Today's Readings and Stuff -- Sunday, 08 May 2016

Wife was sick last evening and not in good shape most of the day.  And, to make things worse, today is celebrated as Mothers' Day, a bitter reminder that our kids are estranged from us and a very long distance from here as well.  Just adds to her misery.  Perhaps something good can yet come of this, but I fail to see it.

Tomorrow will be a tough one as well.  She is scheduled to "watch" the great-niece next door.  And I am scheduled to make about a 35-mile round trip for a visit with the doctor.  Hate to think what he'll tell me.  I am starting to see some of the problems that are not rare with a person who has reached my age, which is scant consolation.  I'll make the trip, Lord willing, and we shall see.

Supposed to be cool and rainy for the next week.  Odd, since I just saw one of those long-distance weather prognostications that said for this coming summer that this area would be quite a bit warmer than usual and in near-drought condition as well.  So perhaps the recent and upcoming rains are a way of filling up the water table and the reservoirs as well.  We live less than a mile from a navigable waterway, one of the main feeders into the Ohio River, so the runoff into the streams has an impact locally.  Again, we shall see.

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The Old Testament reading is chapters 16, 17, and 18 of 1st Kings.  This is NOT pretty.  Things are not looking good, and they are getting worse, fast.  We see mention of the name of Elijah, one of the greatest figures in the Old Testament.  But we also see mention of names like Ahab and Jezebel.  In chapter 18, there is a face-off.  Doesn't turn out well for the prophets of Baal.

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.

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The New Testament reading is verses 29-51 in chapter 1 of the Gospel of John.  The first part of chapter 1 was about John the Baptist.  This section is about Jesus.  No mention here of mangers or shepherds, this is Jesus beginning His earthly ministry. 

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.

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Monday, 18 May 2015

doing a teeny bit better here today.  Not greatly, but a teeny bit.  We'll take it.

Had a call this morning from a "headhunter", a.k.a. an Executive Recruiter.  Has a position that I might fit located about a 20 minute drive from here.  That's between 1/2 and 1/3 (depending) the commute that I had while working my last job in the Deep South, before the Great Relocation.  He wants to to a face-to-face. soon.  HIS office is a good bit further from here, about an hour's drive away, but he's willing to meet halfway or so.  Will try to set this up.  Might be an interesting meet if nothing else.

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The day's Old Testament passage is chapters 20, 21, and 22 of 2nd Kings.  Rather depressing.  Hezekiah was a good king, all in all.  His son was not.  Nor was his.  The next one was pretty good, but the rot was too deep.

II Kings 20

1	In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.
2	Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying,
3	I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.
4	And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying,
5	Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.
6	And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
7	And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
8	And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up into the house of the LORD the third day?
9	And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he hath spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees?
10	And Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees: nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees.
11	And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the LORD: and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz.
12	At that time Berodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present unto Hezekiah: for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick.
13	And Hezekiah hearkened unto them, and showed them all the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armor, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah showed them not.
14	Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country, even from Babylon.
15	And he said, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All the things that are in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not showed them.
16	And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD.
17	Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD.
18	And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
19	Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days?
20	And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
21	And Hezekiah slept with his fathers: and Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.

II Kings 21

1	Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hephzibah.
2	And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, after the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.
3	For he built up again the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made a grove, as did Ahab king of Israel; and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them.
4	And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD said, In Jerusalem will I put my name.
5	And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD.
6	And he made his son pass through the fire, and observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger.
7	And he set a graven image of the grove that he had made in the house, of which the LORD said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever:
8	Neither will I make the feet of Israel move any more out of the land which I gave their fathers; only if they will observe to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the law that my servant Moses commanded them.
9	But they hearkened not: and Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than did the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the children of Israel.
10	And the LORD spake by his servants the prophets, saying,
11	Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, which were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols:
12	Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle.
13	And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upside down.
14	And I will forsake the remnant of mine inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies;
15	Because they have done that which was evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day.
16	Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the LORD.
17	Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and all that he did, and his sin that he sinned, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
18	And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza: and Amon his son reigned in his stead.
19	Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Meshullemeth, the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah.
20	And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as his father Manasseh did.
21	And he walked in all the way that his father walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped them:
22	And he forsook the LORD God of his fathers, and walked not in the way of the LORD.
23	And the servants of Amon conspired against him, and slew the king in his own house.
24	And the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his stead.
25	Now the rest of the acts of Amon which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
26	And he was buried in his sepulchre in the garden of Uzza: and Josiah his son reigned in his stead.

II Kings 22

1	Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath.
2	And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.
3	And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the LORD, saying,
4	Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may sum the silver which is brought into the house of the LORD, which the keepers of the door have gathered of the people:
5	And let them deliver it into the hand of the doers of the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD: and let them give it to the doers of the work which is in the house of the LORD, to repair the breaches of the house,
6	Unto carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to buy timber and hewn stone to repair the house.
7	Howbeit there was no reckoning made with them of the money that was delivered into their hand, because they dealt faithfully.
8	And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.
9	And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the house of the LORD.
10	And Shaphan the scribe showed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king.
11	And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his clothes.
12	And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king's, saying,
13	Go ye, enquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.
14	So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her.
15	And she said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me,
16	Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read:
17	Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.
18	But to the king of Judah which sent you to enquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard;
19	Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the LORD.
20	Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again.

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The New Testament reading is verses 45-71 in the 6th chapter of the Gospel of John.

John 6:45-71

45	It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.
46	Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.
47	Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
48	I am that bread of life.
49	Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50	This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
51	I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52	The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
53	Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
54	Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
55	For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
56	He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
57	As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
58	This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.
59	These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
60	Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?
61	When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?
62	What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
63	It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
64	But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.
65	And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
66	From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
67	Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
68	Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
69	And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.
70	Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?
71	He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Wednesday 11 June 2014

still under the weather here.  Got a call from Dr. Office earlier today, and based upon wife's most recent bloodwork the other day, and the BP reading they got from me, I'm now to go on a blood pressure med and she's getting an adjustment in the thyroid medicine that keeps her alive.  So probably to pharmacy in the morning -- too late to go right now.  She uses the same BP med and the dosage is the same, so I just scarfed one of hers to be replaced tomorrow.
Other than that, a quiet day, easy when you feel awful.

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The day's reading in the Old Testament is chapters 34, 35, and 36 of 2nd Chronicles, which completes it.  This is sad reading.  We begin with another king, Josiah, who was the very last of the good kings this go-around.  He tried, really, but matters were already too far gone, the rot in the culture had overwhelmed everything, and the Lord removed His hand of protection.  There's a lesson there - it can happen again.  And probably is happening now.  The end is ugly, the kingdom is destroyed, there is ghastly slaughter, and many are hauled of as slaves to a foreign land, for a period of 70 years.

II Chronicles 34

1	Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years.
2	And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left.
3	For in the eighth year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images.
4	And they brake down the altars of Baalim in his presence; and the images, that were on high above them, he cut down; and the groves, and the carved images, and the molten images, he brake in pieces, and made dust of them, and strewed it upon the graves of them that had sacrificed unto them.
5	And he burnt the bones of the priests upon their altars, and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem.
6	And so did he in the cities of Manasseh, and Ephraim, and Simeon, even unto Naphtali, with their mattocks round about.
7	And when he had broken down the altars and the groves, and had beaten the graven images into powder, and cut down all the idols throughout all the land of Israel, he returned to Jerusalem.
8	Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land, and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah the governor of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder, to repair the house of the LORD his God.
9	And when they came to Hilkiah the high priest, they delivered the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites that kept the doors had gathered of the hand of Manasseh and Ephraim, and of all the remnant of Israel, and of all Judah and Benjamin; and they returned to Jerusalem.
10	And they put it in the hand of the workmen that had the oversight of the house of the LORD, and they gave it to the workmen that wrought in the house of the LORD, to repair and amend the house:
11	Even to the artificers and builders gave they it, to buy hewn stone, and timber for couplings, and to floor the houses which the kings of Judah had destroyed.
12	And the men did the work faithfully: and the overseers of them were Jahath and Obadiah, the Levites, of the sons of Merari; and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to set it forward; and other of the Levites, all that could skill of instruments of music.
13	Also they were over the bearers of burdens, and were overseers of all that wrought the work in any manner of service: and of the Levites there were scribes, and officers, and porters.
14	And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found a book of the law of the LORD given by Moses.
15	And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.
16	And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought the king word back again, saying, All that was committed to thy servants, they do it.
17	And they have gathered together the money that was found in the house of the LORD, and have delivered it into the hand of the overseers, and to the hand of the workmen.
18	Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath given me a book. And Shaphan read it before the king.
19	And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes.
20	And the king commanded Hilkiah, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Abdon the son of Micah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah a servant of the king's, saying,
21	Go, enquire of the LORD for me, and for them that are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out upon us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do after all that is written in this book.
22	And Hilkiah, and they that the king had appointed, went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvath, the son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college:) and they spake to her to that effect.
23	And she answered them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell ye the man that sent you to me,
24	Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the curses that are written in the book which they have read before the king of Judah:
25	Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be poured out upon this place, and shall not be quenched.
26	And as for the king of Judah, who sent you to enquire of the LORD, so shall ye say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard;
27	Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, and humbledst thyself before me, and didst rend thy clothes, and weep before me; I have even heard thee also, saith the LORD.
28	Behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, neither shall thine eyes see all the evil that I will bring upon this place, and upon the inhabitants of the same. So they brought the king word again.
29	Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
30	And the king went up into the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the Levites, and all the people, great and small: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of the LORD.
31	And the king stood in his place, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep his commandments, and his testimonies, and his statutes, with all his heart, and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant which are written in this book.
32	And he caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand to it. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers.
33	And Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel, and made all that were present in Israel to serve, even to serve the LORD their God. And all his days they departed not from following the LORD, the God of their fathers.

II Chronicles 35

1	Moreover Josiah kept a passover unto the LORD in Jerusalem: and they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.
2	And he set the priests in their charges, and encouraged them to the service of the house of the LORD,
3	And said unto the Levites that taught all Israel, which were holy unto the LORD, Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did build; it shall not be a burden upon your shoulders: serve now the LORD your God, and his people Israel,
4	And prepare yourselves by the houses of your fathers, after your courses, according to the writing of David king of Israel, and according to the writing of Solomon his son.
5	And stand in the holy place according to the divisions of the families of the fathers of your brethren the people, and after the division of the families of the Levites.
6	So kill the passover, and sanctify yourselves, and prepare your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.
7	And Josiah gave to the people, of the flock, lambs and kids, all for the passover offerings, for all that were present, to the number of thirty thousand, and three thousand bullocks: these were of the king's substance.
8	And his princes gave willingly unto the people, to the priests, and to the Levites: Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, rulers of the house of God, gave unto the priests for the passover offerings two thousand and six hundred small cattle and three hundred oxen.
9	Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethaneel, his brethren, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, chief of the Levites, gave unto the Levites for passover offerings five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.
10	So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their courses, according to the king's commandment.
11	And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them.
12	And they removed the burnt offerings, that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people, to offer unto the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so did they with the oxen.
13	And they roasted the passover with fire according to the ordinance: but the other holy offerings sod they in pots, and in caldrons, and in pans, and divided them speedily among all the people.
14	And afterward they made ready for themselves, and for the priests: because the priests the sons of Aaron were busied in offering of burnt offerings and the fat until night; therefore the Levites prepared for themselves, and for the priests the sons of Aaron.
15	And the singers the sons of Asaph were in their place, according to the commandment of David, and Asaph, and Heman, and Jeduthun the king's seer; and the porters waited at every gate; they might not depart from their service; for their brethren the Levites prepared for them.
16	So all the service of the LORD was prepared the same day, to keep the passover, and to offer burnt offerings upon the altar of the LORD, according to the commandment of king Josiah.
17	And the children of Israel that were present kept the passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.
18	And there was no passover like to that kept in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet; neither did all the kings of Israel keep such a passover as Josiah kept, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel that were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
19	In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah was this passover kept.
20	After all this, when Josiah had prepared the temple, Necho king of Egypt came up to fight against Charchemish by Euphrates: and Josiah went out against him.
21	But he sent ambassadors to him, saying, What have I to do with thee, thou king of Judah? I come not against thee this day, but against the house wherewith I have war: for God commanded me to make haste: forbear thee from meddling with God, who is with me, that he destroy thee not.
22	Nevertheless Josiah would not turn his face from him, but disguised himself, that he might fight with him, and hearkened not unto the words of Necho from the mouth of God, and came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.
23	And the archers shot at king Josiah; and the king said to his servants, Have me away; for I am sore wounded.
24	His servants therefore took him out of that chariot, and put him in the second chariot that he had; and they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and was buried in one of the sepulchres of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.
25	And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and made them an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.
26	Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and his goodness, according to that which was written in the law of the LORD,
27	And his deeds, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.

II Chronicles 36

1	Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and made him king in his father's stead in Jerusalem.
2	Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem.
3	And the king of Egypt put him down at Jerusalem, and condemned the land in an hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
4	And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem, and turned his name to Jehoiakim. And Necho took Jehoahaz his brother, and carried him to Egypt.
5	Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God.
6	Against him came up Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and bound him in fetters, to carry him to Babylon.
7	Nebuchadnezzar also carried of the vessels of the house of the LORD to Babylon, and put them in his temple at Babylon.
8	Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and his abominations which he did, and that which was found in him, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.
9	Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD.
10	And when the year was expired, king Nebuchadnezzar sent, and brought him to Babylon, with the goodly vessels of the house of the LORD, and made Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem.
11	Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.
12	And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the LORD.
13	And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the LORD God of Israel.
14	Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the LORD which he had hallowed in Jerusalem.
15	And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:
16	But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.
17	Therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand.
18	And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes; all these he brought to Babylon.
19	And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof.
20	And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:
21	To fulfil the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.
22	Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying,
23	Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, All the kingdoms of the earth hath the LORD God of heaven given me; and he hath charged me to build him an house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his people? The LORD his God be with him, and let him go up.

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The New Testament passage is verses 1-22 in the 19th chapter of the Gospel of John.  The Crucifixion of our Lord.

John 19:1-22

1	Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged him.
2	And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe,
3	And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him with their hands.
4	Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him.
5	Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man!
6	When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him.
7	The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.
8	When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid;
9	And went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art thou? But Jesus gave him no answer.
10	Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?
11	Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.
12	And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar.
13	When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha.
14	And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!
15	But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar.
16	Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away.
17	And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha:
18	Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.
19	And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.
20	This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin.
21	Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews.
22	Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.