16 November 2013

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 16 Novmbr 2013

happy Saturday.  Actually having a whole day above the freezing point, or so the forecasts say..  That situation is expected to change by Monday, but we will enjoy it while we may. 
Yesterday was pretty quiet.  Dear Wife came down with something, like a 24-hour "bug", so she wasn't up to very much.  Today, we hope to be in somewhat better shape.  Her niece who lives door is celebrating her birthday, and they are planning for Great Celebration there, which we hope to be able to attend, at least briefly.  We shall see.
Still have not determined where we will attend worship services tomorrow.  We visited one last Sunday that her cousin attends.  It's heavily into the Pentecostal shade, a bit more than I am comfortable with.  It's not necessarily something I could not live with, but I am not convinced that it is where the Lord is sending us.  Dear Wife grew up in a Nazarene church near her that was more into the Pentecostalism more than perhaps other congregations in that denomination are.  We shall see.

The Old Testament reading for the day is chapters 13, 14, 15 in Ezekiel.  More prophecy, more words from the Lord, and not much of the warm and fuzzies, none of that 'prosperity gospel' junk I see so often on TV.  Judgment and condemnation.  Not seen much around here, but it does not seem that there was much going on then that is not also going on now, and we know it.  And avert our eyes.

1
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2
Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the LORD;
3
Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!
4
O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.
5
Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD.
6
They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.
7
Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken?
8
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD.
9
And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
10
Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter:
11
Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it.
12
Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it?
13
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it.
14
So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
15
Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered morter, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it;
16
To wit, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.
17
Likewise, thou son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, which prophesy out of their own heart; and prophesy thou against them,
18
And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
19
And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
20
Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly.
21
Your kerchiefs also will I tear, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
22
Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life:
23
Therefore ye shall see no more vanity, nor divine divinations: for I will deliver my people out of your hand: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.


1
Then came certain of the elders of Israel unto me, and sat before me.
2
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
3
Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?
4
Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;
5
That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.
6
Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.
7
For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself:
8
And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
9
And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.
10
And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him;
11
That the house of Israel may go no more astray from me, neither be polluted any more with all their transgressions; but that they may be my people, and I may be their God, saith the Lord GOD.
12
The word of the LORD came again to me, saying,
13
Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it:
14
Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.
15
If I cause noisome beasts to pass through the land, and they spoil it, so that it be desolate, that no man may pass through because of the beasts:
16
Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate.
17
Or if I bring a sword upon that land, and say, Sword, go through the land; so that I cut off man and beast from it:
18
Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only shall be delivered themselves.
19
Or if I send a pestilence into that land, and pour out my fury upon it in blood, to cut off from it man and beast:
20
Though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.
21
For thus saith the Lord GOD; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?
22
Yet, behold, therein shall be left a remnant that shall be brought forth, both sons and daughters: behold, they shall come forth unto you, and ye shall see their way and their doings: and ye shall be comforted concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, even concerning all that I have brought upon it.
23
And they shall comfort you, when ye see their ways and their doings: and ye shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, saith the Lord GOD.


1
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2
Son of man, what is the vine tree more than any tree, or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest?
3
Shall wood be taken thereof to do any work? or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon?
4
Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire devoureth both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned. Is it meet for any work?
5
Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work: how much less shall it be meet yet for any work, when the fire hath devoured it, and it is burned?
6
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7
And I will set my face against them; they shall go out from one fire, and another fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I set my face against them.
8
And I will make the land desolate, because they have committed a trespass, saith the Lord GOD.



==============

The New Testament reading is verses 20-40 of Hebrews 11.  More on faith.  Good stuff.  Worth chewing over slowly and thoroughly.

20
By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.
21
By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff.
22
By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones.
23
By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment.
24
By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
25
Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26
Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
27
By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
28
Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.
29
By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.
30
By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days.
31
By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.
32
And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
33
Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions.
34
Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
35
Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:
36
And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
37
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;
38
(Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
39
And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
40
God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

15 November 2013

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Friday, 15 November 2013

Happy Friday, I guess. 
Got a number of "headhunter" calls yesterday (common term for executive recruiter).  Good sounding opportunities too, ones that would have been quite welcome indeed had they come, say, in early July.  Places like western Ohio, western North Carolina, northern Alabama, middle Tennessee.  Had to decline all of them, regretfully. Some paid upwards of $70,000  and one went up over $80,000.  While I am in the middle of filling out on-line apps for part-time (thanks for nothing, Obamacare) jobs in the $9/hour range.  Which would still beat our present circumstances.  As of Friday morning, we have $2.53 to last until some time Tuesday, and about 1/4 tank of gas for a vehicle with over 200,000 miles on it.  Test of faith, you think??
We shall see.

The Old Testament reading is chapters 10, 11, 12 in Ezekiel.  The whole book has a lot of strange imagery, and these section are all of that squared.    David Jeremiah had some teaching on this and on the prophetic sections of Daniel not long ago, I was able to hear some of it on radio during my drive to work time.  Helped a good bit of my understanding, but the understanding is still very much incomplete.


1
Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne.
2
And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight.
3
Now the cherubims stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court.
4
Then the glory of the LORD went up from the cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the LORD's glory.
5
And the sound of the cherubims' wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh.
6
And it came to pass, that when he had commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubims; then he went in, and stood beside the wheels.
7
And one cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubims unto the fire that was between the cherubims, and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed with linen: who took it, and went out.
8
And there appeared in the cherubims the form of a man's hand under their wings.
9
And when I looked, behold the four wheels by the cherubims, one wheel by one cherub, and another wheel by another cherub: and the appearance of the wheels was as the colour of a beryl stone.
10
And as for their appearances, they four had one likeness, as if a wheel had been in the midst of a wheel.
11
When they went, they went upon their four sides; they turned not as they went, but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they turned not as they went.
12
And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had.
13
As for the wheels, it was cried unto them in my hearing, O wheel.
14
And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.
15
And the cherubims were lifted up. This is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar.
16
And when the cherubims went, the wheels went by them: and when the cherubims lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the same wheels also turned not from beside them.
17
When they stood, these stood; and when they were lifted up, these lifted up themselves also: for the spirit of the living creature was in them.
18
Then the glory of the LORD departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims.
19
And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.
20
This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims.
21
Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings.
22
And the likeness of their faces was the same faces which I saw by the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves: they went every one straight forward.


1
Moreover the spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of the LORD's house, which looketh eastward: and behold at the door of the gate five and twenty men; among whom I saw Jaazaniah the son of Azur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.
2
Then said he unto me, Son of man, these are the men that devise mischief, and give wicked counsel in this city:
3
Which say, It is not near; let us build houses: this city is the caldron, and we be the flesh.
4
Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.
5
And the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the LORD; Thus have ye said, O house of Israel: for I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them.
6
Ye have multiplied your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain.
7
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and this city is the caldron: but I will bring you forth out of the midst of it.
8
Ye have feared the sword; and I will bring a sword upon you, saith the Lord GOD.
9
And I will bring you out of the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you.
10
Ye shall fall by the sword; I will judge you in the border of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
11
This city shall not be your caldron, neither shall ye be the flesh in the midst thereof; but I will judge you in the border of Israel:
12
And ye shall know that I am the LORD: for ye have not walked in my statutes, neither executed my judgments, but have done after the manners of the heathen that are round about you.
13
And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel?
14
Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
15
Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, Get you far from the LORD: unto us is this land given in possession.
16
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.
17
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.
18
And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.
19
And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:
20
That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
21
But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord GOD.
22
Then did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the wheels beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.
23
And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.
24
Afterwards the spirit took me up, and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from me.
25
Then I spake unto them of the captivity all the things that the LORD had shewed me.


1
The word of the LORD also came unto me, saying,
2
Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house.
3
Therefore, thou son of man, prepare thee stuff for removing, and remove by day in their sight; and thou shalt remove from thy place to another place in their sight: it may be they will consider, though they be a rebellious house.
4
Then shalt thou bring forth thy stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for removing: and thou shalt go forth at even in their sight, as they that go forth into captivity.
5
Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby.
6
In their sight shalt thou bear it upon thy shoulders, and carry it forth in the twilight: thou shalt cover thy face, that thou see not the ground: for I have set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel.
7
And I did so as I was commanded: I brought forth my stuff by day, as stuff for captivity, and in the even I digged through the wall with mine hand; I brought it forth in the twilight, and I bare it upon my shoulder in their sight.
8
And in the morning came the word of the LORD unto me, saying,
9
Son of man, hath not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said unto thee, What doest thou?
10
Say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; This burden concerneth the prince in Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel that are among them.
11
Say, I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them: they shall remove and go into captivity.
12
And the prince that is among them shall bear upon his shoulder in the twilight, and shall go forth: they shall dig through the wall to carry out thereby: he shall cover his face, that he see not the ground with his eyes.
13
My net also will I spread upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare: and I will bring him to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there.
14
And I will scatter toward every wind all that are about him to help him, and all his bands; and I will draw out the sword after them.
15
And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries.
16
But I will leave a few men of them from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence; that they may declare all their abominations among the heathen whither they come; and they shall know that I am the LORD.
17
Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
18
Son of man, eat thy bread with quaking, and drink thy water with trembling and with carefulness;
19
And say unto the people of the land, Thus saith the Lord GOD of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and of the land of Israel; They shall eat their bread with carefulness, and drink their water with astonishment, that her land may be desolate from all that is therein, because of the violence of all them that dwell therein.
20
And the cities that are inhabited shall be laid waste, and the land shall be desolate; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
21
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
22
Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth?
23
Tell them therefore, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will make this proverb to cease, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them, The days are at hand, and the effect of every vision.
24
For there shall be no more any vain vision nor flattering divination within the house of Israel.
25
For I am the LORD: I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged: for in your days, O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will perform it, saith the Lord GOD.
26
Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying.
27
Son of man, behold, they of the house of Israel say, The vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he prophesieth of the times that are far off.
28
Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; There shall none of my words be prolonged any more, but the word which I have spoken shall be done, saith the Lord GOD.






=======

The New Testament passage is verses 1 through 19 from the 11th chapter in Paul's letter to the Hebrews.  This is often referred to as the Faith Chapter, with good reason.

1
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
2
For by it the elders obtained a good report.
3
Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
4
By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
5
By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
6
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
7
By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
8
By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.
9
By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
10
For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
11
Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.
12
Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.
13
These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
14
For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.
15
And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.
16
But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
17
By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,
18
Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:
19
Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

14 November 2013

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Thursday, 14 Novmbr 2013

Looks like we left Lower Alabama just in time - it was colder there last night than it was here just an hour south of Lake Erie.  When it is colder near the Gulf Coast than it is near the "North Coast", the weather is definitely weird.  I don't like the temps in the lower 20's here.  They were lower than that, and have very very little experience in such things.  I really feel bad for them.  Grin.

Dear Wife is busy today "watching" grand-niece for niece who is at work.  I am pounding the keys and making some calls desperately seking some sort of employment, preferably part-time, though a full-time position paying in the $60's or above would work nicely.  Or even a bit less.  Got to hav something, the SS retirement does not go far and Social Security has been dragging wife's SS Disability application for some two YEARS now.  I keep hearing rumors -- and seeing evidence -- of a whole lot of people drawing disability income , the legitimacy of their claims open to some doubt.  Dar Wife is legally blind, with cataracts and glaucoma, in addition to he failing kidneys, advanced lupus, lack of any thyroid gland or most of the parathyroid glands, high blood pressure, and several other things under the heading of autoimmune disease and complications from same.  Frankly, we're running out of the funds to refill the EIGHTEEN meds she must take daily just to stay alive.  That does not include the pain meds that sometimes become necessary, instead substituting aspirin, naproxyn, acetaminophen, ibuprophen, etc.  So hte need for additional income is very ral.  The disability grant would provide more funds and also put her on the Medicaid rolls.  So I am a bit stressed.

============

The Old Testament reading for the day is chapters 7, 8, and 9 from the book of Ezekiel.  Prophecy with imagery.


1
Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2
Also, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD unto the land of Israel; An end, the end is come upon the four corners of the land.
3
Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations.
4
And mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity: but I will recompense thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
5
Thus saith the Lord GOD; An evil, an only evil, behold, is come.
6
An end is come, the end is come: it watcheth for thee; behold, it is come.
7
The morning is come unto thee, O thou that dwellest in the land: the time is come, the day of trouble is near, and not the sounding again of the mountains.
8
Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations.
9
And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the LORD that smiteth.
10
Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded.
11
Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness: none of them shall remain, nor of their multitude, nor of any of their's: neither shall there be wailing for them.
12
The time is come, the day draweth near: let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn: for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
13
For the seller shall not return to that which is sold, although they were yet alive: for the vision is touching the whole multitude thereof, which shall not return; neither shall any strengthen himself in the iniquity of his life.
14
They have blown the trumpet, even to make all ready; but none goeth to the battle: for my wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
15
The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within: he that is in the field shall die with the sword; and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him.
16
But they that escape of them shall escape, and shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, every one for his iniquity.
17
All hands shall be feeble, and all knees shall be weak as water.
18
They shall also gird themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be upon all faces, and baldness upon all their heads.
19
They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.
20
As for the beauty of his ornament, he set it in majesty: but they made the images of their abominations and of their detestable things therein: therefore have I set it far from them.
21
And I will give it into the hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall pollute it.
22
My face will I turn also from them, and they shall pollute my secret place: for the robbers shall enter into it, and defile it.
23
Make a chain: for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence.
24
Wherefore I will bring the worst of the heathen, and they shall possess their houses: I will also make the pomp of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be defiled.
25
Destruction cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none.
26
Mischief shall come upon mischief, and rumour shall be upon rumour; then shall they seek a vision of the prophet; but the law shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the ancients.
27
The king shall mourn, and the prince shall be clothed with desolation, and the hands of the people of the land shall be troubled: I will do unto them after their way, and according to their deserts will I judge them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.


1
And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in mine house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell there upon me.
2
Then I beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins even downward, fire; and from his loins even upward, as the appearance of brightness, as the colour of amber.
3
And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.
4
And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the vision that I saw in the plain.
5
Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold northward at the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.
6
He said furthermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations.
7
And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall.
8
Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door.
9
And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here.
10
So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, pourtrayed upon the wall round about.
11
And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up.
12
Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, the LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the earth.
13
He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do.
14
Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD's house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.
15
Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these.
16
And he brought me into the inner court of the LORD's house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.
17
Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose.
18
Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.


1
He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand.
2
And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar.
3
And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer's inkhorn by his side;
4
And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.
5
And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity:
6
Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.
7
And he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city.
8
And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem?
9
Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth not.
10
And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way upon their head.
11
And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me.





======

The New Testament reading is verses 24-39 in the 10th chapter in the epistle to the Hebrews


24
And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
25
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
26
For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27
But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
28
He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
29
Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
30
For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
31
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32
But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions;
33
Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used.
34
For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.
35
Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.
36
For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
37
For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
38
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
39
But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.


13 November 2013

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Wednesday, 13 November 2013

midweek now.  Snow on the ground, more flurries going on.  And it's not even, quite, the middle of November.  Cold is not my favorite thing.  Dear Wife can't handle much temperature variation, and never liked the heat of the Deep South;  Part of why we moved.  But cold isn't great either.  And it shall pass, eventually, I guess.  I have not forgotten that 30 years ago I was living in what had previously been a janitor's closet, sleeping on a donated couch, and living primarily on the product of the day-old bakery located a block or two away.  I had almost no money, living on the part-time minimum wage proceeds from work as a low-level supervisor in a small time security company.  I was at war with the Lord, had no prospects, few friends, and not much future.  Been quite a ride since then, and the Lord has been very very good to me and put me in situations I could never have imagined.  But there have been some bumps and some very scary moments along the way.  He brought us through them and He will bring us through our current problems as well.  His promises have always been good.

The morning's Old Testament reading continues in Ezekiel, chapters 4, 5, and 6.  Lots of interesting imagery in Ezekiel and later in Daniel.

1
Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem:
2
And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about.
3
Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.
4
Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity.
5
For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.
6
And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.
7
Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it.
8
And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the days of thy siege.
9
Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof.
10
And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it.
11
Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth part of an hin: from time to time shalt thou drink.
12
And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight.
13
And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them.
14
Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth.
15
Then he said unto me, Lo, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith.
16
Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment:
17
That they may want bread and water, and be astonied one with another, and consume away for their iniquity.


1
And thou, son of man, take thee a sharp knife, take thee a barber's razor, and cause it to pass upon thine head and upon thy beard: then take thee balances to weigh, and divide the hair.
2
Thou shalt burn with fire a third part in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are fulfilled: and thou shalt take a third part, and smite about it with a knife: and a third part thou shalt scatter in the wind; and I will draw out a sword after them.
3
Thou shalt also take thereof a few in number, and bind them in thy skirts.
4
Then take of them again, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; for thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.
5
Thus saith the Lord GOD; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.
6
And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.
7
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;
8
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.
9
And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.
10
Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds.
11
Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity.
12
A third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee: and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I will scatter a third part into all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them.
13
Thus shall mine anger be accomplished, and I will cause my fury to rest upon them, and I will be comforted: and they shall know that I the LORD have spoken it in my zeal, when I have accomplished my fury in them.
14
Moreover I will make thee waste, and a reproach among the nations that are round about thee, in the sight of all that pass by.
15
So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment unto the nations that are round about thee, when I shall execute judgments in thee in anger and in fury and in furious rebukes. I the LORD have spoken it.
16
When I shall send upon them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their destruction, and which I will send to destroy you: and I will increase the famine upon you, and will break your staff of bread:
17
So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee: and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it.


1
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2
Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them,
3
And say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys; Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places.
4
And your altars shall be desolate, and your images shall be broken: and I will cast down your slain men before your idols.
5
And I will lay the dead carcases of the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your bones round about your altars.
6
In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished.
7
And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
8
Yet will I leave a remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries.
9
And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their whorish heart, which hath departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall lothe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.
10
And they shall know that I am the LORD, and that I have not said in vain that I would do this evil unto them.
11
Thus saith the Lord GOD; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.
12
He that is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remaineth and is besieged shall die by the famine: thus will I accomplish my fury upon them.
13
Then shall ye know that I am the LORD, when their slain men shall be among their idols round about their altars, upon every high hill, in all the tops of the mountains, and under every green tree, and under every thick oak, the place where they did offer sweet savour to all their idols.
14
So will I stretch out my hand upon them, and make the land desolate, yea, more desolate than the wilderness toward Diblath, in all their habitations: and they shall know that I am the LORD.



----------

The New Testament reading is verses 1-23 of the 10th chapter in the epistle to the Hebrews.  VERY important stuff here.


1
For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
2
For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.
3
But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
4
For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
5
Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
6
In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.
7
Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.
8
Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;
9
Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.
10
By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
11
And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:
12
But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;
13
From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
14
For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.
15
Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,
16
This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
17
And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
18
Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.
19
Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,
20
By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;
21
And having an high priest over the house of God;
22
Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
23
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)