Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 26

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 26

2 Chronicles 15 – 16

Through My Bible – October 26

2 Chronicles 15 – 16 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Asa’s Reformation

2 Chronicles 15

1 The Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded. 2 He went out to meet Asa and said this to him:

Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin.

The Lord is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he is there to be found. If you forsake him, he will forsake you.

3 For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach, and without the law. 4 Then in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel. They sought him, and he was found by them. 5 During those times there was no peace for those who went out and came in, because there were great disturbances affecting all the inhabitants of the lands.

6 It was nation against nation and city against city. They were broken in pieces because God troubled them with every kind of distress. 7 But take courage and do not let your hands be slack, because there will be a reward for your work.

8 When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of [1] Oded the prophet, he took courage. He put away the disgusting idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities which he had taken from the hill country of Ephraim. He repaired the altar of the Lord, which was in front of the porch of the Lord’s house.

9 He gathered all Judah and Benjamin, as well as those who had settled among them from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, because people from Israel had gone over to Asa in great numbers since they saw that the Lord his God was with him. 10 They gathered at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. 11 On that day they sacrificed to the Lord seven hundred cattle and seven thousand sheep from the plunder they had brought.

12 They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul. 13 Anyone who did not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, was to be put to death, whether young or old, [2] man or woman. 14 They swore an oath to the Lord with a loud voice, with shouting, and with trumpets and ram’s horns. 15 All Judah rejoiced over the oath, because they had sworn with all their heart, and they very eagerly sought the Lord. He was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest on every side.

(1 Kings 15:13-15)

16 Asa even removed his grandmother Ma’akah from her position as queen mother, because she had made an obscene image for Asherah. Asa cut down her image and crushed it and burned it in the Kidron Valley.

17 The high places, however, were not removed from Israel. Nevertheless, Asa’s heart was completely committed throughout all his days. 18 He brought silver and gold and vessels and utensils to the House of the Lord as dedicated offerings for himself and his father.

Asa’s Treaty With Aram

19 There was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.

2 Chronicles 16

1 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Ba’asha king of Israel attacked Judah, and he fortified Ramah, in order to keep anyone from going in or coming out from Asa king of Judah. 2 So Asa took silver and gold from the treasuries of the House of the Lord and from the palace of the king and sent it to Ben Hadad king of Aram, who ruled in Damascus.

He said, 3 “There should be a treaty between you and me as there was between my father and your father. Look! I have sent you silver and gold. Go, break your treaty with Ba’asha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”

4 Ben Hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim, [3] and all the towns for storehouses in Naphtali. 5 When Ba’asha heard about it, he stopped building Ramah and put an end to his work on it. 6 King Asa then summoned all Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and the timber which Ba’asha had been using to build it. With them he built Geba and Mizpah.

Hanani the Seer Delivers a Message to Asa

7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Aram, and you did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. 8 Weren’t the Cushites and the Libyans a huge army, with very many chariots and charioteers? When you relied on the Lord, he gave them into your hand. 9 The Lord! It is his eyes that go back and forth over all the earth to offer strong support to the hearts of those who are completely committed to [4] him. You have acted foolishly in this. From now on you will be at war.”

10 Asa was angry with the seer, so he put him in prison because he was in a rage against him on account of this. At this time Asa also crushed some of the people.

Asa’s Disease and Death

11 You can find the acts of Asa, from first to last, written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.

12 Asa’s feet became diseased in the thirty-ninth year of his reign. His disease was very serious, but even when he was sick, he did not seek the Lord, but only his physicians.

13 Asa rested with his fathers. He died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14 They buried him in his tomb, which he had cut out for himself in the City of David. They laid him on a bier [5] that was covered with all kinds of fragrant spices and perfumed ointments, skillfully blended by the perfume makers. They burned a very large bonfire in his honor.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 15:8 The Hebrew text does not have the words Azariah son of, but they are supported by the ancient versions and by verse 1.
  2. 2 Chronicles 15:13 Or small or great
  3. 2 Chronicles 16:4 Also called Abel Beth Ma’akah
  4. 2 Chronicles 16:9 Or who are at peace with
  5. 2 Chronicles 16:14 Or in a coffin




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 25

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 25

2 Chronicles 13 – 14

Through My Bible – October 25

2 Chronicles 13 – 14 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Abijah King of Judah

2 Chronicles 13

1 In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, Abijah became king over Judah. 2 He ruled for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Micaiah, [1] the daughter of Uriel from Gibeah. [2]

There was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3 Abijah got ready for battle with an army of four hundred thousand strong warriors, each man specially chosen. [3] Jeroboam lined up for battle against him with eight hundred thousand strong warriors, each man specially chosen.

4 Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim in the hill country of Ephraim and said this to them:

Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel. 5 You should know that the Lord, the God of Israel, gave the kingship over Israel to David forever, to him and to his sons, with a covenant of salt. 6 But Jeroboam son of Nebat, an official who served Solomon, the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his master. 7 Worthless, good-for-nothing men gathered around him. They strongly opposed Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, when he was young and indecisive and not strong enough to stand up against them. 8 Now you are planning to take your stand against the kingdom of the Lord, which is under the control of the sons of David. You are a great horde, and you have the golden calves with you, which Jeroboam made to be your gods.

9 But haven’t you driven out the priests of the Lord, who are the descendants of Aaron, as well as the Levites? You have made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands. Anyone who comes with a young bull and seven rams can ordain himself—but only as a priest to nonexistent gods!

10 As for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not abandoned him, and we have not abandoned the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who minister to the Lord, or the Levites, who serve with them. 11 They send burnt offerings up to the Lord in smoke, every morning and every evening, along with incense made of sweet spices. They arrange the bread on the pure table and take care of the gold lampstand, lighting its lamps every evening. We are fulfilling our duties to the Lord our God, but you have forsaken him.

12 Look! God is with us as our head, and his priests with their trumpets are sounding the call to battle against you. People of Israel, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers, for you will not succeed.

13 However, Jeroboam had set up an ambush to come around them from behind. So the main enemy forces were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them. 14 When Judah turned and saw that the battle line was in front of them and behind them, they cried out to the Lord while the priests kept blowing the trumpets.

15 The men of Judah raised a battle cry. When they raised the battle cry, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. 16 The men of Israel fled from Judah, and God gave them into their hand. 17 Abijah and his people inflicted very heavy casualties on them. Five hundred thousand specially chosen men of Israel fell in battle.

18 So the men of Israel were subdued at that time. The men of Judah prevailed because they relied on the Lord, the God of their fathers. 19 Abijah pursued Jeroboam and took these cities from him: Bethel and its villages, Jeshanah and its villages, and Ephron and its villages. 20 Jeroboam never recovered his power during the days of Abijah. Then the Lord struck Jeroboam, and he died.

21 But Abijah grew strong. He took for himself fourteen wives and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

22 The rest of the acts of Abijah, his ways and his words, are written in the notes of the prophet Iddo.

2 Chronicles 14

1 Abijah rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. His son Asa became king in his place. In his days the land was quiet for ten years. [4]

Asa King of Judah

2 Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. 3 He removed the foreign altars and the high places. He demolished the sacred memorial stones and chopped down the Asherah poles. 4 He told Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, and to obey his law and command. 5 He removed the high places and the sun pillars [5] from all the cities of Judah. The kingdom enjoyed peace and quiet under him.

6 He built fortified cities in Judah because the land was quiet. He had no wars in those years because the Lord gave him rest.

7 Asa said to Judah, “We will build these cities and surround them with walls, towers, and barred gates. The land before us is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God. We sought him, and he has given us peace all around.”

So they built and prospered.

8 Asa had an army of three hundred thousand men from Judah, who carried large shields and spears, and two hundred eighty thousand men from Benjamin, who carried shields and were armed with bows. These were all strong, powerful warriors.

9 Zerah the Cushite [6] came out against them with an army of a million [7] men and three hundred chariots and advanced as far as Mareshah. 10 Asa went out to confront him, and they formed battle lines in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.

11 Asa cried to the Lord his God, “Lord, there is no one except you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O Lord our God, because we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this horde. [8] Lord, you are our God. Men will not prevail against you.”

12 The Lord defeated the Cushites before Asa and Judah, and the Cushites fled. 13 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar. The Cushites fell until none of them were left alive, because they were broken before the Lord and before his army, who carried away a large amount of plunder. 14 They struck all the cities around Gerar, because the dread of the Lord was upon them. They looted all the cities because there was a great deal of plunder in them. 15 Also they struck the tents of the herdsmen and carried off very many sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 13:2 A variant of Ma’akah
  2. 2 Chronicles 13:2 In 1 Kings 15:2,10 and 2 Chronicles 11:20, Ma’akah is called the daughter of Absalom in the Hebrew text, but evidence indicates that the term means granddaughter in those verses. If Uriel is her father, perhaps it was her mother who was Absalom’s daughter.
  3. 2 Chronicles 13:3 Or top-notch
  4. 2 Chronicles 14:1 In the English Bible, chapter 14 starts at Hebrew 13:23. In chapter 14, the rest of the English verse numbers are all one number higher than the Hebrew verse numbers.
  5. 2 Chronicles 14:5 Or incense altars
  6. 2 Chronicles 14:9 Cush is the area south of Egypt, that is, today’s Sudan. This area was also called Nubia.
  7. 2 Chronicles 14:9 Literally a thousand thousands, which may mean too many to count rather than providing a precise tally
  8. 2 Chronicles 14:11 The biblical accounts regularly use the Hebrew term hamon to refer to hostile, heathen armies. The term refers to a noisy, disorderly crowd. When describing an army, horde is an appropriate rendering, for example, see the barbarian hordes of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel 39.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 24

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 24

2 Chronicles 11 – 12

Through My Bible – October 24

2 Chronicles 11 – 12 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

(1 Kings 12:21-24)

2 Chronicles 11

1 When Rehoboam returned to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of Judah and Benjamin, one hundred eighty thousand specially chosen [1] soldiers, to wage war against Israel in order to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam.

2 But the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, the man of God: 3 “Say the following to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin: 4 This is what the Lord says. Do not attack and do not fight against your brother Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this turn of events is from me.”

They listened to the words of the Lord and refrained from going against Jeroboam.

Rehoboam Builds Cities for Defense

5 Rehoboam resided in Jerusalem. He built cities for defense in Judah. 6 He built Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, 7 Beth Zur, Soko, Adullam, 8 Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, 9 Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, 10 Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron. These are fortified cities in Judah and in Benjamin. 11 He built up their fortifications. He placed commanders in them and stores of food, oil, and wine. 12 In each and every city he placed shields and spears and made the cities very strong. Judah and Benjamin belonged to him.

Faithful Priests and People Come to Rehoboam

13 The priests and Levites who were living in Israel left the land allotted to them and took their stand with Rehoboam. 14 The Levites left their pasturelands and their holdings. They came to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had removed them from their ministry as priests of the Lord.

15 Jeroboam had appointed his own priests for the high places and for the goats and calves he had made.

16 From all the tribes of Israel, those people who set their hearts on seeking the Lord, the God of Israel, followed the priests and Levites and came to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, the God of their fathers. 17 They strengthened the kingdom of Judah and made Rehoboam son of Solomon secure for three years, because for those three years they walked in the way of David and Solomon.

The Family of Rehoboam

18 Rehoboam took as his wife Mahalath, who was the daughter [2] of David’s son Jerimoth and of Abihail, the daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab. 19 She gave birth to these sons for him: Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham.

20 In addition to her, he took Ma’akah, the granddaughter [3] of Absalom. She gave birth for him to Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith.

21 Rehoboam loved Ma’akah, the granddaughter of Absalom, more than any of his other wives and concubines. He took eighteen wives and sixty concubines and fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.

22 Rehoboam appointed Abijah, the son of Ma’akah, as crown prince among his brothers, because he was going to make him king. 23 Rehoboam acted wisely and dispersed his sons throughout all the areas of Judah and Benjamin, in all the fortified cities. He provided them with abundant provisions and obtained many wives for them.

Shishak Attacks Jerusalem

2 Chronicles 12

1 When Rehoboam had established his rule as king and had become strong, he abandoned the law of the Lord. All Israel went along with him.

2 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam’s reign, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because Israel had been unfaithful to the Lord. 3 He came with twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand charioteers. [4] The forces that came with him from Egypt, including Libyans, Sukkites, and Cushites, could not be counted. 4 He captured the fortified cities of Judah and advanced as far as Jerusalem.

5 Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and to the officials of Judah, who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak. He said to them, “This is what the Lord says. You abandoned me, so now I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak.”

6 Then the officials of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.”

7 When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying: “They have humbled themselves, so I will not destroy them. I will give them deliverance in a little while. My anger will not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. 8 However, they will become his servants. They will learn what it is to serve me and to serve the kingdoms of the foreign lands.”

9 Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem. He took away the treasures from the house of the Lord and the treasures from the house of the king. He took everything, including the gold shields that Solomon had made. 10 King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place, and he entrusted them to the captains of the guard who were keeping watch at the entrance of the king’s palace. 11 Whenever the king went to the House of the Lord, the guards would go along and carry the shields. Then they would return them to the guardroom. [5]

12 Because he humbled himself, the anger of the Lord turned from him. He did not completely destroy them, so conditions were good in Judah. [6]

The Closing Summary of Rehoboam’s Reign

13 King Rehoboam strengthened his position in Jerusalem and ruled as king. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he became king, and for seventeen years he ruled as king in Jerusalem, the city that the Lord had chosen from among all the tribes of Israel to put his Name there. Rehoboam’s mother’s name was Na’amah the Ammonite.

14 He did evil, because he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.

15 The acts of Rehoboam, from first to last, are they not written in the annals of Shemaiah the prophet and Iddo the seer, which deal with genealogy? Rehoboam and Jeroboam waged war with each other throughout all their days.

16 Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. His son Abijah ruled as king in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 11:1 Or top-notch
  2. 2 Chronicles 11:18 The translation follows the Hebrew reading in the margin (qere). Many Hebrew manuscripts read son.
  3. 2 Chronicles 11:20 Literally daughter of Absalom. Data in 2 Chronicles 13:2 suggests that Ma’akah was Absalom’s granddaughter rather than his daughter.
  4. 2 Chronicles 12:3 Or horsemen. There is, however, no evidence that the Egyptians used large contingents of cavalry at this period of history. If these sixty thousand are charioteers, the number seems far too large for the number of chariots. There are, however, no textual variants which support reducing the number.
  5. 2 Chronicles 12:11 Or armory
  6. 2 Chronicles 12:12 Or and there was still some good in Judah




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 23

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 23

2 Chronicles 9 – 10

Through My Bible – October 23

2 Chronicles 9 – 10 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon

2 Chronicles 9

1 The Queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s fame, so she came to Jerusalem to test Solomon with difficult questions. She came with a very great entourage, [1] with camels carrying spices, a large quantity of gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon and spoke with him about everything that was on her heart.

2 Solomon answered all her questions. There was nothing hidden from Solomon that he could not explain to her.

3 When the Queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon, the house which he had built, 4 the food on his table, the council meeting of his officials, the careful attention of his ministers and their attire, also his cupbearers and their attire, and the passageway by which he went up to the House of the Lord, [2] it took her breath away.

5 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my land about your accomplishments [3] and about your wisdom is true. 6 I did not believe the report, until I came and saw it with my own eyes. Now I find that I was not informed about even half of the greatness of your wisdom. You surpass the report that I heard. 7 Blessed are your men! Blessed are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!

8 “Blessed be the Lord your God, who has been delighted with you and has placed you on his throne as king to serve the Lord your God. Because of your God’s love for Israel and his purpose of establishing Israel forever, he has placed you over them as king to administer justice and righteousness.”

9 Then she gave the king one hundred twenty talents [4] of gold, a very great quantity of spices and incense, [5] and precious stones. There was nothing comparable to these spices and incense that the Queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

10 In addition, the servants of Huram and Solomon who brought gold from Ophir also brought algum [6] wood and precious stones. 11 The king made the algum wood into steps [7] for the Lord’s house and for the house of the king and into lyres and harps for the singers. Nothing like them had ever been seen before in the land of Judah.

12 King Solomon gave the Queen of Sheba everything she desired, whatever she asked for, more than what she had brought to the king. Then she returned to her land along with her servants.

Solomon’s Wealth

13 The weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred sixty-six talents, [8] 14 not counting what the traders and merchants were bringing. All the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land also kept bringing gold and silver to Solomon.

15 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold. Seven and a half pounds [9] of hammered gold went into each shield. 16 He made three hundred small shields of hammered gold. Almost four pounds [10] of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

17 The king made a large ivory throne and overlaid it with pure gold. 18 There were six steps up to the throne. A golden footstool was attached to the throne, and there were armrests on either side of the seat. There were two lions standing beside the armrests 19 and twelve lions standing on the steps, one on each end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any kingdom.

20 All of King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold. All the utensils in the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. [11] Silver was not thought to be worth anything in the days of Solomon, 21 because the king’s ships would go to Tarshish [12] with the servants of Huram, and once every three years the Tarshish ships would return, bringing gold, silver, ivory, monkeys, and peacocks. [13]

22 King Solomon was greater than all the kings of the earth in wealth and wisdom. 23 All the kings of the earth were seeking an audience with Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 24 Each of them would bring his gift: articles of silver and gold, clothing, scents, [14] spices, horses, and mules, year after year.

25 Solomon had four thousand teams [15] of horses and chariots and twelve thousand charioteers. He stationed them in the chariot cities and in Jerusalem with him.

26 He was ruling over all the kings from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, to the border of Egypt.

27 The king made silver in Jerusalem as plentiful as ordinary stones, and the cedars were like the sycamore fig trees, which are so abundant in the Shephelah. [16]

28 Horses were imported for Solomon from Egypt and from all the lands.

The Death of Solomon

29 The rest of the acts of Solomon, from the first to the last, are they not written in the records of Nathan the prophet, in the prophecy of Ahijah from Shiloh, and in the visions of Iddo the seer about Jeroboam son of Nebat?

30 Solomon ruled in Jerusalem and over all Israel for forty years, 31 and then Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. His son Rehoboam became king in his place.

Rehoboam King of Judah

2 Chronicles 10

1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, because all Israel had gone to Shechem to make him king.

2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat, who was still in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon, heard about this, he returned from Egypt, 3 and the people then sent for Jeroboam.

Jeroboam and all Israel came to Rehoboam and said, 4 “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now lighten your father’s harsh service and the heavy yoke that he laid on us, and we will serve you.”

5 Rehoboam said to them, “Return to me in three days.” So the people left.

6 King Rehoboam asked for advice from the old men [17] who had served his father Solomon while he was alive: “How would you advise me to respond to these people?”

7 They said to him, “If you are good to these people and respond favorably to their request, and you speak accommodating words to them, they will be your servants forever.”

8 But Rehoboam did not follow the advice the old men gave him. Instead, he consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who were serving as his advisors. 9 He said to them, “How would you advise me to respond to these people who said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father laid upon us’?”

10 The young men who had grown up with him said to him, “This is what you should say to the people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy. You make it light for us.’ This is what you should say to them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. [18] 11 My father imposed a heavy yoke on you. I will add to your yoke. My father punished you with whips, but I will punish you with scorpions.’” [19]

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day as the king had directed: “Come back to me on the third day.”

13 The king answered them harshly. King Rehoboam rejected the advice of the old men.

14 Instead, he spoke to them as the young men had advised: “My father made your yoke heavy. I will add to it. My father punished you with whips. I will punish you with scorpions.”

15 The king did not listen to the people, because this turn of events was from God, so that the Lord would keep his word, as he had spoken it to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah from Shiloh.

16 When all Israel saw [20] that the king did not listen to them, they responded to the king:

What share do we have in David?

No inheritance with the son of Jesse!

To your tents, Israel!

Now, look after your own house, David!

So all Israel went to their tents. [21]

17 Rehoboam continued to rule over the people of Israel who were living in the cities of Judah.

18 King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, [22] who was in charge of the forced labor, but the people of Israel stoned Hadoram to death. King Rehoboam, however, was able to get into his chariot to flee to Jerusalem.

19 So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David until this day.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 9:1 Or a very impressive display of wealth
  2. 2 Chronicles 9:4 Or and the whole burnt offerings which he offered at the House of the Lord, which is the main reading in the parallel in 1 Kings 10:5. The context seems to require something impressive about the palace.
  3. 2 Chronicles 9:5 Or words
  4. 2 Chronicles 9:9 About nine thousand pounds
  5. 2 Chronicles 9:9 Spices and incense—the Hebrew text has only one word here. In English we usually distinguish spices which flavor food, fragrances which are applied to the body, and incense which is burned, but all of these meanings can be expressed by one Hebrew word. Sometimes it takes more than one English word to cover the range of one Hebrew word.
  6. 2 Chronicles 9:10 Perhaps a type of sandalwood. In 1 Kings 10:11, it reads almug wood.
  7. 2 Chronicles 9:11 Or supports
  8. 2 Chronicles 9:13 Almost fifty thousand pounds
  9. 2 Chronicles 9:15 The Hebrew reads six hundred ___ of gold. Six hundred bekas would be seven and a half pounds, but the Hebrew text supplies no unit of measure. If the unit of measurement is the shekel, the weight in pounds would double.
  10. 2 Chronicles 9:16 The Hebrew reads three hundred ____ of gold. The parallel in 1 Kings 10:17 reads three minas. A mina is sixty or perhaps fifty shekels. The ratio of bekas to minas supports the idea that the weight here is bekas.
  11. 2 Chronicles 9:20 Literally closed gold. Perhaps this means gold plate, but most translators think it means pure gold.
  12. 2 Chronicles 9:21 Or the king had ships that could go to Tarshish. In other passages Tarshish is located on the Mediterranean Sea, but everything in this passage points to trade on the Red Sea. In that case, this phrase refers to the type of ship, not to the destination. Or there may be an otherwise unknown Tarshish on the Red Sea.
  13. 2 Chronicles 9:21 Or apes or baboons
  14. 2 Chronicles 9:24 Or tools and weapons
  15. 2 Chronicles 9:25 Or stalls
  16. 2 Chronicles 9:27 That is, the western foothills
  17. 2 Chronicles 10:6 Or elders
  18. 2 Chronicles 10:10 Or thighs
  19. 2 Chronicles 10:11 Possibly a name for a particularly painful kind of scourge, here and in verse 14
  20. 2 Chronicles 10:16 Many Hebrew manuscripts omit saw, but this reading has good support in the ancient versions.
  21. 2 Chronicles 10:16 Go to their tents is a common idiom for go home. It does not imply that the Israelites all lived in tents.
  22. 2 Chronicles 10:18 Also called Adoram or Adoniram




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 22

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 22

2 Chronicles 7 – 8

Through My Bible – October 22

2 Chronicles 7 – 8 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

The Dedication of the Temple

2 Chronicles 7

1 When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices. The Glory of the Lord filled the house. 2 The priests were not able to go into the House of the Lord because the Glory of the Lord filled the House of the Lord. 3 When all the people of Israel saw the fire coming down and the Glory of the Lord over the house, they bowed to the ground with their faces on the pavement, and they worshipped, giving thanks to the Lord:

Truly, he is good, because his mercy endures forever.

4 The king and all the people were offering sacrifices before the Lord. 5 King Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty-two thousand cattle and one hundred twenty thousand sheep. The king and all the people dedicated the House of God.

6 The priests stood at their assigned positions. The Levites, using the musical instruments for the Lord, which King David had made to give thanks to the Lord because his mercy endures forever, were offering the praises written by David. The priests who blew the trumpets stood across from them. All Israel was standing there.

7 Solomon consecrated the center of the courtyard that was in front of the Lord’s house, so that he could present the burnt offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings there, because the bronze altar which Solomon had made was not large enough to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat from the fellowship offerings.

8 At that time Solomon celebrated the festival [1] for seven days, and all Israel was with him, a very large assembly of people, who had come from as far away as Lebo Hamath and the Stream of Egypt. 9 On the eighth day they held a solemn assembly, because they had spent seven days on the dedication of the altar and on the festival. 10 On the twenty-third day of the seventh month, Solomon sent the people to their homes. When they left, they were joyful, and their hearts were glad because of the good things which the Lord had done for David, for Solomon, and for his people Israel.

11 Solomon completed the Lord’s house and the king’s house. Solomon accomplished everything that was on his heart, everything he wanted to accomplish for the house for the Lord and for the house for the king.

The Lord Renews His Promises to Solomon

12 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him:

I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a house for sacrifice. 13 When I close up the sky and there is no rain, or I command locusts to eat up the land, or I send a plague on my people, 14 and my people, who are called by my Name, humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sins and heal their land.

15 Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer from this place. 16 I have chosen and consecrated this house for my Name to be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there every day. 17 And you, if you walk before me as your father David walked, and if you do everything I have commanded you and keep my statutes and ordinances, 18 I will establish the throne of your kingdom as I affirmed in my covenant with your father David: “You will never fail to have a man ruling over Israel.”

19 But if your people turn away and forsake my statutes and my commands which I have given them, and they go to serve and worship other gods, 20 I will uproot them from my soil I have given to them. This house, which I have consecrated to my Name, I will toss away, out of my sight. I will make it proverbial as an object of ridicule among all the peoples.

21 Though this house is now exalted, everyone who passes by it will be appalled and say, “Why has the Lord done this to this land and this house?”

22 The answer will be: “Because they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who brought them out from the land of Egypt, and they embraced other gods, worshipped them, and served them. That is why he has brought all this disaster on them.”

Solomon’s Other Accomplishments

2 Chronicles 8

1 At the end of the twenty years during which Solomon had built the house of the Lord and his own house, 2 Solomon also rebuilt [2] the cities that Huram had given to him, and he settled Israelites in them.

3 Solomon went to Hamath Zobah and seized it. 4 He built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the towns for storehouses in Hamath. 5 He built Upper Beth Horon and Lower Beth Horon as fortified cities with walls and barred gates. 6 He also built Baalath, all the towns for storehouses which belonged to him, and all the cities which housed the chariots and the charioteers. Solomon built everything he desired in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his kingdom.

7 All the people who remained from the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not part of the people of Israel— 8 their descendants remaining in the land, who had not been completely destroyed by Israel—were drafted for forced labor by Solomon. They are serving right up to this day. 9 But Solomon did not press the people of Israel into service. Rather, they were soldiers, leaders among his officers, and commanders of his chariots and charioteers.

10 There were two hundred fifty [3] leaders of King Solomon’s officials who exercised authority over the people.

11 Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter up from the City of David to the house which he had built for her, because he said, “My wife will not live in the house of David, king of Israel, because those places to which the Ark of the Lord has come are holy.”

12 At that time Solomon offered whole burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord, which he had built in front of the porch, 13 in keeping with the day-by-day requirement for burnt offerings commanded by Moses for the sabbaths, for the new moons, and for the appointed festivals three times during the year, namely, the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Shelters.

14 He appointed the divisions of the priests to serve according to the regulations of his father David, as well as the Levites for their offices of praise and service in the presence of the priests, in keeping with each day’s requirement. He also appointed the gatekeepers by their divisions, gate by gate, because this was the command of David, the man of God. 15 They did not turn aside from the king’s command for the priests and the Levites concerning any matter, including the treasuries.

16 So all Solomon’s work was accomplished, from the day that the foundation of the Lord’s house was laid until its completion. So the House of the Lord was finished.

17 Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and to Elat on the shore of the sea in the land of Edom. 18 Huram sent him ships and experienced crews, who knew the sea. They were under the direction of his officers. They went to Ophir with Solomon’s crews, and from there they obtained four hundred fifty talents [4] of gold and brought it to King Solomon.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 7:8 That is, the Festival of Shelters
  2. 2 Chronicles 8:2 Or had rebuilt. It is not clear from the Hebrew whether these actions had been completed by the end of the twenty years or began at the end of the twenty years.
  3. 2 Chronicles 8:10 The number is different than that in 1 Kings 9:23, which reads five hundred fifty.
  4. 2 Chronicles 8:18 About sixteen tons. The parallel text in 1 Kings 9:28 reads four hundred twenty talents.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 21

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 21

2 Chronicles 6:12-42

Through My Bible – October 21

2 Chronicles 6:12-42 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

2 Chronicles 6

12 Then Solomon stood in front of the altar of the Lord, in the presence of the whole assembly of Israel, and spread out his hands.

13 Solomon had made a bronze platform and had placed it in the middle of the courtyard. It was seven and a half feet by seven and a half feet square, and four and a half feet tall. He stood on it. Then he knelt in the presence of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven, 14 and said:

O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in the heavens above and on the earth below. You keep the covenant of mercy and faithfulness with your servants who walk before you with all their heart. 15 You have kept the word which you spoke to your servant, my father David. What you have said with your mouth, you have fulfilled with your hand, as can be seen today.

16 Now, Lord God of Israel, guard for your servant, my father David, the promise you made to him when you said, “You will never fail to have a man sitting on the throne of Israel in my presence, if your sons guard their ways by walking in my law just as you have walked before me.”

17 Now, O God of Israel, let the words which you spoke to your servant, my father David, be confirmed.

18 But will God really dwell with man on the earth? Truly, the heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you! How much less this house which I have built! 19 But turn your face toward the prayer of your servant and to his plea for mercy. O Lord my God, listen to the cry and to the prayer that your servant offers before you.

20 Let your eyes be open toward this house day and night, toward the place where you have promised to set your Name and to listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place.

21 When you hear your servant’s pleas for mercy and those of your people Israel when they pray toward this place, then hear in your dwelling place in heaven—hear and forgive.

The Petitions [1]

22 If a man sins against his neighbor, and his neighbor places him under an oath, and the oath is presented before your altar in this house, 23 then hear from heaven and take action. Provide justice for your servants by repaying the guilty person and bringing his ways down on his own head, and by declaring the righteous person innocent and dealing with him according to his righteousness.

24 If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they sinned against you, and they return to you and praise your Name and pray and seek your favor in this house, 25 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land which you gave to them and to their fathers.

26 When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they sinned against you, and then they pray toward this place, praise your Name, and turn from their sin because you have humbled them, 27 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants and your people Israel, for you teach them the good way in which they are to walk. Provide rain upon our land, which you have given to your people as an inheritance.

28 When there is famine in the land, when there is plague, when there is blight or mildew, or locusts or grasshoppers, or when their enemies are in the land besieging their gates, or when any disease or any sickness is present, 29 hear every prayer and every plea for mercy from each individual and from your whole people Israel, because each person knows his own affliction and his own sorrow. When he stretches out his hands toward this house, 30 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and give to each man according to his ways, [2] since you know his heart. You alone know the heart of everyone, 31 so that they fear you and walk in your ways all the days they live on the soil that you gave to our fathers.

32 Also for the foreigner, who is not one of your people Israel, but who comes from a distant land because of your great Name, your mighty hand, and your outstretched arm, and who comes and prays toward this house, 33 for that foreigner, hear in heaven, which is your dwelling place, and do everything for which that foreigner cries out to you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your Name and fear you, just as your people Israel do, because they know that your Name is proclaimed in this house that I have built.

34 When your people go out for battle against their enemies on whatever way you send them, and they pray to you, facing toward this city which you have chosen and toward the house which I have built for your Name, 35 then from heaven hear their prayer and their plea for mercy, and provide justice for them.

36 When they sin against you (for there is no one who does not sin), and you become angry with them, and you give them up to an enemy, and they are taken captive to a land whether far or near, 37 when they come to their senses in the land to which they were carried, and they repent and plead to you for mercy in the land where they were exiled, and they say, “We have sinned. We have been guilty, and we have done evil,” 38 and they return to you with all their heart and with all their soul in the land where they are exiled, and they pray toward their land which you gave to their fathers, and toward the city which you have chosen, and toward the house which I have built for your Name, 39 then from heaven, from your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea for mercy and provide justice for them, and forgive your people, who have sinned against you.

40 Now please, my God, I ask that your eyes will be open and your ears attentive to prayer offered at this place.

41 Now arise, Lord God, to enter your resting place—you and the ark of your power. May your priests, Lord God, be clothed with salvation. May your faithful ones rejoice in goodness. 42 Lord God, you will not turn away the face of your anointed one. Remember the mercy promised to your servant David.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 6:22 The Hebrew verb forms in the section may be translated as prophecy (you will forgive) or as prayer (forgive). The context favors prayer.
  2. 2 Chronicles 6:30 Or what is right for his situation




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 20

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 20

2 Chronicles 5:2 – 6:11

Through My Bible – October 20

2 Chronicles 5:2 – 6:11 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

2 Chronicles 5

The Ark Is Placed in the Temple

2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leading fathers [1] of the people of Israel, in Jerusalem, in order to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from the City of David, that is, from Zion. 3 All the men of Israel gathered in the presence of the king at the festival that takes place during the seventh month. [2] 4 Then when all the elders of Israel had come, the priests, who were Levites, [3] lifted up the Ark. 5 They brought the Ark, the Tent of Meeting, and all the holy vessels which were in the tent. The priests and Levites [4] brought them up.

6 King Solomon and the whole congregation of Israel that had gathered with him in front of the Ark were sacrificing sheep and oxen, too many to be counted or numbered.

7 The priests brought the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to its place in the inner sanctuary of the House, that is, to the Most Holy Place, and they placed it under the wings of the cherubim. 8 The cherubim were spreading their wings over the place for the Ark, so that the cherubim covered the Ark and its poles from above. 9 The poles were so long that the ends of the poles could be seen from the Holy Place [5] in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from outside. They are there to this day.

10 There was nothing in the Ark except the two tablets which Moses placed there at Horeb, where the Lord had made a covenant with the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt.

11 The priests then came out from the Holy Place. (All the priests who were present had consecrated themselves. They did not remain separated by their divisions.)

12 The levitical musicians, the divisions of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, including their sons and their relatives, were standing east of the altar. They were clothed in fine linen and had their cymbals, harps, and lyres with them. With them there were also one hundred twenty priests who blew trumpets.

13 The trumpeters and the singers joined together as one to praise and give thanks to the Lord. As they raised their voices to praise the Lord, accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and other musical instruments, they sang:

Truly, he is good, because his mercy endures forever.

Then the sanctuary of the House of the Lord was filled with a cloud. 14 The priests were not able to take their positions to minister because of the presence of the cloud, because the Glory of the Lord had filled the House of God.

Solomon’s Speech and Prayer of Dedication

2 Chronicles 6

1 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he dwells in thick darkness, 2 but I have truly built a majestic house for you, a place for you to dwell in forever.”

3 Then the king turned and blessed the whole assembly of Israel, while the whole assembly of Israel was standing there. 4 Then Solomon said:

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel.

What he said with his mouth to my father David,

he has fulfilled with his hands.

5 The Lord said, “From the day I brought my people out from the land of Egypt, I did not choose a city from all the tribes of Israel to build a house for my Name to be there. I did not choose a man to be ruler over my people Israel. 6 But now I have chosen Jerusalem as the place where my Name will be, and I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.”

7 It was on my father David’s heart to build a house for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 8 However, the Lord said to my father David, “That it was on your heart to build a house for my Name was a good thing to have on your heart, 9 but you will not build the house. Your son, who will come from your own body, will build the house for my Name.”

10 So the Lord kept his word which he had spoken, and I arose in the place of my father David. Now I am seated on the throne of Israel just as the Lord said. I have built this house for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 11 There I have placed the Ark, which contains the covenant of the Lord, which he made with the people of Israel.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 5:2 The leaders of the various societal units in Israel are frequently called fathers.
  2. 2 Chronicles 5:3 That is, the Festival of Shelters, traditionally Tabernacles
  3. 2 Chronicles 5:4 In this verse the Hebrew text simply says Levites. In 1 Kings 8:3 the reading is the priests.
  4. 2 Chronicles 5:5 Or the levitical priests. Some manuscripts do not include the word and between priests and Levites.
  5. 2 Chronicles 5:9 The Holy Place is the reading of some Hebrew manuscripts, 1 Kings 8:8, and the Greek Old Testament. Some Hebrew manuscripts read the Ark.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 19

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2 Chronicles 3:1 – 5:1

Through My Bible – October 19

2 Chronicles 3:1 – 5:1 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

The Construction of the Temple

2 Chronicles 3

1 Then Solomon began to build the House of the Lord at Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. He constructed it on the site that David had specified, [1] namely, the threshing floor of Ornan [2] the Jebusite. 2 He began building on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.

The Sanctuary

3 Now these are the dimensions of the foundations which Solomon laid for the building of God’s house. The length was ninety feet and the width thirty feet. [3] 4 The porch [4] that was in front of the temple building was thirty feet wide, the same as the width of the building, and it was thirty feet high. [5]

He overlaid the inside with pure gold. 5 He lined the larger front room of the building with fir paneling, [6] which he overlaid with fine gold and decorated with palm trees and chains. 6 He beautified the house with dazzling precious stones. The gold was gold of Parvaim. [7] 7 He also overlaid the house, the beams and rafters, the thresholds and door frames, its walls, and its doors with gold, and he carved cherubim on the walls.

8 He made the Most Holy Place. It was thirty feet by thirty feet, the same dimensions as the width of the building, and he overlaid it with six hundred talents of fine gold. [8] 9 The weight of the gold nails was more than a pound. [9] He overlaid the upper areas with gold.

The Cherubim

10 In the Most Holy Place he made two carved cherubim that were overlaid with gold. 11 The total wingspan of the cherubim was thirty feet. One wing of the first cherub was seven and a half feet long and touched the outer wall of the house. The other wing was also seven and a half feet long and touched the wing of the other cherub. 12 One wing of the other cherub was seven and a half feet long and touched the outer wall of the house. The other wing was also seven and a half feet long and touched the wing of the first cherub. 13 The wings of these cherubim spread out over thirty feet. They stood upright on their feet, and they faced toward the front of the sanctuary building. [10] 14 He made the veil of blue, purple, and crimson material and fine white linen, and he decorated it with cherubim.

Pillars

15 For the front of the house he made two pillars with a combined height of fifty-three feet, [11] and the capitals that were on top of each of them were seven and a half feet tall. 16 He made chains for the inner sanctuary [12] and also put them on the tops of the pillars. He also made one hundred pomegranates and put them on the chains. 17 He set up the pillars in front of the temple building, [13] one on the south side and the other on the north. He named the one on the south Jakin [14] and the one on the north Boaz. [15]

The Temple Furnishings

2 Chronicles 4

1 He made a bronze altar thirty feet long, thirty feet wide, and fifteen feet high.

2 He also made the sea of cast metal. It was round and fifteen feet from rim to rim. It was seven and a half feet high and forty-five feet in circumference. 3 Under the rim, figurines of cattle [16] completely encircled it, one every two inches, all the way around the sea. These cattle were in two rows, cast as one piece with the sea. 4 The sea stood on twelve cattle, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The sea was set on them, with all their hindquarters toward the center. 5 The sea was three inches [17] thick. Its rim was shaped like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held eighteen thousand gallons. [18]

6 He also made ten basins for washing and put five on the south side and five on the north. The pieces of the burnt offering were washed in the basins, but the priests washed in the sea.

7 He made ten gold lampstands according to the specifications that had been given for them, and he set them in the outer room of the temple building, five on the south side and five on the north.

8 He made ten tables and placed them in the outer room of the temple, five on the south side and five on the north. He also made one hundred gold sprinkling bowls.

9 He also made the courtyard of the priests and the great enclosure, [19] and he made doors for the enclosure and overlaid them with bronze. 10 He set the sea on the south side of the temple building near its southeast corner.

11 Huram [20] also made the pots, the shovels, and the bowls.

So Huram finished the work that he carried out for King Solomon for God’s house: 12 the two pillars, the two globe-shaped capitals on top of the pillars, the two latticeworks to cover the two globe-shaped capitals on top of the pillars, 13 and the four hundred pomegranates for the two latticeworks (two rows of pomegranates for each latticework to cover the two globe-shaped capitals that were on the pillars). 14 He also made the carts, and he made the basins on the carts, 15 one sea, and the twelve cattle under it. 16 Huram Abi also made the pots, the shovels, the meat hooks, [21] and all the vessels of burnished bronze for King Solomon, for the House of the Lord.

17 The king cast them in clay molds, in the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zeredatha. [22] 18 Solomon made all these vessels in such great quantity that the weight of the bronze was not determined.

19 Solomon made all the furnishings that were in God’s house: the gold altar, the tables on which the Bread of the Presence was arranged, 20 and the lampstands with their lamps, which were to burn in front of the inner sanctuary according to the regulations. He made them of pure gold. [23] 21 He also made the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs of the purest gold, [24] 22 and the snuffers, the sprinkling bowls, the small dishes, and the fire pans [25] of pure gold. For the entrances into the sanctuary, he made the gold inner doors for the Most Holy Place and the gold doors for the front room of the sanctuary.

2 Chronicles 5

1 All the work which Solomon carried out for the House of the Lord was completed, so Solomon brought the things his father David had dedicated, namely, the silver, the gold, and all the vessels and utensils, and put them into the treasuries of the House of God.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 3:1 Or prepared
  2. 2 Chronicles 3:1 In 2 Samuel 24 he is called Araunah or Aravnah.
  3. 2 Chronicles 3:3 The measurements are given in cubits of the old measure, a much disputed term. The translation uses 18-inch cubits. Using a long cubit of 20+ inches, the temple would be 105 feet by 35 feet.
  4. 2 Chronicles 3:4 Or entry hall. It is uncertain if this was an unroofed porch or an enclosed vestibule.
  5. 2 Chronicles 3:4 The Hebrew text reads one hundred twenty cubits (one hundred eighty feet), but the Greek and Syriac texts and the data concerning the height of the pillars for the porch all support a height of twenty cubits (thirty feet). Perhaps the Hebrew word amwt (cubit) was accidentally changed into the word mawt (hundred) by the inversion of two letters. The account in Kings does not give the height of the porch.
  6. 2 Chronicles 3:5 According to 1 Kings 6:15, the floor was fir and the walls were cedar. This verse in Chronicles does not mention this distinction.
  7. 2 Chronicles 3:6 The meaning or location of the Hebrew term Parvaim is unknown.
  8. 2 Chronicles 3:8 Because of widely varying estimates for the weight of a talent (68 pounds to 130 pounds) most translations retain the term talents. The smallest estimated weight of the gold would be about 20 tons. The notes of this translation use the estimate of 75 pounds for a talent.
  9. 2 Chronicles 3:9 Literally fifty shekels
  10. 2 Chronicles 3:13 It is uncertain whether this means they faced toward the front entrance of the building (what we would call the front of a church when we are standing outside) or whether they faced toward the back of the building and thus toward the Lord (what we would call the front of a church when we are standing inside).
  11. 2 Chronicles 3:15 The word combined is not in the Hebrew text, but the parallel text in 1 Kings 7:15 indicates that this is the combined height of the two pillars.
  12. 2 Chronicles 3:16 See 1 Kings 6:21, which states that the chains were across the front of the inner room.
  13. 2 Chronicles 3:17 Here the Hebrew word hekal refers to the whole temple building. Sometimes it refers only to the front room.
  14. 2 Chronicles 3:17 Jakin means he establishes.
  15. 2 Chronicles 3:17 Boaz means in him is strength.
  16. 2 Chronicles 4:3 The parallel text in 1 Kings 7:24 reads gourds rather than cattle.
  17. 2 Chronicles 4:5 Literally a handbreadth
  18. 2 Chronicles 4:5 Literally three thousand baths. In 1 Kings 7:26, it reads two thousand baths. Perhaps the two passages were using different standards for the bath or rounding off.
  19. 2 Chronicles 4:9 Not the usual Hebrew word for courtyard, but a special word ‘azarah
  20. 2 Chronicles 4:11 He is called Hiram in 1 Kings.
  21. 2 Chronicles 4:16 Or forks
  22. 2 Chronicles 4:17 Also called Zarethan in 1 Kings 7:46
  23. 2 Chronicles 4:20 Literally closed gold, also in verse 22. Most translations translate this as pure gold or solid gold, but perhaps it means gold plate in some contexts. The precise distinctions between the various terms for pure gold or solid gold are uncertain.
  24. 2 Chronicles 4:21 Literally perfection of gold
  25. 2 Chronicles 4:22 The precise identification of some of these vessels and utensils is uncertain.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 18

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 18

2 Chronicles 1 – 2

Through My Bible – October 18

2 Chronicles 1 – 2 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

God Blesses Solomon With Wisdom and Possessions

2 Chronicles 1

1 Solomon, the son of David, firmly established his rule over his kingdom. The Lord his God was with him and made him very great. 2 Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the commanders of the units of a thousand and a hundred, to the judges, to all the leaders of all Israel, that is, to all the leading fathers. [1]

3 Solomon and the whole assembly with him went to the high place at Gibeon, because God’s Tent of Meeting, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, had made in the wilderness, was located there.

4 (David had brought up the Ark of God from Kiriath Jearim to the place he had prepared for it, because he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem. 5 But the bronze altar, which Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made, was set up in front of the Tent of the Lord, so that was where Solomon and the assembly sought God.)

6 Solomon went to the bronze altar there in the presence of the Lord at the Tent of Meeting, and he offered a thousand burnt offerings upon the altar.

7 That night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, “Ask for whatever you want me to give to you.”

8 Solomon said to God, “You have shown great mercy and faithfulness [2] to my father David, and you have made me king in his place. 9 Now, Lord God, let your commitment to David my father be fully realized, because you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. 10 Now give me wisdom and knowledge, so that I can come and go [3] before this people, for who is up to the task of judging [4] this great people of yours?”

11 God said to Solomon, “Because this was on your heart, and you did not ask for riches, possessions, and honor, or for the lives of those who hate you, or even for many days of life, and because you have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself so that you can judge my people, over whom I have made you king, 12 wisdom and knowledge will be given to you. I will also give you riches, possessions, and honor, the likes of which the kings before you never had, nor will those who come after you.”

Military and Economic Prosperity

13 After Solomon had gone up to the high place in Gibeon, he returned from the Tent of Meeting to Jerusalem, and he ruled as king over Israel.

14 Solomon accumulated chariots and charioteers. He had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand charioteers, and he stationed them in the chariot cities, as well as with the king in Jerusalem. 15 In Jerusalem the king made silver and gold as plentiful as ordinary stones. He made cedar as plentiful as sycamore fig trees in the Shephelah. [5] 16 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and Kue. [6] The king’s dealers bought them from Kue for the market price. 17 They could import a chariot from Egypt for six hundred silver shekels and a horse for one hundred fifty. In the same way these dealers exported chariots to all the kings of the Hittites and Aram.

Preparations for Building the Temple

2 Chronicles 2

1 Solomon said that he would build a temple for the Name of the Lord and a palace for his kingdom. [7] 2 He assigned seventy thousand men to transport materials, eighty thousand to quarry stone in the hills, and thirty-six hundred to supervise them.

Solomon’s Letter

3 Solomon sent this message to Huram [8] king of Tyre:

Send me cedar as you did for my father David, when you sent him cedar to build a house for himself to live in.

4 I am building a house for the Name of the Lord my God, to dedicate it to him for burning fragrant incense before him, for the continual arrangement of bread, for burnt offerings in the morning and evening, for the sabbaths, the new moons, and the appointed festivals of the Lord our God. This is to be a permanent regulation for Israel.

5 The house that I am building will be great, because our God is greater than all the gods. 6 But who is able to build a house for him? The heavens, even the highest heaven, [9] cannot contain him. Who am I to build a house for him, except as a place to send incense and sacrifices up in smoke before him?

7 Now send me a man who is skillful at working with gold, silver, bronze, and iron, as well as with purple, crimson, and blue material, and who is trained in engraving. He will work with the skilled craftsmen who are with me in Judah and Jerusalem, whom my father David provided.

8 Send me cedar, fir, and algum [10] timber from Lebanon, because I know that your servants know how to cut timber from Lebanon. Look, my servants will work with your servants 9 to prepare lumber for me in abundance because the house which I am building will be great and wonderful.

10 To support the lumberjacks who work for you, I have set aside one hundred twenty thousand bushels [11] of crushed wheat, and one hundred twenty thousand bushels of barley, one hundred twenty thousand gallons [12] of wine, and one hundred twenty thousand gallons of olive oil.

Huram’s Reply

11 Huram king of Tyre sent a letter to Solomon which said:

Because of the love of the Lord for his people, he has made you king over them.

12 Huram also said:

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who made the heavens and the earth. He has given King David a wise son, who has discretion and understanding, who will build a house for the Lord and a house for his kingdom.

13 Now I have sent a skilled man who has expertise, Huram Abi, 14 the son of a woman from among the daughters of Dan. His father is a man from Tyre. He is skillful at working with gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood, and with purple, blue, and crimson material and fine white linen. He is qualified to do all the engraving and to execute every design which is given to him, together with your craftsmen and the craftsmen of my lord David, your father.

15 Now let my lord Solomon send the wheat, barley, oil, and wine that he promised to us, his servants. 16 We will cut timber from Lebanon according to all your needs and will ship it to you at Joppa, as rafts upon the sea. You can then transport it up to Jerusalem.

17 Solomon took a census of all the male aliens who were residing in the land of Israel, after the census his father David had taken. There were 153,600.

18 Out of that number he designated 70,000 to transport materials, 80,000 to quarry stone in the hills, and 3600 overseers to make the people work.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 1:2 The leaders of the societal units of Israel are regularly called fathers.
  2. 2 Chronicles 1:8 The Hebrew word chesed has connotations of both mercy and faithfulness, so the translation here includes bothconcepts.
  3. 2 Chronicles 1:10 Or carry out my duties
  4. 2 Chronicles 1:10 Or ruling over
  5. 2 Chronicles 1:15 That is, the western foothills
  6. 2 Chronicles 1:16 Probably Cilicia, on the southeast coast of Turkey
  7. 2 Chronicles 2:1 English chapter 2 starts at Hebrew 1:18. Therefore, in chapter 2 the English verse numbers are all one number higher than the corresponding Hebrew verse numbers.
  8. 2 Chronicles 2:3 Also called Hiram in 1 Kings
  9. 2 Chronicles 2:6 That is, the dwelling of God, which lies beyond the heavens where the birds fly and where the stars run their courses
  10. 2 Chronicles 2:8 Perhaps the same as almug in 1 Kings 10:11, but that wood was from the Red Sea region. If this is a form of sandalwood, it may be from a source along the Mediterranean Sea, on the north coast of Africa.
  11. 2 Chronicles 2:10 Literally twenty thousand cors. The value of the various ancient measures of volume is uncertain.
  12. 2 Chronicles 2:10 Literally twenty thousand baths




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 17

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 17

Psalm 137 – 138

Through My Bible – October 17

Psalm 137 – 138 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 137

Beside the Rivers of Babylon

Sorrow for Jerusalem

1 Beside the rivers [1] of Babylon,
there we sat, and, yes, we wept as we remembered Zion.
2 There we hung up our lyres on the willows,
3 because there our captors asked us for words of a song,
and our tormentors asked for a happy song:
“Sing for us one of the songs of Zion!”

Zeal for Zion

4 How can we sing a song of the Lord on foreign soil?
5 If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget how to play music. [2]
6 May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not exalt Jerusalem above my highest joy.

Zeal for God’s Vengeance

7 Remember the day of Jerusalem, O Lord,
against the descendants of Edom [3] who said,
“Tear it down, tear it down to its foundations!”
8 Daughter of Babylon, doomed to be destroyed,
how blessed is the one who repays you
    with the same deeds you did against us.
9 How blessed is the one who seizes your children
and dashes them against the cliff.

Psalm 138

May the Kings Praise You

Heading
By David.

Thanks From a Grateful Heart

1 I will thank you with all my heart.
Before the gods [4] I will make music for you.
2 I will bow down toward your holy temple.
I will give thanks to your name
    because of your mercy and because of your truth.
Yes, you made your word even greater than your name. [5]
3 By day I called, and you answered me.
You have made my soul strong.
4 All the kings of the earth will thank you, Lord,
when they have heard the message from your mouth.
5 Then they will sing about the ways of the Lord,
because the glory of the Lord is great.
6 Indeed the Lord is exalted, but he sees the lowly,
and he recognizes the proud from a distance.
7 If I walk surrounded by danger, you keep me alive
    in spite of the anger of my enemies.
You stretch out your hand.
You save me with your right hand.
8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose [6] for me.
Lord, your mercy endures forever.
Do not let go of the works [7] of your hands.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 137:1 Many of the rivers were in fact canals running off the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
  2. Psalm 137:5 The words how to play music are supplied to clarify the point of reference.
  3. Psalm 137:7 This wording recalls the hostility between Jacob (called Israel) and Esau (called Edom).
  4. Psalm 138:1 Gods here may refer to angels, though that use of the term is rare. The point may simply be a declaration of God’s superiority to the pagan gods, who are only demons.
  5. Psalm 138:2 Literally for you have made great over all your name your saying or, with a different reading of the Hebrew, you made your word higher than the heavens
  6. Psalm 138:8 Or complete his plans
  7. Psalm 138:8 Hebrew variant work




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 16

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 16

Psalm 136

Through My Bible – October 16

Psalm 136 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 136

His Mercy Endures Forever

Introduction

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
    For his mercy endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of Gods.
    For his mercy endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of Lords.
    For his mercy endures forever.

His Creating Love

4 To him who alone does great wonders— [1]
    For his mercy endures forever.
5 To him who by his understanding made the heavens—
    For his mercy endures forever.
6 To him who spread out the earth on the waters—
    For his mercy endures forever.
7 To him who made the great lights,
    For his mercy endures forever.
8 the sun to rule by day,
    For his mercy endures forever.
9 the moon and stars to rule by night—
    For his mercy endures forever.

His Redeeming Love

10 To him who struck Egypt by killing their firstborn,
    For his mercy endures forever.
11 and brought Israel out from their midst,
    For his mercy endures forever.
12 with a mighty hand and outstretched arm—
    For his mercy endures forever.
13 To him who cut the Red Sea in two,
    For his mercy endures forever.
14 and brought Israel through the middle of it,
    For his mercy endures forever.
15 but brushed off Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea—
    For his mercy endures forever.
16 To him who made his people travel through the wilderness—
    For his mercy endures forever.
17 To him who struck down great kings,
    For his mercy endures forever.
18 and killed mighty kings,
    For his mercy endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the Amorites,
    For his mercy endures forever.
20 and Og king of Bashan,
    For his mercy endures forever.
21 and gave their land as a possession,
    For his mercy endures forever.
22 a possession to his servant Israel.
    For his mercy endures forever.

His Continuing Love

23 Who remembered us in our low condition,
    For his mercy endures forever.
24 and tore us out of the hands of our oppressors.
    For his mercy endures forever.
25 He gives food to all living creatures. [2]
    For his mercy endures forever.
26 Give thanks to the God of the heavens.
    For his mercy endures forever.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 136:4 This psalm has special indentation and punctuation to set off the repeated refrain that interrupts the body of the psalm. Dashes at the end of a line indicate that the line is one unit of a string of descriptions that form one basis for thanks. In all of the lines from verses 4 through 22 one must assume the repetition of the verb give thanks to from the previous section, verses 1-3. Occasionally a comma is substituted for the dash to show that this line must be joined with the next line to complete one of the units that begins with to him who.
  2. Psalm 136:25 Literally all flesh




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 15

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 15

Psalm 135

Through My Bible – October 15

Psalm 135 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 135

Israel, Praise the Lord

Introduction

1 Praise the Lord. [1]

Praise the name of the Lord.
Praise him, you servants of the Lord,
2     who stand in the house of the Lord,
    in the courtyards of the house of our God.
3 Praise the Lord, [2] for the Lord is good.
Make music to his name, for it is pleasant.
4 Yes, the Lord chose Jacob for himself.
He chose Israel as his special treasure.

The Superiority of the Lord

5 Yes, I know that the Lord is great.
Our Lord is greater than all gods.
6 The Lord does whatever he pleases
    in the heavens and on the earth,
    in the seas and in all the depths.
7 He makes clouds rise from the end of the earth.
He sends lightning for the rainstorm.
He releases the wind from his storehouses.
8 He is the one who struck down
    the firstborn of Egypt, both men and animals.
9 Egypt! He sent warning signs into your midst,
    against Pharaoh and against all his officials.
10 He is the one who struck down many nations.
He killed mighty kings—
11     Sihon king of the Amorites,
    and Og king of Bashan,
    and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
12 He gave their land as a possession,
a possession to Israel, his people.
13 Lord, your name stands forever.
Lord, your reputation remains through all generations.
14 For the Lord will judge in favor of his people.
He will have pity on his servants.
15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands.
16 They have a mouth, but they cannot speak.
They have eyes, but they cannot see.
17 They have ears, but cannot hear.
There is not even any breath in their mouths.
18 Those who make them will be like them.
So will all who trust in them.

Conclusion

19 House of Israel, bless the Lord.
House of Aaron, bless the Lord.
20 House of Levi, bless the Lord.
You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
21 The Lord, who dwells in Jerusalem, will be blessed from Zion.
Praise the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 135:1 Hebrew hallelu Yah
  2. Psalm 135:3 The short form of the divine name, Yah, is used rather than the full form, Yahweh, which is traditionally translated Lord. Also in verse 4.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 14

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 14

Psalm 133 – 134

Through My Bible – October 14

Psalm 133 – 134 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 133

Pleasant Unity

Heading
A song of the ascents. By David.

Pleasant Unity

1 Look, how good and how pleasant it is
    when brothers live together in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil poured on the head,
    running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron,
    running down on the collar of his robes.
3 It is like the dew from Hermon
    running down on the mountains of Zion.
For there the Lord commands this blessing: life to eternity.

Psalm 134

The Pilgrims’ Blessing

Heading
A song of the ascents.

The People

1 Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
    who stand in the house of the Lord at night.
2 Lift up your hands toward the sanctuary
and bless the Lord.

The Priests

3 May the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 13

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 13

Psalm 132

Through My Bible – October 13

Psalm 132 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 132

Remember David and His Son

Heading
A song of the ascents.

David’s Oath

1 Remember for David’s sake, O Lord, all his afflictions.
2 Remember how he swore to the Lord.
He made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:
3 “I will not enter my own house. [1]
I will not get into my own bed. [2]
4 I will not allow my eyes to sleep
or my eyelids to slumber,
5 until I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Israel’s Response

6 Yes, we heard about it in Ephrathah.
We found it in the fields of Ja’ar.
7 Let us go to his dwelling place.
Let us bow down at his footstool.
8 Arise, O Lord, come to your resting place,
    you and the ark of your strength.
9 May your priests be clothed with righteousness.
May your favored ones shout for joy.
10 For the sake of David your servant,
do not reject the face of your Anointed One. [3]

The Lord’s Oath

11 The Lord swore to David
    a truth from which he will not turn back:
“From the fruit of your body
    I will place kings on your throne.
12 If your sons keep my covenant
and my testimonies that I teach them,
then their sons will sit on your throne forever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Zion.
He has desired it for his dwelling.
14 “This is my resting place forever.
Here I will live, for I have desired it.
15 I will bless her greatly with food.
I will satisfy Zion’s poor with bread.
16 I will clothe her priests with salvation,
and her favored ones will shout for joy.
17 There I will make a horn shoot up for David.
I will set up a lamp for my Anointed One.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
but on him his crown will be beautiful.”

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 132:3 Literally the tent of my house
  2. Psalm 132:3 Literally the couch of my bed
  3. Psalm 132:10 That is, the line of kings culminating in Christ




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 12

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 12

Psalm 130 – 131

Through My Bible – October 12

Psalm 130 – 131 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 130

Out of the Depths

Heading
A song of the ascents.

Out of the Depths

1 Out of the depths I have called to you, O Lord.
2 Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive to the sound of my cry for mercy.
3 If you, Lord, [1] kept a record of guilt,
O Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is pardon,
so you are feared.
5 I wait for the Lord. My soul waits,
and in his word I have put my hope.
6 My soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 Israel, wait confidently for the Lord,
because with the Lord there is mercy.
With him there is abundant redemption.
8 So he himself will redeem Israel from all its guilt.

Psalm 131

My Heart Is Not Proud

Heading
A song of the ascents. By David.

Like a Satisfied Baby

1 Lord, my heart is not haughty,
and my eyes are not proud.
So I do not intrude into great matters
or into things too wonderful for me.
2 Instead I have soothed and quieted my soul.
As a nursed child rests with its mother,
like a nursed [2] child my soul rests with me.
3 Wait confidently, O Israel, for the Lord
    from now to eternity.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 130:3 Yah, the short form of the divine name, is used here.
  2. Psalm 131:2 Or weaned




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 11

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 11

Psalm 127 – 129

Through My Bible – October 11

Psalm 127 – 129 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 127

The Lord Builds the House

Heading
A song of the ascents. By Solomon.

The Lord Builds the House

1 If the Lord does not build the house,
    it is useless for the builders to work hard over it.
If the Lord does not watch over the city,
    it is useless for the watchman to stand guard.
2 It is useless for you to get up early and to work late,
worrying about bread to eat,
because God grants sleep to the one he loves. [1]
3 Indeed, children are a heritage from the Lord.
The fruit of the womb is a reward from him.
4 Sons born during one’s youth are like arrows
    in the hand of a warrior.
5 How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
    when they dispute with enemies at the city gate. [2]

Psalm 128

A Blessed Family

Heading
A song of the ascents.

Promise

1 How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
everyone who is walking in his ways.
2 Yes, you will eat the food you worked for.
How blessed you are! It will go well for you!
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in the inner rooms of your house.
Your children will be like olive shoots around your table.
4 Look! This is how blessed the man is who fears the Lord!

Prayer

5 May the Lord bless you from Zion,
so that you see the prosperity of Jerusalem,
all the days of your life,
6 and you see your children’s children.
Peace be on Israel.

Psalm 129

No Blessing

Heading
A song of the ascents.

They Have Greatly Afflicted Me

1 Greatly they have afflicted me from my youth—
let Israel say—
2 greatly they have afflicted me from my youth,
yet they have not been able to defeat me.
3 On my back plowmen have plowed.
They made their furrows long.

They Will Be Suppressed by God

4 The Lord is righteous.
He has cut the ropes of the wicked to pieces.
5 Let all who hate Zion be ashamed and turned back.
6 Let them be like grass on the roof,
    which withers even before it is pulled up.
7 The reaper cannot fill his hand with it.
The one who binds sheaves cannot fill his arms.
8 May those who pass by never say,
“The blessing of the Lord be with you.
We bless you in the name of the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 127:2 Or he can provide for those he loves even when they sleep
  2. Psalm 127:5 The city gatehouse was the equivalent of our present-day courthouse.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 10

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 10

Psalm 124 – 126

Through My Bible – October 10

Psalm 124 – 126 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 124

The Lord Is on Our Side

Heading
A song of the ascents. By David.

The Lord Is on Our Side

1 Unless it was the Lord who was for us—
let Israel say—
2 unless it was the Lord who was for us
when people [1] rose against us,
3 they would have swallowed us alive
when their anger burned against us.
4 Then the waters would have submerged us.
The torrent would have swept our lives away.
5 Then the wild waters would have swept us away.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
    who has not let us be prey for their teeth.
7 We have escaped with our lives
    like a bird out of the fowlers’ snare.
The snare has been broken, and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

Psalm 125

Mount Zion Cannot Be Shaken

Heading
A song of the ascents.

Those Who Trust in the Lord Cannot Be Shaken

1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion.
It cannot be shaken. It will stand forever.
2 As Jerusalem is surrounded by mountains,
so the Lord surrounds his people from now to eternity.
3 No, the scepter of wickedness will not rest
    on the land assigned to the righteous,
so that the righteous do not reach out their hands toward evil.
4 Do good, O Lord, for the good
and for those who are upright in their hearts.
5 But those who turn to their crooked ways—
the Lord will send them away with the evildoers.
Peace be on Israel.

Psalm 126

The Return of the Captives

Heading
A song of the ascents.

The Captives Return

1 When the Lord restored the captives to Zion, [2]
    we were like dreamers.
2 Then our mouths were filled with laughter,
and our tongues with shouts of joy.
Then they said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us.
We are glad.
4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the dry gulches of the Negev.
5 Those who sow with weeping will reap with joyful shouts.
6 The one who walks along weeping, carrying a bag of seed to sow,
    will come back again with joyful shouts, carrying his sheaves.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 124:2 The Hebrew has a collective singular, mankind. The context refers to the nations hostile to Israel, especially Assyria and Babylon.
  2. Psalm 126:1 Or when the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 09

/in

Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 09

Psalm 122 – 123

Through My Bible – October 09

Psalm 122 – 123 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 122

The Peace of Jerusalem

Heading
A song of the ascents. By David.

The Peace of Jerusalem

1 I rejoiced with those who said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord.”
2 Our feet are standing in your gates, O Jerusalem.
3 Jerusalem is a well-built city that is firmly joined together, [1]
4 a city to which the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, [2]
    as a testimony to Israel,
    to give praise to the name of the Lord.
5 That is where the thrones for judgment sit,
the thrones of the house of David.
6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May those who love you prosper.
7 May there be peace within your fortifications,
prosperity within your citadels.”
8 For the sake of my brothers and my friends,
now I will say, “Peace be within you.”
9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek good for you.

Psalm 123

The Eyes of a Servant

Heading
A song of the ascents.

The Eyes of a Servant

1 To you I lift up my eyes,
to you who are seated in heaven.
2 Indeed, as the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his grace.
3 Show grace to us, O Lord.
Show grace to us,
for we have had our fill of contempt.
4 Our souls have had their fill of the scorn of the smug
and of the contempt of the arrogant.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 122:3 The meaning is uncertain. Literally Jerusalem, the built one, like a city which is joined to her together
  2. Psalm 122:4 The short version of the divine name, Yah, is used rather than the full form, Yahweh.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 08

/in

Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 08

Psalm 120 – 121

Through My Bible – October 08

Psalm 120 – 121 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 120

A Man of Peace

Heading

A song of the ascents. [1]

A Man of Peace

1 In my distress I called to the Lord,
and he answered me.
2 Lord, save my life from lying lips.
Save me from deceitful tongues.
3 What will he give to you?
What more will he add to you, you deceitful tongue?
4 A warrior’s sharpened arrows with hot coals of the broom tree.
5 Woe to me that I am an alien in Meshek,
that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
6 For too long my soul [2] has dwelt with those who hate peace.
7 I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.

Psalm 121

Help From the Lord

Heading
A song for the ascents.

Help From the Lord, Israel’s Watchman

1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains.
Where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot stumble.
He who watches over you will not slumber.
4 Yes, he who watches over Israel will not slumber.
He will not sleep.
5 The Lord watches over you.
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.
6 The sun will not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will watch to keep you from all harm. [3]
He will watch over your life. [4]
8 The Lord will watch over your going and your coming
    from now to eternity.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 120:1 This group of psalms (Psalms 120–134) is usually called the Songs of Ascent in English, but the Hebrew title is songs of the ascents. The ascents may include both going up to Jerusalem and going up to God. These psalms celebrate pilgrimage to Jerusalem, especially the return from captivity in Babylon.
  2. Psalm 120:6 In Hebrew my soul is a more intense, emotional way of saying I or me.
  3. Psalm 121:7 Or evil
  4. Psalm 121:7 Or soul




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 07

/in

Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 07

Psalm 119:153-176

Through My Bible – October 07

Psalm 119:153-176 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Resh: I Have Not Forgotten

153 See my affliction and deliver me,
    because I have not forgotten your law.
154 Argue my case and redeem me.
    Give me life according to your saying.
155 Salvation is far away from the wicked,
    because they do not pursue your statutes.
156 Your compassions are many, O Lord.
    Give me life according to your judgments.
157 Many are my persecutors and my foes,
    but I have not turned from your testimonies.
158 I look at the hypocrites and I loathe them,
    because they do not keep your saying.
159 See how I love your precepts.
    Lord, according to your mercy, give me life.
160 The sum of your word is truth.
    All your righteous judgment is eternal.

Sin/Shin: I Wait for Salvation

161 Officials persecute me without cause,
    but my heart trembles at your word.
162 I rejoice over your sayings,
    like one who finds much plunder.
163 I hate and detest falsehood,
    but I love your law.
164 Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous judgments.
165 Great peace belongs to those who love your law,
    and nothing is a stumbling block for them.
166 I wait for your salvation, O Lord,
    and I obey your commandments.
167 My soul keeps your testimonies.
    I love them greatly.
168 I keep your precepts and your testimonies,
    because all my ways are before you.

Tav: Seek Your Servant

169 May my loud cry come before you, Lord.
    Give me understanding through your word.
170 May my plea for mercy come before you.
    Deliver me according to your saying.
171 May my lips overflow with praise,
    because you teach me your statutes.
172 May my tongue sing of your saying,
    because all your commandments are righteousness.
173 May your hand be ready to help me,
    because I have chosen your precepts.
174 I long for your salvation, O Lord,
    and your law is my delight.
175 Let my soul live and praise you,
    and may your judgments help me.
176 I have strayed like a perishing sheep.
    Seek your servant,
    because I have not forgotten your commandments.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 06

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 06

Psalm 119:129-152

Through My Bible – October 06

Psalm 119:129-152 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Pe: Streams of Tears

129 Your testimonies are wonders.
    That is why my soul guards them.
130 The doorway to your words lets in light.
    It gives understanding to the inexperienced.
131 I open wide my mouth and I gasp,
    because I long for your commandments.
132 Turn to me and give me grace.
    This is your judgment for those who love your name. [1]
133 Keep my footsteps steady by your sayings,
    and do not let any evil rule over me.
134 Redeem me from oppressive people,
    and I will keep your precepts.
135 Make your face shine on your servant,
    and teach me your statutes.
136 Streams of water run down from my eyes,
    because they do not keep your laws.

Tsadhe: My Zeal for the Word

137 You are righteous, O Lord,
    and your judgments are right.
138 You have commanded your testimonies.
    They are righteous and very trustworthy.
139 My zeal wears me out,
    because my foes forget your words.
140 Your saying has been thoroughly refined,
    and your servant loves it.
141 I am insignificant and despised,
    but I do not forget your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is righteous forever,
    and your law is truth.
143 Distress and anguish have found me,
    but your commandments are my delights.
144 Your testimonies are right forever.
    Give me understanding, and I will live.

Qoph: I Will Obey

145 I call with all my heart.
    Answer me, O Lord.
    I will guard your statutes.
146 I call to you. Save me,
    and I will keep your testimonies.
147 I get up before dawn, and I cry for help.
    I wait confidently for your word.
148 My eyes look forward to the night watches
    when I can meditate on your sayings.
149 Hear my voice according to your mercy.
    Lord, give me life based on your judgments.
150 Those who pursue evil plans are near,
    but they are far from your law.
151 You are near, O Lord,
    and all your commandments are truth.
152 Long ago I knew from your testimonies
    that you established them to endure forever.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:132 Some translations take the Hebrew word mishpat, translated as judgment above, to mean this is your usual way to deal with those who love your name, but if this is done, there is no name for God’s Word in this verse.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 05

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 05

Psalm 119:105-128

Through My Bible – October 05

Psalm 119:105-128 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Nun: A Lamp for My Feet

105 Your words are a lamp for my feet
    and a light for my path.
106 I have sworn and affirmed
    that I will keep your righteous judgments.
107 I have suffered much.
    Lord, give me life according to your words.
108 Lord, please accept the willing praise from my mouth,
    and teach me your judgments.
109 I take my life in my hands constantly,
    but I will not forget your law.
110 The wicked have set a snare for me,
    but I have not wandered from your precepts.
111 I have inherited your testimonies forever.
    Yes, they are the joy of my heart.
112 I turn my heart to do your statutes,
    forever, right to the end.

Samekh: Get Away From Me, You Evildoers

113 I hate the doubleminded, but I love your law.
114 You are my hiding place and my shield.
    I wait confidently for your word.
115 Get away from me, you evildoers,
    so that I may guard the commandments of my God!
116 Sustain me according to your sayings, and I will live.
    Do not let me be ashamed of my hope.
117 Hold me up, and I will be saved.
    Then I will always have regard for your statutes.
118 You reject all who stray from your statutes,
    because their deceitfulness is built on a lie. [1]
119 You discard all the wicked of the earth like slag.
    Therefore, I love your testimonies.
120 My flesh trembles because I am afraid of you,
    because I fear your judgments.

Ayin: It Is Time to Act

121 I have carried out what is just and right.
    Do not leave me to my oppressors.
122 Guarantee good for your servant.
    Do not let the arrogant oppress me.
123 My eyes wear out,
    as I watch for your salvation and your righteousness.
124 Deal with your servant according to your mercy,
    and teach me your statutes.
125 I am your servant. Give me discernment,
    so that I may know your testimonies.
126 Lord, it is time to do something!
    They have broken your laws.
127 Because I love your commandments more than gold,
    more than pure gold,
128 because I value everything in all your precepts,
    I hate every wrong road.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:118 Or is useless




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 04

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 04

Psalm 119:81-104

Through My Bible – October 04

Psalm 119:81-104 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Kaph: A Wineskin in the Smoke

81 My soul is worn out, as I wait for your salvation.
I wait confidently for your word.
82 My eyes are worn out, as I look for your sayings.
I say, “When will you comfort me?”
83 Though I am like a wineskin in the smoke,
I do not forget your statutes.
84 How many days does your servant have?
When will you inflict judgment on my persecutors?
85 The arrogant dig pits for me.
This is against your laws.
86 All your commandments are trustworthy.
The arrogant persecute me wrongfully. Help me.
87 They almost put an end to me here on earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88 Give me life according to your mercy,
and I will obey the testimony from your mouth.

Lamed: Your Commands Have No Limits

89 To eternity, O Lord, your word is fixed firmly in the heavens.
90 For generation after generation, your faithfulness remains.
You established the earth, and it stands.
91 As for your judgments, they stand to this day,
because all things are your servants.
92 Unless your law had been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 To eternity I will not forget your precepts,
because by them you have given me life.
94 I am yours. Save me,
because I have sought your precepts.
95 The wicked are lying in wait for me to kill me,
but I will ponder your testimonies.
96 I see a limit to all perfection,
but your commandment has no limits.

Mem: Sweeter Than Honey

97 How I love your laws!
I meditate on them all day long.
98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies,
because it is always with me.
99 I have more wisdom than all my teachers,
because your testimonies are my meditation.
100 I have more understanding than the elders,
    because I guard your precepts.
101 I have kept my feet off every evil path
    in order to keep your words.
102 I have not turned from your judgments,
    because you yourself have instructed me.
103 How sweet are your sayings to my taste,
    sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 From your precepts I gain understanding.
    Therefore, I hate every false road.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Year 02 – October 03

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 03

Psalm 119:49-80

Through My Bible – October 03

Psalm 119:49-80 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Zayin: Comfort in Suffering

49 Remember your word to your servant,
because you have given me hope.
50 This is my comfort in my suffering:
that your saying gives me life.
51 The arrogant mock me constantly,
but I do not fall away from your law.
52 I remember your judgments from of old, Lord,
and I comfort myself with them.
53 Indignation grips me because of the wicked, who forsake your laws.
54 Your statutes are songs for me in the house where I am staying.
55 I remember your name during the night, O Lord,
and I will keep your laws.
56 This I have done: I guard your precepts.

Ḥet: I Will Not Forget

57 You are my portion, O Lord.
I said I would keep your words.
58 I have sought your favor with all my heart.
Be gracious to me according to your sayings.
59 I have considered my ways, [1]
and I have turned my feet to your testimonies.
60 I will hurry. I will not delay.
I will keep your commandments.
61 The ropes of the wicked bind me,
but I do not forget your law.
62 At midnight I rise to give you thanks for your righteous judgments.
63 I am a companion to all who fear you,
that is, to all who keep your precepts.
64 Your mercy, Lord, fills the earth.
Teach me your statutes.

Tet: It Is Good to Be Afflicted

65 You have done good for your servant, O Lord,
    according to your words.
66 Teach me good judgment and knowledge,
for I believe in your commandments.
67 Before I was afflicted I strayed,
but now I keep your saying.
68 You are good, and you do good.
Teach me your statutes.
69 The arrogant have smeared me with lies.
I guard your precepts with all my heart.
70 Their calloused hearts [2] feel nothing,
but I delight in your law.
71 It was good for me that I was afflicted,
so that I might learn your statutes.
72 Better for me is the law from your mouth
    than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

Yod: Those Who Fear You

73 Your hands made me and established me.
Give me understanding.
Then I will learn your commandments.
74 May those who fear you see me and rejoice,
because I wait confidently for your word.
75 I know, Lord, that your judgments are righteous.
In faithfulness you have afflicted me.
76 Please let your mercy be my comfort,
    according to your saying to your servant.
77 Let your abundant compassion come to me that I may live,
because your law is my delight.
78 Let the arrogant be put to shame,
because they have wronged me with lies.
As for me, I will meditate on your precepts.
79 Let those who fear you turn to me,
and those who know your testimonies.
80 Let my heart be blameless regarding your statutes,
so that I may not be put to shame.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:59 In these and other verses of the psalm it is sometimes uncertain whether the Hebrew verb forms refer to past actions, present attitudes, or future intentions.
  2. Psalm 119:70 Literally their fat hearts




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 02

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 02

Psalm 119:25-48

Through My Bible – October 02

Psalm 119:25-48 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Dalet: A Changed Heart

25 My soul [1] is stuck in the dust.
Revive my life according to your words.
26 I told you about my ways and you answered me.
Teach me your statutes.
27 Make me understand the meaning of your precepts.
Then I will meditate on your wonders.
28 My soul melts with sorrow.
By your words make me stand firm.
29 Turn me away from false ways,
and be gracious to me through your law.
30 I have chosen the way of truth.
I accept [2] your judgments.
31 I cling to your testimonies, O Lord.
Do not let me be put to shame.
32 I run the way of your commandments,
for you have strengthened my heart. [3]

He: That You May Be Feared

33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes.
Then I will guard it to the end.
34 Give me understanding, and I will guard your law.
I will keep it with all my heart.
35 Make me walk on the path of your commandments,
for I take pleasure in it.
36 Direct my heart toward your testimonies
and not toward material gain.
37 Keep my eyes from looking at worthless things.
Give me life according to your ways. [4]
38 Confirm your sayings to your servant,
so that you may be feared.
39 Take away my disgrace which I dread,
for your judgments are good.
40 How I long for your precepts!
Give me life in your righteousness.

Vav: Speak Before Kings

41 So let your mercies come to me, O Lord,
and let your salvation come according to your sayings.
42 Then I will give an answer to those who insult me,
    because I trust in your words.
43 But do not tear away the word of truth from my mouth,
    because I wait confidently for your judgments.
44 Then I will continually keep your law forever and ever.
45 Then I will walk around freely,
because I have sought your precepts.
46 Then I will speak of your testimonies before kings,
and I will not be put to shame.
47 For I delight in your commandments, which I love.
48 I lift up my hands to your commandments, which I love,
and I meditate on your statutes.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:25 In the Old Testament my soul is a more emotional way of saying I or me.
  2. Psalm 119:30 Or I set before me
  3. Psalm 119:32 Or you increased my understanding or you motivated me. Literally you made my heart wide.
  4. Psalm 119:37 A few Hebrew manuscripts have your word. Without this alteration there is no name of the Word in this verse.



The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 01

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 01

Psalm 119:1-24

Through My Bible – October 01

Psalm 119:1-24 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 119

Psalm 119

The Great Psalm on the Law of the Lord [1]

Aleph: Blessed Are the Blameless

1 How blessed are those who are blameless in their way,
who walk in the law [2] of the Lord.
2 How blessed are those who keep [3] his testimonies.
With all their heart they seek him.
3 Indeed, they do no wrong.
They walk in his ways.
4 You have commanded that your precepts [4] be kept completely.
5 If only my ways were unwavering in keeping your statutes! [5]
6 Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commands.
7 I will thank you with an upright heart
    as I learn your righteous judgments. [6]
8 I will keep your statutes.
Do not abandon me completely.

Bet: Hidden in My Heart

9 How can a young man keep his path pure?
By guarding it with your words. [7]
10 With all my heart I seek you.
Do not let me stray from your commands.
11 I have hidden your sayings [8] in my heart,
    so that I may not sin against you.
12 Blessed are you, O Lord!
Teach me your statutes.
13 With my lips I tell about all the judgments
    that come from your mouth.
14 I rejoice in the way that is taught by your testimonies
    as much as I delight in all riches.
15 I will meditate on your precepts,
and I will consider your paths.
16 In your statutes I delight.
I will not forget your words.

Gimel: Open My Eyes

17 Reward your servant.
Then I will live, and I will keep your words.
18 Uncover my eyes, and I will behold wonders from your law.
19 I am an alien on earth.
Do not hide your commandments from me.
20 My soul is overwhelmed by desire for your judgments at all times.
21 You rebuke the arrogant, who are cursed,
those who stray from your commandments.
22 Remove scorn and contempt from me,
for I guard your testimonies.
23 Though officials sit together and speak against me,
your servant will meditate on your statutes.
24 Yes, your testimonies are my delights.
They are my advisors.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:1 Psalm 119, the longest chapter in the Bible, is a lengthy meditation on the characteristics and blessings of God’s Word. God’s Word is praised 176 times (22 × 8). Eight different names for God’s Word appear repeatedly throughout the psalm (laws, testimonies, precepts, statutes, commands, judgments, words, sayings). Though many of these terms sound like legal terms, they are all names for God’s whole Word. Each of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet is represented by an eight-line stanza. All eight lines of each stanza begin with the appropriate Hebrew letter. The letter names are listed in the stanza headings.
  2. Psalm 119:1 Law in the Old Testament is often used in a wide sense as a name for God’s whole Word. It may refer to teaching of various kinds.
  3. Psalm 119:2 Or guard
  4. Psalm 119:4 Or regulations or rules
  5. Psalm 119:5 Or instructions
  6. Psalm 119:7 Or rulings or ordinances
  7. Psalm 119:9 Or word. In this psalm there are many textual variants between singular and plural forms of word. The translation does not note them all.
  8. Psalm 119:11 Or message. Many translate this as promise, but it is the common Hebrew root for say. Sometimes, of course, God’s sayings are promises.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 30

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 30

Psalms 117 – 118

Through My Bible – September 30

Psalms 117 – 118 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 117

Praise the Lord

1 Praise the Lord, all you nations.
Worship him, every race of people. [1]
2 For his mercy overwhelms us,
and the faithfulness [2] of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord.

Psalm 118

The Stone the Builders Rejected

Introduction

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
2 Let Israel say now: Yes, his mercy endures forever.
3 Let the house of Aaron say now: Yes, his mercy endures forever.
4 Let those who fear the Lord say now: Yes, his mercy endures forever.

Trust During Distress

5 Under pressure I cried to the Lord. [3]
The Lord answered me.
He set me in a wide-open space.
6 The Lord is with me.
I will not be afraid.
What can people do to me?
7 The Lord, who is with me, is my helper,
so I will look in triumph on my enemies.
8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
    than to trust in people.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
    than to trust in human benefactors. [4]
10 All the nations surrounded me,
but in the name of the Lord I cut them off. [5]
11 They surrounded me, yes, they surrounded me,
but in the name of the Lord I cut them off.
12 They surrounded me like bees,
but they were extinguished as quickly as a fire of thorns.
In the name of the Lord I cut them off.
13 You pushed me hard to make me fall,
but the Lord helped me.

The Messiah’s Joy in Victory

14 My strength and song is the Lord,
and he has become salvation for me.
15 Loud shouts of victory are heard in the tents of the righteous:
“The right hand of the Lord has done a mighty deed!
16 The right hand of the Lord is lifted high!
The right hand of the Lord has done a mighty deed!”
17 I will not die. No, I will live,
and I will proclaim the works of the Lord.
18 The Lord has chastened me severely,
but he has not handed me over to death.
19 Open for me the gates of righteousness.
I will enter them. I will give thanks to the Lord.
20 This is the gate to the Lord.
The righteous enter it.
21 I will give you thanks,
because you answered me,
and you have become salvation for me.

The Joy in Victory of Messiah’s Followers

22 The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. [6]
23 This is from the Lord.
It is marvelous in our eyes.
24 This is the day the Lord has made.
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
25 O Lord, please save us now. [7]
O Lord, grant us success.
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
We bless you from the house of the Lord.
27 The Lord is God,
and he makes light shine on us.
Bind the festival with branches as far as the horns of the altar. [8]
28 You are my God, and I will give you thanks.
You are my God, and I will exalt you.

Conclusion

29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 117:1 The Hebrew word here is not one of the usual words for nation, people, or tribe, so it has been translated race to distinguish it from the more common words.
  2. Psalm 117:2 Or truth
  3. Psalm 118:5 Yah, the short form of the divine name, is used here, also in the next line, and in verses 14, 17, 18, 19.
  4. Psalm 118:9 The Hebrew word refers to rich people who have the willingness and the means to help the needy.
  5. Psalm 118:10 Or perhaps a rare homonym push them away
  6. Psalm 118:22 Literally the head of the corner. Other possible translations are the capstone or the keystone.
  7. Psalm 118:25 The Hebrew for please save us now is hosanna.
  8. Psalm 118:27 To avoid imposing a guess on the text, the translation retains a literal translation of this very difficult line. It seems to mean: It’s the festival! Decorate the route with boughs and march in a procession toward the horns of the altar. Many suggest it means: Decorate the festival sacrificial animal with boughs and tie it to the horns of the altar, but Israelite worshippers did not approach the altar. Only priests did that, and by then the sacrifice had been cut into pieces.




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 29

/in

Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 29

Psalms 116

Through My Bible – September 29

Psalms 116 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 116

Deliverance From Death

Overview

1 I love the Lord, because he hears my voice.
He hears my cry for mercy.
2 Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call to him all my days.
3 The ropes of death entangled me.
The walls of the grave hemmed me in. [1]
I found distress and sorrow.
4 Then I called on the name of the Lord:
“Ah, Lord, please save my life!”
5 The Lord is gracious and righteous,
and our God is compassionate.
6 The Lord protects the inexperienced. [2]
In my weakness he saves me too.

Past Deliverance

7 Return, my soul, to your rest,
for the Lord has accomplished his purpose for you.
8 Indeed, you have delivered my soul from death,
my eye from weeping, my foot from stumbling,
9 so that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
10 I believed. Therefore, I have spoken:
“I am greatly afflicted.”
11 In my haste I said:
“All people are deceptive.”

Future Devotion

12 How can I repay the Lord for all his benefits to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation,
and I will call on [3] the name of the Lord.
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord,
now in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his favored ones.
16 Ah, Lord, truly I am your servant.
I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
You opened my chains.
17 To you I will sacrifice a thank offering,
and I will call on the name of the Lord.
18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
    here in the presence of all his people,
19     in the courtyards of the house of the Lord,
    in the middle of Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 116:3 Or, more literally, caught up with me
  2. Psalm 116:6 Or those with a childlike faith
  3. Psalm 116:13 Or proclaim




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 28

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 28

Psalms 115

Through My Bible – September 28

Psalms 115 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 115

Not to Us

To God Alone Be Glory

1 Not to us, O Lord, not to us,
but to your name give glory,
because of your mercy,
because of your truth.

No Glory in Idols

2 Why should the nations say,
“So where is their God now?”
3 In fact, our God is in the heavens.
He does everything that pleases him.
4 Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands.
5 They have a mouth, but they do not speak.
They have eyes, but they do not see.
6 They have ears, but they do not hear.
They have a nose, but they do not smell.
7 Their hands—they do not even feel.
Their feet—they do not even walk around.
They do not even make a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them.

Trust in the Lord

9 Israel, trust in the Lord—
he is their help and their shield.
10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord—
he is their help and their shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord—
he is their help and their shield.
12 The Lord remembers us. He will bless.
He will bless the house of Israel.
He will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord—
the small with the great.
14 May the Lord add blessings to you,
to you and to your children.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

Serve the Lord

16 The heavens are heavens for the Lord,
but the earth he gave to the children of Adam.
17 It is not the dead who praise the Lord, [1]
nor any of those who go down to silence,
18 but we are the ones who bless the Lord, [2]
    from now to eternity.
Praise the Lord. [3]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 115:17 The short form of the divine name, Yah, is used rather than the full form, Yahweh.
  2. Psalm 115:18 The short form Yah is used.
  3. Psalm 115:18 Hebrew hallelu Yah




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.



Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 27

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Through My Bible Yr 02 – September 27

Psalms 113 – 114

Through My Bible – September 27

Psalms 113 – 114 (EHV)

See series: Through My Bible

Psalm 113

The Mighty Deliverer

Invitation to Praise

1 Praise the Lord. [1]

Praise, you servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.
2 Let the name of the Lord be blessed, from now to eternity.
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting,
    the name of the Lord is to be praised.

The Basis for Praise

4 High above all the nations is the Lord.
His glory towers above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God?
He is seated on high.
6 He bends down to look at the heavens and at the earth.
7 He raises the poor from the dust.
He lifts the needy from the garbage pile
8     to seat them with nobles,
    with the nobles of his people.
9 He is the one who settles the barren woman in her home
    as a joyful mother of children.

Praise the Lord.

Psalm 114

When Israel Came Out of Egypt

1 When Israel came out of Egypt
and the house of Jacob from a people with a strange language,
2 Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel became his kingdom.
3 The sea saw and fled.
The Jordan turned back.
4 The mountains skipped like rams,
the hills like lambs.
5 What happened, O sea, that you fled,
O Jordan, that you turned back,
6 O mountains, that you skipped like rams,
you hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble in the presence of the Lord, O earth.
Tremble in the presence of the God of Jacob.
8 He turned the rock into a pool of water.
He turned flint into springs of water.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 113:1 Hebrew hallelu Yah




The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.