DECEMBER
20
PSALMS: 20, 50, 80, 110, 140
PROVERBS: 20
OLD TESTAMENT: NUMBERS 15:17 - 16:40
NEW TESTAMENT: MARK 15:1 - 47
PSALMS: 20
For
the director of music. A psalm of David.
1
May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
may
the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
2
May he send you help from the sanctuary
and
grant you support from Zion.
3
May he remember all your sacrifices
and
accept your burnt offerings.
Selah
4
May he give you the desire of your heart
and
make all your plans succeed.
5
We will shout for joy when you are victorious
and
will lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May
the LORD grant all your requests.
6
Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed;
he
answers him from his holy heaven
with
the saving power of his right hand.
7
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but
we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
8
They are brought to their knees and fall,
but
we rise up and stand firm.
9
O LORD, save the king!
Answer
A us when we call! [1]
PSALMS: 50
A
psalm of Asaph.
1
The Mighty One, God, the LORD,
speaks
and summons the earth
from
the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.
2
From Zion, perfect in beauty,
God
shines forth.
3
Our God comes and will not be silent;
a
fire devours before him,
and
around him a tempest rages.
4
He summons the heavens above,
and
the earth, that he may judge his people:
5
"Gather to me my
consecrated ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice."
6
And the heavens proclaim his righteousness,
for
God himself is judge.
Selah
7
"Hear, O my people,
and I will speak,
O Israel, and I will testify against you:
I am God, your God.
8 I do not
rebuke you for your sacrifices
or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
9 I have no
need of a bull from your stall
or of goats from your pens,
10 for every
animal of the forest is mine,
and the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know
every bird in the mountains,
and the creatures of the field are mine.
12 If I were
hungry I would not tell you, [2]
for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
13 Do I eat
the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
14 Sacrifice
thank offerings to God,
fulfill your vows to the Most High,
15 and call
upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honor me."
16
But to the wicked, God says:
"What right have you to recite my laws
or take my covenant on your lips?
17 You hate
my instruction
and cast my words behind you.
18 When you
see a thief, you join with him;
you throw in your lot with adulterers.
19 You use your
mouth for evil
and harness your tongue to deceit.
20 You speak
continually against your brother
and slander your own mother's son.
21 These
things you have done and I kept silent;
you thought I was altogether A like you.
But I will rebuke you
and accuse you to your face.
22
"Consider this, you
who forget God,
or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue:
23 He who
sacrifices thank offerings honors me,
and he prepares the way
PSALMS: 80
For
the director of music. To the tune of "The Lilies of the Covenant."
Of Asaph. A psalm.
1
Hear us, O Shepherd of Israel,
you
who lead Joseph like a flock;
you
who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth
2
before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken
your might;
come
and save us.
3
Restore us, O God;
make
your face shine upon us,
that
we may be saved.
4
O LORD God Almighty,
how
long will your anger smolder
against
the prayers of your people?
5
You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you
have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
6
You have made us a source of contention to our
neighbors,
and
our enemies mock us.
7
Restore us, O God Almighty;
make
your face shine upon us,
that
we may be saved.
8
You brought a vine out of Egypt;
you
drove out the nations and planted it.
9
You cleared the ground for it,
and
it took root and filled the land.
10
The mountains were covered with its shade,
the
mighty cedars with its branches. [4]
11
It sent out its boughs to the Sea, A
its
shoots as far as the River. B
12
Why have you broken down its walls
so
that all who pass by pick its grapes?
13
Boars from the forest ravage it
and
the creatures of the field feed on it.
14
Return to us, O God Almighty!
Look
down from heaven and see!
Watch
over this vine,
15
the root your right hand has planted,
the
son C you have raised up for yourself.
16
Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire;
at
your rebuke your people perish.
17
Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand,
the
son of man you have raised up for yourself.
18
Then we will not turn away from you;
revive
us, and we will call on your name.
19
Restore us, O LORD God Almighty;
make
your face shine upon us,
that
we may be saved. [5]
PSALMS: 110
Of
David. A psalm.
1
The LORD says to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet."
2
The LORD will extend your mighty scepter from Zion;
you
will rule in the midst of your enemies.
3
Your troops will be willing
on
your day of battle.
Arrayed
in holy majesty,
from
the womb of the dawn
you
will receive the dew of your youth. A
4
The LORD has sworn
and
will not change his mind:
"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek."
5
The Lord is at your right hand;
he
will crush kings on the day of his wrath.
6
He will judge the nations, heaping up the dead
and
crushing the rulers of the whole earth.
7
He will drink from a brook beside the way B;
therefore
he will lift up his head. [6]
PSALMS: 140
For
the director of music. A psalm of David.
1
Rescue me, O LORD, from evil men;
protect
me from men of violence,
2
who devise evil plans in their hearts
and
stir up war every day.
3
They make their tongues as sharp as a serpent's;
the
poison of vipers is on their lips.
Selah
4
Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked;
protect
me from men of violence
who
plan to trip my feet.
5
Proud men have hidden a snare for me;
they
have spread out the cords of their net
and
have set traps for me along my path.
Selah
6
O LORD, I say to you, "You are my God."
Hear,
O LORD, my cry for mercy.
7
O Sovereign LORD, my strong deliverer,
who
shields my head in the day of battle--
8
do not grant the wicked their desires, O LORD;
do
not let their plans succeed,
or
they will become proud.
Selah
9
Let the heads of those who surround me
be
covered with the trouble their lips have caused.
10Let
burning coals fall upon them;
may
they be thrown into the fire,
into
miry pits, never to rise. [7]
11
Let slanderers not be established in the land;
may
disaster hunt down men of violence.
12
I know that the LORD secures justice for the poor
and
upholds the cause of the needy.
13
Surely the righteous will praise your name
and
the upright will live before you. [8]
PROVERBS: 20
20
1 Wine is a mocker and
beer a brawler;
whoever
is led astray by them is not wise.
2
A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion;
he
who angers him forfeits his life.
3
It is to a man's honor to avoid strife,
but
every fool is quick to quarrel.
4
A sluggard does not plow in season;
so
at harvest time he looks but finds nothing.
5
The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters,
but
a man of understanding draws them out.
6
Many a man claims to have unfailing love,
but
a faithful man who can find?
7
The righteous man leads a blameless life;
blessed
are his children after him.
8
When a king sits on his throne to judge,
he
winnows out all evil with his eyes.
9
Who can say, "I have kept my heart pure;
I
am clean and without sin"?
10
Differing weights and differing measures--
the
LORD detests them both.
11
Even a child is known by his actions,
by
whether his conduct is pure and right. [9]
12
Ears that hear and eyes that see--
the
LORD has made them both.
13
Do not love sleep or you will grow poor;
stay
awake and you will have food to spare.
14
"It's no good, it's no good!" says the
buyer;
then
off he goes and boasts about his purchase.
15
Gold there is, and rubies in abundance,
but
lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.
16
Take the garment of one who puts up security for a
stranger;
hold
it in pledge if he does it for a wayward woman.
17
Food gained by fraud tastes sweet to a man,
but
he ends up with a mouth full of gravel.
18
Make plans by seeking advice;
if
you wage war, obtain guidance.
19
A gossip betrays a confidence;
so
avoid a man who talks too much.
20
If a man curses his father or mother,
his
lamp will be snuffed out in pitch darkness.
21
An inheritance quickly gained at the beginning
will
not be blessed at the end.
22
Do not say, "I'll pay you back for this
wrong!"
Wait
for the LORD, and he will deliver you. [10]
23
The LORD detests differing weights,
and
dishonest scales do not please him.
24
A man's steps are directed by the LORD.
How
then can anyone understand his own way?
25
It is a trap for a man to dedicate something rashly
and
only later to consider his vows.
26
A wise king winnows out the wicked;
he
drives the threshing wheel over them.
27
The lamp of the LORD searches the spirit of a man A;
it
searches out his inmost being.
28
Love and faithfulness keep a king safe;
through
love his throne is made secure.
29
The glory of young men is their strength,
gray
hair the splendor of the old.
30
Blows and wounds cleanse away evil,
and
beatings purge the inmost being. [11]
OLD TESTAMENT: NUMBERS 15:17 - 16:40
17 The
LORD said to Moses, 18 "Speak to the
Israelites and say to them: `When you enter the land to which I am taking you 19 and you eat the food of the land, present a portion as an
offering to the LORD. 20 Present a
cake from the first of your ground meal and present it as an offering from the
threshing floor. 21 Throughout the
generations to come you are to give this offering to the LORD from the first of
your ground meal.
22 "`Now if you unintentionally fail to keep any of these commands
the LORD gave Moses—23 any of the
LORD's commands to you through him, from the day the LORD gave them and
continuing through the generations to come—24 and if this is done unintentionally without the community being aware
of it, then the whole community is to offer a young bull for a burnt offering
as an aroma pleasing to the LORD, along with its prescribed grain offering and
drink offering, and a male goat for a sin offering.
25 The priest is to make atonement for the whole Israelite community, and
they will be forgiven, for it was not intentional and they have brought to the
LORD for their wrong an offering made by fire and a sin offering.
26 The whole Israelite community and the aliens living among them will be
forgiven, because all the people were involved in the unintentional wrong.
27 "`But if just one person sins unintentionally, he must bring a
year-old female goat for a sin offering. 28 The priest is to make atonement before the LORD for the one who erred
by sinning unintentionally, and when atonement has been made for him, he will
be forgiven. 29 One and the
same law applies to everyone who sins unintentionally, whether he is a
native-born Israelite or an alien.
30 "`But anyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or alien,
blasphemes the LORD, and that person must be cut off from his people. 31 Because he has despised the LORD's word and broken his commands, that
person must surely be cut off; his guilt remains on him.' "
32 While
the Israelites were in the desert, a man was found gathering wood on the
Sabbath day. 33 Those who found him gathering wood brought him to
Moses and Aaron and the whole assembly, 34 and they kept him in
custody, because it was not clear what should be done to him. 35 Then
the LORD said to Moses, "The man must die. The
whole assembly must stone him outside the camp." 36 So
the assembly took him outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the LORD
commanded Moses.
37 The
LORD said to Moses, 38 "Speak to the
Israelites and say to them: `Throughout the generations to come you are to make
tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel. 39 You will have these tassels to look at and so you will
remember all the commands of the LORD, that you may obey them and not
prostitute yourselves by going after the lusts of your own hearts and eyes. 40 Then you will remember to obey all my commands and will be
consecrated to your God. 41 I am the
LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD your
God.' "[12]
16 1
Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of
Levi, and certain Reubenites--Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of
Peleth--became insolent A 2 and rose up against Moses.
With them were 250 Israelite men, well-known community leaders who had been
appointed members of the council. 3 They came as a group to oppose
Moses and Aaron and said to them, "You have gone too far! The whole
community is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is with them. Why then do
you set yourselves above the LORD's assembly?"
4 When
Moses heard this, he fell facedown. 5 Then he said to Korah and all
his followers: "In the morning the LORD will show who belongs to him and
who is holy, and he will have that person come near him. The man he chooses he
will cause to come near him. 6 You, Korah, and all your followers
are to do this: Take censers
7 and
tomorrow put fire and incense in them before the LORD. The man the LORD chooses
will be the one who is holy. You Levites have gone too far!"
8 Moses
also said to Korah, "Now listen, you Levites! 9 Isn't it enough
for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the Israelite
community and brought you near himself to do the work at the LORD's tabernacle
and to stand before the community and minister to them? 10 He has
brought you and all your fellow Levites near himself, but now you are trying to
get the priesthood too. 11 It is against the LORD that you and all
your followers have banded together. Who is Aaron that you should grumble
against him?"
12 Then
Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. But they said, "We
will not come! 13 Isn't it enough that you have brought us up out of
a land flowing with milk and honey to kill us in the desert? And now you also
want to lord it over us? 14 Moreover, you haven't brought us into a
land flowing with milk and honey or given us an inheritance of fields and
vineyards. Will you gouge out the eyes ofB these men? No, we will
not come!"
15 Then
Moses became very angry and said to the LORD, "Do not accept their
offering. I have not taken so much as a donkey from them, nor have I wronged
any of them."
16 Moses
said to Korah, "You and all your followers are to appear before the LORD
tomorrow--you and they and Aaron. 17 Each man is to take his censer
and put incense in it--250 censers in all--and present it before the LORD. You
and Aaron are to present your censers also." 18 So each man
took his censer, put fire and incense in it, and stood with Moses and Aaron at the
entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 19 When Korah had gathered all his
followers in opposition to them at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, the
glory of the LORD appeared to the entire assembly. 20 The LORD said
to Moses and Aaron, 21 "Separate
yourselves from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once."
22 But
Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, "O God, God of the spirits of
all mankind, will you be angry with the entire assembly when only one man
sins?"
23 Then
the LORD said to Moses, 24 "Say to the
assembly, `Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.' "
25 Moses
got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. 26
He warned the assembly, "Move back from the [13]tents
of these wicked men! Do not touch anything belonging to them, or you will be
swept away because of all their sins." 27 So they moved away
from the tents of Korah, Dathan and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram had come out and
were standing with their wives, children and little ones at the entrances to
their tents.
28 Then
Moses said, "This is how you will know that the LORD has sent me to do all
these things and that it was not my idea: 29 If these men die a
natural death and experience only what usually happens to men, then the LORD
has not sent me. 30 But if the LORD brings about something totally
new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that
belongs to them, and they go down alive into the grave, C then you
will know that these men have treated the LORD with contempt."
31 As
soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart 32 and
the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, with their households and all
Korah's men and all their possessions. 33 They went down alive into
the grave, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they
perished and were gone from the community. 34 At their cries, all
the Israelites around them fled, shouting, "The earth is going to swallow
us too!"
35 And
fire came out from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were offering the
incense.
36 The
LORD said to Moses, 37 "Tell Eleazar
son of Aaron, the priest, to take the censers out of the smoldering remains and
scatter the coals some distance away, for the censers are holy—38 the censers of the men who sinned at the cost of their
lives. Hammer the censers into sheets to overlay the altar, for they were
presented before the LORD and have become holy. Let them be a sign to the
Israelites."
39 So
Eleazar the priest collected the bronze censers brought by those who had been
burned up, and he had them hammered out to overlay the altar, 40 as
the LORD directed him through Moses. This was to remind the Israelites that no
one except a descendant of Aaron should come to burn incense before the LORD,
or he would become like Korah and his followers. [14]
NEW TESTAMENT: MARK 15:1 - 47
15 1
Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the
elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, reached a decision.
They bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2 "Are
you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate.
"Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied.
3 The
chief priests accused him of many things. 4 So again Pilate asked
him, "Aren't you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing
you of."
5 But
Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6 Now
it was the custom at the Feast to release a prisoner whom the people requested.
7 A
man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed
murder in the uprising.
8 The
crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9 "Do
you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate, 10
knowing it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over
to him. 11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate
release Barabbas instead.
12 "What
shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?" Pilate
asked them.
13 "Crucify
him!" they shouted.
14 "Why?
What crime has he committed?" asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the
louder, "Crucify him!"
15 Wanting
to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged,
and handed him over to be crucified.
16 The
soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called together
the whole company of soldiers. 17 They put a purple robe on him,
then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him. 18 And
they began to call out to him, "Hail, king of the Jews!" 19 Again
and again they struck him on the head with a staff and spit on him. Falling on
their knees, they paid homage to him. 20 And when they had mocked
him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they
led him out to crucify him.
21 A
certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing
by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. 22
They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of
the Skull).
23 Then
they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 And
they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each
would get.
25 It
was the third hour when they crucified him. 26 The written notice of
the charge against him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS. 27 They crucified
two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left. A 29
Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and [15]
saying, "So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three
days, 30 come down from the cross and save yourself!"
31 In
the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among
themselves. "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save
himself! 32 Let this Christ, B this King of Israel, come
down now from the cross, that we may see and believe." Those crucified
with him also heaped insults on him.
33 At
the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And
at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"--which
means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
C
35 When
some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling
Elijah."
36 One
man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it
to Jesus to drink. "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take
him down," he said.
37 With
a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
38 The
curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 And
when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and D
saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son E of
God!"
40 Some
women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the
mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 In Galilee
these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had
come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.
42 It
was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening
approached, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the
Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate
and asked for Jesus' body. 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he
was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already
died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave
the body to Joseph. 46 So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down
the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock.
Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. 47 Mary
Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid. [16]
[1]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[2]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[3]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[4]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[5]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[6]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[7]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[8]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[9]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia Inc. All Rights Reserved
[10] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[11] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[12] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[13] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[14] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[15] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[16] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
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