THEINC-HIM Daily Bible Meditation - December 26 - Full Text!

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

THEINC-HIM Daily Bible Meditation

DECEMBER 26

PSALMS: 26, 56, 86, 116, 146

PROVERBS: 26

OLD TESTAMENT: NUMBERS 25:17 - 26:51

NEW TESTAMENT: LUKE 2:36 - 52

PSALMS: 26

Of David.

¹ Vindicate me, O LORD,

for I have led a blameless life;

I have trusted in the LORD

without wavering.

² Test me, O LORD, and try me,

examine my heart and my mind;

³ for your love is ever before me,

and I walk continually in your truth.

⁴ I do not sit with deceitful men,

nor do I consort with hypocrites;

⁵ I abhor the assembly of evildoers

and refuse to sit with the wicked.

⁶ I wash my hands in innocence,

and go about your altar, O LORD,

⁷ proclaiming aloud your praise

and telling of all your wonderful deeds.

⁸ I love the house where you live, O LORD,

the place where your glory dwells.

⁹ Do not take away my soul along with sinners,

my life with bloodthirsty men,

¹⁰ in whose hands are wicked schemes,

whose right hands are full of bribes.

¹¹ But I lead a blameless life;

redeem me and be merciful to me.

¹² My feet stand on level ground;

in the great assembly I will praise the LORD. ¹

PSALMS: 56

For the director of music. To the tune of "A Dove on Distant Oaks." Of David. A miktam. ^A When the Philistines had seized him in Gath.

¹ Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me;

all day long they press their attack.

² My slanderers pursue me all day long;

many are attacking me in their pride.

³ When I am afraid,

I will trust in you.

⁴ In God, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I will not be afraid.

What can mortal man do to me?

⁵ All day long they twist my words;

they are always plotting to harm me.

⁶ They conspire, they lurk,

they watch my steps,

eager to take my life.

⁷ On no account let them escape;

in your anger, O God, bring down the nations.

⁸ Record my lament;

list my tears on your scroll ^B--

are they not in your record?

⁹ Then my enemies will turn back

when I call for help.

By this I will know that God is for me.

¹⁰ In God, whose word I praise,

in the LORD, whose word I praise--

¹¹ in God I trust; I will not be afraid.

What can man do to me? ²

¹² I am under vows to you, O God;

I will present my thank offerings to you.

¹³ For you have delivered me ^C from death

and my feet from stumbling,

that I may walk before God

in the light of life. ^{D 3}

PSALMS: 86

A prayer of David.

¹ Hear, O LORD, and answer me,

for I am poor and needy.

² Guard my life, for I am devoted to you.

You are my God; save your servant

who trusts in you.

³ Have mercy on me, O Lord,

for I call to you all day long.

⁴ Bring joy to your servant,

for to you, O Lord,

I lift up my soul.

⁵ You are forgiving and good, O Lord,

abounding in love to all who call to you.

⁶ Hear my prayer, O LORD;

listen to my cry for mercy.

⁷ In the day of my trouble I will call to you,

for you will answer me.

⁸ Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord;

no deeds can compare with yours.

⁹ All the nations you have made

will come and worship before you, O Lord;

they will bring glory to your name.

¹⁰ For you are great and do marvelous deeds;

you alone are God. ⁴

¹¹ Teach me your way, O LORD,

and I will walk in your truth;

give me an undivided heart,

that I may fear your name.

¹² I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart;

I will glorify your name forever.

¹³ For great is your love toward me;

you have delivered me from the depths of the grave. ^A

¹⁴ The arrogant are attacking me, O God;

a band of ruthless men seeks my life--

men without regard for you.

¹⁵ But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,

slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

¹⁶ Turn to me and have mercy on me;

grant your strength to your servant

and save the son of your maidservant. ^B

¹⁷ Give me a sign of your goodness,

that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,

for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me. ⁵

PSALMS: 116

¹ I love the LORD, for he heard my voice;

he heard my cry for mercy.

² Because he turned his ear to me,

I will call on him as long as I live.

³ The cords of death entangled me,

the anguish of the grave ^A came upon me;

I was overcome by trouble and sorrow.

⁴ Then I called on the name of the LORD:

"O LORD, save me!"

⁵ The LORD is gracious and righteous;

our God is full of compassion.

⁶ The LORD protects the simplehearted;

when I was in great need, he saved me.

⁷ Be at rest once more, O my soul,

for the LORD has been good to you.

⁸ For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death,

my eyes from tears,

my feet from stumbling,

⁹ that I may walk before the LORD

in the land of the living.

¹⁰ I believed; therefore ^B I said,

"I am greatly afflicted."

¹¹ And in my dismay I said,

"All men are liars."

¹² How can I repay the LORD

for all his goodness to me?

¹³ I will lift up the cup of salvation

and call on the name of the LORD.

¹⁴ I will fulfill my vows to the LORD

in the presence of all his people. ⁶

¹⁵ Precious in the sight of the LORD

is the death of his saints.

¹⁶ O LORD, truly I am your servant;

I am your servant, the son of your maidservant ^C;

you have freed me from my chains.

¹⁷ I will sacrifice a thank offering to you

and call on the name of the LORD.

¹⁸ I will fulfill my vows to the LORD

in the presence of all his people,

¹⁹ in the courts of the house of the LORD--

in your midst, O Jerusalem.

Praise the LORD. ^{D 7}

PSALMS: 146

¹ Praise the LORD. ^A

Praise the LORD, O my soul.

² I will praise the LORD all my life;

I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

³ Do not put your trust in princes,

in mortal men, who cannot save.

⁴ When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;

on that very day their plans come to nothing.

⁵ Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,

whose hope is in the LORD his God,

⁶the Maker of heaven and earth,

the sea, and everything in them--

the LORD, who remains faithful forever.

⁷ He upholds the cause of the oppressed

and gives food to the hungry.

The LORD sets prisoners free,

⁸ the LORD gives sight to the blind,

the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down,

the LORD loves the righteous.

⁹ The LORD watches over the alien

and sustains the fatherless and the widow,

but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

¹⁰ The LORD reigns forever,

your God, O Zion, for all generations.

Praise the LORD. ⁸

PROVERBS: 26

26 ¹ Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,

honor is not fitting for a fool.

² Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow,

an undeserved curse does not come to rest.

³ A whip for the horse, a halter for the donkey,

and a rod for the backs of fools!

⁴ Do not answer a fool according to his folly,

or you will be like him yourself.

⁵ Answer a fool according to his folly,

or he will be wise in his own eyes.

⁶ Like cutting off one's feet or drinking violence

is the sending of a message by the hand of a fool.

⁷ Like a lame man's legs that hang limp

is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

⁸ Like tying a stone in a sling

is the giving of honor to a fool.

⁹ Like a thornbush in a drunkard's hand

is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

¹⁰ Like an archer who wounds at random

is he who hires a fool or any passer-by.

¹¹ As a dog returns to its vomit,

so a fool repeats his folly.

^{9 12} Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?

There is more hope for a fool than for him.

¹³ The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road,

a fierce lion roaming the streets!"

¹⁴ As a door turns on its hinges,

so a sluggard turns on his bed.

¹⁵ The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.

¹⁶ The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes

than seven men who answer discreetly.

¹⁷ Like one who seizes a dog by the ears

is a passer-by who meddles in a quarrel not his own.

¹⁸ Like a madman shooting

firebrands or deadly arrows

¹⁹ is a man who deceives his neighbor

and says, "I was only joking!"

²⁰ Without wood a fire goes out;

without gossip a quarrel dies down.

²¹ As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire,

so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife. ¹⁰

²² The words of a gossip are like choice morsels;

they go down to a man's inmost parts.

²³ Like a coating of glaze ^A over earthenware

are fervent lips with an evil heart.

²⁴ A malicious man disguises himself with his lips,

but in his heart he harbors deceit.

²⁵ Though his speech is charming, do not believe him,

for seven abominations fill his heart.

²⁶ His malice may be concealed by deception,

but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

²⁷ If a man digs a pit, he will fall into it;

if a man rolls a stone, it will roll back on him.

²⁸ A lying tongue hates those it hurts,

and a flattering mouth works ruin. ¹¹

OLD TESTAMENT: NUMBERS 25:17 - 26:51

¹⁷ "Treat the Midianites as enemies and kill them, ¹⁸ because they treated you as enemies when they deceived you in the affair of Peor and their sister Cozbi, the daughter of a Midianite leader, the woman who was killed when the plague came as a result of Peor."

26 ¹ After the plague the LORD said to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest,

² "Take a census of the whole Israelite community by families--all those twenty years old or more who are able to serve in the army of Israel." ³ So on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, ^A Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them and said, ⁴ "Take a census of the men twenty years old or more, as the LORD commanded Moses."

These were the Israelites who came out of Egypt:

⁵ The descendants of Reuben, the firstborn son of Israel, were:

through Hanoch, the Hanochite clan;

through Pallu, the Palluite clan;

⁶ through Hezron, the Hezronite clan;

through Carmi, the Carmite clan. ⁷ These were the clans of Reuben; those numbered were 43,730.

⁸ The son of Pallu was Eliab, ⁹ and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan and Abiram. The same Dathan and Abiram were the community officials who rebelled against Moses and Aaron and were among Korah's followers when they rebelled against the LORD.

¹⁰ The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire devoured the 250 men. And they served as a warning sign. ¹¹ The line of Korah, however, did not die out.

¹² The descendants of Simeon by their clans were:

through Nemuel, the Nemuelite clan;

through Jamin, the Jaminite clan;

through Jakin, the Jakinite clan;

¹³ through Zerah, the Zerahite clan;

through Shaul, the Shaulite clan. ¹⁴ These were the clans of Simeon; there were 22,200 men.

¹⁵ The descendants of Gad by their clans were: ¹²

through Zephon, the Zephonite clan;

through Haggi, the Haggite clan;

through Shuni, the Shunite clan;

¹⁶ through Ozni, the Oznite clan;

through Eri, the Erite clan;

¹⁷ through Arodi, ^B the Arodite clan;

through Areli, the Arelite clan. ¹⁸ These were the clans of Gad; those numbered were 40,500.

¹⁹ Er and Onan were sons of Judah, but they died in Canaan. ²⁰ The descendants of Judah by their clans were:

through Shelah, the Shelanite clan;

through Perez, the Perezite clan;

through Zerah, the Zerahite clan.

²¹ The descendants of Perez were:

through Hezron, the Hezronite clan;

through Hamul, the Hamulite clan. ²² These were the clans of Judah; those numbered were 76,500.

²³ The descendants of Issachar by their clans were:

through Tola, the Tolaite clan;

through Puah, the Puite ^C clan;

²⁴ through Jashub, the Jashubite clan;

through Shimron, the Shimronite clan. ²⁵ These were the clans of Issachar; those numbered were 64,300.

²⁶ The descendants of Zebulun by their clans were:

through Sered, the Seredite clan;

through Elon, the Elonite clan;

through Jahleel, the Jahleelite clan. ²⁷ These were the clans of Zebulun; those numbered were 60,500.

²⁸ The descendants of Joseph by their clans through Manasseh and Ephraim were:

²⁹ The descendants of Manasseh:

through Makir, the Makirite clan (Makir was the father of Gilead); ¹³

through Gilead, the Gileadite clan.

³⁰ These were the descendants of Gilead:

through Iezer, the Iezerite clan;

through Helek, the Helekite clan;

³¹ through Asriel, the Asrielite clan;

through Shechem, the Shechemite clan;

³² through Shemida, the Shemidaite clan;

through Hepher, the Hepherite clan.

³³ (Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons; he had only daughters, whose names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah.) ³⁴ These were the clans of Manasseh; those numbered were 52,700.

³⁵ These were the descendants of Ephraim by their clans:

through Shuthelah, the Shuthelahite clan;

through Beker, the Bekerite clan;

through Tahan, the Tahanite clan.

³⁶ These were the descendants of Shuthelah:

through Eran, the Eranite clan. ³⁷ These were the clans of Ephraim; those numbered were 32,500.

These were the descendants of Joseph by their clans.

³⁸ The descendants of Benjamin by their clans were:

through Bela, the Belaite clan;

through Ashbel, the Ashbelite clan;

through Ahiram, the Ahiramite clan;

³⁹ through Shupham, ^D the Shuphamite clan;

through Hupham, the Huphamite clan.

⁴⁰ The descendants of Bela through Ard and Naaman were:

through Ard, ^E the Ardite clan; ¹⁴

through Naaman, the Naamite clan. ⁴¹These were the clans of Benjamin; those numbered were 45,600.

⁴² These were the descendants of Dan by their clans:

through Shuham, the Shuhamite clan.

These were the clans of Dan: ⁴³ All of them were Shuhamite clans; and those numbered were 64,400.

⁴⁴ The descendants of Asher by their clans were:

through Imnah, the Imnite clan;

through Ishvi, the Ishvite clan;

through Beriah, the Beriite clan;

⁴⁵ and through the descendants of Beriah:

through Heber, the Heberite clan;

through Malkiel, the Malkielite clan.

⁴⁶ (Asher had a daughter named Serah.) ⁴⁷These were the clans of Asher; those numbered were 53,400.

⁴⁸ The descendants of Naphtali by their clans were:

through Jahzeel, the Jahzeelite clan;

through Guni, the Gunite clan;

⁴⁹ through Jezer, the Jezerite clan;

through Shillem, the Shillemite clan. ⁵⁰ These were the clans of Naphtali; those numbered were 45,400.

⁵¹ The total number of the men of Israel was 601,730. ¹⁵

NEW TESTAMENT: LUKE 2:36 - 52

³⁶ There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,

³⁷ and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. ^E She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. ³⁸ Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

³⁹ When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. ⁴⁰ And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.

⁴¹ Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. ⁴² When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. ⁴³ After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. ⁴⁴ Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. ⁴⁵ When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him.

⁴⁶ After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷ Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸ When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."

⁴⁹ "Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?" ⁵⁰ But they did not understand what he was saying to them.

⁵¹ Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. ⁵² And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. 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

 John 3:16-21 16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, F that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.G 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." H