THEINC-HIM DAILY BIBLE MEDITATION: March 12

Saturday, October 24, 2009

March 12

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

MARCH 12

PSALMS: 12, 42, 72, 102, 132

PROVERBS: 12

OLD TESTAMENT

2 SAMUEL 18:1 - 19:10

NEW TESTAMENT

JOHN 20:1 - 31

PSALMS: 12

For the director of music. According to sheminith.A A psalm of David.

1Help, LORD, for the godly are no more;

the faithful have vanished from among men.

2Everyone lies to his neighbor;

their flattering lips speak with deception.

3May the LORD cut off all flattering lips

and every boastful tongue

4that says, "We will triumph with our tongues;

we own our lipsB--who is our master?"

5"Because of the oppression of the weak

and the groaning of the needy,

I will now arise," says the LORD.

"I will protect them from those who malign them."

6And the words of the LORD are flawless,

like silver refined in a furnace of clay,

purified seven times.

7O LORD, you will keep us safe

and protect us from such people forever.

8The wicked freely strut about

when what is vile is honored among men. [1]

PSALMS: 42

ForA the director of music. A maskilB of the Sons of Korah.

1As the deer pants for streams of water,

so my soul pants for you, O God.

2My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.

When can I go and meet with God?

3My tears have been my food

day and night,

while men say to me all day long,

"Where is your God?"

4These things I remember

as I pour out my soul:

how I used to go with the multitude,

leading the procession to the house of God,

with shouts of joy and thanksgiving

among the festive throng.

5Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise him,

my Savior and 6my God.

MyC soul is downcast within me;

therefore I will remember you

from the land of the Jordan,

the heights of Hermon--from Mount Mizar.

7Deep calls to deep

in the roar of your waterfalls;

all your waves and breakers

have swept over me.

8By day the LORD directs his love,

at night his song is with me--

a prayer to the God of my life.

9I say to God my Rock,

"Why have you forgotten me?

Why must I go about mourning,

oppressed by the enemy?"

10My bones suffer mortal agony

as my foes taunt me,

saying to me all day long,

"Where is your God?"

11Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise him,

my Savior and my God. [2]

PSALMS: 72

Of Solomon.

1Endow the king with your justice, O God,

the royal son with your righteousness.

2He willA judge your people in righteousness,

your afflicted ones with justice.

3The mountains will bring prosperity to the people,

the hills the fruit of righteousness.

4He will defend the afflicted among the people

and save the children of the needy;

he will crush the oppressor.

5He will endureB as long as the sun,

as long as the moon, through all generations.

6He will be like rain falling on a mown field,

like showers watering the earth.

7In his days the righteous will flourish;

prosperity will abound till the moon is no more.

8He will rule from sea to sea

and from the RiverC to the ends of the earth.D

9The desert tribes will bow before him

and his enemies will lick the dust.

10The kings of Tarshish and of distant shores

will bring tribute to him;

the kings of Sheba and Seba

will present him gifts.

11All kings will bow down to him

and all nations will serve him.[3]

Of Solomon.

12For he will deliver the needy who cry out,

the afflicted who have no one to help.

13He will take pity on the weak and the needy

and save the needy from death.

14He will rescue them from oppression and violence,

for precious is their blood in his sight.

15Long may he live!

May gold from Sheba be given him.

May people ever pray for him

and bless him all day long.

16Let grain abound throughout the land;

on the tops of the hills may it sway.

Let its fruit flourish like Lebanon;

let it thrive like the grass of the field.

17May his name endure forever;

may it continue as long as the sun.

All nations will be blessed through him,

and they will call him blessed. [4]

18Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel,

who alone does marvelous deeds.

19Praise be to his glorious name forever;

may the whole earth be filled with his glory.

Amen and Amen.

20This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse. [5]

PSALMS: 102

A prayer of an afflicted man. When he is faint and pours out his lament before the LORD.

1Hear my prayer, O LORD;

let my cry for help come to you.

2Do not hide your face from me

when I am in distress.

Turn your ear to me;

when I call, answer me quickly.

3For my days vanish like smoke;

my bones burn like glowing embers.

4My heart is blighted and withered like grass;

I forget to eat my food.

5Because of my loud groaning

I am reduced to skin and bones.

6I am like a desert owl,

like an owl among the ruins.

7I lie awake; I have become

like a bird alone on a roof.

8All day long my enemies taunt me;

those who rail against me use my name as a curse.

9For I eat ashes as my food

and mingle my drink with tears

10because of your great wrath,

for you have taken me up and thrown me aside.

11My days are like the evening shadow;

I wither away like grass. [6]

12But you, O LORD, sit enthroned forever;

your renown endures through all generations.

13You will arise and have compassion on Zion,

for it is time to show favor to her;

the appointed time has come.

14For her stones are dear to your servants;

her very dust moves them to pity.

15The nations will fear the name of the LORD,

all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.

16For the LORD will rebuild Zion

and appear in his glory.

17He will respond to the prayer of the destitute;

he will not despise their plea.

18Let this be written for a future generation,

that a people not yet created may praise the LORD:

19"The LORD looked down from his sanctuary on high,

from heaven he viewed the earth,

20to hear the groans of the prisoners

and release those condemned to death."

21So the name of the LORD will be declared in Zion

and his praise in Jerusalem

22when the peoples and the kingdoms

assemble to worship the LORD.

23In the course of my lifeA he broke my strength;

he cut short my days.

24So I said:

"Do not take me away, O my God, in the midst of my days;

your years go on through all generations.

25In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,

and the heavens are the work of your hands.[7]

26They will perish, but you remain;

they will all wear out like a garment.

Like clothing you will change them

and they will be discarded.

27But you remain the same,

and your years will never end.

28The children of your servants will live in your presence;

their descendants will be established before you."[8]

PSALMS: 132

A song of ascents.

1O LORD, remember David

and all the hardships he endured.

2He swore an oath to the LORD

and made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:

3"I will not enter my house

or go to my bed--

4I will allow no sleep to my eyes,

no slumber to my eyelids,

5till I find a place for the LORD,

a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob."

6We heard it in Ephrathah,

we came upon it in the fields of JaarA:B

7"Let us go to his dwelling place;

let us worship at his footstool--

8arise, O LORD, and come to your resting place,

you and the ark of your might.

9May your priests be clothed with righteousness;

may your saints sing for joy."

10For the sake of David your servant,

do not reject your anointed one.[9]

11The LORD swore an oath to David,

a sure oath that he will not revoke:

"One of your own descendants

I will place on your throne--

12if your sons keep my covenant

and the statutes I teach them,

then their sons will sit

on your throne for ever and ever."

13For the LORD has chosen Zion,

he has desired it for his dwelling:

14"This is my resting place for ever and ever;

here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it--

15I will bless her with abundant provisions;

her poor will I satisfy with food.

16I will clothe her priests with salvation,

and her saints will ever sing for joy.

17"Here I will make a hornC grow for David

and set up a lamp for my anointed one.

18I will clothe his enemies with shame,

but the crown on his head will be resplendent."[10]

PROVERBS: 12

121 Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,

but he who hates correction is stupid.

2A good man obtains favor from the LORD,

but the LORD condemns a crafty man.

3A man cannot be established through wickedness,

but the righteous cannot be uprooted.

4A wife of noble character is her husband's crown,

but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones.

5The plans of the righteous are just,

but the advice of the wicked is deceitful.

6The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,

but the speech of the upright rescues them.

7Wicked men are overthrown and are no more,

but the house of the righteous stands firm.

8A man is praised according to his wisdom,

but men with warped minds are despised.

9Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant

than pretend to be somebody and have no food.

10A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal,

but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.

11He who works his land will have abundant food,

but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment.[11]

12The wicked desire the plunder of evil men,

but the root of the righteous flourishes.

13An evil man is trapped by his sinful talk,

but a righteous man escapes trouble.

14From the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things

as surely as the work of his hands rewards him.

15The way of a fool seems right to him,

but a wise man listens to advice.

16A fool shows his annoyance at once,

but a prudent man overlooks an insult.

17A truthful witness gives honest testimony,

but a false witness tells lies.

18Reckless words pierce like a sword,

but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

19Truthful lips endure forever,

but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.

20There is deceit in the hearts of those who plot evil,

but joy for those who promote peace.

21No harm befalls the righteous,

but the wicked have their fill of trouble.[12]

22The LORD detests lying lips,

but he delights in men who are truthful.

23A prudent man keeps his knowledge to himself,

but the heart of fools blurts out folly.

24Diligent hands will rule,

but laziness ends in slave labor.

25An anxious heart weighs a man down,

but a kind word cheers him up.

26A righteous man is cautious in friendship,A

but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

27The lazy man does not roastB his game,

but the diligent man prizes his possessions.

28In the way of righteousness there is life;

along that path is immortality. [13]

OLD TESTAMENT

2 SAMUEL 18:1 - 19:10

181David mustered the men who were with him and appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. 2David sent the troops out--a third under the command of Joab, a third under Joab's brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king told the troops, "I myself will surely march out with you."

3But the men said, "You must not go out; if we are forced to flee, they won't care about us. Even if half of us die, they won't care; but you are worth ten thousand of us.A It would be better now for you to give us support from the city."

4The king answered, "I will do whatever seems best to you."

So the king stood beside the gate while all the men marched out in units of hundreds and of thousands. 5The king commanded Joab, Abishai and Ittai, "Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake." And all the troops heard the king giving orders concerning Absalom to each of the commanders.

6The army marched into the field to fight Israel, and the battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. 7There the army of Israel was defeated by David's men, and the casualties that day were great--twenty thousand men. 8The battle spread out over the whole countryside, and the forest claimed more lives that day than the sword.

9Now Absalom happened to meet David's men. He was riding his mule, and as the mule went under the thick branches of a large oak, Absalom's head got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in midair, while the mule he was riding kept on going.

10When one of the men saw this, he told Joab, "I just saw [14]Absalom hanging in an oak tree."

11Joab said to the man who had told him this, "What! You saw him? Why didn't you strike him to the ground right there? Then I would have had to give you ten shekelsB of silver and a warrior's belt."

12But the man replied, "Even if a thousand shekelsC were weighed out into my hands, I would not lift my hand against the king's son. In our hearing the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, `Protect the young man Absalom for my sake.D' 13And if I had put my life in jeopardyE--and nothing is hidden from the king--you would have kept your distance from me."

14Joab said, "I'm not going to wait like this for you." So he took three javelins in his hand and plunged them into Absalom's heart while Absalom was still alive in the oak tree. 15And ten of Joab's armor-bearers surrounded Absalom, struck him and killed him.

16Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and the troops stopped pursuing Israel, for Joab halted them. 17They took Absalom, threw him into a big pit in the forest and piled up a large heap of rocks over him. Meanwhile, all the Israelites fled to their homes.

18During his lifetime Absalom had taken a pillar and erected it in the King's Valley as a monument to himself, for he thought, "I have no son to carry on the memory of my name." He named the pillar after himself, and it is called Absalom's Monument to this day.

19Now Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, "Let me run and take the news to the king that the LORD has delivered him from the hand of [15]his enemies."

20"You are not the one to take the news today," Joab told him. "You may take the news another time, but you must not do so today, because the king's son is dead."

21Then Joab said to a Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed down before Joab and ran off.

22Ahimaaz son of Zadok again said to Joab, "Come what may, please let me run behind the Cushite."

But Joab replied, "My son, why do you want to go? You don't have any news that will bring you a reward."

23He said, "Come what may, I want to run."

So Joab said, "Run!" Then Ahimaaz ran by way of the plainF and outran the Cushite.

24While David was sitting between the inner and outer gates, the watchman went up to the roof of the gateway by the wall. As he looked out, he saw a man running alone. 25The watchman called out to the king and reported it.

The king said, "If he is alone, he must have good news." And the man came closer and closer.

26Then the watchman saw another man running, and he called down to the gatekeeper, "Look, another man running alone!"

The king said, "He must be bringing good news, too."

27The watchman said, "It seems to me that the first one runs like Ahimaaz son of Zadok."

"He's a good man," the king said. "He comes with good news."

28Then Ahimaaz called out to the king, "All is well!" He bowed [16]down before the king with his face to the ground and said, "Praise be to the LORD your God! He has delivered up the men who lifted their hands against my lord the king."

29The king asked, "Is the young man Absalom safe?"

Ahimaaz answered, "I saw great confusion just as Joab was about to send the king's servant and me, your servant, but I don't know what it was."

30The king said, "Stand aside and wait here." So he stepped aside and stood there.

31Then the Cushite arrived and said, "My lord the king, hear the good news! The LORD has delivered you today from all who rose up against you."

32The king asked the Cushite, "Is the young man Absalom safe?"

The Cushite replied, "May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up to harm you be like that young man."

33The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: "O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you--O Absalom, my son, my son!"

191Joab was told, "The king is weeping and mourning for Absalom." 2And for the whole army the victory that day was turned into mourning, because on that day the troops heard it said, "The king is grieving for his son." 3The men stole into the city that day as men steal in who are ashamed when they flee from battle. 4The king [17]covered his face and cried aloud, "O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!"

5Then Joab went into the house to the king and said, "Today you have humiliated all your men, who have just saved your life and the lives of your sons and daughters and the lives of your wives and concubines. 6You love those who hate you and hate those who love you. You have made it clear today that the commanders and their men mean nothing to you. I see that you would be pleased if Absalom were alive today and all of us were dead. 7Now go out and encourage your men. I swear by the LORD that if you don't go out, not a man will be left with you by nightfall. This will be worse for you than all the calamities that have come upon you from your youth till now."

8So the king got up and took his seat in the gateway. When the men were told, "The king is sitting in the gateway," they all came before him.

Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled to their homes. 9Throughout the tribes of Israel, the people were all arguing with each other, saying, "The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies; he is the one who rescued us from the hand of the Philistines. But now he has fled the country because of Absalom; 10and Absalom, whom we anointed to rule over us, has died in battle. So why do you say nothing about bringing the king back?" [18]

NEW TESTAMENT

JOHN 20:1 - 31

201Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"

3So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. 8Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

10Then the disciples went back to their homes, 11but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

13They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?"

"They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him." 14At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

15"Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried [19]him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."

16Jesus said to her, "Mary."

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).

17Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, `I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "

18Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.

19On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

21Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." 22And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."

24Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!"

But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it." [20]26A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 27Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."

28Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"

29Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

30Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31But these are written that you mayA believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.[21]

^{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

Saturday, October 24, 2009

March 12

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