Today's Readings and Stuff -- Wednesdy, 10 February 2016

Trying to remind myself that we are now past the 1/3 mark for the month of February and the dates are in single digits.  Spring is only a bit more than a month from now.  But in the meantime, it's snowing outside right now, I just got done shoveling it for the second time today, and put a bit of rock salt down in those area where the combination of frequent use and notorious ice build up make for a dangerous situation.  We've been quite fortunate so far this winter, but this is the week that makes up for that.  This Saturday, the "high" is predicted to be in single digits, with the low around zero.  Next week we're predicted to have at least a few days with the highs above freezing.  A most welcome development.
Dear Wife is suffering from the weather fronts coming through.  She doesn't like real heat, not that it ever gets really hot this close to the "North Coast", but real cold isn't easy on her either.  Chronic pain is hard for her and for me as well.

We had two cats wandering through the house last night, most of the night, yelling back and forth.  I think that there was a feral neighborhood cat, likely a female, and our one un-fixed male cat was responding.  Wife says that this time of year is typical time for the females to go into heat, and that's possibly the issue here.  So I got little sleep.  Could use about 12  hours of it now, but that's not an available option.

Still unwilling to comment on the political hijinks going on.  I have my own opinions, and may get into them at some point, but not today.

==========================================
**********************************************************

The Old Testament reading is chapters 10, 11, and 12 of Leviticus.  I've been making a point of Moses and the people receiving VERY explicit instructions from the Lord, and frequent appearance of the phrase ".as the Lord commanded Moses"  in the record of their responses.  There is a reason for that.  We begin here with some people, Aaron's sons in fact, deciding to do it "their way".  Didn't work out too well for them.  Might be a useful hint for others, including today.
Next, we get into some of the dietary laws, ones that still hold for today.  They are directed at the Jews, but they're not necessarily a bad idea for everyone.  Dear Wife has some fractional amount of Jewish ancestry.  And she becomes ill if she eats some of those "non-kosher" foods, like shellfish.  Regular fish, the fins and scales, OK.  Clams, mussels, oysters, crab, lobster, crayfish, all the rest, make her ill.
And we get into what I can only refer to as discrimination.  For some reason, that term gets people all upset, they'll shout that discrimination is always wrong, in all circumstances and occasions.  Here, it is commanded -- one shall make a distinction, or discriminate, between the clean and the unclean.  Upsets some.  Well, if you can't make a distinction, otherwise discriminate, between steak and cow manure, I'm not eating at your house.

Leviticus 10

1	And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.
2	And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
3	Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the LORD spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.
4	And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said unto them, Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.
5	So they went near, and carried them in their coats out of the camp; as Moses had said.
6	And Moses said unto Aaron, and unto Eleazar and unto Ithamar, his sons, Uncover not your heads, neither rend your clothes; lest ye die, and lest wrath come upon all the people: but let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the LORD hath kindled.
7	And ye shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: for the anointing oil of the LORD is upon you. And they did according to the word of Moses.
8	And the LORD spake unto Aaron, saying,
9	Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:
10	And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean;
11	And that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the LORD hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses.
12	And Moses spake unto Aaron, and unto Eleazar and unto Ithamar, his sons that were left, Take the meat offering that remaineth of the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and eat it without leaven beside the altar: for it is most holy:
13	And ye shall eat it in the holy place, because it is thy due, and thy sons' due, of the sacrifices of the LORD made by fire: for so I am commanded.
14	And the wave breast and heave shoulder shall ye eat in a clean place; thou, and thy sons, and thy daughters with thee: for they be thy due, and thy sons' due, which are given out of the sacrifices of peace offerings of the children of Israel.
15	The heave shoulder and the wave breast shall they bring with the offerings made by fire of the fat, to wave it for a wave offering before the LORD; and it shall be thine, and thy sons' with thee, by a statute for ever; as the LORD hath commanded.
16	And Moses diligently sought the goat of the sin offering, and, behold, it was burnt: and he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron which were left alive, saying,
17	Wherefore have ye not eaten the sin offering in the holy place, seeing it is most holy, and God hath given it you to bear the iniquity of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the LORD?
18	Behold, the blood of it was not brought in within the holy place: ye should indeed have eaten it in the holy place, as I commanded.
19	And Aaron said unto Moses, Behold, this day have they offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before the LORD; and such things have befallen me: and if I had eaten the sin offering to day, should it have been accepted in the sight of the LORD?
20	And when Moses heard that, he was content.

Leviticus 11

1	And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
2	Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
3	Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is cloven-footed, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.
4	Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
5	And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
6	And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
7	And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be cloven-footed, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.
8	Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcass shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
9	These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat.
10	And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
11	They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcasses in abomination.
12	Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
13	And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
14	And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;
15	Every raven after his kind;
16	And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckoo, and the hawk after his kind,
17	And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,
18	And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
19	And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
20	All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.
21	Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;
22	Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.
23	But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.
24	And for these ye shall be unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcass of them shall be unclean until the even.
25	And whosoever beareth ought of the carcass of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
26	The carcasses of every beast which divideth the hoof, and is not cloven-footed, nor cheweth the cud, are unclean unto you: every one that toucheth them shall be unclean.
27	And whatsoever goeth upon his paws, among all manner of beasts that go on all four, those are unclean unto you: whoso toucheth their carcass shall be unclean until the even.
28	And he that beareth the carcass of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: they are unclean unto you.
29	These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind,
30	And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.
31	These are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until the even.
32	And upon whatsoever any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it be, wherein any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed.
33	And every earthen vessel, whereinto any of them falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean; and ye shall break it.
34	Of all meat which may be eaten, that on which such water cometh shall be unclean: and all drink that may be drunk in every such vessel shall be unclean.
35	And every thing whereupon any part of their carcass falleth shall be unclean; whether it be oven, or ranges for pots, they shall be broken down: for they are unclean and shall be unclean unto you.
36	Nevertheless a fountain or pit, wherein there is plenty of water, shall be clean: but that which toucheth their carcass shall be unclean.
37	And if any part of their carcass fall upon any sowing seed which is to be sown, it shall be clean.
38	But if any water be put upon the seed, and any part of their carcass fall thereon, it shall be unclean unto you.
39	And if any beast, of which ye may eat, die; he that toucheth the carcass thereof shall be unclean until the even.
40	And he that eateth of the carcass of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: he also that beareth the carcass of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
41	And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth shall be an abomination; it shall not be eaten.
42	Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they are an abomination.
43	Ye shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye make yourselves unclean with them, that ye should be defiled thereby.
44	For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
45	For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.
46	This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth:
47	To make a difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten.

Leviticus 12

1	And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2	Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean.
3	And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
4	And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled.
5	But if she bear a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her separation: and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying threescore and six days.
6	And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest:
7	Who shall offer it before the LORD, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.
8	And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean.

*******************************************'
*********************************

The New Testament reading is verses 1-19 of the 26th chapter in the Gospel of Matthew.
The recent readings have been recording the teachings of Jesus during the last few days of His earthly ministry, the time we sometimes call "Holy Week".  That time is about to draw to a close.  I really can not imagine how the Apostles felt, years afterward, looking back at this time.  Had to be some of the "if only ..." thoughts going on.

Matthew 26:1-19

1	And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples,
2	Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified.
3	Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas,
4	And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him.
5	But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.
6	Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,
7	There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.
8	But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?
9	For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.
10	When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.
11	For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.
12	For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.
13	Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.
14	Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,
15	And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.
16	And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.
17	Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the passover?
18	And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples.
19	And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.

Today's Readings and Stuff == Saturday, 14 February 2015

Happy Valentine's Day!
I gave Dear Wife the flowers, card, and candy last night.  We're not morning people, neither of us, and so why not do it then.  Sent e-mail "happy valentines' to both the daughters.  Miss them something awful.  Hope their husbands did them right.  And feel bad for younger daughter's mother-in-law.  Her husband passed away about 18 months ago, after a sudden illness, and she misses him, which is very understandable.  Events like this make it worse I am sure.

It's been snowing all day, on top of all the snow we've been getting for the last two weeks, the winds are heavy, and tonight's temp is predicted to approach 10 below zero.  Yuck!!!  This little hovel of ours is cold and drafty, the place is as well sealed and insulated as I could muster strength and money to do during the warmer weather last year, but it;s not good and there is nothing I can do about it until warm weather, if then.  The scant comfort is that as of today we are half way through February, March is just two weeks and a day away, and the Equinox is a few weeks into it.  So we have some confidence that warmer weather is coming, it's just not here yet.  I got the mail just a bit ago, and could not even see the footprints of the mail carrier, which gives an idea of the weather conditions.  It does not improve my mood to see that the location we moved FROM is right now 59 degrees.  I'd prefer that to what we have right now, by quite a margin.

Younger daughter messaged me last night that she's going to be sending out graduation announcements soon.  She's graduating in May (I believe, might be 1st weekend in June) from university with a double degree, a Master's and a Bachelor's at the same time (a very very tough program).  Job hunting of course, but also being considered for a Ph.D. program at another university, so we shall see.  We are very proud of both of our girls, and miss them both terribly.

I am listening on the news right now of a shooting event in Denmark.  It seems likely that some adherents of the Religion of Pieces too umbrage at a free speech gathering.  One dead so far, and the perp nowhere to be found so far. 

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

The Old Testament reading is chapters 18 and 19 of Leviticus.
I often see and hear declamations on the issue of 'discrimination" and exhortations that all cultures are equally worthy and valid.  Well, nonsense.  The Lord discriminates, He clearly makes distinctions, and as here, makes the point that His people shall NOT be like the people around them.  Unfortunately, today's church has ignored that, and is looking more and more like the diseased society, rather than salt and light.

Leviticus 18 

1	And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2	Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the LORD your God.
3	After the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall ye not do: neither shall ye walk in their ordinances.
4	Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God.
5	Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.
6	None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD.
7	The nakedness of thy father, or the nakedness of thy mother, shalt thou not uncover: she is thy mother; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
8	The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father's nakedness.
9	The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover.
10	The nakedness of thy son's daughter, or of thy daughter's daughter, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover: for theirs is thine own nakedness.
11	The nakedness of thy father's wife's daughter, begotten of thy father, she is thy sister, thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
12	Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's sister: she is thy father's near kinswoman.
13	Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother's sister: for she is thy mother's near kinswoman.
14	Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's brother, thou shalt not approach to his wife: she is thine aunt.
15	Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy daughter in law: she is thy son's wife; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
16	Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife: it is thy brother's nakedness.
17	Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, neither shalt thou take her son's daughter, or her daughter's daughter, to uncover her nakedness; for they are her near kinswomen: it is wickedness.
18	Neither shalt thou take a wife to her sister, to vex her, to uncover her nakedness, beside the other in her life time.
19	Also thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is put apart for her uncleanness.
20	Moreover thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbor's wife, to defile thyself with her.
21	And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.
22	Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.
23	Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion.
24	Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you:
25	And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants.
26	Ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you:
27	(For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled;)
28	That the land spue not you out also, when ye defile it, as it spued out the nations that were before you.
29	For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people.
30	Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 19  Back to Top

1	And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2	Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.
3	Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the LORD your God.
4	Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD your God.
5	And if ye offer a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the LORD, ye shall offer it at your own will.
6	It shall be eaten the same day ye offer it, and on the morrow: and if ought remain until the third day, it shall be burnt in the fire.
7	And if it be eaten at all on the third day, it is abominable; it shall not be accepted.
8	Therefore every one that eateth it shall bear his iniquity, because he hath profaned the hallowed thing of the LORD: and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
9	And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest.
10	And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.
11	Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.
12	And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.
13	Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbor, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.
14	Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.
15	Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor.
16	Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbor; I am the LORD.
17	Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him.
18	Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the LORD.
19	Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woolen come upon thee.
20	And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to an husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; she shall be scourged; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.
21	And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, even a ram for a trespass offering.
22	And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.
23	And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.
24	But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy to praise the LORD withal.
25	And in the fifth year shall ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you the increase thereof: I am the LORD your God.
26	Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times.
27	Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.
28	Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.
29	Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.
30	Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.
31	Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.
32	Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD.
33	And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him.
34	But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
35	Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in meteyard, in weight, or in measure.
36	Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt.
37	Therefore shall ye observe all my statutes, and all my judgments, and do them: I am the LORD.

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

The New Testament reading is verses 32-66 of the 27th chapter in the Gospel of Matthew.
The Crucifixion.  Do I need say more?

Matthew 27:32-66

32	And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.
33	And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,
34	They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.
35	And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.
36	And sitting down they watched him there;
37	And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
38	Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left.
39	And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,
40	And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.
41	Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said,
42	He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.
43	He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.
44	The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.
45	Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.
46	And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
47	Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias.
48	And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.
49	The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.
50	Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.
51	And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;
52	And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
53	And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.
54	Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.
55	And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him:
56	Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedees children.
57	When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' disciple:
58	He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.
59	And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,
60	And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.
61	And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.
62	Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate,
63	Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.
64	Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.
65	Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.
66	So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 24 January 2015

Dear Wife is still sick.  Neither of us did the night very well, and getting woken up to break up a catfight before dawn did not improve matter.  Cold and dreary and gray, normal for this time of year in NE Ohio near the Great Lakes.  Not happy.
But we've been through worse.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Old Testament reading today is chapters 7 and 8 of the Exodus.
I know that all of this occurred a very long time ago.  But, like it or not, it still affects our world today.  Coming out of the bondage, against all odds, from the most powerful empire in the known world at the time, reminds us of the the power of the Lord, a strong thing for the Jews and for the Christians alike.  The areas that surround Israel then, and still today, are the locus of much of the evil that has beset the world for several thousands of years.  And will until The End.
This has Moses getting into Pharaoh's face.  That is the sort of thing that Just Wasn't Done.  Pharaoh was considered to be the closest thing to a god walking around that there was.  The Lord, working through Moses, showed him as powerless.  The Nile was a semi-divine thing, the heartbeat of the agricultural plenty that translated into power in that world.  The Lord, as we see here, turned it to blood, making a mockery of that system.  Yes, the Lord turned that whole world upside down, showing that it is He, and He alone, who is God.  And that reverberates today.

Exodus 7

1	And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet.
2	Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.
3	And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.
4	But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
5	And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.
6	And Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded them, so did they.
7	And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.
8	And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
9	When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Show a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent.
10	And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the LORD had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent.
11	Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments.
12	For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods.
13	And he hardened Pharaoh's heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.
14	And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go.
15	Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river's brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.
16	And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear.
17	Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.
18	And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall loathe to drink of the water of the river.
19	And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.
20	And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood.
21	And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.
22	And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said.
23	And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also.
24	And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river.
25	And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.

Exodus 8

1	And the LORD spake unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
2	And if thou refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all thy borders with frogs:
3	And the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs:
4	And the frogs shall come up both on thee, and upon thy people, and upon all thy servants.
5	And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt.
6	And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt.
7	And the magicians did so with their enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land of Egypt.
8	Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Entreat the LORD, that he may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the LORD.
9	And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory over me: when shall I entreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only?
10	And he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the LORD our God.
11	And the frogs shall depart from thee, and from thy houses, and from thy servants, and from thy people; they shall remain in the river only.
12	And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh: and Moses cried unto the LORD because of the frogs which he had brought against Pharaoh.
13	And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages, and out of the fields.
14	And they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank.
15	But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.
16	And the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
17	And they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land became lice throughout all the land of Egypt.
18	And the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast.
19	Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.
20	And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
21	Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.
22	And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth.
23	And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be.
24	And the LORD did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies.
25	And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land.
26	And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us?
27	We will go three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the LORD our God, as he shall command us.
28	And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: entreat for me.
29	And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will entreat the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD.
30	And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and entreated the LORD.
31	And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one.
32	And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.

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

The New Testament reading is chapter 17 of the Gospel of Matthew.  Here we see The Transfiguration of Jesus.  That HAD to make an impression on those who were there, and it is one of those "I wish I could have been there" moments.   But...  note that one of those there was Peter.  And it was Peter who, in a short time after, in a serious moment, denied Christ three times.  And the others ran like rabbits when soldiers came.

Matthew 17

1	And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
2	And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
3	And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.
4	Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
5	While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
6	And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.
7	And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
8	And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only.
9	And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead.
10	And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come?
11	And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.
12	But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.
13	Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.
14	And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying,
15	Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.
16	And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.
17	Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.
18	And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.
19	Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
20	And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
21	Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
22	And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men:
23	And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry.
24	And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute?
25	He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers?
26	Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free.
27	Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.