Sunday, 26 Tevet 5784 / January 7, 2024
Day 372 Readings
Torah: Parshat Va'eira, 1st Portion Shemot (Exodus) 6:2-6:13
Exodus 6:2-13
New American Standard Bible
2 God spoke further to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord; 3 and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as [a]God Almighty, but by My name, [b]Lord, I did not make Myself known to them. 4 I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the [c]land in which they lived as strangers. 5 Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. 6 Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the labors of the Egyptians, and I will rescue you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm, and with great judgments. 7 Then I will take you [d]as My people, and I will be [e]your God; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the labors of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you to the land which I [f]swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give it to you as a possession; I am the Lord.’” 9 So Moses said this to the sons of Israel, but they did not listen to Moses on account of their [g]despondency and cruel bondage.
10 Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 11 “Go, [h]tell Pharaoh king of Egypt [i]to let the sons of Israel go out of his land.” 12 But Moses spoke before the Lord, saying, “Behold, the sons of Israel have not listened to me; how then will Pharaoh listen to me, as I am [j]unskilled in speech?” 13 Nevertheless, the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron and gave them a command concerning the sons of Israel and Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt.
BIble Study Together
2 Samuel 16:15-17:29
New American Standard Bible
Absalom Enters Jerusalem
15 Then Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, entered Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. 16 Now it came about, when Hushai the Archite, David’s friend, came to Absalom, that Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live the king!” 17 But Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your [a]loyalty to your friend? Why did you not go with your friend?” 18 So Hushai said to Absalom, “No! For whomever the Lord, this people, and all the men of Israel have chosen, his I shall be, and with him I shall remain. 19 Besides, whom should I serve? Should I not serve in the presence of his son? Just as I have served in your father’s presence, so I shall be in your presence.”
20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give your advice. What should we do?” 21 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Have relations with your father’s concubines, whom he has left behind to take care of the house; then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself repulsive to your father. The hands of all who are with you will also be strengthened.” 22 So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and Absalom had relations with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel. 23 Now the advice of Ahithophel, which he [b]gave in those days, was taken as though one inquired of the word of God; so was all the advice of Ahithophel regarded by both David and Absalom.
2 Samuel 17
Hushai’s Counsel
17 Furthermore, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Please let me choose twelve thousand men and let me set out and pursue David tonight. 2 And I will [c]attack him while he is weary and [d]exhausted and startle him, so that all the people who are with him will flee. Then I will strike and kill the king when he is alone, 3 and I will bring all the people back to you. [e]The return of everyone depends on the man whom you are seeking; then all the people will be at peace.” 4 And the [f]plan pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel.
5 Nevertheless, Absalom said, “Now call Hushai the Archite also, and let’s hear what [g]he has to say.” 6 When Hushai had come to Absalom, Absalom said to [h]him, “Ahithophel has [i]proposed this plan. Should we [j]carry out his plan? If not, say so yourself.” 7 So Hushai said to Absalom, “This time the advice that Ahithophel has [k]given is not good.” 8 Then Hushai said, “You yourself know your father and his men, that they are warriors and they are [l]fierce, like a bear deprived of her cubs in the field. And your father is an [m]expert in warfare, and he will not spend the night with the people. 9 Behold, he has now hidden himself in one of the ravines, or in another place; and it will be that when he falls on them at the first attack, whoever hears it will say, ‘There has been a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom!’ 10 And even the one who is valiant, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will completely despair; for all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and those who are with him are valiant men. 11 But I advise that all Israel be fully gathered to you, from Dan even to Beersheba, like the sand that is by the sea in abundance; and that [n]you personally go into battle. 12 Then we will come to him in one of the places where he can be found, and we will [o]fall on him just as the dew falls on the ground; and of him and of all the men who are with him, not even one will be left. 13 And if he withdraws into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city, and we will drag it into the [p]valley until not even a pebble is found there.” 14 Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had ordained to foil the good advice of Ahithophel, in order for the Lord to bring disaster on Absalom.
Hushai’s Warning Saves David
15 Then Hushai said to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, “[q]This is what Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel to do, and [r]this is what I have advised. 16 Now then, send a messenger quickly and tell David, saying, ‘Do not spend the night at the river crossing places of the wilderness, but by all means cross over, or else the king and all the people who are with him will be [s]destroyed.’” 17 Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were staying at En-rogel, and a female servant would go and inform them, and they would go and inform King David, for they could not allow themselves to be seen entering the city. 18 But a boy did see them, and he told Absalom; so the two of them left quickly and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his courtyard, and they went down [t]into it. 19 And the woman [u]took a cover and spread it over the well’s mouth and scattered barley meal on it, so that nothing was known. 20 Then Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house and said, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” And the woman said to them, “They have crossed the brook of water.” And when they searched and did not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.
21 It came about after they had departed, that they came up out of the well and went and reported to King David; and they said to David, “Set out and cross over the water quickly, because this is what Ahithophel has advised against you.” 22 Then David and all the people who were with him set out and crossed the Jordan; by [v]dawn not even one remained who had not crossed the Jordan.
23 Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been [w]followed, he saddled his donkey and set out and went to his home, to his city, and [x]set his house in order, and hanged himself; so he died and was buried in his father’s grave.
24 Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom crossed the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. 25 Absalom put Amasa [y]in command of the army in place of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was [z]Ithra the Israelite, who [aa]had relations with Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother. 26 And Israel and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.
27 Now when David had come to Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, 28 brought beds, basins, pottery, wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, roasted seeds, 29 honey, curds, sheep, and cheese of the herd, for David and the people who were with him, to eat. For they said, “The people are hungry and exhausted and thirsty in the wilderness.”
ESV Readings
Scripture
Genesis 6
New American Standard Bible
The Corruption of Mankind
1 Now it came about, when mankind began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw that the daughters of mankind were [a]beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not [b]remain with man forever, [c]because he is also flesh; [d]nevertheless his days shall be 120 years.” 4 The [e]Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of mankind, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of mankind was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of [f]their hearts was only evil continually. 6 So the Lord was sorry that He had made mankind on the earth, and He was grieved [g]in His heart. 7 Then the Lord said, “I will wipe out mankind whom I have created from the face of the land; mankind, and animals as well, and crawling things, and the birds of the sky. For I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
9 These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, [h]blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. 10 And Noah fathered three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
11 Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 And God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for [i]humanity had corrupted its way upon the earth.
13 Then God said to Noah, “The end of [j]humanity has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of [k]people; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth. 14 Make for yourself an ark of [l]gopher wood; you shall make the ark with compartments, and [m]cover it inside and out with pitch. 15 This is how you shall make it: the length of the ark shall be [n]three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 16 You shall make a [o]window for the ark, and finish it to a [p]cubit from [q]the top; and put the door of the ark on the side; you shall make it with lower, second, and third decks. 17 Now behold, I Myself am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which there is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish. 18 But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. 19 And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female. 20 Of the birds according to their kind, and of the animals according to their kind, of every crawling thing of the ground according to its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. 21 As for you, take for yourself some of every food that is edible, and gather it to yourself; and it shall be food for you and them.” 22 So Noah did these things; according to everything that God had commanded him, so he did.
1 Chronicles 6
New American Standard Bible
Genealogy: The Priestly Line
1 [a]The sons of Levi were [b]Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 2 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 3 The children of Amram were Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. And the sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 4 Eleazar fathered Phinehas, Phinehas fathered Abishua, 5 Abishua fathered Bukki, Bukki fathered Uzzi, 6 Uzzi fathered Zerahiah, Zerahiah fathered Meraioth, 7 Meraioth fathered Amariah, Amariah fathered Ahitub, 8 Ahitub fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Ahimaaz, 9 Ahimaaz fathered Azariah, Azariah fathered Johanan, 10 Johanan fathered Azariah (it was he who served as the priest in the house which Solomon built in Jerusalem), 11 Azariah fathered Amariah, Amariah fathered Ahitub, 12 Ahitub fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered [c]Shallum, 13 Shallum fathered Hilkiah, Hilkiah fathered Azariah, 14 Azariah fathered Seraiah, and Seraiah fathered Jehozadak; 15 Jehozadak went along when the Lord led Judah and Jerusalem into exile [d]by Nebuchadnezzar.
16 [e]The sons of Levi were [f]Gershom, Kohath, and Merari. 17 These are the names of the sons of Gershom: Libni and Shimei. 18 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. And these are the families of the Levites according to their fathers’ households. 20 Of Gershom: Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, 21 Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, and Jeatherai his son. 22 The sons of Kohath were Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, 23 Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son, 24 Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. 25 The sons of Elkanah were Amasai and Ahimoth. 26 As for Elkanah, the sons of Elkanah were Zophai his son, Nahath his son, 27 Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, and Elkanah his son. 28 The sons of Samuel were Joel, the firstborn, and Abijah, the second. 29 The sons of Merari were Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son, 30 Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, and Asaiah his son.
31 Now these are the ones whom David appointed over the [g]service of song in the house of the Lord, after the ark rested there. 32 They were ministering in song in front of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting until Solomon’s building of the house of the Lord in Jerusalem; and they [h]served in their office according to their order. 33 These are the ones who [i]served with their sons: From the sons of the Kohathites were Heman the singer, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel, 34 the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah, 35 the son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath, the son of Amasai, 36 the son of Elkanah, the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah, 37 the son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, 38 the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, the son of Israel. 39 Heman’s brother Asaph stood at his right hand, Asaph the son of Berechiah, the son of Shimea, 40 the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchijah, 41 the son of Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of Adaiah, 42 the son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son of Shimei, 43 the son of Jahath, the son of Gershom, the son of Levi. 44 On the left hand were their kinsmen the sons of Merari: Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch, 45 the son of Hashabiah, the son of Amaziah, the son of Hilkiah, 46 the son of Amzi, the son of Bani, the son of Shemer, 47 the son of Mahli, the son of Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi. 48 Their kinsmen the Levites were [j]appointed for all the service of the tabernacle of the house of God.
49 But Aaron and his sons [k]offered on the altar of burnt offering and on the altar of incense, for all the work of the Most Holy Place, and to make atonement for Israel, in accordance with everything that Moses the servant of God had commanded. 50 These are the sons of Aaron: Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son, 51 Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son, 52 Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son, 53 Zadok his son, and Ahimaaz his son.
Luke 3:1-22
New American Standard Bible
John the Baptist Preaches
1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, 2 in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. 3 And he came into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance [a]for the forgiveness of sins; 4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:
“The voice of one calling [b]out in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord,Make His paths straight!
5 Every ravine will be filled, And every mountain and hill will be lowered;The crooked will become straight,And the rough roads smooth; 6 And all [c]flesh will see the salvation of God!’”
7 So he was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You [d]offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore produce fruits that are consistent with repentance, and do not start saying [e]to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children for Abraham. 9 But indeed the axe is already being laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “Then what are we to do?” 11 And he would answer and say to them, “The one who has two [f]tunics is to share with the one who has none; and the one who has food is to do likewise.” 12 Now even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what are we to do?” 13 And he said to them, “[g]Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.” 14 And soldiers also were questioning him, saying, “What are we to do, we as well?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone, nor [h]harass anyone, and be content with your wages.”
15 Now while the people were in a state of expectation and they all were thinking carefully in their hearts about John, whether he himself perhaps was the [i]Christ, 16 John responded to them all, saying, “As for me, I baptize you with water; but He is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the straps of His sandals; He will baptize you [j]with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
18 So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people. 19 But when Herod the tetrarch was reprimanded by him regarding Herodias, his brother’s wife, and regarding all the evil things which Herod had done, 20 Herod also added this to them all: he locked John up in prison.
Jesus Is Baptized
21 Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus also was baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well pleased.”
Psalm 5
New American Standard Bible
Prayer for Protection from the Wicked.
For the music director; for [a]flute accompaniment. A Psalm of David.
1 Listen to my words, Lord,Consider my sighing.2 Listen to the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God,For to You I pray.3 In the morning, Lord, [b]You will hear my voice;In the morning I will present my [c]prayer to You and be on the watch.
4 For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness;No evil can dwell with You.5 The boastful will not stand before Your eyes;You hate all who do injustice.6 You destroy those who speak lies;The Lord loathes the person of bloodshed and deceit.7 But as for me, by Your abundant graciousness I will enter Your house,[d]At Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You.
8 Lord, lead me in Your righteousness because of my enemies; Make Your way [e]straight before me. 9 For there is nothing [f]trustworthy in [g]their mouth;Their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave; They [h]flatter with their tongue. 10 Make them pay, God;Have them fall by their own schemes! Scatter them in the multitude of their wrongdoings, For they are rebellious against You.
11 But rejoice, all who take refuge in You, Sing for joy forever! And [i]may You shelter them, That those who love Your name may rejoice in You. 12 For You bless the righteous person, Lord, You surround him with favor as with a shield.
Dear AVI,
HOLY is YOUR Name ABBA, Blessed are YOU O HOLY ONE of Israel! How I need YOU each and everyday of my life. I do not live this life O LORD, I feel this is not My life but YOURS to live. Live through me I pray and I ask that YOU will fill My loved ones with the HOLY SPIRIT of GOD, fill Stephen with YOUR Spirit, encounter him AVI, I pray that YOU make YOURSELF known to him and his mom, through YOUR Word, through YOUR grace, through YOUR love and goodness. I pray O GOD, have YOUR Way in them and through them. Take care of them O GOD. Whatever YOU want to do I pray that YOU will do through me and I pray that my family will be a blessing to them, that YOU will bring freedom and liberation to the soul of Stephen where he feels in bondage of many things holding him back from truly being who he is. LORD, speak to him and his mom even in their dreams, draw them to YOU O FATHER so that they will live eternally and enter the KINGDOM of GOD even his brothers and sister. I pray that YOU already speak to them, call them to YOU, to have a relationship with YOU. I pray for Achi Glory and all her concerns that YOU will comfort her as she continues to mourn for her firstborn child, I pray that she will learn to keep surrendering all things to YOU O GOD, have YOUR Way in her life. I pray that YOU be pleased with me in all that I do and that Stephen will open up himself to me and be comfortable with me and just learn to understand me. Show him who I am in YOU and draw him to YOU. I pray that Mom will surrender her will to YOU and that she will release David to love Kim because YOU have shown me that this is YOUR will for him. I pray that she will surrender this part of her life knowing that I have also surrendered the most precious things in my heart to YOUR will and desire for me, because YOU are a prayer answering GOD, so loving and faithful in all YOU do.
Ba HaShem YESHUA HaMashiach Amen!