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6/24/2023 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 6:1-7:20, Acts 15:36-16:15, Psalm 142:1-7, Proverbs 17:24-25

Today is the 24th day of June, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It is wonderful to be here with you today. Just like it’s wonderful to be here with you every single day that we gather around the Global Campfire, come in, find a place, settle in relax, exhale, release the cares of this life, and allow the Scriptures to come washing over us. And the portion of Scripture that we are working our way through right now, in the Old Testament, is Second Kings. And of course, we’re working our way through the Book of Acts in the New Testament. And so, let’s, let’s take the next step forward. Today, Second Kings, chapters 6 and 7.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word, we thank You for another week that we’ve been able to spend together in Your word. We thank You for the season that we are in, we thank You for all the days of this year that we’ve been able to gather together here around the Scriptures, allowing them to seep into the soil of our lives. We love You, we worship You, we rejoice in You. We declare You are our only hope and that makes us feel safer than anything else possibly could. We are Your children, You are our Father, may we honor You, may we make You proud. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

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

Prayer and Encouragements:

Hello, Daily Audio Bible. This is Isabell from Australia. Just wanted to ring in and say thank you, I listen to you every day. And you are truly amazing. I’m so proud of you. You’re just another level of greatness. So, thank you so much for reading the Bible. And also, I just wanted to thank Jill and China and Brian, because you are all honestly amazing. So, thank you guys for your dedication, for your faithfulness in God. May God bless you. I love you all, and I love everybody at Daily Audio Bible. So, may God bless all of you and just thank you for all that you do, the Hardin Family. Love you. Bye

This is Annett, God’s Princess Warrior. Calling from Minnesota. And asking for prayer for my 14-year-old granddaughter. She was hit yesterday by a car, while she was riding her bike. And the driver hit her, didn’t see her, an older gentlemen. And didn’t see her, hit her, she flew over the top of his car. Hit his trunk and fell to the ground and was unconscious for about 30-45 seconds. Emergency ambulance took her to the hospital, and she has major cuts from the seat of the bike on both legs that were gashes. So, she had emergency surgery yesterday to stick that back up. And she’s still in the hospital. They’re observing her and just a lot of cuts, bruises and scrapes and a mild concussion. Just continue to pray for her. Her older sister, who’s 16 saw the accident happen and so, you can imagine how traumatic that is. My granddaughter, Chrishell, that was hit, doesn’t remember anything except for waking up on the ground. So, thank You Lord, for protecting her from that trauma. So, if you could please remember her in prayer, I would appreciate it. And remember the family as well. It’s hard being a mom and a grandma, seeing your child hurt so badly. Thank you, this is Annett, God’s Princess Warrior from Minnesota.

Give me Jesus, give me Jesus, you can have this whole world, give me Jesus. Hey, my DAB family. It’s Searching for Beauty, on June 19th. I know we won’t hear this in time to pray, but I know God is not bound by time. I’m heading today, to see my oncologist again for the first time in 8 years. I’m not looking forward to it. My experience at the cancer center here, has been not terrific. My sister passed away there, years ago. And then, my first chemo there, was on her birthday, on the same floor where she was when she passed away. And my last chemo, was also there. Both of those dates were my mom’s birthday. So, my sister passed with cancer. My dad passed with cancer. I’ve been through it, and here we go again. And my mom is 80 and she’s never had it and this is really hard for her. So, I would really appreciate your prayers. A few years ago, when I was experiencing some really difficult times, I had sort of an image of Jesus as a surfer dude that was wearing a t-shirt that said courage on it. So, today I’m holding hands with a surfer dude and we’re gonna go and do this appointment. And we’re gonna see what’s next. I believe it will not be very good news. I am praying that there are some treatments that will work and that my oncologist will again be amenable to all the different supplements and things that I do along the way. So, I would really appreciate your prayers. Thank you.

Hello everyone, this is Nasir from Nigeria. This is the first year I’m following Daily Audio Bible this close. I did last year but this year I made progress, thank the Lord, for that praise. I want to also, thank God for the life of Brian, his wife, amazing family for putting this together. I pray that God would bless them, give them the grace to do even much more for the kingdom, in the name of Jesus. And those who are sending prayers, I pray that whatever it is that you’re looking up to God for, He will answer you, He will do it in the name of Jesus. Just keep up your faith. Lord, sometimes just that You may already answer it, when we want Him to, or how He will do it. He will answer us. So, just keep up the faith and God bless you.

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday June 24, 2023 (NIV)

2 Kings 6-7

Elisha Makes an Ax Head Float

6 One day the prophets said to Elisha, “The place where we meet with you is too small. 2 Why don't we build a new meeting place near the Jordan River? Each of us could get some wood, then we could build it.”

“That's a good idea,” Elisha replied, “get started.”

3 “Aren't you going with us?” one of the prophets asked.

“Yes, I'll go,” Elisha answered, 4 and he left with them.

They went to the Jordan River and began chopping down trees. 5 While one of the prophets was working, his ax head fell off and dropped into the water. “Oh!” he shouted. “Sir, I borrowed this ax.”

6 “Where did it fall in?” Elisha asked. The prophet pointed to the place, and Elisha cut a stick and threw it into the water at that spot. The ax head floated to the top of the water.

7 “Now get it,” Elisha told him. And the prophet reached in and grabbed it.

Elisha Stops an Invasion of the Syrian Army

8 Time after time, when the king of Syria was at war against the Israelites, he met with his officers and announced, “I've decided where we will set up camp.”

9 Each time, Elisha[a] would send this warning to the king of Israel: “Don't go near there. That's where the Syrian troops have set up camp.”[b] 10 So the king would warn the Israelite troops in that place to be on guard.

11 The king of Syria was furious when he found out what was happening. He called in his officers and asked, “Which one of you has been telling the king of Israel our plans?”

12 “None of us, Your Majesty,” one of them answered. “It's an Israelite named Elisha. He's a prophet, so he can tell his king everything—even what you say in your own room.”

13 “Find out where he is!” the king ordered. “I'll send soldiers to bring him here.”

They learned that Elisha was in the town of Dothan[c] and reported it to the king. 14 He ordered his best troops to go there with horses and chariots. They marched out during the night and surrounded the town.

15 When Elisha's servant got up the next morning, he saw that Syrian troops had the town surrounded. “Sir, what are we going to do?” he asked.

16 “Don't be afraid,” Elisha answered. “There are more troops on our side than on theirs.” 17 Then he prayed, “Lord, please help him to see.” And the Lord let the servant see that the hill[d] was covered with fiery horses and flaming chariots all around Elisha.

18 As the Syrian army came closer, Elisha prayed, “Lord, make those soldiers blind!” And the Lord blinded them with a bright light.

19 Elisha told the enemy troops, “You've taken the wrong road and are in the wrong town. Follow me. I'll lead you to the man you're looking for.” Elisha led them straight to the capital city of Samaria.

20 When all the soldiers were inside the city, Elisha prayed, “Lord, now let them see again.” The Lord let them see that they were standing in the middle of Samaria.

21 The king of Israel saw them and asked Elisha, “Should I kill them, sir?”

22 “No!” Elisha answered. “You didn't capture these troops in battle, so you have no right to kill them. Instead, give them something to eat and drink and let them return to their leader.”

23 The king ordered a huge meal to be prepared for Syria's army, and when they finished eating, he let them go.

For a while, the Syrian troops stopped invading Israel's territory.

King Benhadad of Syria Attacks Samaria

24 Some time later, King Benhadad of Syria[e] called his entire army together, then they marched to Samaria and attacked. 25 They kept up the attack until there was nothing to eat in the city. In fact, a donkey's head cost 80 pieces of silver, and a small bowl of pigeon droppings[f] cost 5 pieces of silver.

26 One day as the king of Israel[g] was walking along the top of the city wall, a woman shouted to him, “Please, Your Majesty, help me!”

27 “Let the Lord help you!” the king said. “Do you think I have grain or wine to give you?” 28 Then he asked, “What's the matter anyway?”

The woman answered, “Another woman and I were so hungry that we agreed to eat our sons. She said if we ate my son one day, we could eat hers the next day. 29 (A) So yesterday we cooked my son and ate him. But today when I went to her house to eat her son, she had hidden him.”

30 The king tore off his clothes in sorrow, and since he was on top of the city wall, the people saw that he was wearing sackcloth underneath. 31 He said, “I pray that God will punish me terribly, if Elisha's head is still on his shoulders by this time tomorrow.” 32 Then he sent a messenger to Elisha.

Elisha was home at the time, and the important leaders of Israel were meeting with him. Even before the king's messenger arrived, Elisha told the leaders, “That murderer[h] is sending someone to cut off my head. When you see him coming, shut the door and don't let him in. I'm sure the king himself will be right behind him.”

33 Before Elisha finished talking, the messenger[i] came up and said, “The Lord has made all these terrible things happen to us. Why should I think he will help us now?”

7 Elisha answered, “I have a message for you. The Lord promises that tomorrow here in Samaria, you will be able to buy a large sack of flour or two large sacks of barley for almost nothing.”

2 The chief officer there with the king replied, “I don't believe it! Even if the Lord sent a rainstorm, it couldn't produce that much grain by tomorrow.”

“You will see it happen, but you won't eat any of the food,” Elisha warned him.

The Syrian Army Stops Its Attack

3 About the same time, four men with leprosy[j] were just outside the gate of Samaria. They said to each other, “Why should we sit here, waiting to die? 4 There's nothing to eat in the city, so we would starve if we went inside. But if we stay out here, we will die for sure. Let's sneak over to the Syrian army camp and surrender. They might kill us, but they might not.” 5-8 That evening the four men got up and left for the Syrian camp.

As they walked toward the camp, the Lord caused the Syrian troops to hear what sounded like the roar of a huge cavalry. The soldiers said to each other, “Listen! The king of Israel must have hired Hittite and Egyptian troops to attack us. Let's get out of here!” So they ran out of their camp that night, leaving their tents and horses and donkeys.

When the four men with leprosy reached the edge of the Syrian camp, no one was there. They walked into one of the tents, where they ate and drank, before carrying off clothes, as well as silver and gold. They hid all this, then walked into another tent; they took what they wanted and hid it too.

9 They said to each other, “This isn't right. Today is a day to celebrate, and we haven't told anyone else what has happened. If we wait until morning, we will be punished. Let's go to the king's palace at once and tell the good news.”

10 They went back to Samaria and shouted up to the guards at the gate, “We've just come from the Syrian army camp, and all the soldiers are gone! The tents are empty, and the horses and donkeys are still tied up. We didn't see or hear anybody.”

11 The guards reported the news to the king's palace. 12 The king got out of bed and said to his officers, “I know what those Syrians are doing. They know we're starving, so they're hiding in the fields, hoping we will go out to look for food. When we do, they can capture us and take over our city.”

13 One of his officers replied, “We have a few horses left—why don't we let some men take five of them and go to the Syrian camp and see what's happening? We're going to die anyway like those who have already died.”[k] 14 They found two chariots, and the king commanded the men to find out what had happened to the Syrian troops.

15 The men rode as far as the Jordan River. All along the way they saw clothes and equipment that the Syrians had thrown away as they escaped. Then they went back to the king and told him what they had seen.

16 At once the people went to the Syrian camp and carried off what was left. They took so much that a large sack of flour and two large sacks of barley sold for almost nothing, just as the Lord had promised.

17 The king of Israel had put his chief officer in charge of the gate, but he died when the people trampled him as they rushed out of the city. 18 Earlier, when the king was at Elisha's house, Elisha had told him that flour or barley would sell for almost nothing. 19 But the officer refused to believe that even the Lord could do that. So Elisha warned him that he would see it happen, but would not eat any of the food. 20 And that's exactly what happened—the officer was trampled to death.

Footnotes:

  1. 6.9 Elisha: Hebrew “the man of God.”
  2. 6.9 have set up camp: Or “are going.”
  3. 6.13 Dothan: About 15 kilometers north of Samaria.
  4. 6.17 the hill: The hill on which the town was built.
  5. 6.24 King Benhadad of Syria: This may or may not be the same Benhadad mentioned in 1 Kings 20.1. Several of the Syrian kings were named Benhadad.
  6. 6.25 pigeon droppings: This may have been used for food or to burn for fuel. It also may have been a popular name for roasted beans or the shells of certain seeds.
  7. 6.26 the king of Israel: Probably either Jehoahaz or Jehoash, but possibly even Joram.
  8. 6.32 That murderer: Hebrew “That murderer's son.”
  9. 6.33 messenger: Or “king” (see 7.2,18); the two Hebrew words are very similar.
  10. 7.3 leprosy: See the note at 5.1.
  11. 7.13 We're going … died: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

Cross references:

  1. 6.29 : Dt 28.57; Lm 4.10.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Acts 15:36-16:15

Paul and Barnabas Go Their Separate Ways

36 Sometime later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let's go back and visit the Lord's followers in the cities where we preached his message. Then we will know how they are doing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take along John, whose other name was Mark. 38 (A) But Paul did not want to, because Mark had left them in Pamphylia and had stopped working with them.

39 Paul and Barnabas argued, then each of them went his own way. Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus, 40 but Paul took Silas and left after the followers had placed them in God's care. 41 They traveled through Syria and Cilicia, encouraging the churches.

Timothy Works with Paul and Silas

16 Paul and Silas went back to Derbe and Lystra, where there was a follower named Timothy. His mother was also a follower. She was Jewish, and his father was Greek. 2 The Lord's followers in Lystra and Iconium said good things about Timothy, 3 and Paul wanted him to go with them. But Paul first had him circumcised, because all the Jewish people around there knew that Timothy's father was Greek.[a]

4 As Paul and the others went from city to city, they told the followers what the apostles and leaders in Jerusalem had decided, and they urged them to follow these instructions. 5 The churches became stronger in their faith, and each day more people put their faith in the Lord.

Paul's Vision in Troas

6 Paul and his friends went through Phrygia and Galatia, but the Holy Spirit would not let them preach in Asia. 7 After they arrived in Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not let them. 8 So they went on through[b] Mysia until they came to Troas.

9 During the night, Paul had a vision of someone from Macedonia who was standing there and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we began looking for a way to go to Macedonia. We were sure that God had called us to preach the good news there.

Lydia Becomes a Follower of the Lord

11 We sailed straight from Troas to Samothrace, and the next day we arrived in Neapolis. 12 From there we went to Philippi, which is a Roman colony in the first district of Macedonia.[c]

We spent several days in Philippi. 13 Then on the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to a place by the river, where we thought there would be a Jewish meeting place for prayer. We sat down and talked with the women who came. 14 One of them was Lydia, who was from the city of Thyatira and sold expensive purple cloth. She was a worshiper of the Lord God, and he made her willing to accept what Paul was saying. 15 Then after she and her family were baptized, she kept on begging us, “If you think I really do have faith in the Lord, come stay in my home.” Finally, we accepted her invitation.

Footnotes:

  1. 16.3 had him circumcised … Timothy's father was Greek: Timothy would not have been acceptable to the Jews unless he had been circumcised, and Greeks did not circumcise their sons.
  2. 16.8 went on through: Or “passed by.”
  3. 16.12 in the first district of Macedonia: Some manuscripts have “and the leading city of Macedonia.”

Cross references:

  1. 15.38 : Ac 13.13.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Psalm 142

(A special psalm and a prayer by David when he was in the cave.)

A Prayer for Help

1 (A) I pray to you, Lord.
I beg for mercy.
2 I tell you all my worries
and my troubles,
3 and whenever I feel low,
you are there to guide me.

A trap has been hidden
along my pathway.
4 Even if you look,
you won't see anyone
who cares enough
to walk beside me.
There is no place to hide,
and no one who really cares.

5 I pray to you, Lord!
You are my place of safety,
and you are my choice
in the land of the living.
Please answer my prayer.
I am completely helpless.

6 Help! They are chasing me,
and they are too strong.
7 Rescue me from this prison,
so I can praise your name.
And when your people notice
your wonderful kindness to me,
they will rush to my side.

Cross references:

  1. 142 Title : 1 S 22.1; 24.3.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Proverbs 17:24-25

24 Anyone with wisdom knows
what makes good sense,
but fools can never
make up their minds.
25 Foolish children bring sorrow
and pain to their parents.

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 June 23, 2023 (NIV)

2 Kings 4:18-5:27

18 One day while the boy was still young, he was out in the fields with his father, where the workers were harvesting the crops. 19 Suddenly he shouted, “My head hurts. It hurts a lot!”

“Carry him back to his mother,” the father said to his servant. 20 The servant picked up the boy and carried him to his mother. The boy lay on her lap all morning, and by noon he was dead. 21 She carried him upstairs to Elisha's room and laid him across the bed. Then she walked out and shut the door behind her.

22 The woman called to her husband, “I need to see the prophet. Let me use one of the donkeys. Send a servant along with me, and let me leave now, so I can get back quickly.”

23 “Why do you need to see him today?” her husband asked. “It's not the Sabbath or time for the New Moon Festival.”

“That's all right,” she answered. 24 She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Let's go. And don't slow down unless I tell you to.” 25 She left at once for Mount Carmel to talk with Elisha.[a]

When Elisha saw her coming, he said, “Gehazi, look! It's the woman from Shunem. 26 Run and meet her. And ask her if everything is all right with her and her family.”

“Everything is fine,” she answered Gehazi. 27 But as soon as she got to the top of the mountain, she went over and grabbed Elisha by the feet.

Gehazi started toward her to push her away, when Elisha said, “Leave her alone! Don't you see how sad she is? But the Lord hasn't told me why.”

28 The woman said, “Sir, I begged you not to get my hopes up, and I didn't even ask you for a son.”

29 “Gehazi, get ready and go to her house,” Elisha said. “Take along my walking stick, and when you get there, lay it on the boy's face. Don't stop to talk to anyone, even if they try to talk to you.”

30 But the boy's mother said to Elisha, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life that I won't leave without you.” So Elisha got up and went with them.

31 Gehazi ran on ahead and laid Elisha's walking stick on the boy's face, but the boy didn't move or make a sound. Gehazi ran back to Elisha and said, “The boy didn't wake up.”

32 Elisha arrived at the woman's house and went straight to his room, where he saw the boy's body on his bed. 33 He walked in, shut the door, and prayed to the Lord. 34 (A) Then he got on the bed and stretched out over the dead body, with his mouth on the boy's mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hand on his hands. As he lay there, the boy's body became warm. 35 Elisha got up and walked back and forth in the room, then he went back and leaned over the boy's body. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.

36 Elisha called out to Gehazi, “Ask the boy's mother to come here.” Gehazi did, and when she was at the door, Elisha said, “You can take your son.”

37 She came in and bowed down at Elisha's feet. Then she picked up her son and left.

Elisha Makes Some Stew Taste Better

38 Later, Elisha went back to Gilgal, where there was almost nothing to eat, because the crops had failed.

One day while the prophets who lived there were meeting with Elisha, he said to his servant, “Prepare a big pot of stew for these prophets.”

39 One of them went out into the woods to gather some herbs. He found a wild vine and picked as much of its fruit as he could carry, but he didn't know that the fruit was very sour. When he got back, he cut up the fruit and put it in the stew.

40 The stew was served, and when the prophets started eating it, they shouted, “Elisha, this stew tastes terrible! We can't eat it.”

41 “Bring me some flour,” Elisha said. He sprinkled the flour in the stew and said, “Now serve it to them.” And the stew tasted fine.

Elisha Feeds One Hundred People

42 A man from the town of Baal-Shalishah[b] brought Elisha some freshly cut grain and 20 loaves of bread made from the first barley that was harvested. Elisha said, “Give it to the people so they can eat.”

43 “There's not enough here for 100 people,” his servant said.

“Just give it to them,” Elisha replied. “The Lord has promised there will be more than enough.”

44 So the servant served the bread and grain to the people. They ate and still had some left over, just as the Lord had promised.

Elisha Heals Naaman

5 (B) Naaman was the commander of the Syrian army. The Lord had helped him and his troops defeat their enemies, so the king of Syria respected Naaman very much. Naaman was a brave soldier, but he had leprosy.[c]

2 One day while the Syrian troops were raiding Israel, they captured a girl, and she became a servant of Naaman's wife. 3 Some time later the girl said, “If your husband Naaman would go to the prophet in Samaria, he would be cured of his leprosy.”

4 When Naaman told the king what the girl had said, 5 the king replied, “Go ahead! I will give you a letter to take to the king of Israel.”

Naaman left and took along 30,000 pieces of silver, 6,000 pieces of gold, and 10 new outfits. 6 He also carried the letter to the king of Israel. It said, “I am sending my servant Naaman to you. Would you cure him of his leprosy?”

7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes in fear and shouted, “That Syrian king believes I can cure this man of leprosy! Does he think I'm God with power over life and death? He must be trying to pick a fight with me.”

8 As soon as Elisha the prophet[d] heard what had happened, he sent the Israelite king this message: “Why are you so afraid? Send the man to me, so that he will know there is a prophet in Israel.”

9 Naaman left with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha's house. 10 Elisha sent someone outside to say to him, “Go wash seven times in the Jordan River. Then you'll be completely cured.”

11 But Naaman stormed off, grumbling, “Why couldn't he come out and talk to me? I thought for sure he would stand in front of me and pray to the Lord his God, then wave his hand over my skin and cure me. 12 What about the Abana River[e] or the Pharpar River? Those rivers in Damascus are just as good as any river in Israel. I could have washed in them and been cured.”

13 His servants went over to him and said, “Sir, if the prophet had told you to do something difficult, you would have done it. So why don't you do what he said? Go wash and be cured.”

14 Naaman walked down to the Jordan; he waded out into the water and stooped down in it seven times, just as Elisha had told him. At once, he was cured, and his skin became as smooth as a child's.

15 Naaman and his officials went back to Elisha. Naaman stood in front of him and announced, “Now I know that the God of Israel is the only God in the whole world. Sir, would you please accept a gift from me?”

16 “I am a servant of the living Lord,” Elisha answered, “and I swear that I will not take anything from you.”

Naaman kept begging, but Elisha kept refusing. 17 Finally Naaman said, “If you won't accept a gift, then please let me take home as much soil as two mules can pull in a wagon. Sir, from now on I will offer sacrifices only to the Lord.[f] 18 But I pray that the Lord will forgive me when I go into the temple of the god Rimmon and bow down there with the king of Syria.”

19 “Go on home, and don't worry about that,” Elisha replied. Then Naaman left.

Elisha Places a Curse on Gehazi

After Naaman had gone only a short distance, 20 Gehazi said to himself, “Elisha let that Syrian off too easy. He should have taken Naaman's gift. I swear by the living Lord that I will talk to Naaman myself and get something from him.” 21 So he hurried after Naaman.

When Naaman saw Gehazi running after him, he got out of his chariot to meet him. Naaman asked, “Is everything all right?”

22 “Yes,” Gehazi answered. “But my master has sent me to tell you about two young prophets from the hills of Ephraim. They came asking for help, and now Elisha wants to know if you would give them 3,000 pieces of silver and some new clothes?”

23 “Sure,” Naaman replied. “But why don't you take twice that amount of silver?” He convinced Gehazi to take it all, then put the silver in two bags. He handed the bags and the clothes to his two servants, and they carried them for Gehazi.

24 When they reached the hill where Gehazi lived, he took the bags from the servants and placed them in his house, then sent the men away. After they had gone, 25 Gehazi went in and stood in front of Elisha, who asked, “Gehazi, where have you been?”

“Nowhere, sir,” Gehazi answered.

26 Elisha asked, “Don't you know that my spirit was there when Naaman got out of his chariot to talk with you? Gehazi, you have no right to accept money or clothes, olive orchards or vineyards, sheep or cattle, or servants. 27 Because of what you've done, Naaman's leprosy[g] will now be on you and your descendants forever!”

Suddenly, Gehazi's skin became white with leprosy, and he left.

Footnotes:

  1. 4.25 Elisha: Mount Carmel is about 40 kilometers from Shunem.
  2. 4.42 Baal-Shalishah: The exact location of this town is not known, but it was probably somewhere near Shechem.
  3. 5.1 leprosy: The word translated “leprosy” was used for many different kinds of skin diseases.
  4. 5.8 the prophet: Hebrew “the man of God.”
  5. 5.12 Abana River: Most Hebrew manuscripts; some Hebrew manuscripts and two ancient translations “Amana River.”
  6. 5.17 let me take … the Lord: It was believed that the Lord had to be worshiped in Israel or on soil taken from Israel.
  7. 5.27 leprosy: See the note at 5.1.

Cross references:

  1. 4.34,35 : 1 K 17.21.
  2. 5.1-14 : Lk 4.27.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Acts 15:1-35

15 (A) Some people came from Judea and started teaching the Lord's followers that they could not be saved, unless they were circumcised as Moses had taught. 2 This caused trouble, and Paul and Barnabas argued with them about this teaching. So it was decided to send Paul and Barnabas and a few others to Jerusalem to discuss this problem with the apostles and the church leaders.

The Church Leaders Meet in Jerusalem

3 The men who were sent by the church went through Phoenicia and Samaria, telling how the Gentiles had turned to God. This news made the Lord's followers very happy. 4 When the men arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church, including the apostles and the leaders. They told them everything God had helped them do. 5 But some Pharisees had become followers of the Lord. They stood up and said, “Gentiles who have faith in the Lord must be circumcised and told to obey the Law of Moses.”

6 The apostles and church leaders met to discuss this problem about Gentiles. 7 (B) They had talked it over for a long time, when Peter got up and said:

My friends, you know that God decided long ago to let me be the one from your group to preach the good news to the Gentiles. God did this so they would hear and obey him. 8 (C) He knows what is in everyone's heart. And he showed he had chosen the Gentiles, when he gave them the Holy Spirit, just as he had given his Spirit to us. 9 God treated them in the same way that he treated us. They put their faith in him, and he made their hearts pure.

10 Now why are you trying to make God angry by placing a heavy burden on these followers? This burden was too heavy for us or our ancestors. 11 But we believe that we will be saved by the gift of undeserved grace from our Lord Jesus Christ, just as the Gentiles are.

12 Everyone kept quiet and listened as Barnabas and Paul told how God had given them the power to work a lot of miracles and wonders for the Gentiles.

13 After they had finished speaking, James[a] said:

My friends, listen to me! 14 Simon Peter[b] has told how God first came to the Gentiles and made some of them his own people. 15 This agrees with what the prophets wrote,

16 (D) “I, the Lord, will return
and rebuild
David's fallen house.
I will build it from its ruins
and set it up again.
17 Then other nations
will turn to me
and be my chosen ones.
I, the Lord, say this.
18 I promised it long ago.”

19 And so, my friends, I don't think we should place burdens on the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 (E) We should simply write and tell them not to eat anything that has been offered to idols. They should be told not to eat the meat of any animal that has been strangled or that still has blood in it. They must also not commit any terrible sexual sins.[c]

21 We must remember that the Law of Moses has been preached in city after city for many years, and every Sabbath it is read in our synagogues.

A Letter to Gentiles Who Had Faith in the Lord

22 The apostles, the leaders, and all the church members decided to send some men to Antioch along with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Silas and Judas Barsabbas,[d] who were two leaders of the Lord's followers. 23 They wrote a letter that said:

We apostles and leaders send friendly greetings to all of you Gentiles who are followers of the Lord in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia.

24 We have heard that some people from here have terribly upset you by what they said. But we did not send them! 25 So we met together and decided to choose some men and to send them to you along with our good friends Barnabas and Paul. 26 These men have risked their lives for our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 We are also sending Judas and Silas, who will tell you in person the same things that we are writing.

28 The Holy Spirit has shown us that we should not place any extra burden on you. 29 (F) But you should not eat anything offered to idols. You should not eat any meat that still has the blood in it or any meat of any animal that has been strangled. You must also not commit any terrible sexual sins. If you follow these instructions, you will do well.

We send our best wishes.

30 The four men left Jerusalem and went to Antioch. Then they called the church members together and gave them the letter. 31 When the letter was read, everyone was pleased and greatly encouraged. 32 Judas and Silas were prophets, and they spoke a long time, encouraging and helping the Lord's followers.

33 The men from Jerusalem stayed on in Antioch for a while. And when they left to return to the ones who had sent them, the followers wished them well. 34-35 But Paul and Barnabas stayed on in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached about the Lord.[e]

Footnotes:

  1. 15.13 James: The Lord's brother.
  2. 15.14 Simon Peter: The Greek text has “Simeon,” which is another form of the name “Simon.” The apostle Peter is meant.
  3. 15.20 not commit any terrible sexual sins: This probably refers to the laws about the wrong kind of marriages that are forbidden in Leviticus 18.6-18 or to some serious sexual sin.
  4. 15.22 Judas Barsabbas: He may have been a brother of Joseph Barsabbas (see 1.23), but the name “Barsabbas” was often used by the Jewish people.
  5. 15.34,35 Verse 34, which says that Silas decided to stay on in Antioch, is not in some manuscripts.

Cross references:

  1. 15.1 : Lv 12.3.
  2. 15.7 : Ac 10.1-43.
  3. 15.8 : Ac 2.4; 10.44.
  4. 15.16-18 : Am 9.11,12 (LXX).
  5. 15.20 a : Ex 34.15-17; b Lv 17.10-16; c Lv 18.6-23.
  6. 15.29 : 4 Macc 5.2.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Psalm 141

(A psalm by David.)

A Prayer for the Lord's Protection

1 I pray to you, Lord!
Please listen when I pray
and hurry to help me.
2 (A) Think of my prayer
as sweet-smelling incense,
and think of my lifted hands
as an evening sacrifice.

3 Help me to guard my words
whenever I say something.
4 Don't let me want to do evil
or waste my time doing wrong
with wicked people.
Don't let me even taste
the good things they offer.

5 Let your faithful people
correct and punish me.
My prayers condemn the deeds
of those who do wrong,
so don't let me be friends
with any of them.
6 Everyone will admit
that I was right
when their rulers are thrown
down a rocky cliff,
7 and their bones lie scattered
like crushed rocks
on top of a grave.[a]

8 You are my Lord and God,
and I look to you for safety.
Don't let me be harmed.
9 Protect me from the traps
of those violent people,
10 and make them fall
into their own traps
while you help me escape.

Footnotes:

  1. 141.5-7 Let … grave: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verses 5-7.

Cross references:

  1. 141.2 : Rev 5.8.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Proverbs 17:23

23 Crooks accept secret bribes
to keep justice
from being done.

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

05/23/2023 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 4:18-5:27, Acts 15:1-35, Psalms 141:1-10, Proverbs 17:23

Today is the 23rd day of June welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I’m Brian it is wonderful to be here with you today as we wind our way toward the end of another week and take the next step forward together. And that next step leads us every single day to the place that we left off and that happens to be second Kings right now. And today we’ll read second Kings chapter 4 verse 18 through 5 verse 27.

Commentary:

Okay. So, we have some pretty dramatic stories that we encountered today in the Old and in the…and in the New Testaments. In the Old Testament in second Kings we met this military commander, a Syrian commander. His name was Naaman. And, so, a reasonably powerful and famous story. I member learning this story all the way back in…in the Sunday school. So, Naaman’s a military commander but he has a skin disease, leprosy. He hears from a servant girl that there’s prophet in the land of Israel that can probably cure him. And, so, Naaman gets permission from his king and a letter sent to the Israelite king that Naaman should be cured in Israel. Of course, the king of Israel is like, am I a God? I don’t care. How can this…this guy is trying to pick a fight with us. What are we supposed to do with this? But the prophet Elisha hears about this and so that brings Naaman to Elisha’s house, which is where he was going in the first place. And Elisha just sends the word out to Naaman that he should go over to the Jordan River and dip himself seven times and he will be cured. And Naaman can’t get his mind around that. He was expecting something a little bit more religious in nature, something a little more ritualistic in some sort of way that he would be healed, where Elisha would stand before him and wave his hands and say some incantations and wave his hand over the spot and cure Naaman. But instead Elisha doesn’t even show his face. And, so, Naaman is insulted by this and then enraged by it. And, so, what is actually surfacing in Naaman here? Naaman feels slighted and he feels mad. Naaman’s pride has been hurt. And, so, he spews his venom. Like, aren’t there better rivers in our land. I’ll dip in those. What…what’s so special about the Jordan? And let’s get out of here. We’re not gonna do this. And that’s when Naaman’s servants come and speak reason to him and simply say, sir, like you know if Elisha the prophet, if he had come out and met with you and given you a list of really, really difficult things to accomplish that you might be healed you would’ve gone and done those things. Instead, he’s simply asked you to take a bath in the Jordan River on our way home. Like, what would be the downside to you just obeying Elisha? He didn’t give you something hard to do. He gave you something easy to do. And, so, Naaman does dip in the Jordan River and is cleansed as we know the story, but the thing is Naaman’s pride was about to send him all the way back home empty-handed. He was about to leave Elisha’s house still ill even though he had been given clear and simple instructions that would make him whole again. He was going to leave because of his pride and stay sick. Basically, when Naaman moved beyond his own pride, he found that all he had to do was simply obey. May we take the obvious lesson to heart my brothers and sisters. We all get in our own way in the same way.

Then we flip over to the book of Acts and we see one of the most monumental things that happen in the New Testament, and we’ve alluded to this before. We remember when Peter was in Joppa and Cornelius was in Caesarea and they both had visions and they both met up and the Holy Spirit fell on Cornelius’s household and they were baptized into the faith and they were not Jews. They were Gentiles and the Holy Spirit had spoken. Well time has past and that debate has continued on and it’s come all the way to the point where we have…there are people saying two different things. One…one group of people is saying okay, to follow Jesus requires circumcision for males. It requires essentially conversion to Judaism to obey the Mosaic law, God’s law, and then follow Jesus as the Hebrew Messiah. This is the way that it works. So, those who may be Gentiles who want to come in our converting and becoming Jews and following the Jewish Messiah. On the other hand…actually, let me just…let me just read the…the different positions straight from the book of Acts. So one position is but some of the believers who belong to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said the Gentiles must be circumcised and told to obey the law of Moses. So, that’s one side of a difficult situation, a difficult argument. That’s one side of the argument. This is how to deal with the Gentiles. The other side of the argument is this, and I read out of the book of Acts, after a long debate, Peter stood up and said my friends you know that a long time ago God chose me from among you to preach the good news to the Gentiles, so that they could hear and believe. And God, who knows the thoughts of everyone showed his approval of the Gentiles by giving the Holy Spirit to them just as He had to us. He made no difference between us and them. He forgave their sins because they believed. So then why do you now want to put God to the test by laying a load on the backs of the believers which neither our ancestors nor we ourselves were able to carry? No. We believe and are saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus just as they are. And…and…and, so, basically, there are the two sides of the argument and a decision has to be made because Gentiles are flocking to the message of the good news of Jesus. And, so, the book of Acts lets us know where they landed in this very first church council and that is that James spoke up and I quote from Acts. It is my opinion, James went on, that we should not trouble the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write a letter telling them not to eat any food that is ritually unclean because it has been offered to idols, to keep themselves from sexual immorality, and not to eat any animal that is been strangled or any blood. For the law of Moses has been read for a very long time in the synagogues every Sabbath, and his words are preached in every town. So, this was the decision. A letter was sent back and that’s how things went. This problem didn’t really go away, and we will find this problem cropping up in the letters as we continue our journey through the New Testament. These two different ways of thinking continue to exist and were in opposition to each other and we can’t understate how monumental of a thing that this is. Prior to this, the followers of Jesus, those who were believers and following Jesus were Jews. And they were following the teachings of a rabbi and so this was still thought to be Judaism. And Judaism had a special status in the Roman Empire because it was such an ancient religion. So, they were kind of given an exemption for their kind of worship because they worshiped one God, whereas the Roman Empire worshiped a pantheon of gods and you could worship whoever or whatever you wanted in the Roman Empire, but you did have to have a loyalty and allegiance to the gods that made the Empire great unless you were Jewish. So, a dilemma is…is advancing here because Gentiles are coming to faith in Jesus as Lord worshiping the one true God but they’re not Jewish. And now the Jews are saying they’re not Jewish. And, so, this distinction now between Christian and Jew is being carved. Jews are distancing themselves from people who believe in Jesus and Christians won’t participate in idolatry and worship the Roman gods. And, so, we will see marginalization occur and persecution occur. And, so, some very, very big decisions are being made today in the book of Acts.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You. We thank You for Your Holy Spirit speaking. And most of us are recipients of this. Most of us are Gentile and we have grown up in the faith and learned of Jesus. And, so, we are supremely grateful for Your kindness toward us. And we see the monumental decisions that were made back in the first century and we are the recipients of the repercussions of that goodness. And, so, may we honor You, by being a light in the darkness in carrying the good news forward we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com, that is home base, that is the website, and that is where you can find out more about what’s going on around here. The Daily Audio Bible app puts that in the palm of your hand and so much more and that can be…that can be downloaded free from the app store that’s connected to your device. And, so, check that out.

Check out the different sections like the Daily Audio Bible Shop. There are a number of categories in the Daily Audio Bible Shop with the resources that are available for this journey, whether that be to take the journey deeper or wider, or more fun. There are a number of resources there. Like, check at the entire Global Campfire line of resources or, like in our Lifestyle section things to wear, things to journal in like the Daily Audio Bible journals, things to write with, things to connect us to this year that we spend together in the Bible. So, check out the Daily Audio Bible Shop.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, first of all thank you humbly. We wouldn’t be here. We wouldn’t be here if we weren’t in this together. So, thank you. There is a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the Hotline button in the app. That’s the little red button up at the top or you can dial 877-942-4253.

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

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hi, today is Monday June 19th I have never done one of these prayer requests or audios, but I just like I need all the prayers I can get from my family. I am asking for specifically prayers for my aunt, her name is Minnie, and she lost her son this weekend. He was found dead in his car. It looks like an overdose, and we don’t know how long he was in that car dead. And it is just tragic. You know, losing a child at all in any way is not easy and it is tragic but to find a child, you know, your son this way is devastating. And he has three young children 14, 16 and 10 and I’m just asking you to pray for them. Pray that they would not lose hope and, you know, that they would be reminded of God’s love and be comforted by Him. It’s hard for me right now to reconcile you know what I know and believe about a good God and a good father in this tragedy. And I know that it will pass, and I know that this is just my humanity. But please, please pray for my Aunt and her three grandbabies. Thank you.

Hey Daily Audio Bible Family good morning this is Learning to Completely Trust in the UK. I hope everyone is having a good morning. So, I have my son with me today. He is 16 years old. He finished high school and we were driving back from town and…and I asked him how does he feel about God and because we’ve had that discussion before and whether or not he believes in God. And he…he says yes. I think he said yes, he believes in God, but he also says I’m not fully convinced or something like that. And he just really hurt my heart. And, so, I’m in the kitchen and I’m thinking…I’m prayed, like God, you know, I’m not the best example for my kids in terms of, you know, believing in you because I doubt sometimes and all these different things that I’m guilty of doing. And I, you know, I said a little prayer asking God to forgive my soul and I just thought about all our other DAB families who are also struggling and I don’t know if there’s anyone that is there with me in kind of just explaining God and…and…and __ our children. And, so, I just thought I’d call in to my family to help me to pray that I’d be a good example to my children about God because I…I really do believe in Him. I’m convicted that there’s nothing that I could do without Him. ___ up to You dear Lord Jesus and ask that You help us that we who are convicted would be better examples for our children dear Lord Jesus. And we thank you for forgiving us ___ in Your loving hands dear God…

Hello my brothers and sisters of the Daily Audio Bible this is brother Stuart in phoenix AZ just calling to let you know of my progress after being out now for two months. I’m working on going to class so I can get my CDL that way I can travel around and meet people and can share God’s word. But I’m only going to do local driving for a while and then maybe regional. I was able to reconnect with my family in Las Vegas. Anyway, the timer’s going off so i just wanted to let you know that God is good. He’s moving me down the path to success. Keep me in your prayers and I’ll keep you in mind. Thank you in Jesus’ name Amen.

Hi, this is Ginger I’m joining the campfire from Indiana. I’m one of your quiet praying in the background people but today I found out that a dearest friend of mine has lost his job near Dallas TX. He’s not doing very well and i need your Daily Audio Bible prayer warriors to lift Barry up. Just let him see out of the darkness before his depression kicks in and let God help him find a new way to work, a new job, a new outlook. I ask this in the name of Jesus because He can do all and we place our faith in Him. I pray for you Barry and i pray for all the people in the DAB land. Again, bless you Father Jesus. Lord Jesus, we ask this in your name. Ginger signing off. Goodbye.

Posted on

6/22/2023 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 3:1-4:17, Acts 14:8-28, Psalm 140:1-13, Proverbs 17:22

Today is the 22nd day of June, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian and it is wonderful to be here with you today, as we gather here at the Global Campfire and move forward. Another step together. Yesterday, we started Second Kings, and there wasn’t a big fanfare about that. I mentioned that first and second Kings were all one manuscript, and they were broken apart, for ease. And so we’re just kind of continuing the story of the kings but we did see Elijah taken by a chariot of fire into heaven, and Elisha now has this prophetic mantle that Elijah had, as basically as the lead prophetic voice. And so, let’s dive in and take the next step forward. I say that all the time, even though I’m mixing my metaphors. Let’s, let’s go forward together, Second Kings chapter 3 verse 1 through 4 verse 17 today.

Commentary:

Okay, so, yesterday, we just really, really briefly observed the fact that Paul, on his missionary journey, everywhere that he went the message of the good news of the gospel of Jesus, caused a reaction. It wasn’t like Paul would go places and give this message and then people would be like, well that’s a nice story and then go back and have dinner and forget all about it. Like this was causing people to question, to consider, to reconsider, to repentance, to find new hope, but it was also very, very disruptive to the spirituality wherever…wherever Paul went. And that’s the interesting thing about spirituality. Like, when you’re kind of under the cover of what you think God is telling you to do, then you can pretty much do anything because God is telling you to do it. And so, Jews were antagonistic toward Paul, as they had been toward Jesus and this message. Something that Paul would’ve understood intimately, since he was one of the primary antagonists in the beginning. But the Gospel of Jesus was also disruptive in the other ways of looking at spirituality. And that is very, very much on display today. So, we find ourselves in the city of Lystra and that…that…that is now part of modern-day Turkey. Paul saw a man, and he saw that he had faith to be healed and he invited that man into his healing. And the guy got up and he had been crippled from birth and he got up and walked. So, a miraculous event. But the repercussions of the event were that they were, the people thought Paul and Barnabas were gods. Right, the Book of Acts told us that Barnabas was thought to be Zeus, and Paul was thought to be Hermes, and there was a Temple of Zeus there in Lystra. And so, it wasn’t long before the priest of Zeus heard that Zeus is here. Zeus is here, we need to go out and worship him. And so, they’re bringing bulls to sacrifice and a wreath of flowers and they’re going to do this. They’re gonna actually sacrifice to Paul and Barnabas. And just imagine, that this is going on in the city center. Like that’s going to draw all a lot more people to the event than had originally been there. So, we have a mob, a crowd of people coalescing around this idea that god’s have shown up in Lystra. A man has been healed and so, sacrifices need to be made to Zeus and Hermes. So, Paul and Barnabas have to kind of run into the middle of the mayhem, like this is a manic situation and it’s all centered around the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, and a wonder, a miracle that it happened following the same pattern of Jesus. A man was healed, restored, made whole again. Paul and Barnabas have to run into the mayhem and do everything they can to try to say don’t sacrifice a bull to us. We are human beings, we’re nothing different than you. What’s different about us is Jesus and we’re here to introduce you to Him. But even with all their explaining and all, they’re trying to get everybody’s attention. They’re still bound and determined that Paul and Barnabas are Zeus and Hermes and they need a sacrifice. Then whip into the scenario the fact that Jews from nearby cities arrive in Lystra and they’ve already heard what Paul had to say. It’s already caused what it’s going to cause in their city and some of them have accepted Jesus and are following a new way of life. And others are very antagonistic, as Paul had been. So, they arrive in the midst of this. And this is like so crazy. They’re trying to sacrifice to Paul and Barnabas and then in the next scene the whole mob has shifted against Paul and Barnabas. And Paul has been stoned, like Stephen. Like when Paul held everybody’s cloaks while they stoned Stephen to death. Paul was stoned. So, he went from being a god, to being a person worthy of execution very quickly. Paul was stoned but he was not killed and got up and went back in the city. And then they went back to the cities that had been antagonistic toward them. The good news of the Gospel of Jesus causes reactions, life changing reactions. Each of us have had a life changing reactions to the Gospel at some point in our lives and we could think back to what that looked like for us, when our eyes were opened and we could see the truth of it. But it’s not really like a one-time thing. Our reaction to the Gospel should continually disrupt what is false within us. The good news of the Gospel should change the way we live every day that we get to live. And so, we see these reactions to the Gospel here in the Book of Acts, on Paul’s first missionary journey. We can think about how we reacted to the Gospel when we came to faith, but how are we reacting to the Gospel now? Like, is it continuing to disrupt and pull us forward and lead us away from the things that seduce us into idolatry, and lead us deeper into intimacy with God? Or was it an event that happened a while back and it was an important event, but it’s a memory. Maybe if we’ve kind of been in the wilderness or been in this dry kind of aired place spiritually. Maybe just thinking of how we were disrupted in the first place, when we fell in love with Jesus, when we knew what He was and who He claimed to be, and that changed things with in us in ways that are really difficult to put into words. It transformed us, as we surrendered to it and it became a part of our lives. Maybe just remembering what that was like in the first place and going back there and allowing the good news to disrupt us and awaken us and give us ears to hear and eyes to see. We can rekindle what we feel as if we’ve been lacking. The good news of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus remains the same. It hasn’t changed but perhaps we have changed by being influenced in our hearts postured toward it. Maybe doing what the Bible says and returning to our first love isn’t something that we do when we realize we’ve backslidden. Maybe it’s something that we do all day, every day.

Prayer:

And so, Father, we invite You into that. Holy Spirit, come. Lead us deeper into our intimacy with Jesus, our love, our devotion, our loyalty to our Savior. May the Gospel, once again, ignite in us a fire, the fire of the Holy Spirit, so that we see with compassionate eyes those who need the good news. And may we see that person we look in the mirror. We need the good news every day. And so, Holy Spirit, come into all of this and lead us deeper into Jesus, we ask in his name. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com, that’s home. That’s where you can find out what’s happening around here and so, check that out. That’s obviously the website. The Daily Audio Bible app does all the website does and more, right in the palm of your hand and you can get that from the App Store that works with your device. So, grab that if you can, check it out. Check out the different sections, the Community Section is where the Prayer Wall lives. I speak of it often because it is there for us, for this community, us, around the Global Campfire. And whatever is going on in our lives, because we jumped on this voyage together to sail through a year of life and through the entire Bible, and we’re well out into the deep. Right, we’re out in the middle of this voyage. So, it’s us and we are here for each other. We can always reach out for prayer and share our stories. We can always go and pray for one another and encourage one another. And that is the Prayer Wall and that can be found in the Community Section, so check that out.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible. If this mission to bring the spoken word of God read fresh every day and offered freely, to anybody who will listen to it, anywhere, anytime, any continent, anytime so, no matter where you may be, and to build community around the rhythm of showing up for each other every day. If that is life-giving then thank you, humbly for your partnership. There is a link on the homepage and dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

And as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, there are a number of numbers that you can call. First of all, you can hit the Hotline button in the app. That’s the little red button at the top or you can dial 877-942-4253, that’s the number in the Americas. In the UK or Europe 44 2036 088078. And in Australia or that part of the world 61 3 8820 5459, is the number to dial.

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

Prayer and Encouragements:

Hi, guys, hello DAB Family. I am here but I can’t pray because I’m gonna lose my voice soon. But I’m here and I’m asking for prayers because my parents are going through a divorce. And I just, they’re both taking it really, really hard. And I just need them to know that they’re okay. But I just feel like it’s gonna be pretty hard for them, the next, at least two years. I’m just asking for help. Please guys.

Hi, DAB fam, it’s Spark. I’m pulling a quick one, real quick. I didn’t even know that I was gonna call in. But Bernie and the other gentleman called on today’s prayer on Father’s Day. I was gonna let the queen here pray for you guys and ask her, yeah, she’s looking at me like what? Ask for blessings over ya’lls family and your situations. So, here’s Queen B. Father, we come to You right now in the name of Jesus and we lift up James the Teacher and Bernie and the other guy who didn’t leave his name. And I just ask that You continue to rain blessing and joy and peace down in their lives, Father. Bernie, I heard, I heard your heart. You, you want your family to be together. And Lord, I just pray for softening of hearts. I pray for forgiveness. I pray for eyes to be opened, so we can see intent instead of our perceptions. In Jesus name. And Father, I just thank You that You’re covering those children. You love them more than their parents do and You are protecting their hearts. In Jesus name. And the second guy, you said you guys were having some really hard financial times, but I could hear the joy in your voice. And I just thank the Lord for that, the joy. Cause our joy is not situational. Our happiness is situational, but we were not called to be happy, we were called to have joy. And I just want to give you just a big ol kudos for the joy that it seems like you are having in the midst of this situation. And the gratefulness that you are exhibiting towards the Lord, in the midst of this situation. Father, I just ask that You just continue to pour that out on him. And that you cover …

Hello DAB family, this is Diana from Florida. Bernie, I feel your pain my brother and the struggle in your marriage. Because I have been through a two-year crazy toil in my marriage and wondering whether I was ever gonna see the light at the end of the tunnel and wondering if my marriage was at the brink of no return. And I want to just tell you Bernie, that you are not alone. And that there is hope from God for you, and for all the marriages who are struggling right now. I went through this two-year period, and I have to say, by God’s grace, God has brought me through, and our marriage is improving by leaps and bounds right now, in the name of Jesus. We are just seeing such a huge shift in our marriage, such as huge shift in the way that we are communicating and loving each other and it’s just marvelous to see. But I have to say that part of the reason that this is happening Bernie, is because I’ve continued to be steadfast in prayer seeking God. But also, have made sure to have accountability with church elders and leaders that are counseling myself and my husband and our helping us through things as well as having a marriage that can really guide us in our walk and in what it is we’re doing. So, my recommendation is make sure you have wise counsel in your corner that can steer you in the right direction towards God and toward each other. And in that, that will help improve your marriage. Heavenly Father, I pray for Bernie, right now. I pray that You have a supernatural intervention in Bernie’s marriage, in the name of Jesus. And that people would surround Bernie, right now, to pray for him and to help him.

Hello, everyone. This is CeCe calling in from North Carolina. I just wanted to say a prayer for the community as a whole. And hopefully I could reach someone that this could be helpful to. Or they needed to hear. But just know that God loves us so much and we might not think that we need Him every day or in every aspect of our lives, but we actually do. He knows what we’re gonna do before we even do it, so why not seek guidance from Him? He knows our capabilities, our strengths, and things that we can overcome that we never thought we could. And I really hope that if you’re struggling with self-worth, depression, just feeling inadequate or you’re not doing what you think you need to be doing, just turn to God because he has all the answers. And He will always give you the answers in His time and in His time, is always the right time. Just make sure that you’re not leaning on your own understanding. And just trust in Him. And that’s all you need to do. Just pour your heart out to the Lord, and He will always be there. He will always bless you and put His hand on your heart and show You that He loves you. So, just always seek Him, even if you’re having a blessed time, or in time of need. He will always be there. Give thanks always and love Him dearly. In the Lord’s name I pray. Amen.

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday June 22, 2023 (NIV)

2 Kings 3:1-4:17

King Joram of Israel

3 Joram[a] son of Ahab became king of Israel in Jehoshaphat's eighteenth year as king of Judah.[b] Joram ruled twelve years from Samaria 2 and disobeyed the Lord by doing wrong. He tore down the stone image his father had made to honor Baal, and so he wasn't as sinful as his parents. 3 But he kept doing the sinful things that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to do.[c]

The Country of Moab Rebels against Israel

4 For many years the country of Moab had been controlled by Israel and was forced to pay taxes to the kings of Israel. King Mesha of Moab raised sheep, so he paid the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool from 100,000 rams. 5 But soon after the death of Ahab, Mesha rebelled against Israel.

6 One day, Joram left Samaria and called together Israel's army. 7 He sent this message to King Jehoshaphat of Judah, “The king of Moab has rebelled. Will you go with me to attack him?”

“Yes, I will,” Jehoshaphat answered. “I'm on your side, and my soldiers and horses are at your command. 8 But which way should we go?”

“We will march through Edom Desert,” Joram replied.

9 So Joram, Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom led their troops out. But seven days later, there was no drinking water left for them or their animals. 10 Joram cried out, “This is terrible! The Lord must have led us out here to be captured by Moab's army.”

11 Jehoshaphat said, “Which of the Lord's prophets is with us? We can find out from him what the Lord wants us to do.”

One of Joram's officers answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He was one of Elijah's closest followers.”

12 Jehoshaphat replied, “He can give us the Lord's message.”

The three kings went over to Elisha, 13 and he asked Joram, “Why did you come to me? Go talk to the prophets of the foreign gods your parents worshiped.”[d]

“No,” Joram answered. “It was the Lord who led us out here, so that Moab's army could capture us.”

14 Elisha said to him, “I serve the Lord All-Powerful, and as surely as he lives, I swear I wouldn't even look at you if I didn't respect King Jehoshaphat.” 15 Then Elisha said, “Send for someone who can play the harp.”

The harpist began playing, and the Lord gave Elisha this message for Joram:

16 The Lord says that this dry riverbed will be filled with water.[e] 17 You won't feel any wind or see any rain, but there will be plenty of water for you and your animals.

18 That simple thing isn't all the Lord is going to do. He will also help you defeat Moab's army. 19 You will capture all their walled cities and important towns. You will chop down every good tree and stop up every spring of water, then ruin their fertile fields by covering them with rocks.

20 The next morning, while the sacrifice was being offered, water suddenly started flowing from the direction of Edom, and it flooded the land.

21 Meanwhile, the people of Moab had heard that the three kings were coming to attack them. They had called together all of their fighting men, from the youngest to the oldest, and these troops were now standing at their border, ready for battle. 22 When they got up that morning, the sun was shining across the water, making it look red. The Moabite troops took one look 23 and shouted, “Look at that blood! The armies of those kings must have fought and killed each other. Come on, let's go take what's left in their camp.”

24 But when they arrived at Israel's camp, the Israelite soldiers came out and attacked them, until they turned and ran away. Israel's army chased them all the way back to Moab, and even there they kept up the attack.[f] 25 The Israelites destroyed the Moabite towns. They chopped down the good trees and stopped up the springs of water, then covered the fertile fields with rocks.

Finally, the only city left standing was Kir-Hareseth, but soldiers armed with slings surrounded and attacked it. 26 King Mesha of Moab saw that he was about to be defeated. So he took along 700 soldiers with swords and tried to break through the front line where the Edomite troops were positioned. But he failed. 27 He then grabbed his oldest son who was to be the next king and sacrificed him as an offering on the city wall. The Israelite troops were so horrified that[g] they left the city and went back home.

Elisha Helps a Poor Widow

4 One day the widow of one of the Lord's prophets said to Elisha, “You know that before my husband died, he was a follower of yours and a worshiper of the Lord. But he owed a man some money, and now that man is on his way to take my two sons as his slaves.”

2 “Maybe there's something I can do to help,” Elisha said. “What do you have in your house?”

“Sir, I have nothing but a small bottle of olive oil.”

3 Elisha told her, “Ask your neighbors for their empty jars. And after you've borrowed as many as you can, 4 go home and shut the door behind you and your sons. Then begin filling the jars with oil and set each one aside as you fill it.” 5 The woman left.

Later, when she and her sons were back inside their house, the two sons brought her the jars, and she began filling them.

6 At last, she said to one of her sons, “Bring me another jar.”

“We don't have any more,” he answered, and the oil stopped flowing from the small bottle.

7 After she told Elisha what had happened, he said, “Sell the oil and use part of the money to pay what you owe the man. You and your sons can live on what is left.”

Elisha Brings a Rich Woman's Son Back to Life

8 Once, while Elisha was in the town of Shunem,[h] he met a rich woman who invited him to her home for dinner. After that, whenever he was in Shunem, he would have a meal there with her and her husband.

9 Some time later the woman said to her husband, “I'm sure the man who comes here so often is a prophet of God. 10 Why don't we build him a small room on the flat roof of our house? We can put a bed, a table and chair, and an oil lamp in it. Then whenever he comes, he can stay with us.”

11 The next time Elisha was in Shunem, he stopped at their house and went up to his room to rest. 12-13 He said to his servant Gehazi, “This woman has been very helpful. Have her come up here to the roof for a moment.” She came, and Elisha told Gehazi to say to her, “You've gone to a lot of trouble for us, and we want to help you. Is there something we can request the king or army commander to do?”[i]

The woman answered, “With my relatives nearby, I have everything I need.”

14 “Then what can we do for her?” Elisha asked Gehazi.

Gehazi replied, “I do know that her husband is old, and that she doesn't have a son.”

15 “Ask her to come here again,” Elisha told his servant. He called for her, and she came and stood in the doorway of Elisha's room.

16 (A) Elisha said to her, “Next year at this time, you'll be holding your own baby son in your arms.”

“You're a man of God,” the woman replied. “Please don't lie to me.”

17 But a few months later, the woman got pregnant. She gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had promised.

Footnotes:

  1. 3.1 Joram: See the note at 1.17.
  2. 3.1 Joram … Judah: See 1.17 and the note there; see also 8.16.
  3. 3.3 the sinful things … to do: When Jeroboam became king of Israel, he made two gold statues of calves and put them in the towns of Bethel and Dan, so the people of Israel could worship them (see 1 Kings 12.26-30).
  4. 3.13 the prophets … worshiped: These were prophets of the Canaanite god Baal and the goddess Asherah (see 1 Kings 16.30-33; 18.19).
  5. 3.16 that … water: Or “to dig holes everywhere in this riverbed.”
  6. 3.24 chased … attack: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  7. 3.27 The Israelite … that: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  8. 4.8 Shunem: A town in Israel, about 40 kilometers north of Samaria.
  9. 4.12,13 request the king … do: Elisha may have meant that he could ask these leaders to lower her taxes.

Cross references:

  1. 4.16 : Gn 18.14.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Acts 14:8-28

Paul and Barnabas in Lystra

8 In Lystra there was a man who had been born with paralyzed feet and had never been able to walk. 9 The man was listening to Paul speak, when Paul saw that he had faith in Jesus and could be healed. So he looked straight at the man 10 and shouted, “Stand up!” The man jumped up and started walking around.

11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they yelled out in the language of Lycaonia, “The gods have turned into humans and have come down to us!” 12 The people then gave Barnabas the name Zeus, and they gave Paul the name Hermes,[a] because he did the talking.

13 The temple of Zeus was near the entrance to the city. Its priest and the crowds wanted to offer a sacrifice to Barnabas and Paul. So the priest brought some bulls and flowers to the city gates. 14 When the two apostles found out about this, they tore their clothes in horror and ran to the crowd, shouting:

15 (A) Why are you doing this? We are humans just like you. Please give up all this foolishness. Turn to the living God, who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In times past, God let each nation go its own way. 17 But he showed he was there by the good things he did. God sends rain from heaven and makes your crops grow. He gives food to you and makes your hearts glad.

18 Even after Paul and Barnabas had said all this, they could hardly keep the people from offering a sacrifice to them.

19 Some Jewish leaders from Antioch and Iconium came and turned the crowds against Paul. They hit him with stones and dragged him out of the city, thinking he was dead. 20 But when the Lord's followers gathered around Paul, he stood up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas went to Derbe.

Paul and Barnabas Return to Antioch in Syria

21 Paul and Barnabas preached the good news in Derbe and won some people to the Lord. Then they went back to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Pisidia. 22 They encouraged the followers and begged them to remain faithful. They told them, “We have to suffer a lot before we can get into God's kingdom.” 23 Paul and Barnabas chose some leaders for each of the churches. Then they went without eating[b] and prayed that the Lord would take good care of these leaders who had trusted in the Lord.

24 Paul and Barnabas went on through Pisidia to Pamphylia, 25 where they preached in the town of Perga. Then they went down to Attalia 26 and sailed to Antioch in Syria. It was there that they had been placed in God's care for the work they had now completed.[c]

27 After arriving in Antioch, they called the church together. They told the people what God had helped them do and how he had made it possible for the Gentiles to believe. 28 Then they stayed there with the followers for a long time.

Footnotes:

  1. 14.12 Hermes: The Greeks thought of Hermes as the messenger of the other gods, especially of Zeus, their chief god.
  2. 14.23 went without eating: See the note at 13.2.
  3. 14.26 the work they had now completed: See 13.1-3.

Cross references:

  1. 14.15 : Ex 20.11; Ps 146.6; 4 Macc 12.13.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Psalm 140

(A psalm by David for the music leader.)

A Prayer for the Lord's Help

1 Rescue me from cruel
and violent enemies, Lord!
2 They think up evil plans
and always cause trouble.
3 (A) Their words bite deep
like the poisonous fangs
of a snake.

4 Protect me, Lord, from cruel
and brutal enemies,
who want to destroy me.
5 Those proud people have hidden
traps and nets
to catch me as I walk.

6 You, Lord, are my God!
Please listen to my prayer.
7 You have the power to save me,
and you keep me safe
in every battle.

8 Don't let the wicked succeed
in doing what they want,
or else they might never
stop planning evil.
9 They have me surrounded,
but make them the victims
of their own vicious lies.[a]
10 Dump flaming coals on them
and throw them into pits
where they can't climb out.
11 Chase those cruel liars away!
Let trouble hunt them down.

12 Our Lord, I know that you
defend the homeless
and see that the poor
are given justice.
13 Your people will praise you
and will live with you
because they do right.

Footnotes:

  1. 140.8,9 or else … lies: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

Cross references:

  1. 140.3 : Ro 3.13.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Proverbs 17:22

22 If you are cheerful,
you feel good;
if you are sad,
you hurt all over.

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 Wednesday June 21, 2023 (NIV)

2 Kings 1-2

The Lord Condemns Ahaziah

1 1-2 Soon after King Ahab of Israel died, the country of Moab rebelled against his son King Ahaziah.[a]

One day, Ahaziah fell through the wooden slats around the porch on the flat roof of his palace in Samaria, and he was badly injured. So he sent some messengers to the town of Ekron[b] with orders to ask the god Baalzebub if he would get well.

3 About the same time, an angel from the Lord sent Elijah the prophet from Tishbe to say to the king's messengers, “Ahaziah has rejected Israel's own God by sending you to ask Baalzebub about his injury. 4 Tell him that because he has done this, he's on his deathbed!” And Elijah did what he was told.

5 When the messengers returned to Ahaziah, he asked, “Why are you back so soon?”

6 “A man met us along the road with a message for you from the Lord,” they answered. “The Lord wants to know why you sent us to ask Baalzebub about your injury and why you don't believe there's a God in Israel. The man also told us that the Lord says you're going to die.”

7 “What did the man look like?” Ahaziah asked.

8 (A) “He was hairy[c] and had a leather belt around his waist,” they answered.

“It must be Elijah!” replied Ahaziah. 9 So at once he sent an army officer and 50 soldiers to meet Elijah.

Elijah was sitting on top of a hill[d] at the time. The officer went up to him and said, “Man of God,[e] the king orders you to come down and talk with him.”

10 (B) “If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “God will send down fire on you and your 50 soldiers.” Fire immediately came down from heaven and burned up the officer and his men.

11 Ahaziah sent another officer and 50 more soldiers to Elijah. The officer said, “Man of God, the king orders you to come see him at once.”

12 “If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “fire will destroy you and your 50 soldiers.” And God sent down fire[f] from heaven on the officer and his men.

13 Ahaziah sent a third army officer and 50 more soldiers. This officer went up to Elijah, then he got down on his knees and begged, “Man of God, please be kind to me and these 50 servants of yours. Let us live! 14 Fire has already wiped out the other officers and their soldiers. Please don't let it happen to me.”

15 The angel from the Lord said to Elijah, “Go with him and don't be afraid.” So Elijah got up and went with the officer.

16 When Elijah arrived, he told Ahaziah, “The Lord wants to know why you sent messengers to Ekron to ask Baalzebub about your injury. Don't you believe there's a God in Israel? Ahaziah, because you did that, the Lord says you will die.”

17 Ahaziah died, just as the Lord had said. But since Ahaziah had no sons, Joram[g] his brother[h] then became king. This happened in the second year that Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat was king of Judah.[i] 18 Everything else Ahaziah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.

The Lord Takes Elijah Away

2 Not long before the Lord took Elijah up into heaven in a strong wind, Elijah and Elisha were leaving Gilgal. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “The Lord wants me to go to Bethel, but you must stay here.”

Elisha replied, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life that I will stay with you no matter what!” And he went with Elijah to Bethel.

3 A group of prophets who lived there asked Elisha, “Do you know that today the Lord is going to take away your master?”

“Yes, I do,” Elisha answered. “But don't remind me of it.”

4 Elijah then said, “Elisha, now the Lord wants me to go to Jericho, but you must stay here.”

Elisha replied, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life, that I will stay with you no matter what!” And he went with Elijah to Jericho.

5 A group of prophets who lived there asked Elisha, “Do you know that today the Lord is going to take away your master?”

“Yes, I do,” Elisha answered. “But don't remind me of it.”

6 Elijah then said to Elisha, “Now the Lord wants me to go to the Jordan River, but you must stay here.”

Elisha replied, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life that I will never leave you!” So the two of them walked on together.

7 Fifty prophets followed Elijah and Elisha from Jericho, then stood at a distance and watched as the two men walked toward the river. 8 When they got there, Elijah took off his coat, then he rolled it up and struck the water with it. At once a path opened up through the river, and the two of them walked across on dry ground.

9 (C) After they had reached the other side, Elijah said, “Elisha, the Lord will soon take me away. What can I do for you before that happens?”

Elisha answered, “Please give me twice as much of your power as you give the other prophets, so I can be the one who takes your place as their leader.”

10 “It won't be easy,” Elijah answered. “It can happen only if you see me as I am being taken away.”

11 Elijah and Elisha were walking along and talking, when suddenly there appeared between them a flaming chariot pulled by fiery horses. At once, a strong wind took Elijah up into heaven. 12 (D) Elisha saw this and shouted, “Israel's cavalry and chariots have taken my master away!”[j] After Elijah had gone, Elisha tore his clothes in sorrow.

13 Elijah's coat had fallen off, so Elisha picked it up and walked back to the Jordan River. 14 He struck the water with the coat and wondered, “Will the Lord perform miracles for me as he did for Elijah?” As soon as Elisha did this, a dry path opened up through the water, and he walked across.

15 When the prophets from Jericho saw what happened, they said to each other, “Elisha now has Elijah's power.”

They walked over to him, bowed down, 16 and said, “There are 50 strong men here with us. Please let them go look for your master. Maybe the Spirit of the Lord carried him off to some mountain or valley.”

“No,” Elisha replied, “they won't find him.”

17 They kept begging until he was embarrassed to say no. He finally agreed, and the prophets sent the men out. They looked three days for Elijah but never found him. 18 They returned to Jericho, and Elisha said, “I told you that you wouldn't find him.”

Elisha Makes the Water Pure at Jericho

19 One day the people of Jericho said, “Elisha, you can see that our city is in a good spot. But the water from our spring is so bad that it even keeps our crops from growing.”

20 He replied, “Put some salt in a new bowl and bring it to me.”

They brought him the bowl of salt, 21 and he carried it to the spring. He threw the salt into the water and said, “The Lord has made this water pure again. From now on you'll be able to grow crops, and no one will starve.”

22 The water has been fine ever since, just as Elisha said.

Some Boys Make Fun of Elisha

23 Elisha left and headed toward Bethel. Along the way some boys started making fun of him by shouting, “Go away, baldy! Get out of here!”

24 Elisha turned around and stared at the boys. Then he cursed them in the name of the Lord. At once two bears ran out of the woods and ripped to pieces 42 of the boys.

25 Elisha went up to Mount Carmel, then returned to Samaria.

Footnotes:

  1. 1.1,2 the country … King Ahaziah: The story of Moab's rebellion is in 3.4-27.
  2. 1.1,2 Ekron: An important Philistine town about 65 kilometers southwest of Samaria.
  3. 1.8 hairy: Or “wearing a furry coat.”
  4. 1.9 a hill: Probably Mount Carmel.
  5. 1.9 Man of God: Another name for a prophet of the Lord.
  6. 1.12 God sent down fire: Or “A mighty fire came down.”
  7. 1.17 Joram: The Hebrew text has “Jehoram,” another spelling of the name.
  8. 1.17 his brother: Some ancient translations (see also 3.1); these words are not in the Hebrew text.
  9. 1.17 This happened … Judah: According to 3.1, this was also the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat's rule in Judah. In biblical times, a father and son would sometimes rule as kings at the same time. This way, when the father died, the son would already have control of the kingdom (see also 8.16).
  10. 2.12 Israel's … away: Or “Master, you were like cavalry and chariots for the people of Israel!”

Cross references:

  1. 1.8 : Mt 3.4; Mk 1.6.
  2. 1.10,12 : Lk 9.54.
  3. 2.9 : Dt 21.15-17.
  4. 2.12 : 2 K 13.14; Si 48.9,12.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Acts 13:42-14:7

42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people begged them to say more about these same things on the next Sabbath. 43 After the service, many Jews and a lot of Gentiles who worshiped God went with them. Paul and Barnabas begged them all to remain faithful to God, who had treated them with undeserved grace.

44 The next Sabbath almost everyone in town came to hear the message about the Lord.[a] 45 When the Jewish people saw the crowds, they were very jealous. They insulted Paul and spoke against everything he said.

46 But Paul and Barnabas bravely said:

We had to tell God's message to you before we told it to anyone else. But you rejected the message! This proves that you don't deserve eternal life. Now we are going to the Gentiles. 47 (A) The Lord has given us this command,

“I have placed you here
as a light
for the Gentiles.
You are to take
the saving power of God
to people everywhere on earth.”

48 This message made the Gentiles glad, and they praised what they had heard about the Lord.[b] Everyone who had been chosen for eternal life then put their faith in the Lord.

49 The message about the Lord spread all over this region. 50 But the Jewish leaders went to some of the important men in the town and to some respected women who were religious. They turned them against Paul and Barnabas and started making trouble for them. They even chased them out of this part of the country.

51 (B) Paul and Barnabas shook the dust from that place off their feet[c] and went on to the city of Iconium.

52 But the Lord's followers in Antioch were very happy and were filled with the Holy Spirit.

Paul and Barnabas in Iconium

14 Paul and Barnabas spoke in the synagogue in Iconium, just as they had done at Antioch, and many Jews and Gentiles[d] put their faith in the Lord. 2 But the Jews who did not have faith in him made the other Gentiles angry and turned them against the Lord's followers.

3 Paul and Barnabas stayed there for a while, having faith in the Lord and bravely speaking his message. The Lord gave them the power to work miracles and wonders, and he showed that their message about his gift of undeserved grace was true.

4 The people of Iconium did not know what to think. Some of them believed the Jewish group, and others believed the apostles. 5 Finally, some Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, decided to make trouble for Paul and Barnabas and to stone them to death.

6-7 But when the two apostles found out what was happening, they escaped to the region of Lycaonia. They preached the good news there in the towns of Lystra and Derbe and in the nearby countryside.

Footnotes:

  1. 13.44 the Lord: Some manuscripts have “God.”
  2. 13.48 the Lord: Some manuscripts have “God.”
  3. 13.51 shook the dust from that place off their feet: This was a way of showing rejection.
  4. 14.1 Gentiles: The Greek text has “Greeks,” which probably means people who were not Jews. But it may mean Gentiles who worshiped with the Jews.

Cross references:

  1. 13.47 : Is 42.6; 49.6.
  2. 13.51 : Mt 10.14; Mk 6.11; Lk 9.5; 10.11.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Psalm 139

(A psalm by David for the music leader.)

The Lord Is Always Near

1 You have looked deep
into my heart, Lord,
and you know all about me.
2 You know when I am resting
or when I am working,
and from heaven
you discover my thoughts.

3 You notice everything I do
and everywhere I go.
4 Before I even speak a word,
you know what I will say,
5 and with your powerful arm
you protect me
from every side.
6 I can't understand all of this!
Such wonderful knowledge
is far above me.

7 Where could I go to escape
from your Spirit
or from your sight?
8 If I were to climb up
to the highest heavens,
you would be there.
If I were to dig down
to the world of the dead
you would also be there.

9 Suppose I had wings
like the dawning day
and flew across the ocean.
10 Even then your powerful arm
would guide and protect me.
11 Or suppose I said, “I'll hide
in the dark until night comes
to cover me over.”
12 But you see in the dark
because daylight and dark
are all the same to you.

13 You are the one
who put me together
inside my mother's body,
14 and I praise you because of
the wonderful way
you created me.
Everything you do is marvelous!
Of this I have no doubt.

15 Nothing about me
is hidden from you!
I was secretly woven together
out of human sight,
16 but with your own eyes you saw
my body being formed.
Even before I was born,
you had written in your book
everything about me.

17 (A) Your thoughts are far beyond
my understanding,
much more than I
could ever imagine.
18 I try to count your thoughts,
but they outnumber the grains
of sand on the beach.
And when I awake,
I will find you nearby.

19 How I wish that you would kill
all cruel and heartless people
and protect me from them!
20 They are always rebelling
and speaking evil of you.[a]
21 You know I hate anyone
who hates you, Lord,
and refuses to obey.
22 They are my enemies too,
and I truly hate them.

23 Look deep into my heart, God,
and find out everything
I am thinking.
24 Don't let me follow evil ways,
but lead me in the way
that time has proven true.

Footnotes:

  1. 139.20 you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 20.

Cross references:

  1. 139.17 : Si 18.5-7.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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

Proverbs 17:19-21

19 The wicked and the proud
love trouble and keep begging
to be hurt.
20 Dishonesty does you no good,
and telling lies
will get you in trouble.
21 It's never pleasant
to be the parent of a fool
and have nothing but pain.

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

06/21/2023 DAB Transcript

2 Kings 1:1-2:25, Acts 13:42-14:7, Psalms 139:1-24, Proverbs 17:19-21

Today is the 21st day of June welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian and here we are, center of the week. Moving through the middle of another one of our weeks together and it is fantastic to be here with you today as we do what we do, take the next step forward together. Our next step kinda…sorta…leads us into new territory. We finished the book of first Kings yesterday. And, so, we’re gonna begin second Kings in just a moment. It’s just that there’s not a whole lot to talk about here. These…these manuscripts were broken apart for the ease of finding things. And, so, we’re not moving into new territory. We don’t need to come to this overview of what’s going to be happening. We’re continuing this journey through the kings of Judah and the kings of Israel and sort of what was going on during their reigns. And, so, we’re moving through history pretty quickly. Sometimes we slow down and get more details on certain kings and others we get like a paragraph when actually a whole generation goes by in that paragraph. But as we begin second Kings we will see a transition. We had a prophetic voice in the book of first Kings. His name was Elijah. And we will watch a transition between Elijah and his successor Elisha. And, so, let’s dive in together. Today second Kings, chapters 1 and 2.

Commentary:

Okay. So, we’ve launched ourselves into second Kings and we talked about the territory that we’re going into. And then we got into the book of Acts and we’re seeing now Paul, who is the apostle Paul and Barnabas on this missionary journey, and what we’re seeing is that everywhere they go and begin to share the good news it causes a reaction. It’s not like a passive thing and there is a reaction of either an open heart where people are just overjoyed at the immense good news that is being preached or they are antagonistic toward it. It’s kind of not a passive thing. And, so, we’re seeing that everywhere that Paul goes so that people are stirred up against them and people are stirred up for them. We’ll continue to see this pattern as we continue this journey of the spread of the gospel of Jesus and the formation of the early church.

And then we got to Psalm 139 today. It’s…it’s a favorite one of mine because when I read it it seems like there’s a question there. And the question is, where is God not? Where…where isn’t He, rather than the question we ask all the time, where is He? The Psalms like if I go to heaven You’re there. If I go down to the realm of the dead, You’re there. If I go east or I go west You’re there. If I go to the far side of the ocean You’re there. You will guide me. Your strength will support me. So, if this passage of Scripture is true then what’s being indicated is that there is no where we can flee from God’s presence, which then brings up the question, why are we always looking for it when it’s right here right now? So often that…that’s motivated by a need for like an emotional connection, some sort of sense of His presence, but it seems that that’s more about us than it is about God. It’s like us, getting ourselves into a place where we can experience the presence of God in worship and then we kind of equate that experience with the presence of God because it is the presence of God that we’re actively experiencing. But His presence doesn’t go away. We don’t have to conjure Him up in some sort of way, so that what…that God is drawing near and now we are in His presence. So, what the Psalm seems to be indicating is there’s nowhere you can go that’s not in His presence including heaven and the realm of the dead. So, it would be safe to say that in this life there is nowhere we can flee from the presence of God. And that awareness is a bit of a game changer because it means that God is present to us no matter what we feel like or no matter what is going on. So, why not…why don’t we just practice that awareness today and consider that everything you do, every thought you have, every conversation that you participate in, every action that you take no matter where you are matter what’s going on God is present. He is not distant. He is near. That should be comforting and maybe even sobering because it brings up other questions, like what would I not want God to bear witness to and what do I not want Him to know about or what embarrass me if I really thought that God knew about that? Typically, when we think of things in those terms we are simply naming the things that are trying to seduce us away from God. So, why don’t we practice reality today? Let’s practice reality. We are in the presence of God. Every breath we take, every move we make He’ll be watching over us. Let’s practice this awareness today and then reflect upon how it influenced the day we lived and then become aware that we can live every day aware of God’s presence everywhere.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit come into this. We so often are back and forth looking for where You went when You didn’t go anywhere. It’s that we probably did. Help us to settle into this awareness that there is nothing that we can do. We are in Your presence now, and all we need to do is become aware of it. Lead and guide us today as we practice this we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com, that’s home base and that’s where you can find out what’s happening around here. The Daily Audio Bible app which can be downloaded from whatever…well…whatever app store works of your device puts that in the palm of your hand and so much more. And, so, check that out.

Check out the different sections. The Community section. This is where links are to get connected on social media. This is where the Prayer Wall is.

Check out the Daily Audio Bible Shop. There are resources that are available in the number of different categories for the journey that we are on, this voyage through the Bible in a year. And, so, check that out.

And if you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible. If you find that being around the Global Campfire is life-giving then thank you humbly for your partnership. There is a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner, or the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the Hotline button in the app. That’s the little red button up at the top or you can dial 877-942-4253.

And that’s all for today other than to tell you the truth. I love you and I’m grateful for the journey we are on together and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hello DABbers John from New England calling with a great belated praise report and a prayer request. A little over a year ago I called in in the middle of the night I was suffering from muscle spasms in my left leg were waking me up and causing me pain ruining my life and thanks to prayers from Victoria Soldier, Steve, and many others and some good counsel on the Prayer Wall the problem was healed and I’m forever grateful for that to all of you. Thank you. Prayer request for my son’s fiancé Nicole who two years ago went through 12 hour surgery to remove avocado size tumor from the back of her head. A small piece was left behind it was that was covered in nerves and that has grown back now two years year later and it’s the size of a golf ball. A few weeks ago she went through some radiation therapy to try to mitigate it and won’t know until September whether it was successful and I just ask that you pray for my son’s fiancé Nicole that this procedure was successful and that this tumor doesn’t come back and that it is permanently…is permanently healed so that he and she enjoy life and she doesn’t have to be constantly worrying about this and struggling with it. Also, I just want to say many thanks to Brian, Jill, China, the whole Hardin family for the blessing of Daily Audio Bible, which for me last 17 years or so and my wife has become part of our daily ritual. Of course, the Daily Audio Bible Chronological, my evening ritual. Life changing. Thank you. God…

Seeking your face at the start of my day
I found that for me there’s no better way
in fact you said to acknowledge you in all of my ways
and to bring all of my thoughts in subjection to Christ whenever my mind and heart strays
cause trouble surrounds me wherever I go
health problems family problems bills a sack full of woe
should I try to work it all out with the strength of my own hands
or stand in faith and wait on you ignoring my heart’s well thought out but impatient plans
because you said the wisdom of man is foolishness to you
and I know all your words are faithful and true
so I’m seeking your face at the start of my day
cause I know that for me there’s no better way

bindtony1016@gmail.com. I’d like to give a shout out to Alta Lee Maxwell. I want to give you best wishes and congratulations on your…on your getting married and I pray that you and your husband have many fruitful happy years together hopefully in service to the Lord. And once again Brian and the Hardin family I want to thank you for this wonderful podcast for God’s Holy Spirit to flow keep it…

Daily Audio Bible family this is Lawrence in Atlanta. I’ve been listening for over 15 years and this ministry has brought me joy, has helped me through some of the toughest times in my life, and has been the single most rewarding thing that I’ve done to get to know God and have community with fellow Christians. I’m coming to you today because I’m just broken, and in need of prayer. My marriage has been really tough over the past 14 years. God’s blessed us with wonderful children and blessed us with successful businesses but the relationship between my wife and I has been very dysfunctional and unhealthy in a bunch of different areas for years. And over the years I’ve built up a lot of resentment and anger towards her and I’ve acted out and I’m afraid that what I’ve done has destroyed my family. So, I formed an emotional relationship with someone I work with and my heart more than anything wants to be with that person, wants to spend time with them instead of my own wife. My wife is devastated. She’s hurting so bad. All my family and friends around me are furious with me for not wanting to work it out with my wife. My heart is hard. It is not softened. I’ve asked God to soften my heart towards my wife but I…it’s just not what I want. And I feel that what I…

Hi beautiful family, this is Prisoner of Hope. I am lifting up Bernie and your marriage. Father, he is struggling, he and his wife in their marriage and they need Your help. They need Your strength to keep going and Your wisdom to know what to do. Please help them to love one another in the way that You love them and just help them to forgive and heal and work on restoration. Please protect their beautiful children as they go through this. A man called in asking for a financial provisions for his family. Your dad’s in Kansas your mom passed away a couple years ago and your grandmother recently passed away. And then Remorseful Sinner, you need a financial miracle as well. I’m gonna pray for both of you. Lord please help this man and Remorseful Sinner to manage and steward what finances they do have with wisdom and diligence. Please help them with their debt, be their Jehovah Jira and grant their lives the financial breakthrough that they so badly need. And please especially help Remorseful Sinner to have energy and lift her out of any depression and give her what she needs so she…she can go out and find a job. Searching for Beauty, it looks like you’re stage 4 cancer. I want to pray for you and your daughters. Almighty God by the power of Your healing hand may Searching for Beauty experience health, strength, and peace. Just please alleviate the suffering that she’s going through and continue to help her in her relationship, the relationships with their daughters and extend her life to be with them according to Your will. Manita you are just going through a really tell real time. You didn’t say what, but I just love you so much and I’m going to pray for you. Dear God, please give Manita strength, courage, love, encouragement, comfort, and a fresh portion of Your hope to help her with whatever she’s going through. Thank You that You are on the throne Lord, always our God. Please be near to her and rescue her from her fears and hurst and help her to remember that this trial will not last forever. We ask all these things in the beautiful and powerful mighty name of Jesus. Amen.

Posted on

6/20/2023 DAB Transcript

1 Kings 22:1-53, Acts 13:16-41, Psalm 138:1-8, Proverbs 17:17-18

Today is the 20th day of June, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It is wonderful to be here with you today, as we gather, yet again, and take the next step forward together on the adventure through the Bible this year. Walking back out to where we left off, leads us back out into the book of First Kings, where we are continuing our journey through the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah, and some of the prophetic voices that were intermingled throughout the reigns of the different kings. So, let’s pick up the story, today, first Kings chapter 22.

Commentary:

Okay, so, in the book of First Kings today, we see the king of Israel and the king of Judah, getting together, King Ahab and King Jehoshaphat. So, they’re on friendly terms at this point. And King Ahab of Israel is just kind of musing about a city that they lost in battle, Ramoth in Gilead and about going back and maybe recovering that city. And then he turns to Jehoshaphat and asks if Judah’s armies would join Israel’s armies to retake this city, and Jehoshaphat, following God, is like, yes, we should ask God, though. So, Ahab brings in 400 prophets to inquire of the Lord about this battle and then they inquire, should we go and, and take Ramoth, will you give us victory and all of the prophets started prophesying yes, yes, yes, you will be victorious, go right ahead, God will…will give you the victory. One of prophets even fashions this kind of bowl apparatus, like you will gore the people, you will gore Ramoth in Gilead, you will take this, God will give you victory. King Jehoshaphat is not convinced; he wants a prophet that is working in the way that he would understand a prophet of the most high God. And so, Ahab’s like, there is one more, his name is Micaiah. He never says anything good about me. I hate him, but okay we can get him. And so, they do. They send for Micaiah. And when the official who is summoning the prophet Micaiah arrives at Micaiah’s place. He tells Micaiah what’s going on. It’s a question of the Lord about a battle in Ramoth Gilead and all the prophets have affirmed God’s word is to proceed, that victory is coming, that they will be victorious, go ahead without fear. You need to know what the prophets are saying Micaiah because you need to kind of say the same thing. And Micaiah is like, yeah, yeah I can only say what I hear God tell me to say. And so, that’s how Micaiah gets before these two Kings. So, here’s Micaiah, this obscure profit that we know next to nothing about, showing up here in the Bible, a prophet of the most high God. Definitely respected as that kind of a prophet because he was summoned specifically. But here he is, walking in to whatever setting that they’re walking into but it’s gotta be a large enough space so there are two Kings and 400 prophets, all kind of on the same page. Micaiah is in this precarious position, where everything is pushing him to just affirm what everybody else is saying because what does he know, like it’s such an opportunity for him to second-guess everything. All of these people are bent on this one thing and are affirming this one thing. So, he’s in this position where his easy route is what he did in sarcasm, which is just to affirm what everybody else is saying, yes of course, of course, go you, you will be victorious in battle, yes, yes. But Ahab knows that he’s being sarcastic, so he wants the truth. And that is this thing. Micaiah is in this position where he has to tell the truth, it’s just that the truth is obscured from everyone else, he’s seeing what’s gonna happen and nobody else is. So he’s got to either stand in opposition to what everyone else is saying, or simply kind of go along with it and watch what happens and keep his mouth shut, or just second-guess himself. And we kind of see the acknowledgment of that tension there when Micaiah does his sarcastic affirmation that they should go into battle, but he’s pressed for the truth, and he has to tell it and he does. And what he essentially says is that he sees an army without a leader. And indeed, indeed they went into battle and Ahab was killed in the battle. Here’s the thing though, Micaiah was summoned, and the word of the Lord came. Right, they were warned, and they did not listen. Micaiah was put in the awkward position where everybody was affirming something different, and he needed to tell the truth of what he was seeing. But he wasn’t responsible for the response of the people, he was responsible to tell the truth of the word of the Lord, that the Lord had given him to say. That’s what he did. It did not stop the destruction. Ahab still died in battle; he didn’t listen. That’s not Micaiah’s fault. Sometimes we wind ourselves into circumstances where we’re kind of in this position of Micaiah, where we’re seeing something that nobody else is seeing, maybe everyone else is affirming a different direction, but we have the sense that this is going to be like, this isn’t gonna work and we find ourselves in that difficult position of just keeping silent or just second-guessing ourselves or actually standing up in love and saying wait, there are maybe a few other things to think about here because I’m looking at this and…and what I see, isn’t gonna work out well. That is usually speaking the humble truth in love and were not responsible for what happens after that. Micaiah was asked to deliver a message which, he did. The message was not heeded, and destruction happened. But King Ahab and King Jehoshaphat were warned in advance by Micaiah. Sometimes we may find ourselves where we are the only voice, the only warning there will be and it’s not about us being right at all. It’s not about us, at all. It’s about humbly speaking the truth in love and letting it go.

Prayer:

And so, Holy Spirit, come into that. We do find ourselves in those positions sometimes and they’re tricky being around other people, interpersonal relationships. We’re wired for this, we’re made for this but it can be tricky. We’re all bringing our own stories into the relationships so we don’t always know. But, Holy Spirit, when we feel impressed from You that You are showing us something that we need to say may we humbly speak the truth in love, with no attachment to any kind of outcome, that’s not our role usually. Micaiah gave a warning that was not heeded, that happens in our lives too. We can offer insight that is not heeded but we can also receive it and not heed it and walk ourselves into a wall. So, we know how this goes. And we understand that the ingredient that so often is missing, when we have these kinds of situations, is humility. So, Holy Spirit come, when we feel impressed in some sort of way to speak truth, may we come with hands open, heart open regardless. And we pray this in Your name Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is home base and that is indeed where to find out what’s going on around here and so certainly do that. You can download the Daily Audio Bible app and put that in the palm of your hand from the App Store that’s connected to your device. So check that out too, if you haven’t checked it out. Check out the Daily Audio Bible Shop. There are a number of categories with a number of resources in those categories. For example, check out the…the Daily Audio Bible Wind Farm coffee and tea varieties. We source these in, roast the coffee fresh, send it out to you, mostly because it’s part of our routine here. Whether it’s a warm cup of tea or steamy cup of coffee, which is what I normally have, which is what I have right now, sitting here to my left like it is every day. Having a cup of coffee or tea and spending some time with the Scriptures and allowing them to come into our lives and allowing the Holy Spirit to begin to guide our day. This is what we seek. So, you may be driving through a drive-through every day getting your morning coffee or you may be making a cup of coffee but we can send it to you, roasted fresh and you can see all of the different varieties in the Daily Audio Bible Shop in the coffee and tea section.

And of course, if you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, humble, humble, humble gratitude as a community we’re in this together and we wouldn’t be in this if we weren’t in this together. And so, thank you, very humbly, for your partnership, as we move through the summer months. There is a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

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

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

Prayer and Encouragements:

Good morning, this is Julie from San Diego, the Woman Kneeling at the Cross. I have a praise report about our son, Jonathan, who’s 37-years-old, had gone into the hospital with pneumonia. He was there for 4 days. During that time, they found out that he has congestive heart failure. He, a lot of it, it is because he’s neglecting his body and also abusing alcohol, marijuana and later on we found out that he was using cocaine. And that’s caused all of this damage to his heart. We are praying that God would just help him recover and just have, that his heart would be restored. There’s damage that the doctors say cannot be restored. But we know that we serve a God who heals, a God that restores, a God of miracles. And that’s what we’re praying for. I want to thank all of those who were praying. I know Duane from Wisconsin.

Hi, DAB family, this is Kristine from Oregon. And I just, first of all, want to say thank you to all the people who have prayed for me because I heard something from God in each and every one of them. Self-control, which I’ve lacked my entire life. I’m a very sporadic person. And also, that God has been doing some amazing things in my life. And truly, I’m hating things that I’ve loved. And I’m loving things that I’ve hated. And I just didn’t realize when I called last time and asked for prayer, that I was gonna be opening the flood gates of heaven. Because I am just watching God work all around me. So, thank you so much. And I am going to an AA meeting right now, it starts at 12. I’m on my way, so I’m asking for prayer for that. I know that again when, this gets aired it’ll be after the fact but I, my plan is to keep going Monday through Friday, for a while and just see where God leads me. I’ve been super resistant to go to AA. I’ve gone once. I’ve gone to a few celebrate recovery meetings in my past. And I’ve actually made it two separate times, to lawyers. But, like I said, I’ve been, had this career of drinking for so long that it never lasts. So, I made it two days, I called on June 2nd and I made it, June 3rd I was at a, my daughters bridal shower and I had mimosas and then, my first dry day was yesterday. So, thank you so much for your prayers. Oh my gosh, God is so good. And again, I love you guys. I found an amazing group.

Hello DAB fam. I have been listening for a very long time and I just wanted to come on here and just say thank you. Thank you for being such a wonderful community. Thank you to Brian and his family for all that they do at DAB. And I just want to pray for everyone on here really quick. Lord, thank You so much for Your goodness, thank You for Your wisdom. Thank You for Your sovereignty. I thank You for every single person as part of DAB, Lord. And I, I just thank You for their lives. I thank You for their families. And God, as I know many of them are going through various challenges and different things, I pray, Lord, that You would be so near and so present with them. I thank You just for this space that we have to come together every day. And I pray that You would help us to continue to grow and thrive, as we read Your word afresh. Amen.

Hi, this is Samantha from Tennessee and I’m calling cause I wanted to ask you guys for prayer. A girl that’s like a sister to me is dying. She’s been sick for a long time and we’re just at the end. And we’ve been given hours and I just want you guys to pray for comfort for my family and for her family. She has lots of younger siblings. And this is just gonna be really hard on all of them and all of us. And I’m so thankful to God that she’s going to be whole and healed in heaven for the first time in many years. But it’s still really sucks.

Good morning my beautiful DAB family. I’m calling to say thank you for your prayers. And to let you know how much has changed in my life since requesting prayer. This is Libby from Queensland, Australia. First of all, I was filled with fear, the spirit of fear. And I came to realize it was the fear of men. And that now being broken in my life, has opened, opened the doors for God to work in my heart. And my prayer at the beginning of this year was that I would have a beautiful heart and restore in me a clean heart, oh God. And you know, without the essential work of, of removing that spirit of fear, the fear of men, that would never have become a reality for me. So, I thank you so much and I praise God for this, this community. It is an absolute blessing to all of us who listen and pray and call in for help. And God moves, when you call for help. And He has moved mightily in my life. And I praise His name. And I thank you for the love you’ve shown me. And have a blessed day, dear family.

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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday June 20, 2023 (NIV)

1 Kings 22

Micaiah Warns Ahab about Disaster

(2 Chronicles 18.2-27)

22 For the next three years there was peace between Israel and Syria. 2 During the third year King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to visit King Ahab of Israel.

3 Ahab asked his officials, “Why haven't we tried to get Ramoth in Gilead back from the Syrians? It belongs to us.” 4 Then he asked Jehoshaphat, “Would you go to Ramoth with me and attack the Syrians?”

“Just tell me what to do,” Jehoshaphat answered. “My army and horses are at your command. 5 But first, let's ask the Lord.”

6 Ahab sent for about 400 prophets and asked, “Should I attack the Syrians at Ramoth?”

“Yes!” the prophets answered. “The Lord will help you defeat them.”

7 But Jehoshaphat said, “Just to make sure, is there another of the Lord's prophets we can ask?”

8 “We could ask Micaiah son of Imlah,” Ahab said. “But I hate Micaiah. He always has bad news for me.”

“Don't say that!” Jehoshaphat replied. 9 Then Ahab sent someone to bring Micaiah as soon as possible.

10 All this time, Ahab and Jehoshaphat were dressed in their royal robes and were seated on their thrones at the threshing place near the gate of Samaria. They were listening to the prophets tell them what the Lord had said.

11 Zedekiah son of Chenaanah was one of the prophets. He had made some horns out of iron and shouted, “Ahab, the Lord says you will attack the Syrians like a bull with iron horns and wipe them out!”

12 All the prophets agreed that Ahab should attack the Syrians at Ramoth, and they promised that the Lord would help him defeat them.

13 Meanwhile, the messenger who went to get Micaiah whispered, “Micaiah, all the prophets have good news for Ahab. Now go and say the same thing.”

14 “I'll say whatever the living Lord tells me to say,” Micaiah replied.

15 Then Micaiah went to Ahab, and Ahab asked, “Micaiah, should I attack the Syrians at Ramoth?”

“Yes!” Micaiah answered. “The Lord will help you defeat them.”

16 “Micaiah, I've told you over and over to tell me the truth!” Ahab shouted. “What does the Lord really say?”

17 (A) He answered, “In a vision[a] I saw Israelite soldiers walking around in the hills like sheep without a shepherd to guide them. The Lord said, ‘This army has no leader. They should go home and not fight.’ ”

18 Ahab turned to Jehoshaphat and said, “I told you he would bring bad news!”

19 (B) Micaiah replied:

Listen to this! I also saw the Lord seated on his throne with every creature in heaven gathered around him. 20 The Lord asked, “Who can trick Ahab and make him go to Ramoth where he will be killed?”

They talked about it for a while, 21 then finally a spirit came forward and said to the Lord, “I can trick Ahab.”

“How?” the Lord asked.

22 “I'll make Ahab's prophets lie to him.”

“Good!” the Lord replied. “Now go and do it.”

23 This is exactly what has happened, Ahab. The Lord made all your prophets lie to you, and he knows you will soon be destroyed.

24 Zedekiah walked up to Micaiah and slapped him on the face. Then he asked, “Do you really think the Lord would speak to you and not to me?”

25 Micaiah answered, “You'll find out on the day you have to hide in the back room of some house.”

26 Ahab shouted, “Arrest Micaiah! Take him to Prince Joash and Governor Amon of Samaria. 27 Tell them to put him in prison and to give him nothing but bread and water until I come back safely.”

28 Micaiah said, “If you do come back, I was wrong about what the Lord wanted me to say.” Then he told the crowd, “Don't forget what I said!”

Ahab Dies at Ramoth

(2 Chronicles 18.28-34)

29 Ahab and Jehoshaphat led their armies to Ramoth in Gilead. 30 Before they went into battle, Ahab said, “Jehoshaphat, I'll disguise myself, but you wear your royal robe.” Then Ahab disguised himself and went into battle.

31 The king of Syria had ordered his 32 chariot commanders to attack only Ahab. 32 So when they saw Jehoshaphat in his robe, they thought he was Ahab and started to attack him. But when Jehoshaphat shouted out to them, 33 they realized he wasn't Ahab, and they left him alone.

34 However, during the fighting a soldier shot an arrow without even aiming, and it hit Ahab where two pieces of his armor joined. He shouted to his chariot driver, “I've been hit! Get me out of here!”

35 The fighting lasted all day, with Ahab propped up in his chariot so he could see the Syrian troops. He bled so much that the bottom of the chariot was covered with blood, and by evening he was dead.

36 As the sun was going down, someone in Israel's army shouted to the others, “Retreat! Go back home!”

37 Ahab's body was taken to Samaria and buried there. 38 Some workers washed his chariot near a spring in Samaria, and prostitutes washed themselves in his blood.[b] Dogs licked Ahab's blood off the ground, just as the Lord had warned.

39 Everything else Ahab did while he was king, including the towns he strengthened and the palace he built and furnished with ivory, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. 40 Ahab died, and his son Ahaziah became king.

King Jehoshaphat of Judah

(2 Chronicles 20.31—21.1)

41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah in Ahab's fourth year as king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king, and he ruled from Jerusalem for 25 years. His mother was Azubah daughter of Shilhi.

43-46 Jehoshaphat obeyed the Lord, just as his father Asa had done, and during his rule he was at peace with the king of Israel.

He got rid of the rest of the prostitutes[c] from the local shrines, but he did not destroy the shrines, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

Everything else Jehoshaphat did while he was king, including his brave deeds and military victories, is written in The History of the Kings of Judah.

47 The country of Edom had no king at the time, so a lower official ruled the land.

48 Jehoshaphat had seagoing ships[d] built to sail to Ophir for gold. But they were wrecked at Ezion-Geber and never sailed. 49 Ahaziah son of Ahab offered to let his sailors go with Jehoshaphat's sailors, but Jehoshaphat refused.

50 Jehoshaphat died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem,[e] and his son Jehoram became king.

King Ahaziah of Israel

51 Ahaziah son of Ahab became king of Israel in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat's rule in Judah, and he ruled two years from Samaria.

52 Ahaziah disobeyed the Lord, just as his father, his mother, and Jeroboam had done. They all led Israel to sin. 53 Ahaziah worshiped Baal and made the Lord God of Israel very angry, just as his father had done.

Footnotes:

  1. 22.17 vision: In ancient times, prophets often told about future events from what they had seen in visions or dreams.
  2. 22.38 in his blood: One ancient translation; these words are not in the Hebrew text.
  3. 22.43-46 prostitutes: See the note at 14.24.
  4. 22.48 seagoing ships: See the note at 10.22.
  5. 22.50 Jerusalem: Hebrew “the city of his ancestor David.”

Cross references:

  1. 22.17 : Nu 27.17; Mt 9.36; Mk 6.34.
  2. 22.19 : Job 1.6; Is 6.1.
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Acts 13:16-41

16 Paul got up. He motioned with his hand and said:

People of Israel, and everyone else who worships God, listen! 17 (A) The God of Israel chose our ancestors, and he let our people prosper while they were living in Egypt. Then with his mighty power he led them out, 18 (B) and for about 40 years he took care of[a] them in the desert. 19 (C) He destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan and gave their land to our people. 20 (D) All this happened in about 450 years.

Then God gave our people judges until the time of the prophet Samuel, 21 (E) but the people demanded a king. So for 40 years God gave them King Saul, the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. 22 (F) Later, God removed Saul and let David rule in his place. God said about him, “David the son of Jesse is the kind of person who pleases me most! He does everything I want him to do.”

23 God promised that someone from David's family would come to save the people of Israel, and this one is Jesus. 24 (G) But before Jesus came, John was telling everyone in Israel to turn back to God and be baptized. 25 (H) Then, when John's work was almost done, he said, “Who do you people think I am? Do you think I am the Promised One? He will come later, and I am not good enough to untie his sandals.”

26 Now listen, you descendants of Abraham! Pay attention, all of you Gentiles who are here to worship God! Listen to this message about how to be saved, because it is for everyone. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their leaders didn't realize who Jesus was. And they didn't understand the words of the prophets they read each Sabbath. So they condemned Jesus just as the prophets had said.

28-29 (I) They did exactly what the Scriptures said they would. Even though they couldn't find any reason to put Jesus to death, they still asked Pilate to have him killed.

After Jesus had been put to death, he was taken down from the cross[b] and placed in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from death! 31 (J) Then for many days Jesus appeared to his followers who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. Now they are telling our people about him.

32 God made a promise to our ancestors. And we are here to tell you the good news 33 (K) that he has kept this promise to us. It is just as the second Psalm says about Jesus,

“You are my son because today
I have become your Father.”

34 (L) God raised Jesus from death and will never let his body decay. It is just as God said,

“I will make to you
the same holy promises
that I made to David.”

35 (M) And in another psalm it says, “God will never let the body of his Holy One decay.”

36 When David was alive, he obeyed God. Then after he died, he was buried in the family grave, and his body decayed. 37 But God raised Jesus from death, and his body did not decay.

38 My friends, the message is that Jesus can forgive your sins! The Law of Moses could not set you free from all your sins. 39 But everyone who has faith in Jesus is set free. 40 Make sure what the prophets have said doesn't happen to you. They said,

41 (N) “Look, you people
who make fun of God!
Be amazed
and disappear.
I will do something today
that you won't believe,
even if someone
tells you about it!”

Footnotes:

  1. 13.18 took care of: Some manuscripts have “put up with.”
  2. 13.28-29 cross: This translates a Greek word that means “wood,” “pole,” or “tree.”

Cross references:

  1. 13.17 a : Ex 1.7; b Ex 12.51.
  2. 13.18 : Nu 14.34; Dt 1.31.
  3. 13.19 a : Dt 7.1; b Js 14.1.
  4. 13.20 a : Jg 2.16; b 1 S 3.20.
  5. 13.21 a : 1 S 8.5; b 1 S 10.21.
  6. 13.22 a : 1 S 13.14; b 1 S 16.12; Ps 89.20.
  7. 13.24 : Mk 1.4; Lk 3.3.
  8. 13.25 a : Jn 1.19,20; b Mt 3.11; Mk 1.7; Lk 3.16; Jn 1.27.
  9. 13.28-29 a : Mt 27.22-26; Mk 15.13-15; Lk 23.21-25; Jn 19.15,16; b Mt 27.57-61; Mk 15.42-47; Lk 23.50-56; Jn 19.38-42.
  10. 13.31 : Ac 1.3.
  11. 13.33 : Ps 2.7.
  12. 13.34 : Is 55.3 (LXX).
  13. 13.35 : Ps 16.10.
  14. 13.41 : Hb 1.5 (LXX).
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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Psalm 138

(By David.)

Praise the Lord with All Your Heart

1 With all my heart
I praise you, Lord.
In the presence of angels[a]
I sing your praises.
2 I worship at your holy temple
and praise you for your love
and your faithfulness.
You were true to your word
and made yourself more famous
than ever before.[b]
3 When I asked for your help,
you answered my prayer
and gave me courage.[c]

4 All kings on this earth
have heard your promises, Lord,
and they will praise you.
5 You are so famous
that they will sing about
the things you have done.
6 Though you are above us all,
you care for humble people,
and you keep a close watch
on everyone who is proud.

7 I am surrounded by trouble,
but you protect me
against my angry enemies.
With your own powerful arm
you keep me safe.

8 You, Lord, will always
treat me with kindness.
Your love never fails.
You have made us what we are.
Don't give up on us now![d]

Footnotes:

  1. 138.1 angels: Or “gods” or “supernatural beings” who worship and serve God in heaven; or possibly “rulers” or “leaders.”
  2. 138.2 You were … before: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  3. 138.3 and gave me courage: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  4. 138.8 You have … now: Or “Please don't desert your people.”
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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Proverbs 17:17-18

17 (A) A friend is there to help,
in any situation,
and relatives are born
to share our troubles.
18 It's stupid to guarantee
someone else's loan.

Cross references:

  1. 17.17 : Si 6.7-10.
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

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