THEINC-HIM DAILY BIBLE MEDITATION: February 11

Sunday, October 25, 2009

February 11

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

FEBRUARY 11

PSALMS: 11, 41, 71, 101, 131

PROVERBS: 11

OLD TESTAMENT

JUDGES 17:1 - 18:31

NEW TESTAMENT

JOHN 3:1 - 21

PSALMS: 11

For the director of music. Of David.

1In the LORD I take refuge.

How then can you say to me:

"Flee like a bird to your mountain.

2For look, the wicked bend their bows;

they set their arrows against the strings

to shoot from the shadows

at the upright in heart.

3When the foundations are being destroyed,

what can the righteous doA?"

4The LORD is in his holy temple;

the LORD is on his heavenly throne.

He observes the sons of men;

his eyes examine them.

5The LORD examines the righteous,

but the wickedB and those who love violence

his soul hates.

6On the wicked he will rain

fiery coals and burning sulfur;

a scorching wind will be their lot.

7For the LORD is righteous,

he loves justice;

upright men will see his face. [1]

PSALMS: 41

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1Blessed is he who has regard for the weak;

the LORD delivers him in times of trouble.

2The LORD will protect him and preserve his life;

he will bless him in the land

and not surrender him to the desire of his foes.

3The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed

and restore him from his bed of illness.

4I said, "O LORD, have mercy on me;

heal me, for I have sinned against you."

5My enemies say of me in malice,

"When will he die and his name perish?"

6Whenever one comes to see me,

he speaks falsely, while his heart gathers slander;

then he goes out and spreads it abroad.

7All my enemies whisper together against me;

they imagine the worst for me, saying,

8"A vile disease has beset him;

he will never get up from the place where he lies."

9Even my close friend, whom I trusted,

he who shared my bread,

has lifted up his heel against me. [2]

10But you, O LORD, have mercy on me;

raise me up, that I may repay them.

11I know that you are pleased with me,

for my enemy does not triumph over me.

12In my integrity you uphold me

and set me in your presence forever.

13Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting.

Amen and Amen [3]

PSALMS: 71

1In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge;

let me never be put to shame.

2Rescue me and deliver me in your righteousness;

turn your ear to me and save me.

3Be my rock of refuge,

to which I can always go;

give the command to save me,

for you are my rock and my fortress.

4Deliver me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,

from the grasp of evil and cruel men.

5For you have been my hope, O Sovereign LORD,

my confidence since my youth.

6From birth I have relied on you;

you brought me forth from my mother's womb.

I will ever praise you.

7I have become like a portent to many,

but you are my strong refuge.

8My mouth is filled with your praise,

declaring your splendor all day long.

9Do not cast me away when I am old;

do not forsake me when my strength is gone.

10For my enemies speak against me;

those who wait to kill me conspire together.

11They say, "God has forsaken him;

pursue him and seize him,

for no one will rescue him."

12Be not far from me, O God;

come quickly, O my God, to help me.

13May my accusers perish in shame;

may those who want to harm me

be covered with scorn and disgrace.[4]

14But as for me, I will always have hope;

I will praise you more and more.

15My mouth will tell of your righteousness,

of your salvation all day long,

though I know not its measure.

16I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD;

I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.

17Since my youth, O God, you have taught me,

and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

18Even when I am old and gray,

do not forsake me, O God,

till I declare your power to the next generation,

your might to all who are to come.

19Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God,

you who have done great things.

Who, O God, is like you?

20Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter,

you will restore my life again;

from the depths of the earth

you will again bring me up.

21You will increase my honor

and comfort me once again.

22I will praise you with the harp

for your faithfulness, O my God;

I will sing praise to you with the lyre,

O Holy One of Israel.

23My lips will shout for joy

when I sing praise to you--

I, whom you have redeemed.

24My tongue will tell of your righteous acts [5]

all day long,

for those who wanted to harm me

have been put to shame and confusion. [6]

PSALMS: 101

Of David. A psalm.

1I will sing of your love and justice;

to you, O LORD, I will sing praise.

2I will be careful to lead a blameless life--

when will you come to me?

I will walk in my house

with blameless heart.

3I will set before my eyes

no vile thing.

The deeds of faithless men I hate;

they will not cling to me.

4Men of perverse heart shall be far from me;

I will have nothing to do with evil.

5Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret,

him will I put to silence;

whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart,

him will I not endure.

6My eyes will be on the faithful in the land,

that they may dwell with me;

he whose walk is blameless

will minister to me.[7]

7No one who practices deceit

will dwell in my house;

no one who speaks falsely

will stand in my presence.

8Every morning I will put to silence

all the wicked in the land;

I will cut off every evildoer

from the city of the LORD. [8]

PSALMS: 131

A song of ascents. Of David.

1My heart is not proud, O LORD,

my eyes are not haughty;

I do not concern myself with great matters

or things too wonderful for me.

2But I have stilled and quieted my soul;

like a weaned child with its mother,

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

3O Israel, put your hope in the LORD

both now and forevermore. [9]

PROVERBS: 11

111 The LORD abhors dishonest scales,

but accurate weights are his delight.

2When pride comes, then comes disgrace,

but with humility comes wisdom.

3The integrity of the upright guides them,

but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.

4Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath,

but righteousness delivers from death.

5The righteousness of the blameless makes a straight way for them,

but the wicked are brought down by their own wickedness.

6The righteousness of the upright delivers them,

but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires.

7When a wicked man dies, his hope perishes;

all he expected from his power comes to nothing.

8The righteous man is rescued from trouble,

and it comes on the wicked instead.

9With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor,

but through knowledge the righteous escape.

10When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices;

when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.

11Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,

but by the mouth of the wicked it is destroyed.[10]

12A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor,

but a man of understanding holds his tongue.

13A gossip betrays a confidence,

but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.

14For lack of guidance a nation falls,

but many advisers make victory sure.

15He who puts up security for another will surely suffer,

but whoever refuses to strike hands in pledge is safe.

16A kindhearted woman gains respect,

but ruthless men gain only wealth.

17A kind man benefits himself,

but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.

18The wicked man earns deceptive wages,

but he who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.

19The truly righteous man attains life,

but he who pursues evil goes to his death.

20The LORD detests men of perverse heart

but he delights in those whose ways are blameless.

21Be sure of this: The wicked will not go unpunished,

but those who are righteous will go free.[11]

22Like a gold ring in a pig's snout

is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.

23The desire of the righteous ends only in good,

but the hope of the wicked only in wrath.

24One man gives freely, yet gains even more;

another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.

25A generous man will prosper;

he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

26People curse the man who hoards grain,

but blessing crowns him who is willing to sell.

27He who seeks good finds goodwill,

but evil comes to him who searches for it.

28Whoever trusts in his riches will fall,

but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.

29He who brings trouble on his family will inherit only wind,

and the fool will be servant to the wise.

30The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,

and he who wins souls is wise.

31If the righteous receive their due on earth,

how much more the ungodly and the sinner! [12]

OLD TESTAMENT

JUDGES 17:1 - 18:31

171Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim 2said to his mother, "The eleven hundred shekelsA of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse--I have that silver with me; I took it."

Then his mother said, "The LORD bless you, my son!"

3When he returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, she said, "I solemnly consecrate my silver to the LORD for my son to make a carved image and a cast idol. I will give it back to you."

4So he returned the silver to his mother, and she took two hundred shekelsB of silver and gave them to a silversmith, who made them into the image and the idol. And they were put in Micah's house.

5Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some idols and installed one of his sons as his priest. 6In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.

7A young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, who had been living within the clan of Judah, 8left that town in search of some other place to stay. On his wayC he came to Micah's house in the hill country of Ephraim.

9Micah asked him, "Where are you from?"

"I'm a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah," he said, "and I'm looking for a place to stay."

10Then Micah said to him, "Live with me and be my father and priest, and I'll give you ten shekelsD of silver a year, your clothes [13]and your food." 11So the Levite agreed to live with him, and the young man was to him like one of his sons. 12Then Micah installed the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in his house. 13And Micah said, "Now I know that the LORD will be good to me, since this Levite has become my priest."

181In those days Israel had no king.

And in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking a place of their own where they might settle, because they had not yet come into an inheritance among the tribes of Israel. 2So the Danites sent five warriors from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and explore it. These men represented all their clans. They told them, "Go, explore the land."

The men entered the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah, where they spent the night. 3When they were near Micah's house, they recognized the voice of the young Levite; so they turned in there and asked him, "Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place? Why are you here?"

4He told them what Micah had done for him, and said, "He has hired me and I am his priest."

5Then they said to him, "Please inquire of God to learn whether our journey will be successful."

6The priest answered them, "Go in peace. Your journey has the LORD's approval."

7So the five men left and came to Laish, where they saw that the [14]people were living in safety, like the Sidonians, unsuspecting and secure. And since their land lacked nothing, they were prosperous.A Also, they lived a long way from the Sidonians and had no relationship with anyone else.B

8When they returned to Zorah and Eshtaol, their brothers asked them, "How did you find things?"

9They answered, "Come on, let's attack them! We have seen that the land is very good. Aren't you going to do something? Don't hesitate to go there and take it over. 10When you get there, you will find an unsuspecting people and a spacious land that God has put into your hands, a land that lacks nothing whatever."

11Then six hundred men from the clan of the Danites, armed for battle, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol. 12On their way they set up camp near Kiriath Jearim in Judah. This is why the place west of Kiriath Jearim is called Mahaneh DanC to this day. 13From there they went on to the hill country of Ephraim and came to Micah's house.

14Then the five men who had spied out the land of Laish said to their brothers, "Do you know that one of these houses has an ephod, other household gods, a carved image and a cast idol? Now you know what to do." 15So they turned in there and went to the house of the young Levite at Micah's place and greeted him. 16The six hundred Danites, armed for battle, stood at the entrance to the gate. 17The five men who had spied out the land went inside and took the carved image, the ephod, the other household gods and the cast idol while the priest and the six hundred armed men stood at the entrance [15]to the gate.

18When these men went into Micah's house and took the carved image, the ephod, the other household gods and the cast idol, the priest said to them, "What are you doing?"

19They answered him, "Be quiet! Don't say a word. Come with us, and be our father and priest. Isn't it better that you serve a tribe and clan in Israel as priest rather than just one man's household?" 20Then the priest was glad. He took the ephod, the other household gods and the carved image and went along with the people. 21Putting their little children, their livestock and their possessions in front of them, they turned away and left.

22When they had gone some distance from Micah's house, the men who lived near Micah were called together and overtook the Danites. 23As they shouted after them, the Danites turned and said to Micah, "What's the matter with you that you called out your men to fight?"

24He replied, "You took the gods I made, and my priest, and went away. What else do I have? How can you ask, `What's the matter with you?' "

25The Danites answered, "Don't argue with us, or some hot-tempered men will attack you, and you and your family will lose your lives." 26So the Danites went their way, and Micah, seeing that they were too strong for him, turned around and went back home. [16]27Then they took what Micah had made, and his priest, and went on to Laish, against a peaceful and unsuspecting people. They attacked them with the sword and burned down their city.

28There was no one to rescue them because they lived a long way from Sidon and had no relationship with anyone else. The city was in a valley near Beth Rehob.

The Danites rebuilt the city and settled there. 29They named it Dan after their forefather Dan, who was born to Israel--though the city used to be called Laish. 30There the Danites set up for themselves the idols, and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses,D and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan until the time of the captivity of the land. 31They continued to use the idols Micah had made, all the time the house of God was in Shiloh.[17]

NEW TESTAMENT

JOHN 3:1 - 21

31Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."

3In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.A"

4"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"

5Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the SpiritB gives birth to spirit. 7You should not be surprised at my saying, `YouC must be born again.' 8The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

9"How can this be?" Nicodemus asked.

10"You are Israel's teacher," said Jesus, "and do you not understand these things? 11I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven--the Son of Man.D 14Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.E [18]

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. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever 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 19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But 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 [19]

^{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. ¹⁷For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸Whoever 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 ¹⁹This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. ²⁰Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. ²¹But 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

THEINC-HIM DAILY BIBLE MEDITATION

Sunday, October 25, 2009

February 11

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John 3:16-21