Reading through the Word....Day 307, November 3

EZEKIEL 12:1- 14:11
HEBREWS 7:1- 17
PSALM 105:37- 45
PROVERBS 27:3


Again a message came to me [Ezekiel] from the LORD:2 "Son of man, you live among rebels who could see the truth if they wanted to, but they don't want to. They could hear me if they would listen, but they won't listen because they are rebellious. 3 So now put on a demonstration to show them what it will be like to go off into exile. Pack whatever you can carry on your back and leave your home to go on a journey. Make your preparations in broad daylight so the people can see you, for perhaps they will even yet consider what this means, even though they are such rebels. 4 Bring your baggage outside during the day so they can watch you. Then as they are watching, leave your house in the evening, just as captives do when they begin a long march to distant lands. 5 Dig a hole through the wall while they are watching and carry your possessions out through it. 6 As they watch, lift your pack to your shoulders and walk away into the night. Cover your face and don't look around. All of these actions will be a sign for the people of Israel." 7 So I did as I was told. In broad daylight I brought my pack outside, filled with the things I might carry into exile. Then in the evening while the people looked on, I dug through the wall with my hands and went out into the darkness with my pack on my shoulder. 8 The next morning this message came to me from the LORD:9 "Son of man, these rebels, the people of Israel, have asked you what all this means. 10 Say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says:These actions contain a message for Zedekiah in Jerusalem and for all the people of Israel. '11 Then explain that your actions are a demonstration of what will soon happen to them, for they will be driven from their homes and sent away into exile. 12" Even Zedekiah will leave Jerusalem at night through a hole in the wall, taking only what he can carry with him. He will cover his face, and his eyes will never see his homeland again. 13 Then I will spread out my net and capture him in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Babylonians, though he will never see it, and he will die there. 14 I will scatter his servants and guards to the four winds and send the sword after them. 15 And when I scatter them among the nations, they will know that I am the LORD. 16 But I will spare a few of them from death by war, famine, or disease, so they can confess to their captors about how wicked they have been. Then they will know that I am the LORD! "17 Then this message came to me from the LORD:18" Son of man, tremble as you eat your food. Drink your water with fear, as if it were your last. 19 Give the people this message from the Sovereign LORD concerning those living in Israel and Jerusalem:They will eat their food with trembling and sip their tiny portions of water in utter despair, because their land will be stripped bare on account of their violence. 20 The cities will be destroyed and the farmland deserted. Then you will know that I am the LORD. "21 Again a message came to me from the LORD:22" Son of man, what is that proverb they quote in Israel:`Time passes, making a liar of every prophet'? 23 Give the people this message from the Sovereign LORD:I will put an end to this proverb, and you will soon stop quoting it. Now give them this new proverb to replace the old one:`The time has come for every prophecy to be fulfilled! '24 "Then you will see what becomes of all the false visions and misleading predictions about peace in Israel. 25 For I am the LORD! What I threaten always happens. There will be no more delays, you rebels of Israel! I will fulfill my threat of destruction in your own lifetime, says the Sovereign LORD." 26 Then this message came to me from the LORD:27 "Son of man, the people of Israel are saying, `His visions won't come true for a long, long time.' 28 Therefore, give them this message from the Sovereign LORD:No more delay! I will now do everything I have threatened! I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!" 13:1 THEN this message came to me from the LORD:2 "Son of man, speak against the false prophets of Israel who are inventing their own prophecies. Tell them to listen to the word of the LORD. 3 This is what the Sovereign LORD says:Destruction is certain for the false prophets who are following their own imaginations and have seen nothing at all! 4" O people of Israel, these prophets of yours are like jackals digging around in the ruins. 5 They have done nothing to strengthen the breaks in the walls around the nation. They have not helped it to stand firm in battle on the day of the LORD. 6 Instead, they have lied and said, `My message is from the LORD, 'even though the LORD never sent them. And yet they expect him to fulfill their prophecies! 7 Can your visions be anything but false if you claim, `This message is from the LORD,' when I have not even spoken to you? 8 "Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says:Because what you say is false and your visions are a lie, I will stand against you, says the Sovereign LORD. 9 I will raise my fist against all the lying prophets, and they will be banished from the community of Israel. I will blot their names from Israel's record books, and they will never again see their own land. Then you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD! 10" These evil prophets deceive my people by saying, `All is peaceful! 'when there is no peace at all! It's as if the people have built a flimsy wall, and these prophets are trying to hold it together by covering it with whitewash! 11 Tell these whitewashers that their wall will soon fall down. A heavy rainstorm will undermine it; great hailstones and mighty winds will knock it down. 12 And when the wall falls, the people will cry out, `Where is the whitewash you applied?' 13 "Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says:I will sweep away your whitewashed wall with a storm of indignation, with a great flood of anger, and with hailstones of fury. 14 I will break down your wall right to the foundation, and when it falls, it will crush you. Then you will know that I am the LORD! 15 At last my anger against the wall and those who covered it with whitewash will be satisfied. Then I will say to you:`The wall and those who whitewashed it are both gone. 16 They were lying prophets who claimed peace would come to Jerusalem when there was no peace. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken! '17" Now, son of man, also speak out against the women who prophesy from their own imaginations. 18 This is what the Sovereign LORD says:Destruction is certain for you women who are ensnaring the souls of my people, both young and old alike. You tie magic charms on their wrists and furnish them with magic veils. Do you think you can trap others without bringing destruction on yourselves? 19 You turn my people away from me for a few handfuls of barley or a piece of bread. By lying to my people who love to listen to lies, you kill those who should not die, and you promise life to those who should not live. 20 "And so the Sovereign LORD says:I am against all your magic charms, which you use to ensnare my people like birds. I will tear them from your arms, setting my people free like birds set free from a cage. 21 I will tear off the magic veils and save my people from your grasp. They will no longer be your victims. Then you will know that I am the LORD. 22 You have discouraged the righteous with your lies, when I didn't want them to suffer grief. And you have encouraged the wicked by promising them life, even though they continue in their sins. 23 But you will no longer talk of seeing visions that you never saw, nor will you practice your magic. For I will rescue my people from your grasp. Then you will know that I am the LORD." 14:1 THEN some of the leaders of Israel visited me, and while they were there, 2 this message came to me from the LORD:3 "Son of man, these leaders have set up idols in their hearts. They have embraced things that lead them into sin. Why should I let them ask me anything? 4 Give them this message from the Sovereign LORD:I, the LORD, will punish the people of Israel who set up idols in their hearts so they fall into sin and then come to a prophet asking for help. 5 I will do this to capture the minds and hearts of all my people who have turned from me to worship their detestable idols. 6" Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from the Sovereign LORD:Repent and turn away from your idols, and stop all your loathsome practices. 7 I, the LORD, will punish all those, both Israelites and foreigners, who reject me and set up idols in their hearts so they fall into sin, and who then come to a prophet asking for my advice. 8 I will turn against such people and make a terrible example of them, destroying them. Then you will know that I am the LORD. 9 And if a prophet is deceived and gives a message anyway, it is because I, the LORD, have deceived that prophet. I will stand against such prophets and cut them off from the community of Israel. 10 False prophets and hypocrites-- evil people who claim to want my advice-- will all be punished for their sins. 11 In this way, the people of Israel will learn not to stray from me, polluting themselves with sin. They will be my people, and I will be their God, says the Sovereign LORD. "


This Melchizedek was king of the city of Salem and also a priest of God Most High. When Abraham was returning home after winning a great battle against many kings, Melchizedek met him and blessed him. 2 Then Abraham took a tenth of all he had won in the battle and gave it to Melchizedek. His name means" king of justice. "He is also" king of peace "because Salem means" peace. "3 There is no record of his father or mother or any of his ancestors-- no beginning or end to his life. He remains a priest forever, resembling the Son of God. 4 Consider then how great this Melchizedek was. Even Abraham, the great patriarch of Israel, recognized how great Melchizedek was by giving him a tenth of what he had taken in battle. 5 Now the priests, who are descendants of Levi, are commanded in the law of Moses to collect a tithe from all the people, even though they are their own relatives. 6 But Melchizedek, who was not even related to Levi, collected a tenth from Abraham. And Melchizedek placed a blessing upon Abraham, the one who had already received the promises of God. 7 And without question, the person who has the power to bless is always greater than the person who is blessed. 8 In the case of Jewish priests, tithes are paid to men who will die. But Melchizedek is greater than they are, because we are told that he lives on. 9 In addition, we might even say that Levi's descendants, the ones who collect the tithe, paid a tithe to Melchizedek through their ancestor Abraham. 10 For although Levi wasn't born yet, the seed from which he came was in Abraham's loins when Melchizedek collected the tithe from him. 11 And finally, if the priesthood of Levi could have achieved God's purposes-- and it was that priesthood on which the law was based-- why did God need to send a different priest from the line of Melchizedek, instead of from the line of Levi and Aaron? 12 And when the priesthood is changed, the law must also be changed to permit it. 13 For the one we are talking about belongs to a different tribe, whose members do not serve at the altar. 14 What I mean is, our Lord came from the tribe of Judah, and Moses never mentioned Judah in connection with the priesthood. 15 The change in God's law is even more evident from the fact that a different priest, who is like Melchizedek, has now come. 16 He became a priest, not by meeting the old requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed. 17 And the psalmist pointed this out when he said of Christ," You are a priest forever
in the line of Melchizedek. "


But he [the LORD] brought his people safely out of Egypt, loaded with silver and gold;
there were no sick or feeble people among them.
38 Egypt was glad when they were gone,
for the dread of them was great.
39 The LORD spread out a cloud above them as a covering
and gave them a great fire to light the darkness.
40 They asked for meat, and he sent them quail;
he gave them manna-- bread from heaven.
41 He opened up a rock, and water gushed out
to form a river through the dry and barren land.
42 For he remembered his sacred promise
to Abraham his servant.
43 So he brought his people out of Egypt with joy,
his chosen ones with rejoicing.
44 He gave his people the lands of pagan nations,
and they harvested crops that others had planted.
45 All this happened so they would follow his principles
and obey his laws.
Praise the LORD!


A stone is heavy and sand is weighty, but the resentment caused by a fool is heavier than both

Reading through the Word....Day 306, November 2

EZEKIEL 10:1- 11:25
HEBREWS 6:1- 20
PSALM 105:16- 36
PROVERBS 27:1- 2


As I [Ezekiel] looked, I saw what appeared to be a throne of blue sapphire above the crystal surface over the heads of the cherubim. 2 Then the LORD spoke to the man in linen clothing and said, "Go in between the whirling wheels beneath the cherubim, and take a handful of glowing coals and scatter them over the city." He did this as I watched. 3 The cherubim were standing at the south end of the Temple when the man went in, and the cloud of glory filled the inner courtyard. 4 Then the glory of the LORD rose up from above the cherubim and went over to the door of the Temple. The Temple was filled with this cloud of glory, and the Temple courtyard glowed brightly with the glory of the LORD. 5 The moving wings of the cherubim sounded like the voice of God Almighty and could be heard clearly in the outer courtyard. 6 The LORD said to the man in linen clothing, "Go between the cherubim and take some burning coals from between the wheels." So the man went in and stood beside one of the wheels. 7 Then one of the cherubim reached out his hand and took some live coals from the fire burning among them. He put the coals into the hands of the man in linen clothing, and the man took them and went out. 8 (All the cherubim had what looked like human hands hidden beneath their wings.) 9 Each of the four cherubim had a wheel beside him, and the wheels sparkled like chrysolite. 10 All four wheels looked the same; each wheel had a second wheel turning crosswise within it. 11 The cherubim could move forward in any of the four directions they faced, without turning as they moved. They went straight in the direction in which their heads were turned, never turning aside. 12 Both the cherubim and the wheels were covered with eyes. The cherubim had eyes all over their bodies, including their hands, their backs, and their wings. 13 I heard someone refer to the wheels as "the whirling wheels." 14 Each of the four cherubim had four faces-- the first was the face of an ox, the second was a human face, the third was the face of a lion, and the fourth was the face of an eagle. 15 Then the cherubim rose upward. These were the same living beings I had seen beside the Kebar River. 16 When the cherubim moved, the wheels moved with them. When they rose into the air, the wheels stayed beside them, going with them as they flew. 17 When the cherubim stood still, the wheels also stopped, for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels. 18 Then the glory of the LORD moved from the door of the Temple and hovered above the cherubim. 19 And as I watched, the cherubim flew with their wheels to the east gate of the LORD's Temple. And the glory of the God of Israel hovered above them. 20 These were the same living beings I had seen beneath the God of Israel when I was by the Kebar River. I knew they were cherubim, 21 for each had four faces and four wings and what looked like human hands under their wings. 22 Their faces, too, were just like the faces of the beings I had seen at the Kebar, and they traveled straight ahead, just as the others had. 11:1 THEN the Spirit lifted me and brought me over to the east gateway of the LORD's Temple, where I saw twenty- five prominent men of the city. Among them were Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, who were leaders among the people. 2 Then the Spirit said to me, "Son of man, these are the men who are responsible for the wicked counsel being given in this city. 3 They say to the people, `Is it not a good time to build houses? Our city is like an iron pot. Inside it we will be like meat-- safe from all harm. '4 Therefore, son of man, prophesy against them loudly and clearly." 5 Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon me, and he told me to say, "This is what the LORD says to the people of Israel:Is that what you are saying? Yes, I know it is, for I know every thought that comes into your minds. 6 You have murdered endlessly and filled your streets with the dead. 7" Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says:This city is an iron pot, but the victims of your injustice are the pieces of meat. And you are not safe, for I will soon drag you from the city. 8 I will expose you to the war you so greatly fear, says the Sovereign LORD. 9 I will drive you out of Jerusalem and hand you over to foreigners who will carry out my judgments against you. 10 You will be slaughtered all the way to the borders of Israel, and then you will know that I am the LORD. 11 No, this city will not be an iron pot for you, and you will not be the meat, safe inside. I will judge you even to the borders of Israel, 12 and you will know that I am the LORD. For you have refused to obey me; instead, you have copied the sins of the nations around you. "13 While I was still speaking, Pelatiah son of Benaiah suddenly died. Then I fell face down in the dust and cried out," O Sovereign LORD, are you going to kill everyone in Israel? "14 Then this message came to me from the LORD:15" Son of man, the people still left in Jerusalem are talking about their relatives in exile, saying, `They are far away from the LORD, so now he has given their land to us!' 16 Therefore, give the exiles this message from the Sovereign LORD:Although I have scattered you in the countries of the world, I will be a sanctuary to you during your time in exile. 17 I, the Sovereign LORD, will gather you back from the nations where you are scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel once again. 18 "When the people return to their homeland, they will remove every trace of their detestable idol worship. 19 And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their hearts of stone and give them tender hearts instead, 20 so they will obey my laws and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for those who long for idols, I will repay them fully for their sins, says the Sovereign LORD." 22 Then the cherubim lifted their wings and rose into the air with their wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel hovered above them. 23 Then the glory of the LORD went up from the city and stopped above the mountain to the east. 24 Afterward the Spirit of God carried me back again to Babylonia, to the Judeans in exile there. And so ended the vision of my visit to Jerusalem. 25 And I told the exiles everything the LORD had shown me.


So let us stop going over the basics of Christianity again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don't need to start all over again with the importance of turning away from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. 2 You don't need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding. 4 For it is impossible to restore to repentance those who were once enlightened-- those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come-- 6 and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people to repentance again because they are nailing the Son of God to the cross again by rejecting him, holding him up to public shame. 7 When the ground soaks up the rain that falls on it and bears a good crop for the farmer, it has the blessing of God. 8 But if a field bears thistles and thorns, it is useless. The farmer will condemn that field and burn it. 9 Dear friends, even though we are talking like this, we really don't believe that it applies to you. We are confident that you are meant for better things, things that come with salvation. 10 For God is not unfair. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other Christians, as you still do. 11 Our great desire is that you will keep right on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true. 12 Then you will not become spiritually dull and indifferent. Instead, you will follow the example of those who are going to inherit God's promises because of their faith and patience. 13 For example, there was God's promise to Abraham. Since there was no one greater to swear by, God took an oath in his own name, saying:14 "I will certainly bless you richly,
and I will multiply your descendants into countless millions."
15 Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised. 16 When people take an oath, they call on someone greater than themselves to hold them to it. And without any question that oath is binding. 17 God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. 18 So God has given us both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence. 19 This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain of heaven into God's inner sanctuary. 20 Jesus has already gone in there for us. He has become our eternal High Priest in the line of Melchizedek.
He [the LORD] called for a famine on the land of Canaan,
cutting off its food supply.
17 Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them--
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
18 There in prison, they bruised his feet with fetters
and placed his neck in an iron collar.
19 Until the time came to fulfill his word,
the LORD tested Joseph's character.
20 Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free;
the ruler of the nation opened his prison door.
21 Joseph was put in charge of all the king's household;
he became ruler over all the king's possessions.
22 He could instruct the king's aides as he pleased
and teach the king's advisers.
23 Then Israel arrived in Egypt;
Jacob lived as a foreigner in the land of Ham.
24 And the LORD multiplied the people of Israel
until they became too mighty for their enemies.
25 Then he turned the Egyptians against the Israelites,
and they plotted against the LORD's servants.
26 But the LORD sent Moses his servant,
along with Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They performed miraculous signs among the Egyptians,
and miracles in the land of Ham.
28 The LORD blanketed Egypt in darkness,
for they had defied his commands to let his people go.
29 He turned the nation's water into blood,
poisoning all the fish.
30 Then frogs overran the land;
they were found even in the king's private rooms.
31 When he spoke, flies descended on the Egyptians,
and gnats swarmed across Egypt.
32 Instead of rain, he sent murderous hail,
and flashes of lightning overwhelmed the land.
33 He ruined their grapevines and fig trees
and shattered all the trees.
34 He spoke, and hordes of locusts came--
locusts beyond number.
35 They ate up everything green in the land,
destroying all the crops.
36 Then he killed the oldest child in each Egyptian home,
the pride and joy of each family.


Don't brag about tomorrow, since you don't know what the day will bring. Don't praise yourself; let others do it

Reading through the Word....Day 305, November 1

EZEKIEL 7:1- 9:11
HEBREWS 5:1- 14
PSALM 105:1- 15
PROVERBS 26:28


Then this message came to me [Ezekiel] from the LORD:2 "Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says to Israel:The end is here! Wherever you look-- east, west, north, or south-- your land is finished. 3 No hope remains, for I will unleash my anger against you. I will call you to account for all your disgusting behavior. 4 I will turn my eyes away and show no pity, repaying you in full for all your evil. Then you will know that I am the LORD! 5" This is what the Sovereign LORD says:With one blow after another I will bring total disaster! 6 The end has come! It has finally arrived! Your final doom is waiting! 7 O people of Israel, the day of your destruction is dawning. The time has come; the day of trouble is near. It will ring with shouts of anguish, not shouts of joy. 8 Soon I will pour out my fury to complete your punishment for all your disgusting behavior. 9 I will neither spare nor pity you. I will repay you for all your detestable practices. Then you will know that it is I, the LORD, who is striking the blow. 10 "The day of judgment is here; your destruction awaits! The people's wickedness and pride have reached a climax. 11 Their violence will fall back on them as punishment for their wickedness. None of these proud and wicked people will survive. All their wealth will be swept away. 12 Yes, the time has come; the day is here! There is no reason for buyers to rejoice over the bargains they find or for sellers to grieve over their losses, for all of them will fall under my terrible anger. 13 And if any merchants should survive, they will never return to their business. For what God has said applies to everyone-- it will not be changed! Not one person whose life is twisted by sin will recover. 14" The trumpets call Israel's army to mobilize, but no one listens, for my fury is against them all. 15 Any who leave the city walls will be killed by enemy swords. Those who stay inside will die of famine and disease. 16 The few who survive and escape to the mountains will moan like doves, weeping for their sins. 17 Everyone's hands will be feeble; their knees will be as weak as water. 18 They will dress themselves in sackcloth; horror and shame will cover them. They will shave their heads in sorrow and remorse. 19 "They will throw away their money, tossing it out like worthless trash. It won't buy their deliverance in that day of the LORD's anger. It will neither satisfy nor feed them, for their love of money made them stumble into sin. 20 They were proud of their gold jewelry and used it to make vile and detestable idols. That is why I will make all their wealth disgusting to them. 21 I will give it as plunder to foreigners from the most wicked of nations, and they will defile it. 22 I will hide my eyes as these robbers invade my treasured land and corrupt it. 23" Prepare chains for my people, for the land is bloodied by terrible crimes. Jerusalem is filled with violence. 24 I will bring the most ruthless of nations to occupy their homes. I will break down their proud fortresses and defile their sanctuaries. 25 Terror and trembling will overcome my people. They will look for peace but will not find it. 26 Calamity will follow calamity; rumor will follow rumor. They will look in vain for a vision from the prophets. They will receive no teaching from the priests and no counsel from the leaders. 27 The king and the prince will stand helpless, weeping in despair, and the people's hands will tremble with fear. I will bring against them the evil they have done to others, and they will receive the punishment they so richly deserve. Then they will know that I am the LORD! "8:1 THEN on September 17, during the sixth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, while the leaders of Judah were in my home, the Sovereign LORD took hold of me. 2 I saw a figure that appeared to be a man. From the waist down he looked like a burning flame. From the waist up he looked like gleaming amber. 3 He put out what seemed to be a hand and took me by the hair. Then the Spirit lifted me up into the sky and transported me in a vision of God to Jerusalem. I was taken to the north gate of the inner courtyard of the Temple, where there is a large idol that has made the LORD very angry. 4 Suddenly, the glory of the God of Israel was there, just as I had seen it before in the valley. 5 Then the LORD said to me," Son of man, look toward the north. "So I looked, and there to the north, beside the entrance to the gate of the altar, stood the idol that had made the LORD so angry. 6" Son of man, "he said," do you see what they are doing? Do you see the great sins the people of Israel are doing to drive me from my Temple? But come, and you will see even greater sins than these! "7 Then he brought me to the door of the Temple courtyard, where I could see an opening in the wall. 8 He said to me," Now, son of man, dig into the wall. "So I dug into the wall and uncovered a door to a hidden room. 9" Go in, "he said," and see the unspeakable wickedness going on in there! "10 So I went in and saw the walls engraved with all kinds of snakes, lizards, and hideous creatures. I also saw the various idols worshiped by the people of Israel. 11 Seventy leaders of Israel were standing there with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan in the middle. Each of them held an incense burner, so there was a thick cloud of incense above their heads. 12 Then the LORD said to me," Son of man, have you seen what the leaders of Israel are doing with their idols in dark rooms? They are saying, `The LORD doesn't see us; he has deserted our land! '"13 Then he added," Come, and I will show you greater sins than these! "14 He brought me to the north gate of the LORD's Temple, and some women were sitting there, weeping for the god Tammuz. 15" Have you seen this? "he asked." But I will show you even greater sins than these! "16 Then he brought me into the inner courtyard of the LORD's Temple. At the entrance, between the foyer and the bronze altar, about twenty- five men were standing with their backs to the LORD's Temple. They were facing eastward, worshiping the sun! 17" Have you seen this, son of man? "he asked." Is it nothing to the people of Judah that they commit these terrible sins, leading the whole nation into violence, thumbing their noses at me, and rousing my fury against them? 18 Therefore, I will deal with them in fury. I will neither pity nor spare them. And though they scream for mercy, I will not listen. "9:1 THEN the LORD thundered," Bring on the men appointed to punish the city! Tell them to bring their weapons with them! "2 Six men soon appeared from the upper gate that faces north, each carrying a battle club in his hand. One of them was dressed in linen and carried a writer's case strapped to his side. They all went into the Temple courtyard and stood beside the bronze altar. 3 Then the glory of the God of Israel rose up from between the cherubim, where it had rested, and moved to the entrance of the Temple. And the LORD called to the man dressed in linen who was carrying the writer's case. 4 He said to him," Walk through the streets of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of all those who weep and sigh because of the sins they see around them. "5 Then I heard the LORD say to the other men," Follow him through the city and kill everyone whose forehead is not marked. Show no mercy; have no pity! 6 Kill them all-- old and young, girls and women and little children. But do not touch anyone with the mark. Begin your task right here at the Temple. "So they began by killing the seventy leaders. 7" Defile the Temple! "the LORD commanded." Fill its courtyards with the bodies of those you kill! Go! "So they went throughout the city and did as they were told. 8 While they were carrying out their orders, I was all alone. I fell face down in the dust and cried out," O Sovereign LORD! Will your fury against Jerusalem wipe out everyone left in Israel? "9 Then he said to me," The sins of the people of Israel and Judah are very great. The entire land is full of murder; the city is filled with injustice. They are saying, `The LORD doesn't see it! The LORD has forsaken the land!' 10 So I will not spare them or have any pity on them. I will fully repay them for all they have done. "11 Then the man in linen clothing, who carried the writer's case, reported back and said," I have finished the work you gave me to do. "


Now a high priest is a man chosen to represent other human beings in their dealings with God. He presents their gifts to God and offers their sacrifices for sins. 2 And because he is human, he is able to deal gently with the people, though they are ignorant and wayward. For he is subject to the same weaknesses they have. 3 That is why he has to offer sacrifices, both for their sins and for his own sins. 4 And no one can become a high priest simply because he wants such an honor. He has to be called by God for this work, just as Aaron was. 5 That is why Christ did not exalt himself to become High Priest. No, he was chosen by God, who said to him," You are my Son.
Today I have become your Father. "
6 And in another passage God said to him," You are a priest forever
in the line of Melchizedek. "
7 While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could deliver him out of death. And God heard his prayers because of his reverence for God. 8 So even though Jesus was God's Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. 9 In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. 10 And God designated him to be a High Priest in the line of Melchizedek. 11 There is so much more we would like to say about this. But you don't seem to listen, so it's hard to make you understand. 12 You have been Christians a long time now, and you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things a beginner must learn about the Scriptures. You are like babies who drink only milk and cannot eat solid food. 13 And a person who is living on milk isn't very far along in the Christian life and doesn't know much about doing what is right. 14 Solid food is for those who are mature, who have trained themselves to recognize the difference between right and wrong and then do what is right.
Give thanks to the LORD and proclaim his greatness.
Let the whole world know what he has done.
2 Sing to him; yes, sing his praises.
Tell everyone about his miracles.
3 Exult in his holy name;
O worshipers of the LORD, rejoice!
4 Search for the LORD and for his strength,
and keep on searching.
5 Think of the wonderful works he has done,
the miracles and the judgments he handed down,
6 O children of Abraham, God's servant,
O descendants of Jacob, God's chosen one.
7 He is the LORD our God.
His rule is seen throughout the land.
8 He always stands by his covenant--
the commitment he made to a thousand generations.
9 This is the covenant he made with Abraham
and the oath he swore to Isaac.
10 He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,
to the people of Israel as a never- ending treaty:
11" I will give you the land of Canaan
as your special possession. "
12 He said this when they were few in number,
a tiny group of strangers in Canaan.
13 They wandered back and forth between nations,
from one kingdom to another.
14 Yet he did not let anyone oppress them.
He warned kings on their behalf:
15" Do not touch these people I have chosen,
and do not hurt my prophets. "


A lying tongue hates its victims, and flattery causes ruin

Reading through the Word....Day 304, October 31

EZEKIEL 3:16- 6:14
HEBREWS 4:1- 16
PSALM 104:24- 35
PROVERBS 26:27


At the end of the seven days, the LORD gave me [Ezekiel] a message. He said, 17 "Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for Israel. Whenever you receive a message from me, pass it on to the people immediately. 18 If I warn the wicked, saying, `You are under the penalty of death, 'but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins. And I will hold you responsible, demanding your blood for theirs. 19 If you warn them and they keep on sinning and refuse to repent, they will die in their sins. But you will have saved your life because you did what you were told to do. 20 If good people turn bad and don't listen to my warning, they will die. If you did not warn them of the consequences, then they will die in their sins. Their previous good deeds won't help them, and I will hold you responsible, demanding your blood for theirs. 21 But if you warn them and they repent, they will live, and you will have saved your own life, too." 22 Then the LORD took hold of me, and he said to me, "Go out into the valley, and I will talk to you there." 23 So I got up and went, and there I saw the glory of the LORD, just as I had seen it in my first vision by the Kebar River. And I fell face down in the dust. 24 Then the Spirit came into me and set me on my feet. He talked to me and said, "Go, shut yourself up in your house. 25 There you will be bound with ropes so you cannot go out among the people. 26 And I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so you won't be able to pray for them, for they are rebellious. 27 But whenever I give you a message, I will loosen your tongue and let you speak. Then you will say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says!' Some of them will listen, but some will ignore you, for they are rebels. 4:1" AND now, son of man, take a large brick and set it down in front of you. Then draw a map of the city of Jerusalem on it. 2 Build siege ramps against the city walls. Surround it with enemy camps and battering rams. 3 Then take an iron griddle and place it between you and the city. Turn toward it and demonstrate how the enemy will attack Jerusalem. This will be a warning to the people of Israel. 4 "Now lie on your left side and place the sins of Israel on yourself. You are to bear their sins for the number of days you lie there on your side. 5 You will bear Israel's sins for 390 days-- one day for each year of their sin. 6 After that, turn over and lie on your right side for 40 days-- one day for each year of Judah's sin. 7" Meanwhile, continue your demonstration of the siege of Jerusalem. Lie there with your arm bared and prophesy her destruction. 8 I will tie you up with ropes so you won't be able to turn from side to side until the days of your siege have been completed. 9 "Now go and get some wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, and mix them together in a storage jar. Use this food to make bread for yourself during the 390 days you will be lying on your side. 10 Ration this out to yourself, eight ounces of food for each day, and eat it at set times. 11 Then measure out a jar of water for each day, and drink it at set times. 12 Each day prepare your bread as you would barley cakes. While all the people are watching, bake it over a fire using dried human dung as fuel and then eat the bread. 13 For this is what the LORD says:Israel will eat defiled bread in the Gentile lands, where I will banish them!" 14 Then I said, "O Sovereign LORD, must I be defiled by using human dung? For I have never been defiled before. From the time I was a child until now I have never eaten any animal that died of sickness or that I found dead. And I have never eaten any of the animals that our laws forbid." 15 "All right," the LORD said. "You may bake your bread with cow dung instead of human dung." 16 Then he told me, "Son of man, I will cause food to be very scarce in Jerusalem. It will be weighed out with great care and eaten fearfully. The water will be portioned out drop by drop, and the people will drink it with dismay. 17 Food and water will be so scarce that the people will look at one another in terror, and they will waste away under their punishment. 5:1" SON of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a razor to shave your head and beard. Use a scale to weigh the hair into three equal parts. 2 Place a third of it at the center of your map of Jerusalem. After acting out the siege, burn it there. Scatter another third across your map and slash at it with a sword. Scatter the last third to the wind, for I will scatter my people with the sword. 3 Keep just a bit of the hair and tie it up in your robe. 4 Then take a few of these hairs out and throw them into the fire, burning them up. A fire will then spread from this remnant and destroy all of Israel. 5 "This is what the Sovereign LORD says:This is an illustration of what will happen to Jerusalem. I placed her at the center of the nations, 6 but she has rebelled against my regulations and has been even more wicked than the surrounding nations. She has refused to obey the laws I gave her to follow. 7 So this is what the Sovereign LORD says:Since you have refused to obey my laws and regulations and have behaved even worse than your neighbors, 8 I myself, the Sovereign LORD, am now your enemy. I will punish you publicly while all the nations watch. 9 Because of your detestable idols, I will punish you more severely than I have punished anyone before or ever will again. 10 Parents will eat their own children, and children will eat their parents. And I will punish you by scattering the few who survive to the far reaches of the earth. 11" As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, I will cut you off completely. I will show you no pity at all because you have defiled my Temple with idols and vile practices. 12 A third of your people will die in the city from famine and disease. A third of them will be slaughtered by the enemy outside the city walls. And I will scatter a third to the winds and chase them with my sword. 13 Then at last my anger will be spent, and I will be satisfied. And when my fury against them has subsided, all Israel will know that I, the LORD, have spoken to them in my jealous anger. 14 "So I will turn you into a ruin, a mockery in the eyes of the surrounding nations and to everyone who travels by. 15 You will become an object of mockery and taunting and horror. You will be a warning to all the nations around you. They will see what happens when the LORD turns against a nation in furious rebuke. I, the LORD, have spoken! 16" I will shower you with the deadly arrows of famine to destroy you. The famine will become more and more severe until every crumb of food is gone. 17 And along with the famine, wild animals will attack you, robbing you of your children. Disease and war will stalk your land, and I will bring the sword of the enemy against you. I, the LORD, have spoken! "6:1 AGAIN a message came to me from the LORD:2" Son of man, look over toward the mountains of Israel and prophesy against them. 3 Give the mountains of Israel this message from the Sovereign LORD. This is what the Sovereign LORD says to the mountains and hills and to the ravines and valleys:I am about to bring war upon you, and I will destroy your pagan shrines. 4 All your altars will be demolished, and your incense altars will be smashed. I will kill your people in front of your idols. 5 I will lay your corpses in front of your idols and scatter your bones around your altars. 6 Wherever you live there will be desolation. I will destroy your pagan shrines, your altars, your idols, your incense altars, and all the other religious objects you have made. 7 Then when the place is littered with corpses, you will know that I am the LORD. 8 "But I will let a few of my people escape destruction, and they will be scattered among the nations of the world. 9 Then when they are exiled among the nations, they will remember me. They will recognize how grieved I am by their unfaithful hearts and lustful eyes that long for other gods. Then at last they will hate themselves for all their wickedness. 10 They will know that I alone am the LORD and that I was serious when I predicted that all this would happen to them. 11" This is what the Sovereign LORD says:Clap your hands in horror, and stamp your feet. Cry out, `Alas! 'because of all the evil that the people of Israel have done. Now they are going to die from war and famine and disease. 12 Disease will strike down those who are far away in exile. War will destroy those who are nearby. And anyone who survives will be killed by famine. So at last I will spend my fury on them. 13 When their dead lie scattered among their idols and altars, on every hill and mountain and under every green tree and great oak where they offered incense to their gods, then they will know that I alone am the LORD. 14 I will crush them and make their cities desolate from the wilderness in the south to Riblah in the north. Then they will know that I am the LORD. "


God's promise of entering his place of rest still stands, so we ought to tremble with fear that some of you might fail to get there. 2 For this Good News-- that God has prepared a place of rest-- has been announced to us just as it was to them. But it did them no good because they didn't believe what God told them. 3 For only we who believe can enter his place of rest. As for those who didn't believe, God said," In my anger I made a vow:
`They will never enter my place of rest,' "
even though his place of rest has been ready since he made the world. 4 We know it is ready because the Scriptures mention the seventh day, saying," On the seventh day God rested from all his work. "5 But in the other passage God said," They will never enter my place of rest. "6 So God's rest is there for people to enter. But those who formerly heard the Good News failed to enter because they disobeyed God. 7 So God set another time for entering his place of rest, and that time is today. God announced this through David a long time later in the words already quoted:" Today you must listen to his voice.
Don't harden your hearts against him. "
8 This new place of rest was not the land of Canaan, where Joshua led them. If it had been, God would not have spoken later about another day of rest. 9 So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. 10 For all who enter into God's rest will find rest from their labors, just as God rested after creating the world. 11 Let us do our best to enter that place of rest. For anyone who disobeys God, as the people of Israel did, will fall. 12 For the word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are. 13 Nothing in all creation can hide from him. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes. This is the God to whom we must explain all that we have done. 14 That is why we have a great High Priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God. Let us cling to him and never stop trusting him. 15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.


O LORD, what a variety of things you have made!
In wisdom you have made them all.
The earth is full of your creatures.
25 Here is the ocean, vast and wide,
teeming with life of every kind,
both great and small.
26 See the ships sailing along,
and Leviathan, which you made to play in the sea.
27 Every one of these depends on you
to give them their food as they need it.
28 When you supply it, they gather it.
You open your hand to feed them, and they are satisfied.
29 But if you turn away from them, they panic.
When you take away their breath, they die
and turn again to dust.
30 When you send your Spirit, new life is born
to replenish all the living of the earth.
31 May the glory of the LORD last forever!
The LORD rejoices in all he has made!
32 The earth trembles at his glance;
the mountains burst into flame at his touch.
33 I will sing to the LORD as long as I live.
I will praise my God to my last breath!
34 May he be pleased by all these thoughts about him,
for I rejoice in the LORD.
35 Let all sinners vanish from the face of the earth;
let the wicked disappear forever.
As for me-- I will praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!


If you set a trap for others, you will get caught in it yourself. If you roll a boulder down on others, it will roll back and crush you

Reading through the Word....Day 303, October 30

EZEKIEL 1:1- 3:15
HEBREWS 3:1- 19
PSALM 104:1- 23
PROVERBS 26:24- 26


On July 31 of my thirtieth year, while I [Ezekiel] was with the Judean exiles beside the Kebar River in Babylon, the heavens were opened to me, and I saw visions of God. 2 This happened during the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity. 3 The LORD gave a message to me, Ezekiel son of Buzi, a priest, there beside the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians, and I felt the hand of the LORD take hold of me. 4 As I looked, I saw a great storm coming toward me from the north, driving before it a huge cloud that flashed with lightning and shone with brilliant light. The fire inside the cloud glowed like gleaming amber. 5 From the center of the cloud came four living beings that looked human, 6 except that each had four faces and two pairs of wings. 7 Their legs were straight like human legs, but their feet were split like calves 'feet and shone like burnished bronze. 8 Beneath each of their wings I could see human hands. 9 The wings of each living being touched the wings of the two beings beside it. The living beings were able to fly in any direction without turning around. 10 Each had a human face in the front, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle at the back. 11 Each had two pairs of outstretched wings-- one pair stretched out to touch the wings of the living beings on either side of it, and the other pair covered its body. 12 They went in whatever direction the spirit chose, and they moved straight forward in all directions without having to turn around. 13 The living beings looked like bright coals of fire or brilliant torches, and it looked as though lightning was flashing back and forth among them. 14 And the living beings darted to and fro like flashes of lightning. 15 As I looked at these beings, I saw four wheels on the ground beneath them, one wheel belonging to each. 16 The wheels sparkled as if made of chrysolite. All four wheels looked the same; each wheel had a second wheel turning crosswise within it. 17 The beings could move forward in any of the four directions they faced, without turning as they moved. 18 The rims of the four wheels were awesomely tall, and they were covered with eyes all around the edges. 19 When the four living beings moved, the wheels moved with them. When they flew upward, the wheels went up, too. 20 The spirit of the four living beings was in the wheels. So wherever the spirit went, the wheels and the living beings went, too. 21 When the living beings moved, the wheels moved. When the living beings stopped, the wheels stopped. When the living beings flew into the air, the wheels rose up. For the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels. 22 There was a surface spread out above them like the sky. It sparkled like crystal. 23 Beneath this surface the wings of each living being stretched out to touch the others' wings, and each had two wings covering its body. 24 As they flew their wings roared like waves crashing against the shore, or like the voice of the Almighty, or like the shouting of a mighty army. When they stopped, they let down their wings. 25 As they stood with their wings lowered, a voice spoke from beyond the crystal surface above them. 26 Above the surface over their heads was what looked like a throne made of blue sapphire. And high above this throne was a figure whose appearance was like that of a man. 27 From his waist up, he looked like gleaming amber, flickering like a fire. And from his waist down, he looked like a burning flame, shining with splendor. 28 All around him was a glowing halo, like a rainbow shining through the clouds. This was the way the glory of the LORD appeared to me. When I saw it, I fell face down in the dust, and I heard someone's voice speaking to me. 2:1 "STAND up, son of man," said the voice. "I want to speak with you." 2 The Spirit came into me as he spoke and set me on my feet. I listened carefully to his words. 3 "Son of man," he said, "I am sending you to the nation of Israel, a nation that is rebelling against me. Their ancestors have rebelled against me from the beginning, and they are still in revolt to this very day. 4 They are a hard- hearted and stubborn people. But I am sending you to say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says! '5 And whether they listen or not-- for remember, they are rebels-- at least they will know they have had a prophet among them. 6" Son of man, do not fear them. Don't be afraid even though their threats are sharp as thorns and barbed like briers, and they sting like scorpions. Do not be dismayed by their dark scowls. For remember, they are rebels! 7 You must give them my messages whether they listen or not. But they won't listen, for they are completely rebellious! 8 Son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not join them in being a rebel. Open your mouth, and eat what I give you. "9 Then I looked and saw a hand reaching out to me, and it held a scroll. 10 He unrolled it, and I saw that both sides were covered with funeral songs, other words of sorrow, and pronouncements of doom. 3:1 THE voice said to me," Son of man, eat what I am giving you-- eat this scroll! Then go and give its message to the people of Israel. "2 So I opened my mouth, and he fed me the scroll. 3" Eat it all, "he said. And when I ate it, it tasted as sweet as honey. 4 Then he said," Son of man, go to the people of Israel with my messages. 5 I am not sending you to some foreign people whose language you cannot understand. 6 No, I am not sending you to people with strange and difficult speech. If I did, they would listen! 7 I am sending you to the people of Israel, but they won't listen to you any more than they listen to me! For the whole lot of them are hard- hearted and stubborn. 8 But look, I have made you as hard and stubborn as they are. 9 I have made you as hard as rock! So don't be afraid of them or fear their angry looks, even though they are such rebels. "10 Then he added," Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. 11 Then go to your people in exile and say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says!' Do this whether they listen to you or not. "12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a loud rumbling sound behind me. (May the glory of the LORD be praised in his place!) 13 It was the sound of the wings of the living beings as they brushed against each other and the rumbling of their wheels beneath them. 14 The Spirit lifted me up and took me away. I went in bitterness and turmoil, but the LORD's hold on me was strong. 15 Then I came to the colony of Judean exiles in Tel- abib, beside the Kebar River. I sat there among them for seven days, overwhelmed.


And so, dear brothers and sisters who belong to God and are bound for heaven, think about this Jesus whom we declare to be God's Messenger and High Priest. 2 For he was faithful to God, who appointed him, just as Moses served faithfully and was entrusted with God's entire house. 3 But Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses, just as a person who builds a fine house deserves more praise than the house itself. 4 For every house has a builder, but God is the one who made everything. 5 Moses was certainly faithful in God's house, but only as a servant. His work was an illustration of the truths God would reveal later. 6 But Christ, the faithful Son, was in charge of the entire household. And we are God's household, if we keep up our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ. 7 That is why the Holy Spirit says," Today you must listen to his voice.
8 Don't harden your hearts against him
as Israel did when they rebelled,
when they tested God's patience in the wilderness.
9 There your ancestors tried my patience,
even though they saw my miracles for forty years.
10 So I was angry with them, and I said,
`Their hearts always turn away from me.
They refuse to do what I tell them. '
11 So in my anger I made a vow:
`They will never enter my place of rest.' "
12 Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. *Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. 13 You must warn each other every day, as long as it is called" today, "so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. 14 For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. 15 But never forget the warning:" Today you must listen to his voice.
Don't harden your hearts against him
as Israel did when they rebelled. "
16 And who were those people who rebelled against God, even though they heard his voice? Weren't they the ones Moses led out of Egypt? 17 And who made God angry for forty years? Wasn't it the people who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom was God speaking when he vowed that they would never enter his place of rest? He was speaking to those who disobeyed him. 19 So we see that they were not allowed to enter his rest because of their unbelief.
Praise the LORD, I tell myself;


O LORD my God, how great you are!
You are robed with honor and with majesty;
2 you are dressed in a robe of light.
You stretch out the starry curtain of the heavens;
3 you lay out the rafters of your home in the rain clouds.
You make the clouds your chariots;
you ride upon the wings of the wind.
4 The winds are your messengers;
flames of fire are your servants.
5 You placed the world on its foundation
so it would never be moved.
6 You clothed the earth with floods of water,
water that covered even the mountains.
7 At the sound of your rebuke, the water fled;
at the sound of your thunder, it fled away.
8 Mountains rose and valleys sank
to the levels you decreed.
9 Then you set a firm boundary for the seas,
so they would never again cover the earth.
10 You make the springs pour water into ravines,
so streams gush down from the mountains.
11 They provide water for all the animals,
and the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 The birds nest beside the streams
and sing among the branches of the trees.
13 You send rain on the mountains from your heavenly home,
and you fill the earth with the fruit of your labor.
14 You cause grass to grow for the cattle.
You cause plants to grow for people to use.
You allow them to produce food from the earth--
15 wine to make them glad,
olive oil as lotion for their skin,
and bread to give them strength.
16 The trees of the LORD are well cared for--
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 There the birds make their nests,
and the storks make their homes in the firs.
18 High in the mountains are pastures for the wild goats,
and the rocks form a refuge for rock badgers.
19 You made the moon to mark the seasons
and the sun that knows when to set.
20 You send the darkness, and it becomes night,
when all the forest animals prowl about.
21 Then the young lions roar for their food,
but they are dependent on God.
22 At dawn they slink back
into their dens to rest.
23 Then people go off to their work;
they labor until the evening shadows fall again.


People with hate in their hearts may sound pleasant enough, but don't believe them. Though they pretend to be kind, their hearts are full of all kinds of evil. While their hatred may be concealed by trickery, it will finally come to light for all to see

Reading through the Word....Day 302, October 29

LAMENTATIONS 4:1- 5:22
HEBREWS 2:1- 18
PSALM 103:1- 22
PROVERBS 26:23


How the gold has lost its luster! Even the finest gold has become dull. The sacred gemstones lie scattered in the streets! 2 See how the precious children of Jerusalem, worth their weight in gold, are now treated like pots of clay. 3 Even the jackals feed their young, but not my people Israel. They ignore their children's cries, like the ostriches of the desert. 4 The parched tongues of their little ones stick with thirst to the roofs of their mouths. The children cry for bread, but no one has any to give them. 5 The people who once ate only the richest foods now beg in the streets for anything they can get. Those who once lived in palaces now search the garbage pits for food. 6 The guilt of my people is greater than that of Sodom, where utter disaster struck in a moment with no one to help them. 7 Our princes were once glowing with health; they were as clean as snow and as elegant as jewels. 8 But now their faces are blacker than soot. No one even recognizes them. Their skin sticks to their bones; it is as dry and hard as wood. 9 Those killed by the sword are far better off than those who die of hunger, wasting away for want of food. 10 Tenderhearted women have cooked their own children and eaten them in order to survive the siege. 11 But now the anger of the LORD is satisfied. His fiercest anger has now been poured out. He started a fire in Jerusalem that burned the city to its foundations. 12 Not a king in all the earth-- no one in all the world-- would have believed an enemy could march through the gates of Jerusalem. 13 Yet it happened because of the sins of her prophets and priests, who defiled the city by shedding innocent blood. 14 They wandered blindly through the streets, so defiled by blood that no one dared to touch them. 15 "Get away!" the people shouted at them. "You are defiled! Don't touch us!" So they fled to distant lands and wandered there among foreign nations, but none would let them stay. 16 The LORD himself has scattered them, and he no longer helps them. The priests and leaders are no longer honored and respected. 17 We looked in vain for our allies to come and save us, but we were looking to nations that could offer no help at all. 18 We couldn't go into the streets without danger to our lives. Our end was near; our days were numbered. We were doomed! 19 Our enemies were swifter than the eagles. If we fled to the mountains, they found us. If we hid in the wilderness, they were waiting for us there. 20 Our king, the LORD's anointed, the very life of our nation, was caught in their snares. We had foolishly boasted that under his protection we could hold our own against any nation on earth! 21 Are you rejoicing in the land of Uz, O people of Edom? But you, too, must drink from the cup of the LORD's anger. You, too, will be stripped naked in your drunkenness. 22 O Jerusalem, your punishment will end; you will soon return from exile. But Edom, your punishment is just beginning; soon your many sins will be revealed. 5:1 LORD, remember everything that has happened to us. See all the sorrows we bear! 2 Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our homes to foreigners. 3 We are orphaned and fatherless. Our mothers are widowed. 4 We have to pay for water to drink, and even firewood is expensive. 5 Those who pursue us are at our heels; we are exhausted but are given no rest. 6 We submitted to Egypt and Assyria to get enough food to survive. 7 It was our ancestors who sinned, but they died before the hand of judgment fell. We have suffered the punishment they deserved! 8 Slaves have now become our masters; there is no one left to rescue us. 9 We must hunt for food in the wilderness at the risk of our lives. 10 Because of the famine, our skin has been blackened as though baked in an oven. 11 Our enemies rape the women and young girls in Jerusalem and throughout the towns of Judah. 12 Our princes are being hanged by their thumbs, and the old men are treated with contempt. 13 The young men are led away to work at millstones, and the children stagger under heavy loads of wood. 14 The old men no longer sit in the city gates; the young men no longer dance and sing. 15 The joy of our hearts has ended; our dancing has turned to mourning. 16 The garlands have fallen from our heads. Disaster has fallen upon us because we have sinned. 17 Our hearts are sick and weary, and our eyes grow dim with tears. 18 For Jerusalem is empty and desolate, a place haunted by jackals. 19 But LORD, you remain the same forever! Your throne continues from generation to generation. 20 Why do you continue to forget us? Why have you forsaken us for so long? 21 Restore us, O LORD, and bring us back to you again! Give us back the joys we once had! 22 Or have you utterly rejected us? Are you angry with us still?


So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. 2 The message God delivered through angels has always proved true, and the people were punished for every violation of the law and every act of disobedience. 3 What makes us think that we can escape if we are indifferent to this great salvation that was announced by the Lord Jesus himself? It was passed on to us by those who heard him speak, 4 and God verified the message by signs and wonders and various miracles and by giving gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose to do so. 5 And furthermore, the future world we are talking about will not be controlled by angels. 6 For somewhere in the Scriptures it says, "What is man that you should think of him,
and the son of man that you should care for him?
7 For a little while you made him lower than the angels,
and you crowned him with glory and honor.
8 You gave him authority over all things."
Now when it says "all things," it means nothing is left out. But we have not yet seen all of this happen. 9 What we do see is Jesus, who "for a little while was made lower than the angels" and now is "crowned with glory and honor" because he suffered death for us. Yes, by God's grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone in all the world. 10 And it was only right that God-- who made everything and for whom everything was made-- should bring his many children into glory. Through the suffering of Jesus, God made him a perfect leader, one fit to bring them into their salvation. 11 So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters. 12 For he said to God, "I will declare the wonder of your name to my brothers and sisters.
I will praise you among all your people."
13 He also said, "I will put my trust in him." And in the same context he said, "Here I am-- together with the children God has given me." 14 Because God's children are human beings-- made of flesh and blood-- Jesus also became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the Devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could he deliver those who have lived all their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. 16 We all know that Jesus came to help the descendants of Abraham, not to help the angels. 17 Therefore, it was necessary for Jesus to be in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. He then could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. 18 Since he himself has gone through suffering and temptation, he is able to help us when we are being tempted.


A psalm of David.
1 Praise the LORD, I tell myself;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, I tell myself,
and never forget the good things he does for me.
3 He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
4 He ransoms me from death
and surrounds me with love and tender mercies.
5 He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle's!
6 The LORD gives righteousness
and justice to all who are treated unfairly.
7 He revealed his character to Moses
and his deeds to the people of Israel.
8 The LORD is merciful and gracious;
he is slow to get angry and full of unfailing love.
9 He will not constantly accuse us,
nor remain angry forever.
10 He has not punished us for all our sins,
nor does he deal with us as we deserve.
11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him
is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
12 He has removed our rebellious acts
as far away from us as the east is from the west.
13 The LORD is like a father to his children,
tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
14 For he understands how weak we are;
he knows we are only dust.
15 Our days on earth are like grass;
like wildflowers, we bloom and die.
16 The wind blows, and we are gone--
as though we had never been here.
17 But the love of the LORD remains forever
with those who fear him.
His salvation extends to the children's children
18 of those who are faithful to his covenant,
of those who obey his commandments!
19 The LORD has made the heavens his throne;
from there he rules over everything.
20 Praise the LORD, you angels of his,
you mighty creatures who carry out his plans,
listening for each of his commands.
21 Yes, praise the LORD, you armies of angels
who serve him and do his will!
22 Praise the LORD, everything he has created,
everywhere in his kingdom.


As for me-- I, too, will praise the LORD.
Smooth words may hide a wicked heart, just as a pretty glaze covers a common clay pot

Reading through the Word....Day 301, October 28

LAMENTATIONS 3:1- 66
HEBREWS 1:1- 14
PSALM 102:1- 28
PROVERBS 26:21- 22


I AM the one who has seen the afflictions that come from the rod of the LORD's anger. 2 He has brought me into deep darkness, shutting out all light. 3 He has turned against me. Day and night his hand is heavy upon me. 4 He has made my skin and flesh grow old. He has broken my bones. 5 He has attacked me and surrounded me with anguish and distress. 6 He has buried me in a dark place, like a person long dead. 7 He has walled me in, and I cannot escape. He has bound me in heavy chains. 8 And though I cry and shout, he shuts out my prayers. 9 He has blocked my path with a high stone wall. He has twisted the road before me with many detours. 10 He hid like a bear or a lion, waiting to attack me. 11 He dragged me off the path and tore me with his claws, leaving me helpless and desolate. 12 He bent his bow and aimed it squarely at me. 13 He shot his arrows deep into my heart. 14 My own people laugh at me. All day long they sing their mocking songs. 15 He has filled me with bitterness. He has given me a cup of deep sorrow to drink. 16 He has made me grind my teeth on gravel. He has rolled me in the dust. 17 Peace has been stripped away, and I have forgotten what prosperity is. 18 I cry out, "My splendor is gone! Everything I had hoped for from the LORD is lost!" 19 The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words. 20 I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. 21 Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this:22 The unfailing love of the LORD never ends! By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. 23 Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. 24 I say to myself, "The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!" 25 The LORD is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him. 26 So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD. 27 And it is good for the young to submit to the yoke of his discipline. 28 Let them sit alone in silence beneath the LORD's demands. 29 Let them lie face down in the dust; then at last there is hope for them. 30 Let them turn the other cheek to those who strike them. Let them accept the insults of their enemies. 31 For the Lord does not abandon anyone forever. 32 Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion according to the greatness of his unfailing love. 33 For he does not enjoy hurting people or causing them sorrow. 34 But the leaders of his people trampled prisoners underfoot. 35 They deprived people of their God- given rights in defiance of the Most High. 36 They perverted justice in the courts. Do they think the Lord didn't see it? 37 Can anything happen without the Lord's permission? 38 Is it not the Most High who helps one and harms another? 39 Then why should we, mere humans, complain when we are punished for our sins? 40 Instead, let us test and examine our ways. Let us turn again in repentance to the LORD. 41 Let us lift our hearts and hands to God in heaven and say, 42 "We have sinned and rebelled, and you have not forgiven us. 43" You have engulfed us with your anger, chased us down, and slaughtered us without mercy. 44 You have hidden yourself in a cloud so our prayers cannot reach you. 45 You have discarded us as refuse and garbage among the nations. 46 "All our enemies have spoken out against us. 47 We are filled with fear, for we are trapped, desolate, and ruined." 48 Streams of tears flow from my eyes because of the destruction of my people! 49 My tears flow down endlessly. They will not stop 50 until the LORD looks down from heaven and sees. 51 My heart is breaking over the fate of all the women of Jerusalem. 52 My enemies, whom I have never harmed, chased me like a bird. 53 They threw me into a pit and dropped stones on me. 54 The water flowed above my head, and I cried out, "This is the end!" 55 But I called on your name, LORD, from deep within the well, 56 and you heard me! You listened to my pleading; you heard my weeping! 57 Yes, you came at my despairing cry and told me, "Do not fear." 58 Lord, you are my lawyer! Plead my case! For you have redeemed my life. 59 You have seen the wrong they have done to me, LORD. Be my judge, and prove me right. 60 You have seen the plots my enemies have laid against me. 61 LORD, you have heard the vile names they call me. You know all about the plans they have made-- 62 the plots my enemies whisper and mutter against me all day long. 63 Look at them! In all their activities, they constantly mock me with their songs. 64 Pay them back, LORD, for all the evil they have done. 65 Give them hard and stubborn hearts, and then let your curse fall upon them! 66 Chase them down in your anger, destroying them from beneath the LORD's heavens.


Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. 2 But now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he made the universe and everything in it. 3 The Son reflects God's own glory, and everything about him represents God exactly. He sustains the universe by the mighty power of his command. After he died to cleanse us from the stain of sin, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God of heaven. 4 This shows that God's Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is far greater than their names. 5 For God never said to any angel what he said to Jesus:"You are my Son.
Today I have become your Father."
And again God said, "I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son."
6 And then, when he presented his honored Son to the world, God said, "Let all the angels of God worship him." 7 God calls his angels "messengers swift as the wind,
and servants made of flaming fire."
8 But to his Son he says, "Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever.
Your royal power is expressed in righteousness.
9 You love what is right and hate what is wrong.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you,
pouring out the oil of joy on you more than on anyone else."
10 And, "Lord, in the beginning you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
11 Even they will perish, but you remain forever.
They will wear out like old clothing.
12 You will roll them up like an old coat.
They will fade away like old clothing.
But you are always the same;
you will never grow old."
13 And God never said to an angel, as he did to his Son, "Sit in honor at my right hand
until I humble your enemies,
making them a footstool under your feet."
14 But angels are only servants. They are spirits sent from God to care for those who will receive salvation.


A prayer of one overwhelmed with trouble, pouring out problems before the LORD.
1 LORD, hear my prayer!
Listen to my plea!
2 Don't turn away from me
in my time of distress.
Bend down your ear
and answer me quickly when I call to you,
3 for my days disappear like smoke,
and my bones burn like red- hot coals.
4 My heart is sick, withered like grass,
and I have lost my appetite.
5 Because of my groaning,
I am reduced to skin and bones.
6 I am like an owl in the desert,
like a lonely owl in a far- off wilderness.
7 I lie awake,
lonely as a solitary bird on the roof.
8 My enemies taunt me day after day.
They mock and curse me.
9 I eat ashes instead of my food.
My tears run down into my drink
10 because of your anger and wrath.
For you have picked me up and thrown me out.
11 My life passes as swiftly as the evening shadows.
I am withering like grass.
12 But you, O LORD, will rule forever.
Your fame will endure to every generation.
13 You will arise and have mercy on Jerusalem--
and now is the time to pity her,
now is the time you promised to help.
14 For your people love every stone in her walls
and show favor even to the dust in her streets.
15 And the nations will tremble before the LORD.
The kings of the earth will tremble before his glory.
16 For the LORD will rebuild Jerusalem.
He will appear in his glory.
17 He will listen to the prayers of the destitute.
He will not reject their pleas.
18 Let this be recorded for future generations,
so that a nation yet to be created will praise the LORD.
19 Tell them the LORD looked down
from his heavenly sanctuary.
He looked to the earth from heaven
20 to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to release those condemned to die.
21 And so the LORD's fame will be celebrated in Zion,
his praises in Jerusalem,
22 when multitudes gather together
and kingdoms come to worship the LORD.
23 He has cut me down in midlife,
shortening my days.
24 But I cried to him, "My God, who lives forever,
don't take my life while I am still so young!
25 In ages past you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 Even they will perish, but you remain forever;
they will wear out like old clothing.
You will change them like a garment,
and they will fade away.
27 But you are always the same;
your years never end.
28 The children of your people
will live in security.
Their children's children
will thrive in your presence."


A quarrelsome person starts fights as easily as hot embers light charcoal or fire lights wood. What dainty morsels rumors are-- but they sink deep into one's heart