AUGUST
14
PSALMS: 14,
44, 74, 104, 134
PROVERBS: 14
OLD TESTAMENT: EZEKIEL 7:1 - 9:11
NEW TESTAMENT: HEBREWS 5:1 - 14
PSALMS: 14, 44, 74, 104, 144
PROVERBS: 14
PSALMS: 14
For
the director of music. Of David.
1
The fool A says in his heart,
"There
is no God."
They
are corrupt, their deeds are vile;
there
is no one who does good.
2
The LORD looks down from heaven
on
the sons of men
to
see if there are any who understand,
any
who seek God.
3
All have turned aside,
they
have together become corrupt;
there
is no one who does good,
not
even one.
4
Will evildoers never learn--
those
who devour my people as men eat bread
and
who do not call on the LORD?
5
There they are, overwhelmed with dread,
for
God is present in the company of the righteous.
6
You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor,
but
the LORD is their refuge.
7
Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When
the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,
let
Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad! [1]
PSALMS: 44
For
the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A maskil. A
1
We have heard with our ears, O God;
our
fathers have told us
what
you did in their days,
in
days long ago.
2
With your hand you drove out the nations
and
planted our fathers;
you
crushed the peoples
and
made our fathers flourish.
3
It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor
did their arm bring them victory;
it
was your right hand, your arm,
and
the light of your face, for you loved them.
4
You are my King and my God,
who
decrees B victories for Jacob.
5
Through you we push back our enemies;
through
your name we trample our foes.
6
I do not trust in my bow,
my
sword does not bring me victory;
7
but you give us victory over our enemies,
you
put our adversaries to shame.
8
In God we make our boast all day long,
and
we will praise your name forever.
Selah
9
But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you
no longer go out with our armies.
10
You made us retreat before the enemy,
and
our adversaries have plundered us. [2]
11
You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and
have scattered us among the nations.
12
You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining
nothing from their sale.
13
You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
the
scorn and derision of those around us.
14
You have made us a byword among the nations;
the
peoples shake their heads at us.
15
My disgrace is before me all day long,
and
my face is covered with shame
16
at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
because
of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.
17
All this happened to us,
though
we had not forgotten you
or
been false to your covenant.
18 Our hearts had not
turned back;
our
feet had not strayed from your path.
19
But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals
and
covered us over with deep darkness.
20
If we had forgotten the name of our God
or
spread out our hands to a foreign god,
21
would not God have discovered it,
since
he knows the secrets of the heart?
22
Yet for your sake we face death all day long;
we
are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
23
Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep?
Rouse
yourself! Do not reject us forever. [3]
24
Why do you hide your face
and
forget our misery and oppression?
25
We are brought down to the dust;
our
bodies cling to the ground.
26
Rise up and help us;
redeem
us because of your unfailing love. [4]
PSALMS: 74
A
maskil A of Asaph.
1
Why have you rejected us forever, O God?
Why
does your anger smolder against the sheep of your pasture?
2
Remember the people you purchased of old,
the
tribe of your inheritance, whom you redeemed--
Mount
Zion, where you dwelt.
3
Turn your steps toward these everlasting ruins,
all
this destruction the enemy has brought on the sanctuary.
4
Your foes roared in the place where you met with us;
they
set up their standards as signs.
5
They behaved like men wielding axes
to
cut through a thicket of trees.
6
They smashed all the carved paneling
with
their axes and hatchets.
7
They burned your sanctuary to the ground;
they
defiled the dwelling place of your Name.
8
They said in their hearts, "We will crush them
completely!"
They
burned every place where God was worshiped in the land.
9
We are given no miraculous signs;
no
prophets are left,
and
none of us knows how long this will be.
10
How long will the enemy mock you, O God?
Will
the foe revile your name forever?
11
Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?
Take
it from the folds of your garment and destroy them!
12
But you, O God, are my king from of old;
you
bring salvation upon the earth. [5]
13
It was you who split open the sea by your power;
you
broke the heads of the monster in the waters.
14
It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan
and
gave him as food to the creatures of the desert.
15
It was you who opened up springs and streams;
you
dried up the ever flowing rivers.
16
The day is yours, and yours also the night;
you
established the sun and moon.
17
It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth;
you
made both summer and winter.
18
Remember how the enemy has mocked you, O LORD,
how
foolish people have reviled your name.
19
Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts;
do
not forget the lives of your afflicted people forever.
20
Have regard for your covenant,
because
haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.
21
Do not let the oppressed retreat in disgrace;
may
the poor and needy praise your name.
22
Rise up, O God, and defend your cause;
remember
how fools mock you all day long.
23
Do not ignore the clamor of your adversaries,
the
uproar of your enemies, which rises continually. [6]
PSALMS: 104
1
Praise the LORD, O my soul.
O
LORD my God, you are very great;
you
are clothed with splendor and majesty.
2
He wraps himself in light as with a garment;
he
stretches out the heavens like a tent
3
and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their
waters.
He
makes the clouds his chariot
and
rides on the wings of the wind.
4
He makes winds his messengers, A
flames
of fire his servants.
5
He set the earth on its foundations;
it
can never be moved.
6
You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
the
waters stood above the mountains.
7
But at your rebuke the waters fled,
at
the sound of your thunder they took to flight;
8
they flowed over the mountains,
they
went down into the valleys,
to
the place you assigned for them.
9
You set a boundary they cannot cross;
never
again will they cover the earth.
10
He makes springs pour water into the ravines;
it
flows between the mountains.
11
They give water to all the beasts of the field;
the
wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12
The birds of the air nest by the waters;
they
sing among the branches.
13
He waters the mountains from his upper chambers;
the
earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work.
14
He makes grass grow for the cattle,
and
plants for man to cultivate--
bringing
forth food from the earth: [7]
15
wine that gladdens the heart of man,
oil
to make his face shine,
and
bread that sustains his heart.
16
The trees of the LORD are well watered,
the
cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17
There the birds make their nests;
the
stork has its home in the pine trees.
18
The high mountains belong to the wild goats;
the
crags are a refuge for the coneys. B
19
The moon marks off the seasons,
and
the sun knows when to go down.
20
You bring darkness, it becomes night,
and
all the beasts of the forest prowl.
21
The lions roar for their prey
and
seek their food from God.
22
The sun rises, and they steal away;
they
return and lie down in their dens.
23
Then man goes out to his work,
to
his labor until evening.
24
How many are your works, O LORD!
In
wisdom you made them all;
the
earth is full of your creatures.
25
There is the sea, vast and spacious,
teeming
with creatures beyond number--
living
things both large and small.
26
There the ships go to and fro,
and
the leviathan, which you formed to frolic there. [8]
27
These all look to you
to
give them their food at the proper time.
28
When you give it to them,
they
gather it up;
when
you open your hand,
they
are satisfied with good things.
29
When you hide your face,
they
are terrified;
when
you take away their breath,
they
die and return to the dust.
30
When you send your Spirit,
they
are created,
and
you renew the face of the earth.
31
May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
may
the LORD rejoice in his works--
32
he who looks at the earth, and it trembles,
who
touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the LORD
all my life;
I
will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
34May
my meditation be pleasing to him,
as
I rejoice in the LORD.
35
But may sinners vanish from the earth
and
the wicked be no more.
Praise
the LORD, O my soul.
Praise
the LORD. C [9]
PSALMS: 134
A
song of ascents.
1
Praise the LORD, all you servants of the LORD
who
minister by night in the house of the LORD.
2
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
and
praise the LORD.
3
May the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth,
bless
you from Zion. [10]
PROVERBS: 14
14
1 The wise woman builds
her house,
but
with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.
2
He whose walk is upright fears the LORD,
but
he whose ways are devious despises him.
3
A fool's talk brings a rod to his back,
but
the lips of the wise protect them.
4
Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty,
but
from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest.
5
A truthful witness does not deceive,
but
a false witness pours out lies.
6
The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none,
but
knowledge comes easily to the discerning.
7
Stay away from a foolish man,
for
you will not find knowledge on his lips.
8
The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their
ways,
but
the folly of fools is deception.
9
Fools mock at making amends for sin,
but
goodwill is found among the upright.
10
Each heart knows its own bitterness,
and
no one else can share its joy.
11
The house of the wicked will be destroyed,
but
the tent of the upright will flourish. [11]
12
There is a way that seems right to a man,
but
in the end it leads to death.
13
Even in laughter the heart may ache,
and
joy may end in grief.
14
The faithless will be fully repaid for their ways,
and
the good man rewarded for his.
15
A simple man believes anything,
but
a prudent man gives thought to his steps.
16
A wise man fears the LORD and shuns evil,
but
a fool is hotheaded and reckless.
17
A quick-tempered man does foolish things,
and
a crafty man is hated.
18
The simple inherit folly,
but
the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19
Evil men will bow down in the presence of the good,
and
the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
20
The poor are shunned even by their neighbors,
but
the rich have many friends.
21
He who despises his neighbor sins,
but
blessed is he who is kind to the needy.
22
Do not those who plot evil go astray?
But
those who plan what is good findA love and faithfulness. [12]
23
All hard work brings a profit,
but
mere talk leads only to poverty.
24
The wealth of the wise is their crown,
but
the folly of fools yields folly.
25
A truthful witness saves lives,
but
a false witness is deceitful.
26
He who fears the LORD has a secure fortress,
and
for his children it will be a refuge.
27
The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,
turning
a man from the snares of death.
28
A large population is a king's glory,
but
without subjects a prince is ruined.
29
A patient man has great understanding,
but
a quick-tempered man displays folly.
30
A heart at peace gives life to the body,
but
envy rots the bones.
31
He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their
Maker,
but
whoever is kind to the needy honors God.
32
When calamity comes, the wicked are brought down,
but
even in death the righteous have a refuge.
33
Wisdom reposes in the heart of the discerning
and
even among fools she lets herself be known. B [13]
34
Righteousness exalts a nation,
but
sin is a disgrace to any people.
35
A king delights in a wise servant,
but
a shameful servant incurs his wrath. [14]
OLD TESTAMENT: EZEKIEL 7:1 - 9:11
7 1
The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says to the land
of Israel: The end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land. 3 The end is now upon
you and I will unleash my anger against you. I will judge you according to your
conduct and repay you for all your detestable practices. 4 I will not look on
you with pity or spare you; I will surely repay you for your conduct and the
detestable practices among you. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
5 "This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Disaster! An
unheard-ofA disaster is coming. 6 The end has come! The end has
come! It has roused itself against you. It has come!
7 Doom has come upon you--you who dwell in
the land. The time has come, the day is near; there is panic, not joy, upon the
mountains. 8 I am about to pour out my wrath on you and spend my anger
against you; I will judge you according to your conduct and repay you for all
your detestable practices. 9 I will not look on you with pity or spare you; I will repay
you in accordance with your conduct and the detestable practices among you.
Then you will know that it is I the LORD who strikes the blow.
10 "The day is here! It has come! Doom has burst forth, the rod
has budded, arrogance has blossomed!
11 Violence has
grown into B a rod to
punish wickedness; none of the people will be left, none of that crowd--no
wealth, nothing of value. 12 The time has come, the day has arrived. Let not the buyer
rejoice nor the seller grieve, for wrath is upon the whole crowd. 13 The seller will not
recover the land he has sold as long as both of them live, for the vision
concerning the whole crowd will not be reversed. Because of their sins, not one
of them will preserve his life. 14 Though they blow the trumpet and get everything ready, no
one will go into battle, for my wrath is upon the whole crowd.
15 "Outside is the sword, inside are plague and famine; those in
the country will die by the sword, and those in the city will be devoured by
famine and plague. 16 All who survive and escape will be in the mountains, moaning
like doves of the valleys, each because of his sins. 17 Every hand will go
limp, and every knee will become as weak as water. 18 They will put on
sackcloth and be clothed with terror. Their faces will be covered with shame
and their heads will be shaved. 19 They will throw their silver into the streets, and their
gold will be an unclean thing. Their silver and gold will not be able to save
them in the day of the LORD's wrath. They will not satisfy their hunger or fill
their stomachs with it, for it has made them stumble into sin. 20 They were proud of
their beautiful jewelry and used it to make their detestable idols and vile images.
Therefore I will turn these into an unclean thing for them. 21 I will hand it all
over as plunder to foreigners and as loot to the wicked of the earth, and they
will defile it. 22 I will turn my face away from them, and they will desecrate
my treasured place; robbers will enter it and desecrate it.
23 "Prepare chains, because the land is full of bloodshed and
the city is full of violence. 24 I will bring the most wicked of the nations to take
possession of their houses; I will put an end to the pride of the mighty, and
their sanctuaries will be desecrated. 25 When terror comes, they will seek peace, but there will be
none.
26 Calamity upon
calamity will come, and rumor upon rumor. They will try to get a vision from
the prophet; the teaching of the law by the priest will be lost, as will the
counsel of the elders. 27 The king will mourn, the prince will be clothed with
despair, and the hands of the people of the land will tremble. I will deal with
them according to their conduct, and by their own standards I will [15] judge them. Then they will know that I am the LORD."
8 1
In the sixth year, in the sixth month on the fifth
day, while I was sitting in my house and the elders of Judah were sitting
before me, the hand of the Sovereign LORD came upon me there. 2 I
looked, and I saw a figure like that of a man. A From what appeared
to be his waist down he was like fire, and from there up his appearance was as
bright as glowing metal. 3 He stretched out what looked like a hand
and took me by the hair of my head. The Spirit lifted me up between earth and
heaven and in visions of God he took me to Jerusalem, to the entrance to the
north gate of the inner court, where the idol that provokes to jealousy stood. 4
And there before me was the glory of the God of Israel, as in the vision
I had seen in the plain.
5 Then
he said to me, "Son of man, look toward the north."
So I looked, and in the entrance north of the gate of the altar I saw this idol
of jealousy.
6 And
he said to me, "Son of man, do you see what they
are doing--the utterly detestable things the house of Israel is doing here,
things that will drive me far from my sanctuary? But you will see things that
are even more detestable."
7 Then
he brought me to the entrance to the court. I looked, and I saw a hole in the
wall. 8 He said to me, "Son of man,
now dig into the wall." So I dug into the wall and saw a doorway
there.
9 And
he said to me, "Go in and see the wicked and
detestable things they are doing here." 10 So I went in
and looked, and I saw portrayed all over the walls all kinds of crawling things
and detestable animals and all the idols of the house of Israel. 11 In
front of them stood seventy elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah son of
Shaphan was standing among them. Each had a censer in his hand, and a fragrant
cloud of incense was rising.
12 He
said to me, "Son of man, have you seen what the
elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of
his own idol? They say, `The LORD does not see us; the LORD has forsaken the
land.'" 13 Again, he said, "You will see them doing things that
are even more detestable."
14 Then
he brought me to the entrance to the north gate of the house of the LORD, and I
saw women sitting there, mourning for Tammuz. 15 He said to me,
"Do you see this, son of man? You will see things
that are even more detestable than this."
16 He
then brought me into the inner court of the house of the LORD, and there at the
entrance to the temple, between the portico and the altar, [16]
were about twenty-five men. With their backs toward the temple of the LORD and
their faces toward the east, they were bowing down to the sun in the east.
17 He
said to me, "Have you seen this, son of man? Is
it a trivial matter for the house of Judah to do the detestable things they are
doing here? Must they also fill the land with violence and continually provoke
me to anger? Look at them putting the branch to their nose! 18 Therefore I will deal
with them in anger; I will not look on them with pity or spare them. Although
they shout in my ears, I will not listen to them."
9 1
Then I heard him call out in a loud voice, "Bring the guards of the city here, each with a weapon in his
hand." 2 And I saw six men coming from the direction of
the upper gate, which faces north, each with a deadly weapon in his hand. With
them was a man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. They came in
and stood beside the bronze altar.
3 Now
the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had
been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the LORD called to the man
clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side 4 and said to
him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put
a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable
things that are done in it."
5 As
I listened, he said to the others, "Follow him
through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 6 Slaughter old men,
young men and maidens, women and children, but do not touch anyone who has the
mark. Begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the elders who
were in front of the temple.
7 Then
he said to them, "Defile the temple and fill the
courts with the slain. Go!" So they went out and began killing
throughout the city. 8 While they were killing and I was left alone,
I fell facedown, crying out, "Ah, Sovereign LORD! Are you going to destroy
the entire remnant of Israel in this outpouring of your wrath on
Jerusalem?"
9 He
answered me, "The sin of the house of Israel and
Judah is exceedingly great; the land is full of bloodshed and the city is full
of injustice. They say, `The LORD has forsaken the land; the LORD does not see.'
10 So I
will not look on them with pity or spare them, but I will bring down on their
own heads what they have done."
11 Then
the man in linen with the writing kit at his side brought back word, saying,
"I have done as you commanded." [17]
NEW TESTAMENT: HEBREWS 5:1 - 14
5 1
Every high priest is selected from among men and is
appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and
sacrifices for sins. 2 He is able to deal gently with those who are
ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. 3 This
is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of
the people.
4 No
one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was.
5 So
Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But
God said to him,
"You are my Son;
today I have
become your Father. A"B
6 And he says in another place,
"You are
a priest forever,
in the order
of Melchizedek." C
7 During
the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud
cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard
because of his reverent submission. 8 Although he was a son, he
learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he
became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and
was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
11 We
have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to
learn. 12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you
need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again.
You need milk, not solid food! 13 Anyone who lives on milk, being
still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained
themselves to distinguish good from evil. [18]
[1]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
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[2]
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[3]
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[4]
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[5]
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[6]
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[7]
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[8]
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[9]
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[10] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[11] Excerpted from Compton's
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Inc. All Rights Reserved
[12] Excerpted from Compton's
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[13] Excerpted from Compton's
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[14] Excerpted from Compton's
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[15] Excerpted from
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Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
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[16] Excerpted from
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[17] Excerpted from
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[18] Excerpted from
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