December 2023 – A Walk Through The Word

December 31, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Sunday December 31, 2023 (NIV)

Malachi 3-4

3 ^(A)“Behold, I send ^(B)my messenger, and ^(C)he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord ^(D)whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and ^(E)the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. ²But ^(F)who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For ^(G)he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. ³He will sit ^(H)as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring ^(I)offerings in righteousness to the Lord.^[a] ⁴^(J)Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years.

⁵“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be ^(K)a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those ^(L)who oppress the hired worker in his wages, ^(M)the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.

Robbing God

⁶“For ^(N)I the Lord do not change; ^(O)therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. ⁷^(P)From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. ^(Q)Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. ^(R)But you say, ‘How shall we return?’ ⁸Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. ^(S)But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ ^(T)In your tithes and contributions. ⁹^(U)You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. ¹⁰^(V)Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby ^(W)put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open ^(X)the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. ¹¹I will rebuke ^(Y)the devourer^[b] for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. ¹²Then ^(Z)all nations will call you blessed, for you will be ^(AA)a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.

¹³^(AB)“Your words have been hard against me, says the Lord. ^(AC)But you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ ¹⁴You have said, ^(AD)‘It is vain to serve God. ^(AE)What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? ¹⁵And now we call ^(AF)the arrogant blessed. ^(AG)Evildoers not only prosper but ^(AH)they put God to the test and they escape.’”

The Book of Remembrance

¹⁶Then those who feared the Lord ^(AI)spoke with one another. The Lord paid attention and heard them, and ^(AJ)a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the Lord and esteemed his name. ¹⁷“They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, ^(AK)in the day when I make up ^(AL)my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. ¹⁸Then once more you shall ^(AM)see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

The Great Day of the Lord

4 ^[c] “For behold, ^(AN)the day is coming, ^(AO)burning like an oven, when ^(AP)all the arrogant and ^(AQ)all evildoers ^(AR)will be stubble. The day that is coming ^(AS)shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. ²But for you ^(AT)who fear my name, ^(AU)the sun ^(AV)of righteousness shall rise ^(AW)with healing in its wings. You shall go out ^(AX)leaping like calves from the stall. ³And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, ^(AY)on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.

⁴^(AZ)“Remember ^(BA)the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules^[d] that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

⁵^(BB)“Behold, I will send you ^(BC)Elijah the prophet ^(BD)before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. ⁶And he will ^(BE)turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and ^(BF)strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”^[e]

Footnotes:

Malachi 3:3 Or and they will belong to the Lord, bringers of an offering in righteousness
Malachi 3:11 Probably a name for some crop-destroying pest or pests
Malachi 4:1 Ch 4:1–6 is ch 3:19–24 in Hebrew
Malachi 4:4 Or and just decrees
Malachi 4:6 The Hebrew term rendered decree of utter destruction refers to things devoted (or set apart) to the Lord (or by the Lord) for destruction

Cross references:

Malachi 3:1 : Cited Matt. 11:10; Mark 1:2; Luke 7:27; [ch. 4:5; Luke 1:76]
Malachi 3:1 : See ch. 2:7
Malachi 3:1 : See Isa. 40:3
Malachi 3:1 : [ch. 2:17]
Malachi 3:1 : [ch. 4:5]
Malachi 3:2 : Joel 2:11
Malachi 3:2 : Isa. 4:4
Malachi 3:3 : Isa. 1:25; Zech. 13:9
Malachi 3:3 : [ch. 1:7]
Malachi 3:4 : Ezek. 20:40
Malachi 3:5 : ch. 2:14; Jer. 29:23
Malachi 3:5 : See Lev. 19:13
Malachi 3:5 : See Deut. 24:17
Malachi 3:6 : Ps. 102:27; See Num. 23:19
Malachi 3:6 : Lam. 3:22
Malachi 3:7 : Acts 7:51
Malachi 3:7 : See Zech. 1:3
Malachi 3:7 : [ch. 1:2]
Malachi 3:8 : [See ver. 7 above]; [ch. 1:2]
Malachi 3:8 : [Neh. 13:10]
Malachi 3:9 : [ch. 2:2]
Malachi 3:10 : [Prov. 3:9, 10]
Malachi 3:10 : See 2 Cor. 9:6-8
Malachi 3:10 : See Gen. 7:11
Malachi 3:11 : [Joel 1:4]
Malachi 3:12 : Zeph. 3:19
Malachi 3:12 : [Isa. 62:4]
Malachi 3:13 : [ch. 2:17]
Malachi 3:13 : [ch. 1:2]
Malachi 3:14 : [Zeph. 1:12]
Malachi 3:14 : [Job 21:15]
Malachi 3:15 : [ch. 4:1]
Malachi 3:15 : [ch. 4:1]
Malachi 3:15 : [Ps. 95:9]
Malachi 3:16 : [Deut. 6:6, 7]
Malachi 3:16 : See Ex. 32:32
Malachi 3:17 : [ch. 4:3; Acts 17:31]
Malachi 3:17 : Ex. 19:5; 1 Pet. 2:9
Malachi 3:18 : [ch. 4:1]
Malachi 4:1 : [ver. 5; ch. 3:2]
Malachi 4:1 : [2 Thess. 1:7, 8]
Malachi 4:1 : ch. 3:15
Malachi 4:1 : ch. 3:15
Malachi 4:1 : Isa. 47:14; [Matt. 3:12; Luke 3:17]
Malachi 4:1 : Isa. 47:14; [Matt. 3:12; Luke 3:17]
Malachi 4:2 : ch. 3:16
Malachi 4:2 : Ps. 84:11; Luke 1:78; John 1:4; 8:12; 9:5; 12:46
Malachi 4:2 : [Jer. 23:6]
Malachi 4:2 : Isa. 53:5
Malachi 4:2 : [Jer. 50:11]
Malachi 4:3 : See ch. 3:17
Malachi 4:4 : [Deut. 4:9, 10]
Malachi 4:4 : See Ex. 20:3-17; Deut. 4:10
Malachi 4:5 : [ch. 3:1]
Malachi 4:5 : [Matt. 11:14; Mark 9:11; Luke 1:17]
Malachi 4:5 : Joel 2:31
Malachi 4:6 : [Luke 1:17]
Malachi 4:6 : Isa. 11:4; [Zech. 5:3]

English Standard Version (ESV)

Revelation 22

The River of Life

22 Then the angel^[a] showed me ^(A)the river of ^(B)the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ²through the middle of ^(C)the street of the city; ^(D)also, on either side of the river, ^(E)the tree of life^[b] with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were ^(F)for the healing of the nations. ³^(G)No longer will there be anything accursed, but ^(H)the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and ^(I)his servants will worship him. ⁴^(J)They will see his face, and ^(K)his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵And ^(L)night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp ^(M)or sun, for ^(N)the Lord God will be their light, and ^(O)they will reign forever and ever.

Jesus Is Coming

⁶And he said to me, ^(P)“These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of ^(Q)the spirits of the prophets, ^(R)has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.”

⁷“And behold, ^(S)I am coming soon. ^(T)Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

⁸I, ^(U)John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, ^(V)I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, ⁹^(W)but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those ^(X)who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”

¹⁰And he said to me, ^(Y)“Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. ¹¹^(Z)Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.”

¹²“Behold, ^(AA)I am coming soon, ^(AB)bringing my recompense with me, ^(AC)to repay each one for what he has done. ¹³^(AD)I am the Alpha and the Omega, ^(AE)the first and the last, ^(AF)the beginning and the end.”

¹⁴Blessed are those who ^(AG)wash their robes,^[c] so that they may have the right to ^(AH)the tree of life and that ^(AI)they may enter the city by the gates. ¹⁵^(AJ)Outside are ^(AK)the dogs ^(AL)and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

¹⁶^(AM)“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things ^(AN)for the churches. I am ^(AO)the root and ^(AP)the descendant of David, ^(AQ)the bright morning star.”

¹⁷The Spirit and ^(AR)the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And ^(AS)let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the ^(AT)water of life without price.

¹⁸I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: ^(AU)if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, ¹⁹and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in ^(AV)the tree of life and in ^(AW)the holy city, which are described in this book.

²⁰He who testifies to these things says, “Surely ^(AX)I am coming soon.” Amen. ^(AY)Come, Lord Jesus!

²¹The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.^[d] Amen.

Footnotes:

Revelation 22:1 Greek he
Revelation 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life
Revelation 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments
Revelation 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Psalm 150

Let Everything Praise the Lord

150 ^(A)Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his ^(B)sanctuary;
praise him in ^(C)his mighty heavens!^[a]
²Praise him for his ^(D)mighty deeds;
praise him according to his excellent ^(E)greatness!

³Praise him with ^(F)trumpet sound;
praise him with ^(G)lute and ^(H)harp!
⁴Praise him with ^(I)tambourine and ^(J)dance;
praise him with ^(K)strings and ^(L)pipe!
⁵Praise him with sounding ^(M)cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
⁶Let ^(N)everything that has breath praise the Lord!
^(O)Praise the Lord!

Footnotes:

Psalm 150:1 Hebrew expanse (compare Genesis 1:6–8)

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 31:25-31

²⁵^(A)Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
²⁶She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
²⁷She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
²⁹“Many ^(B)women have done ^(C)excellently,
but you surpass them all.”
³⁰^(D)Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
³¹Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

December 30, 2023

12/30/2023 DAB Transcript

Malachi 1:1-2:17, Revelations 21:1-27, Psalm 149:1-9, Proverbs 31:10-24

Today is the 30th day of December, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian, wow guys. Tomorrow’s the last day of our journey. We have made it through almost another year, we’re not there. But wow, we’ve done it. And congratulations on that. We’ll talk about that more tomorrow, but here we are, encountering the last book that we will encounter in the Bible, and that is in the Old Testament and that is the book of Malachi, the last of the minor prophets. It’s the last book that we’ll get into this year.

Introduction to the Book of Malachi:

The name Malachi means ‘my messenger’ and so, scholars have debated about, is that a name, like is this book named after a prophet named Malachi, or is this book called my messenger and it was written by somebody else. For our purposes, we’ll assume that the author was a prophet of God, and his name was Malachi. And he was probably a contemporary of Ezra and Nehemiah, which we read not too long ago. But there’s nothing outside of the book that is known about him. He lived about a century after the Persians defeated the Babylonians and started letting the Hebrew exiles go back to Jerusalem and start rebuilding their homeland. And it had been more than 50 years since the temple, which…which was erected and spurred on by the voices of Haggai and Zechariah, which would just read, had been rebuilt. But the promises that restoration and prominence would come back to them, that didn’t happen. And so, the people were in their ancient homeland, but the glory of their former days did not come back. And so, they were discouraged, and they were a distant tiny people in a province of the Persian Empire. And because of those circumstances, the people became disinterested in their passion for God wasn’t working out. Right, and so, the moral and spiritual decline that we’ve watched so many times in the Bible, happened. They stopped sacrificing pure, spotless, blemish free sacrifices that they have been commanded by God. The priest started using the blind and blemished animals. And the law was receding to become less and less of a relevant plum line for their culture. And so, into all that Malachi comes, probably the last prophet of the Old Testament age, just rejecting that, rebuking the faithlessness of the people and calling them to return to God. And so, we’ll read this and after Malachi, it would be 400 years before another prophetic voice came, in the voice of John the Baptist, which would bring about the onset of what we, what we know as the New Testament era. And we may wonder about the 400 years, what was going on in those 400 years. In part, we can turn to…to writings from that time, from the in between. They’re known as the Apocrypha and they’re many Christian traditions that some of these books are considered as Scripture. Others don’t hold them as Scripture. There’s a lot of versions of the Scriptures that include the Apocrypha, others don’t. And this isn’t really me saying hey, so we’re getting to the end of this and there was 400 years, and maybe you should read the Apocrypha. It’s just, it’s writings from the time between the Old and the New Testament and tells a story that kind of leads forward. Maybe the best way that we can understand this is what was written in the Geneva Bible, that was, that was a…a English version of the Bible before the King James version and it included the Apocrypha. So does the King James version, by the way. But in the Geneva Bible it says these books were received to be read for the advancement in furtherance of the knowledge of history and for the instruction of Godly manners. So, there are writings that are not in the Bible and biblical but are from the time between, what we’re about to read in Malachi and what comes as the New Testament begins in the book of Matthew. But I guess that’s enough, that’s enough for now. Let’s actually get into the book of Malachi. And today we will read chapters 1 and 2.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word. We thank You for bringing us to Malachi, the last book that we will encounter, all 66 books now, and we’ll conclude them all tomorrow. And so, we stand here thankful for Your faithfulness to us, Your presence in our lives, the direction that You have given us, the clarity, the patience and understanding and long-suffering. We love You God. May we love You in spirit and in truth, and may we love our neighbor as we love ourselves. We pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com, that’s home base, that’s where you can find out what’s happening around here. The Daily Audio Bible app will do that. Just look for Daily Audio Bible in the app store that works with your device. And yeah, what’s going on around here is that were about to end another year. So, let’s get ready. I guess we’re packing up all our stuff, doing some laundry, getting ready to switch rooms maybe and…and start over again. The day after tomorrow and I’m excited to be back in Genesis and Matthew. And so, but we’re here and that’s what’s going on around here. And so, check it out if you can.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible as the days of this year come to an end, 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 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 will be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Prayer and Encouragements:

This is From Junk to Treasure. And I have a prayer request for my grandson Trenton. Just a couple weeks ago, he was in a car wreck where he was in the back seat of a friends car, and his friend had a wreck. He was treated and released. Last night, in the middle of the night, he was in a different vehicle with the same friend and the guy had a wreck and it rolled the vehicle four or five times. Trenton’s phone went dead and we have no contact with him now. And we are having trouble finding out what hospital he is in. And so, I need prayers for my grandson to be located, for the hand of God to hold him until he can get treated or we can get ahold of him to find out what is going on. He was just at church Sunday morning for the first time in years. And then, he has another car, involved in another car wreck from a friend that was driving. So, we need him covered in prayer and my daughter is a nervous wreck because she can’t find him. And his phone is obviously is still dead because it went dead as he was calling her to tell her he needed help. So, thank you very much for your prayers.

Hello DAB family, this is Janus calling from Haytensville, Maryland. I don’t know if this is gonna air before New Year’s or not, but I want to encourage my family to know, you are not alone. There’s so many on the DAB line that is praying for you. We…we weep when you’re hurting, we rejoice when you give your testimonies and we just pour in and pour in. So, you’re not alone, we’re mom’s, we’re dad’s, we’re sisters, we’re brothers, we’re aunt’s, we’re uncles’, we’re cousins, we’re nieces, we’re children, we’re grandparents. You are not alone. God has given you so many family members and we love you. So, please, go into the New Year knowing, you’re not alone. God loves you so much that He’s given you the DAB family. And prayerfully, you also have other family members but know that you are loved. And God is at work in all of us. Be encouraged. God blesses. Bye bye.

Hi beautiful family, this is Prisoner of Hope. Anna in Florida, I’m praying for you and your husband, you’re going for your RN and he’s partially disabled and your raising your 9 year old grand-daughter. I know you need a lot of favor and so, we’re praying for your situation. Jessica Rosenbloom, you’re going back to work, you’re nervous and panicky. I’m praying that you’ll stay sober, I’m praying for your children Nova and Loki. Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, from Rochester, Virgina, you’re sisters having severe attacks from the enemy. And then also, your husband is sick, so just praying for peace and rest and submission to the Lord. Eyes of a Dove, as a safety officer you’re gonna be gruelled by a CI agent Tom and then, it’s gonna be scary and overwhelming and stressful so we should just praying for this situation. His Leaning in Illinois, your brother was attacked by a guy named Nathan. We’re praying that he’ll be able to overcome this attack. And that Nathan will submit his life to the Lord. Christy from Ohio, you called about a job situation. You were let go from the 13th and you need a job, so we’re praying for God’s favor there. Hilla from California, your step-mom took, had her house taken away from her from a scammer. So, we’re praying that God will rectify that situation. And then God’s Trinkit, your seven year old granddaughter is in a bad place and you can’t get her out of the household that she’s in and they’re keeping her from you. So, we’re praying for this situation. Lord, we know that You are a good God to those who follow You. Please, Lord, may each of these people experience your blessings and favor. May you heal them so that they can mount up with wings like eagles and be strong as You renew their strength, Lord. And Lord, for those who need salvation, or need to turn their lives over to the Lord, just humble themselves before you. We ask that You would draw them in, encourage them, soften their hardness of hearts. Be a blessing to them. Help them to know their need for You. We ask all these things in the beautiful name of Jesus. Amen.

Oh dear Father, You know who this is, Manita. My DAB, this is Manita. My sweet siblings. This prayer is for Andrea. Father God, I come with thanksgiving in my heart, I come to thank You for You are a living God, You are our Heavenly Father who cares for us. You are the one who tells us cast your cares onto me and I will, because I care for you. Yes, Your word is just so faithful and so sweet, and so beautiful and it’s just so powerful in our lives, Father. So, I come before Your presence, Father, asking You for Your daughter, dear God, I’m before Your presence at this moment, Father. I just heard her prayer request, Lord. She’s not claiming anything in her life, Father, in her health. Father, in the name of Jesus, I come before You and to thank You for her victory, to thank You for her healing, dear God. Whatever it is, whatever it is that she’s going through, dear God, she is not claiming it. And praise God for that, I love that. When we say, I have this, I have that, you know, I feel like we are claiming it, you know. We should say, they found this in me, or the doctor said this and this and that, whatever. You know, but in the name of Jesus, we will say that we are not claiming whatever it is. She’s not claiming whatever it is that she’s going through. I love you Father, and I know that in the name of Your son Jesus, she’s going to hear a good report from the doctor. And I thank You for listening to us. In Jesus name. Amen. I love you my sister Andrea. Big hug. Love you, bye.

December 30, 2023

12/28/2023 DAB Transcript

Zechariah 12:1-13:9, Revelations 19:1-21, Psalm 147:1-20, Proverbs 31:1-7

Today is the 28th day of December, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It’s great to be here in the week between, right that week between Christmas and New Year’s where we start thinking about bigger things and goals for our lives and it’s important that we keep the Scriptures the front and center of our journey. And so, let’s take the next step forward together as we do every day. We are in the book of Zechariah as we wind down our way through the Old Testament, and today we will read chapters 12 and 13.

Commentary:

Okay, so, we were talking a little bit yesterday about how reflective we get. I get so reflective this week between. There’s a lot of work to do to get ready for the next year but it’s kind of a different sort of week. And we do get reflective and we do get like, we look back at what happened in the year and there are news programs like that and magazines like that and all these opportunities to consider the past, especially like the past 12 months. And here we’ve been taking steps every day, day-by-day, step-by-step to get here in the last 12 months. And we’ve been reflecting over the last couple of days about New Year’s resolutions. The kinds of stuff that we do this, this time of year, the things that we’re going to change, things that we’re not gonna put up with anymore, the things that we have to accomplish, the goals that we need to set. And Psalms gives us something to consider as we’re considering the next 12 months. The Lord is pleased with those who fear him, those who wait for His mercy, those who open His unfailing love. So, if we think about this in terms of like, I don’t know, like let’s say we’re saving for retirement. So, we put a little bit of money away and it’s accruing, it’s supposed to be building up and…and maybe gaining momentum so that we have the resources that we would need to live after we stop working. And so, we do this, we put this money in and we have the hope that it will mature, the hope that it will become what it’s supposed to be when we’re going to need it. The Bible is saying those who put their hope in God’s unfailing love, those who fear Him and wait for His mercy, this is pleasing to God. God delights in that person. When we think about our New Year’s resolutions, are we thinking about pleasing God at all. We might be thinking, I need to read the Bible more. I mean, I need to spend more minutes in prayer, but pleasing God as a New Year’s resolution. I mean, we’re resolving to make all kinds of changes that will make our lives better. At least, that’s what we think. But what would make our lives better and more in the center of things then pleasing God, becoming the Lord’s delight. And so, may we consider what we are investing in, where our hope is. Is it in that bank, is it in that job, is it in that person, or is your hope invested in God. Are we waiting expectantly for God’s unfailing love and the Lord’s delight, or are we more interested in the waistline, like what is, what is going on here, as we consider what we want to change in our outward life, let’s consider what’s going on inside of us. And let’s resolve to be pleasing to the Lord.

Prayer:

And so, Father, we invite You into that as we wind down these days, take these next final steps through this year and march our way into a brand-new beginning and a fresh start to be pleasing to You, to bring You delight. This is our aim, Holy Spirit come, and show us how to do that. We ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com that is home base, it is the website, it is where you find out what is happening around here. And we’re getting ready to change over into a new year. That is what’s happening, but you can always check out what’s going on here. Check out the Community Section, the Prayer Wall lives there, we’re always praying for each other, we’re always asking for prayer there.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, as we wind down the days of this year, then thank you deeply, profoundly, humbly, we can’t do this if we don’t do this together. 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 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 will be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Prayer and Encouragements:

Hey guys, it’s Katie Jill from Wyoming. I’m calling to encourage Marilyn from New Hampshire, for your brother David whose struggles with alcoholism. I just wanted to give you a testimony of my life. My dad, who I had no relationship with all my life, because he was an alcoholic and I mean, he’s been drinking for 45/50 years straight. I mean, I never saw him. Had no, I hated him so much. And me and my mom believed and then me and my brother came to the Lord. And but I’ve just, God’s just been working in my dad and so, it’s so funny. I am with like Youth with a Mission. And so, after I came back from my school worship in Switzerland, and my dad just saw how much I had changed and he, God just did something with that, with all those changes. And my dad just started listening to worship music. And he had already restored our relationship. Like, I had wanted no relationship with my father. Didn’t even pray for it. And God just restored it and I was so happy and I was praying for his salvation. I had the whole church praying for his salvation. And after that school, he just started listening to worship music and stuff that he wouldn’t normally do. And he gave his life to the Lord. And I will tell you this, he stopped drinking overnight. It’s amazing. And so, right now, I mean, he has COPD and he’s really struggling with that. And he’s really discouraged but he’s really trying to quit smoking. And I just wanted to tell you that and encourage you with that, that God is always working. Thanks.

Hi family, this is Prisoner of Hope. His Little Songbird in Canada, praying that you’ll be able to get your dog Toby’s teeth cleaned without paying a bunch a money. And then for also your friend pumpkin, that she’ll have favor with her cancer being gone and for her three brothers who don’t know the Lord. White as Snow in Tennessee, you lost your job. Praying you’ll be able to find a different one or maybe the same job but just in a different location. And for others who have been affected by this as well. God’s Little Bird, you had a job interview and you said you know it’s come and gone but you know that God can hear your prayers. You’re absolutely right. We’re praying that the Lord will lift up, lift away any anxiety that you feel and that He will provide for you. Raven, you need to find a job and you’ve been denied for a home loan, so you need to find a home too. And then you have surgery coming up, or you need surgery and you’re stressed and worried about finances. We’re praying that the Lord will come through for you. Lost in Texas, you’ve been out of work and you had this amazing opportunity to open up, so we’re praying for God’s will either way. You just said that you’ve also been alone during the holidays, so we’re praying for God’s comfort for you during this as well. And then Rebecca from Michigan, praying for God’s direction for a new job and home. You’re stressed at your current job. So, we’re just lifting you up sister. Lord, we just come to You. In Proverbs 8, it says, does not wisdom call out. Indeed, God’s wisdom does call out. And those who respond positively and prayerfully to this, find blessing and favor from the Lord. So, we pray for that. We do ask that these people who need your favor, that You would give them Your comfort and Your peace and Your strength, and direction and love. May they receive everything according to Your will. And for those who don’t know You Lord, we lift them up, that they would know Jesus in a personal way. That they would receive Your healing, mercy, love and guidance and that they would, You would change their hardness of hearts into a heart of flesh, that they would accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. We ask this in His powerful name. Amen.

Abba’s Daughter, Sadie M, this is God’s Life Speaker. I heard you on the community prayers, I think it was somewhere around the 10th of December. And you were in despair. You felt like you could not get your mind wrapped around truth. And it was just consuming you. But by now, I’m sure this all behind us and you have passed this semester and now we are looking at surgery coming up here, I think about three weeks. Right after your phone call, at about the 3 hour 18 minute mark there, Taken With Love came on. She was amazing. It was like she was speaking right to you, to all of us. But she said we had, we had gone 345 days into the year, believing Him and His word, and walking the miles, seeing the fruit of our labor in prayer. And she’s right. She was speaking life over all of us. And we speak it over you. That in the name of Jesus, these thoughts are taken captive. And that they will not destroy what we know to be true. So, speak it out loud, Sadie, and say what you know is truth. Even if you don’t want to believe it in the minute, you know that His word is true. So, find some scripture that you will declare over yourself, in the name of Jesus, I declare that I am healed by His stripes. In the name of Jesus, I do not have a spirit of fear. In the name of Jesus, He goes before me, behind me, beside me, and with me. And carry on, Sadie. We all need to speak truth. We know it, and we need to overcome it. And we do that by the power of prayer. Like Take it With Love, was talking about. We pray it for you. Lord Jesus, we pray health and healing over Sadie M, all of us Lord. That You would right our minds and we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Hey Daily Audio Bible family, we love you. It’s the day after Christmas. And I just saw some concerning news from my friend. I just know the Lord has got His hand on Reese but my friend from work has a daughter, I wanna say she’s 9-11 years old. She has been getting sick intermittently and had had seizures, a few, like last week. And now she is sick again and admitted to ICU and they don’t know what’s wrong. And they’re monitoring her. Her seizures and I don’t know if they’re doing, I haven’t gotten a lot of details but it looks like they’re doing some sort of intercranial pressure monitoring. So, it’s something that seems pretty concerning. And my friends just so worried. I just ask that you guys would join me in lifting little Reese up to our heavenly Father. Lord, we know You have this in Your hands. And I just have a feeling that You, You have this under control and that You’re going to help her recover really quickly, Lord. And we just praise You. And we just ask that You would help this family with answers and that You would touch Reese with Your healing hands. Lord, help her to get better quickly. Help them to find out exactly what’s wrong right away, and Lord, may Your hand just heal her completely, even if it’s by Your own hands Lord. If it’s Your will, will You do this. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Thank you family. Talk to you soon. It’s Susana in Texas. Bye.

December 30, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Saturday December 30, 2023 (NIV)

Malachi 1-2

1 The oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.^[a]

The Lord's Love for Israel

²^(A)“I have loved you,” says the Lord. ^(B)But you say, “How have you loved us?” “Is not Esau ^(C)Jacob's brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet ^(D)I have loved Jacob ³but Esau I have hated. ^(E)I have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert.” ⁴If Edom says, “We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of hosts says, “They may build, but I will tear down, and they will be called ‘the wicked country,’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is angry forever.’” ⁵^(F)Your own eyes shall see this, and you shall say, “Great is the Lord beyond the border of Israel!”

The Priests' Polluted Offerings

⁶^(G)“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am ^(H)a father, where is my honor? And if I am ^(I)a master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. ^(J)But you say, ‘How have we despised your name?’ ⁷^(K)By offering polluted food upon my altar. ^(L)But you say, ‘How have we polluted you?’ By saying that ^(M)the Lord's table may be despised. ⁸^(N)When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? Present that to your governor; will he accept you or show you favor? says the Lord of hosts. ⁹And now ^(O)entreat the favor of God, that he may be gracious to us. With such a gift from your hand, ^(P)will he show favor to any of you? says the Lord of hosts. ¹⁰^(Q)Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, ^(R)and I will not accept an offering from your hand. ¹¹For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name ^(S)will be^[b] great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name ^(T)will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts. ¹²But you profane it when you say that ^(U)the Lord's table is polluted, and its fruit, that is, its food may be despised. ¹³But you say, ^(V)‘What a weariness this is,’ and you snort at it, says the Lord of hosts. ^(W)You bring what has been taken by violence or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your offering! Shall I accept that from your hand? says the Lord. ¹⁴Cursed be the cheat who has ^(X)a male in his flock, and ^(Y)vows it, and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished. For ^(Z)I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and my name ^(AA)will be feared among the nations.

The Lord Rebukes the Priests

2 “And now, ^(AB)O priests, ^(AC)this command is for you. ²^(AD)If you will not listen, if you will not take it to heart to give honor to my name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will send ^(AE)the curse upon you and I will curse ^(AF)your blessings. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart. ³Behold, ^(AG)I will rebuke your offspring,^[c] and ^(AH)spread dung on your faces, the ^(AI)dung of your offerings, and you shall be taken away with it.^[d] ⁴So shall you know that I have sent ^(AJ)this command to you, that ^(AK)my covenant with Levi may stand, says the Lord of hosts. ⁵My covenant with him was one of life and ^(AL)peace, and I gave them to him. ^(AM)It was a covenant of fear, and he feared me. He stood in awe of my name. ⁶^(AN)True instruction^[e] was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and he ^(AO)turned many from iniquity. ⁷For ^(AP)the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people^[f] should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. ⁸But you have turned aside from the way. ^(AQ)You have caused many to stumble by your instruction. You have corrupted ^(AR)the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts, ⁹and so ^(AS)I make you despised and abased before all the people, inasmuch as you do not keep my ways but ^(AT)show partiality in your instruction.”

Judah Profaned the Covenant

¹⁰Have we not all ^(AU)one Father? Has not ^(AV)one God created us? Why then are we ^(AW)faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers? ¹¹Judah has been ^(AX)faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For ^(AY)Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. ¹²May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob any descendant^[g] of the man who does this, who ^(AZ)brings an offering to the Lord of hosts!

¹³And this second thing you do. ^(BA)You cover the Lord's altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. ¹⁴^(BB)But you say, “Why does he not?” Because the Lord ^(BC)was witness between you and the wife of your youth, ^(BD)to whom ^(BE)you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. ¹⁵^(BF)Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union?^[h] And what was the one God^[i] seeking?^[j] ^(BG)Godly offspring. So guard yourselves^[k] in your spirit, and let none of you be ^(BH)faithless to the wife of your youth. ¹⁶“For ^(BI)the man who does not love his wife but divorces her,^[l] says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers^[m] his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and ^(BJ)do not be faithless.”

The Messenger of the Lord

¹⁷^(BK)You have wearied the Lord with your words. ^(BL)But you say, “How have we wearied him?” ^(BM)By saying, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and he delights in them.” Or by asking, ^(BN)“Where is the God of justice?”

Footnotes:

Malachi 1:1 Malachi means my messenger
Malachi 1:11 Or is (three times in verse 11; also verse 14)
Malachi 2:3 Hebrew seed
Malachi 2:3 Or to it
Malachi 2:6 Or law; also verses 7, 8, 9
Malachi 2:7 Hebrew they
Malachi 2:12 Hebrew any who wakes and answers
Malachi 2:15 Hebrew in it
Malachi 2:15 Hebrew the one
Malachi 2:15 Or And not one has done this who has a portion of the Spirit. And what was that one seeking?
Malachi 2:15 Or So take care; also verse 16
Malachi 2:16 Hebrew who hates and divorces
Malachi 2:16 Probable meaning (compare Septuagint and Deuteronomy 24:1–4); or “The Lord, the God of Israel, says that he hates divorce, and him who covers

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Revelation 21

The New Heaven and the New Earth

21 Then I saw ^(A)a new heaven and a new earth, for ^(B)the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. ²And I saw ^(C)the holy city, ^(D)new Jerusalem, ^(E)coming down out of heaven from God, ^(F)prepared ^(G)as a bride adorned for her husband. ³And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, ^(H)the dwelling place^[a] of God is with man. He will ^(I)dwell with them, and they will be his people,^[b] and God himself will be with them as their God.^[c] ⁴^(J)He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and ^(K)death shall be no more, ^(L)neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

⁵And ^(M)he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I ^(N)am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for ^(O)these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶And he said to me, ^(P)“It is done! ^(Q)I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. ^(R)To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. ⁷^(S)The one who conquers will have this heritage, and ^(T)I will be his God and ^(U)he will be my son. ⁸^(V)But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, ^(W)their portion will be in ^(X)the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is ^(Y)the second death.”

The New Jerusalem

⁹Then came ^(Z)one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of ^(AA)the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you ^(AB)the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ¹⁰And ^(AC)he carried me away in the Spirit to ^(AD)a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, ¹¹^(AE)having the glory of God, ^(AF)its radiance ^(AG)like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. ¹²It had a great, high wall, ^(AH)with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— ¹³on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. ¹⁴And the wall of the city had twelve ^(AI)foundations, and ^(AJ)on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

¹⁵And the one who spoke with me ^(AK)had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. ¹⁶The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia.^[d] Its length and width and height are equal. ¹⁷He also measured its wall, 144 cubits^[e] by ^(AL)human measurement, which is also ^(AM)an angel's measurement. ¹⁸The wall was built of ^(AN)jasper, while the city was pure gold, like ^(AO)clear glass. ¹⁹^(AP)The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ²⁰the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. ²¹And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and ^(AQ)the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

²²And ^(AR)I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. ²³And the city ^(AS)has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for ^(AT)the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. ²⁴By its light ^(AU)will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth ^(AV)will bring their glory into it, ²⁵and ^(AW)its gates will never be shut by day—and ^(AX)there will be no night there. ²⁶They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. ²⁷But ^(AY)nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's ^(AZ)book of life.

Footnotes:

Revelation 21:3 Or tabernacle
Revelation 21:3 Some manuscripts peoples
Revelation 21:3 Some manuscripts omit as their God
Revelation 21:16 About 1,380 miles; a stadion was about 607 feet or 185 meters
Revelation 21:17 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Psalm 149

Sing to the Lord a New Song

149 ^(A)Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord ^(B)a new song,
his praise in ^(C)the assembly of the godly!
²Let Israel ^(D)be glad in ^(E)his Maker;
let the children of Zion rejoice in their ^(F)King!
³Let them praise his name with ^(G)dancing,
making melody to him with ^(H)tambourine and ^(I)lyre!
⁴For the Lord ^(J)takes pleasure in his people;
he ^(K)adorns the humble with salvation.
⁵Let the godly exult in glory;
let them ^(L)sing for joy on their ^(M)beds.
⁶Let ^(N)the high praises of God be in their throats
and ^(O)two-edged swords in their hands,
⁷to execute vengeance on the nations
and punishments on the peoples,
⁸to bind their kings with ^(P)chains
and their nobles with fetters of iron,
⁹to execute on them the judgment ^(Q)written!
^(R)This is honor for all his godly ones.
^(S)Praise the Lord!

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 31:10-24

The Woman Who Fears the Lord

¹⁰^[a] ^(A)An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than ^(B)jewels.
¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
¹²She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
¹³She ^(C)seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
¹⁴She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
¹⁵She ^(D)rises while it is yet night
and ^(E)provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
¹⁶She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷She ^(F)dresses herself^[b] with strength
and makes her arms strong.
¹⁸She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.
²⁰She ^(G)opens her hand to ^(H)the poor
and reaches out her hands to ^(I)the needy.
²¹She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in ^(J)scarlet.^[c]
²²She makes ^(K)bed coverings for herself;
her clothing is ^(L)fine linen and ^(M)purple.
²³Her husband is known in ^(N)the gates
when he sits among the elders of the land.
²⁴She makes ^(O)linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 31:10 Verses 10–31 are an acrostic poem, each verse beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet
Proverbs 31:17 Hebrew She girds her loins
Proverbs 31:21 Or in double thickness

English Standard Version (ESV)

December 29, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday December 29, 2023 (NIV)

Zechariah 14

The Coming Day of the Lord

14 Behold, ^(A)a day is coming for the Lord, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in your midst. ²For ^(B)I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and ^(C)the city shall be taken ^(D)and the houses plundered ^(E)and the women raped. ^(F)Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. ³^(G)Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. ⁴^(H)On that day his feet shall stand ^(I)on ^(J)the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and ^(K)the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by ^(L)a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. ⁵And you shall flee to the valley of my mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal. And you shall flee as you fled from ^(M)the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.^[a]

⁶^(N)On that day ^(O)there shall be ^(P)no light, cold, or frost.^[b] ⁷^(Q)And there shall be a unique^[c] day, ^(R)which is known to the Lord, neither day nor night, but ^(S)at evening time there shall be light.

⁸^(T)On that day ^(U)living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to ^(V)the eastern sea^[d] and half of them to ^(W)the western sea.^[e] ^(X)It shall continue in summer as in winter.

⁹And ^(Y)the Lord will be king over all the earth. ^(Z)On that day the Lord will be ^(AA)one and ^(AB)his name one.

¹⁰^(AC)The whole land shall be turned into a plain from ^(AD)Geba to ^(AE)Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But ^(AF)Jerusalem shall remain aloft ^(AG)on its site from ^(AH)the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to ^(AI)the Corner Gate, and from ^(AJ)the Tower of Hananel to the king's winepresses. ¹¹And it shall be inhabited, for ^(AK)there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction.^[f] ^(AL)Jerusalem shall dwell in security.

¹²And this shall be ^(AM)the plague with which the Lord will strike all the peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.

¹³And ^(AN)on that day a great panic from the Lord shall fall on them, so that ^(AO)each will seize the hand of another, and the hand of the one will be raised against the hand of the other. ¹⁴Even ^(AP)Judah will fight at Jerusalem.^[g] And ^(AQ)the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be collected, gold, silver, and garments in great abundance. ¹⁵And ^(AR)a plague like this plague shall fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, the donkeys, and whatever beasts may be in those camps.

¹⁶Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem ^(AS)shall go up year after year to worship ^(AT)the King, the Lord of hosts, and ^(AU)to keep ^(AV)the Feast of Booths. ¹⁷And if ^(AW)any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship ^(AX)the King, the Lord of hosts, ^(AY)there will be no rain on them. ¹⁸And if the family of Egypt does not go up and present themselves, then on them there shall be no rain;^[h] there shall be ^(AZ)the plague with which the Lord afflicts the nations that do not go up ^(BA)to keep the Feast of Booths. ¹⁹This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment to all the nations that do not go up ^(BB)to keep the Feast of Booths.

²⁰And ^(BC)on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, ^(BD)“Holy to the Lord.” And the pots in the house of the Lord shall be as the bowls before the altar. ²¹And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be ^(BE)holy to the Lord of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the meat of the sacrifice in them. And ^(BF)there shall no longer be ^(BG)a trader^[i] in the house of the Lord of hosts ^(BH)on that day.

Footnotes:

Zechariah 14:5 Other Hebrew manuscripts you
Zechariah 14:6 Compare Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, Targum; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
Zechariah 14:7 Hebrew one
Zechariah 14:8 That is, the Dead Sea
Zechariah 14:8 That is, the Mediterranean Sea
Zechariah 14:11 The Hebrew term rendered decree of utter destruction refers to things devoted (or set apart) to the Lord (or by the Lord) for destruction
Zechariah 14:14 Or against Jerusalem
Zechariah 14:18 Hebrew lacks rain
Zechariah 14:21 Or Canaanite

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Revelation 20

The Thousand Years

20 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, ^(A)holding in his hand the key to ^(B)the bottomless pit^[a] and a great chain. ²And he seized ^(C)the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and ^(D)bound him for a thousand years, ³and threw him into ^(E)the pit, and shut it and ^(F)sealed it over him, so that ^(G)he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.

⁴Then I saw ^(H)thrones, and ^(I)seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw ^(J)the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those ^(K)who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. ^(L)They came to life and ^(M)reigned with Christ for a thousand years. ⁵The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. ⁶^(N)Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such ^(O)the second death has no power, but they will be ^(P)priests of God and of Christ, and they ^(Q)will reign with him for a thousand years.

The Defeat of Satan

⁷And when the thousand years are ended, ^(R)Satan will be released from his prison ⁸and will come out ^(S)to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, ^(T)Gog and Magog, ^(U)to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. ⁹And ^(V)they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded ^(W)the camp of the saints and ^(X)the beloved city, but ^(Y)fire came down from heaven^[b] and consumed them, ¹⁰and the devil ^(Z)who had deceived them was ^(AA)thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where ^(AB)the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Judgment Before the Great White Throne

¹¹Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence ^(AC)earth and sky fled away, and ^(AD)no place was found for them. ¹²And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and ^(AE)books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is ^(AF)the book of life. And ^(AG)the dead were judged by what was written in the books, ^(AH)according to what they had done. ¹³And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, ^(AI)Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, ^(AJ)according to what they had done. ¹⁴Then ^(AK)Death and Hades ^(AL)were thrown into the lake of fire. This is ^(AM)the second death, the lake of fire. ¹⁵And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, ^(AN)he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Footnotes:

Revelation 20:1 Greek the abyss; also verse 3
Revelation 20:9 Some manuscripts from God, out of heaven, or out of heaven from God

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Psalm 148

Praise the Name of the Lord

148 ^(A)Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord ^(B)from the heavens;
praise him ^(C)in the heights!
²Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his ^(D)hosts!

³Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars!
⁴Praise him, you ^(E)highest heavens,
and you ^(F)waters above the heavens!

⁵^(G)Let them praise the name of the Lord!
For ^(H)he commanded and they were created.
⁶And he ^(I)established them forever and ever;
he gave ^(J)a decree, and it shall not ^(K)pass away.^[a]

⁷Praise the Lord ^(L)from the earth,
you ^(M)great sea creatures and all deeps,
⁸^(N)fire and hail, ^(O)snow and mist,
^(P)stormy wind ^(Q)fulfilling his word!

⁹^(R)Mountains and all hills,
^(S)fruit trees and all ^(T)cedars!
¹⁰^(U)Beasts and all livestock,
creeping things and ^(V)flying birds!

¹¹Kings of the earth and ^(W)all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth!
¹²Young men and maidens together,
old men and children!

¹³^(X)Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for ^(Y)his name alone is exalted;
^(Z)his majesty is above earth and heaven.
¹⁴He has ^(AA)raised up a horn for his people,
^(AB)praise for all his saints,
for the people of Israel who are ^(AC)near to him.
^(AD)Praise the Lord!

Footnotes:

Psalm 148:6 Or it shall not be transgressed

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 31:8-9

⁸^(A)Open your mouth for the mute,
for the rights of all who are destitute.^[a]
⁹Open your mouth, ^(B)judge righteously,
^(C)defend the rights of ^(D)the poor and needy.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 31:8 Hebrew are sons of passing away

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

December 28, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Thursday December 28, 2023 (NIV)

Zechariah 12-13

The Lord Will Give Salvation

12 ^(A)The oracle of the word of the Lord concerning Israel: Thus declares the Lord, ^(B)who stretched out the heavens and ^(C)founded the earth and ^(D)formed the spirit of man within him: ²“Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem ^(E)a cup of staggering to ^(F)all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem ^(G)will also be against Judah. ³^(H)On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. ^(I)All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And ^(J)all the nations of the earth will gather against it. ⁴^(K)On that day, declares the Lord, ^(L)I will strike every horse ^(M)with panic, and its rider ^(N)with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples ^(O)with blindness. ⁵Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the Lord of hosts, their God.’

⁶^(P)“On that day I will make the clans of Judah ^(Q)like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves. And ^(R)they shall devour to the right and to the left all the surrounding peoples, while ^(S)Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.

⁷“And the Lord will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah. ⁸^(T)On that day ^(U)the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that ^(V)the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, ^(W)like the angel of the Lord, going before them. ⁹^(X)And on that day ^(Y)I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Him Whom They Have Pierced

¹⁰“And ^(Z)I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and ^(AA)pleas for mercy, so that, ^(AB)when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, ^(AC)they shall mourn for him, ^(AD)as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. ¹¹^(AE)On that day ^(AF)the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great ^(AG)as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. ¹²The land shall mourn, ^(AH)each family^[a] by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of ^(AI)Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; ¹³the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of ^(AJ)the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; ¹⁴and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.

13 ^(AK)“On that day there shall be ^(AL)a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.

Idolatry Cut Off

²“And ^(AM)on that day, declares the Lord of hosts, ^(AN)I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that ^(AO)they shall be remembered no more. And also ^(AP)I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness. ³And if anyone again prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will say to him, ^(AQ)‘You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the Lord.’ And his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he prophesies.

⁴“On that day ^(AR)every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. He will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive, ⁵but he will say, ^(AS)‘I am no prophet, I am a worker of the soil, for a man sold me in my youth.’^[b] ⁶And if one asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your back?’^[c] he will say, ‘The wounds I received in the house of my friends.’

The Shepherd Struck

⁷“Awake, O sword, against ^(AT)my shepherd,
against the man who stands next to me,”
declares the Lord of hosts.

^(AU)“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered;
I will turn my hand against the little ones.
⁸In the whole land, declares the Lord,
two thirds shall be cut off and perish,
^(AV)and one third shall be left alive.
⁹And ^(AW)I will put this third into the fire,
and refine them as one refines silver,
and test them as gold is tested.
^(AX)They will call upon my name,
and ^(AY)I will answer them.
^(AZ)I will say, ‘They are my people’;
and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”

Footnotes:

Zechariah 12:12 Or clan; throughout verses 12–14
Zechariah 13:5 Or for the land has been my possession since my youth
Zechariah 13:6 Or on your chest; Hebrew wounds between your hands

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Revelation 19

Rejoicing in Heaven

19 After this I heard ^(A)what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
^(B)Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
²for ^(C)his judgments are true and just;
for he has judged ^(D)the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
and ^(E)has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

³Once more they cried out,

“Hallelujah!
^(F)The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.”

⁴And ^(G)the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” ⁵And from the throne came a voice saying,

^(H)“Praise our God,
all you his servants,
^(I)you who fear him,
small and great.”

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

⁶Then I heard what seemed to be ^(J)the voice of a great multitude, like ^(K)the roar of many waters and ^(L)like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty ^(M)reigns.
⁷Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for ^(N)the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and ^(O)his Bride has made herself ready;
⁸^(P)it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is ^(Q)the righteous deeds of the saints.

⁹And the angel said^[a] to me, “Write this: ^(R)Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, ^(S)“These are the true words of God.” ¹⁰Then ^(T)I fell down at his feet to worship him, ^(U)but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to ^(V)the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The Rider on a White Horse

¹¹Then I saw ^(W)heaven opened, and behold, ^(X)a white horse! The one sitting on it is called ^(Y)Faithful and True, and ^(Z)in righteousness he judges and makes war. ¹²^(AA)His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are ^(AB)many diadems, and he has ^(AC)a name written that no one knows but himself. ¹³He is clothed in ^(AD)a robe dipped in^[b] blood, and the name by which he is called is ^(AE)The Word of God. ¹⁴And the armies of heaven, ^(AF)arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, ^(AG)were following him on white horses. ¹⁵^(AH)From his mouth comes a sharp sword ^(AI)with which to strike down the nations, and ^(AJ)he will rule^[c] them with a rod of iron. ^(AK)He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. ¹⁶On his robe and on his thigh ^(AL)he has a name written, ^(AM)King of kings and Lord of lords.

¹⁷Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to ^(AN)all the birds that fly directly overhead, ^(AO)“Come, gather for ^(AP)the great supper of God, ¹⁸^(AQ)to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave,^[d] both small and great.” ¹⁹And I saw ^(AR)the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies ^(AS)gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. ²⁰And the beast was captured, and with it ^(AT)the false prophet ^(AU)who in its presence^[e] had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who ^(AV)worshiped its image. These two were ^(AW)thrown alive into the lake of ^(AX)fire that burns with sulfur. ²¹And the rest were slain by the sword ^(AY)that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and ^(AZ)all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Footnotes:

Revelation 19:9 Greek he said
Revelation 19:13 Some manuscripts sprinkled with
Revelation 19:15 Greek shepherd
Revelation 19:18 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface
Revelation 19:20 Or on its behalf

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Psalm 147

He Heals the Brokenhearted

147 ^(A)Praise the Lord!
For ^(B)it is good to sing praises to our God;
for ^(C)it is pleasant,^[a] and ^(D)a song of praise is fitting.
²The Lord ^(E)builds up Jerusalem;
he ^(F)gathers the outcasts of Israel.
³He heals ^(G)the brokenhearted
and ^(H)binds up their wounds.
⁴He ^(I)determines the number of the stars;
he ^(J)gives to all of them their names.
⁵^(K)Great is our Lord, and ^(L)abundant in power;
^(M)his understanding is beyond measure.
⁶The Lord ^(N)lifts up the humble;^[b]
he casts the wicked to the ground.

⁷^(O)Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God on ^(P)the lyre!
⁸He covers the heavens with clouds;
he prepares ^(Q)rain for the earth;
he makes ^(R)grass grow on the hills.
⁹He ^(S)gives to the beasts their food,
and to ^(T)the young ravens that cry.
¹⁰His delight is not in ^(U)the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the legs of a man,
¹¹but the Lord ^(V)takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who ^(W)hope in his steadfast love.

¹²Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O Zion!
¹³For he strengthens ^(X)the bars of your gates;
he blesses your children within you.
¹⁴He ^(Y)makes peace in your borders;
he ^(Z)fills you with the ^(AA)finest of the wheat.
¹⁵He ^(AB)sends out his command to the earth;
his word runs swiftly.
¹⁶He gives ^(AC)snow like wool;
he scatters ^(AD)frost like ashes.
¹⁷He hurls down his crystals of ^(AE)ice like crumbs;
who can stand before his ^(AF)cold?
¹⁸He ^(AG)sends out his word, and melts them;
he makes his wind blow and the waters flow.
¹⁹He declares his word to Jacob,
his ^(AH)statutes and rules^[c] to Israel.
²⁰He ^(AI)has not dealt thus with any other nation;
they do not know his rules.^[d]
^(AJ)Praise the Lord!

Footnotes:

Psalm 147:1 Or for he is beautiful
Psalm 147:6 Or afflicted
Psalm 147:19 Or and just decrees
Psalm 147:20 Or his just decrees

Cross references:

Psalm 147:1 : See Ps. 135:1
Psalm 147:1 : Ps. 92:1
Psalm 147:1 : Ps. 135:3
Psalm 147:1 : Ps. 33:1
Psalm 147:2 : Ps. 51:18; 102:16
Psalm 147:2 : Deut. 30:3; Isa. 11:12; 27:13; 56:8; Ezek. 39:28
Psalm 147:3 : Ps. 34:18
Psalm 147:3 : Ezek. 34:16
Psalm 147:4 : [Gen. 15:5]
Psalm 147:4 : Isa. 40:26
Psalm 147:5 : Ps. 48:1
Psalm 147:5 : Nah. 1:3
Psalm 147:5 : Isa. 40:28; [Job 5:9]
Psalm 147:6 : [Ps. 146:8, 9]
Psalm 147:7 : Ex. 15:21; [Ps. 95:1, 2]
Psalm 147:7 : See 1 Chr. 15:16
Psalm 147:8 : See Job 5:10
Psalm 147:8 : Ps. 104:14; Job 38:27
Psalm 147:9 : Ps. 104:27, 28
Psalm 147:9 : See Job 38:41
Psalm 147:10 : Ps. 33:17
Psalm 147:11 : Ps. 149:4
Psalm 147:11 : Ps. 33:18
Psalm 147:13 : Neh. 7:3
Psalm 147:14 : Ex. 34:24; Prov. 16:7; Isa. 60:17, 18
Psalm 147:14 : Ps. 132:15
Psalm 147:14 : Ps. 81:16; Deut. 32:14
Psalm 147:15 : [Ps. 148:8]
Psalm 147:16 : Job 37:6
Psalm 147:16 : [Job 38:29]
Psalm 147:17 : Job 37:10
Psalm 147:17 : Job 37:9
Psalm 147:18 : ver. 15; [Job 37:12]; See Ps. 33:9; 107:20
Psalm 147:19 : Mal. 4:4; [Ps. 78:5]; See Deut. 33:2-4
Psalm 147:20 : Deut. 4:7; See Deut. 4:32-34
Psalm 147:20 : See Ps. 135:1

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 31:1-7

The Words of King Lemuel

31 The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him:

²What are you doing, my son?^[a] What are you doing, ^(A)son of my womb?
What are you doing, ^(B)son of my vows?
³Do ^(C)not give your strength to women,
your ways to those ^(D)who destroy kings.
⁴^(E)It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
it is not for kings ^(F)to drink wine,
or for rulers to take ^(G)strong drink,
⁵lest they drink and forget what has been decreed
and ^(H)pervert the rights of all the afflicted.
⁶Give strong drink to the one who ^(I)is perishing,
and wine to ^(J)those in bitter distress;^[b]
⁷^(K)let them drink and forget their poverty
and remember their misery no more.

Footnotes:

Proverbs 31:2 Hebrew What, my son?
Proverbs 31:6 Hebrew those bitter in soul

English Standard Version (ESV)

December 27, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Wednesday December 27, 2023 (NIV)

Zechariah 10-11

The Restoration for Judah and Israel

10 Ask rain ^(A)from the Lord
in the season of ^(B)the spring rain,
from the Lord ^(C)who makes the storm clouds,
and ^(D)he will give them showers of rain,
to everyone the vegetation in the field.
²For ^(E)the household gods ^(F)utter nonsense,
and the diviners see lies;
^(G)they tell false dreams
and give empty consolation.
Therefore ^(H)the people wander like sheep;
they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd.

³^(I)“My anger is hot against the shepherds,
and ^(J)I will punish the leaders;^[a]
for ^(K)the Lord of hosts cares for his flock, the house of Judah,
and will make them like his majestic steed in battle.
⁴From him shall come ^(L)the cornerstone,
from him ^(M)the tent peg,
from him the battle bow,
from him every ruler—^(N)all of them together.
⁵They shall be like mighty men in battle,
^(O)trampling the foe in the mud of the streets;
they shall fight because the Lord is with them,
and they shall put to shame ^(P)the riders on horses.

⁶^(Q)“I will strengthen the house of Judah,
and ^(R)I will save the house of Joseph.
^(S)I will bring them back ^(T)because I have compassion on them,
and they shall be as though I had not rejected them,
for ^(U)I am the Lord their God and I will answer them.
⁷Then Ephraim shall become like a mighty warrior,
and ^(V)their hearts shall be glad as with wine.
Their children shall see it and be glad;
their hearts shall rejoice in the Lord.

⁸^(W)“I will whistle for them and ^(X)gather them in,
for I have redeemed them,
and ^(Y)they shall be as many as they were before.
⁹^(Z)Though I scattered them among the nations,
yet in far countries ^(AA)they shall remember me,
and with their children they shall live and return.
¹⁰^(AB)I will bring them home from the land of Egypt,
and gather them from Assyria,
and ^(AC)I will bring them to the land of Gilead and to Lebanon,
^(AD)till there is no room for them.
¹¹^(AE)He shall pass through the sea of troubles
and strike down the waves of the sea,
^(AF)and all the depths of the Nile shall be dried up.
The pride of Assyria shall be laid low,
and ^(AG)the scepter of Egypt shall depart.
¹²^(AH)I will make them strong in the Lord,
and ^(AI)they shall walk in his name,”
declares the Lord.

The Flock Doomed to Slaughter

11 Open your doors, ^(AJ)O Lebanon,
that the fire may devour your cedars!
²Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen,
for the glorious trees are ruined!
Wail, ^(AK)oaks of Bashan,
for the thick forest has been felled!
³The sound of ^(AL)the wail of ^(AM)the shepherds,
for their glory is ruined!
The sound of the roar of ^(AN)the lions,
^(AO)for the thicket of the Jordan is ruined!

⁴Thus said the Lord my God: ^(AP)“Become shepherd of the flock doomed to slaughter. ⁵^(AQ)Those who buy them slaughter them and go unpunished, and those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the Lord, ^(AR)I have become rich,’ and their own shepherds have no pity on them. ⁶For ^(AS)I will no longer have pity on the inhabitants of this land, declares the Lord. Behold, I will cause each of them to fall into the hand of his neighbor, and each into the hand of his king, and they shall crush the land, and I will deliver none from their hand.”

⁷^(AT)So I became the shepherd of the flock doomed to be slaughtered by the sheep traders. And I took two staffs, one I named ^(AU)Favor, the other I named ^(AV)Union. ^(AW)And I tended the sheep. ⁸In one month ^(AX)I destroyed the three shepherds. But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me. ⁹So I said, “I will not be your shepherd. ^(AY)What is to die, let it die. What is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed. And let those who are left devour the flesh of one another.” ¹⁰And I took ^(AZ)my staff Favor, and I broke it, annulling the covenant that I had made with all the peoples. ¹¹So it was annulled on that day, and the sheep traders, who were watching me, knew that it was the word of the Lord. ¹²Then I said to them, “If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” And they weighed out as my wages ^(BA)thirty pieces of silver. ¹³Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—^(BB)the lordly price at which I was priced by them. So I took the ^(BC)thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord, to the potter. ¹⁴Then I broke ^(BD)my second staff Union, annulling the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

¹⁵Then the Lord said to me, “Take once more the equipment of ^(BE)a foolish shepherd. ¹⁶For behold, I am raising up in the land a shepherd ^(BF)who does not care for those being destroyed, or seek the young or heal the maimed or nourish the healthy, but ^(BG)devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs.

¹⁷^(BH)“Woe to my worthless shepherd,
^(BI)who deserts the flock!
May the sword strike his arm
and ^(BJ)his right eye!
Let his arm be wholly withered,
his right eye utterly blinded!”

Footnotes:

Zechariah 10:3 Hebrew the male goats

Cross references:

Zechariah 10:1 : Jer. 14:22
Zechariah 10:1 : See Deut. 11:14
Zechariah 10:1 : Ps. 135:7
Zechariah 10:1 : Ezek. 34:26
Zechariah 10:2 : See Gen. 31:19
Zechariah 10:2 : Hab. 2:18
Zechariah 10:2 : Jer. 23:25
Zechariah 10:2 : Ezek. 34:5, 6
Zechariah 10:3 : [Ezek. 34:10]
Zechariah 10:3 : [Ezek. 34:17]
Zechariah 10:3 : Zeph. 2:7
Zechariah 10:4 : [Ps. 118:22]
Zechariah 10:4 : Isa. 22:23
Zechariah 10:4 : [ch. 9:8]
Zechariah 10:5 : [ch. 9:15]
Zechariah 10:5 : [Ps. 20:7]
Zechariah 10:6 : [ver. 12]
Zechariah 10:6 : ch. 8:7, 13
Zechariah 10:6 : [Jer. 3:18]
Zechariah 10:6 : Isa. 14:1
Zechariah 10:6 : ch. 13:9
Zechariah 10:7 : ch. 9:15
Zechariah 10:8 : Isa. 5:26
Zechariah 10:8 : Jer. 31:10, 11; See Hos. 1:11
Zechariah 10:8 : Ezek. 36:10, 11, 37
Zechariah 10:9 : [Hos. 2:23]
Zechariah 10:9 : Ezek. 6:9; See Deut. 30:1-3
Zechariah 10:10 : Isa. 11:11; 27:13; Hos. 11:11
Zechariah 10:10 : [Mic. 7:14]
Zechariah 10:10 : Isa. 49:20
Zechariah 10:11 : Isa. 11:15
Zechariah 10:11 : [Amos 8:8]
Zechariah 10:11 : Ezek. 30:13
Zechariah 10:12 : [ver. 6]
Zechariah 10:12 : Mic. 4:5
Zechariah 11:1 : [Isa. 2:12, 13]
Zechariah 11:2 : [See ver. 1 above]; [Isa. 2:12, 13]
Zechariah 11:3 : Jer. 25:34
Zechariah 11:3 : Jer. 25:34
Zechariah 11:3 : See Ezek. 19:1-3
Zechariah 11:3 : [Jer. 12:5]
Zechariah 11:4 : [ver. 7]
Zechariah 11:5 : Ezek. 34:3
Zechariah 11:5 : Hos. 12:8
Zechariah 11:6 : Jer. 13:14
Zechariah 11:7 : [ver. 4]
Zechariah 11:7 : ver. 10
Zechariah 11:7 : ver. 14
Zechariah 11:7 : [ver. 4]
Zechariah 11:8 : [ver. 3, 16; ch. 10:3; Jer. 22:11, 18, 24]
Zechariah 11:9 : Jer. 15:2
Zechariah 11:10 : ver. 7
Zechariah 11:12 : [Ex. 21:32; Matt. 26:15]
Zechariah 11:13 : [Matt. 27:9, 10]
Zechariah 11:13 : [See ver. 12 above]; [Ex. 21:32; Matt. 26:15]
Zechariah 11:14 : ver. 7
Zechariah 11:15 : See 2 Kgs. 24:18-20
Zechariah 11:16 : [Ezek. 34:4; John 10:13]
Zechariah 11:16 : Ezek. 34:3
Zechariah 11:17 : Jer. 23:1
Zechariah 11:17 : John 10:12
Zechariah 11:17 : [2 Kgs. 25:7]

English Standard Version (ESV)

Revelation 18

The Fall of Babylon

18 After this I saw ^(A)another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and ^(B)the earth was made bright with his glory. ²And he called out with a mighty voice,

^(C)“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
She has become ^(D)a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt ^(E)for every unclean spirit,
a haunt ^(F)for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
³For all nations have drunk^[a]
^(G)the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality,
and ^(H)the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her,
and ^(I)the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”

⁴Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,

^(J)“Come out of her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
⁵for ^(K)her sins are heaped high as heaven,
and ^(L)God has remembered her iniquities.
⁶^(M)Pay her back as she herself has paid back others,
and repay her ^(N)double for her deeds;
mix a double portion for her ^(O)in the cup she mixed.
⁷^(P)As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning,
since in her heart she says,
^(Q)‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.’
⁸For this reason her plagues will come ^(R)in a single day,
death and mourning and famine,
and ^(S)she will be burned up with fire;
for ^(T)mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”

⁹And ^(U)the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, ^(V)will weep and wail over her ^(W)when they see the smoke of her burning. ¹⁰^(X)They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,

“Alas! Alas! ^(Y)You great city,
you mighty city, Babylon!
For ^(Z)in a single hour your judgment has come.”

¹¹And ^(AA)the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, ¹²cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, ¹³cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.^[b]

¹⁴“The fruit for which your soul longed
has gone from you,
and all your delicacies and your splendors
are lost to you,
never to be found again!”

¹⁵^(AB)The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, ^(AC)will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,

¹⁶“Alas, alas, for the great city
^(AD)that was clothed in fine linen,
in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold,
with jewels, and with pearls!
¹⁷For ^(AE)in a single hour all this wealth ^(AF)has been laid waste.”

And ^(AG)all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off ¹⁸and ^(AH)cried out ^(AI)as they saw the smoke of her burning,

^(AJ)“What city was like the great city?”

¹⁹And they threw ^(AK)dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out,

“Alas, alas, for the great city
^(AL)where all who had ships at sea
grew rich by her wealth!
For ^(AM)in a single hour she has been laid waste.
²⁰^(AN)Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you saints and ^(AO)apostles and prophets,
for ^(AP)God has given judgment for you against her!”

²¹Then ^(AQ)a mighty angel ^(AR)took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,

“So will Babylon ^(AS)the great city be thrown down with violence,
and will be found no more;
²²and ^(AT)the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters,
will be heard in you no more,
and a craftsman of any craft
will be found in you no more,
and ^(AU)the sound of the mill
will be heard in you no more,
²³and the light of a lamp
will shine in you no more,
and ^(AV)the voice of bridegroom and bride
will be heard in you no more,
for ^(AW)your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
and all nations were deceived ^(AX)by your sorcery.
²⁴And ^(AY)in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of ^(AZ)all who have been slain on earth.”

Footnotes:

Revelation 18:3 Some manuscripts fallen by
Revelation 18:13 Or and slaves, and human lives

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Psalm 146

Put Not Your Trust in Princes

146 ^(A)Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
²I will praise the Lord ^(B)as long as I live;
^(C)I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

³^(D)Put not your trust in princes,
^(E)in a son of man, in whom there is ^(F)no salvation.
⁴When ^(G)his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.

⁵^(H)Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose ^(I)hope is in the Lord his God,
⁶^(J)who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
^(K)who keeps faith forever;
⁷^(L)who executes justice for the oppressed,
^(M)who gives food to the hungry.

^(N)The Lord sets the prisoners free;
⁸^(O)the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
^(P)The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
^(Q)the Lord loves the righteous.
⁹^(R)The Lord watches over the sojourners;
^(S)he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
but ^(T)the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

¹⁰^(U)The Lord will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.
^(V)Praise the Lord!

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 30:33

³³For pressing milk produces curds,
pressing the nose produces blood,
and pressing anger produces strife.

English Standard Version (ESV)

December 26, 2023

12/26/2023 DAB Transcript

Zechariah 9:1-17, Revelations 17:1-18, Psalm 145:1-21, Proverbs 30:32

Today is the 26th day of December, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is great to be here with you today, probably overly full bellies from yesterday. Trying to figure out what happened to our systems. Big day of like exchanging things. Oh, after holiday sales and all of that. So, well, welcome to the post-Christmas festivities here around the Global Campfire, it’s always kind of the same. It’s a peaceful place, God’s word is spoken here, straight from the Scriptures. No matter what’s going on in our lives, we can come in here and be here together. There’s no time that anybody is listening alone, and we have this place to re-center ourselves in the word of God and be oriented to God through his word, so that we know how to live our lives. And so, let’s take that next step, post-Christmas step, that leads us back into the book of Zechariah. Today we’ll read Zechariah chapter 9.

Commentary:

Okay, so, it’s the day after Christmas, right, so a lot of laying around but then a lot of also, I don’t know, visiting people are still around or just feeling tired from all of it. Maybe exhausted. It’s been an exhausting month. We’ll have leftovers today. Maybe exchange some gifts. Maybe today’s the day that family leaves and heads back to whatever state they’re going to, or maybe today’s the day you leave and you’re on your way back. But it’s today, like Christmas comes and then boom it’s over and our hearts start slowing moving away from the Christmas season and we start focusing on what’s to come. Slowly move away from what was and looking forward to the New Year. And what we just read in the book of Proverbs today, offered us wise counsel that it must inform us as we move forward. If you have acted like a fool by exalting yourself or if you’ve been scheming, put your hand over your mouth. So, no matter how we have conducted ourselves over the last couple of days, it’s not likely that we haven’t exhibited or encountered pride. We notice this in the overinflated versions of ourselves that we portray, that kind of curated versions that get put out there online. In fact, the last couple days, we’ve been around a lot of people probably that we’re not always around and maybe we’ve endured hours of conversation with people that we love that just compare themselves to everything: gifts, careers, spouses, kids, choices. Maybe we’ve made people that we love endure hours of us doing that kind of posturing. Proverbs is saying hey, why don’t you try this other path. Why don’t you shut your mouth. Why don’t you put your hand over your mouth. That’s ancient wisdom from thousands of years ago, so this has been going on for thousands of years among the human race. And it can seem harsh at first, put your hand over your mouth, but it’s freeing. We’re being given permission that we don’t have to do the game, we don’t have to play the comparison game, we don’t have to play the gossip and slander game. According Proverbs, that only makes us look like a fool and we don’t have to do it. We can…we can bite our tongue and leave those prideful words inside. They don’t need to be born into the world, we’re allowed to be who we are and we’re allowed to do that honestly. And that doesn’t have to be gained by comparison. We don’t have to go into this new year false. The word for next year is truth. Not only to explore the truth of the Scriptures, but to actually walk with the mirror in front of our face and see just how much false that we allow. We don’t have to go into the New Year false. We’ve been given permission to be true. We don’t have to go into the new year falsely inflated. I mean, we’re probably going into the New Year wanting to lose a few pounds. Maybe we can lose a little pride and a little arrogance while we’re losing a few pounds. We’ve learned all year that our identity can only be found by embracing the long-suffering mercy of God. And we’re nothing compared to that. But compared to each other, there is no comparison, we’re children of God. We don’t have to pose. We don’t have to hide. We don’t have to curate. We don’t have to present this image of spirituality in ourselves, it’s like what we hope to be, but it’s not what we are. It’s foolishness, it won’t get us anywhere. We’re wearing a mask, it’s not true. Let’s be true and grow in maturity and be who we are. When we were reading through Paul’s letters, he told us that we are all invited to reflect the glory of the Lord upon the earth. Think about that. We get to be ourselves and be true with nothing to hide as we reflect the glory of the Lord upon the earth. Hey, that’s a good New Year’s resolution. Let’s write that one down for the New Year and let’s live into it.

Prayer:

And Holy Spirit, come into that we pray, lead us into all truth, lead us away from what is false, not only the things that we need to avoid, but the things that are within us that need to not be there. Holy Spirit come, lead us forward in all truth as we humble ourselves before You and pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com that is home base, it’s the website. It’s where you find out what’s going on around here. The Daily Audio Bible app will do that, put in the palm of your hand, and you can just search for Daily Audio Bible at whatever app store works with your device. So, check that out. It’s Christmas time around here. We still have the Christmas vinyl albums that we, that we had during the Christmas season. Thank you for your partnership on those.

Those of you who want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible in the final days of this year, thank you deeply. 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 ever 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:

Hi siblings, this is He Knows My Name. And I’m calling to pray for Manita’s son, Lucas who had an accident at work and he’s now, according to the doctors, blind. Father in Heaven, I wish to commit him to Your hands. Your son Lucas, Father, he was not born blind. Father, You give sight to the blind. You make the lame to walk. You make the deaf to hear, the dumb to speak. Nothing is too difficult for You to do. And Lord, You are more than able. I pray, oh Father God, You will please restore the sight of Lucas to the glory of Your most Holy name. Father, please work Your miracle in his life. Oh Lord, will You stand in the congregation of Your truth and You testify of Your goodness, oh Father. May You please meet me him at this point of need. Wherever else he feels pain or discomfort, Father, may You take the pain away. May You provide the finances that is needed. That he would receive the proper medical attention that he deserves. Pray oh Lord, that You will use him as a point of contact to reach out to every other person out there that has one or one kind of deformity or another due to accident, due to sickness or anything, anything at all Father. Will You stretch Your hands over them. May You heal them, oh Lord, from head to toe. And make them whole, oh Father, as You make whole, the son who came back to tell You thank You. It will come back to glorify Your name, to thank You, to testify to Your most holy name. The wonderful works, oh Father. May You make him whole. In Jesus mighty name. I’ve prayed with thanksgiving and adoration. Amen. He is healed in the mighty name of Jesus. He will see again. Thank you.

Good morning, DAB. My name’s Andrea. I’ve called in a few times for my son and his friend Ethan. But I need prayers. I just got a bad report from a doctor. I had a couple of ultrasounds to try and figure out what was going on in my abdomen. And I was blindsided by the information. I’m not gonna name it, cause I’m not claiming this. But I would appreciate any sort of prayers for complete healing for my body. I will be going to an OB/GYN soon to find out if there is a course of action here. But I’m standing on God’s word that I’m healed by the blood of Jesus. But I’m asking for prayers. I’m also asking for continued prayers for my daughter, Reign. That she would come home to Jesus. And I pray for everyone here. And I hope everybody has a really good holiday. And may God bless you and keep you. Thank you.

Hello, this is Dabs from Hampshire in the UK. And this prayer message is for Susan, God’s Yellow Flower and her son Keith. I just wanna pray for you both. Dear Lord Jesus, we pray that You will be with Keith and his mum, Susan, over these coming days and weeks. With this return of the cancer. Lord Jesus, we pray that You will give both Susan and Keith a renewed sense of peace. A renewed sense of strength and courage, knowing that You’ve been with them throughout this journey that Keith has been on. And that You will continue to be right by their side each and every day. And I pray Lord, for complete healing. Healing over Keith, we pray. I just pray Lord, that You will be with them both over Christmas. And You will just give them a sense of peace. Sending much love and prayers. Bye bye.

Hello my DAB family, this is Mark Street from Sydney, Australia. Today is Friday, the 23rd of December. And just wanting to call in and pray for Susan, God’s Yellow Flower and Keith, her son. Susan, I just want to pray for you. I don’t have any words of wisdom but I just want to pray for you. Dear Heavenly Father, You’re a parent to all of us. We know that You hurt so much when we fall away. So, we lift up Susan and Keith to You, Lord. She is hurting so much for her son Lord, and You know that _ Lord. Lord, Your way is the best way. Lord, heal Keith again and bring him back _. ___But Lord we do know, that Your will is best. Lord, comfort Susan. Let this be a wonderful season for Susan and Keith and her family. That they will feel your love. Bring them a happy season, a prosperous season for health, as well, Lord. In Your name, I pray. Susan, I know I’m one of many, but I ____Love you all.

December 26, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Tuesday December 26, 2023 (NIV)

Zechariah 9

Judgment on Israel's Enemies

9 The oracle of the word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrach
and ^(A)Damascus is its resting place.
For the Lord has an eye on mankind
and on all the tribes of Israel,^[a]
²^(B)and on Hamath also, which borders on it,
^(C)Tyre and ^(D)Sidon, though ^(E)they are very wise.
³Tyre has built herself ^(F)a rampart
and ^(G)heaped up silver like dust,
and fine gold like the mud of the streets.
⁴But behold, the Lord will strip her of her possessions
and strike down ^(H)her power on the sea,
and ^(I)she shall be devoured by fire.

⁵^(J)Ashkelon shall see it, and be afraid;
Gaza too, and shall writhe in anguish;
Ekron also, because its hopes are confounded.
The king shall perish from Gaza;
Ashkelon shall be uninhabited;
⁶^(K)a mixed people^[b] shall dwell in Ashdod,
and I will cut off the pride of Philistia.
⁷I will take away ^(L)its blood from its mouth,
and ^(M)its abominations from between its teeth;
^(N)it too shall be a remnant for our God;
it shall be like ^(O)a clan in Judah,
and Ekron shall be like the Jebusites.
⁸Then ^(P)I will encamp at my house as a guard,
^(Q)so that none shall march to and fro;
^(R)no oppressor shall again march over them,
^(S)for now I see with my own eyes.

The Coming King of Zion

⁹^(T)Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
^(U)Behold, ^(V)your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
^(W)humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
¹⁰^(X)I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and ^(Y)the war horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and ^(Z)he shall speak peace to the nations;
^(AA)his rule shall be from sea to sea,
and from ^(AB)the River^[c] to the ends of the earth.
¹¹As for you also, because of ^(AC)the blood of my covenant with you,
^(AD)I will set your prisoners free from ^(AE)the waterless pit.
¹²Return to your stronghold, O ^(AF)prisoners of hope;
today I declare that ^(AG)I will restore to you double.
¹³For ^(AH)I have bent Judah as my bow;
I have made Ephraim its arrow.
I will stir up your sons, O Zion,
against your sons, ^(AI)O Greece,
and wield you like a warrior's sword.

The Lord Will Save His People

¹⁴Then the Lord will appear over them,
and ^(AJ)his arrow will go forth like lightning;
^(AK)the Lord God will sound the trumpet
and will march forth in ^(AL)the whirlwinds ^(AM)of the south.
¹⁵The Lord of hosts ^(AN)will protect them,
and ^(AO)they shall devour, ^(AP)and tread down the sling stones,
and ^(AQ)they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine,
and be full like a bowl,
drenched ^(AR)like the corners of the altar.

¹⁶On that day the Lord their God will save them,
as ^(AS)the flock of his people;
for ^(AT)like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land.
¹⁷^(AU)For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty!
^(AV)Grain shall make the young men flourish,
and new wine the young women.

Footnotes:

Zechariah 9:1 Or For the eye of mankind, especially of all the tribes of Israel, is toward the Lord
Zechariah 9:6 Or a foreign people; Hebrew a bastard
Zechariah 9:10 That is, the Euphrates

Cross references:

Zechariah 9:1 : See Isa. 17:1
Zechariah 9:2 : Jer. 49:23; See 1 Kgs. 8:65
Zechariah 9:2 : Josh. 19:28, 29; Isa. 23:1, 2
Zechariah 9:2 : Josh. 19:28, 29; Isa. 23:1, 2
Zechariah 9:2 : See Ezek. 28:3-5
Zechariah 9:3 : [Josh. 19:29]
Zechariah 9:3 : Ezek. 28:4, 5
Zechariah 9:4 : Ezek. 26:17
Zechariah 9:4 : Ezek. 28:18
Zechariah 9:5 : See Zeph. 2:4
Zechariah 9:6 : [Deut. 23:2]
Zechariah 9:7 : See Lev. 3:17
Zechariah 9:7 : [Isa. 66:17]
Zechariah 9:7 : [Isa. 14:1]
Zechariah 9:7 : ch. 12:5, 6
Zechariah 9:8 : [ch. 2:5]
Zechariah 9:8 : ch. 7:14
Zechariah 9:8 : ch. 10:4; [Isa. 60:17]
Zechariah 9:8 : [ch. 12:4]
Zechariah 9:9 : See Zeph. 3:14
Zechariah 9:9 : Cited Matt. 21:5; [John 12:15]
Zechariah 9:9 : See Jer. 23:5
Zechariah 9:9 : [Matt. 11:29]
Zechariah 9:10 : See Hos. 1:7
Zechariah 9:10 : See Mic. 5:10
Zechariah 9:10 : See Mic. 5:5
Zechariah 9:10 : Ps. 72:8
Zechariah 9:10 : See Ex. 23:31
Zechariah 9:11 : Ex. 24:8
Zechariah 9:11 : Isa. 42:7; 51:14; 61:1
Zechariah 9:11 : [Gen. 37:24; Jer. 38:6]
Zechariah 9:12 : [Jer. 31:17]
Zechariah 9:12 : Isa. 61:7
Zechariah 9:13 : [ch. 10:3, 4]
Zechariah 9:13 : Gen. 10:2; Ezek. 27:13
Zechariah 9:14 : See 2 Sam. 22:15
Zechariah 9:14 : [Isa. 27:13]
Zechariah 9:14 : Isa. 21:1
Zechariah 9:14 : [ch. 6:6]
Zechariah 9:15 : ch. 12:8; [ch. 10:5]
Zechariah 9:15 : ch. 12:6
Zechariah 9:15 : [ch. 10:5]
Zechariah 9:15 : ch. 10:7
Zechariah 9:15 : [Lev. 4:18, 25]
Zechariah 9:16 : Ps. 100:3
Zechariah 9:16 : Isa. 62:3; [Mal. 3:17]
Zechariah 9:17 : [Isa. 62:3, 4]
Zechariah 9:17 : [Isa. 62:8, 9; Jer. 31:12]

English Standard Version (ESV)

Revelation 17

The Great Prostitute and the Beast

17 Then ^(A)one of the seven angels who had ^(B)the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of ^(C)the great prostitute ^(D)who is seated on many waters, ²^(E)with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and ^(F)with the wine of whose sexual immorality ^(G)the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” ³And ^(H)he carried me away in the Spirit ^(I)into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on ^(J)a scarlet beast that was full of ^(K)blasphemous names, and ^(L)it had seven heads and ten horns. ⁴The woman ^(M)was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned ^(N)with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand ^(O)a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. ⁵And on her forehead was written a name of ^(P)mystery: ^(Q)“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth's abominations.” ⁶And I saw the woman, drunk ^(R)with the blood of the saints, the blood of ^(S)the martyrs of Jesus.^[a]

When I saw her, I marveled greatly. ⁷But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you ^(T)the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. ⁸The beast that you saw ^(U)was, and is not, and ^(V)is about to rise from ^(W)the bottomless pit^[b] and ^(X)go to destruction. And ^(Y)the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in ^(Z)the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because ^(AA)it was and is not and is to come. ⁹^(AB)This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; ¹⁰they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. ¹¹As for the beast ^(AC)that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. ¹²And ^(AD)the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings ^(AE)for one hour, together with the beast. ¹³These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴They ^(AF)will make war on the Lamb, and ^(AG)the Lamb will conquer them, for he is ^(AH)Lord of lords and ^(AI)King of kings, and those with him are ^(AJ)called and chosen and faithful.”

¹⁵And the angel^[c] said to me, ^(AK)“The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. ¹⁶And ^(AL)the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast ^(AM)will hate the prostitute. They will make her ^(AN)desolate and ^(AO)naked, and ^(AP)devour her flesh and ^(AQ)burn her up with fire, ¹⁷for ^(AR)God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and ^(AS)handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. ¹⁸And the woman that you saw is ^(AT)the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”

Footnotes:

Revelation 17:6 Greek the witnesses to Jesus
Revelation 17:8 Greek the abyss
Revelation 17:15 Greek he

Cross references:

English Standard Version (ESV)

Psalm 145

Great Is the Lord

^[a] A Song of Praise. Of David.

145 ^(A)I will extol you, my God and ^(B)King,
and bless your name forever and ever.
²Every day I will bless you
^(C)and praise your name forever and ever.
³^(D)Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and his ^(E)greatness is unsearchable.

⁴^(F)One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.
⁵On ^(G)the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
⁶They shall speak of ^(H)the might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
⁷They shall pour forth the fame of your ^(I)abundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

⁸The Lord is ^(J)gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
⁹The Lord is ^(K)good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.

¹⁰^(L)All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your ^(M)saints shall bless you!
¹¹They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
¹²to ^(N)make known to the children of man your^[b] ^(O)mighty deeds,
and ^(P)the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
¹³^(Q)Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

[The Lord is faithful in all his words
and kind in all his works.]^[c]
¹⁴The Lord ^(R)upholds all who are falling
and ^(S)raises up all who are bowed down.
¹⁵The eyes of all ^(T)look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
¹⁶You ^(U)open your hand;
you ^(V)satisfy the desire of every living thing.
¹⁷The Lord is ^(W)righteous in all his ways
and ^(X)kind in all his works.
¹⁸The Lord is ^(Y)near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him ^(Z)in truth.
¹⁹He ^(AA)fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also ^(AB)hears their cry and saves them.
²⁰The Lord ^(AC)preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

²¹My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
and ^(AD)let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

Footnotes:

Psalm 145:1 This psalm is an acrostic poem, each verse beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet
Psalm 145:12 Hebrew his; also next line
Psalm 145:13 These two lines are supplied by one Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint, Syriac (compare Dead Sea Scroll)

Cross references:

Psalm 145:1 : Ps. 99:5, 9
Psalm 145:1 : Ps. 98:6
Psalm 145:2 : [Ps. 146:2]
Psalm 145:3 : Ps. 48:1
Psalm 145:3 : Job 5:9; [Isa. 40:28]
Psalm 145:4 : Isa. 38:19
Psalm 145:5 : ver. 12
Psalm 145:6 : [Ps. 78:4]
Psalm 145:7 : Isa. 63:7
Psalm 145:8 : See Ps. 86:5, 15
Psalm 145:9 : See Ps. 100:5
Psalm 145:10 : [Ps. 19:1; 103:22]
Psalm 145:10 : [Ps. 132:9, 16]
Psalm 145:12 : Ps. 105:1
Psalm 145:12 : ver. 4; Ps. 150:2; Deut. 3:24
Psalm 145:12 : ver. 5
Psalm 145:13 : See Ps. 10:16
Psalm 145:14 : [Ps. 37:17, 24]
Psalm 145:14 : Ps. 146:8
Psalm 145:15 : Ps. 104:27
Psalm 145:16 : Ps. 104:28
Psalm 145:16 : [Ps. 104:21; 147:8]
Psalm 145:17 : See Ps. 116:5
Psalm 145:17 : Ps. 18:25; Jer. 3:12
Psalm 145:18 : [Ps. 34:18; 119:151; Deut. 4:7]
Psalm 145:18 : John 4:23, 24
Psalm 145:19 : Prov. 10:24; [John 9:31]
Psalm 145:19 : Ps. 31:22
Psalm 145:20 : See Ps. 97:10
Psalm 145:21 : [Ps. 150:6]

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 30:32

³²If you have been foolish, exalting yourself,
or if you have been devising evil,
^(A)put your hand on your mouth.

Cross references:

Proverbs 30:32 : Mic. 7:16; See Job 21:5

English Standard Version (ESV)

December 25, 2023

The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Monday December 25, 2023 (NIV)

Zechariah 8

8 ^1-2The word of the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, came, this time bringing a series of five short messages about hope.

Eternal One: First, I have a jealous desire to be among My people in Zion. I want it more than anything. I am burning with angry jealousy for her and her welfare.

³Second, I will return to Zion and live in the heart of Jerusalem. So it will then be known far and wide as the City of Truth, and the mountain of the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, will be called Holy Mountain.

⁴Third, elderly men and women will sit in Jerusalem’s streets with staffs in hand because of their old age. ⁵The city streets will bustle with boys and girls playing outside on the roads and in the squares.

Ultimately, God’s purpose is redeeming His fallen creation. He initiated His plan of redemption by calling and equipping the children of Abraham to be a light to the nations. Zechariah foresees a day when Jerusalem is the center of the world; when people of every race, creed, and color journey to it; and when the Jews show the rest of the world the way to the one True God.

After chapter 8, the Book of Zechariah changes—its tone, its character, its focus. Chapters 1–8 have been about the people and times immediately after the exile ended, a period when Persia ruled the world. Chapters 9–14 seem removed from that world, its people, and its interests—but just how far removed is uncertain. It is possible that these last chapters were not written by Zechariah, and the debate about who wrote them and when they were written has raged since Jesus died. In 27:9-10 of his Gospel, Matthew identifies the author as Jeremiah, a forerunner of Zechariah. More recent scholarship has further confused the matter because the setting in chapter 9 could describe any time in Jerusalem between Hezekiah’s rule before the exile and the Maccabean revolts 400 years later. This inability to positively identify the author and the audience, along with the lack of historical, contextual markers in the text itself, make these words universally applicable. They may even describe the end time when God judges the nations.

⁶Fourth, this may come as a surprise to the remnant of these people, eking out an existence during these harsh days, but what is surprising to you is not for Me.

⁷Fifth, I will rescue My people from far and wide, from east to west across the land, ⁸and I will bring them home to live in peace in Jerusalem where they will be My people once more. I will be truthful and just to them as their God.

⁹Here is an encouragement from the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies.

Eternal One: To those of you who have been listening recently to My words through the prophets, who were working for Me when the foundation of the house of the Eternal One was being laid just decades ago, keep yourselves strong so that the temple walls may now be built. ¹⁰Before then no one could earn a living in Jerusalem or in exile. Neither men nor their animals could find work. No one could move about safely for fear of his enemies because I had turned every man against each other. ¹¹However, that was the past. I, the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, promise I will not treat the remnant of My people as I once did. ¹²What you witness now will be very different—a new day when seeds of peace will be sown in fertile soil. The seeds will grow into sheaves of wheat, and the vines will produce luscious grapes. The ground will yield its crops, and pleasant dew will again fall from the heavens. And I will give these things to My remnant as their inheritance. ¹³Because you, people of Judah and Israel, were once the objects of scorn among the nations, I will rescue you and you will become a blessing. Don’t be afraid, and keep yourselves strong.

¹⁴When your ancestors angered Me, I was determined to bring disaster to your generation as well as theirs, and I refused to change My plan. ¹⁵All the same, I have now determined to do good for Jerusalem and the people of Judah. Don’t be afraid. ¹⁶Here are the things you must do: Speak truth to each other. Pursue justice in your courts. Render decisions that reflect truth and bring peace to the community. ¹⁷Do not conspire to bring harm against one another. Do not make promises you don’t intend to keep. I hate all these things.

So said the Eternal.

¹⁸The word of the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, came to me with three brief messages about a happy future for His people and the entire world.

Eternal One: ¹⁹From now on, the fasting times of the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months will be happy occasions and times of celebration for the people of Judah. So you should love truth and pursue peace.

²⁰Many people from many cities will come streaming to My holy city. ²¹The citizens from one of these cities will approach the citizens of another and say, “You must come with me. Let’s journey to Jerusalem to seek the blessings of the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, and ask for His favor directly. I am certainly going.”

²²That is why many people and powerful nations will come together as one to Jerusalem to seek the blessings of the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, and ask for His favor directly.

Eternal One: ²³A day is coming when 10 men, people from every nation speaking every language will grab the cloak of a Jew and beg him, “Let us come with you because we have heard the True God is among you and we want Him to save us, too.”

The Voice (VOICE)

Revelation 16

Just as God used the plagues to judge the Egyptians and deliver His people from bondage (Exodus 7–12), these plagues will help rescue God’s faithful servants.

16 Then I heard a great voice coming from the temple ordering the seven heavenly messengers.

A Voice: Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God upon the earth.

²So the first messenger poured out his bowl onto the earth. When he did, a foul-smelling, painful sore broke out on each person who bore the mark of the beast and who worshiped its image.

³The second messenger poured out his bowl into the sea. When he did, the waters became like the blood that spills from a dead body, and every living creature in the sea died.

⁴The third messenger poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of fresh water. When he did, they, too, became blood. ⁵And I heard the messenger over the waters speak.

Messenger over the Waters: You are just, O holy One who is and who was,
for You have judged these things rightly.
⁶Because people shed the blood of the saints and prophets,
You have given them blood to quench their thirst.
They are deserving of these punishments.

God’s judgment is true and just. Violent people are thirsty for blood, so God gives it to them. Sometimes judgment means receiving what you desire.

⁷And I heard a voice from the altar agree.

A Voice: Yes, Lord God, the All Powerful,
true and right are Your judgments!

⁸The fourth messenger poured out his bowl on the sun. When he did, the sun was permitted to blister people with its fire. ⁹The incredible heat of the sun burned their skin; but instead of rethinking their actions^[a] and glorifying God, they cursed God’s name because He had the power to carry out these plagues.

¹⁰The fifth messenger poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast. When he did, its kingdom was blanketed in darkness. People chewed on their tongues out of the depth of their agony. ¹¹Still they refused to change their wicked ways,^[b] so they cursed the God of heaven because of their painful afflictions and ulcerous sores.

¹²The sixth messenger poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates. When he did, the river dried up and became a road so that the kings from the east and their armies could make their way. ¹³What I saw next troubled me deeply: three foul spirits like frogs appeared, belched from the mouth of the dragon, the mouth of the beast, and the mouth of the earth-beast. ¹⁴These frogs are demonic spirits. As they go into the world, they perform miracles persuading the kings of the world to gather for the last battle on the great day of God, the All Powerful.

The dragon, beast, and earth-beast are an unholy trinity who send out demonic spirits. These spirits resemble frogs and remind the reader of the plague of frogs that invaded Egypt before the exodus. These foul spirits roam the world, persuading the kings of the earth to assemble together to do battle against God and His chosen.

A Voice: ¹⁵See, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the person who watches and waits, dressed and ready to go, so as not to wander about naked, exposed to disgrace.

¹⁶And the kings gathered at the place called Har-Magedon in Hebrew.

Har-Magedon means Mount Megiddo and is sometimes transliterated “Armageddon.” This refers to the battleground where the armies of the earth, led by the forces of evil, will assemble to mount their final attack against God. This place is often associated with the plain of Megiddo in northern Israel because the fertile land there has often been turned into fields of blood during gruesome battles. In a place like this, for one last time, evil will raise its ugly head against good.

¹⁷Finally, the seventh messenger poured out his bowl into the air. When he did, a great voice came out of the temple, from the throne.

A Voice: It is accomplished!

¹⁸At the sound of the voice, there were flashes of lightning, sounds of voices, rumblings of thunder, and tremors of an earthquake. In all of human history, there had never been an earthquake of this magnitude. ¹⁹The great city was torn into three parts, and the cities of all the nations fell. God remembered the great city, Babylon, and made her drink the cup of His fury and wrath. ²⁰Every island sank into the ocean, and no mountains were left to be discovered. ²¹And great hailstones, each weighing nearly 100 pounds, fell from the sky onto the people until they cursed God because the plague of hail was so severe.

Footnotes:

16:9 Literally, repenting
16:11 Literally, repent

The Voice (VOICE)

Psalm 144

A song of David.

¹Blessed be the Eternal, my rock.
He trains my hands for war, gives me the skills I need for battle.
²He is my unfailing love and my citadel.
He is my tower of strength and my deliverer.
He is my shield of protection and my shelter;
He holds my people in check under me.

³O Eternal One, what is man, that You even care to know him?
or the son of man, that You are mindful of him?
⁴Humans are like a passing breath;
their time on earth is like a shadow that passes over us during the day and soon is gone.

⁵Eternal One, stretch out an opening in the heavens, and descend.
Touch the mountains, and make them smoke.
⁶Send forth bolts of lightning, and scatter my enemies.
Shoot Your fiery arrows, and rout the enemy.
⁷Reach down from Your high place;
save me out of the great waters;
rescue me from the grasp of these foreigners
⁸Who speak only lies
and don’t have truth in their deeds.

⁹To You, my God, I will sing a new song;
I will sing Your sweet praises to the sound of a ten-stringed harp,
¹⁰For You deliver kings from their enemies
and You rescue Your servant, David, from the sword of evil.
¹¹Rescue me,
and save me from the grasp of these foreigners
Who speak only lies
and don’t have truth in their deeds.

¹²May our sons be like healthy plants
as they grow and mature,
And may our daughters be like the corner pillars
that decorate a palace.
¹³May our storehouses be full
with abundant supplies of every crop,
And may the flocks of our fields
multiply into thousands and tens of thousands!
¹⁴May our cattle be strong and productive,
without miscarriage, without loss,
and may there be no riots or protests in our streets!

¹⁵Happy are the people for whom all this is true;
happy are the people whose God is the Eternal!

The Voice (VOICE)

Proverbs 30:29-31

²⁹There are three creatures with majesty in their stride,
no, make it four that move with grace:
³⁰The lion, which is the strongest of the animals,
does not back down from any other creature;
³¹The strutting rooster, the male goat,
and a king as he goes out with his army.^[a]

Footnotes:

30:31 Meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.

The Voice (VOICE)