JULY
17
PSALMS: 17,
47, 77, 107, 137
PROVERBS: 16
OLD TESTAMENT: JEREMIAH 6:16 - 8:7
NEW TESTAMENT: COLOSSIANS 2:8 - 23
PSALMS: 17
A
prayer of David.
1
Hear, O LORD, my righteous plea;
listen
to my cry.
Give
ear to my prayer--
it
does not rise from deceitful lips.
2
May my vindication come from you;
may
your eyes see what is right.
3
Though you probe my heart and examine me at night,
though
you test me, you will find nothing;
I
have resolved that my mouth will not sin.
4
As for the deeds of men--
by
the word of your lips
I
have kept myself
from
the ways of the violent.
5
My steps have held to your paths;
my
feet have not slipped.
6
I call on you, O God, for you will answer me;
give
ear to me and hear my prayer.
7
Show the wonder of your great love,
you
who save by your right hand
those
who take refuge in you from their foes.
8
Keep me as the apple of your eye;
hide
me in the shadow of your wings
9
from the wicked who assail me,
from my mortal enemies who surround me. [1]
10
They close up their callous hearts,
and
their mouths speak with arrogance.
11
They have tracked me down, they now surround me,
with
eyes alert, to throw me to the ground.
12
They are like a lion hungry for prey,
like
a great lion crouching in cover.
13
Rise up, O LORD, confront them, bring them down;
rescue
me from the wicked by your sword.
14
O LORD, by your hand save me from such men,
from
men of this world whose reward is in this life.
You
still the hunger of those you cherish;
their
sons have plenty,
and
they store up wealth for their children.
15
And I--in righteousness I will see your face;
when
I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing
your
likeness. [2]
PSALMS: 47
For
the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.
1
Clap your hands, all you nations;
shout
to God with cries of joy.
2
How awesome is the LORD Most High,
the
great King over all the earth!
3
He subdued nations under us,
peoples
under our feet.
4
He chose our inheritance for us,
the
pride of Jacob, whom he loved.
Selah
5
God has ascended amid shouts of joy,
the
LORD amid the sounding of trumpets.
6
Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing
praises to our King, sing praises.
7
For God is the King of all the earth;
sing
to him a psalm A of praise.
8
God reigns over the nations;
God
is seated on his holy throne.
9
The nobles of the nations assemble
as
the people of the God of Abraham,
for
the kingsB of the earth belong to God;
he
is greatly exalted. [3]
PSALMS: 77
For
the director of music. For Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A psalm.
1
I cried out to God for help;
I
cried out to God to hear me.
2
When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at
night I stretched out untiring hands
and
my soul refused to be comforted.
3
I remembered you, O God, and I groaned;
I
mused, and my spirit grew faint.
Selah
4
You kept my eyes from closing;
I
was too troubled to speak.
5
I thought about the former days,
the
years of long ago;
6
I remembered my songs in the night.
My
heart mused and my spirit inquired:
7
"Will the Lord reject forever?
Will
he never show his favor again?
8
Has his unfailing love vanished forever?
Has
his promise failed for all time?
9
Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has
he in anger withheld his compassion?"
Selah
[4]
10
Then I thought, "To this I will appeal:
the
years of the right hand of the Most High."
11
I will remember the deeds of the LORD;
yes,
I will remember your miracles of long ago.
12
I will meditate on all your works
and
consider all your mighty deeds.
13
Your ways, O God, are holy.
What
god is so great as our God?
14
You are the God who performs miracles;
you
display your power among the peoples.
15
With your mighty arm you redeemed your people,
the
descendants of Jacob and Joseph.
Selah
16
The waters saw you, O God,
the
waters saw you and writhed;
the
very depths were convulsed.
17
The clouds poured down water,
the
skies resounded with thunder;
your
arrows flashed back and forth.
18
Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind,
your
lightning lit up the world;
the
earth trembled and quaked.
19
Your path led through the sea,
your
way through the mighty waters,
though
your footprints were not seen.
20
You led your people like a flock
by
the hand of Moses and Aaron. [5]
PSALMS: 107
1
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his
love endures forever.
2
Let the redeemed of the LORD say this--
those
he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
3
those he gathered from the lands,
from
east and west, from north and south. A
4
Some wandered in desert wastelands,
finding
no way to a city where they could settle.
5
They were hungry and thirsty,
and
their lives ebbed away.
6
Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
and
he delivered them from their distress.
7
He led them by a straight way
to
a city where they could settle.
8
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing
love
and
his wonderful deeds for men,
9
for he satisfies the thirsty
and
fills the hungry with good things.
10
Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom,
prisoners
suffering in iron chains,
11
for they had rebelled against the words of God
and
despised the counsel of the Most High.
12
So he subjected them to bitter labor;
they
stumbled, and there was no one to help.
13
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and
he saved them from their distress.
14
He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom
and
broke away their chains.
15
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing
love
and
his wonderful deeds for men,
16
for he breaks down gates of bronze
and
cuts through bars of iron. [6]
17
Some became fools through their rebellious ways
and
suffered affliction because of their iniquities.
18
They loathed all food
and
drew near the gates of death.
19
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and
he saved them from their distress.
20
He sent forth his word and healed them;
he
rescued them from the grave.
21
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing
love
and
his wonderful deeds for men.
22
Let them sacrifice thank offerings
and
tell of his works with songs of joy.
23
Others went out on the sea in ships;
they
were merchants on the mighty waters.
24
They saw the works of the LORD,
his
wonderful deeds in the deep.
25
For he spoke and stirred up a tempest
that
lifted high the waves.
26
They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the
depths;
in
their peril their courage melted away.
27
They reeled and staggered like drunken men;
they
were at their wits' end.
28
Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
and
he brought them out of their distress.
29
He stilled the storm to a whisper;
the
waves of the sea were hushed.
30
They were glad when it grew calm,
and
he guided them to their desired haven.
31
Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing
love
and
his wonderful deeds for men.
32
Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people [7]
and
praise him in the council of the elders.
33
He turned rivers into a desert,
flowing
springs into thirsty ground,
34
and fruitful land into a salt waste,
because
of the wickedness of those who lived there.
35
He turned the desert into pools of water
and
the parched ground into flowing springs;
36
there he brought the hungry to live,
and
they founded a city where they could settle.
37
They sowed fields and planted vineyards
that
yielded a fruitful harvest;
38
he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased,
and
he did not let their herds diminish.
39
Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled
by
oppression, calamity and sorrow;
40
he who pours contempt on nobles
made
them wander in a trackless waste.
41
But he lifted the needy out of their affliction
and
increased their families like flocks.
42
The upright see and rejoice,
but
all the wicked shut their mouths.
43
Whoever is wise, let him heed these things
and
consider the great love of the LORD. [8]
PSALMS: 137
1
By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when
we remembered Zion.
2
There on the poplars
we
hung our harps,
3
for there our captors asked us for songs,
our
tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they
said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"
4
How can we sing the songs of the LORD
while
in a foreign land?
5
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
may
my right hand forget its skill.
6
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if
I do not remember you,
if
I do not consider Jerusalem
my
highest joy.
7
Remember, O LORD, what the Edomites did
on
the day Jerusalem fell.
"Tear
it down," they cried,
"tear
it down to its foundations!"
8
O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy
is he who repays you
for
what you have done to us--
9
he who seizes your infants
and
dashes them against the rocks. [9]
PROVERBS: 17
17
1 Better a dry crust with
peace and quiet
than
a house full of feasting, A with strife.
2
A wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son,
and
will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
3
The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,
but
the LORD tests the heart.
4
A wicked man listens to evil lips;
a
liar pays attention to a malicious tongue.
5
He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker;
whoever
gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.
6
Children's children are a crown to the aged,
and
parents are the pride of their children.
7
Arrogant B lips are unsuited to a fool--
how
much worse lying lips to a ruler!
8
A bribe is a charm to the one who gives it;
wherever
he turns, he succeeds.
9
He who covers over an offense promotes love,
but
whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.
10
A rebuke impresses a man of discernment
more
than a hundred lashes a fool.
11
An evil man is bent only on rebellion;
a
merciless official will be sent against him. [10]
12
Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs
than
a fool in his folly.
13
If a man pays back evil for good,
evil
will never leave his house.
14
Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam;
so
drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.
15
Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent--
the
LORD detests them both.
16
Of what use is money in the hand of a fool,
since
he has no desire to get wisdom?
17
A friend loves at all times,
and
a brother is born for adversity.
18
A man lacking in judgment strikes hands in pledge
and
puts up security for his neighbor.
19
He who loves a quarrel loves sin;
he
who builds a high gate invites destruction.
20
A man of perverse heart does not prosper;
he
whose tongue is deceitful falls into trouble.
21
To have a fool for a son brings grief;
there
is no joy for the father of a fool. [11]
22
A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but
a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
23
A wicked man accepts a bribe in secret
to
pervert the course of justice.
24
A discerning man keeps wisdom in view,
but
a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth.
25
A foolish son brings grief to his father
and
bitterness to the one who bore him.
26
It is not good to punish an innocent man,
or
to flog officials for their integrity.
27
A man of knowledge uses words with restraint,
and
a man of understanding is even-tempered.
28
Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,
and
discerning if he holds his tongue. [12]
OLD TESTAMENT: JEREMIAH 6:16 - 8:7
16 This
is what the LORD says:
"Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the
ancient paths,
ask where the
good way is, and walk in it,
and you will
find rest for your souls.
But you said,
`We will not walk in it.'
17 I appointed watchmen over you and said,
`Listen to
the sound of the trumpet!'
But you said,
`We will not listen.'
18 Therefore hear, O nations;
observe, O
witnesses,
what will
happen to them.
19 Hear, O earth:
I am bringing
disaster on this people,
the fruit of
their schemes,
because they
have not listened to my words
and have
rejected my law.
20 What do I care about incense from Sheba
or sweet
calamus from a distant land?
Your burnt
offerings are not acceptable;
your
sacrifices do not please me."
21 Therefore
this is what the LORD says:
"I will put obstacles before this people.
Fathers and
sons alike will stumble over them; [13]
neighbors and
friends will perish."
22 This
is what the LORD says:
"Look, an army is coming
from the land
of the north;
a great
nation is being stirred up
from the ends
of the earth.
23 They are armed with bow and spear;
they are
cruel and show no mercy.
They sound
like the roaring sea
as they ride
on their horses;
they come
like men in battle formation
to attack
you, O Daughter of Zion."
24 We
have heard reports about them,
and our hands hang limp.
Anguish has gripped us,
pain like that of a
woman in labor.
25 Do
not go out to the fields
or walk on the roads,
for the enemy has a
sword,
and there is terror on
every side.
26 O
my people, put on sackcloth
and roll in ashes;
mourn with bitter
wailing [14]
as for an only son,
for suddenly the
destroyer
will come upon us.
27 "I have made you a tester of metals
and my
people the ore,
that you
may observe
and test
their ways.
28 They are all hardened rebels,
going
about to slander.
They are
bronze and iron;
they all
act corruptly.
29 The bellows blow fiercely
to burn
away the lead with fire,
but the
refining goes on in vain;
the wicked
are not purged out.
30 They are called rejected silver,
because
the LORD has rejected them."
7 1
This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2
"Stand at the gate of the LORD's house and
there proclaim this message:
"`Hear
the word of the LORD, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to
worship the LORD.
3 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your
ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. 4 Do not trust in deceptive words and say, "This is the temple of
the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD!" 5
If you really change your ways and your
actions and deal with each other justly, 6 if you do not oppress the alien, the fatherless or the widow and do
not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to
your own harm, 7 then I will
let you live in this place, in the land I gave your forefathers for ever and
ever. 8 But look,
you are trusting in deceptive words that are worthless. [15]
9 "`Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, A burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name,
and say, "We are safe"--safe to do all these detestable things? 11 Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you?
But I have been watching! declares the LORD.
12 "`Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for
my Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people
Israel. 13 While you
were doing all these things, declares the LORD, I spoke to you again and again,
but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer. 14 Therefore, what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears
my Name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your fathers. 15
I will thrust you from my presence, just as
I did all your brothers, the people of Ephraim.'
16 "So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition
for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen to you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the
streets of Jerusalem?
18 The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women
knead the dough and make cakes of bread for the Queen of Heaven. They pour out
drink offerings to other gods to provoke me to anger. 19 But am I the one they are provoking? declares the LORD. Are they not
rather harming themselves, to their own shame?
20 "`Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: My anger and my
wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the
field and on the fruit of the ground, and it will burn and not be quenched.
21 "`This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go
ahead, add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices and eat the meat
yourselves! 22 For when I
brought your forefathers out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give
them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices, 23 but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you
will be my people. Walk in all the ways I command you, that it may go well with
you. 24 But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they
followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and
not forward.
25 From the time your forefathers left Egypt until now, day after day,
again and again I sent you my servants the prophets. 26 But they did
not listen to me or pay attention. They were stiff-necked and did more evil
than their forefathers.'
27 "When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you;
when you call to them, they will not answer.
28 Therefore say to them, `This is the nation that has not obeyed the
LORD its God or responded to correction. Truth has perished; it has vanished
from their lips. 29 Cut off your
hair and throw it away; take up a lament on the barren heights, for the LORD
has rejected and abandoned this generation that is under his wrath.
30 "`The people of Judah have done evil in my eyes, declares the
LORD. They have set up their detestable idols in the house that bears my Name
and have defiled it. 31 They have built the high places of Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom
to burn their sons and daughters in the fire--something I did not command, nor
did it enter my mind.
32 So beware, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when people will no
longer call it Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of
Slaughter, for they will bury the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. 33 Then the carcasses of this people will become food for the birds of
the air and the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to frighten them [16] away. 34 I will bring
an end to the sounds of joy and gladness and to the voices of bride and
bridegroom in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem, for the land
will become desolate.
8 1
"`At that time, declares
the LORD, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the
priests and prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be removed
from their graves. 2 They will be
exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they
have loved and served and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped.
They will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like refuse lying on the
ground. 3 Wherever I banish them,
all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, declares the
LORD Almighty.'
4 "Say
to them, `This is what the LORD says:
"`When men fall down, do they not get up?
When a man
turns away, does he not return?
5 Why then have these people turned away?
Why does
Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to
deceit;
they refuse
to return.
6 I have listened attentively,
but they do
not say what is right.
No one
repents of his wickedness,
saying,
"What have I done?"
Each pursues
his own course
like a horse charging
into battle.
7 Even the stork in the sky
knows her
appointed seasons,
But my people
do not know
the
requirements of the LORD. [18]
NEW TESTAMENT: COLOSSIANS 2:8 - 23
8 See
to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy,
which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather
than on Christ.
9 For
in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and
you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and
authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off
of the sinful nature, A not with a circumcision done by the hands of
men but with the circumcision done by Christ, 12 having been buried
with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God,
who raised him from the dead.
13 When
you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, B
God made you C alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14
having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against
us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public
spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. D
16 Therefore
do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a
religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17 These
are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in
Christ. 18 Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the
worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great
detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle
notions. 19 He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the
whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as
God causes it to grow.
20 Since
you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you
still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 21 "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? 22
These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on
human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an
appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and
their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining
sensual indulgence. [19]
[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.
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[3]
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[4]
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[5]
Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Bible NIV.
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[6]
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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
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Inc. All Rights Reserved
[13] Excerpted from Compton's
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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
[17] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[18] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
Inc. All Rights Reserved
[19] Excerpted from Compton's
Interactive Bible NIV. Copyright (c) 1994, 1995, 1996 SoftKey Multimedia
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