EZEKIEL 44:1-45:12
1 PETER 1:1-12
PSALM 119:17-32
PROVERBS 28:8-10
EZEKIEL 44:1-45:12
Then the man brought me [Ezekiel] back to the east gateway in the outer wall, but it was closed. 2 And the LORD said to me, " This gate must remain closed; it will never again be opened. No man will ever pass through it, for the LORD, the God of Israel, entered here. Thus, it must always remain shut. 3 Only the prince himself may sit inside this gateway to feast in the LORD's presence. But he may come and go only through the gateway's foyer." 4 Then the man brought me through the north gateway to the front of the Temple. I looked and saw that the glory of the LORD filled the Temple of the LORD, and I fell to the ground with my face in the dust. 5 And the LORD said to me, " Son of man, take careful notice; use your eyes and ears. Listen to everything I tell you about the regulations concerning the LORD's Temple. Take careful note of who may be admitted to the Temple and who is to be excluded from it. 6 And give these rebels, the people of Israel, this message from the Sovereign LORD: O people of Israel, enough of your disgusting sins! 7 You have brought uncircumcised foreigners into my sanctuary--people who have no heart for God. In this way, you profaned my Temple even as you offered me my food, the fat and blood of sacrifices. Thus, in addition to all your other disgusting sins, you have broken my covenant. 8 You have not kept the laws I gave you concerning these sacred rituals, for you have hired foreigners to take charge of my sanctuary. 9 " So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: No foreigners, including those who live among the people of Israel, will enter my sanctuary if they have not been circumcised and do not love the LORD. 10 And the men of the tribe of Levi who abandoned me when Israel strayed away from me to worship idols must bear the consequences of their unfaithfulness. 11 They may still be Temple guards and gatemen, and they may still slaughter the animals brought for burnt offerings and be present to help the people. 12 But they encouraged my people to worship other gods, causing Israel to fall into deep sin. So I have raised my hand and taken an oath that they must bear the consequences for their sins, says the Sovereign LORD. 13 They may not approach me to minister as priests. They may not touch any of my holy things or the holy offerings, for they must bear the shame of all the sins they have committed. 14 They are to serve as the Temple caretakers and are relegated to doing maintenance work and helping the people in a general way. 15 " However, the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok continued to minister faithfully in the Temple when Israel abandoned me for idols. These men will serve as my ministers. They will stand in my presence and offer the fat and blood of the sacrifices, says the Sovereign LORD. 16 They are the ones who will enter my sanctuary and approach my table to serve me. They are the ones who will fulfill all my requirements. 17 When they enter the gateway to the inner courtyard, they must wear only linen clothing. They must wear no wool while on duty in the inner courtyard or in the Temple itself. 18 They must wear linen turbans and linen undergarments. They must not wear anything that would cause them to perspire. 19 When they return to the outer courtyard where the people are, they must take off the clothes they wear while ministering to me. They must leave them in the sacred rooms and put on other clothes so they do not harm the people by transmitting holiness to them through this clothing. 20 " They must neither let their hair grow too long nor shave it off completely. Instead, they must trim it regularly. 21 The priests must never drink wine before entering the inner courtyard. 22 They may choose their wives only from among the virgins of Israel or the widows of the priests. They may not marry other widows or divorced women. 23 They will teach my people the difference between what is holy and what is common, what is ceremonially clean and unclean. 24 " They will serve as judges to resolve any disagreements among my people. Their decisions must be based on my regulations. And the priests themselves must obey my instructions and laws at all the sacred festivals, and they will see to it that the Sabbath is set apart as a holy day. 25 A priest must never defile himself by being in the presence of a dead person unless it is his father, mother, child, brother, or unmarried sister. In such cases it is permitted. 26 But such a priest can only return to his Temple duties after being ritually cleansed and then waiting for seven days. 27 The first day he returns to work and enters the inner courtyard and the sanctuary, he must offer a sin offering for himself, says the Sovereign LORD. 28 " As to property, the priests will not have any, for I alone am their inheritance. 29 Their food will come from the gifts and sacrifices brought to the Temple by the people--the grain offerings, the sin offerings, and the guilt offerings. Whatever anyone sets apart for the LORD will belong to the priests. 30 The first of the ripe fruits and all the gifts brought to the LORD will go to the priests. The first samples of each grain harvest and the first of your flour must also be given to the priests so the LORD will bless your homes. 31 The priests may never eat meat from any bird or animal that dies a natural death or that dies after being attacked by another animal.45:1 " WHEN you divide the land among the tribes of Israel, you must set aside a section of it for the LORD as his holy portion. This piece of land will be 8 miles long and 6 miles wide. The entire area will be holy ground. 2 A section of this land, measuring 875 feet by 875 feet, will be set aside for the Temple. An additional strip of land 87 feet wide is to be left empty all around it. 3 Within the larger sacred area, measure out a portion of land 8 miles long and 3 miles wide. Within it the sanctuary of the Most Holy Place will be located. 4 This area will be a holy land, set aside for the priests who minister to the LORD in the sanctuary. They will use it for their homes, and my Temple will be located within it. 5 The strip of sacred land next to it, also 8 miles long and 3 miles wide, will be a living area for the Levites who work at the Temple. It will be their possession and a place for their towns. 6 " Adjacent to the larger sacred area will be a section of land 8 miles long and 1 miles wide. This will be set aside to be a city where anyone in Israel can come and live. 7 " Two special sections of land will be set apart for the prince. One section will share a border with the east side of the sacred lands and city, and the second section will share a border on the west side. Then the far eastern and western borders of the prince's lands will line up with the eastern and western boundaries of the tribal areas. 8 These sections of land will be the prince's allotment. " My princes will no longer oppress and rob my people; they will assign the rest of the land to the people, giving an allotment to each tribe. 9 For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Enough, you princes of Israel! Stop all your violence and oppression and do what is just and right. Quit robbing and cheating my people out of their land! Stop expelling them from their homes! 10 You must use only honest weights and scales, honest dry volume measures, and honest liquid volume measures. 11 The homer will be your standard unit for measuring volume. The ephah and the bath will each measure one-tenth of a homer. 12 The standard unit for weight will be the silver shekel. One shekel consists of twenty gerahs, and sixty shekels are equal to one mina."
1 PETER 1:1-12
This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to God's chosen people who are living as foreigners in the lands of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, the province of Asia, and Bithynia. 2 God the Father chose you long ago, and the Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed Jesus Christ and are cleansed by his blood. May you have more and more of God's special favor and wonderful peace. 3 All honor to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for it is by his boundless mercy that God has given us the privilege of being born again. Now we live with a wonderful expectation because Jesus Christ rose again from the dead. 4 For God has reserved a priceless inheritance for his children. It is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And God, in his mighty power, will protect you until you receive this salvation, because you are trusting him. It will be revealed on the last day for all to see. 6 So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while. 7 These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold--and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold. So if your faith remains strong after being tried by fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.8 You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him, you trust him; and even now you are happy with a glorious, inexpressible joy. 9 Your reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. 10 This salvation was something the prophets wanted to know more about. They prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you, even though they had many questions as to what it all could mean. 11 They wondered what the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ's suffering and his great glory afterward. They wondered when and to whom all this would happen. 12 They were told that these things would not happen during their lifetime, but many years later, during yours. And now this Good News has been announced by those who preached to you in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.
PSALM 119:17-32
Be good to your servant,
that I may live and obey your word.
18 Open my eyes to see
the wonderful truths in your law.
19 I am but a foreigner here on earth;
I need the guidance of your commands.
Don't hide them from me!
20 I am overwhelmed continually
with a desire for your laws.
21 You rebuke those cursed proud ones
who wander from your commands.
22 Don't let them scorn and insult me,
for I have obeyed your decrees.
23 Even princes sit and speak against me,
but I will meditate on your principles.
24 Your decrees please me;
they give me wise advice.
25 I lie in the dust, completely discouraged;
revive me by your word.
26 I told you my plans, and you answered.
Now teach me your principles.
27 Help me understand the meaning of your commandments,
and I will meditate on your wonderful miracles.
28 I weep with grief;
encourage me by your word.
29 Keep me from lying to myself;
give me the privilege of knowing your law.
30 I have chosen to be faithful;
I have determined to live by your laws.
31 I cling to your decrees.
LORD, don't let me be put to shame!
32 If you will help me,
I will run to follow your commands.
PROVERBS 28:8-10
A person who makes money by charging interest will lose it. It will end up in the hands of someone who is kind to the poor. The prayers of a person who ignores the law are despised. Those who lead the upright into sin will fall into their own trap, but the honest will inherit good things.
