Psalm 72 (MT: Psalm 73)

Translation: ESV

Book Three

God Is My Strength and Portion Forever

A Psalm of Asaph.

1 Truly God is good to Israel,

    to those who are pure in heart.

2 But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,

    my steps had nearly slipped.

3 For I was envious of the arrogant

    when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

4 For they have no pangs until death;

    their bodies are fat and sleek.

5 They are not in trouble as others are;

    they are not stricken like the rest of mankind.

6 Therefore pride is their necklace;

    violence covers them as a garment.

7 Their eyes swell out through fatness;

    their hearts overflow with follies.

8 They scoff and speak with malice;

    loftily they threaten oppression.

9 They set their mouths against the heavens,

    and their tongue struts through the earth.

10 Therefore his people turn back to them,

    and find no fault in them.

11 And they say, “How can God know?

    Is there knowledge in the Most High?”

12 Behold, these are the wicked;

    always at ease, they increase in riches.

13 All in vain have I kept my heart clean

    and washed my hands in innocence.

14 For all the day long I have been stricken

    and rebuked every morning.

15 If I had said, “I will speak thus,”

    I would have betrayed the generation of your children.

16 But when I thought how to understand this,

    it seemed to me a wearisome task,

17 until I went into the sanctuary of God;

    then I discerned their end.

18 Truly you set them in slippery places;

    you make them fall to ruin.

19 How they are destroyed in a moment,

    swept away utterly by terrors!

20 Like a dream when one awakes,

    O Lord, when you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms.

21 When my soul was embittered,

    when I was pricked in heart,

22 I was brutish and ignorant;

    I was like a beast toward you.

23 Nevertheless, I am continually with you;

    you hold my right hand.

24 You guide me with your counsel,

    and afterward you will receive me to glory.

25 Whom have I in heaven but you?

    And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

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26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

    but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

27 For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;

    you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.

28 But for me it is good to be near God;

    I have made the Lord God my refuge,

    that I may tell of all your works.

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1 Kings 12

Translation: ESV

Rehoboam's Folly

12 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. 2 And as soon as Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), then Jeroboam returned from Egypt. 3 And they sent and called him, and Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehoboam, 4 “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you.” 5 He said to them, “Go away for three days, then come again to me.” So the people went away.

6 Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” 7 And they said to him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.” 8 But he abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him. 9 And he said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?” 10 And the young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus shall you speak to this people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you lighten it for us,’ thus shall you say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father's thighs.

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11 And now, whereas my father laid on you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’”

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.” 13 And the king answered the people harshly, and forsaking the counsel that the old men had given him,

14 he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.”

15 So the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turn of affairs brought about by the Lord that he might fulfill his word, which the Lord spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

The Kingdom Divided

16 And when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, “What portion do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, David.” So Israel went to their tents. 17 But Rehoboam reigned over the people of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah. 18 Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehoboam hurried to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day. 20 And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. There was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Judah only.

21 When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 chosen warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: 23 “Say to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24 ‘Thus says the Lord, You shall not go up or fight against your relatives the people of Israel. Every man return to his home, for this thing is from me.’” So they listened to the word of the Lord and went home again, according to the word of the Lord.

Jeroboam's Golden Calves

25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. And he went out from there and built Penuel. 26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David. 27 If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” 28 So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, “You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough. Behold your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” 29 And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 30 Then this thing became a sin, for the people went as far as Dan to be before one. 31 He also made temples on high places and appointed priests from among all the people, who were not of the Levites. 32 And Jeroboam appointed a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he made. And he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made. 33 He went up to the altar that he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the month that he had devised from his own heart. And he instituted a feast for the people of Israel and went up to the altar to make offerings.

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Isaiah 59

Translation: ESV

Evil and Oppression

59 Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,

    or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;

2 but your iniquities have made a separation

    between you and your God,

and your sins have hidden his face from you

    so that he does not hear.

3 For your hands are defiled with blood

    and your fingers with iniquity;

your lips have spoken lies;

    your tongue mutters wickedness.

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4 No one enters suit justly;

    no one goes to law honestly;

they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies,

    they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.

5 They hatch adders' eggs;

    they weave the spider's web;

he who eats their eggs dies,

    and from one that is crushed a viper is hatched.

6 Their webs will not serve as clothing;

    men will not cover themselves with what they make.

Their works are works of iniquity,

    and deeds of violence are in their hands.

7 Their feet run to evil,

    and they are swift to shed innocent blood;

their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;

    desolation and destruction are in their highways.

8 The way of peace they do not know,

    and there is no justice in their paths;

they have made their roads crooked;

    no one who treads on them knows peace.

9 Therefore justice is far from us,

    and righteousness does not overtake us;

we hope for light, and behold, darkness,

    and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.

10 We grope for the wall like the blind;

    we grope like those who have no eyes;

we stumble at noon as in the twilight,

    among those in full vigor we are like dead men.

11 We all growl like bears;

    we moan and moan like doves;

we hope for justice, but there is none;

    for salvation, but it is far from us.

12 For our transgressions are multiplied before you,

    and our sins testify against us;

for our transgressions are with us,

    and we know our iniquities:

13 transgressing, and denying the Lord,

    and turning back from following our God,

speaking oppression and revolt,

    conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.

Judgment and Redemption

14 Justice is turned back,

    and righteousness stands far away;

for truth has stumbled in the public squares,

    and uprightness cannot enter.

15 Truth is lacking,

    and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.

The Lord saw it, and it displeased him

    that there was no justice.

16 He saw that there was no man,

    and wondered that there was no one to intercede;

then his own arm brought him salvation,

    and his righteousness upheld him.

17 He put on righteousness as a breastplate,

    and a helmet of salvation on his head;

he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,

    and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.

18 According to their deeds, so will he repay,

    wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;

    to the coastlands he will render repayment.

19 So they shall fear the name of the Lord from the west,

    and his glory from the rising of the sun;

for he will come like a rushing stream,

    which the wind of the Lord drives.

20 “And a Redeemer will come to Zion,

    to those in Jacob who turn from transgression,” declares the Lord.

21 “And as for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, or out of the mouth of your offspring, or out of the mouth of your children's offspring,” says the Lord, “from this time forth and forevermore.”

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Ezekiel 47

Translation: ESV

Water Flowing from the Temple

1 Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. 2 Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and behold, the water was trickling out on the south side.

3 Going on eastward with a measuring line in his hand, the man measured a thousand cubits, and then led me through the water, and it was ankle-deep. 4 Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was waist-deep. 5 Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen. It was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. 6 And he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?”

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. 8 And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. 9 And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. 10 Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea.

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Inktober prompt: Swamp

11 But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt.

12 And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”

Division of the Land

13 Thus says the Lord God: “This is the boundary by which you shall divide the land for inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions. 14 And you shall divide equally what I swore to give to your fathers. This land shall fall to you as your inheritance.

15 “This shall be the boundary of the land: On the north side, from the Great Sea by way of Hethlon to Lebo-hamath, and on to Zedad, 16 Berothah, Sibraim (which lies on the border between Damascus and Hamath), as far as Hazer-hatticon, which is on the border of Hauran. 17 So the boundary shall run from the sea to Hazar-enan, which is on the northern border of Damascus, with the border of Hamath to the north. This shall be the north side.

18 “On the east side, the boundary shall run between Hauran and Damascus; along the Jordan between Gilead and the land of Israel; to the eastern sea and as far as Tamar. This shall be the east side.

19 “On the south side, it shall run from Tamar as far as the waters of Meribah-kadesh, from there along the Brook of Egypt to the Great Sea. This shall be the south side.

20 “On the west side, the Great Sea shall be the boundary to a point opposite Lebo-hamath. This shall be the west side.

21 “So you shall divide this land among you according to the tribes of Israel. 22 You shall allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the sojourners who reside among you and have had children among you. They shall be to you as native-born children of Israel. With you they shall be allotted an inheritance among the tribes of Israel. 23 In whatever tribe the sojourner resides, there you shall assign him his inheritance, declares the Lord God.

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Psalm 21 (MT: Psalm 22)

Translation: ESV

Why Have You Forsaken Me?

To the choirmaster: according to The Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

    Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,

    and by night, but I find no rest.

3 Yet you are holy,

    enthroned on the praises of Israel.

4 In you our fathers trusted;

    they trusted, and you delivered them.

5 To you they cried and were rescued;

    in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

6 But I am a worm and not a man,

    scorned by mankind and despised by the people.

7 All who see me mock me;

    they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;

8 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;

    let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”

9 Yet you are he who took me from the womb;

    you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.

10 On you was I cast from my birth,

    and from my mother's womb you have been my God.

11 Be not far from me,

    for trouble is near,

    and there is none to help.

12 Many bulls encompass me;

    strong bulls of Bashan surround me;

13 they open wide their mouths at me,

    like a ravening and roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water,

    and all my bones are out of joint;

my heart is like wax;

    it is melted within my breast;

15 my strength is dried up like a potsherd,

    and my tongue sticks to my jaws;

    you lay me in the dust of death.

16 For dogs encompass me;

    a company of evildoers encircles me;

they have pierced my hands and feet—

17 I can count all my bones—

they stare and gloat over me;

18 they divide my garments among them,

    and for my clothing they cast lots.

19 But you, O Lord, do not be far off!

    O you my help, come quickly to my aid!

20 Deliver my soul from the sword,

    my precious life from the power of the dog!

21     Save me from the mouth of the lion!

You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen!

22 I will tell of your name to my brothers;

    in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:

23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!

    All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him,

    and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!

24 For he has not despised or abhorred

    the affliction of the afflicted,

and he has not hidden his face from him,

    but has heard, when he cried to him.

25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;

    my vows I will perform before those who fear him.

26 The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied;

    those who seek him shall praise the Lord!

    May your hearts live forever!

27 All the ends of the earth shall remember

    and turn to the Lord,

and all the families of the nations

    shall worship before you.

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28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,

    and he rules over the nations.

29 All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;

    before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,

    even the one who could not keep himself alive.

30 Posterity shall serve him;

    it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;

31 they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,

    that he has done it.

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Psalm 115 (MT: Psalm 116)

Translation: ESV

I Love the Lord

1 I love the Lord, because he has heard

    my voice and my pleas for mercy.

2 Because he inclined his ear to me,

    therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

3 The snares of death encompassed me;

    the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;

    I suffered distress and anguish.

4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:

    “O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”

5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;

    our God is merciful.

6 The Lord preserves the simple;

    when I was brought low, he saved me.

7 Return, O my soul, to your rest;

    for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

8 For you have delivered my soul from death,

    my eyes from tears,

    my feet from stumbling;

9 I will walk before the Lord

    in the land of the living.

10 I believed, even when I spoke:

    “I am greatly afflicted”;

11 I said in my alarm,

    “All mankind are liars.”

12 What shall I render to the Lord

    for all his benefits to me?

13 I will lift up the cup of salvation

    and call on the name of the Lord,

14 I will pay my vows to the Lord

    in the presence of all his people.

15 Precious in the sight of the Lord

    is the death of his saints.

16 O Lord, I am your servant;

    I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.

    You have loosed my bonds.

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17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving

    and call on the name of the Lord.

18 I will pay 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!

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1 Corinthians 5

Translation: ESV

Sexual Immorality Defiles the Church

5 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father's wife. 2 And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you.

3 For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. 4 When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus,

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5 you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10 not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? 13 God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”

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