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Through My Bible Yr 03 – September 06

Joshua 7

Achan’s Sin

¹ The people of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the devoted things. Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things, and the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel.

² Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven, east of Bethel. He said to them, “Go up and spy on ^[1] the land.” So the men went up and spied on Ai.

³ They returned to Joshua and told him, “All the people do not need to go up. Let about two or three thousand men go up, and they can defeat Ai. Do not trouble all the people with going up there, because there are only a few people in Ai.” ⁴ So about three thousand men from among the people went up there, but they fled from the men of Ai. ⁵ The men of Ai struck dead about thirty-six of them. They pursued them from the city gate as far as Shebarim, ^[2] and they struck them dead on the way down the descent. So the hearts of the people melted and turned to water.

⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell down with his face to the ground in front of the Ark of the Lord until evening—he and the elders of Israel. They also threw dust on their heads. ⁷ Joshua said, “Ah, my Lord God! Why did you bring this people across the Jordan to place us into the hand of the Amorites to exterminate us? If only we had been willing to settle in the area on the other side of the Jordan! ⁸ Please bear with me, my Lord! What can I say after Israel has turned its back before its enemies? ⁹ Now the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear, and they will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. Then what will you do for your great name?”

¹⁰ Then the Lord gave directions to Joshua:

¹⁶ Joshua got up early in the morning, and he had Israel come forward tribe by tribe. The tribe of Judah was identified. ¹⁷ Then he had the tribe of Judah come forward, and he identified the clan of the Zerahites. Next, he had the clan of the Zerahites come forward by individual families, and Zabdi’s family was identified. ¹⁸ Then he had Zabdi’s household come forward one man at a time, and Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, was identified.

¹⁹ Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory now to the Lord, the God of Israel, and give him praise. Now tell me what you did. Do not conceal it from me.”

²⁰ Achan answered Joshua, “It is true. I am the one who has sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel, and this is what I did: ²¹ Among the plunder I saw an expensive Mesopotamian robe, ^[5] a fine one, and two hundred shekels of silver and one wedge ^[6] of gold—it weighed fifty shekels. ^[7] I coveted them and I took them. Now they are hidden in the ground inside my tent, and the silver is underneath it.”

²² So Joshua sent agents. They ran to the tent, and there it was! The robe was hidden in his tent, and the silver was underneath it! ²³ They took them from the middle of the tent and brought them to Joshua and to all the people of Israel, where they poured them out before the Lord.

²⁴ Then Joshua took Achan son of Zerah and the silver, the garment, and the wedge of gold, as well as Achan’s sons and his daughters, his ox, his donkey and his flock, and his tent and everything that belonged to him—so all Israel, led by Joshua, brought them up to the Valley of Achor.

²⁵ Joshua said, “Why have you brought disaster on us? The Lord will bring disaster on you this day!”

Then all Israel stoned Achan to death. They also burned him and them ^[8] with fire, and they pelted them with stones. ²⁶ They erected a large heap of stones over Achan, which remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from the heat of his anger. For that reason the name of that place is called the Valley of Achor ^[9] to this day.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – September 05

Joshua 5 – 6

Circumcision Renewed

Joshua 5

¹ When all the kings of the Amorites who were in the region west of the Jordan and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan in front of the people of Israel until we ^[1] had crossed over, their hearts melted, and they lost all courage in the presence of the Israelites.

² At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make flint knives, and circumcise the sons of Israel again, a second time.” ³ So Joshua made flint knives, and he circumcised the sons of Israel at the Hill of the Foreskins.

⁴ This is the reason Joshua had to circumcise the men of Israel again: All the people who came up out of Egypt—all the males, the fighting men—died in the wilderness along the way after they came out of Egypt. ⁵ All the people who came out of Egypt had been circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness during the journey after they had come out from Egypt had not been circumcised. ⁶ Yes, for forty years the Israelites walked through the wilderness until the whole nation was gone—all the fighting men who had gone out from Egypt, who had not listened to the voice of the Lord. The Lord had sworn to them that they would not see the land that the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. ⁷ So it was their sons, whom the Lord had raised up in their place, whom Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised, since the people had not circumcised them during the journey.

⁸ When the whole nation had been circumcised, they stayed at their places in the camp until they recuperated.

⁹ Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the disgrace of Egypt from you.” So the name of that place is Gilgal ^[2] to this day.

¹⁰ While the people of Israel were camped at Gilgal, they celebrated the Passover on the plain near Jericho on the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening at sunset. ¹¹ They ate from the produce of the land on the day after the Passover. On that very day they ate unleavened bread and roasted grain. ¹² The manna stopped the day after the first day that they had eaten from the produce of the land. The people of Israel no longer received manna. Instead, they ate from the crops of the land of Canaan that year.

The Commander of the Lord’s Army Leads the Campaign

¹³ When Joshua was at Jericho, he looked up and saw a man was standing right there in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said, “Are you one of us or one of our enemies?”

¹⁴ The man said, “Neither! I have now come as the commander of the army of the Lord.” Joshua fell with his face to the ground and worshipped. Then he said to him, “What does my Lord have to say to his servant?”

¹⁵ The commander of the army of the Lord said to Joshua, “Take your sandals off your feet, because the place where you are standing is holy.” So Joshua did so.

Joshua 6

¹ Jericho was shut up tight because of the Israelites. There was no one going out and no one coming in.

² So the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho and its king into your hands even though they are strong warriors. ³ You shall march around the city with all the fighting men. Circle the city one time. Do this for six days. ⁴ Seven priests shall carry seven special ram’s horns ^[3] in front of the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times with the priests blowing the ram’s horns. ⁵ When there is a long blast on the special ram’s horn of jubilee, when you hear the sound of the ram’s horn, ^[4] all the people shall shout with a loud war cry. Then the wall of the city will collapse on itself, and the people ^[5] will go up into the city, one man after another.”

The Fall of Jericho

⁶ So Joshua son of Nun called for the priests and said to them, “Lift up the Ark of the Covenant, and seven priests shall carry seven special ram’s horns in front of the Ark of the Lord.” ⁷ Then he said to the people, “Move out. March around the city. The armed contingent shall march in front of the Ark of the Lord.”

⁸ When Joshua had given orders to the people, the seven priests with the seven special ram’s horns moved forward in front of the Lord, blowing the ram’s horns continuously, with the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord following them. ⁹ The armed contingent was marching ahead of the priests, who were blowing the ram’s horns, and the rear guard was following the ark. The priests kept blowing the ram’s horns as they went. ¹⁰ But to the people Joshua had given the order, “Do not shout and do not let your voice be heard. Do not let a word go out of your mouth until the day I say to you, ‘Shout!’ Then you shall shout!” ¹¹ So he had the Ark of the Lord go around the city, sending it out to circle the city one time. Then they came back to the camp and spent the night there.

¹² Then Joshua got up early in the morning, and the priests lifted up the Ark of the Lord. ¹³ The seven priests with the seven special ram’s horns moved forward in front of the Ark of the Lord, blowing the ram’s horns continuously. The armed contingent was marching in front of them, and the rear guard was following behind the Ark of the Lord. The priests kept blowing the ram’s horns as they went. ¹⁴ They marched around the city one time on the second day, and then they returned to the camp. They did this for six days.

¹⁵ Then on the seventh day they got up early, at daybreak, and they marched around the city seven times, following the directions they had been given. It was only on the seventh day that they marched around the city seven times. ¹⁶ Then on the seventh time, the priests blew the ram’s horns, and Joshua said to the people, “Shout, because the Lord has given you the city! ¹⁷ The city will be devoted to destruction. ^[6] The city and everything in it will be devoted to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute will live—she along with all who are with her in the house—because she hid the agents whom we sent. ¹⁸ But you must keep away from the things devoted to destruction, or you will make yourselves subject to destruction by taking some of the devoted things, and you will make the camp of Israel subject to destruction and bring disaster upon it. ¹⁹ But all the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to ^[7] the Lord. They must go into the treasury of the Lord.”

²⁰ So the people shouted, and the priests blew the ram’s horns. When the people heard the sound of the ram’s horns, they shouted with a loud war cry. Then the wall collapsed on itself, and the people went up into the city, one man after another. So they captured the city. ²¹ Then they applied the decree of destruction by the edge of the sword to everything that was in the city—both men and women, young and old, and also the oxen, sheep, and donkeys.

²² To the two men who had spied on the land Joshua said, “Go to the house of the prostitute and bring out the woman and everyone who belongs to her, just as you swore to her.” ²³ So the young men who had acted as spies went and brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and everyone who belonged to her. They brought out all her family members, and they settled them outside the camp of Israel.

²⁴ But the city and everything in it they burned with fire. Only the silver and gold and the bronze and iron vessels were placed into the treasury of the House of the Lord. ²⁵ But Joshua spared the lives of Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and everyone who belonged to her, and she has lived within Israel to this day, because she hid the agents that Joshua sent to spy on Jericho.

²⁶ At that time Joshua swore an oath:

²⁷ So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread through the whole land.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – September 04

Joshua 3 – 4

Preparing for the Crossing

Joshua 3

¹ After Joshua had gotten up early in the morning, he and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and arrived at the Jordan. They stayed there until they crossed over. ² After three days the officers went through the camp ³ and gave this order to the people: “As soon as you see the priests from the tribe of Levi carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God, you are to set out from your position and follow the ark. ⁴ But keep a distance between you and the ark—about three thousand feet. ^[1] Do not get too close to it, so that you can determine which way you should go, because you have never crossed over this way before.”

⁵ Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, because tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”

⁶ Then Joshua said to the priests, “Lift up the Ark of the Covenant and pass by in front of the people.” So they lifted up the Ark of the Covenant and went ahead of the people.

⁷ The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel so that they will know that just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. ⁸ You are the one who will give this order to the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant: ‘As soon as you come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you are to stand still in the Jordan.’”

⁹ Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come closer to me and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” ¹⁰ Then Joshua said, “This is how you will know that the Living God is among you and that he will most certainly drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, ^[2] the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites: ¹¹ Look, the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of all the earth is about to cross over the Jordan ahead of you. ¹² So now choose for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from each tribe. ¹³ As soon as the soles of the feet of the priests carrying the Ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, come to rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan flowing down from upstream will be cut off, and they will stand up in one heap.”

¹⁴ So the people set out from their tents to cross the Jordan, and the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant went ahead of the people. ¹⁵ As soon as the priests carrying the ark came to the Jordan, and as soon as their feet dipped into the edge of the water (the Jordan is full and overflows all its banks during all the days of the grain harvest), ¹⁶ the waters flowing down from upstream came to a standstill. The waters piled up in one heap, very far away, at Adam, the town that is next to Zarethan, and the waters flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah, that is, the Salt Sea, ^[3] were completely cut off. So the people crossed the Jordan opposite Jericho. ¹⁷ The priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel was crossing over on dry ground, until the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan.

The Monument

Joshua 4

¹ When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord told Joshua, ² “Take twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe, ³ and give them the following orders: ‘Pick up twelve stones from here in the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the feet of the priests are standing securely. Carry them over with you and put them at the place where you will stay tonight.’”

⁴ So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had selected from the people of Israel—a man from each tribe. ⁵ Joshua said to them, “Go to the middle of the Jordan in front of the Ark of the Lord your God. There each man is to lift up one stone on his shoulder. The number will correspond to the number of the tribes descended from the sons of Israel, ⁶ so that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in the future, ‘What do these stones mean for you?’ ⁷ Then you shall respond to them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in front of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. When the ark passed through the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones will serve as a permanent memorial for the people of Israel.”

⁸ So the people of Israel did just as Joshua had ordered. They picked up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, corresponding to the number of the tribes descended from the sons of Israel, as the Lord had instructed Joshua. They carried the stones over with them to their lodging place and deposited them there. ⁹ Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the feet of the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant had stood. ^[4] They are there to this day.

¹⁰ The priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything that the Lord had commanded Joshua to speak to the people had been accomplished, just as Moses had commanded Joshua. The people moved swiftly and completed the crossing. ¹¹ When all the people had finished crossing, the Ark of the Lord and the priests crossed over in the presence of the people.

¹² The descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, ^[5] arranged by their military units, had crossed over ahead of the people of Israel, just as Moses had commanded them, ¹³ about forty thousand men armed for battle. They crossed over to the plain near Jericho to wage war in the presence of the Lord.

¹⁴ That day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they honored ^[6] him, just as they had honored Moses, all the days of his life.

¹⁵ The Lord said to Joshua, ¹⁶ “Command the priests who are carrying the Ark of the Testimony that they should come up out of the Jordan.”

¹⁷ So Joshua commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.”

¹⁸ When the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord came up from the middle of the Jordan, as soon as the soles of their feet reached dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and it overflowed all its banks as before. ¹⁹ The people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month and set up camp at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho.

²⁰ Those twelve stones that they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. ²¹ He said to the people of Israel, “When your children in the future ask their fathers, ‘What are these stones?’ ²² you shall teach your children, ‘On dry land Israel crossed over this Jordan.’ ²³ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan in front of you until you crossed over, just as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up in front of us until we had crossed over. ²⁴ He did this so that all the peoples of the earth would know that the hand of the Lord is strong, so that you would fear the Lord your God always.”

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – September 03

Joshua 2

The Spies and Jericho

¹ Now Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two men from Shittim to be spies. He said, “Go and look over the land and Jericho.” So they set out and came to the house of a woman who was a prostitute. Her name was Rahab. They settled in to spend the night there.

² It was reported to the king of Jericho: “Some Israelite men came here tonight to spy on the land.” ³ So the king of Jericho sent messengers to Rahab. They said, “Bring out the men who came to you, the ones who came to your house, because they have come to spy on the whole land.”

⁴ Now the woman had taken the two men and had hidden both of them. So she said, “Yes, the men did come to me, but I did not know where they were from. ⁵ When the gate was about to be shut at dark, the men left. I do not know where the men went. Go after them quickly so you can overtake them.”

⁶ But she actually had taken them up to the roof and had concealed them among the stalks of flax that she had spread out on the roof. ⁷ The men of Jericho then went to pursue them along the route to the Jordan that led to the fords. The city gate was closed just after the pursuers had gone out to pursue the spies.

⁸ But before the men lay down, Rahab came up to them on the roof. ⁹ She said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land. Because of you, terror has fallen upon us, and all the inhabitants of the land are melting in fear before you. ¹⁰ Indeed, we have heard that the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea in front of you when you came out of Egypt, and we heard what you did to the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan—to Sihon and to Og. We heard that you devoted them to destruction. ¹¹ We heard, and our hearts melted, and no one’s courage could hold up anymore against you, because the Lord your God is God in the heavens above and on the earth below. ¹² So now, please swear to me by the Lord that since I have shown kindness to you, you in turn will show kindness to my father’s house. Give me a trustworthy sign ¹³ that you will preserve the lives of my father and mother and my brothers and sisters and everyone who belongs to them, and that you will spare our lives.”

¹⁴ The men said to her, “If you do not reveal what we are doing, our lives are pledged for your lives, even to the point of death. Then when the Lord gives us the land, we will show mercy and faithfulness to you.”

¹⁵ She let them down through the window with a rope, since her house was built into the city wall, and she was living inside the wall.

¹⁶ She said to them, “To the hill country! Get moving, so the pursuers do not catch up with you. Hide there for three days until the pursuers return, and then you can go on your way.”

¹⁷ The men said to her, “When we come into the land, we will be free from this oath that you made us swear ¹⁸ unless you tie this bright red cord in the window through which you let us down, and you gather your father and mother, your brothers, and your father’s entire household into your house. ¹⁹ If any one of them goes outside the doors of your house, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be free of guilt. Anyone who is with you in the house, his blood will be on our heads if a hand is laid on him. ²⁰ If you reveal what we are doing, we will be free from the oath that you made us swear.”

²¹ She said, “It will be done just as you have said!” Then she sent them out, and they went away. She tied the bright red cord in the window.

²² After they left, they went up into the hill country and stayed there for three days, until the pursuers had returned. The pursuers had searched for them all along the route, but they found nothing. ²³ So then the two men set out to return. After they had come down from the hill country, they crossed the river and came to Joshua son of Nun. They reported to him everything that had happened to them. ²⁴ They said to Joshua, “The Lord has without doubt given the entire land into our hands. What’s more, all the inhabitants of the land are melting in fear before us.”

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – September 02

Joshua 1

Preparing to Enter the Land

¹ This is what happened after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord.

The Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, the attendant of Moses, ² “Moses my servant is dead. So prepare to cross the Jordan River that lies in front of you. You and all this people, prepare to go into the land that I am about to give to the people of Israel. ³ I have given you every place where the sole of your foot has stepped, just as I promised Moses. ⁴ From the Wilderness ^[1] and from Lebanon to the Great River, the Euphrates River—all the land of the Hittites—as far as the Mediterranean Sea, ^[2] where the sun sets, this will be your territory. ⁵ No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, I will be with you. I will not abandon you, and I will not forsake you.

⁶ “Be strong and courageous, because you will divide this land among these people, this land which I swore to their fathers that I would give to this people. ⁷ Just be strong and very courageous. Be careful to act according to the entire Law which my servant Moses commanded for you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may succeed wherever you go. ⁸ This Book of the Law must never depart from your mouth, and you are to meditate on it day and night, so that you will act faithfully according to everything written in it, because then you will prosper in everything you do, and you will succeed. ⁹ Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified and do not be overwhelmed, because the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

¹⁰ So Joshua gave this order to the officers of the people: ¹¹ “Go through the camp and give this order to the people: ‘Prepare provisions for yourselves, because within three days you will be crossing over this Jordan to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving to you as a possession.’”

¹² To the Reubenites and the Gadites and to half of the tribe of Manasseh Joshua said, ¹³ “Remember the command that Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave you when he said, ‘The Lord your God is granting you rest, and he has given you this land.’ ¹⁴ Your wives, your children, and your cattle will stay in the land that Moses gave you east of the Jordan, but you yourselves, all of your strong warriors in their military units, are to cross over ahead of your brothers. You are to help your brothers ¹⁵ until the Lord gives rest to them as he has to you and they too take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving them. Then you may return to the land allotted to you so that you may fully possess the land that Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave to you in the area east of the Jordan, toward the sunrise.”

¹⁶ Then they answered Joshua, “Everything that you have commanded us we will do. We will go to any place you send us. ¹⁷ Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, we will likewise obey you. May the Lord your God be with you, just as he was with Moses. ¹⁸ Anyone who rebels against your orders and does not obey whatever you command him will be put to death. Just be strong and courageous!”

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – September 01

2 Thessalonians 2:13 – 3:17

2 Thessalonians 2

Chosen for Salvation

¹³ But we are always obligated to thank God for you, brothers, loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning for salvation by the sanctifying work of the Spirit and faith in the truth. ¹⁴ For this reason he also called you through our gospel so that you would obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁵ So then, brothers, stand firm and hold on to the teachings that were passed along to you, either by word of mouth or by a letter from us. ¹⁶ May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and in his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, ¹⁷ encourage your hearts and establish you in every good work and word.

Pray for Us

2 Thessalonians 3

¹ Finally, brothers, pray for us so that the word of the Lord may spread quickly and be glorified just as it was among you. ² Pray also that we may be rescued from evil and wicked people. For not everyone has faith. ³ Still, the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and protect you from the Evil One. ⁴ We also have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you are doing and will continue to do what we are telling you. ⁵ May the Lord continue to direct your hearts to God’s love and Christ’s patient endurance.

Warnings Against Idleness

⁶ We instruct you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to avoid every brother who is walking idly and not in accordance with the teaching that you received from us. ⁷ In fact, you yourselves know how necessary it is for you to imitate us, because we were not idle among you. ⁸ We never ate anyone’s bread without paying for it. Instead, with labor and hardship we worked night and day, so that we would not be a burden to any of you. ⁹ This was not because we lacked authority, but to provide an example for you to imitate. ¹⁰ In fact, when we were with you, this was our command to you: If anyone does not want to work, he should not eat. ¹¹ Indeed, we hear that some among you are idle, not busy working, but being busybodies. ¹² In the Lord Jesus Christ, we command and urge these people to work quietly and eat their own bread.

¹³ But you, brothers, do not grow weary of doing good. ¹⁴ And if anyone does not obey our word in this letter, take note of him so that you do not associate with him, in order that he may be put to shame. ¹⁵ Yet do not consider him an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

Benediction

¹⁶ May the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all.

¹⁷ This greeting is written by me, Paul, with my own hand. This is a distinguishing sign of how I write in every letter.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 31

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12

2 Thessalonians 2

The Man of Sin

¹ Now, about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together with him, we ask you, brothers, ² not to be quickly shaken from your composure or disturbed by a spirit, a message, or a letter thought to be from us, which says that the day of the Lord has already come. ³ Let no one deceive you in any way, because that day will not come until the falling away comes first, and the man of sin ^[1] is revealed—the son of destruction. ⁴ He opposes and exalts himself above everyone who is called God or every object of worship, so that he sits in the temple of God, displaying himself as God.

⁵ Do you not remember that, while I was still with you, I kept telling you these things? ⁶ And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed in his own time. ⁷ In fact, the mystery of this lawlessness is already at work, but only until the one who is now holding him back moves out of the way. ⁸ Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will consume with ^[2] the breath of his mouth and destroy when he appears in splendor at his coming.

⁹ The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan, with every kind of miracle, that is, with false signs and wonders, ¹⁰ and with every kind of unrighteousness that deceives those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. ¹¹ And because of this, God continues to send them a strong delusion, so that they believe the lie, ¹² in order that all those may be condemned who refused to believe the truth but instead delighted in unrighteousness.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 30

2 Thessalonians 1

Greeting

¹ Paul, Silas, ^[1] and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Judgment at Christ’s Coming

³ We are always obligated to thank God for you, brothers, ^[2] as is fitting, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love that each and every one of you has for one another is increasing. ⁴ So we ourselves boast about you in God’s churches in regard to your patient endurance and faith in all your persecutions and in the trials that you are enduring. ⁵ This is evidence of God’s righteous verdict that resulted in your being counted worthy of God’s kingdom, for which you also suffer. ⁶ Certainly, it is right for God to repay trouble to those who trouble you, ⁷ and to give relief to you, who are troubled along with us. When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his powerful angels, ⁸ he will exercise vengeance in flaming fire on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. ⁹ Such people will receive a just penalty: eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from his glorious strength, ¹⁰ on that day when he comes to be glorified among his saints, and to be marveled at among all those who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed. ¹¹ For this reason, we are always praying for you, that our God will make you worthy of your calling and use his power to fulfill every good desire and work of your faith, ¹² so that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you and you in him, in keeping with the grace of our God and Lord Jesus Christ.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 29

1 Thessalonians 5

Instruction Concerning the Signs of the End Times

¹ Concerning the times and dates, brothers, there is no need to write to you, ² for you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. ³ When people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will suddenly come on them, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will certainly not escape. ⁴ But you, brothers, are not in the dark so that this day takes you by surprise like a thief, ⁵ for you are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness. ⁶ So then let us not sleep like everyone else, but rather let us remain alert and sober.

⁷ To be sure, those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. ⁸ But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. ⁹ You see, God did not appoint us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁰ He died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. ¹¹ Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up, just as you are also doing.

Final Exhortations and Greetings

¹² Brothers, we ask you to take note of those who work hard among you, who exercise leadership over you in the Lord, and who admonish you. ¹³ Hold them in the highest regard in love, on account of their work. Live at peace with each other.

¹⁴ We also encourage you, brothers, to admonish those who are idle. Encourage those who are discouraged, help those who are weak, and be patient with everyone. ¹⁵ See to it that no one repays evil with evil, but instead, always strive to do good to each other and to everyone else.

¹⁶ Rejoice always. ¹⁷ Pray without ceasing. ¹⁸ In everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. ¹⁹ Do not extinguish the Spirit. ²⁰ Do not treat prophecies with contempt. ²¹ But ^[1] test everything. Hold on to the good. ²² Keep away from every kind ^[2] of evil.

²³ May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁴ The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.

²⁵ Brothers, pray for us. ²⁶ Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss. ²⁷ I put you under oath to the Lord to read this letter to all the holy ^[3] brothers.

²⁸ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 28

1 Thessalonians 4

Instruction Concerning Sexual Propriety

¹ Therefore, beyond this, brothers, just as you received instruction from us about how you are to walk ^[1] so as to please God (as indeed you are doing), we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus that you do so even more. ² To be sure, you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. ³ Indeed, this is God’s will: that you be sanctified, namely, that you keep yourselves away from sexual immorality. ⁴ He wants each of you to learn to obtain a wife ^[2] for yourself ^[3] in a way that is holy and honorable, ⁵ not in lustful passion like the heathen, who do not know God. ⁶ No one is to overstep and take advantage of his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, just as we said previously and solemnly testified to it. ⁷ For God did not call us for uncleanness, but in sanctification. ⁸ Consequently, whoever rejects this is not rejecting a man, but the God who gives you his Holy Spirit.

Instruction Concerning Brotherly Love and Labor

⁹ Concerning brotherly love, there is no need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God, with the result that you love one another. ¹⁰ In fact, you are doing so toward all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we encourage you, brothers, to do this even more, ¹¹ and to make it your ambition to live a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, just as we instructed you. ¹² Do this so that you are conducting yourselves decently toward outsiders and are not lacking anything.

Instruction Concerning the Resurrection of the Dead at Christ’s Second Coming

¹³ We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who have fallen asleep, ^[4] so that you do not grieve in the same way as the others, who have no hope. ¹⁴ Indeed, if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, then in the same way we also believe that God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep through Jesus.

¹⁵ In fact, we tell you this by the word of the Lord: We who are alive and left until the coming of the Lord will certainly not go on ahead of those who have fallen asleep. ¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them, to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore, encourage one another with these words.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 27

1 Thessalonians 3

Timothy’s Mission and Good Report

¹ So, when we could not stand it any longer, we thought it best to remain behind in Athens alone, ² and we sent Timothy, our brother and coworker for God in the gospel of Christ. ^[1] We sent him to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, ³ so that no one will be shaken by these trials, for you know well that we are destined for this. ⁴ In fact, even when we were with you, we told you ahead of time that we were going to suffer, and it happened just that way, as you know. ⁵ This is why, when I could not stand it any longer, I sent to find out about your faith, because I was afraid that somehow the Tempter had tempted you and our labor might have been for nothing.

⁶ But now, Timothy has returned to us from you and has told us the good news about your faith and love. He also told us that you always have fond memories of us and long to see us, just as much as we also long to see you. ⁷ Because of this, brothers, in all our distress and affliction, we have been encouraged about you through your faith. ⁸ For now we really live, if you are standing firm in the Lord. ⁹ Indeed, how can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have before God on account of you? ¹⁰ Night and day we are praying earnestly to see you in person and to supply what is lacking in your faith.

¹¹ May God our Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. ¹² And may the Lord increase your love and make it overflow for each other and for all people, just as ours does for you, ¹³ so that he may establish your hearts as blameless in holiness before our God and Father, when our Lord Jesus comes with all his saints. ^[2]

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 26

1 Thessalonians 2

Paul Defends His Ministry Among the Thessalonians

¹ Indeed, brothers, you yourselves know that our visit to you was not a waste of time. ² Even though we had suffered previously and were treated shamefully in Philippi (as you know), we were bold in our God to speak the gospel of God to you in the face of great opposition. ³ For our appeal does not come from error or impure motives, or by way of deceit. ⁴ Instead, just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please people but God, who examines our hearts. ⁵ Indeed, as you know, we never at any time used flattering speech, nor did we act with greed as a motive. God is our witness. ⁶ Also, we did not seek the praise of people (neither yours nor anyone else’s), ⁷ even though we could have been a burden as Christ’s apostles. On the contrary, we were gentle ^[1] among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. ⁸ We yearned for you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us.

⁹ Surely, brothers, you remember our labor and hardship! We worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you, while we preached the gospel of God to you. ¹⁰ You are witnesses, and so is God, of how devout, righteous, and blameless we were toward you who believe. ¹¹ In the same way, you know that we treated each of you as a father deals with his own children: ¹² encouraging, comforting, and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who is calling you into his kingdom and glory.

¹³ There is also another reason we give thanks to God unceasingly, namely, when you received God’s word, which you heard from us, you did not receive it as the word of men but as the word of God (as it really is), which is now at work in you who believe. ¹⁴ Yes, brothers, you became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus, because you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews ¹⁵ who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and who severely persecuted us. They are not pleasing to God and are hostile to all people. ¹⁶ By hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved, they are always filling up the full measure of their sins. And the wrath has come upon them completely. ^[2]

Paul’s Desire to See the Thessalonians

¹⁷ As for us, brothers, after we were separated from you like orphans for just a short time (in person, not in our heart), it was with great desire that we made every effort to see you again in person. ¹⁸ For we wanted to come to you (I, Paul, wanted this, not just once, but twice), but Satan hindered us. ¹⁹ Indeed, who is our hope or joy or crown about which we boast before our Lord Jesus when he returns? Is it not you? ²⁰ Yes, you are our glory and our joy.

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 25

1 Thessalonians 1

Greeting

¹ Paul, Silas, ^[1] and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians, which is in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ^[2]

Thanksgiving for the Faith of the Thessalonians

² We always give thanks to God for all of you as we make mention of you in our prayers, ³ because we constantly remember before God our Father your work produced by faith, your labor produced by love, and your patient endurance produced by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴ Dear brothers, ^[3] loved by God, we know that God has chosen you, ⁵ because our gospel did not come to you with mere words, but with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction. You yourselves know very well what kind of people we proved to be for your sake, while we were with you. ⁶ You also became imitators of us and of the Lord, when you welcomed the word during a time of great affliction with the joy from the Holy Spirit, ⁷ so that you became a model for all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. ^{[4] 8} Indeed, the word of the Lord has resounded from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith in God has become known. As a result, we do not need to say anything, ⁹ because they themselves inform us about what kind of reception we received from you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God. ¹⁰ They also report how you patiently wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, the one who is going to rescue us from the coming wrath.

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 24

Psalm 28 – 29

Psalm 28

My Rock

Heading
By David.

Protect Me From the Wicked

Punish the Wicked

Then I Will Praise You

Psalm 29

The God of Glory Thunders

Heading
A psalm by David.

The God of Glory Thunders

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

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 23

Psalm 27

Psalm 27

The Stronghold of My Life

Heading
By David.

Safe in God’s Stronghold

Happy in God’s Temple

Confident in Prayer

Walking in God’s Path

At Home in God’s Land

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 22

Psalm 26

Psalm 26

Vindicate Me, O Lord

Heading
By David.

Affirmation of Innocence and Plea for Judgment

Separation From Evil

Affirmation of Innocence and Love for God

Separation From Evil

Affirmation of Innocence and Prayer for Redemption

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 21

Psalm 25

Psalm 25

Teach Me Your Ways

Heading
By David.

A Prayer for Protection

A Prayer for Forgiveness

A Prayer for a Godly Life

A Second Prayer for Protection

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 20

Psalm 23 – 24

Psalm 23

The King of Love My Shepherd Is

Heading
A psalm by David.

The Shepherd Provides for His People

The Shepherd Protects His People

The Royal Host Provides for His People

Psalm 24

The King of Glory

Heading
By David. A psalm.

The King of Glory Owns the Whole World

The King of Glory Is Served by a Holy People

The King of Glory Comes

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 19

Psalm 22:22-31

Psalm 22

Part Two: The Messiah’s Glory
The Messiah’s Vow

The Glory of Messiah’s Kingdom

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Through My Bible Yr 03 – August 18

Psalm 22:1-21

Psalm 22

Psalm 22

Why Have You Forsaken Me?

Heading

For the choir director. According to “Doe of the Dawn.” ^[1]
A psalm by David.

Part One: The Messiah’s Suffering
The Messiah’s Plea

God’s Help in the Past

God’s Present Absence

The Mutual Love of Father and Son

The Power of His Enemies

The Greater Power of God

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