Category: DAB Readings

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 16, 2021 (NIV)

Micah 5-7

A Promised Ruler From Bethlehem

5 [a]Marshal your troops now, city of troops,
for a siege is laid against us.
They will strike Israel’s ruler
on the cheek(A) with a rod.

2 “But you, Bethlehem(B) Ephrathah,(C)
though you are small among the clans[b] of Judah,
out of you will come for me
one who will be ruler(D) over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,(E)
from ancient times.”(F)

3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned(G)
until the time when she who is in labor bears a son,
and the rest of his brothers return
to join the Israelites.

4 He will stand and shepherd his flock(H)
in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness(I)
will reach to the ends of the earth.

5 And he will be our peace(J)
when the Assyrians invade(K) our land
and march through our fortresses.
We will raise against them seven shepherds,
even eight commanders,(L)
6 who will rule[c] the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod(M) with drawn sword.[d](N)
He will deliver us from the Assyrians
when they invade our land
and march across our borders.(O)

7 The remnant(P) of Jacob will be
in the midst of many peoples
like dew(Q) from the Lord,
like showers on the grass,(R)
which do not wait for anyone
or depend on man.
8 The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations,
in the midst of many peoples,
like a lion among the beasts of the forest,(S)
like a young lion among flocks of sheep,
which mauls and mangles(T) as it goes,
and no one can rescue.(U)
9 Your hand will be lifted up(V) in triumph over your enemies,
and all your foes will be destroyed.

10 “In that day,” declares the Lord,

“I will destroy your horses from among you
and demolish your chariots.(W)
11 I will destroy the cities(X) of your land
and tear down all your strongholds.(Y)
12 I will destroy your witchcraft
and you will no longer cast spells.(Z)
13 I will destroy your idols(AA)
and your sacred stones from among you;(AB)
you will no longer bow down
to the work of your hands.(AC)
14 I will uproot from among you your Asherah poles[e](AD)
when I demolish your cities.
15 I will take vengeance(AE) in anger and wrath
on the nations that have not obeyed me.”

The Lord’s Case Against Israel

6 Listen to what the Lord says:

“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;(AF)
let the hills hear what you have to say.

2 “Hear,(AG) you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;(AH)
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the Lord has a case(AI) against his people;
he is lodging a charge(AJ) against Israel.

3 “My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened(AK) you?(AL) Answer me.
4 I brought you up out of Egypt(AM)
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.(AN)
I sent Moses(AO) to lead you,
also Aaron(AP) and Miriam.(AQ)
5 My people, remember
what Balak(AR) king of Moab plotted
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim(AS) to Gilgal,(AT)
that you may know the righteous acts(AU) of the Lord.”

6 With what shall I come before(AV) the Lord
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?(AW)
7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,(AX)
with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?(AY)
Shall I offer my firstborn(AZ) for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?(BA)
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly(BB) and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[f](BC) with your God.(BD)

Israel’s Guilt and Punishment

9 Listen! The Lord is calling to the city—
and to fear your name is wisdom—
“Heed the rod(BE) and the One who appointed it.[g]
10 Am I still to forget your ill-gotten treasures, you wicked house,
and the short ephah,[h] which is accursed?(BF)
11 Shall I acquit someone with dishonest scales,(BG)
with a bag of false weights?(BH)
12 Your rich people are violent;(BI)
your inhabitants are liars(BJ)
and their tongues speak deceitfully.(BK)
13 Therefore, I have begun to destroy(BL) you,
to ruin[i] you because of your sins.
14 You will eat but not be satisfied;(BM)
your stomach will still be empty.[j]
You will store up but save nothing,(BN)
because what you save[k] I will give to the sword.
15 You will plant but not harvest;(BO)
you will press olives but not use the oil,
you will crush grapes but not drink the wine.(BP)
16 You have observed the statutes of Omri(BQ)
and all the practices of Ahab’s(BR) house;
you have followed their traditions.(BS)
Therefore I will give you over to ruin(BT)
and your people to derision;
you will bear the scorn(BU) of the nations.[l]”

Israel’s Misery

7 What misery is mine!
I am like one who gathers summer fruit
at the gleaning of the vineyard;
there is no cluster of grapes to eat,
none of the early figs(BV) that I crave.
2 The faithful have been swept from the land;(BW)
not one(BX) upright person remains.
Everyone lies in wait(BY) to shed blood;(BZ)
they hunt each other(CA) with nets.(CB)
3 Both hands are skilled in doing evil;(CC)
the ruler demands gifts,
the judge accepts bribes,(CD)
the powerful dictate what they desire—
they all conspire together.
4 The best of them is like a brier,(CE)
the most upright worse than a thorn(CF) hedge.
The day God visits you has come,
the day your watchmen sound the alarm.
Now is the time of your confusion.(CG)
5 Do not trust a neighbor;
put no confidence in a friend.(CH)
Even with the woman who lies in your embrace
guard the words of your lips.
6 For a son dishonors his father,
a daughter rises up against her mother,(CI)
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies are the members of his own household.(CJ)

7 But as for me, I watch(CK) in hope(CL) for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear(CM) me.

Israel Will Rise

8 Do not gloat over me,(CN) my enemy!
Though I have fallen, I will rise.(CO)
Though I sit in darkness,
the Lord will be my light.(CP)
9 Because I have sinned against him,
I will bear the Lord’s wrath,(CQ)
until he pleads my case(CR)
and upholds my cause.
He will bring me out into the light;(CS)
I will see his righteousness.(CT)
10 Then my enemy will see it
and will be covered with shame,(CU)
she who said to me,
“Where is the Lord your God?”(CV)
My eyes will see her downfall;(CW)
even now she will be trampled(CX) underfoot
like mire in the streets.

11 The day for building your walls(CY) will come,
the day for extending your boundaries.
12 In that day people will come to you
from Assyria(CZ) and the cities of Egypt,
even from Egypt to the Euphrates
and from sea to sea
and from mountain to mountain.(DA)
13 The earth will become desolate because of its inhabitants,
as the result of their deeds.(DB)

Prayer and Praise

14 Shepherd(DC) your people with your staff,(DD)
the flock of your inheritance,
which lives by itself in a forest,
in fertile pasturelands.[m](DE)
Let them feed in Bashan(DF) and Gilead(DG)
as in days long ago.(DH)

15 “As in the days when you came out of Egypt,
I will show them my wonders.(DI)”

16 Nations will see and be ashamed,(DJ)
deprived of all their power.
They will put their hands over their mouths(DK)
and their ears will become deaf.
17 They will lick dust(DL) like a snake,
like creatures that crawl on the ground.
They will come trembling(DM) out of their dens;
they will turn in fear(DN) to the Lord our God
and will be afraid of you.
18 Who is a God(DO) like you,
who pardons sin(DP) and forgives(DQ) the transgression
of the remnant(DR) of his inheritance?(DS)
You do not stay angry(DT) forever
but delight to show mercy.(DU)
19 You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities(DV) into the depths of the sea.(DW)
20 You will be faithful to Jacob,
and show love to Abraham,(DX)
as you pledged on oath to our ancestors(DY)
in days long ago.(DZ)

Footnotes:

  1. Micah 5:1 In Hebrew texts 5:1 is numbered 4:14, and 5:2-15 is numbered 5:1-14.
  2. Micah 5:2 Or rulers
  3. Micah 5:6 Or crush
  4. Micah 5:6 Or Nimrod in its gates
  5. Micah 5:14 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah
  6. Micah 6:8 Or prudently
  7. Micah 6:9 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
  8. Micah 6:10 An ephah was a dry measure.
  9. Micah 6:13 Or Therefore, I will make you ill and destroy you; / I will ruin
  10. Micah 6:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  11. Micah 6:14 Or You will press toward birth but not give birth, / and what you bring to birth
  12. Micah 6:16 Septuagint; Hebrew scorn due my people
  13. Micah 7:14 Or in the middle of Carmel

Cross references:

  1. Micah 5:1 : La 3:30
  2. Micah 5:2 : S Jn 7:42
  3. Micah 5:2 : S Ge 35:16; S 48:7
  4. Micah 5:2 : S Nu 24:19; S 1Sa 13:14; S 2Sa 6:21; S 2Ch 7:18
  5. Micah 5:2 : Ps 102:25
  6. Micah 5:2 : Mt 2:6*
  7. Micah 5:3 : S Jer 7:29
  8. Micah 5:4 : Isa 40:11; 49:9; S Eze 34:11-15, 23; Mic 7:14
  9. Micah 5:4 : Isa 52:13; Lk 1:32
  10. Micah 5:5 : S Isa 9:6; S Lk 2:14; Col 1:19-20
  11. Micah 5:5 : Isa 8:7
  12. Micah 5:5 : Isa 10:24-27
  13. Micah 5:6 : Ge 10:8
  14. Micah 5:6 : Zep 2:13
  15. Micah 5:6 : Na 2:11-13
  16. Micah 5:7 : S Am 5:15; S Mic 2:12
  17. Micah 5:7 : S Ps 133:3
  18. Micah 5:7 : Isa 44:4
  19. Micah 5:8 : S Ge 49:9
  20. Micah 5:8 : Mic 4:13; Zec 10:5
  21. Micah 5:8 : S Ps 50:22; S Isa 5:29; S Hos 5:14
  22. Micah 5:9 : S Ps 10:12
  23. Micah 5:10 : Ex 15:4, 19; S Hos 14:3; Hag 2:22; Zec 9:10
  24. Micah 5:11 : S Dt 29:23; Isa 6:11
  25. Micah 5:11 : S La 2:2; S Hos 10:14; Am 5:9
  26. Micah 5:12 : Dt 18:10-12; Isa 2:6; 8:19
  27. Micah 5:13 : Na 1:14
  28. Micah 5:13 : Hos 10:2
  29. Micah 5:13 : S Isa 2:18; S Eze 6:9; Zec 13:2
  30. Micah 5:14 : S Ex 34:13; S Jdg 3:7; S 2Ki 17:10
  31. Micah 5:15 : S Isa 65:12
  32. Micah 6:1 : S Ps 50:1; S Eze 6:2
  33. Micah 6:2 : Dt 32:1
  34. Micah 6:2 : S Hos 12:2
  35. Micah 6:2 : S Isa 3:13
  36. Micah 6:2 : Ps 50:7; S Jer 2:9
  37. Micah 6:3 : Jer 2:5
  38. Micah 6:3 : Jer 2:5
  39. Micah 6:4 : S Ex 3:10; S 6:6
  40. Micah 6:4 : Dt 7:8
  41. Micah 6:4 : S Ex 4:16
  42. Micah 6:4 : S Nu 33:1; Ps 77:20
  43. Micah 6:4 : S Ex 15:20
  44. Micah 6:5 : S Nu 22:2
  45. Micah 6:5 : S Nu 25:1
  46. Micah 6:5 : S Dt 11:30; Jos 5:9-10
  47. Micah 6:5 : Jdg 5:11; 1Sa 12:7
  48. Micah 6:6 : S Ps 95:2
  49. Micah 6:6 : Ps 40:6-8; 51:16-17
  50. Micah 6:7 : S Isa 1:11; S 40:16
  51. Micah 6:7 : Ps 50:8-10
  52. Micah 6:7 : S Lev 18:21; S 2Ki 3:27
  53. Micah 6:7 : Hos 5:6; S Am 5:22
  54. Micah 6:8 : S Isa 1:17; S Jer 22:3
  55. Micah 6:8 : S 2Ki 22:19; S Isa 57:15
  56. Micah 6:8 : S Ge 5:22; Dt 10:12-13; 1Sa 15:22; Hos 6:6; Zec 7:9-10; Mt 9:13; 23:23; Mk 12:33; Lk 11:42
  57. Micah 6:9 : S Ge 17:1; Isa 11:4
  58. Micah 6:10 : Eze 45:9-10; S Am 3:10; 8:4-6
  59. Micah 6:11 : S Lev 19:36
  60. Micah 6:11 : S Dt 25:13
  61. Micah 6:12 : S Isa 1:23
  62. Micah 6:12 : S Ps 116:11; Isa 3:8
  63. Micah 6:12 : S Ps 35:20; S Jer 9:3
  64. Micah 6:13 : Isa 1:7; 6:11
  65. Micah 6:14 : S Isa 9:20; S Hos 4:10
  66. Micah 6:14 : Isa 30:6
  67. Micah 6:15 : S Dt 28:38; Jer 12:13
  68. Micah 6:15 : Job 24:11; S Am 5:11; Zep 1:13
  69. Micah 6:16 : S 1Ki 16:25
  70. Micah 6:16 : 1Ki 16:29-33
  71. Micah 6:16 : Jer 7:24
  72. Micah 6:16 : S Jer 25:9
  73. Micah 6:16 : S Dt 28:37; S Jer 51:51; S Mic 2:6
  74. Micah 7:1 : S SS 2:13
  75. Micah 7:2 : S Ps 12:1
  76. Micah 7:2 : S Jer 2:29; 8:6
  77. Micah 7:2 : Ps 10:8
  78. Micah 7:2 : S Pr 6:17; S Mic 3:10
  79. Micah 7:2 : S Isa 3:5
  80. Micah 7:2 : S Jer 5:26
  81. Micah 7:3 : S Pr 4:16
  82. Micah 7:3 : S Ex 23:8; S Eze 22:12
  83. Micah 7:4 : S Nu 33:55; S Eze 2:6
  84. Micah 7:4 : S 2Sa 23:6
  85. Micah 7:4 : S Job 31:14; Isa 22:5; S Hos 9:7
  86. Micah 7:5 : Jer 9:4
  87. Micah 7:6 : S Eze 22:7
  88. Micah 7:6 : Mt 10:35-36*; S Mk 13:12
  89. Micah 7:7 : S Isa 21:8
  90. Micah 7:7 : Ps 130:5; Isa 25:9
  91. Micah 7:7 : S Ps 4:3
  92. Micah 7:8 : S Ps 22:17; S Pr 24:17; S Mic 4:11
  93. Micah 7:8 : Ps 20:8; 37:24; S Am 9:11
  94. Micah 7:8 : S 2Sa 22:29; Isa 9:2
  95. Micah 7:9 : La 3:39-40
  96. Micah 7:9 : S Ps 119:154
  97. Micah 7:9 : S Ps 107:10
  98. Micah 7:9 : Isa 46:13
  99. Micah 7:10 : S Ps 35:26
  100. Micah 7:10 : S Ps 42:3
  101. Micah 7:10 : S Isa 51:23
  102. Micah 7:10 : S 2Sa 22:43; S Job 40:12; S Isa 5:5; Zec 10:5
  103. Micah 7:11 : Isa 54:11; S Am 9:11
  104. Micah 7:12 : S Isa 11:11
  105. Micah 7:12 : Isa 19:23-25; 60:4
  106. Micah 7:13 : Isa 3:10-11; S Eze 12:19; S 33:28-29
  107. Micah 7:14 : S Ps 28:9; S Mic 5:4
  108. Micah 7:14 : Ps 23:4
  109. Micah 7:14 : Ps 95:7
  110. Micah 7:14 : S Isa 33:9
  111. Micah 7:14 : S SS 4:1; S Jer 50:19
  112. Micah 7:14 : Eze 36:11
  113. Micah 7:15 : S Ex 3:20; Ps 78:12
  114. Micah 7:16 : Isa 26:11
  115. Micah 7:16 : S Jdg 18:19
  116. Micah 7:17 : S Ge 3:14
  117. Micah 7:17 : 2Sa 22:46
  118. Micah 7:17 : Isa 25:3; 59:19
  119. Micah 7:18 : S Ex 8:10; S 1Sa 2:2
  120. Micah 7:18 : S Isa 43:25; S Jer 50:20; Zec 3:4
  121. Micah 7:18 : S 2Ch 6:21; Ps 103:8-13
  122. Micah 7:18 : S Joel 2:32; S Am 5:15; S Mic 2:12
  123. Micah 7:18 : S Ex 34:9
  124. Micah 7:18 : S Ps 103:9; S Isa 54:9
  125. Micah 7:18 : S 2Ch 30:9; S Jer 31:20; 32:41; S Eze 18:23
  126. Micah 7:19 : S Isa 43:25
  127. Micah 7:19 : S Jer 31:34
  128. Micah 7:20 : Gal 3:16
  129. Micah 7:20 : Dt 7:8; Lk 1:72
  130. Micah 7:20 : Ps 108:4
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Revelation 7

144,000 Sealed

7 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners(A) of the earth, holding back the four winds(B) of the earth to prevent(C) any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal(D) of the living God.(E) He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea:(F) 3 “Do not harm(G) the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads(H) of the servants of our God.” 4 Then I heard the number(I) of those who were sealed: 144,000(J) from all the tribes of Israel.

5 From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed,

from the tribe of Reuben 12,000,

from the tribe of Gad 12,000,

6 from the tribe of Asher 12,000,

from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000,

from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,

7 from the tribe of Simeon 12,000,

from the tribe of Levi 12,000,

from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,

8 from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000,

from the tribe of Joseph 12,000,

from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.

The Great Multitude in White Robes

9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language,(K) standing before the throne(L) and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes(M) and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,(N)
who sits on the throne,(O)
and to the Lamb.”

11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders(P) and the four living creatures.(Q) They fell down on their faces(R) before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying:

“Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen!”(S)

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes(T)—who are they, and where did they come from?”

14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes(U) and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.(V) 15 Therefore,

“they are before the throne of God(W)
and serve him(X) day and night in his temple;(Y)
and he who sits on the throne(Z)
will shelter them with his presence.(AA)
16 ‘Never again will they hunger;
never again will they thirst.(AB)
The sun will not beat down on them,’[a]
nor any scorching heat.(AC)
17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne
will be their shepherd;(AD)
‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’[b](AE)
‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’[c]”(AF)

Footnotes:

  1. Revelation 7:16 Isaiah 49:10
  2. Revelation 7:17 Isaiah 49:10
  3. Revelation 7:17 Isaiah 25:8

Cross references:

  1. Revelation 7:1 : Isa 11:12
  2. Revelation 7:1 : Jer 49:36; Eze 37:9; Da 7:2; Zec 6:5; Mt 24:31
  3. Revelation 7:1 : S Rev 6:6
  4. Revelation 7:2 : Rev 9:4
  5. Revelation 7:2 : S Mt 16:16
  6. Revelation 7:2 : ver 1
  7. Revelation 7:3 : S Rev 6:6
  8. Revelation 7:3 : Eze 9:4; Rev 9:4; 14:1; 22:4
  9. Revelation 7:4 : Rev 9:16
  10. Revelation 7:4 : Rev 14:1, 3
  11. Revelation 7:9 : S Rev 13:7
  12. Revelation 7:9 : ver 15
  13. Revelation 7:9 : S Rev 3:4
  14. Revelation 7:10 : Ps 3:8; Rev 12:10; 19:1
  15. Revelation 7:10 : S Rev 5:1
  16. Revelation 7:11 : S Rev 4:4
  17. Revelation 7:11 : S Rev 4:6
  18. Revelation 7:11 : S Rev 4:10
  19. Revelation 7:12 : S Ro 11:36; Rev 5:12-14
  20. Revelation 7:13 : S Rev 3:4
  21. Revelation 7:14 : Rev 22:14
  22. Revelation 7:14 : Heb 9:14; 1Jn 1:7; Rev 12:11
  23. Revelation 7:15 : ver 9
  24. Revelation 7:15 : Rev 22:3
  25. Revelation 7:15 : Rev 11:19
  26. Revelation 7:15 : S Rev 5:1
  27. Revelation 7:15 : Isa 4:5, 6; Rev 21:3
  28. Revelation 7:16 : Jn 6:35
  29. Revelation 7:16 : Isa 49:10
  30. Revelation 7:17 : S Jn 10:11
  31. Revelation 7:17 : S Jn 4:10
  32. Revelation 7:17 : Isa 25:8; 35:10; 51:11; 65:19; Rev 21:4
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Psalm 135

Psalm 135(A)

1 Praise the Lord.[a]

Praise the name of the Lord;
praise him, you servants(B) of the Lord,
2 you who minister in the house(C) of the Lord,
in the courts(D) of the house of our God.

3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;(E)
sing praise to his name,(F) for that is pleasant.(G)
4 For the Lord has chosen Jacob(H) to be his own,
Israel to be his treasured possession.(I)

5 I know that the Lord is great,(J)
that our Lord is greater than all gods.(K)
6 The Lord does whatever pleases him,(L)
in the heavens and on the earth,(M)
in the seas and all their depths.
7 He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;
he sends lightning with the rain(N)
and brings out the wind(O) from his storehouses.(P)

8 He struck down the firstborn(Q) of Egypt,
the firstborn of people and animals.
9 He sent his signs(R) and wonders into your midst, Egypt,
against Pharaoh and all his servants.(S)
10 He struck down many(T) nations
and killed mighty kings—
11 Sihon(U) king of the Amorites,(V)
Og king of Bashan,(W)
and all the kings of Canaan(X)—
12 and he gave their land as an inheritance,(Y)
an inheritance to his people Israel.

13 Your name, Lord, endures forever,(Z)
your renown,(AA) Lord, through all generations.
14 For the Lord will vindicate his people(AB)
and have compassion on his servants.(AC)

15 The idols of the nations(AD) are silver and gold,
made by human hands.(AE)
16 They have mouths, but cannot speak,(AF)
eyes, but cannot see.
17 They have ears, but cannot hear,
nor is there breath(AG) in their mouths.
18 Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them.

19 All you Israelites, praise the Lord;(AH)
house of Aaron, praise the Lord;
20 house of Levi, praise the Lord;
you who fear him, praise the Lord.
21 Praise be to the Lord from Zion,(AI)
to him who dwells in Jerusalem.(AJ)

Praise the Lord.

Footnotes:

  1. Psalm 135:1 Hebrew Hallelu Yah; also in verses 3 and 21

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 135:1 : 135:15-20pp — Ps 115:4-11
  2. Psalm 135:1 : Ne 7:73
  3. Psalm 135:2 : S 1Ch 15:2; Lk 2:37
  4. Psalm 135:2 : S Ps 116:19
  5. Psalm 135:3 : S 1Ch 16:34; S Ps 119:68
  6. Psalm 135:3 : S Ps 68:4
  7. Psalm 135:3 : S Ps 92:1; 147:1
  8. Psalm 135:4 : S Dt 10:15
  9. Psalm 135:4 : Ex 19:5; Dt 7:6; Mal 3:17; S Tit 2:14
  10. Psalm 135:5 : S Ps 48:1; 145:3
  11. Psalm 135:5 : S Ex 12:12; S 1Ch 16:25; S Job 21:22
  12. Psalm 135:6 : Ps 115:3; Da 4:35
  13. Psalm 135:6 : Mt 6:10
  14. Psalm 135:7 : S Job 5:10; Ps 68:9; Isa 30:23; Jer 10:13; 51:16; Joel 2:23; Zec 10:1
  15. Psalm 135:7 : Am 4:13
  16. Psalm 135:7 : S Dt 28:12
  17. Psalm 135:8 : S Ex 4:23; S 12:12
  18. Psalm 135:9 : S Ex 7:9
  19. Psalm 135:9 : Ps 136:10-15
  20. Psalm 135:10 : Nu 21:21-25; Jos 24:8-11; Ps 44:2; 78:55; 136:17-21
  21. Psalm 135:11 : S Nu 21:21
  22. Psalm 135:11 : S Nu 21:26
  23. Psalm 135:11 : S Nu 21:33
  24. Psalm 135:11 : S Jos 12:7-24; 24:12
  25. Psalm 135:12 : S Dt 29:8
  26. Psalm 135:13 : S Ex 3:15
  27. Psalm 135:13 : S Ps 102:12
  28. Psalm 135:14 : S 1Sa 24:15; Heb 10:30*
  29. Psalm 135:14 : S Dt 32:36
  30. Psalm 135:15 : Ps 96:5; Rev 9:20
  31. Psalm 135:15 : Isa 2:8; 31:7; 37:19; 40:19; Jer 1:16; 10:5
  32. Psalm 135:16 : S 1Ki 18:26
  33. Psalm 135:17 : Jer 10:14; Hab 2:19
  34. Psalm 135:19 : S Ps 22:23
  35. Psalm 135:21 : Ps 128:5; 134:3
  36. Psalm 135:21 : S 1Ki 8:13; S 2Ch 6:2
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Proverbs 30:5-6

5 “Every word of God is flawless;(A)
he is a shield(B) to those who take refuge in him.
6 Do not add(C) to his words,
or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.

Cross references:

  1. Proverbs 30:5 : S Ps 12:6; S 18:30
  2. Proverbs 30:5 : S Ge 15:1
  3. Proverbs 30:6 : S Dt 4:2
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday December 15, 2021 (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.

2 Hear,(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

3 Look! The Lord is coming from his dwelling(L) place;
he comes down(M) and treads on the heights of the earth.(N)
4 The mountains melt(O) beneath him(P)
and the valleys split apart,(Q)
like wax before the fire,
like water rushing down a slope.
5 All 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)
7 All 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

8 Because 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.
9 For 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.
10 Tell it not in Gath[a];
weep not at all.
In Beth Ophrah[b]
roll in the dust.
11 Pass 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.
12 Those 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.
13 You 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.
14 Therefore 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.
15 I will bring a conqueror against you
who live in Mareshah.[g](AO)
The nobles of Israel
will flee to Adullam.(AP)
16 Shave(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.
2 They 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)

3 Therefore, 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.
4 In 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.’”

5 Therefore 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)”
7 You 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)
8 Lately 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.
9 You drive the women of my people
from their pleasant homes.(BI)
You take away my blessing
from their children forever.
10 Get up, go away!
For this is not your resting place,(BJ)
because it is defiled,(BK)
it is ruined, beyond all remedy.
11 If 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)
13 The 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,
2 you who hate good and love evil;
who tear the skin from my people
and the flesh from their bones;(BT)
3 who 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)”

4 Then 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)

5 This 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.
6 Therefore 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)
7 The 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)”
8 But 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)

9 Hear this, you leaders of Jacob,
you rulers of Israel,
who despise justice
and distort all that is right;(CM)
10 who build(CN) Zion with bloodshed,(CO)
and Jerusalem with wickedness.(CP)
11 Her 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)
12 Therefore 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)

2 Many 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.
3 He 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)
4 Everyone 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)
5 All 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)
7 I 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)
8 As 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)”

9 Why 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)
10 Writhe 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.

11 But now many nations
are gathered against you.
They say, “Let her be defiled,
let our eyes gloat(ED) over Zion!”
12 But 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:

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

Cross references:

  1. Micah 1:1 : ver 14; Jer 26:18
  2. Micah 1:1 : S 1Ch 3:12
  3. Micah 1:1 : S 1Ch 3:13
  4. Micah 1:1 : S 1Ch 3:13
  5. Micah 1:1 : Hos 1:1
  6. Micah 1:1 : Isa 1:1
  7. Micah 1:2 : S Dt 32:1
  8. Micah 1:2 : Ps 50:7
  9. Micah 1:2 : S Jer 6:19
  10. Micah 1:2 : S Ge 31:50; S Dt 4:26; S Isa 1:2
  11. Micah 1:2 : S Ps 11:4
  12. Micah 1:3 : S Isa 18:4
  13. Micah 1:3 : S Isa 64:1
  14. Micah 1:3 : S Am 4:13
  15. Micah 1:4 : S Ps 46:2, 6
  16. Micah 1:4 : S Job 9:5
  17. Micah 1:4 : S Nu 16:31; Na 1:5
  18. Micah 1:5 : Am 8:14
  19. Micah 1:6 : S Dt 20:6
  20. Micah 1:6 : S Am 5:11
  21. Micah 1:6 : Eze 13:14
  22. Micah 1:7 : S Eze 6:6
  23. Micah 1:7 : S Ex 32:20
  24. Micah 1:7 : S Dt 9:21
  25. Micah 1:7 : Dt 23:17-18
  26. Micah 1:8 : S Isa 15:3
  27. Micah 1:8 : S Isa 20:2
  28. Micah 1:9 : Jer 46:11
  29. Micah 1:9 : S Jer 10:19
  30. Micah 1:9 : S 2Ki 18:13
  31. Micah 1:9 : Isa 3:26
  32. Micah 1:11 : Eze 23:29
  33. Micah 1:12 : Jer 14:19
  34. Micah 1:12 : Jer 40:2
  35. Micah 1:13 : S Jos 10:3
  36. Micah 1:13 : S Ps 9:14
  37. Micah 1:14 : 2Ki 16:8
  38. Micah 1:14 : S ver 1
  39. Micah 1:14 : S Jos 15:44
  40. Micah 1:14 : Jer 15:18
  41. Micah 1:15 : Jos 15:44
  42. Micah 1:15 : S Jos 12:15
  43. Micah 1:16 : S Lev 13:40; S Job 1:20
  44. Micah 1:16 : S Dt 4:27; S Am 5:27
  45. Micah 2:1 : S Isa 29:20
  46. Micah 2:1 : Ps 36:4
  47. Micah 2:2 : Isa 5:8
  48. Micah 2:2 : S Pr 30:14
  49. Micah 2:2 : S Jer 22:17
  50. Micah 2:2 : S 1Sa 8:14; S Isa 1:23; S Eze 46:18
  51. Micah 2:3 : Jer 18:11; S Am 3:1-2
  52. Micah 2:3 : Isa 2:12
  53. Micah 2:4 : S Lev 26:31; S Jer 4:13
  54. Micah 2:4 : S Jer 6:12
  55. Micah 2:5 : Dt 32:13; Jos 18:4
  56. Micah 2:5 : S Nu 34:13
  57. Micah 2:6 : Ps 44:13; Jer 18:16; 19:8; 25:18; 29:18; Mic 6:16
  58. Micah 2:6 : S Am 2:12
  59. Micah 2:7 : S Ps 119:65
  60. Micah 2:7 : Ps 15:2; 84:11
  61. Micah 2:9 : Jer 10:20
  62. Micah 2:10 : S Dt 12:9
  63. Micah 2:10 : Lev 18:25-29; Ps 106:38-39; S La 4:15
  64. Micah 2:11 : S 2Ch 36:16; Jer 5:31
  65. Micah 2:11 : S Lev 10:9
  66. Micah 2:11 : Isa 30:10
  67. Micah 2:12 : Mic 4:7; 5:7; 7:18
  68. Micah 2:12 : S Ne 1:9
  69. Micah 2:13 : S Isa 52:12
  70. Micah 2:13 : S Isa 60:11
  71. Micah 3:1 : S Jer 5:5
  72. Micah 3:2 : Ps 53:4; S Eze 22:27
  73. Micah 3:3 : S Ps 14:4
  74. Micah 3:3 : S Eze 34:4; Zep 3:3
  75. Micah 3:3 : S Job 24:14
  76. Micah 3:3 : S Eze 11:7; S 24:4-5
  77. Micah 3:4 : S Dt 1:45; S 1Sa 8:18; S Isa 58:4; S Jer 11:11
  78. Micah 3:4 : S Dt 31:17
  79. Micah 3:4 : S Job 15:31; S Eze 8:18
  80. Micah 3:5 : S Isa 3:12; S 9:16; S 53:6
  81. Micah 3:5 : S Jer 4:10
  82. Micah 3:6 : Isa 8:19-22; S Eze 12:24
  83. Micah 3:6 : Isa 29:10
  84. Micah 3:6 : S Eze 7:26; S Am 8:11
  85. Micah 3:7 : S Jer 6:15; Mic 7:16
  86. Micah 3:7 : S Isa 44:25
  87. Micah 3:7 : S Est 6:12
  88. Micah 3:7 : S Lev 13:45
  89. Micah 3:7 : S Eze 20:3
  90. Micah 3:8 : S Isa 57:12; 61:2
  91. Micah 3:9 : Ps 58:1-2; S Isa 1:23
  92. Micah 3:10 : S Jer 22:13
  93. Micah 3:10 : Isa 59:7; Mic 7:2; Na 3:1; Hab 2:12
  94. Micah 3:10 : Jer 22:17; S Eze 22:27
  95. Micah 3:11 : S Ex 23:8; S Lev 19:15; Mal 2:9
  96. Micah 3:11 : S Eze 13:19
  97. Micah 3:11 : Isa 1:23; S 56:11; Jer 6:13; S La 4:13; S Hos 4:8, 18
  98. Micah 3:11 : S Isa 10:20
  99. Micah 3:11 : Jer 7:4; S Eze 34:2
  100. Micah 3:12 : S 2Ki 25:9; S Isa 6:11
  101. Micah 3:12 : S Jer 52:13
  102. Micah 3:12 : S Lev 26:31; S Jer 17:3; S 22:6; S La 5:18; S Eze 5:14
  103. Micah 4:1 : 4:1-3pp — Isa 2:1-4
  104. Micah 4:1 : S Ps 48:1; Zec 8:3
  105. Micah 4:1 : S Eze 17:22
  106. Micah 4:1 : S Ps 22:27; 86:9; S Jer 3:17; S 31:12; S Da 2:35
  107. Micah 4:2 : S Jer 31:6; S Eze 20:40
  108. Micah 4:2 : Zec 2:11; 14:16
  109. Micah 4:2 : S Ps 119:171
  110. Micah 4:2 : Ps 25:8-9; S Isa 54:13
  111. Micah 4:2 : S Dt 18:18
  112. Micah 4:3 : S Isa 11:4
  113. Micah 4:3 : Joel 3:10; Zec 9:10
  114. Micah 4:3 : S Ps 46:9
  115. Micah 4:3 : Zec 8:20-22
  116. Micah 4:4 : S 1Ki 4:25
  117. Micah 4:4 : S Lev 26:6; S Eze 39:26
  118. Micah 4:4 : S Isa 1:20
  119. Micah 4:5 : 2Ki 17:29; Ac 14:16
  120. Micah 4:5 : Jos 24:14-15; Isa 26:8; Zec 10:12
  121. Micah 4:6 : S Jer 31:8
  122. Micah 4:6 : S Ps 106:47
  123. Micah 4:6 : S Eze 34:13, 16; S 37:21; Zep 3:19
  124. Micah 4:7 : S Joel 2:32; S Mic 2:12
  125. Micah 4:7 : S Ge 12:2
  126. Micah 4:7 : S Isa 2:2
  127. Micah 4:7 : S Da 2:44; S 7:14; S Lk 1:33; Rev 11:15
  128. Micah 4:8 : S Isa 1:26
  129. Micah 4:8 : Zec 9:9
  130. Micah 4:9 : Jer 8:19
  131. Micah 4:9 : S Ge 3:16; Jer 30:6; 48:41
  132. Micah 4:10 : S Dt 21:10; 2Ki 20:18; Isa 43:14
  133. Micah 4:10 : S Isa 48:20
  134. Micah 4:11 : S La 2:16; S Ob 1:12; Mic 7:8
  135. Micah 4:12 : S Ge 50:20; S Isa 55:8; Ro 11:33-34
  136. Micah 4:13 : S Isa 21:10
  137. Micah 4:13 : S Isa 45:1; S Da 2:44
  138. Micah 4:13 : S Isa 23:18
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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!” 2 I 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)

3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature(H) say, “Come!” 4 Then 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.

5 When 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. 6 Then 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!”

7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature(P) say, “Come!” 8 I 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)

9 When 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. 10 They 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) 11 Then 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)

12 I 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, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth,(AH) as figs drop from a fig tree(AI) when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up,(AJ) and every mountain and island was removed from its place.(AK)

15 Then 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) 16 They 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! 17 For the great day(AP) of their[g] wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”(AQ)

Footnotes:

  1. Revelation 6:6 Or about 1 kilogram
  2. Revelation 6:6 Greek a denarius
  3. Revelation 6:6 Or about 3 kilograms
  4. Revelation 6:6 Greek a denarius
  5. 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.
  6. Revelation 6:16 See Hosea 10:8.
  7. Revelation 6:17 Some manuscripts his

Cross references:

  1. Revelation 6:1 : S Rev 5:6
  2. Revelation 6:1 : Rev 5:1
  3. Revelation 6:1 : S Rev 4:6, 7
  4. Revelation 6:1 : Rev 14:2; 19:6
  5. Revelation 6:2 : Zec 1:8; 6:3; Rev 19:11
  6. Revelation 6:2 : Zec 6:11; Rev 14:14; 19:12
  7. Revelation 6:2 : Ps 45:4
  8. Revelation 6:3 : Rev 4:7
  9. Revelation 6:4 : Zec 1:8; 6:2
  10. Revelation 6:4 : Mt 10:34
  11. Revelation 6:5 : Rev 4:7
  12. Revelation 6:5 : Zec 6:2
  13. Revelation 6:6 : S Rev 4:6, 7
  14. Revelation 6:6 : Eze 4:16
  15. Revelation 6:6 : Rev 7:1, 3; 9:4
  16. Revelation 6:7 : Rev 4:7
  17. Revelation 6:8 : Zec 6:3
  18. Revelation 6:8 : Hos 13:14; Rev 1:18; 20:13, 14
  19. Revelation 6:8 : Jer 15:2, 3; 24:10; Eze 5:12, 17
  20. Revelation 6:9 : Ex 29:12; Lev 4:7
  21. Revelation 6:9 : Rev 14:18; 16:7
  22. Revelation 6:9 : Rev 20:4
  23. Revelation 6:9 : Ro 1:2; S Heb 4:12
  24. Revelation 6:10 : Ps 119:84; Zec 1:12
  25. Revelation 6:10 : Lk 2:29; 2Pe 2:1
  26. Revelation 6:10 : S Rev 3:7
  27. Revelation 6:10 : S Rev 3:10
  28. Revelation 6:10 : Dt 32:43; 2Ki 9:7; Ps 79:10; Rev 16:6; 18:20; 19:2
  29. Revelation 6:11 : S Rev 3:4
  30. Revelation 6:11 : Heb 11:40
  31. Revelation 6:12 : Ps 97:4; Isa 29:6; Eze 38:19; Rev 8:5; 11:13; 16:18
  32. Revelation 6:12 : S Mt 24:29
  33. Revelation 6:12 : Isa 50:3
  34. Revelation 6:13 : S Mt 24:29; Rev 8:10; 9:1
  35. Revelation 6:13 : Isa 34:4
  36. Revelation 6:14 : S 2Pe 3:10; Rev 20:11; 21:1
  37. Revelation 6:14 : Ps 46:2; Isa 54:10; Jer 4:24; Eze 38:20; Na 1:5; Rev 16:20; 21:1
  38. Revelation 6:15 : Rev 19:18
  39. Revelation 6:15 : Isa 2:10, 19, 21
  40. Revelation 6:16 : Hos 10:8; Lk 23:30
  41. Revelation 6:16 : S Rev 5:1
  42. Revelation 6:17 : Joel 1:15; 2:1, 2, 11, 31; Zep 1:14, 15; Rev 16:14
  43. Revelation 6:17 : Ps 76:7; Na 1:6; Mal 3:2
New International Version (NIV)

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Psalm 134

Psalm 134

A song of ascents.

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

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

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 134:1 : S Ps 113:1; 135:1-2; Rev 19:5
  2. Psalm 134:1 : S Nu 16:9; S 1Ch 15:2
  3. Psalm 134:1 : S 1Ch 23:30
  4. Psalm 134:2 : S Ps 28:2; 1Ti 2:8
  5. Psalm 134:2 : Ps 15:1
  6. Psalm 134:2 : Ps 33:2; 103:1
  7. Psalm 134:3 : S Lev 25:21; S Ps 20:2
  8. Psalm 134:3 : S Ps 124:8
New International Version (NIV)

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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]
2 Surely I am only a brute, not a man;
I do not have human understanding.
3 I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I attained to the knowledge of the Holy One.(B)
4 Who 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:

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

Cross references:

  1. Proverbs 30:1 : S Pr 22:17
  2. Proverbs 30:3 : S Pr 9:10
  3. Proverbs 30:4 : Dt 30:12; Ps 24:1-2; S Pr 8:22-31; Jn 3:13; Eph 4:7-10
  4. Proverbs 30:4 : Isa 40:12
  5. Proverbs 30:4 : Job 26:8
  6. Proverbs 30:4 : S Ge 1:2
  7. Proverbs 30:4 : Rev 19:12
New International Version (NIV)

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday December 14, 2021 (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.”

3 But 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)

4 Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.(H) 5 All 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. 6 The 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)

7 Then 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) 8 So 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?”

9 He 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)”

10 This 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.)

11 The 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)

13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before.(S) 14 Then 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) 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm.(V) 16 At 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

17 Now 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. 2 He 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.
3 You 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)
4 I said, ‘I have been banished
from your sight;(AG)
yet I will look again
toward your holy temple.’(AH)
5 The engulfing waters threatened me,[b]
the deep surrounded me;
seaweed was wrapped around my head.(AI)
6 To 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.
9 But 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.’”

10 And 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.”

3 Jonah 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. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming,(AU) “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” 5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.(AV)

6 When 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) 7 This 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) 8 But 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) 9 Who knows?(BC) God may yet relent(BD) and with compassion turn(BE) from his fierce anger(BF) so that we will not perish.”

10 When 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) 2 He 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) 3 Now, Lord, take away my life,(BP) for it is better for me to die(BQ) than to live.”(BR)

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

5 Jonah 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. 6 Then 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. 7 But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered.(BU) 8 When 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.”

9 But 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.”

10 But 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. 11 And 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:

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

Cross references:

  1. Jonah 1:1 : Mt 12:39-41; 16:4; Lk 11:29-32
  2. Jonah 1:1 : 2Ki 14:25
  3. Jonah 1:2 : S Ge 10:11; S Na 1:1
  4. Jonah 1:3 : Ps 139:7
  5. Jonah 1:3 : S Ge 10:4
  6. Jonah 1:3 : S Jos 19:46; Ac 9:36, 43
  7. Jonah 1:3 : Ex 4:13; S Jer 20:9; S Am 3:8
  8. Jonah 1:4 : Ps 107:23-26
  9. Jonah 1:5 : Ac 27:18-19
  10. Jonah 1:6 : Jnh 3:8
  11. Jonah 1:6 : S Ps 107:28
  12. Jonah 1:7 : Nu 32:23; Jos 7:10-18; S 1Sa 14:42
  13. Jonah 1:7 : S Pr 16:33
  14. Jonah 1:9 : S Ps 96:9
  15. Jonah 1:9 : S Da 2:18; Ac 17:24
  16. Jonah 1:9 : S Ne 9:6
  17. Jonah 1:9 : S Ge 1:9
  18. Jonah 1:12 : 2Sa 24:17; 1Ch 21:17
  19. Jonah 1:13 : S Pr 21:30
  20. Jonah 1:14 : Dt 21:8
  21. Jonah 1:14 : S Da 4:35
  22. Jonah 1:15 : S Ps 107:29; Lk 8:24
  23. Jonah 1:16 : Mk 4:41
  24. Jonah 1:16 : S Nu 30:2; Ps 66:13-14
  25. Jonah 1:17 : Jnh 4:6, 7
  26. Jonah 1:17 : Mt 12:40; 16:4; Lk 11:30
  27. Jonah 2:2 : La 3:55
  28. Jonah 2:2 : Ps 18:6; 120:1
  29. Jonah 2:2 : Ps 86:13
  30. Jonah 2:3 : S Ps 88:6
  31. Jonah 2:3 : S 2Sa 22:5
  32. Jonah 2:3 : S Ps 42:7
  33. Jonah 2:4 : Ps 31:22; Jer 7:15
  34. Jonah 2:4 : S 1Ki 8:48
  35. Jonah 2:5 : Ps 69:1-2
  36. Jonah 2:6 : Job 28:9
  37. Jonah 2:6 : S Job 17:16; S 33:18; S Ps 30:3
  38. Jonah 2:7 : Ps 77:11-12
  39. Jonah 2:7 : 2Ch 30:27
  40. Jonah 2:7 : S Ps 11:4; 18:6
  41. Jonah 2:8 : S Dt 32:21; S 1Sa 12:21
  42. Jonah 2:9 : S Ps 42:4
  43. Jonah 2:9 : Ps 50:14, 23; Heb 13:15
  44. Jonah 2:9 : S Nu 30:2; Ps 116:14; S Ecc 5:4-5
  45. Jonah 2:9 : S Ex 15:2; S Ps 3:8
  46. Jonah 3:1 : Jnh 1:1
  47. Jonah 3:4 : S Jer 18:7-10
  48. Jonah 3:5 : Da 9:3; Mt 11:21; 12:41; Lk 11:32
  49. Jonah 3:6 : Est 4:1-3; S Job 2:8, 13; S Eze 27:30-31
  50. Jonah 3:7 : S 2Ch 20:3; S Ezr 10:6
  51. Jonah 3:8 : Ps 130:1; Jnh 1:6
  52. Jonah 3:8 : Jer 25:5
  53. Jonah 3:8 : Jer 7:3
  54. Jonah 3:8 : S Job 16:17
  55. Jonah 3:9 : 2Sa 12:22
  56. Jonah 3:9 : S Jer 18:8
  57. Jonah 3:9 : S Joel 2:14
  58. Jonah 3:9 : S Ps 85:3
  59. Jonah 3:10 : S Am 7:6
  60. Jonah 3:10 : S Jer 18:8
  61. Jonah 3:10 : S Ex 32:14
  62. Jonah 4:1 : ver 4; Mt 20:11; Lk 15:28
  63. Jonah 4:2 : Jer 20:7-8
  64. Jonah 4:2 : S Dt 4:31; Ps 103:8
  65. Jonah 4:2 : S Ex 22:27; Ps 86:5, 15
  66. Jonah 4:2 : S Nu 14:18
  67. Jonah 4:2 : S Joel 2:13
  68. Jonah 4:3 : S Nu 11:15
  69. Jonah 4:3 : S Job 7:15
  70. Jonah 4:3 : Jer 8:3
  71. Jonah 4:4 : Ge 4:6; Mt 20:11-15
  72. Jonah 4:6 : S Jnh 1:17
  73. Jonah 4:7 : Joel 1:12
  74. Jonah 4:8 : S 1Ki 19:4
  75. Jonah 4:9 : ver 4
  76. Jonah 4:11 : Jnh 3:10
  77. Jonah 4:11 : Jnh 1:2; 3:2
New International Version (NIV)

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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. 2 And I saw a mighty angel(D) proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then 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.”

6 Then 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. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne.(M) 8 And 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. 9 And 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)
10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests(W) to serve our God,
and they will reign[b] on the earth.”(X)

11 Then 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) 12 In 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)

13 Then 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)

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

Footnotes:

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

Cross references:

  1. Revelation 5:1 : ver 7, 13; Rev 4:2, 9; 6:16
  2. Revelation 5:1 : Eze 2:9, 10
  3. Revelation 5:1 : Isa 29:11; Da 12:4
  4. Revelation 5:2 : Rev 10:1
  5. Revelation 5:5 : Ge 49:9
  6. Revelation 5:5 : S Heb 7:14
  7. Revelation 5:5 : Isa 11:1, 10; Ro 15:12; Rev 22:16
  8. Revelation 5:6 : ver 8, 9, 12, 13; S Jn 1:29
  9. Revelation 5:6 : S Rev 4:6
  10. Revelation 5:6 : S Rev 4:4
  11. Revelation 5:6 : Zec 4:10
  12. Revelation 5:6 : S Rev 1:4
  13. Revelation 5:7 : S ver 1
  14. Revelation 5:8 : S Rev 4:6
  15. Revelation 5:8 : S Rev 4:4
  16. Revelation 5:8 : Rev 14:2; 15:2
  17. Revelation 5:8 : Ps 141:2; Rev 8:3, 4
  18. Revelation 5:9 : Ps 40:3; 98:1; 149:1; Isa 42:10; Rev 14:3, 4
  19. Revelation 5:9 : Rev 4:11
  20. Revelation 5:9 : Heb 9:12
  21. Revelation 5:9 : S 1Co 6:20
  22. Revelation 5:9 : S Rev 13:7
  23. Revelation 5:10 : S 1Pe 2:5
  24. Revelation 5:10 : Rev 3:21; 20:4
  25. Revelation 5:11 : Da 7:10; Heb 12:22; Jude 14
  26. Revelation 5:11 : S Rev 4:6
  27. Revelation 5:11 : S Rev 4:4
  28. Revelation 5:12 : ver 13
  29. Revelation 5:12 : ver 9
  30. Revelation 5:12 : Rev 1:6; 4:11
  31. Revelation 5:13 : ver 3; Php 2:10
  32. Revelation 5:13 : S ver 1, 7
  33. Revelation 5:13 : ver 6; Rev 6:16; 7:10
  34. Revelation 5:13 : 1Ch 29:11; Mal 1:6; 2:2; S Ro 11:36
  35. Revelation 5:14 : S Rev 4:6
  36. Revelation 5:14 : Rev 4:9
  37. Revelation 5:14 : S Rev 4:4
  38. Revelation 5:14 : Rev 4:10
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Psalm 133

Psalm 133

A song of ascents. Of David.

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

2 It 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.
3 It 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:

  1. Psalm 133:1 : S Ge 13:8; S Ro 12:10
  2. Psalm 133:1 : Jn 17:11
  3. Psalm 133:2 : S Ex 29:7
  4. Psalm 133:3 : Job 29:19; Pr 19:12; Isa 18:4; 26:19; 45:8; Hos 14:5; Mic 5:7
  5. Psalm 133:3 : S Dt 3:8; S 4:48
  6. Psalm 133:3 : S Ex 15:17; S Ps 2:6; 74:2
  7. Psalm 133:3 : S Lev 25:21
  8. Psalm 133:3 : S Ps 21:4
New International Version (NIV)

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Proverbs 29:26-27

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

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

Cross references:

  1. Proverbs 29:26 : Pr 19:6
  2. Proverbs 29:26 : S Pr 16:33
  3. Proverbs 29:27 : S ver 10
New International Version (NIV)

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday December 13, 2021 (NIV)

Obadiah

Obadiah’s Vision(A)(B)

1 The 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.
3 The 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)
4 Though 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)
6 But how Esau will be ransacked,
his hidden treasures pillaged!
7 All 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?
9 Your warriors, Teman,(R) will be terrified,
and everyone in Esau’s mountains
will be cut down in the slaughter.
10 Because of the violence(S) against your brother Jacob,(T)
you will be covered with shame;
you will be destroyed forever.(U)
11 On 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)
12 You 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)
13 You 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.
14 You 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.
16 Just 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)
17 But on Mount Zion will be deliverance;(AL)
it will be holy,(AM)
and Jacob will possess his inheritance.(AN)
18 Jacob 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.

19 People 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.
20 This 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)
21 Deliverers(AW) will go up on[c] Mount Zion
to govern the mountains of Esau.
And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.(AX)

Footnotes:

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

Cross references:

  1. Obadiah 1:1 : 1-4pp — Jer 49:14-16
  2. Obadiah 1:1 : 5-6pp — Jer 49:9-10
  3. Obadiah 1:1 : S Isa 1:1
  4. Obadiah 1:1 : S Ge 25:14; S Isa 11:14; S 34:11; 63:1-6; Jer 49:7-22; S Eze 25:12-14; S 32:29; S Am 1:11-12
  5. Obadiah 1:1 : Isa 18:2
  6. Obadiah 1:1 : Jer 6:4-5
  7. Obadiah 1:2 : Nu 24:18
  8. Obadiah 1:3 : S Isa 16:6
  9. Obadiah 1:3 : fn Isa 16:1
  10. Obadiah 1:3 : S 2Ch 25:11-12
  11. Obadiah 1:4 : S Isa 10:14
  12. Obadiah 1:4 : S Isa 14:13
  13. Obadiah 1:4 : S Job 20:6
  14. Obadiah 1:5 : S Dt 4:27; 24:21; S Isa 24:13
  15. Obadiah 1:7 : Jer 30:14
  16. Obadiah 1:7 : S Ps 41:9
  17. Obadiah 1:8 : Job 5:12; Isa 29:14
  18. Obadiah 1:9 : S Ge 36:11, 34
  19. Obadiah 1:10 : S Joel 3:19
  20. Obadiah 1:10 : Ps 137:7; Am 1:11-12
  21. Obadiah 1:10 : S Ps 137:7; S Eze 25:12-14; 35:9
  22. Obadiah 1:11 : S Job 6:27; S Eze 24:6
  23. Obadiah 1:11 : S Am 1:6
  24. Obadiah 1:12 : Pr 24:17
  25. Obadiah 1:12 : S Job 31:29
  26. Obadiah 1:12 : S Eze 35:15
  27. Obadiah 1:12 : S Pr 17:5
  28. Obadiah 1:12 : Ps 137:7
  29. Obadiah 1:12 : S Eze 25:6; Mic 4:11; 7:8
  30. Obadiah 1:13 : S Eze 35:5
  31. Obadiah 1:14 : S 1Ki 18:4
  32. Obadiah 1:15 : S Jer 46:10; S Eze 30:3; S Joel 2:31; S Am 5:18
  33. Obadiah 1:15 : S Jer 50:29; Hab 2:8
  34. Obadiah 1:16 : Isa 51:17
  35. Obadiah 1:16 : S Ex 15:17
  36. Obadiah 1:16 : Jer 25:15; 49:12; S La 4:21-22
  37. Obadiah 1:16 : S La 4:21; S Eze 25:12-14
  38. Obadiah 1:17 : S Ps 69:35; S Isa 14:1-2; Joel 2:32; S Am 9:11-15
  39. Obadiah 1:17 : S Ps 74:2; S Isa 4:3
  40. Obadiah 1:17 : Zec 8:12
  41. Obadiah 1:18 : S Isa 1:31
  42. Obadiah 1:18 : Zec 12:6
  43. Obadiah 1:18 : S Jer 49:10
  44. Obadiah 1:19 : Isa 11:14
  45. Obadiah 1:19 : S Jer 31:5
  46. Obadiah 1:19 : S Nu 1:36
  47. Obadiah 1:20 : 1Ki 17:9-10; Lk 4:26
  48. Obadiah 1:20 : S Jer 33:13
  49. Obadiah 1:21 : S Dt 28:29; S Jdg 3:9
  50. Obadiah 1:21 : S Ps 22:28; 47:9; 66:4; S Da 2:44; Zec 14:9, 16; Mal 1:14; Rev 11:15
New International Version (NIV)

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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) 2 At once I was in the Spirit,(E) and there before me was a throne in heaven(F) with someone sitting on it. 3 And 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. 4 Surrounding 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. 5 From 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. 6 Also 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) 7 The 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) 8 Each 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)

9 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne(Z) and who lives for ever and ever,(AA) 10 the 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:

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

Cross references:

  1. Revelation 4:1 : S Mt 3:16
  2. Revelation 4:1 : Rev 1:10
  3. Revelation 4:1 : Rev 11:12
  4. Revelation 4:1 : Rev 1:19; 22:6
  5. Revelation 4:2 : S Rev 1:10
  6. Revelation 4:2 : ver 9, 10; 1Ki 22:19; Isa 6:1; Eze 1:26-28; Da 7:9; Rev 20:11
  7. Revelation 4:3 : Rev 21:11
  8. Revelation 4:3 : Rev 21:20
  9. Revelation 4:3 : Eze 1:28; Rev 10:1
  10. Revelation 4:3 : Rev 21:19
  11. Revelation 4:4 : ver 10; Rev 5:6, 8, 14; 11:16; 19:4
  12. Revelation 4:4 : S Rev 3:4, 5
  13. Revelation 4:5 : Ex 19:16; Rev 8:5; 11:19; 16:18
  14. Revelation 4:5 : Zec 4:2
  15. Revelation 4:5 : S Rev 1:4
  16. Revelation 4:6 : Rev 15:2
  17. Revelation 4:6 : ver 8, 9; Eze 1:5; Rev 5:6; 6:1; 7:11; 14:3; 15:7; 19:4
  18. Revelation 4:6 : Eze 1:18; 10:12
  19. Revelation 4:7 : Eze 1:10; 10:14
  20. Revelation 4:8 : S ver 6
  21. Revelation 4:8 : Isa 6:2
  22. Revelation 4:8 : Eze 1:18
  23. Revelation 4:8 : Rev 14:11
  24. Revelation 4:8 : Isa 6:3; S Rev 1:8
  25. Revelation 4:8 : S Rev 1:4
  26. Revelation 4:9 : ver 2; Ps 47:8; S Rev 5:1
  27. Revelation 4:9 : S Rev 1:18
  28. Revelation 4:10 : S ver 4
  29. Revelation 4:10 : Dt 33:3; Rev 5:8, 14; 7:11; 11:16
  30. Revelation 4:10 : S ver 2
  31. Revelation 4:11 : Rev 1:6; 5:12
  32. Revelation 4:11 : Ac 14:15; Rev 10:6
New International Version (NIV)

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Psalm 132

Psalm 132(A)

A song of ascents.

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

2 He 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,
4 I will allow no sleep to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
5 till I find a place(E) for the Lord,
a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

6 We 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.
9 May your priests be clothed with your righteousness;(K)
may your faithful people(L) sing for joy.’”

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

11 The 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.
12 If 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.”

13 For 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.
15 I will bless her with abundant provisions;
her poor I will satisfy with food.(U)
16 I 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)
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,(AA)
but his head will be adorned with a radiant crown.”(AB)

Footnotes:

  1. 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)
  2. Psalm 132:17 Horn here symbolizes strong one, that is, king.

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 132:1 : 132:8-10pp — 2Ch 6:41-42
  2. Psalm 132:1 : 1Sa 18:11; S 2Sa 15:14
  3. Psalm 132:2 : S Ge 49:24; Isa 49:26; 60:16
  4. Psalm 132:3 : S 2Sa 7:2, 27
  5. Psalm 132:5 : S 1Ki 8:17; Ac 7:46
  6. Psalm 132:6 : S 1Sa 17:12
  7. Psalm 132:6 : S Jos 9:17; S 1Sa 7:2
  8. Psalm 132:7 : S 2Sa 15:25; Ps 5:7; 122:1
  9. Psalm 132:7 : S 1Ch 28:2
  10. Psalm 132:8 : S Nu 10:35
  11. Psalm 132:9 : S Job 27:6; Isa 61:3, 10; Zec 3:4; Mal 3:3; Eph 6:14
  12. Psalm 132:9 : Ps 16:3; 30:4; 149:5
  13. Psalm 132:11 : S Ps 89:3-4, 35
  14. Psalm 132:11 : S 1Ch 17:11-14; S Mt 1:1; Lk 3:31
  15. Psalm 132:12 : 2Ch 6:16; S Ps 25:10
  16. Psalm 132:12 : Lk 1:32; Ac 2:30
  17. Psalm 132:13 : S Ex 15:17; Ps 48:1-2; S 68:16
  18. Psalm 132:13 : S 1Ki 8:13
  19. Psalm 132:14 : ver 8; Ps 68:16
  20. Psalm 132:14 : S 2Sa 6:2; Ps 80:1
  21. Psalm 132:15 : Ps 107:9; 147:14
  22. Psalm 132:16 : S 2Ch 6:41
  23. Psalm 132:16 : S Job 8:21; Ps 149:5
  24. Psalm 132:17 : S 1Sa 2:10; Ps 92:10; Eze 29:21; S Lk 1:69
  25. Psalm 132:17 : 1Ki 11:36; 2Ki 8:19; 2Ch 21:7; Ps 18:28
  26. Psalm 132:17 : S Ps 84:9
  27. Psalm 132:18 : S Job 8:22
  28. Psalm 132:18 : S 2Sa 12:30
New International Version (NIV)

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Proverbs 29:24-25

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

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

Cross references:

  1. Proverbs 29:24 : S Lev 5:1
  2. Proverbs 29:25 : S 1Sa 15:24
  3. Proverbs 29:25 : Pr 28:25
  4. Proverbs 29:25 : S Pr 16:20
New International Version (NIV)

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday December 12, 2021 (NIV)

Amos 7-9

Locusts, Fire and a Plumb Line

7 This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me:(A) He was preparing swarms of locusts(B) after the king’s share had been harvested and just as the late crops were coming up. 2 When they had stripped the land clean,(C) I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, forgive! How can Jacob survive?(D) He is so small!(E)”

3 So the Lord relented.(F)

“This will not happen,” the Lord said.(G)

4 This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: The Sovereign Lord was calling for judgment by fire;(H) it dried up the great deep and devoured(I) the land. 5 Then I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!(J)”

6 So the Lord relented.(K)

“This will not happen either,” the Sovereign Lord said.(L)

7 This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb,[a] with a plumb line[b] in his hand. 8 And the Lord asked me, “What do you see,(M) Amos?(N)”

“A plumb line,(O)” I replied.

Then the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.(P)

9 “The high places(Q) of Isaac will be destroyed
and the sanctuaries(R) of Israel will be ruined;
with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam.(S)”

Amos and Amaziah

10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel(T) sent a message to Jeroboam(U) king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy(V) against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words.(W) 11 For this is what Amos is saying:

“‘Jeroboam will die by the sword,
and Israel will surely go into exile,(X)
away from their native land.’”(Y)

12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer!(Z) Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there.(AA) 13 Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel,(AB) because this is the king’s sanctuary and the temple(AC) of the kingdom.(AD)”

14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet(AE) nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees.(AF) 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock(AG) and said to me, ‘Go,(AH) prophesy(AI) to my people Israel.’(AJ) 16 Now then, hear(AK) the word of the Lord. You say,

“‘Do not prophesy against(AL) Israel,
and stop preaching against the descendants of Isaac.’

17 “Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“‘Your wife will become a prostitute(AM) in the city,
and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword.
Your land will be measured and divided up,
and you yourself will die in a pagan[c] country.
And Israel will surely go into exile,(AN)
away from their native land.(AO)’”

A Basket of Ripe Fruit

8 This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me:(AP) a basket of ripe fruit. 2 “What do you see,(AQ) Amos?(AR)” he asked.

“A basket(AS) of ripe fruit,” I answered.

Then the Lord said to me, “The time is ripe for my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.(AT)

3 “In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “the songs in the temple will turn to wailing.[d](AU) Many, many bodies—flung everywhere! Silence!(AV)”

4 Hear this, you who trample the needy
and do away with the poor(AW) of the land,(AX)

5 saying,

“When will the New Moon(AY) be over
that we may sell grain,
and the Sabbath be ended
that we may market(AZ) wheat?”(BA)—
skimping on the measure,
boosting the price
and cheating(BB) with dishonest scales,(BC)
6 buying the poor(BD) with silver
and the needy for a pair of sandals,
selling even the sweepings with the wheat.(BE)

7 The Lord has sworn by himself, the Pride of Jacob:(BF) “I will never forget(BG) anything they have done.(BH)

8 “Will not the land tremble(BI) for this,
and all who live in it mourn?
The whole land will rise like the Nile;
it will be stirred up and then sink
like the river of Egypt.(BJ)

9 “In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord,

“I will make the sun go down at noon
and darken the earth in broad daylight.(BK)
10 I will turn your religious festivals(BL) into mourning
and all your singing into weeping.(BM)
I will make all of you wear sackcloth(BN)
and shave(BO) your heads.
I will make that time like mourning for an only son(BP)
and the end of it like a bitter day.(BQ)

11 “The days are coming,”(BR) declares the Sovereign Lord,
“when I will send a famine through the land—
not a famine of food or a thirst for water,
but a famine(BS) of hearing the words of the Lord.(BT)
12 People will stagger from sea to sea
and wander from north to east,
searching for the word of the Lord,
but they will not find it.(BU)

13 “In that day

“the lovely young women and strong young men(BV)
will faint because of thirst.(BW)
14 Those who swear by the sin of Samaria(BX)—
who say, ‘As surely as your god lives, Dan,’(BY)
or, ‘As surely as the god[e] of Beersheba(BZ) lives’—
they will fall,(CA) never to rise again.(CB)”

Israel to Be Destroyed

9 I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and he said:

“Strike the tops of the pillars
so that the thresholds shake.
Bring them down on the heads(CC) of all the people;
those who are left I will kill with the sword.
Not one will get away,
none will escape.(CD)
2 Though they dig down to the depths below,(CE)
from there my hand will take them.
Though they climb up to the heavens above,(CF)
from there I will bring them down.(CG)
3 Though they hide themselves on the top of Carmel,(CH)
there I will hunt them down and seize them.(CI)
Though they hide from my eyes at the bottom of the sea,(CJ)
there I will command the serpent(CK) to bite them.(CL)
4 Though they are driven into exile by their enemies,
there I will command the sword(CM) to slay them.

“I will keep my eye on them
for harm(CN) and not for good.(CO)”(CP)

5 The Lord, the Lord Almighty—
he touches the earth and it melts,(CQ)
and all who live in it mourn;
the whole land rises like the Nile,
then sinks like the river of Egypt;(CR)
6 he builds his lofty palace[f](CS) in the heavens
and sets its foundation[g] on the earth;
he calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out over the face of the land—
the Lord is his name.(CT)

7 “Are not you Israelites
the same to me as the Cushites[h]?”(CU)
declares the Lord.
“Did I not bring Israel up from Egypt,
the Philistines(CV) from Caphtor[i](CW)
and the Arameans from Kir?(CX)

8 “Surely the eyes of the Sovereign Lord
are on the sinful kingdom.
I will destroy(CY) it
from the face of the earth.
Yet I will not totally destroy
the descendants of Jacob,”
declares the Lord.(CZ)
9 “For I will give the command,
and I will shake the people of Israel
among all the nations
as grain(DA) is shaken in a sieve,(DB)
and not a pebble will reach the ground.(DC)
10 All the sinners among my people
will die by the sword,(DD)
all those who say,
‘Disaster will not overtake or meet us.’(DE)

Israel’s Restoration

11 “In that day

“I will restore David’s(DF) fallen shelter(DG)—
I will repair its broken walls
and restore its ruins(DH)—
and will rebuild it as it used to be,(DI)
12 so that they may possess the remnant of Edom(DJ)
and all the nations that bear my name,[j](DK)”
declares the Lord, who will do these things.(DL)

13 “The days are coming,”(DM) declares the Lord,

“when the reaper(DN) will be overtaken by the plowman(DO)
and the planter by the one treading(DP) grapes.
New wine(DQ) will drip from the mountains
and flow from all the hills,(DR)
14 and I will bring(DS) my people Israel back from exile.[k](DT)

“They will rebuild the ruined cities(DU) and live in them.
They will plant vineyards(DV) and drink their wine;
they will make gardens and eat their fruit.(DW)
15 I will plant(DX) Israel in their own land,(DY)
never again to be uprooted(DZ)
from the land I have given them,”(EA)

says the Lord your God.(EB)

Footnotes:

  1. Amos 7:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  2. Amos 7:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain; also in verse 8.
  3. Amos 7:17 Hebrew an unclean
  4. Amos 8:3 Or “the temple singers will wail
  5. Amos 8:14 Hebrew the way
  6. Amos 9:6 The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
  7. Amos 9:6 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  8. Amos 9:7 That is, people from the upper Nile region
  9. Amos 9:7 That is, Crete
  10. Amos 9:12 Hebrew; Septuagint so that the remnant of people / and all the nations that bear my name may seek me
  11. Amos 9:14 Or will restore the fortunes of my people Israel

Cross references:

  1. Amos 7:1 : ver 7; Am 8:1
  2. Amos 7:1 : Ps 78:46; S Jer 51:14; S Joel 1:4
  3. Amos 7:2 : S Ex 10:15
  4. Amos 7:2 : S Isa 37:4
  5. Amos 7:2 : S Eze 11:13; S Am 4:9
  6. Amos 7:3 : S Ex 32:14; Dt 32:36; S Jer 18:8; 26:19
  7. Amos 7:3 : S Hos 11:8
  8. Amos 7:4 : S Isa 66:16; S Joel 1:19
  9. Amos 7:4 : Dt 32:22
  10. Amos 7:5 : S ver 1-2; Joel 2:17
  11. Amos 7:6 : S Ex 32:14; S Jer 18:8; Jnh 3:10
  12. Amos 7:6 : Jer 42:10; S Eze 9:8
  13. Amos 7:8 : Jer 1:11, 13
  14. Amos 7:8 : Am 8:2
  15. Amos 7:8 : S 2Ki 21:13
  16. Amos 7:8 : S Jer 15:6; Eze 7:2-9
  17. Amos 7:9 : S Lev 26:30
  18. Amos 7:9 : S Lev 26:31
  19. Amos 7:9 : S 1Ki 13:34; 2Ki 15:9; Isa 63:18; S Hos 10:8
  20. Amos 7:10 : S Jos 7:2
  21. Amos 7:10 : S 2Ki 14:23
  22. Amos 7:10 : Jer 38:4
  23. Amos 7:10 : 2Ki 14:24; Jer 26:8-11
  24. Amos 7:11 : S Am 5:27
  25. Amos 7:11 : Jer 36:16
  26. Amos 7:12 : S 1Sa 9:9
  27. Amos 7:12 : Mt 8:34
  28. Amos 7:13 : S Jos 7:2; S 1Ki 12:29
  29. Amos 7:13 : Jer 36:5
  30. Amos 7:13 : S Jer 20:2; S Am 2:12; Ac 4:18
  31. Amos 7:14 : S 1Sa 10:5; 2Ki 2:5; 4:38; Zec 13:5
  32. Amos 7:14 : S 1Ki 10:27; S Isa 9:10
  33. Amos 7:15 : S Ge 37:2; S 2Sa 7:8
  34. Amos 7:15 : S Isa 6:9
  35. Amos 7:15 : S Jer 26:12
  36. Amos 7:15 : Jer 7:1-2; S Eze 2:3-4
  37. Amos 7:16 : Jer 22:2
  38. Amos 7:16 : S Eze 20:46; Mic 2:6
  39. Amos 7:17 : S Hos 4:13
  40. Amos 7:17 : S Am 5:27
  41. Amos 7:17 : S 2Ki 17:6; S Eze 4:13; S Hos 9:3; Am 2:12-13
  42. Amos 8:1 : S Am 7:1
  43. Amos 8:2 : Jer 1:13; 24:3
  44. Amos 8:2 : Am 7:8
  45. Amos 8:2 : S Ge 40:16
  46. Amos 8:2 : S La 4:18; Eze 7:2-9
  47. Amos 8:3 : S Am 5:16
  48. Amos 8:3 : Am 6:10
  49. Amos 8:4 : S Pr 30:14
  50. Amos 8:4 : S Job 20:19; S Ps 14:4; S Am 2:7
  51. Amos 8:5 : S Nu 10:10
  52. Amos 8:5 : Isa 58:13
  53. Amos 8:5 : S Ne 10:31
  54. Amos 8:5 : S Ge 31:7
  55. Amos 8:5 : Dt 25:15; 2Ki 4:23; Ne 13:15-16; Eze 45:10-12; S Hos 12:7; Mic 6:10-11; Zec 5:6
  56. Amos 8:6 : Am 5:11
  57. Amos 8:6 : S Am 2:6; S 4:1
  58. Amos 8:7 : S Ps 47:4
  59. Amos 8:7 : S Hos 8:13
  60. Amos 8:7 : S Job 35:15
  61. Amos 8:8 : S Job 9:6; Jer 51:29
  62. Amos 8:8 : Ps 18:7; S Jer 46:8; Am 9:5
  63. Amos 8:9 : S Job 5:14; Isa 59:9-10; Jer 13:16; 15:9; S Eze 32:7; S Am 5:8; Mic 3:6; Mt 27:45; Mk 15:33; Lk 23:44-45
  64. Amos 8:10 : S Lev 26:31
  65. Amos 8:10 : S La 5:15; S Hos 2:11
  66. Amos 8:10 : S Joel 1:8
  67. Amos 8:10 : S Lev 13:40; S Isa 3:17
  68. Amos 8:10 : S Ge 21:16
  69. Amos 8:10 : S Jer 2:19; S Eze 7:18
  70. Amos 8:11 : Jer 30:3; 31:27
  71. Amos 8:11 : S Isa 30:20
  72. Amos 8:11 : S 1Sa 3:1; S 28:6; S 2Ch 15:3
  73. Amos 8:12 : S Eze 20:3, 31
  74. Amos 8:13 : S Isa 9:17
  75. Amos 8:13 : Isa 41:17; Hos 2:3
  76. Amos 8:14 : Mic 1:5
  77. Amos 8:14 : S 1Ki 12:29
  78. Amos 8:14 : S Am 5:5
  79. Amos 8:14 : S Ps 46:2
  80. Amos 8:14 : S Am 5:2
  81. Amos 9:1 : Ps 68:21
  82. Amos 9:1 : Jer 11:11
  83. Amos 9:2 : S Job 7:9; S Eze 26:20
  84. Amos 9:2 : Jer 51:53
  85. Amos 9:2 : Ob 1:4
  86. Amos 9:3 : Am 1:2
  87. Amos 9:3 : Ps 139:8-10
  88. Amos 9:3 : Ps 68:22
  89. Amos 9:3 : Isa 27:1
  90. Amos 9:3 : S Ge 49:17; S Job 11:20; Jer 16:16-17
  91. Amos 9:4 : S Lev 26:33; S Eze 5:12
  92. Amos 9:4 : S Jer 21:10
  93. Amos 9:4 : Jer 39:16; S Eze 15:7
  94. Amos 9:4 : S Jer 44:11
  95. Amos 9:5 : S Ps 46:2
  96. Amos 9:5 : S Am 8:8
  97. Amos 9:6 : Jer 43:9
  98. Amos 9:6 : Ps 104:1-3, 5-6, 13; S Am 5:8
  99. Amos 9:7 : S 2Ch 12:3; Isa 20:4; 43:3
  100. Amos 9:7 : S Ge 10:14
  101. Amos 9:7 : S Dt 2:23
  102. Amos 9:7 : S 2Ki 16:9; S Isa 22:6; S Am 2:10
  103. Amos 9:8 : S Jer 4:27
  104. Amos 9:8 : S Jer 44:27
  105. Amos 9:9 : Lk 22:31
  106. Amos 9:9 : Isa 30:28
  107. Amos 9:9 : S Jer 31:36; S Da 9:7
  108. Amos 9:10 : Jer 49:37
  109. Amos 9:10 : Jer 5:12; S 23:17; S Eze 20:38; S Am 6:3
  110. Amos 9:11 : S Isa 7:2
  111. Amos 9:11 : S Ge 26:22
  112. Amos 9:11 : Ps 53:6; S Isa 49:8
  113. Amos 9:11 : Ps 80:12; S Eze 17:24; Mic 7:8, 11; Zec 12:7; 14:10
  114. Amos 9:12 : S Nu 24:18
  115. Amos 9:12 : Isa 43:7; Jer 25:29
  116. Amos 9:12 : Ac 15:16-17*
  117. Amos 9:13 : Jer 31:38; 33:14
  118. Amos 9:13 : S Ru 2:3
  119. Amos 9:13 : Lev 26:5
  120. Amos 9:13 : S Jdg 9:27
  121. Amos 9:13 : S Joel 2:24
  122. Amos 9:13 : S Joel 3:18
  123. Amos 9:14 : S Jer 29:14
  124. Amos 9:14 : S Jer 33:7
  125. Amos 9:14 : S Isa 32:18; S 49:8; S 61:4
  126. Amos 9:14 : S 2Ki 19:29
  127. Amos 9:14 : S Isa 62:9; S Jer 30:18; S 31:28; Eze 28:25-26; S 34:13-14; S Am 5:11
  128. Amos 9:15 : S Ex 15:17; S Isa 60:21
  129. Amos 9:15 : S Jer 23:8
  130. Amos 9:15 : S Joel 3:20
  131. Amos 9:15 : S Isa 65:9; S Jer 3:18; Ob 1:17
  132. Amos 9:15 : S Jer 18:9; S 24:6; S 32:15; S Eze 28:26; S 34:25-28; S 37:12, 25
New International Version (NIV)

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Revelation 3:7-22

To the Church in Philadelphia

7 “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia(A) write:

These are the words of him who is holy(B) and true,(C) who holds the key of David.(D) What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8 I know your deeds.(E) See, I have placed before you an open door(F) that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.(G) 9 I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan,(H) who claim to be Jews though they are not,(I) but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet(J) and acknowledge that I have loved you.(K) 10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you(L) from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world(M) to test(N) the inhabitants of the earth.(O)

11 I am coming soon.(P) Hold on to what you have,(Q) so that no one will take your crown.(R) 12 The one who is victorious(S) I will make a pillar(T) in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God(U) and the name of the city of my God,(V) the new Jerusalem,(W) which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. 13 Whoever has ears, let them hear(X) what the Spirit says to the churches.

To the Church in Laodicea

14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea(Y) write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness,(Z) the ruler of God’s creation.(AA) 15 I know your deeds,(AB) that you are neither cold nor hot.(AC) I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’(AD) But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.(AE) 18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire,(AF) so you can become rich; and white clothes(AG) to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness;(AH) and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

19 Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.(AI) So be earnest and repent.(AJ) 20 Here I am! I stand at the door(AK) and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,(AL) I will come in(AM) and eat with that person, and they with me.

21 To the one who is victorious,(AN) I will give the right to sit with me on my throne,(AO) just as I was victorious(AP) and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear(AQ) what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Cross references:

  1. Revelation 3:7 : Rev 1:11
  2. Revelation 3:7 : S Mk 1:24
  3. Revelation 3:7 : 1Jn 5:20; Rev 6:10; 19:11
  4. Revelation 3:7 : Isa 22:22; Mt 16:19
  5. Revelation 3:8 : S Rev 2:2
  6. Revelation 3:8 : S Ac 14:27
  7. Revelation 3:8 : Rev 2:13
  8. Revelation 3:9 : Rev 2:9
  9. Revelation 3:9 : Rev 2:9
  10. Revelation 3:9 : Isa 49:23
  11. Revelation 3:9 : Isa 43:4; S Ro 8:37
  12. Revelation 3:10 : 2Pe 2:9
  13. Revelation 3:10 : S Mt 24:14
  14. Revelation 3:10 : Rev 2:10
  15. Revelation 3:10 : Rev 6:10; 8:13; 11:10; 13:8, 14; 17:8
  16. Revelation 3:11 : S Mt 16:27
  17. Revelation 3:11 : Rev 2:25
  18. Revelation 3:11 : S 1Co 9:25
  19. Revelation 3:12 : S Jn 16:33
  20. Revelation 3:12 : Gal 2:9
  21. Revelation 3:12 : Rev 14:1; 22:4
  22. Revelation 3:12 : Eze 48:35
  23. Revelation 3:12 : Gal 4:26; Rev 21:2, 10
  24. Revelation 3:13 : S Rev 2:7
  25. Revelation 3:14 : S Col 2:1; Rev 1:11
  26. Revelation 3:14 : Jn 18:37; Rev 1:5
  27. Revelation 3:14 : Pr 8:22; Jn 1:3; Col 1:16, 18
  28. Revelation 3:15 : S Rev 2:2
  29. Revelation 3:15 : Ro 12:11
  30. Revelation 3:17 : Hos 12:8; 1Co 4:8
  31. Revelation 3:17 : Pr 13:7
  32. Revelation 3:18 : S 1Pe 1:7
  33. Revelation 3:18 : S ver 4
  34. Revelation 3:18 : Rev 16:15
  35. Revelation 3:19 : Dt 8:5; Pr 3:12; 1Co 11:32; Heb 12:5, 6
  36. Revelation 3:19 : S Rev 2:5
  37. Revelation 3:20 : Mt 24:33; Jas 5:9
  38. Revelation 3:20 : Lk 12:36
  39. Revelation 3:20 : S Ro 8:10
  40. Revelation 3:21 : S Jn 16:33
  41. Revelation 3:21 : S Mt 19:28
  42. Revelation 3:21 : Rev 5:5
  43. Revelation 3:22 : S Rev 2:7
New International Version (NIV)

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Psalm 131

Psalm 131

A song of ascents. Of David.

1 My heart is not proud,(A) Lord,
my eyes are not haughty;(B)
I do not concern myself with great matters(C)
or things too wonderful for me.(D)
2 But I have calmed and quieted myself,(E)
I am like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child I am content.(F)

3 Israel, put your hope(G) in the Lord
both now and forevermore.(H)

Cross references:

  1. Psalm 131:1 : Ps 101:5; Isa 2:12; Ro 12:16
  2. Psalm 131:1 : S 2Sa 22:28; S Job 41:34
  3. Psalm 131:1 : Jer 45:5
  4. Psalm 131:1 : S Job 5:9; Ps 139:6
  5. Psalm 131:2 : S Ps 116:7
  6. Psalm 131:2 : Mt 18:3; 1Co 13:11; 14:20
  7. Psalm 131:3 : S Ps 25:5; 119:43; 130:7
  8. Psalm 131:3 : S Ps 113:2
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Proverbs 29:23

23 Pride brings a person low,(A)
but the lowly in spirit gain honor.(B)

Cross references:

  1. Proverbs 29:23 : S Est 5:12
  2. Proverbs 29:23 : S Pr 11:2; S 15:33; S 16:18
New International Version (NIV)

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Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday December 11, 2021 (NIV)

Amos 4-6

The Women of Samaria

The Lord said:

4 You women of Samaria
are fat cows![a]
You mistreat and abuse
the poor and needy,
then you say to your husbands,
“Bring us more drinks!”
2 I, the Lord God, have sworn
by my own name
that your time is coming.
Not one of you will be left—
you will be taken away
by sharp hooks.[b]
3 You will be dragged through holes
in your city walls,
and you will be thrown
toward Harmon.[c]
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Israel Refuses To Obey

The Lord said:

4 Come to Bethel and Gilgal.[d]
Sin all you want!
Offer sacrifices the next morning
and bring a tenth of your crops
on the third day.[e]
5 Bring offerings to show me
how thankful you are.
Gladly bring more offerings
than I have demanded.
You really love to do this.
I, the Lord God, have spoken!

How the Lord Warned Israel

6 I, the Lord, took away the food
from every town and village,
but still you rejected me.
7 Three months before harvest,
I kept back the rain.
Sometimes I would let it fall
on one town or field
but not on another,
and pastures dried up.
8 People from two or three towns
would go to a town
that still had water,
but it wasn’t enough.
Even then you rejected me.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

9 I dried up your grain fields;
your gardens and vineyards
turned brown.
Locusts[f] ate your fig trees
and olive orchards,
but even then you rejected me.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

10 I did terrible things to you,
just as I did to Egypt—
I killed your young men in war;
I let your horses be stolen,
and I made your camp stink
with dead bodies.
Even then you rejected me.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

11 I destroyed many of you,
just as I did the cities
of Sodom and Gomorrah.
You were a burning stick
I rescued from the fire.
Even then you rejected me.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

12 Now, Israel, I myself
will deal with you.
Get ready to face your God!

13 I created the mountains
and the wind.
I let humans know
what I am thinking.[g]
I bring darkness at dawn
and step over hills.
I am the Lord God All-Powerful!

Turn Back to the Lord

5 Listen, nation of Israel,
to my mournful message:
2 You, dearest Israel, have fallen,
never to rise again—
you lie deserted in your own land,
with no one to help you up.

3 The Lord God has warned,
“From every ten soldiers
only one will be left;
from a thousand troops,
only a hundred will survive.”

4 The Lord keeps saying,
“Israel, turn back to me
and you will live!
5 Don’t go to Gilgal or Bethel
or even to Beersheba.[h]
Gilgal will be dragged away,
and Bethel will end up
as nothing.”[i]

6 Turn back to the Lord,
you descendants of Joseph,[j]
and you will live.
If you don’t, the Lord
will attack like fire.
Bethel will burn to the ground,
and no one can save it.
7 You people are doomed!
You twist the truth
and stomp on justice.

8 But the Lord created the stars
and put them in place.[k]
He turns darkness to dawn
and daylight to darkness;
he scoops up the ocean
and empties it on the earth.
9 God destroys mighty soldiers
and strong fortresses.

Choose Good Instead of Evil!

The Lord said:

10 You people hate judges
and honest witnesses;
11 you abuse the poor and demand
heavy taxes from them.
You have built expensive homes,
but you won’t enjoy them;
you have planted vineyards,
but you will get no wine.
12 I am the Lord, and I know
your terrible sins.
You cheat honest people
and take bribes;
you rob the poor of justice.
13 Times are so evil
that anyone with good sense
will keep quiet.

14 If you really want to live,
you must stop doing wrong
and start doing right.
I, the Lord God All-Powerful,
will then be on your side,
just as you claim I am.
15 Choose good instead of evil!
See that justice is done.
Maybe I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will be kind to what’s left
of your people.[l]

Judgment Is Coming

16 This is what the Lord has sworn:

Noisy crying will be heard
in every town and street.
Even farmers will be told
to mourn for the dead,
together with those
who are paid to mourn.[m]
17 Your vineyards will be filled
with crying and weeping,[n]
because I will punish you.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

When the Lord Judges

18 You look forward to the day
when the Lord comes to judge.
But you are in for trouble!
It won’t be a time of sunshine;
all will be darkness.
19 You will run from a lion,
only to meet a bear.
You will escape to your house,
rest your hand on the wall,
and be bitten by a snake.
20 The day when the Lord judges
will be dark, very dark,
without a ray of light.

What the Lord Demands

21 I, the Lord, hate and despise
your religious celebrations
and your times of worship.
22 I won’t accept your offerings
or animal sacrifices—
not even your very best.
23 No more of your noisy songs!
I won’t listen
when you play your harps.
24 But let justice and fairness
flow like a river
that never runs dry.

25 Israel, for forty years
you wandered in the desert,
without bringing offerings
or sacrifices to me.
26 Now you will have to carry
the two idols you made—
Sakkuth, the one you call king,
and Kaiwan,
the one you built
in the shape of a star.[o]
27 I will force you to march
as captives beyond Damascus.
I, the Lord God All-Powerful,
have spoken![p]

Israel Will Be Punished

6 Do you rulers in Jerusalem
and in the city of Samaria
feel safe and at ease?
Everyone bows down to you,
and you think you are better
than any other nation.
But you are in for trouble!
2 Look what happened
to the cities of Calneh,
powerful Hamath,
and Gath[q] in Philistia.
Are you greater than any
of those kingdoms?
3 You are cruel, and you forget
the coming day of judgment.

4 You rich people lounge around
on beds with ivory posts,
while dining on the meat
of your lambs and calves.
5 You sing foolish songs
to the music of harps,
and you make up new tunes,
just as David used to do.
6 You drink all the wine you want
and wear expensive perfume,
but you don’t care about
the ruin of your nation.[r]
7 So you will be the first
to be dragged off as captives;
your good times will end.

8 The Lord God All-Powerful
has sworn by his own name:
“You descendants of Jacob
make me angry by your pride,
and I hate your fortresses.
And so I will surrender your city
and possessions
to your enemies.”

9 If only ten of you survive
by hiding in a house
you will still die.
10 As you carry out a corpse
to prepare it for burial,[s]
your relative in the house
will ask, “Are there others?”
You will answer, “No!”
Then your relative will reply,
“Be quiet!
Don’t dare mention
the name of the Lord.”[t]
11 At the Lord’s command,
houses great and small
will be smashed to pieces.

12 Horses can’t gallop on rocks;
oceans[u] can’t be plowed.
But you have turned justice
and fairness
into bitter poison.
13 You celebrate the defeat
of Lo-Debar and Karnaim,[v]
and you boast by saying,
“We did it on our own.”

14 But the Lord God All-Powerful
will send a nation
to attack
you people of Israel.
They will capture Lebo-Hamath
in the north,
Arabah Creek[w] in the south,
and everything in between.

Footnotes:

  1. 4.1 fat cows: The Hebrew text has “cows of Bashan,” a fertile plain famous for its rich pastures and well-fed cattle.
  2. 4.2 taken. . . hooks: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  3. 4.3 Harmon: Hebrew; some manuscripts of one ancient translation “Mount Hermon,” a mountain in the north of Palestine, on the way to Assyria.
  4. 4.4 Bethel and Gilgal: These were two of the most important centers of worship in northern Israel. Amos mentions these together again in 5.5.
  5. 4.4 Offer. . . day: Or “Offer sacrifices each morning and bring a tenth of your crops every three days.” In verses 4,5 God is condemning the people for meaningless acts of worship.
  6. 4.9 Locusts: A type of grasshopper that comes in swarms and causes great damage to plant life.
  7. 4.13 I let. . . thinking: Or “No one’s secret thoughts are hidden from me.”
  8. 5.5 Gilgal. . . Bethel. . . Beersheba: These were ancient places of worship, but the Lord had warned his people to stay away from them.
  9. 5.5 Gilgal. . . nothing: In Hebrew “Gilgal” and “dragged away” sound something alike. Bethel (meaning “house of God”) is sometimes called “house of nothing” or “house of sin” by the prophets (see Hosea 4.15; 5.8; 10.5-8).
  10. 5.6 descendants of Joseph: Another name for the people of the northern kingdom of Israel.
  11. 5.8 the stars. . . place: The Hebrew text mentions two groups of stars, Pleiades and Orion. Since the Lord is the Creator of the stars, he controls the seasons that are signaled by the different positions of the stars. Moreover, the stars are created objects and should not be worshiped.
  12. 5.15 your people: Hebrew “Joseph’s descendants” (see the note at verse 6).
  13. 5.16 paid to mourn: In ancient times some people were paid to mourn and make loud cries at funerals.
  14. 5.17 Your vineyards. . . weeping: Instead of happy celebrations that were often held in vineyards after the harvest.
  15. 5.26 star: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 26.
  16. 5.27 I, the Lord. . . spoken: Israel did not offer sacrifices and gifts to the Lord during the time they wandered through the desert. But now they have made idols to carry during their ceremonies. So the Lord warns that he will make them “march” away as captives beyond Damascus, where Israel had extended its borders by victories in war (see 2 Kings 14.28).
  17. 6.2 Calneh. . . Hamath. . . Gath: City-states captured by the Assyrians: Calneh in 738 B.C., Hamath in 720, and Gath in 711.
  18. 6.6 your nation: Hebrew “Joseph’s descendants” (see the note at 5.6).
  19. 6.10 prepare. . . burial: Or “burn it” or “burn incense for it.”
  20. 6.10 the name of the Lord: Two relatives seem to be carrying out corpses for burial. One of them warns the other to be careful not even to say “Thank the Lord!” for fear that the mention of his name may cause something worse to happen.
  21. 6.12 oceans: Or “rocks.”
  22. 6.13 Lo-Debar and Karnaim: Two cities east of the Jordan River that were captured by Jeroboam II (see 2 Kings 14.25). In Hebrew “Lo-Debar” can mean “nothing,” and “Karnaim” means “two horns (of a bull).” Horns were symbols of strength, and so the people are bragging about their military power (defeat of “two horns”), which Amos says is “nothing” (Lo-Debar).
  23. 6.14 Lebo-Hamath. . . Arabah Creek: The northern and southern boundaries of the northern kingdom.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Revelation 2:18-3:6

The Letter to Thyatira

18 This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Thyatira:

I am the Son of God! My eyes are like flames of fire, and my feet are like bronze. Listen to what I say.

19 I know everything about you, including your love, your faith, your service, and how you have endured. I know that you are doing more now than you have ever done before. 20 But I still have something against you because of that woman Jezebel.[a] She calls herself a prophet, and you let her teach and mislead my servants to do immoral things and to eat food offered to idols. 21 I gave her a chance to turn from her sins, but she did not want to stop doing these immoral things.

22 I am going to strike down Jezebel. Everyone who does these immoral things with her will also be punished, if they don’t stop. 23 I will even kill her followers.[b] Then all the churches will see that I know everyone’s thoughts and feelings. I will treat each of you as you deserve.

24 Some of you in Thyatira don’t follow Jezebel’s teaching. You don’t know anything about what her followers call the “deep secrets of Satan.” So I won’t burden you down with any other commands. 25 But until I come, you must hold firmly to the teaching you have.

26 I will give power over the nations to everyone who wins the victory and keeps on obeying me until the end. 27-28 I will give each of them the same power that my Father has given me. They will rule the nations with an iron rod and smash those nations to pieces like clay pots. I will also give them the morning star.[c]

29 If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.

The Letter to Sardis

3 This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Sardis:

I have the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. Listen to what I say.

I know what you are doing. Everyone may think you are alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up! You have only a little strength left, and it is almost gone. So try to become stronger. I have found that you are not completely obeying God. 3 Remember the teaching that you were given and that you heard. Hold firmly to it and turn from your sins. If you don’t wake up, I will come when you least expect it, just as a thief does.

4 A few of you in Sardis have not dirtied your clothes with sin. You will walk with me in white clothes, because you are worthy. 5 Everyone who wins the victory will wear white clothes. Their names will not be erased from the book of life,[d] and I will tell my Father and his angels that they are my followers.

6 If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.

Footnotes:

  1. 2.20 Jezebel: Nothing else is known about her. This may have been her real name or a name that was given to her because she was like Queen Jezebel, who opposed the Lord (see 1 Kings 19.1,2; 21.1-26).
  2. 2.23 her followers: Or “her children.”
  3. 2.27,28 the morning star: Probably thought of as the star that signals the end of night and the beginning of day. In 22.16 Christ is called the “morning star.”
  4. 3.5 book of life: The book in which the names of God’s people are written.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Psalm 130

(A song for worship.)

Trusting the Lord in Times of Trouble

130 From a sea of troubles
I call out to you, Lord.
2 Won’t you please listen
as I beg for mercy?

3 If you kept record of our sins,
no one could last long.
4 But you forgive us,
and so we will worship you.

5 With all my heart,
I am waiting, Lord, for you!
I trust your promises.
6 I wait for you more eagerly
than a soldier on guard duty
waits for the dawn.
Yes, I wait more eagerly
than a soldier on guard duty
waits for the dawn.

7 Israel, trust the Lord!
He is always merciful,
and he has the power
to save you.
8 Israel, the Lord will save you
from all of your sins.

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Proverbs 29:21-22

21 Slaves that you treat kindly
from their childhood
will cause you sorrow.[a]
22 A person with a quick temper
stirs up arguments
and commits a lot of sins.

Footnotes:

  1. 29.21 will. . . sorrow: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday December 10, 2021 (NIV)

Amos 1-3

1 I am Amos. And I raised sheep near the town of Tekoa[a] when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam[b] son of Jehoash[c] was king of Israel.

Two years before the earthquake,[d] the Lord gave me several messages[e] about Israel, 2 and I said:

When the Lord roars
from Jerusalem,
pasturelands and Mount Carmel
dry up and turn brown.

Judgment on Syria

3 The Lord said:

I will punish Syria[f]
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They dragged logs with spikes[g]
over the people of Gilead.
4 Now I will burn down the palaces
and fortresses
of King Hazael
and of King Benhadad.[h]
5 I will break through
the gates of Damascus.
I will destroy the people[i]
of Wicked Valley[j]
and the ruler of Beth-Eden.[k]
Then the Syrians will be dragged
as prisoners to Kir.[l]
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Judgment on Philistia

6 The Lord said:

I will punish Philistia[m]
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They dragged off my people[n]
from town after town
to sell them as slaves
to the Edomites.

7 That’s why I will burn down
the walls and fortresses
of the city of Gaza.
8 I will destroy the king[o] of Ashdod
and the ruler of Ashkelon.
I will strike down Ekron,[p]
and that will be the end
of the Philistines.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Judgment on Phoenicia

9 The Lord said:

I will punish Phoenicia[q]
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They broke their treaty
and dragged off my people[r]
from town after town
to sell them as slaves
to the Edomites.
10 That’s why I will send flames
to burn down the city of Tyre
along with its fortresses.

Judgment on Edom

11 The Lord said:

I will punish Edom
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They killed their own relatives[s]
and were so terribly furious
that they showed no mercy.
12 Now I will send fire to wipe out
the fortresses
of Teman
and Bozrah.[t]

Judgment on Ammon

13 The Lord said:

I will punish Ammon
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
In Gilead they ripped open
pregnant women,
just to take the land.

14 Now I will send fire to destroy
the walls and fortresses
of Rabbah.[u]
Enemies will shout and attack
like a whirlwind.
15 Ammon’s king and leaders
will be dragged away.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Judgment on Moab

2 The Lord said:

I will punish Moab
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They made lime from the bones[v]
of the king of Edom.
2 Now I will send fire to destroy
the fortresses of Kerioth.[w]
Battle shouts and trumpet blasts
will be heard
as I destroy Moab
3 with its king and leaders.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Judgment on Judah

4 The Lord said:

I will punish Judah
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They have rejected my teachings
and refused to obey me.
They were led astray
by the same false gods
their ancestors worshiped.
5 Now I will send fire on Judah
and destroy the fortresses
of Jerusalem.

Judgment on Israel

6 The Lord said:

I will punish Israel
for countless crimes,
and I won’t change my mind.
They sell honest people for money,
and the needy are sold
for the price of sandals.
7 They smear the poor in the dirt
and push aside
those who are helpless.

My holy name is dishonored,
because fathers and sons
sleep
with the same young women.
8 They lie down beside altars
on clothes taken
as security for loans.
And they drink wine in my temple,
wine bought with the money
they received from fines.

9 Israel, the Amorites[x] were there
when you entered Canaan.
They were tall as cedars
and strong as oaks.
But I wiped them out—
I destroyed their branches
and their roots.
10 I had rescued you from Egypt,
and for forty years I had led you
through the desert.
Then I gave you the land
of the Amorites.

11 I chose some of you
to be prophets
and others to be Nazirites.[y]
People of Israel,
you know this is true.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
12 But you commanded the prophets
not to speak their message,
and you pressured the Nazirites
into drinking wine.

13 And so I will crush you,
just as a wagon full of grain
crushes the ground.[z]
14 No matter how fast you run,
you won’t escape.
No matter how strong you are,
you will lose your strength
and your life.
15 Even if you are an expert
with a bow and arrow,
you will retreat.
And you won’t get away alive,
not even if you run fast
or ride a horse.
16 You may be brave and strong,
but you will run away,
stripped naked.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
3 People of Israel,
I rescued you from Egypt.
Now listen to my judgment
against you.
2 Of all nations on earth,
you are the only one
I have chosen.
That’s why I will punish you
because of your sins.

The Work of a Prophet

3 Can two people walk together
without agreeing to meet?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest
unless it has caught
a victim?
Does it growl in its den
unless it is eating?
5 How can anyone catch a bird
without using a net?
Does a trap spring shut
unless something is caught?

6 Isn’t the whole city frightened
when the trumpet
signals an attack?
Isn’t it the Lord who brings
disaster on a city?
7 Whatever the Lord God
plans to do,
he tells his servants,
the prophets.
8 Everyone is terrified
when a lion roars—
and ordinary people
become prophets
when the Lord God speaks.

Samaria Is Doomed

9 Here is a message
for the leaders
of Philistia[aa] and Egypt—
tell everyone to come together
on the hills of Samaria.
Let them see the injustice
and the lawlessness
in that city.
10 The Lord has said
that they don’t even know how
to do right.
They have become rich
from violence and robbery.
11 And so the Lord God has sworn
that they will be surrounded.
Enemies will break through
their defenses
and steal their treasures.

12 The Lord has promised
that only a few from Samaria
will escape with their lives
and with some broken pieces
of their beds and couches.[ab]
It will be like when a shepherd
rescues two leg bones
and part of a sheep’s ear
from the jaws of a lion.[ac]

The Altars at Bethel

13 The Lord God All-Powerful
told me to speak this message
against Jacob’s descendants:
14 When I, the Lord, punish Israel
for their sins,
I will destroy the altars
at Bethel.
Even the corners of the altar[ad]
will be left in the dirt.
15 I will tear down winter homes
and summer homes.
Houses decorated with ivory
and all other mansions
will be gone forever.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Footnotes:

  1. 1.1 Tekoa: In the hill country of Judah about five miles south of Bethlehem.
  2. 1.1 Uzziah. . . Jeroboam: Uzziah was king of Judah 781-740 B.C., and Jeroboam II was king of Israel 783-743 B.C.
  3. 1.1 Jehoash: The Hebrew text has “Joash,” another spelling of the name.
  4. 1.1 Two years. . . earthquake: Possibly the earthquake of 760 B.C., which seems to have been especially violent.
  5. 1.1 messages: Or “visions.”
  6. 1.3 Syria: The Hebrew text has “Damascus,” the leading city of Syria.
  7. 1.3 logs with spikes: These were dragged over grain to thresh it.
  8. 1.4 Hazael. . . Benhadad: Two Syrian kings.
  9. 1.5 people: Or “king.”
  10. 1.5 Wicked Valley: The Hebrew text has “Aven Valley,” probably the fertile valley between the Lebanon and the anti-Lebanon mountains.
  11. 1.5 I will. . . Beth-Eden: Or “I will destroy the people of Wicked Valley and the king who rules from Beth-Eden.” Beth-Eden was a city-state on the banks of the Euphrates River.
  12. 1.5 Kir: The exact location of this country is not known; in 9.7 Amos refers to Kir as the original home of the Syrians, and so the verse probably means that the Syrians will lose everything they have gained as a people.
  13. 1.6 Philistia: The Hebrew text has “Gaza,” one of the main Philistine cities.
  14. 1.6 my people: The people of Israel.
  15. 1.8 king: Or “people.”
  16. 1.8 Ashdod. . . Ashkelon. . . Ekron: Philistine cities.
  17. 1.9 Phoenicia: The Hebrew text has “Tyre,” which was one of the two Phoenician cities; the other was Sidon, which is not mentioned by Amos.
  18. 1.9 my people: See the note at 1.6.
  19. 1.11 their own relatives: The Edomites were descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob, the ancestor of the Israelites.
  20. 1.12 Teman and Bozrah: These stand for all of Edom; Teman may have been a city or a district. Bozrah, the chief city of northern Edom, was thirty miles southeast of the Dead Sea.
  21. 1.14 Rabbah: The capital city of Ammon.
  22. 2.1 They. . . bones: They dug up the bodies of kings and made lime out of them to use as whitewash on their houses and walls.
  23. 2.2 Kerioth: A leading city of Moab and a center for the worship of Chemosh, the chief god of Moab.
  24. 2.9 Amorites: This word is used for all the people who lived in Canaan at the time Israel took over the land.
  25. 2.11 Nazirites: People who promised the Lord that they would never drink wine or cut their hair or come in contact with a dead body.
  26. 2.13 ground: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 13.
  27. 3.9 Philistia: The Hebrew text has “Ashdod,” one of the leading cities of Philistia.
  28. 3.12 some. . . couches: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  29. 3.12 lion: When a wild animal attacked and killed a sheep, the shepherd had to rescue part of the sheep and take it to the owner as proof that it had been killed by an animal. Otherwise, the shepherd had to pay the owner the cost of the sheep.
  30. 3.14 altar: Altars were places of worship but also places of protection. People whose lives were in danger could grab hold of the corners of an altar, and no one was allowed to kill them.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Revelation 2:1-17

The Letter to Ephesus

2 This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Ephesus:

I am the one who holds the seven stars in my right hand, and I walk among the seven gold lampstands. Listen to what I say.

2 I know everything you have done, including your hard work and how you have endured. I know you won’t put up with anyone who is evil. When some people pretended to be apostles, you tested them and found out that they were liars. 3 You have endured and gone through hard times because of me, and you have not given up.

4 But I do have something against you! And it is this: You don’t have as much love as you used to. 5 Think about where you have fallen from, and then turn back and do as you did at first. If you don’t turn back, I will come and take away your lampstand. 6 But there is one thing you are doing right. You hate what the Nicolaitans[a] are doing, and so do I.

7 If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. I will let everyone who wins the victory eat from the life-giving tree in God’s wonderful garden.

The Letter to Smyrna

8 This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Smyrna:

I am the first and the last. I died, but now I am alive! Listen to what I say.

9 I know how much you suffer and how poor you are, but you are rich. I also know the cruel things being said about you by people who claim to be Jews. But they are not really Jews. They are a group that belongs to Satan.

10 Don’t worry about what you will suffer. The devil will throw some of you into jail, and you will be tested and made to suffer for ten days. But if you are faithful until you die, I will reward you with a glorious life.[b]

11 If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. Whoever wins the victory will not be hurt by the second death.[c]

The Letter to Pergamum

12 This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Pergamum:

I am the one who has the sharp double-edged sword! Listen to what I say.

13 I know that you live where Satan has his throne.[d] But you have kept true to my name. Right there where Satan lives, my faithful witness Antipas[e] was taken from you and put to death. Even then you did not give up your faith in me.

14 I do have a few things against you. Some of you are following the teaching of Balaam.[f] Long ago he told Balak to teach the people of Israel to eat food that had been offered to idols and to be immoral. 15 Now some of you are following the teaching of the Nicolaitans.[g] 16 Turn back! If you don’t, I will come quickly and fight against these people. And my words will cut like a sword.

17 If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. To everyone who wins the victory, I will give some of the hidden food.[h] I will also give each one a white stone[i] with a new name[j] written on it. No one will know that name except the one who is given the stone.

Footnotes:

  1. 2.6 Nicolaitans: Nothing else is known about these people, though it is possible that they claimed to be followers of Nicolaus from Antioch (see Acts 6.5).
  2. 2.10 a glorious life: The Greek text has “a crown of life.” In ancient times an athlete who had won a contest was rewarded with a crown of flowers as a sign of victory.
  3. 2.11 second death: The first death is physical death, and the “second death” is eternal death.
  4. 2.13 where Satan has his throne: The meaning is uncertain, but it may refer to the city as a center of pagan worship or of Emperor worship.
  5. 2.13 Antipas: Nothing else is known about this man, who is mentioned only here in the New Testament.
  6. 2.14 Balaam: According to Numbers 22-24, Balaam refused to disobey the Lord. But in other books of the Old Testament, he is spoken of as evil (see Deuteronomy 23.4,5; Joshua 13.22; 24.9,10; Nehemiah 13.2).
  7. 2.15 Nicolaitans: See the note at 2.6.
  8. 2.17 hidden food: When the people of Israel were going through the desert, the Lord provided a special food for them. Some of this was placed in a jar and stored in the sacred chest (see Exodus 16). According to later Jewish teaching, the prophet Jeremiah rescued the sacred chest when the temple was destroyed by the Babylonians. He hid the chest in a cave, where it would stay until God came to save his people.
  9. 2.17 white stone: The meaning of this is uncertain, though it may be the same as a ticket that lets a person into God’s banquet where the “hidden food” is eaten. Or it may be a symbol of victory.
  10. 2.17 a new name: Either the name of Christ or God or the name of the follower who is given the stone.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Psalm 129

(A song for worship.)

A Prayer for Protection

129 Since the time I was young,
enemies have often attacked!
Let everyone in Israel say:
2 “Since the time I was young,
enemies have often attacked!
But they have not defeated me,
3 though my back is like a field
that has just been plowed.”

4 The Lord always does right,
and he has set me free
from the ropes
of those cruel people.
5 I pray that all who hate
the city of Zion
will be made ashamed
and forced to turn and run.
6 May they be like grass
on the flat roof of a house,
grass that dries up
as soon as it sprouts.
7 Don’t let them be like wheat
gathered in bundles.
8 And don’t let anyone
who passes by say to them,
“The Lord bless you!
I give you my blessing
in the name of the Lord.”

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Proverbs 29:19-20

19 Even when servants are smart,
it takes more than words
to make them obey.
20 There is more hope for a fool
than for someone who speaks
without thinking.

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 9, 2021 (NIV)

Joel 1-3

1 I am Joel the son of Pethuel.
And this is the message
the Lord gave to me.

Locusts Cover the Land

2 Listen, you leaders
and everyone else
in the land.
Has anything like this
ever happened before?
3 Tell our children!
Let it be told
to our grandchildren
and their children too.

4 Swarm after swarm of locusts[a]
has attacked our crops,
eating everything in sight.
5 Sober up, you drunkards!
Cry long and loud;
your wine supply is gone.
6 A powerful nation[b]
with countless troops
has invaded our land.
They have the teeth and jaws
of powerful lions.
7 Our grapevines and fig trees
are stripped bare;
only naked branches remain.

8 Grieve like a young woman
mourning for the man
she was to marry.
9 Offerings of grain and wine
are no longer brought
to the Lord’s temple.
His servants, the priests,
are deep in sorrow.
10 Barren fields mourn;
grain, grapes, and olives
are scorched and shriveled.

11 Mourn for our farms
and our vineyards!
There’s no wheat or barley
growing in our fields.
12 Grapevines have dried up
and so has every tree—
figs and pomegranates,[c]
date palms and apples.
All happiness has faded away.

Return to God

13 Mourn, you priests who serve
at the altar of my God.
Spend your days and nights
wearing sackcloth.[d]
Offerings of grain and wine
are no longer brought
to the Lord’s temple.

14 Tell the leaders and people
to come together
at the temple.
Order them to go without eating[e]
and to pray sincerely.
15 We are in for trouble!
Soon the Lord All-Powerful
will bring disaster.
16 Our food is already gone;
there’s no more celebrating
at the temple of our God.

17 Seeds dry up in the ground;[f]
no harvest is possible.
Our barns are in bad shape,
with no grain
to store in them.
18 Our cattle wander aimlessly,
moaning for lack of pasture,
and sheep are suffering.[g]
19 I cry out to you, Lord.
Grasslands and forests are eaten
by the scorching heat.
20 Wild animals have no water
because of you;
rivers and streams are dry,
and pastures are parched.

Locusts and an Enemy Army

2 Sound the trumpet on Zion,
the Lord’s sacred hill.
Warn everyone to tremble!
The judgment day of the Lord
is coming soon.
2 It will be dark and gloomy
with storm clouds overhead.
Troops will cover the mountains
like thunderclouds.
No army this powerful
has ever been gathered before
or will ever be again.
3 Fiery flames surround them;
no one escapes.
Before they invaded,
the land was like Eden;
now only a desert remains.

4 They look like horses
and charge like cavalry.
5 They roar over mountains
like noisy chariots,
or a mighty army
ready for battle.
They are a forest fire
that feasts on straw.
6 The very sight of them
is frightening.[h]
7 They climb over walls
like warriors;
they march in columns
and never turn aside.
8 They charge straight ahead,
without pushing each other;
even arrows and spears
cannot make them retreat.
9 They swarm over city walls
and enter our homes;
they crawl in through windows,
just like thieves.

10 They make the earth tremble
and the heavens shake;
the sun and moon turn dark,
and stars stop shining.
11 The Lord God leads this army
of countless troops,
and they obey his commands.
The day of his judgment
is so terrible
that no one can stand it.

The Lord’s Invitation

12 The Lord said:

It isn’t too late.
You can still return to me
with all your heart.
Start crying and mourning!
Go without eating.
13 Don’t rip your clothes
to show your sorrow.
Instead, turn back to me
with broken hearts.
I am merciful, kind, and caring.
I don’t easily lose my temper,
and I don’t like to punish.

14 I am the Lord your God.
Perhaps I will change my mind
and treat you with mercy.
Then you will be blessed
with enough grain and wine
for offering sacrifices to me.

15 Sound the trumpet on Zion!
Call the people together.
Show your sorrow
by going without food.
16 Make sure that everyone
is fit to worship me.[i]
Bring adults, children, babies,
and even bring newlyweds
from their festivities.

17 Tell my servants, the priests,
to cry inside the temple
and to offer this prayer
near the altar:[j]
“Save your people, Lord God!
Don’t let foreign nations
make jokes about us.
Don’t let them laugh and ask,
‘Where is your God?’”

The Lord Will Bless the Land

18 The Lord was deeply concerned
about his land
and had pity on his people.
19 In answer to their prayers
he said,
“I will give you enough grain,
wine, and olive oil
to satisfy your needs.
No longer will I let you
be insulted by the nations.
20 An army attacked from the north,
but I will chase it
into a scorching desert.
There it will rot and stink
from the Dead Sea
to the Mediterranean.”

The Lord works wonders
21 and does great things.
So tell the soil to celebrate
22 and wild animals
to stop being afraid.
Grasslands are green again;
fruit trees and fig trees
are loaded with fruit.
Grapevines are covered
with grapes.

23 People of Zion,[k]
celebrate in honor
of the Lord your God!
He is generous and has sent
the autumn and spring rains
in the proper seasons.[l]
24 Grain will cover
your threshing places;
jars will overflow
with wine and olive oil.

The Lord Will Rescue His People

25 I, the Lord your God,
will make up for the losses
caused by those swarms
and swarms of locusts[m]
I sent to attack you.
26 My people, you will eat
until you are satisfied.
Then you will praise me
for the wonderful things
I have done.
Never again will you
be put to shame.

27 Israel, you will know
that I stand at your side.
I am the Lord your God—
there are no other gods.
Never again will you
be put to shame.

The Lord Will Work Wonders

The Lord said:

28 Later, I will give my Spirit
to everyone.
Your sons and daughters
will prophesy.
Your old men
will have dreams,
and your young men
will see visions.
29 In those days I will even give
my Spirit to my servants,
both men and women.

30 I will work wonders
in the sky above
and on the earth below.
There will be blood and fire
and clouds of smoke.
31 The sun will turn dark,
and the moon
will be as red as blood
before that great
and terrible day
when I appear.

32 Then the Lord will save everyone who faithfully worships him. He has promised there will be survivors on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and among them will be his chosen ones.

The Lord Will Judge the Nations

3 At that time I, the Lord, will make Judah and Jerusalem prosperous again. 2 Then in Judgment Valley[n] I will bring together the nations that scattered my people Israel everywhere in the world, and I will bring charges against those nations. They divided up my land 3 and gambled to see who would get my people; they sold boys and girls to pay for prostitutes and wine.

4 You people of Tyre and Sidon[o] and you Philistines, why are you doing this? Are you trying to get even with me? I’ll strike back before you know what’s happened. 5 You’ve taken my prized possessions, including my silver and gold, and carried them off to your temples.[p] 6 You have dragged the people of Judah and Jerusalem from their land and sold them to the Greeks.

7 But I’ll make the people of Judah determined to come home, and what happened to them will happen to you. 8 I’ll hand over your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans,[q] who live far away. I, the Lord, have spoken!

Judgment in Judgment Valley

9 Say to the nations:

“Get ready for war!
Be eager to fight.
Line up for battle
and prepare to attack.
10 Make swords out of plows
and spears out of garden tools.
Strengthen every weakling.”

11 Hurry, all you nations!
Come quickly.
Ask the Lord to bring
his warriors along.[r]
12 You must come now
to Judgment Valley,[s]
where the Lord will judge
the surrounding nations.

13 They are a field of ripe crops.
Bring in the harvest!
They are grapes piled high.
Start trampling them now![t]
If our enemy’s sins were wine,
every jar would overflow.
14 Crowds fill Decision Valley.
The judgment day of the Lord
will soon be here—
15 no light from the sun or moon,
and stars no longer shine.
16 From the heart of Jerusalem
the Lord roars like a lion,
shaking the earth and sky.
But the Lord is a fortress,
a place of safety
for his people Israel.

God Will Bless His People

17 I am the Lord your God.
And you will know I live on Zion,
my sacred hill,
because Jerusalem will be sacred,
untouched by foreign troops.
18 On that day, fruitful vineyards
will cover the mountains.
And your cattle and goats
that graze on the hills
will produce a lot of milk.
Streams in Judah
will never run dry;
a stream from my house
will flow in Acacia Valley.[u]

19 Egypt and Edom were cruel
and brutal to Judah,
without a reason.
Now their countries will become
a barren desert,
20 but Judah and Jerusalem
will always have people.
21 I, the Lord, live on Mount Zion.
I will punish the guilty
and defend the innocent.[v]

Footnotes:

  1. 1.4 Swarm. . . locusts: The Hebrew text lists either four kinds of locusts or locusts in four stages of their development. Locusts are a type of grasshopper that comes in swarms and causes great damage to plant life.
  2. 1.6 A powerful nation: The swarms of locusts.
  3. 1.12 pomegranates: A bright red fruit that looks like an apple.
  4. 1.13 sackcloth: A rough, dark-colored cloth made from goat or camel hair and used to make grain sacks. It was worn in times of trouble or sorrow.
  5. 1.14 go without eating: As a way of showing sorrow for their sins.
  6. 1.17 Seeds. . . ground: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  7. 1.18 sheep are suffering: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  8. 2.6 The very. . . frightening: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  9. 2.16 fit to worship me: This required going through certain kinds of ceremonies.
  10. 2.17 inside. . . altar: The Hebrew text has “between the porch and the altar,” which is the place where the priests usually prayed for the people.
  11. 2.23 Zion: Jerusalem.
  12. 2.23 in. . . seasons: Or “as he used to do.”
  13. 2.25 swarms. . . locusts: See the note at 1.4.
  14. 3.2 Judgment Valley: The Hebrew text has “Jehoshaphat Valley,” which means “Valley of the Lord’s Judgment.” This valley is mentioned here and in verse 12, but nowhere else in the Bible.
  15. 3.4 Tyre and Sidon: Two Phoenician coastal cities.
  16. 3.5 temples: Or “palaces.”
  17. 3.8 Sabeans: The people of Seba, a region in southwest Arabia.
  18. 3.11 Ask. . . along: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  19. 3.12 Judgment Valley: See the note at 3.2.
  20. 3.13 grapes. . . now: People trampled grapes with their bare feet to squeeze out the juice.
  21. 3.18 Acacia Valley: In the plains of Moab, northeast of the Dead Sea.
  22. 3.21 I will. . . innocent: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Revelation 1

1 This is what God showed to Jesus Christ, so that he could tell his servants what must happen soon. Christ then sent his angel with the message to his servant John. 2 And John told everything that he had seen about God’s message and about what Jesus Christ had said and done.

3 God will bless everyone who reads this prophecy to others,[a] and he will bless everyone who hears and obeys it. The time is almost here.

4 From John to the seven churches in Asia.[b]

I pray that you
will be blessed
with kindness and peace
from God, who is and was
and is coming.
May you receive
kindness and peace
from the seven spirits
before the throne of God.
5 May kindness and peace
be yours
from Jesus Christ,
the faithful witness.

Jesus was the first
to conquer death,
and he is the ruler
of all earthly kings.
Christ loves us,
and by his blood
he set us free
from our sins.
6 He lets us rule as kings
and serve God his Father
as priests.
To him be glory and power
forever and ever! Amen.
7 Look! He is coming
with the clouds.
Everyone will see him,
even the ones who stuck
a sword through him.
All people on earth
will weep because of him.
Yes, it will happen! Amen.

8 The Lord God says, “I am Alpha and Omega,[c] the one who is and was and is coming. I am God All-Powerful!”

A Vision of the Risen Lord

9 I am John, a follower together with all of you. We suffer because Jesus is our king, but he gives us the strength to endure. I was sent to Patmos Island,[d] because I had preached God’s message and had told about Jesus. 10 On the Lord’s day the Spirit took control of me, and behind me I heard a loud voice that sounded like a trumpet. 11 The voice said, “Write in a book what you see. Then send it to the seven churches in Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”[e]

12 When I turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven gold lampstands. 13 There with the lampstands was someone who seemed to be the Son of Man.[f] He was wearing a robe that reached down to his feet, and a gold cloth was wrapped around his chest. 14 His head and his hair were white as wool or snow, and his eyes looked like flames of fire. 15 His feet were glowing like bronze being heated in a furnace, and his voice sounded like the roar of a waterfall. 16 He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp double-edged sword was coming from his mouth. His face was shining as bright as the sun at noon.

17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead person. But he put his right hand on me and said:

Don’t be afraid! I am the first, the last, 18 and the living one. I died, but now I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys to death and the world of the dead.[g] 19 Write what you have seen and what is and what will happen after these things. 20 I will explain the mystery of the seven stars that you saw at my right side and the seven gold lampstands. The seven stars are the angels[h] of the seven churches, and the lampstands are the seven churches.

Footnotes:

  1. 1.3 who reads this prophecy to others: A public reading, in a worship service.
  2. 1.4 Asia: The section 1.4—3.22 is in the form of a letter. Asia was in the eastern part of the Roman Empire and is present day Turkey.
  3. 1.8 Alpha and Omega: The first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, which sometimes mean “first” and “last.”
  4. 1.9 Patmos Island: A small island where prisoners were sometimes kept by the Romans.
  5. 1.11 Ephesus. . . Laodicea: Ephesus was in the center with the six other cities forming a half-circle around it.
  6. 1.13 Son of Man: That is, Jesus.
  7. 1.18 keys to death and the world of the dead: That is, power over death and the world of the dead.
  8. 1.20 angels: Perhaps guardian angels that represent the churches, or they may be church leaders or messengers sent to the churches.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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Psalm 128

(A song for worship.)

The Lord Rewards His Faithful People

128 The Lord will bless you
if you respect him
and obey his laws.
2 Your fields will produce,
and you will be happy
and all will go well.
3 Your wife will be as fruitful
as a grapevine,
and just as an olive tree
is rich with olives,
your home will be rich
with healthy children.
4 That is how the Lord will bless
everyone who respects him.

5 I pray that the Lord
will bless you from Zion
and let Jerusalem prosper
as long as you live.
6 May you live long enough
to see your grandchildren.
Let’s pray for peace in Israel!

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Proverbs 29:18

18 Without guidance from God
law and order disappear,
but God blesses everyone
who obeys his Law.

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday December 8, 2021 (NIV)

Hosea 10-14

10 You were a healthy vine
covered with grapes.
But the more grapes you grew,
the more altars you built;
the better off you became,
the better shrines you set up
for pagan gods.
2 You are deceitful and disloyal.
So you will pay
for your sins,
because the Lord will destroy
your altars and images.

3 “We don’t have a king,”
you will say.
“We don’t fear the Lord.
And what good are kings?”
4 Israel, you break treaties
and don’t keep promises;
you turn justice
into poisonous weeds
where healthy plants should grow.[a]

5 All who live in Samaria tremble
with concern
for the idols[b]
at sinful Bethel.[c]
The idol there was the pride
of the priests,
but it has been put to shame;
now everyone will cry.
6 It will be taken to Assyria
and given to the great king.
Then Israel will be disgraced
for worshiping that idol.

7 Like a twig in a stream,
the king of Samaria
will be swept away.
8 The altars at sinful Bethel
will be destroyed
for causing Israel to sin;
they will be grown over
with thorns and thistles.
Then everyone will beg
the mountains and hills
to cover and protect them.

The Lord Promises To Punish Israel

9 Israel, you have never
stopped sinning[d]
since that time at Gibeah.[e]
That’s why you
will be attacked at Gibeah.[f]
10 Your sins have doubled,
and you are rebellious.
Now I have decided
to send nations to attack
and put you in chains.

11 Once you were obedient
like a calf
that loved to thresh grain.
But I will put a harness
on your powerful neck;
you and Judah must plow
and cultivate the ground.
12 Plow your fields,
scatter seeds of justice,
and harvest faithfulness.
Worship me, the Lord,
and I will send my saving power
down like rain.
13 You have planted evil,
harvested injustice,
and eaten
the fruit of your lies.
You trusted your own strength
and your powerful forces.
14 So war will break out,
and your fortresses
will be destroyed.
Your enemies will do to you
what Shalman[g] did
to the people
of Beth-Arbel—
mothers and their children
will be beaten to death
against rocks.
15 Bethel, this will be your fate
because of your evil.
Israel, at dawn your king
will be killed.

God’s Love for His People

11 When Israel was a child,
I loved him,
and I called
my son out of Egypt.
2 But as the saying goes,
“The more they were called,
the more they rebelled.”[h]
They never stopped offering
incense and sacrifices
to the idols of Baal.

3 I took Israel by the arm
and taught them to walk.
But they would not admit
that I was the one
who had healed them.
4 I led them with kindness
and with love,
not with ropes.
I held them close to me;[i]
I bent down to feed them.

5 But they trusted Egypt
instead of returning to me;
now Assyria will rule them.
6 War will visit their cities,
and their plans will fail.[j]
7 My people are determined
to reject me for a god
they think is stronger,
but he can’t help.[k]

8 Israel, I can’t let you go.
I can’t give you up.
How could I possibly destroy you
as I did the towns of Admah
and Zeboiim?[l]
I just can’t do it.
My feelings for you
are much too strong.
9 Israel, I won’t lose my temper
and destroy you again.
I am the Holy God—
not merely some human,
and I won’t stay angry.

10 I, the Lord, will roar like a lion,
and my children will return,
trembling
from the west.
11 They will come back,
fluttering like birds from Egypt
or like doves from Assyria.
Then I will bring them
back to their homes.
I, the Lord, have spoken!

Israel and Judah Compared

12 Israel is deceitful to me,
their loyal and holy God;
they surround me with lies,
and Judah worships
other gods.[m]
12 All day long Israel chases
wind from the desert;
deceit and violence
are found everywhere.
Treaties are made with Assyria;
olive oil is taken to Egypt.

Israel and Judah Condemned

2 The Lord also brings charges
against the people of Judah,
the descendants of Jacob.
He will punish them
for what they have done.
3 Even before Jacob was born,
he cheated his brother,[n]
and when he grew up,
he fought against God.[o]

4 At Bethel, Jacob wrestled
with an angel and won;
then with tears in his eyes,
he asked for a blessing,
and God spoke to us[p] there.
5 God’s name is the Lord,
the Lord God All-Powerful.
6 So return to your God.
Patiently trust him,
and show love and justice.

7 Israel, you enjoy cheating
and taking advantage
of others.
8 You say to yourself, “I’m rich!
I earned it all on my own,
without committing a sin.”[q]

The Lord Is Still the God of Israel

9 Israel, I, the Lord,
am still your God,
just as I have been
since the time
you were in Egypt.
Now I will force you
to live in tents once again,
as you did in the desert.[r]
10 I spoke to the prophets—
often I spoke in visions.
And so, I will send my prophets
with messages of doom.
11 Gilead is terribly sinful
and will end up ruined.
Bulls are sacrificed in Gilgal
on altars made of stones,
but those stones will be scattered
in every field.
12 Jacob[s] escaped to Syria[t]
where he tended sheep
to earn himself a wife.
13 I sent the prophet Moses
to lead Israel from Egypt
and to keep them safe.
14 Israel, I will make you pay
for your terrible sins
and for insulting me.

Israel Is Doomed

The Lord said:

13 When your leaders[u] spoke,
everyone in Israel trembled
and showed great respect.
But you sinned by worshiping Baal,
and you were destroyed.
2 Now you continue to sin
by designing and making
idols of silver
in the shape of calves.
You are told to sacrifice
to these idols[v]—
yes, even to kiss them.
3 And so, all of you will vanish
like the mist
or the dew
of early morning,
or husks of grain in the wind
or smoke from a chimney.

4 I, the Lord, have been your God
since the time
you were in Egypt.
I am the only God you know,
the only one who can save.
5 I took care of you
in a thirsty desert.[w]
6 I fed you till you were satisfied,
then you became proud
and forgot about me.
7 Now I will attack like a lion,
ambush you like a leopard,
8 and rip you apart like a bear
robbed of her cubs.
I will gnaw on your bones,
as though I were a lion
or some other wild animal.
9 Israel, you are done for.
Don’t expect help from me.[x]
10 You wanted a king and rulers.
Where is your king now?
What cities have rulers?
11 In my anger, I gave you a king;
in my fury, I took him away.

Israel’s Terrible Fate

The Lord said:

12 Israel, your terrible sins
are written down
and stored away.
13 You are like a senseless child
who refuses to be born
at the proper time.
14 Should I, the Lord, rescue you
from death and the grave?
No! I call death and the grave
to strike you like a plague.
I refuse to show mercy.

15 No matter how much you prosper
more than the other tribes,[y]
I, the Lord, will wipe you out,
just as a scorching desert wind
dries up streams of water.
I will take away
your precious treasures.
16 Samaria[z] will be punished
for turning against me.
It will be destroyed in war—
children will be beaten
against rocks,
and pregnant women
will be ripped open.

Turn Back to the Lord

14 Israel, return! Come back
to the Lord, your God.
Sin has made you fall.
2 Return to the Lord and say,
“Please forgive our sins.
Accept our good sacrifices
of praise instead of bulls.[aa]
3 Assyria can’t save us,
and chariots can’t help.
So we will no longer worship
the idols we have made.
Our Lord, you show mercy
to orphans.”

The Lord Promises To Forgive

4 Israel, you have rejected me,
but my anger is gone;
I will heal you and love you
without limit.
5 I will be like the dew—
then you will blossom like lilies
and have roots like a tree.[ab]
6 Your branches will spread
with the beauty
of an olive tree
and with the aroma
of Lebanon Forest.
7 You will rest in my shade,
and your grain will grow.
You will blossom
like a vineyard
and be famous as the wine
from Lebanon.

8 Israel, give up your idols!
I will answer your prayers
and take care of you.[ac]
I am that glorious tree,
the source of your fruit.[ad]

9 If you are wise, you will know
and understand what I mean.
I am the Lord, and I lead you
along the right path.
If you obey me,
we will walk together,
but if you are wicked,
you will stumble.

Footnotes:

  1. 10.4 you turn. . . grow: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  2. 10.5 idols: The Hebrew text has “calves,” referring to the idols made in the shape of calves.
  3. 10.5 sinful Bethel: See the note at 4.15.
  4. 10.9 never stopped sinning: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  5. 10.9 Gibeah: See the note at 9.9.
  6. 10.9 That’s why. . . Gibeah: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  7. 10.14 Shalman: Perhaps a Moabite king, also known as Salamanu.
  8. 11.2 But. . . rebelled: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  9. 11.4 I held. . . to me: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  10. 11.6 fail: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 6.
  11. 11.7 help: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 7.
  12. 11.8 Admah and Zeboiim: When the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, he also destroyed these two towns (see Deuteronomy 29.23).
  13. 11.12 and Judah worships other gods: Or “but Judah remains faithful.”
  14. 12.3 Jacob. . . cheated. . . brother: In Hebrew “Jacob” sounds like “cheat” and also like “heel.” Jacob grabbed his twin brother Esau by the heel at the time of their birth (see Genesis 25.26). Later he cheated him out of his rights and blessings as the first-born son (see Genesis 25.29-34; 27.1-40).
  15. 12.3 fought against God: See Genesis 32.22-32.
  16. 12.4 us: Hebrew; two ancient translations “him.”
  17. 12.8 without. . . sin: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  18. 12.9 as. . . desert: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. This probably refers to the forty years of wandering through the desert after leaving Egypt, though it could refer to the “tents” (or “shelters”) in which the Israelites lived during the Festival of Shelters (see 9.5,6).
  19. 12.12 Jacob: His name was later changed to Israel (see Genesis 32.28), and he became the ancestor of the nation by that name.
  20. 12.12 Syria: The Hebrew text has “Aram,” probably referring to northern Syria in the region of Haran.
  21. 13.1 your leaders: The Hebrew text has “Ephraim,” here meaning Mount Ephraim, where the royal palace of Samaria (capital of the northern kingdom of Israel) was located.
  22. 13.2 You are told. . . idols: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  23. 13.5 thirsty desert: The forty years that Israel wandered through the desert, after leaving Egypt.
  24. 13.9 Don’t. . . me: Or “You are against me, the one who helps you.”
  25. 13.15 more. . . tribes: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  26. 13.16 Samaria: The capital of the northern kingdom of Israel.
  27. 14.2 Accept. . . bulls: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  28. 14.5 like a tree: The Hebrew text has “like Lebanon,” probably referring to the famous cedar trees on Mount Lebanon.
  29. 14.8 Israel. . . you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  30. 14.8 I am. . . fruit: This is the only place in the Old Testament where the Lord is compared to a tree. Hosea reminds the people that it is the Lord who is the source of life, rather than the Canaanite gods and goddesses that are worshiped under trees at the local shrines.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Jude

1 From Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and the brother of James.

To all who are chosen and loved by God the Father and are kept safe by Jesus Christ.

2 I pray that God will greatly bless you with kindness, peace, and love!

False Teachers

3 My dear friends, I really wanted to write you about God’s saving power at work in our lives. But instead, I must write and ask you to defend the faith that God has once for all given to his people. 4 Some godless people have sneaked in among us and are saying, “God treats us much better than we deserve, and so it is all right to be immoral.” They even deny that we must obey Jesus Christ as our only Master and Lord. But long ago the Scriptures warned that these godless people were doomed.

5 Don’t forget what happened to those people that the Lord rescued from Egypt. Some of them did not have faith, and he later destroyed them. 6 You also know about the angels[a] who didn’t do their work and left their proper places. God chained them with everlasting chains and is now keeping them in dark pits until the great day of judgment. 7 We should also be warned by what happened to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah[b] and the nearby towns. Their people became immoral and did all sorts of sexual sins. Then God made an example of them and punished them with eternal fire.

8 The people I am talking about are behaving just like those dreamers who destroyed their own bodies. They reject all authority and insult angels. 9 Even Michael, the chief angel, didn’t dare to insult the devil, when the two of them were arguing about the body of Moses.[c] All Michael said was, “The Lord will punish you!”

10 But these people insult powers they don’t know anything about. They are like senseless animals that end up getting destroyed, because they live only by their feelings. 11 Now they are in for real trouble. They have followed Cain’s example[d] and have made the same mistake that Balaam[e] did by caring only for money. They have also rebelled against God, just as Korah did.[f] Because of all this, they will be destroyed.

12 These people are filthy minded, and by their shameful and selfish actions they spoil the meals you eat together. They are like clouds blown along by the wind, but never bringing any rain. They are like leafless trees, uprooted and dead, and unable to produce fruit. 13 Their shameful deeds show up like foam on wild ocean waves. They are like wandering stars forever doomed to the darkest pits of hell.

14 Enoch was the seventh person after Adam, and he was talking about these people when he said:

Look! The Lord is coming with thousands and thousands of holy angels 15 to judge everyone. He will punish all those ungodly people for all the evil things they have done. The Lord will surely punish those ungodly sinners for every evil thing they have ever said about him.

16 These people grumble and complain and live by their own selfish desires. They brag about themselves and flatter others to get what they want.

More Warnings

17 My dear friends, remember the warning you were given by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18 They told you that near the end of time, selfish and godless people would start making fun of God. 19 And now these people are already making you turn against each other. They think only about this life, and they don’t have God’s Spirit.

20 Dear friends, keep building on the foundation of your most holy faith, as the Holy Spirit helps you to pray. 21 And keep in step with God’s love, as you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to show how kind he is by giving you eternal life. 22 Be helpful to[g] all who may have doubts. 23 Rescue any who need to be saved, as you would rescue someone from a fire. Then with fear in your own hearts, have mercy on everyone who needs it. But hate even the clothes of those who have been made dirty by their filthy deeds.

Final Prayer

24-25 Offer praise to God our Savior because of our Lord Jesus Christ! Only God can keep you from falling and make you pure and joyful in his glorious presence. Before time began and now and forevermore, God is worthy of glory, honor, power, and authority. Amen.

Footnotes:

  1. 6 angels: This may refer to the angels who liked the women on earth so much that they came down and married them (see Genesis 6.2).
  2. 7 Sodom and Gomorrah: During the time of Abraham the Lord destroyed these cities because the people there were so evil.
  3. 9 Michael. . . the body of Moses: This refers to what was said in an ancient Jewish book about Moses.
  4. 11 Cain’s example: Cain murdered his brother Abel.
  5. 11 Balaam: According to the biblical account, Balaam refused to curse the people of Israel for profit (see Numbers 22.18; 24.13), though he led them to be unfaithful to the Lord (see Numbers 25.1-3; 31.16). But by New Testament times, some Jewish teachers taught that Balaam was greedy and did accept money to curse them.
  6. 11 just as Korah did: Together with Dathan and Abiram, Korah led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron (see Numbers 16.1-35; 26.9,10).
  7. 22 Be helpful to: Some manuscripts have “Correct.”
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Psalm 127

(A song by Solomon for worship.)

Only the Lord Can Bless a Home

127 Without the help of the Lord
it is useless to build a home
or to guard a city.
2 It is useless to get up early
and stay up late
in order to earn a living.
God takes care of his own,
even while they sleep.[a]

3 Children are a blessing
and a gift from the Lord.
4 Having a lot of children
to take care of you
in your old age
is like a warrior
with a lot of arrows.
5 The more you have,
the better off you will be,
because they will protect you
when your enemies attack
with arguments.

Footnotes:

  1. 127.2 God. . . sleep: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Proverbs 29:15-17

15 Correct your children,
and they will be wise;
children out of control
disgrace their mothers.
16 Crime increases
when crooks are in power,
but law-abiding citizens
will see them fall.
17 If you correct your children,
they will bring you peace
and happiness.

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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Posted on

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday December 7, 2021 (NIV)

Hosea 6-9

The Lord’s People Speak

6 Let’s return to the Lord.
He has torn us to shreds,
but he will bandage our wounds
and make us well.
2 In two or three days
he will heal us
and restore our strength
that we may live with him.
3 Let’s do our best
to know the Lord.
His coming is as certain
as the morning sun;
he will refresh us like rain
renewing the earth
in the springtime.

The Lord Speaks to Israel and Judah

4 People of Israel and Judah,
what can I do with you?
Your love for me disappears
more quickly
than mist
or dew at sunrise.
5 That’s why I slaughtered you
with the words
of my prophets.
That’s why my judgments blazed
like the dawning sun.[a]
6 I’d rather for you to be faithful
and to know me
than to offer sacrifices.

7 At a place named Adam,
you[b] betrayed me
by breaking our agreement.
8 Everyone in Gilead is evil;
your hands are stained
with the blood of victims.[c]
9 You priests are like a gang
of robbers in ambush.[d]
On the road to Shechem[e]
you murder
and commit
other horrible crimes.
10 I have seen a terrible thing
in Israel—
you are unfaithful
and unfit to worship me.
11 People of Judah,
your time is coming too.

The Lord Wants To Help Israel

I, the Lord, would like to make
my nation prosper again
7 and to heal its wounds.
But then I see the crimes
in Israel[f] and Samaria.
Everyone is deceitful;
robbers roam the streets.
2 No one realizes
that I have seen their sins
surround them
like a flood.

3 The king and his officials
take great pleasure
in their sin and deceit.
4 Everyone burns with desire—
they are like coals in an oven,
ready to burst into flames.
5 On the day their king
was crowned,
his officials got him drunk,
and he joined
in their foolishness.[g]

6 Their anger is a fire
that smolders all night,
then flares up at dawn.
7 They are flames
destroying their leaders.
And their kings are powerless;
none of them trust me.

8 The people of Israel[h]
have mixed with foreigners;
they are a thin piece of bread
scorched on one side.
9 They don’t seem to realize
how weak and feeble they are;
their hair has turned gray,
while foreigners rule.
10 I am the Lord, their God,
but in all of their troubles
their pride keeps them
from returning to me.

No Help from Foreign Nations

The Lord said:

11 Israel[i] is a senseless bird,
fluttering back and forth
between Egypt and Assyria.
12 But I will catch them in a net
as hunters trap birds;
I threatened to punish them,
and indeed I will.[j]
13 Trouble and destruction
will be their reward
for rejecting me.
I would have rescued them,
but they told me lies.

14 They don’t really pray to me;
they just howl in their beds.
They have rejected me for Baal
and slashed themselves,[k]
in the hope that Baal
will bless their crops.
15 I taught them what they know,
and I made them strong.
Now they plot against me
16 and refuse to obey.[l]
They are more useless
than a crooked arrow.
Their leaders will die in war
for saying foolish things.
Egyptians will laugh at them.

Israel Rejects the Lord

The Lord said:

8 Sound a warning!
Israel, you broke our agreement
and ignored my teaching.
Now an eagle is swooping down
to attack my land.
2 Israel, you say, “We claim you,
the Lord, as our God.”
3 But your enemies
will chase you
for rejecting
our good agreement.[m]

4 You chose kings and leaders
without consulting me;
you made silver and gold idols
that led to your downfall.
5 City of Samaria, I’m angry
because of your idol
in the shape of a calf.
When will you ever
be innocent again?
6 Someone from Israel built
that idol for you,
but only I am God.
And so it will be smashed
to pieces.[n]

7 If you scatter wind
instead of wheat,
you will harvest a whirlwind
and have no wheat.
Even if you harvest grain,
enemies will steal it all.

8 Israel, you are ruined,
and now the nations
consider you worthless.
9 You are like a wild donkey
that goes its own way.
You’ve run off to Assyria
and hired them as allies.
10 You can bargain with nations,
but I’ll catch you anyway.
Soon you will suffer abuse
by kings and rulers.

11 Israel, you have built
many altars
where you offer
sacrifices for sin.
But these altars have become
places for sin.
12 My instructions for sacrifices
were written in detail,
but you ignored them.
13 You sacrifice your best animals
and eat the sacrificial meals,[o]
but I, the Lord,
refuse your offerings.
I will remember your sins
and punish you.
Then you will return to Egypt.[p]

14 Israel, I created you,
but you forgot me.
You and Judah built palaces
and many strong cities.[q]
Now I will send fire to destroy
your towns and fortresses.

Israel Will Be Punished

9 Israel, don’t celebrate
or make noisy shouts[r]
like other nations.
You have been unfaithful
to your God.
Wherever grain is threshed,
you behave like prostitutes
because you enjoy
the money you receive.[s]
2 But you will run short
of grain and wine,
3 and you will have to leave
the land of the Lord.
Some of you will go to Egypt;
others will go to Assyria
and eat unclean food.

4 You won’t be able to offer
sacrifices of wine
to the Lord.
None of your sacrifices
will please him—
they will be unclean
like food offered to the dead.
Your food will only be used
to satisfy your hunger;
none of it will be brought
to the Lord’s temple.
5 You will no longer be able
to celebrate the festival
of the Lord.[t]
6 Even if you escape alive,
you will end up in Egypt
and be buried in Memphis.[u]
Your silver treasures
will be lost among weeds;[v]
thorns will sprout in your tents.

7 Israel, the time has come.
You will get what you deserve,
and you will know it.
“Prophets are fools,” you say.
“And God’s messengers
are crazy.”
Your terrible guilt
has filled you with hatred.

8 Israel, the Lord sent me
to look after you.[w]
But you trap his prophets
and flood his temple
with your hatred.
9 You are brutal and corrupt,
as were the men of Gibeah.[x]
But God remembers your sin,
and you will be punished.

Sin’s Terrible Results

10 Israel, when I, the Lord,
found you long ago
it was like finding
grapes in a barren desert
or tender young figs.
Then you worshiped Baal Peor,
that disgusting idol,
and you became as disgusting
as the idol you loved.

11 And so, Israel, your glory
will fly away like birds—
your women will no longer
be able to give birth.
12 Even if you do have children,
I will take them all
and leave you to mourn.
I will turn away,
and you will sink down
in deep trouble.
13 Israel, when I first met you,
I thought of you as palm trees
growing in fertile ground.[y]
Now you lead your people out,
only to be slaughtered.

Hosea’s Advice

14 Our Lord, do just one thing
for your people—
make their women unable
to have children
or to nurse their babies.

The Lord’s Judgment on Israel

15 Israel, I first began
to hate you
because
you did evil at Gilgal.[z]
Now I will chase you
out of my house.
No longer will I love you;
your leaders betrayed me.
16 Israel, you are a vine
with dried-up roots
and fruitless branches.
Even if you had more children
and loved them dearly,
I would slaughter them all.

Hosea Warns Israel

17 Israel, you disobeyed my God.
Now he will force you to roam
from nation to nation.

Footnotes:

  1. 6.5 That’s why my. . . sun: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  2. 6.7 At. . . you: Or “Like Adam, you” or “Each one of you.”
  3. 6.8 your hands. . . victims: This may refer to child sacrifice.
  4. 6.9 You. . . ambush: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  5. 6.9 Shechem: This was one of the towns where people could run for safety, if they had accidentally killed someone (see Joshua 20.1-9).
  6. 7.1 Israel: See the note at 4.17. Samaria was the capital city of Israel.
  7. 7.5 foolishness: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 5.
  8. 7.8,11 Israel: Hebrew “Ephraim” (see the note at 4.17).
  9. 7.8,11 Israel: Hebrew “Ephraim” (see the note at 4.17).
  10. 7.12 I threatened. . . will: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  11. 7.14 slashed themselves: One ancient translation and some Hebrew manuscripts; other Hebrew manuscripts “gather together.” Slashing themselves was one way of worshiping Baal (see 1 Kings 18.28).
  12. 7.16 and. . . obey: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  13. 8.3 our good agreement: Or “me, the Good One” (referring to God).
  14. 8.6 smashed to pieces: Or “destroyed by fire.”
  15. 8.13 sacrifice. . . sacrificial meals: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. Two kinds of sacrifices are referred to: Those in which the whole animal is burned on the altar (“whole burnt offerings” in traditional translations) and those in which part is eaten by the worshipers (“fellowship offerings” in traditional translations).
  16. 8.13 return to Egypt: Either as slaves or to find help against Assyria.
  17. 8.14 built palaces. . . cities: They did this because they no longer trusted the Lord to protect them. “Palaces” may also mean “temples.”
  18. 9.1 or. . . shouts: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  19. 9.1 Wherever. . . receive: Grain was threshed on hills or other places where the wind could blow away the husks. People also met at these places to worship Baal, the god they thought had given them the grain harvest.
  20. 9.5 festival of the Lord: Probably the Festival of Shelters.
  21. 9.6 Memphis: An Egyptian city with a famous cemetery.
  22. 9.6 Your silver. . . weeds: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  23. 9.8 Israel. . . you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  24. 9.9 the men of Gibeah: They raped and murdered a woman (see Judges 19).
  25. 9.13 Israel, when. . . ground: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  26. 9.15 Gilgal: See 4.15.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

3 John

1 From the church leader.[a]

To my dear friend Gaius.

I love you because we follow the truth, 2 dear friend, and I pray that all goes well for you. I hope that you are as strong in body, as I know you are in spirit. 3 It makes me very happy when the Lord’s followers come by and speak openly of how you obey the truth. 4 Nothing brings me greater happiness than to hear that my children[b] are obeying the truth.

Working Together

5 Dear friend, you have always been faithful in helping other followers of the Lord, even the ones you didn’t know before. 6 They have told the church about your love. They say you were good enough to welcome them and to send them on their mission in a way that God’s servants deserve. 7 When they left to tell others about the Lord, they decided not to accept help from anyone who wasn’t a follower. 8 We must support people like them, so that we can take part in what they are doing to spread the truth.

9 I wrote to the church. But Diotrephes likes to be the number-one leader, and he won’t pay any attention to us. 10 So if I come, I will remind him of how he has been attacking us with gossip. Not only has he been doing this, but he refuses to welcome any of the Lord’s followers who come by. And when other church members want to welcome them, he puts them out of the church.

11 Dear friend, don’t copy the evil deeds of others! Follow the example of people who do kind deeds. They are God’s children, but those who are always doing evil have never seen God.

12 Everyone speaks well of Demetrius, and so does the true message that he teaches. I also speak well of him, and you know what I say is true.

Final Greetings

13 I have much more to say to you, but I don’t want to write it with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and then we can talk in person.

15 I pray that God will bless you with peace!

Your friends send their greetings. Please give a personal greeting to each of our friends.

Footnotes:

  1. 1 church leader: Or “elder” or “presbyter” or “priest.”
  2. 4 children: Probably persons that the leader had led to be followers of the Lord.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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Psalm 126

(A song for worship.)

Celebrating the Harvest

126 It seemed like a dream
when the Lord brought us back
to the city of Zion.[a]
2 We celebrated with laughter
and joyful songs.
In foreign nations it was said,
“The Lord has worked miracles
for his people.”
3 And so we celebrated
because the Lord had indeed
worked miracles for us.

4 Our Lord, we ask you to bless
our people again,
and let us be like streams
in the Southern Desert.
5 We cried as we went out
to plant our seeds.
Now let us celebrate
as we bring in the crops.
6 We cried on the way
to plant our seeds,
but we will celebrate and shout
as we bring in the crops.

Footnotes:

  1. 126.1 brought. . . Zion: Or “made the city of Zion prosperous again.”
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.

Proverbs 29:12-14

12 A ruler who listens to lies
will have corrupt officials.
13 The poor and all who abuse them
must each depend on God
for light.
14 Kings who are fair to the poor
will rule forever.

Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.