Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 05 September 2020

 I hope the day finds everyone in good shape.  I hope.

Today is the first Saturday in September.  Looking at the calendar, I see changes coming soon.  Our "day" this 24-hour period is 12 hours 55 minutes long, well short of what it was a few months ago.  And we will lost another 2 minutes 40 by tomorrow at this time.  Not progress as I measure things.  I well remember  seeing that horrid substance, snow,outside these windows back in early May, and know full well that such will be the case all too soon.  NOT what I want to see, but it's not a voting issue, is it?

Oh, well.  This is a meaningful month here.  Yes, the Autumnal Equinox is coming.  Lord willing, we will mark our 32nd wedding anniversary in the coming week.  And later in the month, I will note the passing of my father on the 20th.  The proximity of that date to the Equinox has not escaped me.

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Today, we have only the reading in the Old Testament, today being chapters 11 and 12 in the book of Isaiah.  That book is enormously significant in the Bible, and chapter 11 is one of the most important ones in it.  This points strongly at the future (for Isaiah) coming of the Lord Jesus the Christ, and at a very rough time in the history of the Jews (and the world of the time).  Isaiah reminded them, and us, that the Lord is still on the throne, no matter what, and that He is in charge and knows every detail of what is going on.  We are sometimes tempted to wonder if the Lord knows.  Yes, He does, better than we do, and knew it long ago.  Trust Him.

(incidentally, I've been posting lately from the Holman Christian Standard translation of the Bible.  I have found it to be accurate, and the wording is more in keeping with the language of today, rather than what may have been the case in the 1607 - 1611 period in England.  I hope no one gets too upset.).

ISAIAH 11

Reign of the Davidic King

1Then a shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse, 

and a branch  from his roots will bear fruit.

2The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him  —

a Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

a Spirit of counsel and strength,

a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.

3His delight will be in the fear of the Lord.

He will not judge

by what He sees with His eyes, 

He will not execute justice

by what He hears with His ears,

4but He will judge the poor righteously 

and execute justice for the oppressed of the land.

He will strike the land

with discipline  from His mouth, 

and He will kill the wicked 

with a command  from His lips. 

5Righteousness will be a belt around His loins; 

faithfulness will be a belt around His waist. 

6The wolf will live with the lamb, 

and the leopard will lie down with the goat.

The calf, the young lion, and the fatling will be together,

and a child will lead them.

7The cow and the bear will graze,

their young ones will lie down together,

and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

8An infant will play beside the cobra’s pit,

and a toddler will put his hand into a snake’s den.

9None will harm or destroy another

on My entire holy mountain,

for the land will be as full

of the knowledge of the Lord

as the sea is filled with water. 

Israel Regathered

10On that day the root of Jesse 

will stand as a banner for the peoples. 

The nations will seek Him, 

and His resting place will be glorious. 

11On that day  the Lord will extend His hand a second time to recover — from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and the coasts and islands of the west — the remnant of His people who survive. 

12He will lift up a banner for the nations

and gather the dispersed of Israel; 

He will collect the scattered of Judah

from the four corners of the earth. 

13Ephraim’s envy will cease; 

Judah’s harassment will end.

Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah,

and Judah will not harass Ephraim.

14But they will swoop down

on the Philistine flank to the west.

Together they will plunder the people of the east. 

They will extend their power over Edom and Moab,

and the Ammonites will be their subjects. 

15The Lord will divide   the Gulf of Suez. 

He will wave His hand over the Euphrates

with His mighty wind 

and will split it into seven streams,

letting people walk through on foot.

16There will be a highway for the remnant of His people

who will survive from Assyria, 

as there was for Israel

when they came up from the land of Egypt. 

ISAIAH 12

A Song of Praise

1On that day you will say:

“I will praise You, Lord,

although You were angry with me.

Your anger has turned away,

and You have had compassion  on me.

2Indeed, God is my salvation;

I will trust Him and not be afraid,

for Yah, the Lord,

is my strength and my song.

He has become my salvation.” 

3You will joyfully draw water 

from the springs of salvation,

4and on that day you will say:

“Give thanks to Yahweh; proclaim His name!

Celebrate His works among the peoples. 

Declare that His name is exalted.

5Sing to Yahweh, for He has done glorious things. 

Let this be known throughout the earth.

6Cry out and sing, citizen of Zion,

for the Holy One of Israel  is among you

in His greatness.”