THEINC-HIM Daily Bible Meditation - May 26 - Full Text - Shabbat Shalom!

Genesis 1:1 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 

THEINC-HIM Daily Bible Meditation

MAY 26

PSALMS: 26, 56, 86, 116, 146

PROVERBS: 26

OLD TESTAMENT: NEHEMIAH 9:22 - 10:39

NEW TESTAMENT: 1 CORINTHIANS 9:19 - 10:13

PSALMS: 26

Of David.

¹ Vindicate me, O LORD,

for I have led a blameless life;

I have trusted in the LORD

without wavering.

² Test me, O LORD, and try me,

examine my heart and my mind;

³ for your love is ever before me,

and I walk continually in your truth.

⁴ I do not sit with deceitful men,

nor do I consort with hypocrites;

⁵ I abhor the assembly of evildoers

and refuse to sit with the wicked.

⁶ I wash my hands in innocence,

and go about your altar, O LORD,

⁷ proclaiming aloud your praise

and telling of all your wonderful deeds.

⁸ I love the house where you live, O LORD,

the place where your glory dwells.

⁹ Do not take away my soul along with sinners,

my life with bloodthirsty men,

¹⁰ in whose hands are wicked schemes,

whose right hands are full of bribes.

¹¹ But I lead a blameless life;

redeem me and be merciful to me.

¹² My feet stand on level ground;

in the great assembly I will praise the LORD. ¹

PSALMS: 56

For the director of music. To the tune of "A Dove on Distant Oaks." Of David. A miktam. ^A When the Philistines had seized him in Gath.

¹ Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me;

all day long they press their attack.

² My slanderers pursue me all day long;

many are attacking me in their pride.

³ When I am afraid,

I will trust in you.

⁴ In God, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I will not be afraid.

What can mortal man do to me?

⁵ All day long they twist my words;

they are always plotting to harm me.

⁶ They conspire, they lurk,

they watch my steps,

eager to take my life.

⁷ On no account let them escape;

in your anger, O God, bring down the nations.

⁸ Record my lament;

list my tears on your scroll ^B--

are they not in your record?

⁹ Then my enemies will turn back

when I call for help.

By this I will know that God is for me.

¹⁰ In God, whose word I praise,

in the LORD, whose word I praise--

¹¹ in God I trust; I will not be afraid.

What can man do to me? ²

¹² I am under vows to you, O God;

I will present my thank offerings to you.

¹³ For you have delivered me ^C from death

and my feet from stumbling,

that I may walk before God

in the light of life. ^{D 3}

PSALMS: 86

A prayer of David.

¹ Hear, O LORD, and answer me,

for I am poor and needy.

² Guard my life, for I am devoted to you.

You are my God; save your servant

who trusts in you.

³ Have mercy on me, O Lord,

for I call to you all day long.

⁴ Bring joy to your servant,

for to you, O Lord,

I lift up my soul.

⁵ You are forgiving and good, O Lord,

abounding in love to all who call to you.

⁶ Hear my prayer, O LORD;

listen to my cry for mercy.

⁷ In the day of my trouble I will call to you,

for you will answer me.

⁸ Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord;

no deeds can compare with yours.

⁹ All the nations you have made

will come and worship before you, O Lord;

they will bring glory to your name.

¹⁰ For you are great and do marvelous deeds;

you alone are God. ⁴

¹¹ Teach me your way, O LORD,

and I will walk in your truth;

give me an undivided heart,

that I may fear your name.

¹² I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart;

I will glorify your name forever.

¹³ For great is your love toward me;

you have delivered me from the depths of the grave. ^A

¹⁴ The arrogant are attacking me, O God;

a band of ruthless men seeks my life--

men without regard for you.

¹⁵ But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,

slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

¹⁶ Turn to me and have mercy on me;

grant your strength to your servant

and save the son of your maidservant. ^B

¹⁷ Give me a sign of your goodness,

that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,

for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me. ⁵

PSALMS: 116

¹ I love the LORD, for he heard my voice;

he heard my cry for mercy.

² Because he turned his ear to me,

I will call on him as long as I live.

³ The cords of death entangled me,

the anguish of the grave ^A came upon me;

I was overcome by trouble and sorrow.

⁴ Then I called on the name of the LORD:

"O LORD, save me!"

⁵ The LORD is gracious and righteous;

our God is full of compassion.

⁶ The LORD protects the simplehearted;

when I was in great need, he saved me.

⁷ Be at rest once more, O my soul,

for the LORD has been good to you.

⁸ For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death,

my eyes from tears,

my feet from stumbling,

⁹ that I may walk before the LORD

in the land of the living.

¹⁰ I believed; therefore ^B I said,

"I am greatly afflicted."

¹¹ And in my dismay I said,

"All men are liars."

¹² How can I repay the LORD

for all his goodness to me?

¹³ I will lift up the cup of salvation

and call on the name of the LORD.

¹⁴ I will fulfill my vows to the LORD

in the presence of all his people. ⁶

¹⁵ Precious in the sight of the LORD

is the death of his saints.

¹⁶ O LORD, truly I am your servant;

I am your servant, the son of your maidservant ^C;

you have freed me from my chains.

¹⁷ I will sacrifice a thank offering to you

and call on the name of the LORD.

¹⁸ I will fulfill my vows to the LORD

in the presence of all his people,

¹⁹ in the courts of the house of the LORD--

in your midst, O Jerusalem.

Praise the LORD. ^{D 7}

PSALMS: 146

¹ Praise the LORD. ^A

Praise the LORD, O my soul.

² I will praise the LORD all my life;

I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

³ Do not put your trust in princes,

in mortal men, who cannot save.

⁴ When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;

on that very day their plans come to nothing.

⁵ Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,

whose hope is in the LORD his God,

⁶the Maker of heaven and earth,

the sea, and everything in them--

the LORD, who remains faithful forever.

⁷ He upholds the cause of the oppressed

and gives food to the hungry.

The LORD sets prisoners free,

⁸ the LORD gives sight to the blind,

the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down,

the LORD loves the righteous.

⁹ The LORD watches over the alien

and sustains the fatherless and the widow,

but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

¹⁰ The LORD reigns forever,

your God, O Zion, for all generations.

Praise the LORD. ⁸

PROVERBS: 26

26 ¹ Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,

honor is not fitting for a fool.

² Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow,

an undeserved curse does not come to rest.

³ A whip for the horse, a halter for the donkey,

and a rod for the backs of fools!

⁴ Do not answer a fool according to his folly,

or you will be like him yourself.

⁵ Answer a fool according to his folly,

or he will be wise in his own eyes.

⁶ Like cutting off one's feet or drinking violence

is the sending of a message by the hand of a fool.

⁷ Like a lame man's legs that hang limp

is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

⁸ Like tying a stone in a sling

is the giving of honor to a fool.

⁹ Like a thornbush in a drunkard's hand

is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

¹⁰ Like an archer who wounds at random

is he who hires a fool or any passer-by.

¹¹ As a dog returns to its vomit,

so a fool repeats his folly.

^{9 12} Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?

There is more hope for a fool than for him.

¹³ The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road,

a fierce lion roaming the streets!"

¹⁴ As a door turns on its hinges,

so a sluggard turns on his bed.

¹⁵ The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.

¹⁶ The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes

than seven men who answer discreetly.

¹⁷ Like one who seizes a dog by the ears

is a passer-by who meddles in a quarrel not his own.

¹⁸ Like a madman shooting

firebrands or deadly arrows

¹⁹ is a man who deceives his neighbor

and says, "I was only joking!"

²⁰ Without wood a fire goes out;

without gossip a quarrel dies down.

²¹ As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire,

so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife. ¹⁰

²² The words of a gossip are like choice morsels;

they go down to a man's inmost parts.

²³ Like a coating of glaze ^A over earthenware

are fervent lips with an evil heart.

²⁴ A malicious man disguises himself with his lips,

but in his heart he harbors deceit.

²⁵ Though his speech is charming, do not believe him,

for seven abominations fill his heart.

²⁶ His malice may be concealed by deception,

but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

²⁷ If a man digs a pit, he will fall into it;

if a man rolls a stone, it will roll back on him.

²⁸ A lying tongue hates those it hurts,

and a flattering mouth works ruin. ¹¹

OLD TESTAMENT: NEHEMIAH 9:22 - 10:39

²² "You gave them kingdoms and nations, allotting to them even the remotest frontiers. They took over the country of Sihon ^C king of Heshbon and the country of Og king of Bashan. ²³ You made their sons as numerous as the stars in the sky, and you brought them into the land that you told their fathers to enter and possess. ²⁴ Their sons went in and took possession of the land. You subdued before them the Canaanites, who lived in the land; you handed the Canaanites over to them, along with their kings and the peoples of the land, to deal with them as they pleased. ²⁵ They captured fortified cities and fertile land; they took possession of houses filled with all kinds of good things, wells already dug, vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees in abundance. They ate to the full and were well-nourished; they reveled in your great goodness.

²⁶ "But they were disobedient and rebelled against you; they put your law behind their backs. They killed your prophets, who had admonished them in order to turn them back to you; they committed awful blasphemies. ²⁷ So you handed them over to their enemies, who oppressed them. But when they were oppressed they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the hand of their enemies.

²⁸ "But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time.

²⁹ "You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. ³⁰ For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you admonished them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you handed them over to the neighboring peoples. ³¹ But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

³² "Now therefore, O our God, the great, mighty and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes--the hardship that has come upon us, upon our kings and leaders, upon our priests and prophets, upon our fathers and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today. ³³ In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. ³⁴ Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the warnings you gave them. ³⁵ Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you or turn from their evil ways.

³⁶ "But see, we are slaves today, slaves in the land you gave our forefathers so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces. ³⁷ Because of our sins, its abundant harvest goes to the kings you have placed over us. They rule over our bodies and our cattle as they please. We are in great distress.

³⁸ "In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their ¹² seals to it."

10 ¹ Those who sealed it were:

Nehemiah the governor, the son of Hacaliah.

Zedekiah, ² Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,

³ Pashhur, Amariah, Malkijah,

⁴ Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch,

⁵ Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,

⁶ Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,

⁷ Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,

⁸ Maaziah, Bilgai and Shemaiah.

These were the priests.

⁹ The Levites:

Jeshua son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel,

¹⁰ and their associates: Shebaniah,

Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,

¹¹ Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah,

¹² Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,

¹³ Hodiah, Bani and Beninu.

¹⁴ The leaders of the people:

Parosh, Pahath-Moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,

¹⁵ Bunni, Azgad, Bebai, ¹³

¹⁶ Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin,

¹⁷ Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur,

¹⁸ Hodiah, Hashum, Bezai,

¹⁹ Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai,

²⁰ Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,

²¹ Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua,

²² Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah,

²³ Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub,

²⁴ Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek,

²⁵ Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,

²⁶ Ahiah, Hanan, Anan,

²⁷ Malluch, Harim and Baanah.

²⁸ "The rest of the people--priests, Levites, gatekeepers, singers, temple servants and all who separated themselves from the neighboring peoples for the sake of the Law of God, together with their wives and all their sons and daughters who are able to understand—

²⁹ all these now join their brothers the nobles, and bind themselves with a curse and an oath to follow the Law of God given through Moses the servant of God and to obey carefully all the commands, regulations and decrees of the LORD our Lord.

³⁰ "We promise not to give our daughters in marriage to the peoples around us or take their daughters for our sons.

³¹ "When the neighboring peoples bring merchandise or grain to sell on the Sabbath, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or on any holy day. Every seventh year we will forgo working the land and will cancel all debts.

³² "We assume the responsibility for carrying out the commands to give a third of a shekel ^A each year for the service of the house of our God: ³³ for the bread set out on the table; for the regular grain offerings and burnt offerings; for the offerings on the Sabbaths, New Moon festivals and appointed feasts; for the holy offerings; for sin offerings to make atonement for Israel; and for all the duties of the house of our God. ¹⁴

³⁴ "We--the priests, the Levites and the people--have cast lots to determine when each of our families is to bring to the house of our God at set times each year a contribution of wood to burn on the altar of the LORD our God, as it is written in the Law.

³⁵ "We also assume responsibility for bringing to the house of the LORD each year the firstfruits of our crops and of every fruit tree.

³⁶ "As it is also written in the Law, we will bring the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, of our herds and of our flocks to the house of our God, to the priests ministering there.

³⁷ "Moreover, we will bring to the storerooms of the house of our God, to the priests, the first of our ground meal, of our grain offerings, of the fruit of all our trees and of our new wine and oil. And we will bring a tithe of our crops to the Levites, for it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all the towns where we work. ³⁸ A priest descended from Aaron is to accompany the Levites when they receive the tithes, and the Levites are to bring a tenth of the tithes up to the house of our God, to the storerooms of the treasury. ³⁹ The people of Israel, including the Levites, are to bring their contributions of grain, new wine and oil to the storerooms where the articles for the sanctuary are kept and where the ministering priests, the gatekeepers and the singers stay.

"We will not neglect the house of our God." ¹⁵

NEW TESTAMENT: 1 CORINTHIANS 9:19 - 10:13

¹⁹ Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. ²⁰ To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. ²¹ To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. ²² To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. ²³ I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

²⁴ Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. ²⁵ Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. ²⁶ Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. ²⁷ No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

10 ¹ For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. ² They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. ³ They all ate the same spiritual food ⁴ and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. ⁵ Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.

⁶ Now these things occurred as examples ^A to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. ⁷ Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry." ^{B 8} We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did--and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. ⁹ We should not test the Lord, as some of them did--and were killed by snakes. ¹⁰ And do not grumble, as some of them did--and were killed by the destroying angel.

¹¹ These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. ¹² So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! ¹³ No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. ¹⁶

1 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

2 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

3 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

4 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

5 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

6 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

7 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

8 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

9 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

10 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

11 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

12 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

13 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

14 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

15 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

16 Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved

 John 3:16-21 16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, F that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.G 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." H