Daily Bible Reading

Result of Unfaithfulness (Jeremiah 2:19) Good News Translation

2018-12-10T23:18:00.003-08:00

19 Your own evil will punish you, and your turning from me will condemn you.
You will learn how bitter and wrong it is to abandon me, the Lord your God,
and no longer to remain loyal to me.
I, the Sovereign Lord Almighty, have spoken.

Susan G. Komen® Arkansas - 2018 Komen Arkansas Race for the Cure

2018-10-11T20:15:00.001-07:00

Susan G. Komen® Arkansas - 2018 Komen Arkansas Race for the Cure

Those Who Reverence the Lord (Isaiah 50:10-11) Good News Bible

2018-09-30T21:47:00.002-07:00

10 All of you that have reverence for the Lord

and obey the words of the servant, the path you walkdmay be dark indeed,

but trust in the Lord, rely on your God.

11 All of you that plot to destroy others will be destroyed by your own plots.

The Lord himself will make this happen, you will suffer a miserable fate.

God is Near (Isaiah 50:7-9) Good News Bible

2018-09-30T21:36:00.002-07:00

7 But their insults cannot hurt me because the Sovereign Lord give me help
    I brace myself to endure them.
    I know that I will not be disgraced.
8 for God is near, and he will prove me innocent.
    Does anyone dare bring charges against me?
    Let us go to court together!
    Let him bring his accusation!
9 The Sovereign Lord himself defends me-----
     who then, can prove me guilty?
     All my accusers will disappear, they will vanish like moth eatencloth.

God Is Rev. James Cleveland

2017-10-05T22:41:00.002-07:00

Thank You...Walter Hawkins

2017-10-05T22:39:00.000-07:00

Life in the Spirit (Romans 8:1-8) Good News Translation

2017-09-30T23:10:00.003-07:00

1 There is no condemnation now for those who live in union with Christ Jesus.
2   For the law of the Spirit, which brings us life in union with Christ Jesus, has
set me free from the law of sin and death.
3   What the Law could not do, because human nature was weak, God did. He
condemned sin in human nature by sending his own Son, who came with a nature
like man's sinful nature, to do away with sin.
4   God did this so that the righteous demands of he Law might be fully satisfied in
us who live according to the Spirit, and not according to human nature.
5   Those who live as their human nature tells them to, have their minds controlled
by what human nature wants. Those who live as the Spirit tells them to, have their minds
controlled by what he Spirit wants.
6   To be controlled by human nature results in death; to be controlled by the Spirit
results in life and peace.
7   And so a person becomes an enemy of God when he is controlled by his human
nature; for he does not obey God's law, and in fact he cannot obey it.
8   Those who obey their human nature cannot please God.

God's Plan Revealed ((Ephesians 3:1-13) New Living Translation)

2017-09-26T18:35:00.002-07:00

1 When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles . . . 2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. 3 As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. 4 As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ. 5 God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets. 6 And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus. 7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News. 8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. 9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. 10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence. 13 So please don’t lose heart because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored. Reprint from Daily Bible Reading 9/16/15

Vickie Winans "We Shall Behold Him"

2017-04-15T22:32:00.001-07:00

Vicki Winans - More Than Enough

2017-04-15T22:24:00.001-07:00

God's Mysterious Plan Revealed (Ephesians 3:1-13) New Living Translation

2015-09-16T15:05:00.000-07:00

1   When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles . . .
2    assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles.
3    As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me.
4    As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ.
5    God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets.
6   And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.
7   By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.
8   Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.
9    I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.
10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God’s presence.
13 So please don’t lose heart because of my trials here. I am suffering for you, so you should feel honored.

Ruth at the Threshing Floor (Ruth 3) New Living Translation

2015-09-16T14:49:00.005-07:00

1    One day Naomi said to Ruth, “My daughter, it’s time that I found a permanent home for you, so that you will be provided for.
2    Boaz is a close relative of ours, and he’s been very kind by letting you gather grain with his young women. Tonight he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor.
3    Now do as I tell you—take a bath and put on perfume and dress in your nicest clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don’t let Boaz see you until he has finished eating and drinking.
4    Be sure to notice where he lies down; then go and uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do.”
5    “I will do everything you say,” Ruth replied. ⁶
6    So she went down to the threshing floor that night and followed the instructions of her mother-in-law.
7    After Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he lay down at the far end of the pile of grain and went to sleep. Then Ruth came quietly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.
8    Around midnight Boaz suddenly woke up and turned over. He was surprised to find a woman lying at his feet!
9    “Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she replied. “Spread the corner of your covering over me, for you are my family redeemer.”
10 “The Lord bless you, my daughter!” Boaz exclaimed. “You are showing even more family loyalty now than you did before, for you have not gone after a younger man, whether rich or poor.
11 Now don’t worry about a thing, my daughter. I will do what is necessary, for everyone in town knows you are a virtuous woman.
12 But while it’s true that I am one of your family redeemers, there is another man who is more closely related to you than I am.
13 Stay here tonight, and in the morning I will talk to him. If he is willing to redeem you, very well. Let him marry you. But if he is not willing, then as surely as the Lord lives, I will redeem you myself! Now lie down here until morning.”
14 So Ruth lay at Boaz’s feet until the morning, but she got up before it was light enough for people to recognize each other. For Boaz had said, “No one must know that a woman was here at the threshing floor.”
15 Then Boaz said to her, “Bring your cloak and spread it out.” He measured six scoops of barley into the cloak and placed it on her back. Then he returned to the town.
16 When Ruth went back to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, “What happened, my daughter?”
Ruth told Naomi everything Boaz had done for her, ¹
17 and she added, “He gave me these six scoops of barley and said, ‘Don’t go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’”
18 Then Naomi said to her, “Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won’t rest until he has settled things today.”

Oneness and Peace in Christ (Ephesians 2:11-22) New Living Translation

2015-09-14T19:24:00.000-07:00

11 Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. You were called “uncircumcised heathens” by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. ¹

12 In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.

13 But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ.

14 For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.

15 He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups.

16 Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.

17 He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near.

18 Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us.

19 So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family.

20 Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself.

21 We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord.

22 Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.

Ruth Works in Boaz's Field (Ruth 2) New Living Translation

2015-09-14T19:05:00.002-07:00

1    Now there was a wealthy and influential man in Bethlehem named Boaz, who was a relative of Naomi’s husband, Elimelech.
2    One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go out into the harvest fields to pick up the stalks of grain left behind by anyone who is kind enough to let me do it.” Naomi replied, “All right, my daughter, go ahead.”
3    So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters. And as it happened, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law, Elimelech.
4    While she was there, Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters. “The Lord be with you!” he said. “The Lord bless you!” the harvesters replied.
5    Then Boaz asked his foreman, “Who is that young woman over there? Who does she belong to?”
6    And the foreman replied, “She is the young woman from Moab who came back with Naomi.
7    She asked me this morning if she could gather grain behind the harvesters. She has been hard at work ever since, except for a few minutes’ rest in the shelter.”
8    Boaz went over and said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Stay right here with us when you gather grain; don’t go to any other fields. Stay right behind the young women working in my field.
9    See which part of the field they are harvesting, and then follow them. I have warned the young men not to treat you roughly. And when you are thirsty, help yourself to the water they have drawn from the well.”
10 Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. “What have I done to deserve such kindness?” she asked. “I am only a foreigner.”
11 “Yes, I know,” Boaz replied. “But I also know about everything you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers.
12 May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully for what you have done.”
13 “I hope I continue to please you, sir,” she replied. “You have comforted me by speaking so kindly to me, even though I am not one of your workers.”
14 At mealtime Boaz called to her, “Come over here, and help yourself to some food. You can dip your bread in the sour wine.” So she sat with his harvesters, and Boaz gave her some roasted grain to eat. She ate all she wanted and still had some left over.
15 When Ruth went back to work again, Boaz ordered his young men, “Let her gather grain right among the sheaves without stopping her.
16 And pull out some heads of barley from the bundles and drop them on purpose for her. Let her pick them up, and don’t give her a hard time!”
17 So Ruth gathered barley there all day, and when she beat out the grain that evening, it filled an entire basket.
18 She carried it back into town and showed it to her mother-in-law. Ruth also gave her the roasted grain that was left over from her meal.
19 “Where did you gather all this grain today?” Naomi asked. “Where did you work? May the Lord bless the one who helped you!” So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the man in whose field she had worked. She said, “The man I worked with today is named Boaz.”
20 “May the Lord bless him!” Naomi told her daughter-in-law. “He is showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers.”
21 Then Ruth said, “What’s more, Boaz even told me to come back and stay with his harvesters until the entire harvest is completed.”
22 “Good!” Naomi exclaimed. “Do as he said, my daughter. Stay with his young women right through the whole harvest. You might be harassed in other fields, but you’ll be safe with him.”
23 So Ruth worked alongside the women in Boaz’s fields and gathered grain with them until the end of the barley harvest. Then she continued working with them through the wheat harvest in early summer. And all the while she lived with her mother-in-law.

Made Alive with Christ (Ephesians 2:1-10) New Living Translation

2015-09-13T20:55:00.000-07:00

1   Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins.
2   You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.
3 All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.
4   But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,
5    that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)
6   For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus.
7   So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.
8    God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.
9    Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.
10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Naomi and Ruth Return (Ruth 1:6-22) New Living Translation

2015-09-13T20:17:00.003-07:00

6 Then Naomi heard in Moab that the Lord had blessed his people in Judah by giving them good crops again. So Naomi and her daughters-in-law got ready to leave Moab to return to her homeland.

7 With her two daughters-in-law she set out from the place where she had been living, and they took the road that would lead them back to Judah.

8 But on the way, Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back to your mothers’ homes. And may the Lord reward you for your kindness to your husbands and to me.

9 May the Lord bless you with the security of another marriage.” Then she kissed them good-bye, and they all broke down and wept.

10 “No,” they said. “We want to go with you to your people.”

11 But Naomi replied, “Why should you go on with me? Can I still give birth to other sons who could grow up to be your husbands?

12 No, my daughters, return to your parents’ homes, for I am too old to marry again. And even if it were possible, and I were to get married tonight and bear sons, then what?

13 Would you wait for them to grow up and refuse to marry someone else? No, of course not, my daughters! Things are far more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord himself has raised his fist against me.”

14 And again they wept together, and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye. But Ruth clung tightly to Naomi.

15 “Look,” Naomi said to her, “your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. You should do the same.”

16 But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.

17 Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!”

18 When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she said nothing more.

19 So the two of them continued on their journey. When they came to Bethlehem, the entire town was excited by their arrival. “Is it really Naomi?” the women asked.

20 “Don’t call me Naomi,” she responded. “Instead, call me Mara, for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me.

21 I went away full, but the Lord has brought me home empty. Why call me Naomi when the Lord has caused me to suffer and the Almighty has sent such tragedy upon me?”

22 So Naomi returned from Moab, accompanied by her daughter-in-law Ruth, the young Moabite woman. They arrived in Bethlehem in late spring, at the beginning of the barley harvest.

Ruth 1:1-5 and Ephesians 1:15-23 (New Living Translation)

2015-09-12T20:02:00.000-07:00

ELIMELECH MOVES HIS FAMILY TO MOAB
1 In the days when the judges ruled in Israel, a severe famine came upon the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah left his home and went to live in the country of Moab, taking his wife and two sons with him.
2 The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife was Naomi. Their two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in the land of Judah. And when they reached Moab, they settled there.
3 Then Elimelech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons.
4 The two sons married Moabite women. One married a woman named Orpah, and the other a woman named Ruth. But about ten years later,
5 both Mahlon and Kilion died. This left Naomi alone, without her two sons or her husband.

PAUL'S PRAYER FOR SPIRITUAL WISDOM

15 Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere,

16 I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly,

17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power

20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

21 Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come.

22 God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church.

23 And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself.

Spiritual Blessings (Ephesians 1:1-14) New Living Translation

2015-09-11T23:08:00.000-07:00

1    This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus.
I am writing to God’s holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus.
2    May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
3    All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.
4    Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.
5    God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.
6    So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.
7    He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.
8    has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
9    God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure.
10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.
11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.
12 God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God.
13   And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.
14 The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.

Israel Provides Wives for Benjamin (Judges 21) New Living Translation

2015-09-11T22:41:00.005-07:00

1   The Israelites had vowed at Mizpah, “We will never give our daughters in marriage to a man from the tribe of Benjamin.”
2    Now the people went to Bethel and sat in the presence of God until evening, weeping loudly and bitterly.
3    “O Lord, God of Israel,” they cried out, “why has this happened in Israel? Now one of our tribes is missing from Israel!”
4    Early the next morning the people built an altar and presented their burnt offerings and peace offerings on it.
5   Then they said, “Who among the tribes of Israel did not join us at Mizpah when we held our assembly in the presence of the Lord?” At that time they had taken a solemn oath in the Lord’s presence, vowing that anyone who refused to come would be put to death.
6 The Israelites felt sorry for their brother Benjamin and said, “Today one of the tribes of Israel has been cut off.
7 How can we find wives for the few who remain, since we have sworn by the Lord not to give them our daughters in marriage?”
8   So they asked, “Who among the tribes of Israel did not join us at Mizpah when we assembled in the presence of the Lord?” And they discovered that no one from Jabesh-gilead had attended the assembly.
9    For after they counted all the people, no one from Jabesh-gilead was present.
10 So the assembly sent 12,000 of their best warriors to Jabesh-gilead with orders to kill everyone there, including women and children.
11 “This is what you are to do,” they said. “Completely destroy all the males and every woman who is not a virgin.”
12 Among the residents of Jabesh-gilead they found 400 young virgins who had never slept with a man, and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh in the land of Canaan.
13 The Israelite assembly sent a peace delegation to the remaining people of Benjamin who were living at the rock of Rimmon.
14 Then the men of Benjamin returned to their homes, and the 400 women of Jabesh-gilead who had been spared were given to them as wives. But there were not enough women for all of them.
15 The people felt sorry for Benjamin because the Lord had made this gap among the tribes of Israel.
16 So the elders of the assembly asked, “How can we find wives for the few who remain, since the women of the tribe of Benjamin are dead?
17 There must be heirs for the survivors so that an entire tribe of Israel is not wiped out.
18 But we cannot give them our own daughters in marriage because we have sworn with a solemn oath that anyone who does this will fall under God’s curse.”
19 Then they thought of the annual festival of the Lord held in Shiloh, south of Lebonah and north of Bethel, along the east side of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem.
20 They told the men of Benjamin who still needed wives, “Go and hide in the vineyards.
21 When you see the young women of Shiloh come out for their dances, rush out from the vineyards, and each of you can take one of them home to the land of Benjamin to be your wife!
22 And when their fathers and brothers come to us in protest, we will tell them, ‘Please be sympathetic. Let them have your daughters, for we didn’t find wives for all of them when we destroyed Jabesh-gilead. And you are not guilty of breaking the vow since you did not actually give your daughters to them in marriage.’”
23 So the men of Benjamin did as they were told. Each man caught one of the women as she danced in the celebration and carried her off to be his wife. They returned to their own land, and they rebuilt their towns and lived in them.
24 Then the people of Israel departed by tribes and families, and they returned to their own homes.
25 In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Paul's Final Advice (Galatians 6:11-18) New Living Translation

2015-09-09T20:51:00.000-07:00

11 Notice what large letters i use as i write these closing words in my own handwriting.

12 Those who are trying to force you to be circumcised want to look good to others. They don’t want to be persecuted for teaching that the cross of Christ alone can save.

13 And even those who advocate circumcision don’t keep the whole law themselves. They only want you to be circumcised so they can boast about it and claim you as their disciples.

14 As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died.

15 It doesn’t matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation.

16 May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God.

17 From now on, don’t let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus.

18 Dear brothers and sisters, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

Israel's War with Benjamin (Judges 20) New Living Translation

2015-09-09T20:28:00.002-07:00

1    Then all the Israelites were united as one man, from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south, including those from across the Jordan in the land of Gilead. The entire community assembled in the presence of the Lord at Mizpah.
2    The leaders of all the people and all the tribes of Israel—400,000 warriors armed with words—took their positions in the assembly of the people of God.
3    (Word soon reached the land of Benjamin that the other tribes had gone up to Mizpah.) The Israelites then asked how this terrible crime had happened.
4    The Levite, the husband of the woman who had been murdered, said, “My concubine and I came to spend the night in Gibeah, a town that belongs to the people of Benjamin.
5    That night some of the leading citizens of Gibeah surrounded the house, planning to kill me, and they raped my concubine until she was dead.
6    So I cut her body into twelve pieces and sent the pieces throughout the territory assigned to Israel, for these men have committed a terrible and shameful crime.
7    Now then, all of you—the entire community of Israel—must decide here and now what should be done about this!”
8    And all the people rose to their feet in unison and declared, “None of us will return home! No, not even one of us!
9    Instead, this is what we will do to Gibeah; we will draw lots to decide who will attack it.
10 One-tenth of the men from each tribe will be chosen to supply the warriors with food, and the rest of us will take revenge on Gibeah of Benjamin for this shameful thing they have done in Israel.”
11 So all the Israelites were completely united, and they gathered together to attack the town.
12 The Israelites sent messengers to the tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What a terrible thing has been done among you!
13 Give up those evil men, those troublemakers from Gibeah, so we can execute them and purge Israel of this evil.” But the people of Benjamin would not listen.
14 Instead, they came from their towns and gathered at Gibeah to fight the Israelites.
15 In all, 26,000 of their warriors armed with swords arrived in Gibeah to join the 700 elite troops who lived there. ¹
16 Among Benjamin’s elite troops, 700 were left-handed, and each of them could sling a rock and hit a target within a hairsbreadth without missing.
17 Israel had 400,000 experienced soldiers armed with swords, not counting Benjamin’s warriors.
18 Before the battle the Israelites went to Bethel and asked God, “Which tribe should go first to attack the people of Benjamin?” The Lord answered, “Judah is to go first.”
19 So the Israelites left early the next morning and camped near Gibeah.
20 Then they advanced toward Gibeah to attack the men of Benjamin.
21 But Benjamin’s warriors, who were defending the town, came out and killed 22,000 Israelites on the battlefield that day.
22 But the Israelites encouraged each other and took their positions again at the same place they had fought the previous day.
23 For they had gone up to Bethel and wept in the presence of the Lord until evening. They had asked the Lord, “Should we fight against our relatives from Benjamin again?” And the Lord had said, “Go out and fight against them.”
24 So the next day they went out again to fight against the men of Benjamin,
25 but the men of Benjamin killed another 18,000 Israelites, all of whom were experienced with the sword.
26 Then all the Israelites went up to Bethel and wept in the presence of the Lord and fasted until evening. They also brought burnt offerings and peace offerings to the Lord.
27 The Israelites went up seeking direction from the Lord. (In those days the Ark of the Covenant of God was in Bethel,
28 and Phinehas son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron was the priest.) The Israelites asked the Lord, “Should we fight against our relatives from Benjamin again, or should we stop?” The Lord said, “Go! Tomorrow I will hand them over to you.”
29 So the Israelites set an ambush all around Gibeah.
30 They went out on the third day and took their positions at the same place as before.
31 When the men of Benjamin came out to attack, they were drawn away from the town. And as they had done before, they began to kill the Israelites. About thirty Israelites died in the open fields and along the roads, one leading to Bethel and the other leading back to Gibeah.
32 Then the warriors of Benjamin shouted, “We’re defeating them as we did before!” But the Israelites had planned in advance to run away so that the men of Benjamin would chase them along the roads and be drawn away from the town.
33 When the main group of Israelite warriors reached Baal-tamar, they turned and took up their positions. Meanwhile, the Israelites hiding in ambush to the west of Gibeah jumped up to fight.
34 There were 10,000 elite Israelite troops who advanced against Gibeah. The fighting was so heavy that Benjamin didn’t realize the impending disaster.
35   So the Lord helped Israel defeat Benjamin, and that day the Israelites killed 25,100 of Benjamin’s warriors, all of whom were experienced swordsmen.
36  Then the men of Benjamin saw that they were beaten. The Israelites had retreated from Benjamin’s warriors in order to give those hiding in ambush more room to maneuver against Gibeah.
37 Then those who were hiding rushed in from all sides and killed everyone in the town.
38 They had arranged to send up a large cloud of smoke from the town as a signal.
39 When the Israelites saw the smoke, they turned and attacked Benjamin’s warriors.
By that time Benjamin’s warriors had killed about thirty Israelites, and they shouted, “We’re defeating them as we did in the first battle!”
40 But when the warriors of Benjamin looked behind them and saw the smoke rising into the sky from every part of the town,
41 the men of Israel turned and attacked. At this point the men of Benjamin became terrified, because they realized disaster was close at hand.
42 So they turned around and fled before the Israelites toward the wilderness. But they couldn’t escape the battle, and the people who came out of the nearby towns were also killed.
43 The Israelites surrounded the men of Benjamin and chased them relentlessly, finally overtaking them east of Gibeah.
44 That day 18,000 of Benjamin’s strongest warriors died in battle.
45 The survivors fled into the wilderness toward the rock of Rimmon, but Israel killed 5,000 of them along the road. They continued the chase until they had killed another 2,000 near Gidom.
46 So that day the tribe of Benjamin lost 25,000 strong warriors armed with swords,
47 leaving only 600 men who escaped to the rock of Rimmon, where they lived for four months.
48 And the Israelites returned and slaughtered every living thing in all the towns—the people, the livestock, and everything they found. They also burned down all the towns they came to.

We Harvest What We Plant (Galatians 6:1-10) New Living Translation

2015-09-09T00:33:00.000-07:00

1   Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.
2   Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.
3   If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important.
4   Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else.
5   For we are each responsible for our own conduct.
6   Those who are taught the word of God should provide for their teachers, sharing all good things with them.
7   Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.
8   Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.
9   So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
10 Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.

The Levite and His Concubine (Judges 19) New Living Translation

2015-09-08T23:54:00.000-07:00

1   Now in those days Israel had no king. There was a man from the tribe of Levi living in a remote area of the hill country of Ephraim. One day he brought home a woman from Bethlehem in Judah to be his concubine.
2   But she became angry with him and returned to her father’s home in Bethlehem. After about four months,
3   her husband set out for Bethlehem to speak personally to her and persuade her to come back. He took with him a servant and a pair of donkeys. When he arrived at her father’s house, her father saw him and welcomed him.
4   Her father urged him to stay awhile, so he stayed three days, eating, drinking, and sleeping there.
5   On the fourth day the man was up early, ready to leave, but the woman’s father said to his son-in-law, “Have something to eat before you go.”
6   So the two men sat down together and had something to eat and drink. Then the woman’s father said, “Please stay another night and enjoy yourself.”
7    The man got up to leave, but his father-in-law kept urging him to stay, so he finally gave in and stayed the night.
8   On the morning of the fifth day he was up early again, ready to leave, and again the woman’s father said, “Have something to eat; then you can leave later this afternoon.” So they had another day of feasting.
9   Later, as the man and his concubine and servant were preparing to leave, his father-in-law said, “Look, it’s almost evening. Stay the night and enjoy yourself. Tomorrow you can get up early and be on your way.”
10 But this time the man was determined to leave. So he took his two saddled donkeys and his concubine and headed in the direction of Jebus (that is, Jerusalem).
11 It was late in the day when they neared Jebus, and the man’s servant said to him, “Let’s stop at this Jebusite town and spend the night there.”
12 “No,” his master said, “we can’t stay in this foreign town where there are no Israelites. Instead, we will go on to Gibeah.
13   Come on, let’s try to get as far as Gibeah or Ramah, and we’ll spend the night in one of those towns.”
14   So they went on. The sun was setting as they came to Gibeah, a town in the land of Benjamin,
15   so they stopped there to spend the night. They rested in the town square, but no one took them in for the night.
16   That evening an old man came home from his work in the fields. He was from the hill country of Ephraim, but he was living in Gibeah, where the people were from the tribe of Benjamin.
17   When he saw the travelers sitting in the town square, he asked them where they were from and where they were going.
18   “We have been in Bethlehem in Judah,” the man replied. “We are on our way to a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim, which is my home. I traveled to Bethlehem, and now I’m returning home. But no one has taken us in for the night,
19   even though we have everything we need. We have straw and feed for our donkeys and plenty of bread and wine for ourselves.”
20   “You are welcome to stay with me,” the old man said. “I will give you anything you might need. But whatever you do, don’t spend the night in the square.”
21   So he took them home with him and fed the donkeys. After they washed their feet, they ate and drank together.
22   While they were enjoying themselves, a crowd of troublemakers from the town surrounded the house. They began beating at the door and shouting to the old man, “Bring out the man who is staying with you so we can have sex with him.”
23   The old man stepped outside to talk to them. “No, my brothers, don’t do such an evil thing. For this man is a guest in my house, and such a thing would be shameful.
24   Here, take my virgin daughter and this man’s concubine. I will bring them out to you, and you can abuse them and do whatever you like. But don’t do such a shameful thing to this man.”
25   But they wouldn’t listen to him. So the Levite took hold of his concubine and pushed her out the door. The men of the town abused her all night, taking turns raping her until morning. Finally, at dawn they let her go.
26   At daybreak the woman returned to the house where her husband was staying. She collapsed at the door of the house and lay there until it was light.
27   When her husband opened the door to leave, there lay his concubine with her hands on the threshold.
28   He said, “Get up! Let’s go!” But there was no answer. So he put her body on his donkey and took her home.
29 When he got home, he took a knife and cut his concubine’s body into twelve pieces. Then he sent one piece to each tribe throughout all the territory of Israel.
30   Everyone who saw it said, “Such a horrible crime has not been committed in all the time since Israel left Egypt. Think about it! What are we going to do? Who’s going to speak up?”

Living by the Spirit's Power (Galatians 5:16-26) New Living Translation

2015-09-07T23:21:00.000-07:00

16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.

17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. ¹

18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.

19 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures,

20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division,

21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. ²

26 Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.

Idolatry in the Tribe Dan (Judges 18) New Living Translation

2015-09-07T23:03:00.004-07:00

1   Now in those days Israel had no king. And the tribe of Dan was trying to find a place where they could settle, for they had not yet moved into the land assigned to them when the land was divided among the tribes of Israel.
2   So the men of Dan chose from their clans five capable warriors from the towns of Zorah and Eshtaol to scout out a land for them to settle in. When these warriors arrived in the hill country of Ephraim, they came to Micah’s house and spent the night there.
3   While at Micah’s house, they recognized the young Levite’s accent, so they went over and asked him, “Who brought you here, and what are you doing in this place? Why are you here?”
4   He told them about his agreement with Micah and that he had been hired as Micah’s personal priest.
5   Then they said, “Ask God whether or not our journey will be successful.”
6   “Go in peace,” the priest replied. “For the Lord is watching over your journey.”
7   So the five men went on to the town of Laish, where they noticed the people living carefree lives, like the Sidonians; they were peaceful and secure. The people were also wealthy because their land was very fertile. And they lived a great distance from Sidon and had no allies nearby.
8   When the men returned to Zorah and Eshtaol, their relatives asked them, “What did you find?”
9   The men replied, “Come on, let’s attack them! We have seen the land, and it is very good. What are you waiting for? Don’t hesitate to go and take possession of it.
10 When you get there, you will find the people living carefree lives. God has given us a spacious and fertile land, lacking in nothing!”
11 So 600 men from the tribe of Dan, armed with weapons of war, set out from Zorah and Eshtaol.
12 They camped at a place west of Kiriath-jearim in Judah, which is called Mahaneh-danto this day.
13 Then they went on from there into the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah.
14 The five men who had scouted out the land around Laish explained to the others, “These buildings contain a sacred ephod, as well as some household idols, a carved image, and a cast idol. What do you think you should do?”
15 Then the five men turned off the road and went over to Micah’s house, where the young Levite lived, and greeted him kindly.
16 As the 600 armed warriors from the tribe of Dan stood at the entrance of the gate,
17 the five scouts entered the shrine and removed the carved image, the sacred ephod, the household idols, and the cast idol. Meanwhile, the priest was standing at the gate with the 600 armed warriors.
18 When the priest saw the men carrying all the sacred objects out of Micah’s shrine, he said, “What are you doing?”
19 “Be quiet and come with us,” they said. “Be a father and priest to all of us. Isn’t it better to be a priest for an entire tribe and clan of Israel than for the household of just one man?”
20 The young priest was quite happy to go with them, so he took along the sacred ephod, the household idols, and the carved image.
21 They turned and started on their way again, placing their children, livestock, and possessions in front of them.
22 When the people from the tribe of Dan were quite a distance from Micah’s house, the people who lived near Micah came chasing after them.
23 They were shouting as they caught up with them. The men of Dan turned around and said to Micah, “What’s the matter? Why have you called these men together and chased after us like this?”
24 “What do you mean, ‘What’s the matter?’” Micah replied. “You’ve taken away all the gods I have made, and my priest, and I have nothing left!”
25 The men of Dan said, “Watch what you say! There are some short-tempered men around here who might get angry and kill you and your family.”
26 So the men of Dan continued on their way. When Micah saw that there were too many of them for him to attack, he turned around and went home.
27 Then, with Micah’s idols and his priest, the men of Dan came to the town of Laish, whose people were peaceful and secure. They attacked with swords and burned the town to the ground.
28 There was no one to rescue the people, for they lived a great distance from Sidon and had no allies nearby. This happened in the valley near Beth-rehob. Then the people of the tribe of Dan rebuilt the town and lived there.
29 They renamed the town Dan after their ancestor, Israel’s son, but it had originally been called Laish.
30 Then they set up the carved image, and they appointed Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, as their priest. This family continued as priests for the tribe of Dan until the Exile.
31 So Micah’s carved image was worshiped by the tribe of Dan as long as the Tabernacle of God remained at Shiloh.