Today's Readings and Stuff -- Friday, 04 May 2018

brief and late.  Wife is still quite ill.  She just ate a little bit, the only thing other than two piece of toast, she' had all day.  Perhaps a good sign.  Perhaps.  We  hope.  Now, normally, it takes at least two days, sometimes three, before a round of antibiotics begins to show any effect whatever.  Today is the first day of the antibiotic pills, after the injection yesterday, so perhaps we'll see some improvement by Sunday.

Today is the National Day of Prayer.  I had planned to attend a gathering of such, but events took over and prevented that. 

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And now, well, the Lord has granted the wish of the people for a king.  They got one, all right.
Saul wasn't great, as we shall see.  But, as we see even today, the Lord can make use of imperfect people.  Indeed, it's the only kind available.

1st Samuel 9

1  Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power.

2  And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people.

3  And the asses of Kish Saul's father were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses.

4  And he passed through mount Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalisha, but they found them not: then they passed through the land of Shalim, and there they were not: and he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they found them not.

5  And when they were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant that was with him, Come, and let us return; lest my father leave caring for the asses, and take thought for us.

6  And he said unto him, Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is an honourable man; all that he saith cometh surely to pass: now let us go thither; peradventure he can shew us our way that we should go.

7  Then said Saul to his servant, But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God: what have we?

8  And the servant answered Saul again, and said, Behold, I have here at hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver: that will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way.

9  (Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to enquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer: for he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer.)

10  Then said Saul to his servant, Well said; come, let us go. So they went unto the city where the man of God was.

11  And as they went up the hill to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said unto them, Is the seer here?

12  And they answered them, and said, He is; behold, he is before you: make haste now, for he came to day to the city; for there is a sacrifice of the people to day in the high place:

13  As soon as ye be come into the city, ye shall straightway find him, before he go up to the high place to eat: for the people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless the sacrifice; and afterwards they eat that be bidden. Now therefore get you up; for about this time ye shall find him.t

14  And they went up into the city: and when they were come into the city, behold, Samuel came out against them, for to go up to the high place.

15  Now the Lord had told Samuel in his ear a day before Saul came, saying,told…

16  To morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over my people Israel, that he may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me.

17  And when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said unto him, Behold the man whom I spake to thee of! this same shall reign over my people.

18  Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's house is.

19  And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer: go up before me unto the high place; for ye shall eat with me to day, and to morrow I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thine heart.

20  And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on all thy father's house?

21  And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou so to me?

22  And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the parlour, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, which were about thirty persons.

23  And Samuel said unto the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee, Set it by thee.

24  And the cook took up the shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left! set it before thee, and eat: for unto this time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day.

25  And when they were come down from the high place into the city, Samuel communed with Saul upon the top of the house.

26  And they arose early: and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad.

27  And as they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, (and he passed on,) but stand thou still a while, that I may shew thee the word of God.

1st Samuel 10

1  Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said, Is it not because the Lord hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance?

2  When thou art departed from me to day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say unto thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are found: and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and sorroweth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son?

3  Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men going up to God to Beth–el, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine:

4  And they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread; which thou shalt receive of their hands.

5  After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines: and it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp, before them; and they shall prophesy:

6  And the Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man.

7  And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, that thou do as occasion serve thee; for God is with thee.

8  And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and, behold, I will come down unto thee, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings: seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and shew thee what thou shalt do.

9  And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart: and all those signs came to pass that day.

10  And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them.

11  And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied among the prophets, then the people said one to another, What is this that is come unto the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?

12  And one of the same place answered and said, But who is their father? Therefore it became a proverb, Is Saul also among the prophets?

13  And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high place.

14  And Saul's uncle said unto him and to his servant, Whither went ye? And he said, To seek the asses: and when we saw that they were no where, we came to Samuel.

15And Saul's uncle said, Tell me, I pray thee, what Samuel said unto you.

16  And Saul said unto his uncle, He told us plainly that the asses were found. But of the matter of the kingdom, whereof Samuel spake, he told him not.

17  And Samuel called the people together unto the Lord to Mizpah;

18  And said unto the children of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you:

19  And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations; and ye have said unto him, Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes, and by your thousands.

20And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was taken.

21  When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was taken, and Saul the son of Kish was taken: and when they sought him, he could not be found.

22  Therefore they enquired of the Lord further, if the man should yet come thither. And the Lord answered, Behold, he hath hid himself among the stuff.

23  And they ran and fetched him thence: and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward.

24  And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the Lord hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted, and said, God save the king.

25  Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

26  And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched.

27  But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.

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Today, a prayer of Moses.
Ever feel that this is your prayer?  I have.  I do.  Perhaps all of us.

Psalm 90

A Prayer of Moses the man of God.

 
1  Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

2  Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.

3  Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.

4  For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night

5  Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up.

6  In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.

7  For we are consumed by thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled.

8  Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.

9  For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.

10  The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

11  Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath.

12  So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

13  Return, O Lord, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.

14  O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

15  Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil.

16  Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children.

17  And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.

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Today, another change.  The book, the Acts of the Apostles.  This is the beginning of the Church.

Acts 1

1  The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,

2  Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:

3  To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:

4  And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.

5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.

6  When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

9  And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

10  And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

11  Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

12  Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.

13  And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

14  These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

15  And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

16  Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.

17  For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.

18  Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

19  And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

20  For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.

21 Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

22  Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

23  And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

24  And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen,

25  That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

26  And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.