Today's Readings -- 18 December 2010

A good Saturday morning to all. Still dark here, I got home from work a little bit ago. Dear Wife and a friend of hers have already set off for the Atlanta airport, there to retrieve her sister who is flying in from the greater Pittsburgh area. She will be staying with us for a few days, and then we are going to drive her home. Or that is the plan, Lord willing. We need to go up there for a few days, we've hardly seen family at all in the last 18 years, and not at all since our last doleful visits in early 2007 when, in the space of little more than a month, both our mothers passed. Not exactly a great time, and we had to come and go as quickly as possible due to our straitened circumstances. We will have a LITTLE bit of time this go-round, though of course we won't get to do everything we'd like, nor see everyone we'd like to see, and probably someone's feelings will be hurt. Can't be helped, we're doing what we can.
But things may be a bit disconnected for the next few weeks, certainly until around the new year.

This morning's reading is the book of Jonah. That's another name you will rarely see in the birth records these days, and that's probably appropriate. But we've all known some people that remind us of him.

Jonah 1

1	Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
2	Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
3	But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
4	But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.
5	Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.
6	So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.
7	And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.
8	Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?
9	And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
10	Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him. Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.
11	Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous.
12	And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.
13	Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them.
14	Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee.
15	So they look up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.
16	Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows.
17	Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

Jonah 2

1	Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish's belly,
2	And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.
3	For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me.
4	Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple.
5	The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head.
6	I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God.
7	When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.
8	They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
9	But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.
10	And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.

Jonah 3

1	And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying,
2	Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.
3	So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey.
4	And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.
5	So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
6	For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
7	And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:
8	But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.
9	Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?
10	And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Jonah 4

1	But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry.
2	And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.
3	Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.
4	Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry?
5	So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city.
6	And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd.
7	But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered.
8	And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.
9	And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, even unto death.
10	Then said the LORD, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:
11	And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more then sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?

This evening, Revelation chapter 9. I don't want to be around for this.

Revelation 9

1	And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.
2	And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.
3	And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
4	And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
5	And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
6	And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
7	And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.
8	And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.
9	And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
10	And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.
11	And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
12	One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
13	And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14	Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.
15	And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.
16	And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.
17	And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.
18	By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.
19	For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.
20	And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:
21	Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

Today's Readings == 17 December 2010

running late and short shrift today. Been a bit tough around here, Dear Wife remains quite ill, spiking a very high blood pressure which is very dangerous for her, last checked yesterday was like 179 over 134 or something like that. Too high, and I am worried for her.

The Old Testament reading today is the book of Obadiah. Not very long at all. We don't often name our sons Obadiah these days, and it has probably never been REAL popular, not like some. It's tough name, because he was around in a tough time and had a tough assignment. We like the easier ones, don't we?

Obadiah 1

1	The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning Edom; We have heard a rumour from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle.
2	Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised.
3	The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?
4	Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.
5	If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut off!) would they not have stolen till they had enough? if the grapegatherers came to thee, would they not leave some grapes?
6	How are the things of Esau searched out! how are his hidden things sought up!
7	All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; that they eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding in him.
8	Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD, even destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau?
9	And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter.
10	For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.
11	In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.
12	But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.
13	Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity;
14	Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress.
15	For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.
16	For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been.
17	But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.
18	And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it.
19	And they of the south shall possess the mount of Esau; and they of the plain the Philistines: and they shall possess the fields of Ephraim, and the fields of Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
20	And the captivity of this host of the children of Israel shall possess that of the Canaanites, even unto Zarephath; and the captivity of Jerusalem, which is in Sepharad, shall possess the cities of the south.
21	And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD's.

The New Testament passage is chapter 8 of the Revelation.

Revelation 8

1	And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
2	And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
3	And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
4	And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.
5	And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
6	And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
7	The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
8	And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9	And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
10	And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
11	And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.
12	And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.
13	And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

Today's Readings -- 16 December 2010

Sigh. Now in the last half of the last month of the year. Where has the year gone?
Yesterday was a long one. Finishing this up, and then some sleep.

This morning, Amos 7, 8, 9. This concludes Amos.

Amos 7

1	Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me; and, behold, he formed grasshoppers in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings.
2	And it came to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.
3	The LORD repented for this: It shall not be, saith the LORD.
4	Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire, and it devoured the great deep, and did eat up a part.
5	Then said I, O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech thee: by whom shall Jacob arise? for he is small.
6	The LORD repented for this: This also shall not be, saith the Lord GOD.
7	Thus he shewed me: and, behold, the LORD stood upon a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in his hand.
8	And the LORD said unto me, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A plumbline. Then said the LORD, Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of my people Israel: I will not again pass by them any more:
9	And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste; and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.
10	Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.
11	For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.
12	Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:
13	But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court.
14	Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:
15	And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.
16	Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD: Thou sayest, Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not thy word against the house of Isaac.
17	Therefore thus saith the LORD; Thy wife shall be an harlot in the city, and thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword, and thy land shall be divided by line; and thou shalt die in a polluted land: and Israel shall surely go into captivity forth of his land.

Amos 8

1	Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.
2	And he said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the LORD unto me, The end is come upon my people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more.
3	And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord GOD: there shall be many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast them forth with silence.
4	Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail,
5	Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit?
6	That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat?
7	The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works.
8	Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.
9	And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
10	And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
11	Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
12	And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.
13	In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.
14	They that swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, Thy god, O Dan, liveth; and, The manner of Beersheba liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again.

Amos 9

1	I saw the LORD standing upon the altar: and he said, Smite the lintel of the door, that the posts may shake: and cut them in the head, all of them; and I will slay the last of them with the sword: he that fleeth of them shall not flee away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.
2	Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:
3	And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from my sight in the bottom of the sea, thence will I command the serpent, and he shall bite them:
4	And though they go into captivity before their enemies, thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them: and I will set mine eyes upon them for evil, and not for good.
5	And the Lord GOD of hosts is he that toucheth the land, and it shall melt, and all that dwell therein shall mourn: and it shall rise up wholly like a flood; and shall be drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.
6	It is he that buildeth his stories in the heaven, and hath founded his troop in the earth; he that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name.
7	Are ye not as children of the Ethiopians unto me, O children of Israel? saith the LORD. Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?
8	Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the LORD.
9	For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.
10	All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us.
11	In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:
12	That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this.
13	Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.
14	And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
15	And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.

This evening, Revelation 7

Revelation 7

1	And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.
2	And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
3	Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
4	And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
5	Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.
6	Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nephthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.
7	Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.
8	Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.
9	After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
10	And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
11	And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,
12	Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.
13	And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
14	And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15	Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
16	They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
17	For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

Today's Readings -- 15 December 2010

wild day. Long night, short snooze, then off to a job interview, then quick change and off to work all night. Shoehorning this in, and not doing justice to the text, which is wrong and also unavoidable. Sorry.

Morning, Amos 4, 5, 6

Amos 4

1	Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink.
2	The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks.
3	And ye shall go out at the breaches, every cow at that which is before her; and ye shall cast them into the palace, saith the LORD.
4	Come to Bethel, and transgress; at Gilgal multiply transgression; and bring your sacrifices every morning, and your tithes after three years:
5	And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven, and proclaim and publish the free offerings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.
6	And I also have given you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and want of bread in all your places: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
7	And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.
8	So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
9	I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
10	I have sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt: your young men have I slain with the sword, and have taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
11	I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.
12	Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.
13	For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name.

Amos 5

1	Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a lamentation, O house of Israel.
2	The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise: she is forsaken upon her land; there is none to raise her up.
3	For thus saith the Lord GOD; The city that went out by a thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth by an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Israel.
4	For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:
5	But seek not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought.
6	Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel.
7	Ye who turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth,
8	Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name:
9	That strengtheneth the spoiled against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.
10	They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.
11	Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them.
12	For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right.
13	Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time.
14	Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.
15	Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate: it may be that the LORD God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.
16	Therefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the LORD, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
17	And in all vineyards shall be wailing: for I will pass through thee, saith the LORD.
18	Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.
19	As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.
20	Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?
21	I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
22	Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
23	Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
24	But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
25	Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
26	But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
27	Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith the LORD, whose name is The God of hosts.

Amos 6

1	Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!
2	Pass ye unto Calneh, and see; and from thence go ye to Hamath the great: then go down to Gath of the Philistines: be they better than these kingdoms? or their border greater than your border?
3	Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of violence to come near;
4	That lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall;
5	That chant to the sound of the viol, and invent to themselves instruments of musick, like David;
6	That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
7	Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed.
8	The Lord GOD hath sworn by himself, saith the LORD the God of hosts, I abhor the excellency of Jacob, and hate his palaces: therefore will I deliver up the city with all that is therein.
9	And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.
10	And a man's uncle shall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that is by the sides of the house, Is there yet any with thee? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD.
11	For, behold, the LORD commandeth, and he will smite the great house with breaches, and the little house with clefts.
12	Shall horses run upon the rock? will one plow there with oxen? for ye have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into hemlock:
13	Ye which rejoice in a thing of nought, which say, Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?
14	But, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, saith the LORD the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hemath unto the river of the wilderness.

Evening, Revelation 6

Revelation 6

1	And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
2	And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
3	And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.
4	And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
5	And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.
6	And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
7	And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8	And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
9	And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10	And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11	And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
12	And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
13	And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
14	And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
15	And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
16	And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
17	For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Today's Readings -- 14 December 2010

Cold here still, but perhaps not quite so much as yesterday. THAT was not fun. By tomorrow, and certainly by Thursday, things will have assumed a better level.

This morning's reading is chapters 1, 2, and 3 of Amos. We will be here just a few days.

Amos 1

1	The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
2	And he said, The LORD will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the habitations of the shepherds shall mourn, and the top of Carmel shall wither.
3	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron:
4	But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, which shall devour the palaces of Benhadad.
5	I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden: and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir, saith the LORD.
6	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they carried away captive the whole captivity, to deliver them up to Edom:
7	But I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, which shall devour the palaces thereof:
8	And I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, and him that holdeth the sceptre from Ashkelon, and I will turn mine hand against Ekron: and the remnant of the Philistines shall perish, saith the Lord GOD.
9	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant:
10	But I will send a fire on the wall of Tyrus, which shall devour the palaces thereof.
11	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he did pursue his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever:
12	But I will send a fire upon Teman, which shall devour the palaces of Bozrah.
13	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead, that they might enlarge their border:
14	But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it shall devour the palaces thereof, with shouting in the day of battle, with a tempest in the day of the whirlwind:
15	And their king shall go into captivity, he and his princes together, saith the LORD.

Amos 2

1	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime:
2	But I will send a fire upon Moab, and it shall devour the palaces of Kirioth: and Moab shall die with tumult, with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet:
3	And I will cut off the judge from the midst thereof, and will slay all the princes thereof with him, saith the LORD.
4	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept his commandments, and their lies caused them to err, after the which their fathers have walked:
5	But I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem.
6	Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of shoes;
7	That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek: and a man and his father will go in unto the same maid, to profane my holy name:
8	And they lay themselves down upon clothes laid to pledge by every altar, and they drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.
9	Yet destroyed I the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and he was strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit from above, and his roots from beneath.
10	Also I brought you up from the land of Egypt, and led you forty years through the wilderness, to possess the land of the Amorite.
11	And I raised up of your sons for prophets, and of your young men for Nazarites. Is it not even thus, O ye children of Israel? saith the LORD.
12	But ye gave the Nazarites wine to drink; and commanded the prophets, saying, Prophesy not.
13	Behold, I am pressed under you, as a cart is pressed that is full of sheaves.
14	Therefore the flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not strengthen his force, neither shall the mighty deliver himself:
15	Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow; and he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself: neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself.
16	And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the LORD.

Amos 3

1	Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,
2	You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.
3	Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
4	Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he have taken nothing?
5	Can a bird fall in a snare upon the earth, where no gin is for him? shall one take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all?
6	Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it?
7	Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.
8	The lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord GOD hath spoken, who can but prophesy?
9	Publish in the palaces at Ashdod, and in the palaces in the land of Egypt, and say, Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samaria, and behold the great tumults in the midst thereof, and the oppressed in the midst thereof.
10	For they know not to do right, saith the LORD, who store up violence and robbery in their palaces.
11	Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; An adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled.
12	Thus saith the LORD; As the shepherd taketh out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear; so shall the children of Israel be taken out that dwell in Samaria in the corner of a bed, and in Damascus in a couch.
13	Hear ye, and testify in the house of Jacob, saith the Lord GOD, the God of hosts,
14	That in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Israel upon him I will also visit the altars of Bethel: and the horns of the altar shall be cut off, and fall to the ground.
15	And I will smite the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory shall perish, and the great houses shall have an end, saith the LORD.

And this evening, chapter 5 of the Revelation

Revelation 5

1	And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
2	And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
3	And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
4	And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
5	And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
6	And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
7	And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
8	And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
9	And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
10	And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
11	And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
12	Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
13	And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
14	And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.