THEINC-HIM DAILY BIBLE MEDITATION: June 9

Thursday, October 22, 2009

June 9

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

JUNE 9

PSALMS: 9, 39, 69, 99, 129

PROVERBS: 9

OLD TESTAMENT

JOB 31:1 - 33:33

NEW TESTAMENT

2 CORINTHIANS 3:1 - 18

PSALMS: 9

ForA the director of music. To the tune of "The Death of the Son." A psalm of David.

1I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart;

I will tell of all your wonders.

2I will be glad and rejoice in you;

I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

3My enemies turn back;

they stumble and perish before you.

4For you have upheld my right and my cause;

you have sat on your throne, judging righteously.

5You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;

you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.

6Endless ruin has overtaken the enemy,

you have uprooted their cities;

even the memory of them has perished.

7The LORD reigns forever;

he has established his throne for judgment.

8He will judge the world in righteousness;

he will govern the peoples with justice.

9The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed,

a stronghold in times of trouble.

10Those who know your name will trust in you,

for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

11Sing praises to the LORD, enthroned in Zion;

proclaim among the nations what he has done.

12For he who avenges blood remembers;

he does not ignore the cry of the afflicted. [1]

13O LORD, see how my enemies persecute me!

Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,

14that I may declare your praises

in the gates of the Daughter of Zion

and there rejoice in your salvation.

15The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug;

their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.

16The LORD is known by his justice;

the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.

Higgaion.B Selah

17The wicked return to the grave,C

all the nations that forget God.

18But the needy will not always be forgotten,

nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish.

19Arise, O LORD, let not man triumph;

let the nations be judged in your presence.

20Strike them with terror, O LORD;

let the nations know they are but men.

Selah[2]

PSALMS: 39

For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.

1I said, "I will watch my ways

and keep my tongue from sin;

I will put a muzzle on my mouth

as long as the wicked are in my presence."

2But when I was silent and still,

not even saying anything good,

my anguish increased.

3My heart grew hot within me,

and as I meditated, the fire burned;

then I spoke with my tongue:

4"Show me, O LORD, my life's end

and the number of my days;

let me know how fleeting is my life.

5You have made my days a mere handbreadth;

the span of my years is as nothing before you.

Each man's life is but a breath.

Selah

6Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro:

He bustles about, but only in vain;

he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it.

7"But now, Lord, what do I look for?

My hope is in you.

8Save me from all my transgressions;

do not make me the scorn of fools.

9I was silent; I would not open my mouth, [3]

for you are the one who has done this.

10Remove your scourge from me;

I am overcome by the blow of your hand.

11You rebuke and discipline men for their sin;

you consume their wealth like a moth--

each man is but a breath.

Selah

12"Hear my prayer, O LORD,

listen to my cry for help;

be not deaf to my weeping.

For I dwell with you as an alien,

a stranger, as all my fathers were.

13Look away from me, that I may rejoice again

before I depart and am no more." [4]

PSALMS: 69

For the director of music. To the tune of "Lilies." Of David.

1Save me, O God,

for the waters have come up to my neck.

2I sink in the miry depths,

where there is no foothold.

I have come into the deep waters;

the floods engulf me.

3I am worn out calling for help;

my throat is parched.

My eyes fail,

looking for my God.

4Those who hate me without reason

outnumber the hairs of my head;

many are my enemies without cause,

those who seek to destroy me.

I am forced to restore

what I did not steal.

5You know my folly, O God;

my guilt is not hidden from you.

6May those who hope in you

not be disgraced because of me,

O Lord, the LORD Almighty;

may those who seek you

not be put to shame because of me,

O God of Israel.

7For I endure scorn for your sake,

and shame covers my face.

8I am a stranger to my brothers, [5]

an alien to my own mother's sons;

9for zeal for your house consumes me,

and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.

10When I weep and fast,

I must endure scorn;

11when I put on sackcloth,

people make sport of me.

12Those who sit at the gate mock me,

and I am the song of the drunkards.

13But I pray to you, O LORD,

in the time of your favor;

in your great love, O God,

answer me with your sure salvation.

14Rescue me from the mire,

do not let me sink;

deliver me from those who hate me,

from the deep waters.

15Do not let the floodwaters engulf me

or the depths swallow me up

or the pit close its mouth over me.

16Answer me, O LORD, out of the goodness of your love;

in your great mercy turn to me.

17Do not hide your face from your servant;

answer me quickly, for I am in trouble.

18Come near and rescue me;

redeem me because of my foes.

19You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed;

all my enemies are before you.

20Scorn has broken my heart [6]

and has left me helpless;

I looked for sympathy, but there was none,

for comforters, but I found none.

21They put gall in my food

and gave me vinegar for my thirst.

22May the table set before them become a snare;

may it become retribution andA a trap.

23May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,

and their backs be bent forever.

24Pour out your wrath on them;

let your fierce anger overtake them.

25May their place be deserted;

let there be no one to dwell in their tents.

26For they persecute those you wound

and talk about the pain of those you hurt.

27Charge them with crime upon crime;

do not let them share in your salvation.

28May they be blotted out of the book of life

and not be listed with the righteous.

29I am in pain and distress;

may your salvation, O God, protect me.

30I will praise God's name in song

and glorify him with thanksgiving.

31This will please the LORD more than an ox,

more than a bull with its horns and hoofs.

32The poor will see and be glad--

you who seek God, may your hearts live!

33The LORD hears the needy

and does not despise his captive people. [7]

34Let heaven and earth praise him,

the seas and all that move in them,

35for God will save Zion

and rebuild the cities of Judah.

Then people will settle there and possess it;

36the children of his servants will inherit it,

and those who love his name will dwell there. [8]

PSALMS: 99

1The LORD reigns,

let the nations tremble;

he sits enthroned between the cherubim,

let the earth shake.

2Great is the LORD in Zion;

he is exalted over all the nations.

3Let them praise your great and awesome name--

he is holy.

4The King is mighty, he loves justice--

you have established equity;

in Jacob you have done

what is just and right.

5Exalt the LORD our God

and worship at his footstool;

he is holy.

6Moses and Aaron were among his priests,

Samuel was among those who called on his name;

they called on the LORD

and he answered them.

7He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud;

they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them.

8O LORD our God,

you answered them;

you were to IsraelA a forgiving God,

though you punished their misdeeds.B

9Exalt the LORD our God

and worship at his holy mountain,

for the LORD our God is holy. [9]

PSALMS: 129

A song of ascents.

1They have greatly oppressed me from my youth--

let Israel say--

2they have greatly oppressed me from my youth,

but they have not gained the victory over me.

3Plowmen have plowed my back

and made their furrows long.

4But the LORD is righteous;

he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked.

5May all who hate Zion

be turned back in shame.

6May they be like grass on the roof,

which withers before it can grow;

7with it the reaper cannot fill his hands,

nor the one who gathers fill his arms.

8May those who pass by not say,

"The blessing of the LORD be upon you;

we bless you in the name of the LORD." [10]

PROVERBS: 9

91 Wisdom has built her house;

she has hewn out its seven pillars.

2She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;

she has also set her table.

3She has sent out her maids, and she calls

from the highest point of the city.

4"Let all who are simple come in here!"

she says to those who lack judgment.

5"Come, eat my food

and drink the wine I have mixed.

6Leave your simple ways and you will live;

walk in the way of understanding.

7"Whoever corrects a mocker invites insult;

whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse.

8Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you;

rebuke a wise man and he will love you.

9Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still;

teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.

10"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,

and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

11For through me your days will be many,

and years will be added to your life.

12If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you;

if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer."

13The woman Folly is loud;

she is undisciplined and without knowledge.

14She sits at the door of her house,

on a seat at the highest point of the city,

15calling out to those who pass by,

who go straight on their way.

16"Let all who are simple come in here!" [11]

she says to those who lack judgment.

17"Stolen water is sweet;

food eaten in secret is delicious!"

18But little do they know that the dead are there,

that her guests are in the depths of the grave.A [12]

OLD TESTAMENT

JOB 31:1 - 33:33

311 "I made a covenant with my eyes

not to look lustfully at a girl.

2For what is man's lot from God above,

his heritage from the Almighty on high?

3Is it not ruin for the wicked,

disaster for those who do wrong?

4Does he not see my ways

and count my every step?

5"If I have walked in falsehood

or my foot has hurried after deceit--

6let God weigh me in honest scales

and he will know that I am blameless--

7if my steps have turned from the path,

if my heart has been led by my eyes,

or if my hands have been defiled,

8then may others eat what I have sown,

and may my crops be uprooted.

9"If my heart has been enticed by a woman,

or if I have lurked at my neighbor's door,

10then may my wife grind another man's grain,

and may other men sleep with her.

11For that would have been shameful,

a sin to be judged.

12It is a fire that burns to DestructionA;

it would have uprooted my harvest. [13]

13"If I have denied justice to my menservants and maidservants

when they had a grievance against me,

14what will I do when God confronts me?

What will I answer when called to account?

15Did not he who made me in the womb make them?

Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?

16"If I have denied the desires of the poor

or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,

17if I have kept my bread to myself,

not sharing it with the fatherless--

18but from my youth I reared him as would a father,

and from my birth I guided the widow--

19if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,

or a needy man without a garment,

20and his heart did not bless me

for warming him with the fleece from my sheep,

21if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,

knowing that I had influence in court,

22then let my arm fall from the shoulder,

let it be broken off at the joint.

23For I dreaded destruction from God,

and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things. [14]

24"If I have put my trust in gold

or said to pure gold, `You are my security,'

25if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,

the fortune my hands had gained,

26if I have regarded the sun in its radiance

or the moon moving in splendor,

27so that my heart was secretly enticed

and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,

28then these also would be sins to be judged,

for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.

29"If I have rejoiced at my enemy's misfortune

or gloated over the trouble that came to him--

30I have not allowed my mouth to sin

by invoking a curse against his life--

31if the men of my household have never said,

`Who has not had his fill of Job's meat?'--

32but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,

for my door was always open to the traveler--

33if I have concealed my sin as men do,B

by hiding my guilt in my heart

34because I so feared the crowd

and so dreaded the contempt of the clans

that I kept silent and would not go outside [15]

35("Oh, that I had someone to hear me!

I sign now my defense--let the Almighty answer me;

let my accuser put his indictment in writing.

36Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,

I would put it on like a crown.

37I would give him an account of my every step;

like a prince I would approach him.)--

38"if my land cries out against me

and all its furrows are wet with tears,

39if I have devoured its yield without payment

or broken the spirit of its tenants,

40then let briers come up instead of wheat

and weeds instead of barley."

The words of Job are ended.

321So these three men stopped answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2But Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became very angry with Job for justifying himself rather than God. 3He was also angry with the three friends, because they had found no way to refute Job, and yet had condemned him.A 4Now Elihu had waited before speaking to Job because they were older than he. 5But when he saw that the three men had nothing more to say, his anger was aroused.

6So Elihu son of Barakel the Buzite said:

"I am young in years,

and you are old;

that is why I was fearful, [16]

not daring to tell you what I know.

7I thought, `Age should speak;

advanced years should teach wisdom.'

8But it is the spiritB in a man,

the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding.

9It is not only the oldC who are wise,

not only the aged who understand what is right.

10"Therefore I say: Listen to me;

I too will tell you what I know.

11I waited while you spoke,

I listened to your reasoning;

while you were searching for words,

12I gave you my full attention.

But not one of you has proved Job wrong;

none of you has answered his arguments.

13Do not say, `We have found wisdom;

let God refute him, not man.'

14But Job has not marshaled his words against me,

and I will not answer him with your arguments.

15"They are dismayed and have no more to say;

words have failed them.

16Must I wait, now that they are silent,

now that they stand there with no reply?

17I too will have my say; [17]

I too will tell what I know.

18For I am full of words,

and the spirit within me compels me;

19inside I am like bottled-up wine,

like new wineskins ready to burst.

20I must speak and find relief;

I must open my lips and reply.

21I will show partiality to no one,

nor will I flatter any man;

22for if I were skilled in flattery,

my Maker would soon take me away.

331 "But now, Job, listen to my words;

pay attention to everything I say.

2I am about to open my mouth;

my words are on the tip of my tongue.

3My words come from an upright heart;

my lips sincerely speak what I know.

4The Spirit of God has made me;

the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

5Answer me then, if you can;

prepare yourself and confront me.

6I am just like you before God;

I too have been taken from clay. [18]

7No fear of me should alarm you,

nor should my hand be heavy upon you.

8"But you have said in my hearing--

I heard the very words--

9`I am pure and without sin;

I am clean and free from guilt.

10Yet God has found fault with me;

he considers me his enemy.

11He fastens my feet in shackles;

he keeps close watch on all my paths.'

12"But I tell you, in this you are not right,

for God is greater than man.

13Why do you complain to him

that he answers none of man's wordsA?

14For God does speak--now one way, now another--

though man may not perceive it.

15In a dream, in a vision of the night,

when deep sleep falls on men

as they slumber in their beds,

16he may speak in their ears

and terrify them with warnings,

17to turn man from wrongdoing

and keep him from pride,

18to preserve his soul from the pit,B [19]

his life from perishing by the sword.C

19Or a man may be chastened on a bed of pain

with constant distress in his bones,

20so that his very being finds food repulsive

and his soul loathes the choicest meal.

21His flesh wastes away to nothing,

and his bones, once hidden, now stick out.

22His soul draws near to the pit,D

and his life to the messengers of death.E

23"Yet if there is an angel on his side

as a mediator, one out of a thousand,

to tell a man what is right for him,

24to be gracious to him and say,

`Spare him from going down to the pitF;

I have found a ransom for him'--

25then his flesh is renewed like a child's;

it is restored as in the days of his youth.

26He prays to God and finds favor with him,

he sees God's face and shouts for joy;

he is restored by God to his righteous state.

27Then he comes to men and says,

`I sinned, and perverted what was right,

but I did not get what I deserved. [20]

28He redeemed my soul from going down to the pit,G

and I will live to enjoy the light.'

29"God does all these things to a man--

twice, even three times--

30to turn back his soul from the pit,H

that the light of life may shine on him.

31"Pay attention, Job, and listen to me;

be silent, and I will speak.

32If you have anything to say, answer me;

speak up, for I want you to be cleared.

33But if not, then listen to me;

be silent, and I will teach you wisdom." [21]

NEW TESTAMENT

2 CORINTHIANS 3:1 - 18

31Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? 2You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. 3You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

4Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. 5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 6He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant--not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

7Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, 8will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? 9If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! 10For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. 11And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!

12Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. 13We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. 14But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. 15Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. 16But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflectA the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.[22]

^{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

Thursday, October 22, 2009

June 9

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John 3:16-21