THEINC-HIM DAILY BIBLE MEDITATION: May 9

Friday, October 23, 2009

May 9

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

MAY 9

PSALMS: 9, 39, 69, 99, 129

PROVERBS: 9

OLD TESTAMENT

2 CHRONICLES 24:1 - 25:28

NEW TESTAMENT

ROMANS 12:1 - 21

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

2 CHRONICLES 24:1 - 25:28

241Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother's name was Zibiah; she was from Beersheba. 2Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the years of Jehoiada the priest. 3Jehoiada chose two wives for him, and he had sons and daughters.

4Some time later Joash decided to restore the temple of the LORD. 5He called together the priests and Levites and said to them, "Go to the towns of Judah and collect the money due annually from all Israel, to repair the temple of your God. Do it now." But the Levites did not act at once.

6Therefore the king summoned Jehoiada the chief priest and said to him, "Why haven't you required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax imposed by Moses the servant of the LORD and by the assembly of Israel for the Tent of the Testimony?"

7Now the sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had broken into the temple of God and had used even its sacred objects for the Baals.

8At the king's command, a chest was made and placed outside, at the gate of the temple of the LORD. 9A proclamation was then issued in Judah and Jerusalem that they should bring to the LORD the tax that Moses the servant of God had required of Israel in the desert. 10All the officials and all the people brought their contributions gladly, dropping them into the chest until it was full. 11Whenever the chest was brought in by the Levites to the king's officials and they saw that there was a large amount of money, the royal secretary and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest and carry it back to its place. They did this [13]regularly and collected a great amount of money. 12The king and Jehoiada gave it to the men who carried out the work required for the temple of the LORD. They hired masons and carpenters to restore the LORD's temple, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the temple.

13The men in charge of the work were diligent, and the repairs progressed under them. They rebuilt the temple of God according to its original design and reinforced it. 14When they had finished, they brought the rest of the money to the king and Jehoiada, and with it were made articles for the LORD's temple: articles for the service and for the burnt offerings, and also dishes and other objects of gold and silver. As long as Jehoiada lived, burnt offerings were presented continually in the temple of the LORD.

15Now Jehoiada was old and full of years, and he died at the age of a hundred and thirty. 16He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple.

17After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. 18They abandoned the temple of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols. Because of their guilt, God's anger came upon Judah and Jerusalem. 19Although the LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.

20Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, "This is what God [14]says: `Why do you disobey the LORD's commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.' "

21But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the LORD's temple. 22King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah's father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, "May the LORD see this and call you to account."

23At the turn of the year,A the army of Aram marched against Joash; it invaded Judah and Jerusalem and killed all the leaders of the people. They sent all the plunder to their king in Damascus. 24Although the Aramean army had come with only a few men, the LORD delivered into their hands a much larger army. Because Judah had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers, judgment was executed on Joash. 25When the Arameans withdrew, they left Joash severely wounded. His officials conspired against him for murdering the son of Jehoiada the priest, and they killed him in his bed. So he died and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

26Those who conspired against him were Zabad,B son of Shimeath an Ammonite woman, and Jehozabad, son of ShimrithC a Moabite woman. 27The account of his sons, the many prophecies about him, and the record of the restoration of the temple of God are written in the annotations on the book of the kings. And Amaziah his [15]son succeeded him as king.

251Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother's name was JehoaddinA; she was from Jerusalem. 2He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not wholeheartedly. 3After the kingdom was firmly in his control, he executed the officials who had murdered his father the king. 4Yet he did not put their sons to death, but acted in accordance with what is written in the Law, in the Book of Moses, where the LORD commanded: "Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sins."B

5Amaziah called the people of Judah together and assigned them according to their families to commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds for all Judah and Benjamin. He then mustered those twenty years old or more and found that there were three hundred thousand men ready for military service, able to handle the spear and shield. 6He also hired a hundred thousand fighting men from Israel for a hundred talentsC of silver.

7But a man of God came to him and said, "O king, these troops from Israel must not march with you, for the LORD is not with Israel--not with any of the people of Ephraim. 8Even if you go and fight courageously in battle, God will overthrow you before the enemy, for God has the power to help or to overthrow."

9Amaziah asked the man of God, "But what about the hundred [16]talents I paid for these Israelite troops?"

The man of God replied, "The LORD can give you much more than that."

10So Amaziah dismissed the troops who had come to him from Ephraim and sent them home. They were furious with Judah and left for home in a great rage.

11Amaziah then marshaled his strength and led his army to the Valley of Salt, where he killed ten thousand men of Seir. 12The army of Judah also captured ten thousand men alive, took them to the top of a cliff and threw them down so that all were dashed to pieces.

13Meanwhile the troops that Amaziah had sent back and had not allowed to take part in the war raided Judean towns from Samaria to Beth Horon. They killed three thousand people and carried off great quantities of plunder.

14When Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down to them and burned sacrifices to them. 15The anger of the LORD burned against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who said, "Why do you consult this people's gods, which could not save their own people from your hand?"

16While he was still speaking, the king said to him, "Have we appointed you an adviser to the king? Stop! Why be struck down?"

So the prophet stopped but said, "I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my counsel." [17]17After Amaziah king of Judah consulted his advisers, he sent this challenge to JehoashD son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel: "Come, meet me face to face."

18But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: "A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, `Give your daughter to my son in marriage.' Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle underfoot. 19You say to yourself that you have defeated Edom, and now you are arrogant and proud. But stay at home! Why ask for trouble and cause your own downfall and that of Judah also?"

20Amaziah, however, would not listen, for God so worked that he might hand them over to Jehoash, because they sought the gods of Edom. 21So Jehoash king of Israel attacked. He and Amaziah king of Judah faced each other at Beth Shemesh in Judah. 22Judah was routed by Israel, and every man fled to his home. 23Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah,E at Beth Shemesh. Then Jehoash brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate--a section about six hundred feetF long. 24He took all the gold and silver and all the articles found in the temple of God that had been in the care of Obed-Edom, together with the palace treasures and the hostages, and returned to Samaria.

25Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah lived for fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. 26As for the other events of Amaziah's reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel? 27From the time that Amaziah turned away from following the LORD, they [18]conspired against him in Jerusalem and he fled to Lachish, but they sent men after him to Lachish and killed him there. 28He was brought back by horse and was buried with his fathers in the City of Judah.[19]

NEW TESTAMENT

ROMANS 12:1 - 21

121Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritualA act of worship. 2Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.

3For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to hisB faith. 7If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. [20]16Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.C Do not be conceited.

17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"D says the Lord. 20On the contrary:

"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;

if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.

In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."E

21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.[21]

Friday, October 23, 2009

May 9

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