Today's Readings -- 08 May 2011

Early morning - late night. It's shortly before dawn here, I have been awake since around 02:30, part of the effects of this night shift I've been on for FAR too long, while also trying to spend time with Dear Wife on a weekend. We see each other so little during the week that we try to make up for it on the weekends. This coming week I also have to work Saturday night (for free, as, in reality, I work Friday for free as well). So our "weekend" will consist of an hour or so between my return home and getting back up to prepare for church, come home, sleep for a while (badly needed by then), then back up, dinner together, and such, and then she's off to bed to get ready for HER regular week.
So why not blog?

This morning's reading is chapters 16, 17, and 18 of 1st Kings.

I Kings 16

1	Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying,
2	Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over my people Israel; and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins;
3	Behold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha, and the posterity of his house; and will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
4	Him that dieth of Baasha in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth of his in the fields shall the fowls of the air eat.
5	Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
6	So Baasha slept with his fathers, and was buried in Tirzah: and Elah his son reigned in his stead.
7	And also by the hand of the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani came the word of the LORD against Baasha, and against his house, even for all the evil that he did in the sight of the LORD, in provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam; and because he killed him.
8	In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah began Elah the son of Baasha to reign over Israel in Tirzah, two years.
9	And his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him, as he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza steward of his house in Tirzah.
10	And Zimri went in and smote him, and killed him, in the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his stead.
11	And it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he slew all the house of Baasha: he left him not one that pisseth against a wall, neither of his kinsfolk, nor of his friends.
12	Thus did Zimri destroy all the house of Baasha, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake against Baasha by Jehu the prophet.
13	For all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah his son, by which they sinned, and by which they made Israel to sin, in provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
14	Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
15	In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah did Zimri reign seven days in Tirzah. And the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines.
16	And the people that were encamped heard say, Zimri hath conspired, and hath also slain the king: wherefore all Israel made Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the camp.
17	And Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah.
18	And it came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the palace of the king's house, and burnt the king's house over him with fire, and died.
19	For his sins which he sinned in doing evil in the sight of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he did, to make Israel to sin.
20	Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and his treason that he wrought, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
21	Then were the people of Israel divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king; and half followed Omri.
22	But the people that followed Omri prevailed against the people that followed Tibni the son of Ginath: so Tibni died, and Omri reigned.
23	In the thirty and first year of Asa king of Judah began Omri to reign over Israel, twelve years: six years reigned he in Tirzah.
24	And he bought the hill Samaria of Shemer for two talents of silver, and built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill, Samaria.
25	But Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all that were before him.
26	For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
27	Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
28	So Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria: and Ahab his son reigned in his stead.
29	And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah began Ahab the son of Omri to reign over Israel: and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty and two years.
30	And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him.
31	And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him.
32	And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
33	And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
34	In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho: he laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Joshua the son of Nun.

I Kings 17

1	And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
2	And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
3	Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
4	And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
5	So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
6	And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
7	And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
8	And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
9	Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
10	So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11	And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
12	And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
13	And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
14	For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth.
15	And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
16	And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.
17	And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
18	And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
19	And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
20	And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
21	And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again.
22	And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
23	And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.
24	And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.

I Kings 18

1	And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, show thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.
2	And Elijah went to show himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
3	And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly:
4	For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.)
5	And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go into the land, unto all fountains of water, and unto all brooks: peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts.
6	So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7	And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah?
8	And he answered him, I am: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
9	And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me?
10	As the LORD thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when they said, He is not there; he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not.
11	And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
12	And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth.
13	Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid an hundred men of the LORD's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
14	And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here: and he shall slay me.
15	And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself unto him to day.
16	So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17	And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
18	And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim.
19	Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table.
20	So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
21	And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
22	Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
23	Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under:
24	And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
25	And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
26	And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
27	And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
28	And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
29	And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.
30	And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down.
31	And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
32	And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
33	And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.
34	And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
35	And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
36	And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
37	Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
38	Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
39	And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God.
40	And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
41	And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
42	So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,
43	And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.
44	And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down that the rain stop thee not.
45	And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.
46	And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

This evening's readings is verses 29-51 from chapter 1 in the Gospel of John,

John 1:29-51

29	The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30	This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31	And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.
32	And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
33	And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
34	And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.
35	Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;
36	And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
37	And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
38	Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?
39	He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.
40	One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.
41	He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
42	And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
43	The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me.
44	Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
45	Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.
46	And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.
47	Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!
48	Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.
49	Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
50	Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.
51	And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.

`1111

Today's Readings -- 07 May 2011

This has been quite a week for us. Dear Wife is home from hospital, resting in bed right now. She is doing a bit better, certainly better than we saw the other day. But this is a hard road we travel, and we are not yet to the end.
Walk with us.

The Old Testament reading for the day is chapters 14 and 15 of 1st Kings.

I Kings 14

1	At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick.
2	And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people.
3	And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child.
4	And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.
5	And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman.
6	And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.
7	Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel,
8	And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes;
9	But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back:
10	Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.
11	Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it.
12	Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.
13	And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.
14	Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now.
15	For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger.
16	And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.
17	And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died;
18	And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.
19	And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
20	And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.
21	And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess.
22	And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23	For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.
24	And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.
25	And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:
26	And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.
27	And king Rehoboam made in their stead brazen shields, and committed them unto the hands of the chief of the guard, which kept the door of the king's house.
28	And it was so, when the king went into the house of the LORD, that the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber.
29	Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
30	And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days.
31	And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead.

I Kings 15

1	Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of Nebat reigned Abijam over Judah.
2	Three years reigned he in Jerusalem. and his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
3	And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father.
4	Nevertheless for David's sake did the LORD his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him, and to establish Jerusalem:
5	Because David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.
6	And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.
7	Now the rest of the acts of Abijam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.
8	And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead.
9	And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah.
10	And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
11	And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.
12	And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
13	And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.
14	But the high places were not removed: nevertheless Asa's heart was perfect with the LORD all his days.
15	And he brought in the things which his father had dedicated, and the things which himself had dedicated, into the house of the LORD, silver, and gold, and vessels.
16	And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.
17	And Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not suffer any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah.
18	Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants: and king Asa sent them to Benhadad, the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying,
19	There is a league between me and thee, and between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent unto thee a present of silver and gold; come and break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me.
20	So Benhadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the captains of the hosts which he had against the cities of Israel, and smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abelbethmaachah, and all Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali.
21	And it came to pass, when Baasha heard thereof, that he left off building of Ramah, and dwelt in Tirzah.
22	Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah; none was exempted: and they took away the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had builded; and king Asa built with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.
23	The rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might, and all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? Nevertheless in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet.
24	And Asa slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead.
25	And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned over Israel two years.
26	And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin.
27	And Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him; and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines; for Nadab and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon.
28	Even in the third year of Asa king of Judah did Baasha slay him, and reigned in his stead.
29	And it came to pass, when he reigned, that he smote all the house of Jeroboam; he left not to Jeroboam any that breathed, until he had destroyed him, according unto the saying of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Ahijah the Shilonite:
30	Because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and which he made Israel sin, by his provocation wherewith he provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger.
31	Now the rest of the acts of Nadab, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
32	And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.
33	In the third year of Asa king of Judah began Baasha the son of Ahijah to reign over all Israel in Tirzah, twenty and four years.
34	And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin.

The New Testament reading is verses 1-28 from the first chapter in the Gospel of John. When much younger, I committed much of this passage to memory, and that has been a blessing to me many times since then.

John1:1-28

1	In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2	The same was in the beginning with God.
3	All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4	In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5	And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
6	There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7	The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
8	He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9	That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
10	He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
11	He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12	But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13	Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14	And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
15	John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.
16	And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.
17	For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
18	No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
19	And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
20	And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
21	And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.
22	Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
23	He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.
24	And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.
25	And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?
26	John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;
27	He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose.
28	These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Today 06 May 2011

we're a bit disjointed here. Dear Wife was rushed to the hospital yesterday with chest pains and was admitted. It was not, fortunately, a heart attack, though it is a serious matter. She will be released this afternoon, but it has thrown things around here into some disarray.
Apologies. Hope to be on a more regular schedule soon.

Today's Readings -- 04 May 2011

Happy Wednesday. Another night tour is behind me. It does give me some time to cry out to the Lord, and also some reason to do so. I hope there's a higher purpose behind all of this. Would be a shame if something good didn't come of it.

This morning's reading is chapters 8 and 9 of 1st Kings. More of Solomon and the dedication of the Temple. Must have been quite a sight.

I Kings 8

1	Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
2	And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.
3	And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.
4	And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up.
5	And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude.
6	And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubim.
7	For the cherubim spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof above.
8	And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day.
9	There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
10	And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,
11	So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.
12	Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
13	I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever.
14	And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the congregation of Israel: (and all the congregation of Israel stood;)
15	And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which spake with his mouth unto David my father, and hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying,
16	Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build an house, that my name might be therein; but I chose David to be over my people Israel.
17	And it was in the heart of David my father to build an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.
18	And the LORD said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart.
19	Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house unto my name.
20	And the LORD hath performed his word that he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.
21	And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of the LORD, which he made with our fathers, when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.
22	And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:
23	And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart:
24	Who hast kept with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him: thou spakest also with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day.
25	Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as thou hast walked before me.
26	And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father.
27	But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded?
28	Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day:
29	That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place.
30	And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive.
31	If any man trespass against his neighbor, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house:
32	Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.
33	When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house:
34	Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers.
35	When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them:
36	Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance.
37	If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be;
38	What prayer and supplication soever be made by any man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house:
39	Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)
40	That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers.
41	Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name's sake;
42	(For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this house;
43	Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I have builded, is called by thy name.
44	If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the LORD toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built for thy name:
45	Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.
46	If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near;
47	Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness;
48	And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name:
49	Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause,
50	And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them:
51	For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron:
52	That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee.
53	For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O LORD God.
54	And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.
55	And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,
56	Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
57	The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us:
58	That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.
59	And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require:
60	That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is God, and that there is none else.
61	Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.
62	And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the LORD.
63	And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.
64	The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD: for there he offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings: because the brazen altar that was before the LORD was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.
65	And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days.
66	On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.

I Kings 9

1	And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do,
2	That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.
3	And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
4	And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
5	Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
6	But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:
7	Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:
8	And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
9	And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.
10	And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD, and the king's house,
11	(Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.
12	And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not.
13	And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day.
14	And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.
15	And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer.
16	For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife.
17	And Solomon built Gezer, and Bethhoron the nether,
18	And Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land,
19	And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion.
20	And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel,
21	Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice unto this day.
22	But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen.
23	These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work.
24	But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Millo.
25	And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.
26	And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom.
27	And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.
28	And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.

This evening, verses 39-56 of Luke 23. Jesus is crucified. Dead and buried in a borrowed tomb.
But, like Paul Harvey used to say, "... the rest of the story!" has to come. Worth waiting for.

Luke 23:39-56

39	And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
40	But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
41	And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.
42	And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
43	And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
44	And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.
45	And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.
46	And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.
47	Now when the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was a righteous man.
48	And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned.
49	And all his acquaintance, and the women that followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding these things.
50	And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counsellor; and he was a good man, and a just:
51	(The same had not consented to the counsel and deed of them;) he was of Arimathaea, a city of the Jews: who also himself waited for the kingdom of God.
52	This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus.
53	And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid.
54	And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.
55	And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid.
56	And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.