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Daily Bible reading

Saturday, July 30, 2011
Leviticus 25: 1, 8 - 17
The Lord said to Moses on Mount Sinai:
"Seven weeks of years shall you count - seven times seven years - so that the seven cycles amount to forty-nine years. Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month let the trumpet resound; in this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echo throughout your land. This fiftieth year you shall make sacred by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when every one of you shall return to his own property, every one to his own family estate. In this fiftieth year, your year of jubilee, you shall not sow, nor shall you reap the aftergrowth or pick the grapes from the untrimmed vines. Since this is the jubilee, which shall be sacred for you, you may not eat of its produce, except as taken directly from the field.
In this year of jubilee, then, every one of you shall return to his own property. Therefore, when you sell any land to your neighbor or buy any from him, do not deal unfairly. On the basis of the number of years since the last jubilee shall you purchase the land from him; and so also, on the basis of the number of years for crops, shall he sell it to you. When the years are many, the price shall be so much the more; when the years are few, the price shall be so much the less. For it is really the number of crops that he sells you. Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God. I, the Lord, am your God."

Psalms 67: 2 - 3, 5, 7 - 8
May God have pity on us and bless us; may he let his face shine upon us. So may your way be known upon earth; among all nations, your salvation.
May the nations be glad and exalt because you rule the peoples in equity; the nations on the earth you guide.
The earth has yielded its fruits; God, our God, has blessed us. May God bless us, and may all the ends of the earth fear him!

Matthew 14: 1 - 12
On one occasion Herod the tetrarch, having heard of Jesus' reputation, exclaimed to his courtiers, "This man is John the Baptizer - it is he in person, raised from the dead; that is why such miraculous powers are at work in him!" Recall that Herod had had John arrested, put in chains, and imprisoned on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. That was because John had told him, "It is not right for you to live with her." Herod wanted to kill John but was afraid of the people, who regarded him as a prophet. Then on Herod's birthday Herodias' daughter performed a dance before the court which delighted Herod so much that he swore he would grant her anything she asked for. Prompted by her mother she said, "Bring me the head of John the Baptizer on a platter." The king immediately had his misgivings, but because of his oath and the guests who were present he gave orders that the request be granted. He sent the order to have John beheaded in prison. John' head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. Later his disciples presented themselves to carry his body away and bury it. Afterward, they came and informed Jesus.
 
Sunday July 31, 2011
Isaiah 55: 1 - 3
All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk! Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy? Heed me, and you shall eat well, you shall delight in rich fare. Come to me heedfully, listen, that you may have life. I will renew with you the everlasting covenant, the benefits assured to David.

Psalms 145: 8 - 9, 15 - 18
The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness. The Lord is good to all and compassionate toward all his works.
The eyes of all look hopefully to you, and you give them their food in due season; you open your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The Lord is just in all his ways and holy in all his works. The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.

Romans 8: 35, 37 - 39
Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Trial, or distress, or persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or danger, or the sword?
Yet in all this we are more than conquerors because of him who has loved us. For I am certain that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor powers, neither height nor depth nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God that comes to us in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Matthew 14: 13 - 21
When Jesus heard this, (the death of John the baptizer) he withdrew by boat from there to a deserted place by himself. The crowds heard of it and followed him on foot from the towns. When he disembarked and saw the vast throng, his heart was moved with pity, and he cured their sick. As evening drew on, his disciples came to him with the suggestion: "This is a deserted place and it is already late. Dismiss the crowds so that they may go to the villages and buy some food for themselves." Jesus said to them: "There is no need for them to disperse. Give them something to eat yourselves." "We have nothing here," they replied, "but five loaves and a couple of fish." "Bring them here," he said. Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves and two fish, looked up to heaven, blessed and broke them and gave the loaves to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the people. All those present ate their fill. The fragments remaining, when gathered up, filled twelve baskets. Those who ate were about five thousand, not counting women and children.
 
Monday, August 1, 2011
Numbers 11: 4 - 15
The foreign elements among them were so greedy for meat that even the Israelites lamented again, "Would that we had meat for food! We remember the fish we used to eat without cost in Egypt, and the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. But now we are famished; we see nothing before us but this manna."
Manna was like coriander seed and had the appearance of bdellium. When they had gone about and gathered it up, the people would grind it between millstones or pound it in a mortar, then cook it in a pot and make it into loaves, which tasted like cakes made with oil. At night, when the dew fell upon the camp, the manna also fell.
When Moses heard the people, family after family crying at the entrance of their tents, so that the Lord became very angry, he was grieved. "Why do you treat your servant so badly?" Moses asked the Lord. "Why are you so displeased with me you burden me with all this people? Was it I who conceived all this people? Or was it I who gave them birth, that you tell me to carry them at my bosom, like a foster father carrying an infant, to the land you have promised under oath to their fathers? Where can I get meat to give to all this people? For they are crying to me, ''Give us meat for our food.' I cannot carry all this people by myself, for they are too heavy for me. If this is the way you will deal with me, then please do me the favor of killing me at once, so that I need no longer face this distress."

Psalms 81: 12 - 17
"But my people heard not my voice, and Israel obeyed me not; so I gave them up to the hardness of their hearts; they walked according to their own counsels. If only my people would hear me, and Israel walk in my ways, quickly would I humble their enemies; against their foes I would turn my hand. Those who hated the Lord would seek to flatter me, but their fate would endure forever, while Israel I would feed with the best of wheat, and with honey from the rock I would fill them."

Matthew 15: 1 - 2, 10 - 14
Pharisees and scribes from Jerusaelm approached Jesus with the question: "Why do your disciples act contrary to the tradition of our ancestors? They do not wash their hands, for example, before eating a meal."
Jesus summoned the crowd and said to them: "Give ear and try to understand. It is not what goes into a man's mouth that makes him impure; it is what comes out of his mouth." His disciples approached him and said, "Do you realize the Pharisees were scandalized when they heard your pronouncement?" "Every planting not put down by my heavenly Father will be uprotted," he replied. "Let them go their way; they are blind leaders of the blind. If one blind man leads another, both will end in a pit."
 
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Numbers 12: 1 - 13
While they were in Hazeroth, Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses on the pretext of the marriage he had contracted with a Cushite woman. They complained, "Is it through Moses alone that the Lord speaks; Does he not speak through us also?" And the Lord heard this. Now, Moses himself was by far the meekest man on the fce of the earth. So at once the Lord said to Moses and Aaron and Miriam, "Come out, you three to the meeting tent." And the three of them went. Then the Lord came down on the column of cloud, and standing at the entrance of the tent, called Aaron and Miraim. When both came forward, he said, "Now listen to the words of the Lord:
Should there be a prophet among you, in visions will I reveal myself to him, in dreams will I speak to him; not so with my servant Moses! Throughout my house he bears my trust: face to face I speak to him, plainly and not in riddles. The presence of the Lord he beholds.
Why then, did you not fear to speak against my servant Moses?"
So angry was the Lord against them that when he departed, and the cloud withdrew from the tent, there was Miriam, a snow-white leper! When Aaron turned and saw her a leper, 'Ah, my lord!" he said to Moses, "please do not charge us with the sin the we have foolishly committed! Let her not thus be like the stillborn babe that comes forth from its mother's womb with its flesh half consumed." Then Moses cried to the Lord, "Please, not this! Pray, heal her!"

Psalms 51: 3 - 7, 12 - 13
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness; in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense. Throughly wash me from my guilt and of my sin cleanse me. For I acknowledge my offense, and my sin is before me always; "Against you only have I sinned; and done what is evil in your sight" - that you may be justified in your sentence, vindicated when you condemn. Indeed, in guilt was I born, and in sin my mother conceived me.
A clean heart create for me, O God, and a steadfast spirit renew within me. Cast me not out from your presence, and your holy spirit take not from me.

Matthew 14: 22 - 36
Immediately afterward, while dismissing the crowds, Jesus insisted that his disciples get into the boat and precede him to the other side. When he had sent them away, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray, remaining there alone as evening drew on. Meanwhile the boat, already several hundred yards out from shore, was being tossed about in the waves raised by strong head winds. At about three in the morning, he came walking on the water, they were terrified. "It is a ghost!" they said, and in their fear they began to cry out. Jesus hastened to reassure them: "Get hold of yourselves! It is I. Do not be afraid!" Peter spoke up and said, "Lord, if it is really you, tell me to come to you across the water." "Come!" he said. So Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water, moving toward Jesus. But when he perceived how strong the wind was, becoming frightened, he began to sink and cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus at once stretched out his hand and caught him. "How little faith you have!" he exclaimed. "Why did you falter?" Once they had climbed into the boat, the wind died down. those who were in the boat showed him reverence, declaring, "Beyond doubt you are the Son of God!"
After making the crossing they reached the shore at Genesaret; and when the men of that place recognized him they spread the word throughout the region. People brought him all the afflicted, with the plea that he let them do no more than touch the tassel of his cloak. As many as touched it were fully restored to health.
 
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Numbers 13: 1 - 2, 25 - -14: 1, 26 - 29, 34 - 35
The Lord said to Moses, "Send men to reconnoiter the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. You shall send one man from each ancestral tribe, all of them princes."
After reconnoitering the land for forty days they returned, met Moses and Aaron and the whole community of the Israelites in the desert of Paran at Kadesh, made a report to them all, and showed them the fruit of the country. They told Moses: "We went into the land to which you sent us. It does indeed flow with milk and honey, and here is its fruit. However, the people who are living in the land are fierce, and the towns are fortified and very strong. Besides, we saw descendants of the Anakim there. Amalekites live in the region of the Negeb, Hittites, Jubusites and Amorites dwell in the highlands, and Canaanites along the seacoast and the banks of the Jordan."
Caleb, however, to quiet the people toward Moses, said, "We ought to go up and seize the land, for we can certainly do so." But the men who had gone up with him said, "We cannot attack these people; they are too strong for us." So they spread discouraging reports among the Israelites about the land they had scouted, saying, "The land that we explored is a country that consumes its inhabitants. And all the people we saw there are huge men, veritable giants [The Anakim were a race of giants]; we felt like mere grasshoppers, and so we must have seemed to them."
At this time, the whole community broke out with loud cries, and even in the night the people wailed.
The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron: "How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the Israelites against me. Tell them: By my life, says the Lord, I will do to you just what I have heard you say. Here in the desert shall your dead bodies fall.
Forty days you spent in scouting the land; forty years shall you suffer for your crimes; one year for each day. Thus you will realize what it means to oppose me. I, the Lord, have sworn to do this to all this wicked community that conspired against me: here in the desert they shall die to the last man."

Psalms 106: 6 - 7, 13 - 14, 21 - 23
We have sinned, we and our fathers; we have committed crimes; we have done wrong. Our fathers in Egypt considered not your wonders; they remembered not your abundant kindness, but rebelled against the Most High at the Red Sea.
But soon they forgot his works; they waited not for his counsel. They gave way to craving in the desert and tempted God in the wilderness.
They forgot the God who had saved them, who had done great deeds in Egypt, wondrous deeds in the land of Ham, terrible things at the Red Sea. Then he spoke of exterminating them, but Moses, his chosen one, withstood him in the breach to turn back his destructive wrath.

Matthew 15: 21 - 28
Then Jesus left that place and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. It happened that a Canaanite woman living in that locality presented herself, crying out to him, "Lord, Son of David, have pity on me! My daughter is terribly troubled by a demon." He gave her no word of response. His disciples came up and began to entreat him, "Get rid of her, She keeps shouting after us." "My mission is only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel," Jesus replied. She came forward then and did him homage with the plea, "Help me, Lord!" But he answered, "It is not right to take the food of sons and daughters and throw it to the dogs." "Please, Lord," she insisted, "even the dogs eat the leavings that fall from their masters' tables." Jesus then said in reply, "Woman, you have great faith! Your wish will come to pass." That very moment her daughter got better.
 
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Numbers 20: 1 - 13
The whole Israelite community arrived in the desert of Zin in the first month, and the people settled at Kadesh. It was here that Miriam died, and here that she was buried.
As the community had no water, they held a council against Moses and Aaron. The people contended with Moses, exclaiming, "Would that we too had perished with our kinsmen in the Lord's presence! Why have you brought the Lord's community into this desert where we and our livestock are dying? Why did you lead us out of Egypt, only to bring us to this wretched place which has neither grain nor figs nor vines nor pomegranates? Here there is not even water to drink!" But Moses and Aaron went away from the assembly to the entrance of the meeting tent, where they fell prostrate.
Then the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord said to Moses, "Take the staff and assemble the community, you and your brother Aaron and in their presence order the rock to yield its waters. From the rock you shall bring forth water for the community and their livestock to drink." So Moses took the staff from its place before the Lord, as he was ordered. He and Aaron assembled the community in front of the rock, where he said to them, "Listen to me, you rebels! Are we to bring water for you out of this rock?" Then, raising his hand, Moses struck the rock twice with his staff, and water gushed out in abundance for the community and their livestock to drink. But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you were not faithful to me in showing forth my sanctity before the Israelites, you shall not lead this community into the land I will give them."
These are the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites contended against the Lord, and where he revealed his sanctity among them.

Psalms 95: 1 - 2, 6 - 9
Come, let us sing joyfully to the Lord; let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation. Let us greet him with thanksgiving; let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
Come, let us bow down in worship; let us kneel before the Lord who made us. For he is our God, and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
O, that today you would hear his voice: "Harden not your hearts as at Meribah, as in the day of Massah in the desert, where your fathers tempted me; they tested me though they had seen my works.

Matthew 16: 13 - 23
When Jesus came to the neighborhood of Caesarea Philippi, he sked his disciples this question: "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptizer, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "And you," he said to them, "Who do you say that I am?" "You are the Messiah," Simon Peter answered, "the Son of the living God!" Jesus replied, "Blest are you, Simon son of Jonah! No mere man has revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. I for my part declare to you, you are 'Rock,' and on this rock I will build my church, and the jaws of death shall not prevail against it. I will entrust to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you declare bound on earth shall be bound in heaven; whatever you declare loosed on earth , shall be loosed in heaven." Then he strictly ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
From then on Jesus [the Messiah] started to indicate to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly there at the hands of the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and to be put to death, and raised up on the third day. At this, Peter took him aside and began to remonstrate with him, "May you be spared, Master! God forbid that any such thing ever happen to you!" Jesus turned on Peter and said, "Get out of my sight, you satan! You are trying to make me trip and fall. You are not judging by God's standards but by man's."
 
Friday, August 5, 2011
Deuteronomy 4: 32 - 40
"Ask now of the days of old, before your time, ever since God created man upon the earth; ask from one end of the sky to the other: Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of fire, as you did, and live? Or did any god venture to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by testing, by signs and wonders, by war, with his strong hand and outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the Lord, your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? All this you were allowed to see that you might know the Lord is God and there is no other. Out of the heavens he let you hear his voice to discipline you; on earth he let you see his great fire, and you heard him speaking out of the fire. For love of your fathers he chose their descendants and personally led you out of Egypt by his great power, driving out of your way nations greater and mightier than you, so as to bring you in and make their land your heritage, as it is today. This is why you must now know, and fix in your heart that the Lord is God in the heavens above and on earth below, and that there is no other. You must keep his statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you today, that you and your children after you may prosper, and that you may have long life on the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you forever."

Psalms 77: 12 - 16, 21
I remember the deeds of the Lord: yes, I remember your wonders of old. And I meditate on your works; your exploits I ponder.
O God, your way is holy; what great god is there who works wonders; among the peoples you have made known your power. With your strong arm you redeemed your people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph.
You led your people like a flock under the care of Moses and Aaron.

Matthew 16: 24 - 28
Jesus then said to his disciples: "If a man wishes to come after me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross, and begin to follow in my footsteps. Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses is life for my sake will find it. What profit would a man show if he were to gain the whole world and destroy himself in the process? What can a man offer in exchange for his very self? The Son of Man will come with his Father's glory accompanied by his angels. When he does, he will repay each man according to his conduct. I assure you, among those standing here there are some who will not experience death before they see the Son of Man come in his kingship."
 
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Daniel 7: 9 - 10, 13 - 14
As I watched: Thrones were set up and the Ancient One took his throne. His clothing was snow bright, and the hair on his head as white as wool; his throne was flames of fire, with wheels of burning fire. A surging steam of fire flowed out from where he sat; thousands upon thousands were ministering to him, and myriads upon myriads attended him.
As the visions during the night continued, I saw: One like a son of man coming on the clouds of heaven; when he reached the Ancient One and was presented before him, he received dominion, glory, and kingship; nations and peoples of every language serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed.

Psalms 97: 1 - 2, 5 - 6, 9
The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice; let the many isles be glad. Clouds and darkness are round about him, justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his justice, and all peoples see his glory.
Because you, O Lord, are the Most High over all the earth, exalted far above all gods.

Second Peter 1: 16 - 19
It was not by way of cleverly concocted myths that we taught you about the coming in power of our Lord Jesus Christ, for we were eyewitnesses of his sovereign majesty. He received glory and praise from God the Father when that unique declaration came to him out of the majestic splendor: "This is my beloved Son, on whom my favor rests." We ourselves heard this said from heaven while we were in his company on the holy mountain. Besides, we possess the prophetic message as something altogether reliable. Keep your attention closely fixed on it, as you would on a lamp shining in a dark place until the first streaks of dawn appear and the morning star rises in your hearts.

Matthew 17: 1 - 9
Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. He was transfigured before their eyes. His face became as dazzling as the sun, his clothes as radiant as light. Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them conversing with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, how good that we are here! With your permission I will erect three booths here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them. Out of the cloud came a voice which said, "This is my beloved Son on whom my favor rests. Listen to him." When they heard this the disciples fell forward on the ground, overcome with fear. Jesus came toward them and laying his hand on them, said, "Get up! Do not be afraid." When they looked up they did not see anyone but Jesus.
As they were coming down the mountainside Jesus commanded them, "Do not tell anyone of the vision until the Son of Man rises from the dead."
 
Sunday, August 7, 2011
First Kings 19: 9, 11 - 14
There Elijah came to a cave, where he took shelter. But the word of the Lord came to him, "Why are you here, Elijah?"
Then the Lord said, "Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord; the Lord will be passing by." A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord - but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake - but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire - but the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave.
A voice said to him, "Elijah, why are you here?" He replied, "I have been most zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. But the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life."

Psalms 85: 9 - 14
I will hear what God proclaims; the Lord - for he proclaims peace to his people, and to his faithful ones, and to those who put in him their hope. Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him, glory dwelling in our land. Kindness and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and justice shall look down from heaven. The Lord himself will give his benefits; our land shall yield its increase. Justice shall walk before him, and salvation, along the way of his steps.


Romans 9: 1 - 5
I speak the truth in Christ. I do not lie. My conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit that there is great grief and constant pain in my heart. Indeed, I could even wish to be separated from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen the Israelites. Theirs were the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the lawgiving, the worship, and the promises; theirs were the partiarchs, and from them came the Messiah (I speak of his human origins). Blessed forever be God who is over all! Amen.

Matthew 14: 22 - 23
Immediately afterward, while dismmssing the crowds, Jesus insisted that his disciples get into the boat and precede to the other side. When he had sent them away, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.
 
Monday, August 8, 2011
Deuteronomy 10: 12 - 22
And now, Israel, what does the Lord, your God, ask of you but to fear the Lord, your God, and follow his way exactly, to love and serve the Lord, your God, with all your heart and all your soul, to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord which I enjoin on you today for your own good? Think! The heavens, even the highest heavens, belong to the Lord your God, as well as the earth and everything on it. Yet in his love for your fathers the Lord was so attached to them as to choose you, their descendants, in preference to all other peoples, as indeed he has now done. Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and be no longer stiff-necked. For the Lord, your God, is the God of gods, mighty and awesome, who has no favorites, accepts no bribes; who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and befriends the alien, feeding and clothing him. So you too must befriend the alien, for you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt. The Lord, your God, shall you fear, and him shall you serve; hold fast to him and swear by his name. He is your glory, he your God, who has done for you those great and terrible things which your own eyes have seen. Your ancestors went down to Egypt seventy strong, and now the Lord, your God, has made you as numerous as the stars of the sky.

Psalms 147: 12 - 15, 19 - 22
Glorify the Lord, O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion. For he has strengthened the bars of your gates, he has blessed your children within you. He has granted peace in your borders; with the best of wheat he fills you. He sends forth his command to the earth; swiftly runs his word!
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel. He had not done thus for any other nation; his ordiances he has not made known to them. Alleluia.

Matthew 17: 22 - 27
When they met again in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, who will put him to death, and he will be raised up on the third day." At these words they were overwhelmed with grief.
When they entered Capernaum, the colletors of the temple tax approached Peter and said, "Does your master not pay the temple tax?" "Of course he does," Peter replied. Then Jesus on entering the house asked, without giving him time to speak: "What is your opinion, Simon? Do the kings of the world take tax or toll from their sons, or from foreigners?" When he replied, "From foreigners," Jesus observed: "Then their sons are exempt. But for fear of disedifying them go to the lake, throw in a line, and take out the first fish you catch. Open its mouth and you will discover there a coin worth twice the temple tax. Take it and give it to them for you and me."
 
Tuesday August 9, 2011
Deuteronomy 31: 1 - 8
When Moses had finished speaking these words to all Israel, he said to them, "I am now one hundred and twenty years old and am no longer able to move about freely, besides the Lord has told me that I shall not cross this Jordan. It is the Lord, your God, who will cross before you; he will destroy these nations before you, that you may supplant them. [It is Joshua who will cross before you, as the Lord promised.] The Lord will deal with them just as he dealt with Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites whom he destroyed, and with their country. When, therefore, the Lord delivers them up to you, you must deal with them exactly as I have ordered you. Be brave and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the Lord, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you."
Then Moses summoned Joshua and in the presence of all Israel said to him, "Be brave and steadfast, for you must bring this people into the land which the Lord swore to their fathers he would give them; you must put them in possession of their heritage. It is the Lord who marches before you; he will be with you and will never fail you or forsake you. So do not fear or be dismayed."
When Moses had written down this law, he entrusted it to the levitical priests who carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel.

Deuteronomy 32: 3 - 4, 7 - 9, 12
For I will sing the Lord's renown. Oh, proclaim the greatness of our God. The Rock - how faultless are his deeds, how right all his ways! A faithful God, without deceit, how just and upright he is!
Think back on the days of old, reflect on the years of age upon age. Ask your father and he will inform you, ask your elders and they will tell you: When the Most High assigned the nations their heritage, when he parceled out the descendants of Adam, he set up the boundaries of the peoples after the number of the sons of God; while the Lord's own portion was Jacob, his hereditary share was Israel.
The Lord alone was their leader, no strange god was with him.

Matthew 18: 1 - 5, 10, 12 - 14
Just then the disciples came up to Jesus with the question, "Who is of greatest importance in the kingdom of God?" He called a little child over and stood him in their midst and said: "I assure you, unless you change and become like little children, you will not enter the kingdom of God. Whoever makes himself lowly, becoming like this child, is of greatest importance in that heavenly reign.
Whoever welcomes one such child for my sake welcomes me.
See that you never despise one of these little ones, I assure you, their angels in heaven constantly behold my heavenly Father's face. What is your thought on this; A man owns a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away; will he not leave the ninety-nine out on the hills and go in search of the stray? If he succeeds in finding it, believe me he is happier about this one than about the ninety-nine that did not wander away. Just so, it is no part of your heavenly Father's plan that a single one of these little ones shall ever come to grief."
 
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Second Corinthians 9: 6 - 10
Let me say this much: He who sows sparingly willl reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will reap bountifully. Everyone must give according the what he has inwardly decided; not sadly, not grudgingly, for God loves a cheerful giver. God can multiply his favors among you so that you may always have enough of everything and even a surplus for good works, as it is written:
"He scattered abroad and gave to the poor, his justice endures forever."
He who supplies seed for the sower and bread for the eater will provide in abundance; he will multiply the seed you sow and increase your generous yield.

Psalms 112: 1 - 2, 5 - 9
Happy the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commands. His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth; the upright generation shall be blessed.
Well for the man who is gracious and lends, who conducts his affairs with justice; he shall never be moved; the just man shall be in everlasting remembrance. An evil report he shall not fear; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear till he looks upon his foes. Lavishly he gives to the poor; his generosity shall endure forever; his horn shall be exalted in glory.

John 12: 24 - 26
I solemnly assure you, unless the grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat. But if it dies, it produces much fruit. The man who loves his life loses it, while the man who hates his life in this world preserves it to life eternal. If anyone would serve me, let him follow me; where I am, there will my servant be. If anyone serves me, him the Father will honor.
 
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Joshua 3: 7 -11, 13 - 17
Then the Lord said to Joshua, "Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know I am with you, as I was with Moses. Now command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant to come to a halt in the Jordan when they reach the edge of the waters."
So Joshua said to the Israelites, "Come here and listen to the words of the Lord, your God." He continued: "This is how you will know that there is a living God in your midst, who at your approach will dispossess the Canaanintes, Hittites, Hivites, and Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. The ark of the covenant of the Lord of the whole earth will precede you into the Jordan.
When the soles of the feet of the priests carying the ark of the Lord, the Lord of the whole earth, touch the water of the Jordan, it will cease to flow; for the water flowing down from upstream will halt in a solid bank."
The people struck their tents to cross the Jordan, with the priests carrying the ark of the covenant ahead of them. No sooner had these priestly bearers of the ark waded into the waters at the edge of the Jordan, which overflows all its banks during the entire season of the harvest, than the waters flowing from upstream halted, backing up in a solid mass for very great distance indeed, from Adam, a city in the direction of Zarethan; while those flowing downstream toward the Salt Sea of the Arabah disappeared entirely. Thus the people crossed over opposite Jericho. While all Israel crossed over on dry ground, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord remained motionless on dry ground in the bed of the Jordan until the whole nation had completed the passage.

Psalms 114: 1 - 6
When Israel came forth from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of alien tongue, Judah became his sanctuary, Israel his domain. The sea beheld and fled; Jordan turned back. The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like the lambs of the flock.
Why is it, O sea, that you flee? O Jordan, that you turn back? You mountains, that you skip like rams? You hills, like the lambs of the flock?

Matthew 18: 21 - - 19: 1
Then Peter came up and asked him, "Lord, when my brother wrongs me, how often must I forgive him? Seven times?" "No," Jesus replied, "not seven times; I say, seventy times seven times. That is why the reign of God may be said to be like a king who decided to settle accounts with his officials. When he began his auditing, one was brought in who owed him a huge amount. As he had no way of paying it, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that the official prostrated himself in homage and said, 'My lord, be patient with me and I will pay you back in full.' Moved with pity, the master let the officail go and wrote off the debt. But when that same official went out he met a fellow servant who owed him a mere fraction of what he himself owed, he seized him and throtled him. 'Pay back what you owe.' He demanded. His fellow servant dropped to his knees and began to plead with him, 'Just give me time and I will pay you back in full.' But he would hear none of it. Instead, he had him put in jail until he paid back what he owed. When his fellow servants saw what had happened they were badly shaken, and went to their master to report the whole incident. His master sent for him and said, 'You worthless wretch! I canceled your entire debt when you pleaded with me. Should you not have dealt mercifully with your fellow servant, as I dealt with you?' Then in anger the master handed him over to the torturers until he paid back all that he owed. My heavenly Father will treat you in exactly the same way unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart."
When Jesus had finished this discourse, he left Galilee and came to the district of Judea across the Jordan. Great crowds followed him and he cured them there.
 
Friday, August 12, 2011
Joshua 24: 1 - 13
Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, summoning their elders, their leaders, their judges and their officers. When they stood in ranks before God, Joshua addressed all the people: "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: In times past your fathers, down to Terah, father of Abraham and Nahor, dwelt beyond the River and served other gods. But I brought your father Abraham from the region beyond the River and led him through the entire land of Canaan. I made his descendants numerous, and gave him Isaac. To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I assigned the mountain region of Seir in which to settle, while Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.
Then I sent Moses and Aaron and smote Egypt with the prodigies which I wrought in her midst. Afterward I led you out of Egypt, and when you reached the sea, the Egyptians pursued your fathers to the Red Sea with chariots and horsemen. Because they cried out to the Lord, he put darkness between your people and the Egyptians, upon whom he brought the sea so that it engulfed them. After you witnessed what I did to Egypt, and dwelt a long time in the desert, I brought you into the land of the Amorites who lived east of the Jordan. They fought against you, but I delivered them into your power. You took possession of their land, and I destroyed them [the two kings of Amorites] before you. Then Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab, prepared to war against Israel. He summoned Balaam, son of Boer, to curse you; but I would not listen to Balaam. On the contrary, he had to bless you, and I saved you from him. Once you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho, the men of Jericho fought against you, but I delivered them also into your power. And I sent the hornets ahead of you which drove them [the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites] out of you way; it was not your sword or your bow.
I gave you a land which you had not tilled and cities which you had not built, to dwell in; you have eaten of vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant."

Psalms 136: 1 - 3, 16 - 18, 21 - 22, 24
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endures forever;
give thanks to the God of gods, for his mercy endures forever;
give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his mercy endures forever.
Who led his people through the wilderness, for his mercy endures forever;
who smote great kings, for his mercy endures forever;
and made their land a heritage, for his mercy endures forever;
the heritage of Israel his servant, for his mercy endures forever.
and freed us from our foes, for his mercy endures forever.

Matthew 19: 3 - 12
Some Pharisees ccme up to him and said, to test him, "May a man divorce his wife for any reason whatever?" He replied, "Have you not read that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female and declared, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and cling to his wife, and the two shall become as one'? Thus they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore, let no man separate what God has joined." They said to him, "Then why did Moses command divorce and the promulgation of a divorce decree?" "Because of your stubborness Moses let you divorce your wives,' he replied; "but at the beginning it was not that way. I now say to you whoever divorces his wife (lewd conduct is a separate case) and marries another commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery."
His disciples said to him, "If that is the case between man and wife, it is better not to marry." He said, "Not everyone can accept this teaching, only those to who it is given to do so. Some men are incapable of sexual activity from birth; some have been deliberately made so; and some there are who have freely renounced sex for the sake of God's reign. Let him accept this teaching who can."
 
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Joshua 24: 14 - 29
Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve him completely and sincerely. Cast out the gods your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. If it does not please you to serve the Lord, decide today whom you will serve, the gods your fathers served beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are dwelling. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."
But the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the Lord for the service of other gods. For it was the Lord, our God, who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, out of a state of slavery. He performed those great miracles before our very eyes and protected us along our entire journey and among all the peoples through whom we passed. At our approach the Lord drove out [all the peoples, including] the Amorites who dwell in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God."
Joshua in turn said to the people, "You may not be able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God; he is a jealous God who will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If, after the good he has done for you, you forsake the Lord and serve strange gods, he will do evil to you and destroy you."
But the people answered Joshua, "We will still serve the Lord." Joshua therefore said to the people, "You are your own witnesses that you have chosen to serve the Lord." They replied, "We are, indeed!" "Now, therefore, put away the strange gods that are among you and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel." Then the people promised Joshua, "We will serve the Lord, our God, and obey his voice."
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem, which he recorded in the book of the law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was in the sanctuary of the Lord. And Joshua said to all the people, "This stone shall be our witness, for it has heard all the words which the Lord spoke to us. It shall be a witness against you, should you wish to deny your God." Then Joshua dismissed the people, each to his own heritage.
After these events, Joshua, son of Nun, servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten.

Psalms 16: 1 - 2, 5, 7 - 8, 11
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge; I say to the Lord, "My Lord are you. Apart from you I have no god."
O Lord, my alloted portion and my cup, you it is who hold fast my lot.
I bless the Lord who counsels me; even in the night my heart exhorts me. I set the Lord ever before me; with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
You will show me the path of life, fullness of joys in your presence, the delights at your right hand forever.

Matthew 19: 13 - 15
At one point, children were brought to him so that he could place his hands on them in prayer. The disciples began to scold them, but Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Do not hinder them. The kingdom of God belongs to such as these." And he laid his hands on their heads before he left that place.
 
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Isaiah 56: 1, 6 - 7
Thus says the Lord; Observe what is right, do what is just; for my salvation is about to come, my justice, about to be revealed.
And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, ministering to him, loving the name of the Lord, and becoming his servants, all who keep the sabbath free from profanation and hold to my covenant, them I will bring to my holy mountain and make joyful in my house of prayer; their holocausts and sacrifices will be acceptable on my altar, for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.

Psalms 67: 2 - 3, 5 - 6, 8
May God have pity on us and bless us; may he let his face shine upon us. So may your way be known upon earth; among all nations, your salvation.
May the nations be glad and exult because you rule the peoples in equity; the nations on the earth you guide. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us, and may all the ends of the earth fear him!

Romans 11: 13 - 15, 29 - 32
I say this now to you Gentiles: Inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I glory in my ministry, trying to rouse my fellow Jews to envy and save some of them. For if their rejection has meant reconciliation for the world, what will their acceptance mean? Nothing less than life from the dead!
God's gifts and his call are irrevocable.
Just as your were once disobedient to God and now have received mercy through their disobedience, so they have become disobedient - since God wished to show you mercy - that they too may receive mercy. God has imprisoned all in disobedience that he might have mercy on all.

Matthew 15: 21 - 28
Then Jesus left that place and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. It happened that a Canaanite woman living in that locality presented herself, crying out to him, "Lord, Son of David, have pity on me! My daughter is terribly troubled by a demon." He gave her no word of response. His disciples came up and began to entreat him, "Get rid of her. She keeps shouting after us." My mission is only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel," Jesus replied. She came forward then and did him homage with the plea, "Help me, Lord!" But he answered, "It is not right to take the food of sons and daughters and throw it to the dogs." "Please, Lord," she insisted, "even the dogs eat the leavings that fall from their masters' tables." Jesus then said in reply, "Woman, you have great faith! Your wish will come to pass." That very moment her daughter got better.
 
Monday, August 15, 2011
Revelation 11: 19; 12: 1 - 6, 10
Then God's temple in heaven opened and in the temple could be seen the ark of the covenant. There were flashes of lightning and peals of thunder, an earthquake, and a violent hailstorm.
A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. Because she was with child, she wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth. Then another sign appeared in the sky: it was a huge dragon, flaming red, with seven heads and ten horns; on his heads were seven diadems. His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky and hurled them down to the earth. Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth, ready to devour her child when it should be born. She gave birth to a son - a boy destined to shepherd all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was caught up to God and to his throne. The woman herself fled into the desert, where a special place had been prepared for her by God; there she was taken care of for twelve hundred and sixty days.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have salvation and power come, the reign of our God and the authority of his Anointed One. For the accuser of our brothers is cast out, who night and day accused them before our God.

Psalms 45: 10 - 12, 16
The daughters of kings come to meet you; the queen takes her place at your right hand in gold of Ophir.
Hear, O daughter, and see, turn your ear, forget your people and your father's house. So shall the king desire your beauty; for he is your lord, and you must worship him.
They are borne in with gladness and joy; they enter the palace of the king.

First Corinthians 15: 20 - 26
But as it is, Christ is now raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. Death came through a man; hence the resurrection of the dead comes through a man also. Just as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will come to life again, but each one in proper order: Christ the first fruits and then, at his coming, all those who belong to him. After that will come the end, when, after having destroyed every sovereignty, authority, and power, he will hand over the kindom to God the Father. Christ must reign until God has put all enemies under his feet, and the last enemy to be destroyed is death.

Luke 1: 39 - 56
Thereupon Mary set out; proceeding in haste into the hill country to a town of Judah, where she entered Zechariah's house and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leapt in her womb. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and cried out in a loud voice: "Blest are you among women and blest is the fruit of your womb. But who am I that the mother of my Lord should come to me? The moment your greeting sounded in my ears, the baby leapt in my womb for joy. Blest is she who trusted that the Lord's words to her would be fulfilled."
Then Mary said:
"My being proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit finds joy in God my savior, for he has looked upon his servant in her lowliness; all ages to come shall call me blessed. God who is mighty has done great things for me, holy is his name; his mercy is from age to age on those who fear him.
He has shown might with his arm; he has confused the proud in their inmost thoughts; he has deposed the mighty from their thrones and raised the lowly to high places. The hungry he has given every good thing, while the rich he has sent empty away. He has upheld Israel his servant, ever mindful of his mercy; even as he promised our fathers, promised Abraham and his descendants forever."
 
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Judges 6: 11 - 24
Then the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth (Oak tree) in Ophrah that belonged to Josah the Abiearite. While his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press to save it from the Midianites; the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, "The Lord is with you, O champion!" "My lord," Gideon said to him, "if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?' Where are his wondrous deeds of which our fathers told us when they said 'Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' For now the Lord has abandoned us and has delivered us into the power of Midian." The Lord turned to him and said, "Go with the strength you have and save Israel from the power of Midian. It is I who send you." But he answered him, "PLease, my lord, how can I save Israel? My family is the meanest in Manasseh, and I am the most insignificant in my father's house." "I shall be with you," the Lord said to him, "and you will cut down Midian to the last man." He answered him, "If I find favor with you, give me a sign that your are speaking with me. Do not depart from here, I pray you, until I come back to you and bring out my offering and set it before you." He answered, "I will await your return."
So Gideon went off and prepared a kid and an epah of flour in the form of unleavened cakes. Putting the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot, he brought them out to him under the terebinth and presented them. The angel of God said to him, "Take the meat and the unleavened cakes and lay them on this rock; then pour out the broth." When he had done so, the angel of the Lord stretched out the tip of the staff he held, and touched the meat and unleavened cakes. Thereupon a fire came up from the rock which consumed the meat and unleavened cakes, and the angel of the Lord disappeared from sight. Gideon now aware that it has been the angel of the Lord, said, "Alas, Lord God, that I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face!" The Lord answered him, "Be calm, do not fear. You shall not die." So Gideon built there an altar to the Lord and called it Yahweh-Shalom. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Psalms 85: 9, 11 - 14
I will hear what God proclaims; the Lord - for he proclaims peace to his people, and to his faithful ones, and to those who put in him their
hope.
Teach me, O Lord, your way that I may walk in your truth; direct my heart that it may fear your name. I will give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and I will glorify your name forever. Great has been your kindness toward me; you have rescued me from the depths of the nether world. O God, the haughty have risen up against me, and the company of fierce men seeks my life, nor do they set you before their eyes.

Matthew 19: 23 - 30
Jesus said to his disciples: "I assure you, only with difficulty will a rich man enter into the kingdom of God. I repeat what I said: it is easier for a camel to pass through a needle's eye than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." When the disciples heard this they were completely overwhelmed, and exclaimed, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "For man it is impossible, but for God all things are possible." Then it was Peter's turn to say to him: "Here we have put everything aside to follow you. What can we expect from it:" Jesus said to them: "I give you my solemn word, in the new age when the Son of Man takes his seat upon a throne befitting his glory, you who have followed me shall likewise take your places on twelve thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel. Moreover, everyone who has given up home, brothers or sisters, father or mother, wife or children or property for my sake will receive many times as much and inherit everlasting life. Many who are first shall come last, and the last shall come first.
 
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Judges 9: 6 - 15
Then all the citizens of Shechem and all Beth-millo came together and preceeded to make Abimelech king by the terebinth at the memorial pillar in Shechem.
When this was reported to him, Jotham went to the top of Mount Gerizim, and standing there, cried out to them in a loud voice; "Hear me, citizens of Shechem, that God may then hear you! Once the trees went to anoint a king over themselves. So they said to the olive tree "Reign over us." But the olive tree answered them, 'Must I give up my rich oil, whereby men and gods are honored, and go to wave over the trees:' Then the trees said to the fig tree, 'Come; you reign over us!' But the fig tree answered them, 'Must I give up my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to wave over the trees?' Then the trees said to the vine, 'Come you, and reign over us.' But the vine answered them, 'Must I give up my wine that cheers gods and men, and go to wave over the trees?' Then all the trees said to the buckhorn, 'Come; you reign over us!' But the buckhorn replied to the trees, 'If you wish to anoint me king over you in good faith, come and take refuge in my shadow. Otherwise, let fire come from the buckhorn and devour the cedars of Lebanon.'

Psalms 21: 2 - 7
O Lord, in your strength the king is glad; in your victory how greatly he rejoices! You have granted him his heart's desire; you refused not the wish of his lips. For you welcomed him with godly blessings, you placed on his head a crown of pure gold. He asked life of you; you gave him length of days forever and ever. Great is his glory in your victory; majesty and splendor you conferred upon him. For you made him a blessing forever; you gladdened him with the joy of your presence.

Matthew 20: 1 - 16
Jesus said to his disciples:
"The reign of God is like the case of the owner of an estate who went out a dawn to hire workmen for his vineyard. After reaching an agreement with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them out to his vineyard. He came out about midmorning and saw other men standing around the marketplace without work, so he said to them, 'You too go along to my vineyard and I will pay you whatever is fair.' At that they went away. He came out again around noon and midafternoon and did the same. Finally, going out in late afternoon he found still others standing around. To these he said, 'Why have you been standing here idle all day?' No one has hired us,' they told him. He said, 'You go to the vineyard too.' When evening came the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workmen and give them their pay, but begin with the last group and end with the first.' When those hired late in the afternoon came up they received a full day's pay, and when the first group appeared they supposed they would get more; yet they received the same daily wage. Thereupon they complained to the owner. "This last group did only an hour's work, but you have put them on the same basis as us who have worked a full day in the scorching heat.' 'My friend,' he said to one in reply 'I do you no injustice. You agreed on the usual wage, did you not? Take your pay and go home. I intend to give this man who was hired last the same pay as you. I am free to do as I please with my money, am I not? Or are you envious because I am generous?' Thus the last shall be first and the first shall be last."
 
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Judges 11: 29 - 39
The spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah. He passed through Gilead and Manasseh, and through Mizpah-Gilead as well, and from there he went on to the Ammonites. Jephthah made a vow to the Lord. "If you deliver the Ammonites into my power," he said, "whoever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites shall belong to the Lord. I shall offer him up as a holocaust."
Jephthah then went on to the Ammonites to fight against them, and the Lord delivered them into his power, so that he inflicted a severe defeat on them, from Aroer to the approach of Minnith (twenty cities in all) and as far as Abelkeramin. Thus were the Ammonites brought into the subjection by the Israelites. When Jephthah returned to his house in Mizpah, it was his daughter who came forth, playing the tambourines and dancing. She was an only child: he had neither son nor daughter besides her. When he saw her, he rent his garments and said, "Alas, daughter, you have struck me down and brought calamity upon me. For I have made a vow to the Lord and I cannot retract." "Father," she replied, "you have made a vow to the Lord. Do with me as you have vowed, because the Lord has wrought vengeance for you on your enemies the Ammonites." Then she said to her father, "Let me have this favor. Spare me for two months, that I may go off down the mountains to mourn my virginity with my companions." "Go," he replied, and sent her away for two months. So she departed with her companions and mourned her virginity on the mountains. At the end of the two months she returned to her father, who did to her as he had vowed. She had not been intimate with man.

Psalms 40: 5, 7 - 10
Happy the man who makes the Lord his trust; who turns not to idolatry or to those who stray after falsehood.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not, but ears open to obedience you gave me. Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not; then said I, "Behold I come; in the written scroll it is prescribed for me, to do your will, O my God, is my delight, and your law is within my heart!" I announced your justice in the vast assembly; I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know.

Matthew 22: 1 - 14
Jesus began to address them, once more using parables. "The reign of God may be likened to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the wedding, but they refused to come. A second time he sent other servants, saying: 'Tell those who were invited, See, I have my dinner prepared! My bullocks and corn-fed cattle are killed; everything is ready. Come to the feast.' Some ignored the invitation and went their way, one to his farm, another to his business. The rest laid hold of his servants, insulting them, and killed them. At this the king grew furious and sent his army to destroy those murderers and burn their city. Then he said to his servants: 'The banquet is ready, but those who were invited were unfit to come. That is why you must go out into the byroads and invite to the wedding anyone you come upon.' The servants then went out into the byroads and rounded up everyone they met, bad as well as good. This filled the wedding hall with banqueters.
When the king came in to meet the guests, however, he caught sight of a man not properly dressed for a wedding feast. 'My friend,' he said, 'how is it you came in here not properly dressed?' The man had nothing to say. The king then said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot and throw him out into the night to wail and grind his teeth. The invited are many, the elect are few."
 

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