
7:13 Or earth.
7:14 Or surrounded by a fruitful land.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Revelation 7

God’s People Will Be Preserved

7 Then I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds so they did not blow on the earth or the sea, or even on any tree. ²And I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the seal of the living God. And he shouted to those four angels, who had been given power to harm land and sea, ³“Wait! Don’t harm the land or the sea or the trees until we have placed the seal of God on the foreheads of his servants.”

⁴And I heard how many were marked with the seal of God—144,000 were sealed from all the tribes of Israel:

⁵from Judah	12,000
from Reuben	12,000
from Gad	12,000
⁶from Asher	12,000
from Naphtali	12,000
from Manasseh	12,000
⁷from Simeon	12,000
from Levi	12,000
from Issachar	12,000
⁸from Zebulun	12,000
from Joseph	12,000
from Benjamin	12,000

Praise from the Great Crowd

⁹After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰And they were shouting with a great roar,

“Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne
and from the Lamb!”

¹¹And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. ¹²They sang,

“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor
and power and strength belong to our God
forever and ever! Amen.”

¹³Then one of the twenty-four elders asked me, “Who are these who are clothed in white? Where did they come from?”

¹⁴And I said to him, “Sir, you are the one who knows.”

Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in^[a] the great tribulation.^[b] They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white.

¹⁵“That is why they stand in front of God’s throne
and serve him day and night in his Temple.
And he who sits on the throne
will give them shelter.
¹⁶They will never again be hungry or thirsty;
they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun.
¹⁷For the Lamb on the throne^[c]
will be their Shepherd.
He will lead them to springs of life-giving water.
And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”

Footnotes:

7:14a Greek who came out of.
7:14b Or the great suffering.
7:17 Greek on the center of the throne.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Psalm 135

¹Praise the Lord!

Praise the name of the Lord!
Praise him, you who serve the Lord,
²you who serve in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.

³Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
celebrate his lovely name with music.
⁴For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,
Israel for his own special treasure.

⁵I know the greatness of the Lord—
that our Lord is greater than any other god.
⁶The Lord does whatever pleases him
throughout all heaven and earth,
and on the seas and in their depths.
⁷He causes the clouds to rise over the whole earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain
and releases the wind from his storehouses.

⁸He destroyed the firstborn in each Egyptian home,
both people and animals.
⁹He performed miraculous signs and wonders in Egypt
against Pharaoh and all his people.
¹⁰He struck down great nations
and slaughtered mighty kings—
¹¹Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
and all the kings of Canaan.
¹²He gave their land as an inheritance,
a special possession to his people Israel.

¹³Your name, O Lord, endures forever;
your fame, O Lord, is known to every generation.
¹⁴For the Lord will give justice to his people
and have compassion on his servants.

¹⁵The idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold,
shaped by human hands.
¹⁶They have mouths but cannot speak,
and eyes but cannot see.
¹⁷They have ears but cannot hear,
and mouths but cannot breathe.
¹⁸And those who make idols are just like them,
as are all who trust in them.

¹⁹O Israel, praise the Lord!
O priests—descendants of Aaron—praise the Lord!
²⁰O Levites, praise the Lord!
All you who fear the Lord, praise the Lord!
²¹The Lord be praised from Zion,
for he lives here in Jerusalem.

Praise the Lord!

New Living Translation (NLT)

Proverbs 30:5-6

⁵Every word of God proves true.
He is a shield to all who come to him for protection.
⁶Do not add to his words,
or he may rebuke you and expose you as a liar.

New Living Translation (NLT)

December 15, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday December 15, 2018 (NIV)

Micah 1-4

1 The word of the Lord that came to Micah of Moresheth^(A) during the reigns of Jotham,^(B) Ahaz^(C) and Hezekiah,^(D) kings of Judah^(E)—the vision^(F) he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

²Hear,^(G) you peoples, all of you,^(H)
listen, earth^(I) and all who live in it,
that the Sovereign Lord may bear witness^(J) against you,
the Lord from his holy temple.^(K)

Judgment Against Samaria and Jerusalem

³Look! The Lord is coming from his dwelling^(L) place;
he comes down^(M) and treads on the heights of the earth.^(N)
⁴The mountains melt^(O) beneath him^(P)
and the valleys split apart,^(Q)
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
⁵All this is because of Jacob’s transgression,
because of the sins of the people of Israel.
What is Jacob’s transgression?
Is it not Samaria?^(R)
What is Judah’s high place?
Is it not Jerusalem?

⁶“Therefore I will make Samaria a heap of rubble,
a place for planting vineyards.^(S)
I will pour her stones^(T) into the valley
and lay bare her foundations.^(U)
⁷All her idols^(V) will be broken to pieces;^(W)
all her temple gifts will be burned with fire;
I will destroy all her images.^(X)
Since she gathered her gifts from the wages of prostitutes,^(Y)
as the wages of prostitutes they will again be used.”

Weeping and Mourning

⁸Because of this I will weep^(Z) and wail;
I will go about barefoot^(AA) and naked.
I will howl like a jackal
and moan like an owl.
⁹For Samaria’s plague^(AB) is incurable;^(AC)
it has spread to Judah.^(AD)
It has reached the very gate^(AE) of my people,
even to Jerusalem itself.
¹⁰Tell it not in Gath^[a];
weep not at all.
In Beth Ophrah^[b]
roll in the dust.
¹¹Pass by naked^(AF) and in shame,
you who live in Shaphir.^[c]
Those who live in Zaanan^[d]
will not come out.
Beth Ezel is in mourning;
it no longer protects you.
¹²Those who live in Maroth^[e] writhe in pain,
waiting for relief,^(AG)
because disaster^(AH) has come from the Lord,
even to the gate of Jerusalem.
¹³You who live in Lachish,^(AI)
harness fast horses to the chariot.
You are where the sin of Daughter Zion^(AJ) began,
for the transgressions of Israel were found in you.
¹⁴Therefore you will give parting gifts^(AK)
to Moresheth^(AL) Gath.
The town of Akzib^[f]^(AM) will prove deceptive^(AN)
to the kings of Israel.
¹⁵I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.^[g]^(AO)
The nobles of Israel
will flee to Adullam.^(AP)
¹⁶Shave^(AQ) your head in mourning
for the children in whom you delight;
make yourself as bald as the vulture,
for they will go from you into exile.^(AR)

Human Plans and God’s Plans

2 Woe to those who plan iniquity,
to those who plot evil^(AS) on their beds!^(AT)
At morning’s light they carry it out
because it is in their power to do it.
²They covet fields^(AU) and seize them,^(AV)
and houses, and take them.
They defraud^(AW) people of their homes,
they rob them of their inheritance.^(AX)

³Therefore, the Lord says:

“I am planning disaster^(AY) against this people,
from which you cannot save yourselves.
You will no longer walk proudly,^(AZ)
for it will be a time of calamity.
⁴In that day people will ridicule you;
they will taunt you with this mournful song:
‘We are utterly ruined;^(BA)
my people’s possession is divided up.^(BB)
He takes it from me!
He assigns our fields to traitors.’”

⁵Therefore you will have no one in the assembly of the Lord
to divide the land^(BC) by lot.^(BD)

False Prophets

⁶“Do not prophesy,” their prophets say.
“Do not prophesy about these things;
disgrace^(BE) will not overtake us.^(BF)”
⁷You descendants of Jacob, should it be said,
“Does the Lord become^[h] impatient?
Does he do such things?”

“Do not my words do good^(BG)
to the one whose ways are upright?^(BH)
⁸Lately my people have risen up
like an enemy.
You strip off the rich robe
from those who pass by without a care,
like men returning from battle.
⁹You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.^(BI)
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
¹⁰Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,^(BJ)
because it is defiled,^(BK)
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
¹¹If a liar and deceiver^(BL) comes and says,
‘I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,’^(BM)
that would be just the prophet for this people!^(BN)

Deliverance Promised

¹²“I will surely gather all of you, Jacob;
I will surely bring together the remnant^(BO) of Israel.
I will bring them together like sheep in a pen,
like a flock in its pasture;
the place will throng with people.^(BP)
¹³The One who breaks open the way will go up before^(BQ) them;
they will break through the gate^(BR) and go out.
Their King will pass through before them,
the Lord at their head.”

Leaders and Prophets Rebuked

3 Then I said,

“Listen, you leaders^(BS) of Jacob,
you rulers of Israel.
Should you not embrace justice,
²you who hate good and love evil;
who tear the skin from my people
and the flesh from their bones;^(BT)
³who eat my people’s flesh,^(BU)
strip off their skin
and break their bones in pieces;^(BV)
who chop^(BW) them up like meat for the pan,
like flesh for the pot?^(BX)”

⁴Then they will cry out to the Lord,
but he will not answer them.^(BY)
At that time he will hide his face^(BZ) from them
because of the evil they have done.^(CA)

⁵This is what the Lord says:

“As for the prophets
who lead my people astray,^(CB)
they proclaim ‘peace’^(CC)
if they have something to eat,
but prepare to wage war against anyone
who refuses to feed them.
⁶Therefore night will come over you, without visions,
and darkness, without divination.^(CD)
The sun will set for the prophets,^(CE)
and the day will go dark for them.^(CF)
⁷The seers will be ashamed^(CG)
and the diviners disgraced.^(CH)
They will all cover^(CI) their faces^(CJ)
because there is no answer from God.^(CK)”
⁸But as for me, I am filled with power,
with the Spirit of the Lord,
and with justice and might,
to declare to Jacob his transgression,
to Israel his sin.^(CL)

⁹Hear this, you leaders of Jacob,
you rulers of Israel,
who despise justice
and distort all that is right;^(CM)
¹⁰who build^(CN) Zion with bloodshed,^(CO)
and Jerusalem with wickedness.^(CP)
¹¹Her leaders judge for a bribe,^(CQ)
her priests teach for a price,^(CR)
and her prophets tell fortunes for money.^(CS)
Yet they look^(CT) for the Lord’s support and say,
“Is not the Lord among us?
No disaster will come upon us.”^(CU)
¹²Therefore because of you,
Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble,^(CV)
the temple^(CW) hill a mound overgrown with thickets.^(CX)

The Mountain of the Lord^(CY)

4 In the last days

the mountain^(CZ) of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,^(DA)
and peoples will stream to it.^(DB)

²Many nations will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,^(DC)
to the temple of the God of Jacob.^(DD)
He will teach us^(DE) his ways,^(DF)
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law^(DG) will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
³He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.^(DH)
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.^(DI)
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war^(DJ) anymore.^(DK)
⁴Everyone will sit under their own vine
and under their own fig tree,^(DL)
and no one will make them afraid,^(DM)
for the Lord Almighty has spoken.^(DN)
⁵All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods,^(DO)
but we will walk in the name of the Lord
our God for ever and ever.^(DP)

The Lord’s Plan

⁶“In that day,” declares the Lord,

“I will gather the lame;^(DQ)
I will assemble the exiles^(DR)
and those I have brought to grief.^(DS)
⁷I will make the lame my remnant,^(DT)
those driven away a strong nation.^(DU)
The Lord will rule over them in Mount Zion^(DV)
from that day and forever.^(DW)
⁸As for you, watchtower of the flock,
stronghold^[i] of Daughter Zion,
the former dominion will be restored^(DX) to you;
kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem.^(DY)”

⁹Why do you now cry aloud—
have you no king^[j]^(DZ)?
Has your ruler^[k] perished,
that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labor?^(EA)
¹⁰Writhe in agony, Daughter Zion,
like a woman in labor,
for now you must leave the city
to camp in the open field.
You will go to Babylon;^(EB)
there you will be rescued.
There the Lord will redeem^(EC) you
out of the hand of your enemies.

¹¹But now many nations
are gathered against you.
They say, “Let her be defiled,
let our eyes gloat^(ED) over Zion!”
¹²But they do not know
the thoughts of the Lord;
they do not understand his plan,^(EE)
that he has gathered them like sheaves to the threshing floor.
¹³“Rise and thresh,^(EF) Daughter Zion,
for I will give you horns of iron;
I will give you hooves of bronze,
and you will break to pieces many nations.”^(EG)
You will devote their ill-gotten gains to the Lord,^(EH)
their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.

Footnotes:

Micah 1:10 Gath sounds like the Hebrew for tell.
Micah 1:10 Beth Ophrah means house of dust.
Micah 1:11 Shaphir means pleasant.
Micah 1:11 Zaanan sounds like the Hebrew for come out.
Micah 1:12 Maroth sounds like the Hebrew for bitter.
Micah 1:14 Akzib means deception.
Micah 1:15 Mareshah sounds like the Hebrew for conqueror.
Micah 2:7 Or Is the Spirit of the Lord
Micah 4:8 Or hill
Micah 4:9 Or King
Micah 4:9 Or Ruler

Cross references:

Micah 1:1 : ver 14; Jer 26:18
Micah 1:1 : S 1Ch 3:12
Micah 1:1 : S 1Ch 3:13
Micah 1:1 : S 1Ch 3:13
Micah 1:1 : Hos 1:1
Micah 1:1 : Isa 1:1
Micah 1:2 : S Dt 32:1
Micah 1:2 : Ps 50:7
Micah 1:2 : S Jer 6:19
Micah 1:2 : S Ge 31:50; S Dt 4:26; S Isa 1:2
Micah 1:2 : S Ps 11:4
Micah 1:3 : S Isa 18:4
Micah 1:3 : S Isa 64:1
Micah 1:3 : S Am 4:13
Micah 1:4 : S Ps 46:2, 6
Micah 1:4 : S Job 9:5
Micah 1:4 : S Nu 16:31; Na 1:5
Micah 1:5 : Am 8:14
Micah 1:6 : S Dt 20:6
Micah 1:6 : S Am 5:11
Micah 1:6 : Eze 13:14
Micah 1:7 : S Eze 6:6
Micah 1:7 : S Ex 32:20
Micah 1:7 : S Dt 9:21
Micah 1:7 : Dt 23:17-18
Micah 1:8 : S Isa 15:3
Micah 1:8 : S Isa 20:2
Micah 1:9 : Jer 46:11
Micah 1:9 : S Jer 10:19
Micah 1:9 : S 2Ki 18:13
Micah 1:9 : Isa 3:26
Micah 1:11 : Eze 23:29
Micah 1:12 : Jer 14:19
Micah 1:12 : Jer 40:2
Micah 1:13 : S Jos 10:3
Micah 1:13 : S Ps 9:14
Micah 1:14 : 2Ki 16:8
Micah 1:14 : S ver 1
Micah 1:14 : S Jos 15:44
Micah 1:14 : Jer 15:18
Micah 1:15 : Jos 15:44
Micah 1:15 : S Jos 12:15
Micah 1:16 : S Lev 13:40; S Job 1:20
Micah 1:16 : S Dt 4:27; S Am 5:27
Micah 2:1 : S Isa 29:20
Micah 2:1 : Ps 36:4
Micah 2:2 : Isa 5:8
Micah 2:2 : S Pr 30:14
Micah 2:2 : S Jer 22:17
Micah 2:2 : S 1Sa 8:14; S Isa 1:23; S Eze 46:18
Micah 2:3 : Jer 18:11; S Am 3:1-2
Micah 2:3 : Isa 2:12
Micah 2:4 : S Lev 26:31; S Jer 4:13
Micah 2:4 : S Jer 6:12
Micah 2:5 : Dt 32:13; Jos 18:4
Micah 2:5 : S Nu 34:13
Micah 2:6 : Ps 44:13; Jer 18:16; 19:8; 25:18; 29:18; Mic 6:16
Micah 2:6 : S Am 2:12
Micah 2:7 : S Ps 119:65
Micah 2:7 : Ps 15:2; 84:11
Micah 2:9 : Jer 10:20
Micah 2:10 : S Dt 12:9
Micah 2:10 : Lev 18:25-29; Ps 106:38-39; S La 4:15
Micah 2:11 : S 2Ch 36:16; Jer 5:31
Micah 2:11 : S Lev 10:9
Micah 2:11 : Isa 30:10
Micah 2:12 : Mic 4:7; 5:7; 7:18
Micah 2:12 : S Ne 1:9
Micah 2:13 : S Isa 52:12
Micah 2:13 : S Isa 60:11
Micah 3:1 : S Jer 5:5
Micah 3:2 : Ps 53:4; S Eze 22:27
Micah 3:3 : S Ps 14:4
Micah 3:3 : S Eze 34:4; Zep 3:3
Micah 3:3 : S Job 24:14
Micah 3:3 : S Eze 11:7; S 24:4-5
Micah 3:4 : S Dt 1:45; S 1Sa 8:18; S Isa 58:4; S Jer 11:11
Micah 3:4 : S Dt 31:17
Micah 3:4 : S Job 15:31; S Eze 8:18
Micah 3:5 : S Isa 3:12; S 9:16; S 53:6
Micah 3:5 : S Jer 4:10
Micah 3:6 : Isa 8:19-22; S Eze 12:24
Micah 3:6 : Isa 29:10
Micah 3:6 : S Eze 7:26; S Am 8:11
Micah 3:7 : S Jer 6:15; Mic 7:16
Micah 3:7 : S Isa 44:25
Micah 3:7 : S Est 6:12
Micah 3:7 : S Lev 13:45
Micah 3:7 : S Eze 20:3
Micah 3:8 : S Isa 57:12; 61:2
Micah 3:9 : Ps 58:1-2; S Isa 1:23
Micah 3:10 : S Jer 22:13
Micah 3:10 : Isa 59:7; Mic 7:2; Na 3:1; Hab 2:12
Micah 3:10 : Jer 22:17; S Eze 22:27
Micah 3:11 : S Ex 23:8; S Lev 19:15; Mal 2:9
Micah 3:11 : S Eze 13:19
Micah 3:11 : Isa 1:23; S 56:11; Jer 6:13; S La 4:13; S Hos 4:8, 18
Micah 3:11 : S Isa 10:20
Micah 3:11 : Jer 7:4; S Eze 34:2
Micah 3:12 : S 2Ki 25:9; S Isa 6:11
Micah 3:12 : S Jer 52:13
Micah 3:12 : S Lev 26:31; S Jer 17:3; S 22:6; S La 5:18; S Eze 5:14
Micah 4:1 : 4:1-3pp — Isa 2:1-4
Micah 4:1 : S Ps 48:1; Zec 8:3
Micah 4:1 : S Eze 17:22
Micah 4:1 : S Ps 22:27; 86:9; S Jer 3:17; S 31:12; S Da 2:35
Micah 4:2 : S Jer 31:6; S Eze 20:40
Micah 4:2 : Zec 2:11; 14:16
Micah 4:2 : S Ps 119:171
Micah 4:2 : Ps 25:8-9; S Isa 54:13
Micah 4:2 : S Dt 18:18
Micah 4:3 : S Isa 11:4
Micah 4:3 : Joel 3:10; Zec 9:10
Micah 4:3 : S Ps 46:9
Micah 4:3 : Zec 8:20-22
Micah 4:4 : S 1Ki 4:25
Micah 4:4 : S Lev 26:6; S Eze 39:26
Micah 4:4 : S Isa 1:20
Micah 4:5 : 2Ki 17:29; Ac 14:16
Micah 4:5 : Jos 24:14-15; Isa 26:8; Zec 10:12
Micah 4:6 : S Jer 31:8
Micah 4:6 : S Ps 106:47
Micah 4:6 : S Eze 34:13, 16; S 37:21; Zep 3:19
Micah 4:7 : S Joel 2:32; S Mic 2:12
Micah 4:7 : S Ge 12:2
Micah 4:7 : S Isa 2:2
Micah 4:7 : S Da 2:44; S 7:14; S Lk 1:33; Rev 11:15
Micah 4:8 : S Isa 1:26
Micah 4:8 : Zec 9:9
Micah 4:9 : Jer 8:19
Micah 4:9 : S Ge 3:16; Jer 30:6; 48:41
Micah 4:10 : S Dt 21:10; 2Ki 20:18; Isa 43:14
Micah 4:10 : S Isa 48:20
Micah 4:11 : S La 2:16; S Ob 1:12; Mic 7:8
Micah 4:12 : S Ge 50:20; S Isa 55:8; Ro 11:33-34
Micah 4:13 : S Isa 21:10
Micah 4:13 : S Isa 45:1; S Da 2:44
Micah 4:13 : S Isa 23:18

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 6

The Seals

6 I watched as the Lamb^(A) opened the first of the seven seals.^(B) Then I heard one of the four living creatures^(C) say in a voice like thunder,^(D) “Come!” ²I looked, and there before me was a white horse!^(E) Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown,^(F) and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.^(G)

³When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature^(H) say, “Come!” ⁴Then another horse came out, a fiery red one.^(I) Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth^(J) and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword.

⁵When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature^(K) say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse!^(L) Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. ⁶Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures,^(M) saying, “Two pounds^[a] of wheat for a day’s wages,^[b] and six pounds^[c] of barley for a day’s wages,^[d]^(N) and do not damage^(O) the oil and the wine!”

⁷When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature^(P) say, “Come!” ⁸I looked, and there before me was a pale horse!^(Q) Its rider was named Death, and Hades^(R) was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.^(S)

⁹When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under^(T) the altar^(U) the souls of those who had been slain^(V) because of the word of God^(W) and the testimony they had maintained. ¹⁰They called out in a loud voice, “How long,^(X) Sovereign Lord,^(Y) holy and true,^(Z) until you judge the inhabitants of the earth^(AA) and avenge our blood?”^(AB) ¹¹Then each of them was given a white robe,^(AC) and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters,^[e] were killed just as they had been.^(AD)

¹²I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake.^(AE) The sun turned black^(AF) like sackcloth^(AG) made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, ¹³and the stars in the sky fell to earth,^(AH) as figs drop from a fig tree^(AI) when shaken by a strong wind. ¹⁴The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up,^(AJ) and every mountain and island was removed from its place.^(AK)

¹⁵Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free,^(AL) hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains.^(AM) ¹⁶They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us^(AN) and hide us^[f] from the face of him who sits on the throne^(AO) and from the wrath of the Lamb! ¹⁷For the great day^(AP) of their^[g] wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”^(AQ)

Footnotes:

Revelation 6:6 Or about 1 kilogram
Revelation 6:6 Greek a denarius
Revelation 6:6 Or about 3 kilograms
Revelation 6:6 Greek a denarius
Revelation 6:11 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God’s family; also in 12:10; 19:10.
Revelation 6:16 See Hosea 10:8.
Revelation 6:17 Some manuscripts his

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 134

A song of ascents.

¹Praise the Lord, all you servants^(A) of the Lord
who minister^(B) by night^(C) in the house of the Lord.
²Lift up your hands^(D) in the sanctuary^(E)
and praise the Lord.^(F)

³May the Lord bless you from Zion,^(G)
he who is the Maker of heaven^(H) and earth.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 30:1-4

Sayings of Agur

30 The sayings^(A) of Agur son of Jakeh—an inspired utterance.

This man’s utterance to Ithiel:

“I am weary, God,
but I can prevail.^[a]
²Surely I am only a brute, not a man;
I do not have human understanding.
³I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.^(B)
⁴Who has gone up^(C) to heaven and come down?
Whose hands^(D) have gathered up the wind?
Who has wrapped up the waters^(E) in a cloak?^(F)
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name,^(G) and what is the name of his son?
Surely you know!

Footnotes:

Proverbs 30:1 With a different word division of the Hebrew; Masoretic Text utterance to Ithiel, / to Ithiel and Ukal:

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

December 14, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday December 14, 2018 (NIV)

Jonah 1-4

Jonah Flees From the Lord

1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah^(A) son of Amittai:^(B) ²“Go to the great city of Nineveh^(C) and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

³But Jonah ran^(D) away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish^(E). He went down to Joppa,^(F) where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.^(G)

⁴Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.^(H) ⁵All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.^(I)

But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. ⁶The captain went to him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call^(J) on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us so that we will not perish.”^(K)

⁷Then the sailors said to each other, “Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity.”^(L) They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.^(M) ⁸So they asked him, “Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What kind of work do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?”

⁹He answered, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord,^(N) the God of heaven,^(O) who made the sea^(P) and the dry land.^(Q)”

¹⁰This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)

¹¹The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?”

¹²“Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”^(R)

¹³Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.^(S) ¹⁴Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man,^(T) for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.”^(U) ¹⁵Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.^(V) ¹⁶At this the men greatly feared^(W) the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows^(X) to him.

Jonah’s Prayer

¹⁷Now the Lord provided^(Y) a huge fish to swallow Jonah,^(Z) and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 2 ¹^[a]From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. ²He said:

“In my distress I called^(AA) to the Lord,^(AB)
and he answered me.
From deep in the realm of the dead^(AC) I called for help,
and you listened to my cry.
³You hurled me into the depths,^(AD)
into the very heart of the seas,
and the currents swirled about me;
all your waves^(AE) and breakers
swept over me.^(AF)
⁴I said, ‘I have been banished
from your sight;^(AG)
yet I will look again
toward your holy temple.’^(AH)
⁵The engulfing waters threatened me,^[b]
the deep surrounded me;
seaweed was wrapped around my head.^(AI)
⁶To the roots of the mountains^(AJ) I sank down;
the earth beneath barred me in forever.
But you, Lord my God,
brought my life up from the pit.^(AK)

⁷“When my life was ebbing away,
I remembered^(AL) you, Lord,
and my prayer^(AM) rose to you,
to your holy temple.^(AN)

⁸“Those who cling to worthless idols^(AO)
turn away from God’s love for them.
⁹But I, with shouts of grateful praise,^(AP)
will sacrifice^(AQ) to you.
What I have vowed^(AR) I will make good.
I will say, ‘Salvation^(AS) comes from the Lord.’”

¹⁰And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.

Jonah Goes to Nineveh

3 Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah^(AT) a second time: ²“Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”

³Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. ⁴Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming,^(AU) “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” ⁵The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.^(AV)

⁶When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.^(AW) ⁷This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh:

“By the decree of the king and his nobles:

Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.^(AX) ⁸But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call^(AY) urgently on God. Let them give up^(AZ) their evil ways^(BA) and their violence.^(BB) ⁹Who knows?^(BC) God may yet relent^(BD) and with compassion turn^(BE) from his fierce anger^(BF) so that we will not perish.”

¹⁰When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented^(BG) and did not bring on them the destruction^(BH) he had threatened.^(BI)

Jonah’s Anger at the Lord’s Compassion

4 But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry.^(BJ) ²He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew^(BK) that you are a gracious^(BL) and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love,^(BM) a God who relents^(BN) from sending calamity.^(BO) ³Now, Lord, take away my life,^(BP) for it is better for me to die^(BQ) than to live.”^(BR)

⁴But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?”^(BS)

⁵Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. ⁶Then the Lord God provided^(BT) a leafy plant^[c] and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. ⁷But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered.^(BU) ⁸When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die,^(BV) and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”

⁹But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”^(BW)

“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.”

¹⁰But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. ¹¹And should I not have concern^(BX) for the great city of Nineveh,^(BY) in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

Footnotes:

Jonah 2:1 In Hebrew texts 2:1 is numbered 1:17, and 2:1-10 is numbered 2:2-11.
Jonah 2:5 Or waters were at my throat
Jonah 4:6 The precise identification of this plant is uncertain; also in verses 7, 9 and 10.

Cross references:

Jonah 1:1 : Mt 12:39-41; 16:4; Lk 11:29-32
Jonah 1:1 : 2Ki 14:25
Jonah 1:2 : S Ge 10:11; S Na 1:1
Jonah 1:3 : Ps 139:7
Jonah 1:3 : S Ge 10:4
Jonah 1:3 : S Jos 19:46; Ac 9:36, 43
Jonah 1:3 : Ex 4:13; S Jer 20:9; S Am 3:8
Jonah 1:4 : Ps 107:23-26
Jonah 1:5 : Ac 27:18-19
Jonah 1:6 : Jnh 3:8
Jonah 1:6 : S Ps 107:28
Jonah 1:7 : Nu 32:23; Jos 7:10-18; S 1Sa 14:42
Jonah 1:7 : S Pr 16:33
Jonah 1:9 : S Ps 96:9
Jonah 1:9 : S Da 2:18; Ac 17:24
Jonah 1:9 : S Ne 9:6
Jonah 1:9 : S Ge 1:9
Jonah 1:12 : 2Sa 24:17; 1Ch 21:17
Jonah 1:13 : S Pr 21:30
Jonah 1:14 : Dt 21:8
Jonah 1:14 : S Da 4:35
Jonah 1:15 : S Ps 107:29; Lk 8:24
Jonah 1:16 : Mk 4:41
Jonah 1:16 : S Nu 30:2; Ps 66:13-14
Jonah 1:17 : Jnh 4:6, 7
Jonah 1:17 : Mt 12:40; 16:4; Lk 11:30
Jonah 2:2 : La 3:55
Jonah 2:2 : Ps 18:6; 120:1
Jonah 2:2 : Ps 86:13
Jonah 2:3 : S Ps 88:6
Jonah 2:3 : S 2Sa 22:5
Jonah 2:3 : S Ps 42:7
Jonah 2:4 : Ps 31:22; Jer 7:15
Jonah 2:4 : S 1Ki 8:48
Jonah 2:5 : Ps 69:1-2
Jonah 2:6 : Job 28:9
Jonah 2:6 : S Job 17:16; S 33:18; S Ps 30:3
Jonah 2:7 : Ps 77:11-12
Jonah 2:7 : 2Ch 30:27
Jonah 2:7 : S Ps 11:4; 18:6
Jonah 2:8 : S Dt 32:21; S 1Sa 12:21
Jonah 2:9 : S Ps 42:4
Jonah 2:9 : Ps 50:14, 23; Heb 13:15
Jonah 2:9 : S Nu 30:2; Ps 116:14; S Ecc 5:4-5
Jonah 2:9 : S Ex 15:2; S Ps 3:8
Jonah 3:1 : Jnh 1:1
Jonah 3:4 : S Jer 18:7-10
Jonah 3:5 : Da 9:3; Mt 11:21; 12:41; Lk 11:32
Jonah 3:6 : Est 4:1-3; S Job 2:8, 13; S Eze 27:30-31
Jonah 3:7 : S 2Ch 20:3; S Ezr 10:6
Jonah 3:8 : Ps 130:1; Jnh 1:6
Jonah 3:8 : Jer 25:5
Jonah 3:8 : Jer 7:3
Jonah 3:8 : S Job 16:17
Jonah 3:9 : 2Sa 12:22
Jonah 3:9 : S Jer 18:8
Jonah 3:9 : S Joel 2:14
Jonah 3:9 : S Ps 85:3
Jonah 3:10 : S Am 7:6
Jonah 3:10 : S Jer 18:8
Jonah 3:10 : S Ex 32:14
Jonah 4:1 : ver 4; Mt 20:11; Lk 15:28
Jonah 4:2 : Jer 20:7-8
Jonah 4:2 : S Dt 4:31; Ps 103:8
Jonah 4:2 : S Ex 22:27; Ps 86:5, 15
Jonah 4:2 : S Nu 14:18
Jonah 4:2 : S Joel 2:13
Jonah 4:3 : S Nu 11:15
Jonah 4:3 : S Job 7:15
Jonah 4:3 : Jer 8:3
Jonah 4:4 : Ge 4:6; Mt 20:11-15
Jonah 4:6 : S Jnh 1:17
Jonah 4:7 : Joel 1:12
Jonah 4:8 : S 1Ki 19:4
Jonah 4:9 : ver 4
Jonah 4:11 : Jnh 3:10
Jonah 4:11 : Jnh 1:2; 3:2

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 5

The Scroll and the Lamb

5 Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne^(A) a scroll with writing on both sides^(B) and sealed^(C) with seven seals. ²And I saw a mighty angel^(D) proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” ³But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. ⁴I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. ⁵Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion^(E) of the tribe of Judah,^(F) the Root of David,^(G) has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

⁶Then I saw a Lamb,^(H) looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures^(I) and the elders.^(J) The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes,^(K) which are the seven spirits^[a]^(L) of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne.^(M) ⁸And when he had taken it, the four living creatures^(N) and the twenty-four elders^(O) fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp^(P) and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers^(Q) of God’s people. ⁹And they sang a new song, saying:^(R)

“You are worthy^(S) to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
and with your blood^(T) you purchased^(U) for God
persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.^(V)
¹⁰You have made them to be a kingdom and priests^(W) to serve our God,
and they will reign^[b] on the earth.”^(X)

¹¹Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand.^(Y) They encircled the throne and the living creatures^(Z) and the elders.^(AA) ¹²In a loud voice they were saying:

“Worthy is the Lamb,^(AB) who was slain,^(AC)
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise!”^(AD)

¹³Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth^(AE) and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:

“To him who sits on the throne^(AF) and to the Lamb^(AG)
be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!”^(AH)

¹⁴The four living creatures^(AI) said, “Amen,”^(AJ) and the elders^(AK) fell down and worshiped.^(AL)

Footnotes:

Revelation 5:6 That is, the sevenfold Spirit
Revelation 5:10 Some manuscripts they reign

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 133

A song of ascents. Of David.

¹How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together^(A) in unity!^(B)

²It is like precious oil poured on the head,^(C)
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
³It is as if the dew^(D) of Hermon^(E)
were falling on Mount Zion.^(F)
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,^(G)
even life forevermore.^(H)

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 29:26-27

²⁶Many seek an audience with a ruler,^(A)
but it is from the Lord that one gets justice.^(B)

²⁷The righteous detest the dishonest;
the wicked detest the upright.^(C)

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

December 13, 2018

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 13, 2018 (NIV)

Obadiah

Obadiah’s Vision^(A)^(B)

¹The vision^(C) of Obadiah.

This is what the Sovereign Lord says about Edom^(D)—

We have heard a message from the Lord:
An envoy^(E) was sent to the nations to say,
“Rise, let us go against her for battle”^(F)—

²“See, I will make you small^(G) among the nations;
you will be utterly despised.
³The pride^(H) of your heart has deceived you,
you who live in the clefts of the rocks^[a]^(I)
and make your home on the heights,
you who say to yourself,
‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’^(J)
⁴Though you soar like the eagle
and make your nest^(K) among the stars,
from there I will bring you down,”^(L)
declares the Lord.^(M)
⁵“If thieves came to you,
if robbers in the night—
oh, what a disaster awaits you!—
would they not steal only as much as they wanted?
If grape pickers came to you,
would they not leave a few grapes?^(N)
⁶But how Esau will be ransacked,
his hidden treasures pillaged!
⁷All your allies^(O) will force you to the border;
your friends will deceive and overpower you;
those who eat your bread^(P) will set a trap for you,^[b]
but you will not detect it.

⁸“In that day,” declares the Lord,
“will I not destroy^(Q) the wise men of Edom,
those of understanding in the mountains of Esau?
⁹Your warriors, Teman,^(R) will be terrified,
and everyone in Esau’s mountains
will be cut down in the slaughter.
¹⁰Because of the violence^(S) against your brother Jacob,^(T)
you will be covered with shame;
you will be destroyed forever.^(U)
¹¹On the day you stood aloof
while strangers carried off his wealth
and foreigners entered his gates
and cast lots^(V) for Jerusalem,
you were like one of them.^(W)
¹²You should not gloat^(X) over your brother
in the day of his misfortune,^(Y)
nor rejoice^(Z) over the people of Judah
in the day of their destruction,^(AA)
nor boast^(AB) so much
in the day of their trouble.^(AC)
¹³You should not march through the gates of my people
in the day of their disaster,
nor gloat over them in their calamity^(AD)
in the day of their disaster,
nor seize their wealth
in the day of their disaster.
¹⁴You should not wait at the crossroads
to cut down their fugitives,^(AE)
nor hand over their survivors
in the day of their trouble.

¹⁵“The day of the Lord is near^(AF)
for all nations.
As you have done, it will be done to you;
your deeds^(AG) will return upon your own head.
¹⁶Just as you drank^(AH) on my holy hill,^(AI)
so all the nations will drink^(AJ) continually;
they will drink and drink
and be as if they had never been.^(AK)
¹⁷But on Mount Zion will be deliverance;^(AL)
it will be holy,^(AM)
and Jacob will possess his inheritance.^(AN)
¹⁸Jacob will be a fire
and Joseph a flame;
Esau will be stubble,
and they will set him on fire^(AO) and destroy^(AP) him.
There will be no survivors^(AQ)
from Esau.”
The Lord has spoken.

¹⁹People from the Negev will occupy
the mountains of Esau,
and people from the foothills will possess
the land of the Philistines.^(AR)
They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria,^(AS)
and Benjamin^(AT) will possess Gilead.
²⁰This company of Israelite exiles who are in Canaan
will possess the land as far as Zarephath;^(AU)
the exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad
will possess the towns of the Negev.^(AV)
²¹Deliverers^(AW) will go up on^[c] Mount Zion
to govern the mountains of Esau.
And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.^(AX)

Footnotes:

Obadiah 1:3 Or of Sela
Obadiah 1:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
Obadiah 1:21 Or from

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 4

The Throne in Heaven

4 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open^(A) in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet^(B) said, “Come up here,^(C) and I will show you what must take place after this.”^(D) ²At once I was in the Spirit,^(E) and there before me was a throne in heaven^(F) with someone sitting on it. ³And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper^(G) and ruby.^(H) A rainbow^(I) that shone like an emerald^(J) encircled the throne. ⁴Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders.^(K) They were dressed in white^(L) and had crowns of gold on their heads. ⁵From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder.^(M) In front of the throne, seven lamps^(N) were blazing. These are the seven spirits^[a]^(O) of God. ⁶Also in front of the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass,^(P) clear as crystal.

In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures,^(Q) and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back.^(R) ⁷The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.^(S) ⁸Each of the four living creatures^(T) had six wings^(U) and was covered with eyes all around,^(V) even under its wings. Day and night^(W) they never stop saying:

“‘Holy, holy, holy

is the Lord God Almighty,’^[b]^(X)

who was, and is, and is to come.”^(Y)

⁹Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne^(Z) and who lives for ever and ever,^(AA) ¹⁰the twenty-four elders^(AB) fall down before him^(AC) who sits on the throne^(AD) and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

¹¹“You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,^(AE)
for you created all things,
and by your will they were created
and have their being.”^(AF)

Footnotes:

Revelation 4:5 That is, the sevenfold Spirit
Revelation 4:8 Isaiah 6:3

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Psalm 132

Psalm 132^(A)

A song of ascents.

¹Lord, remember David
and all his self-denial.^(B)

²He swore an oath to the Lord,
he made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:^(C)
³“I will not enter my house^(D)
or go to my bed,
⁴I will allow no sleep to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵till I find a place^(E) for the Lord,
a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

⁶We heard it in Ephrathah,^(F)
we came upon it in the fields of Jaar:^[a]^(G)
⁷“Let us go to his dwelling place,^(H)
let us worship at his footstool,^(I) saying,
⁸‘Arise, Lord,^(J) and come to your resting place,
you and the ark of your might.
⁹May your priests be clothed with your righteousness;^(K)
may your faithful people^(L) sing for joy.’”

¹⁰For the sake of your servant David,
do not reject your anointed one.

¹¹The Lord swore an oath to David,^(M)
a sure oath he will not revoke:
“One of your own descendants^(N)
I will place on your throne.
¹²If your sons keep my covenant^(O)
and the statutes I teach them,
then their sons will sit
on your throne^(P) for ever and ever.”

¹³For the Lord has chosen Zion,^(Q)
he has desired it for his dwelling,^(R) saying,
¹⁴“This is my resting place for ever and ever;^(S)
here I will sit enthroned,^(T) for I have desired it.
¹⁵I will bless her with abundant provisions;
her poor I will satisfy with food.^(U)
¹⁶I will clothe her priests^(V) with salvation,
and her faithful people will ever sing for joy.^(W)

¹⁷“Here I will make a horn^[b] grow^(X) for David
and set up a lamp^(Y) for my anointed one.^(Z)
¹⁸I will clothe his enemies with shame,^(AA)
but his head will be adorned with a radiant crown.”^(AB)

Footnotes:

Psalm 132:6 Or heard of it in Ephrathah, / we found it in the fields of Jearim. (See 1 Chron. 13:5,6) (And no quotation marks around verses 7-9)
Psalm 132:17 Horn here symbolizes strong one, that is, king.

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)

Proverbs 29:24-25

²⁴The accomplices of thieves are their own enemies;
they are put under oath and dare not testify.^(A)

²⁵Fear^(B) of man will prove to be a snare,
but whoever trusts in the Lord^(C) is kept safe.^(D)

Cross references:

New International Version (NIV)