Thursday, 16 Tevet 5784 / December 28, 2023
Day 362 Readings
Torah: Parshat Vayechi, 5th Portion (Bereshit (Genesis) 49:19-49:26)
Genesis 49:19-26
New American Standard Bible
19 “As for Gad, a band of raiders shall attack him,But he will attack at their [a]heels.
20 “[b]As for Asher, his [c]food shall be [d]rich,And he will yield royal delicacies.
21 “Naphtali is a doe let loose;He utters beautiful words.
22 “Joseph is a fruitful [e]branch,A fruitful [f]branch by a spring;Its [g]branches hang over a wall. 23 The archers provoked him, And shot at him and were hostile toward him; 24 But his bow remained [h]firm,And [i]his arms were agile, From the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob(From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel), 25 From the God of your father who helps you,And [j]by the [k]Almighty who blesses youWith blessings of heaven above,Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,Blessings of the breasts and of the womb. 26 The blessings of your fatherHave surpassed the blessings of my ancestorsUp to the [l]furthest boundary of the everlasting hills; May they be on the head of Joseph,And on the top of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.
Bible Study Together
2 Samuel 9
New American Standard Bible
David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth
9 Then David said, “Is there [a]anyone still left of the house of Saul, so that I could show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they summoned him to David; and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” 3 Then the king said, “Is there no one remaining of the house of Saul to whom I could show the kindness of God?” And Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan, one who is disabled in both feet.” 4 So the king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.” 5 Then King David sent [b]messengers who brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. 6 Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and prostrated himself. And David said, “Mephibosheth.” And he said, “Here is your servant!” 7 Then David said to him, “Do not be afraid, for I will assuredly show kindness to you for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the [c]land of your [d]grandfather Saul; and you yourself shall [e]eat at my table regularly.” 8 Again he prostrated himself, and said, “What is your servant, that you should be concerned about a dead dog like me?”
9 Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba and said to him, “Everything that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s [f]grandson. 10 You and your sons and your servants shall cultivate the land for him, and you shall bring in the produce so that your master’s grandson will have food [g]to eat; nevertheless Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, shall [h]eat at my table regularly.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11 Then Ziba said to the king, “In accordance with everything that my lord the king commands his servant, so your servant will do.” So Mephibosheth ate at [i]David’s table as one of the king’s sons. 12 Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. And all who lived in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. 13 So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he ate at the king’s table regularly. And he was disabled in his two feet.
2 Samuel 10
Ammon and Aram Defeated
1 Now it happened afterward that the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun became king in his place. 2 Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent [j]some of his servants to console him about his father. But when David’s servants came to the land of the Ammonites, 3 the commanders of the Ammonites said to their lord Hanun, “[k]Do you think that David is simply honoring your father since he has sent you servants [l]to console you? Has David not sent his servants to you in order to explore the city, to spy it out and overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun took David’s servants and shaved off half of their beards, and cut off their robes in the middle as far as their buttocks, and sent them away. 5 When messengers informed David, he sent servants to meet them, because the men were extremely humiliated. And the king said, “Stay in Jericho until your beards grow back, and then you shall return.”
6 Now when the sons of Ammon saw that they had become repulsive to David, the sons of Ammon sent messengers and hired the Arameans of Beth-rehob and the Arameans of Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, and the king of Maacah with a thousand men, and the men of Tob with twelve thousand men. 7 When David heard about this, he sent Joab and all the army, the warriors. 8 And the sons of Ammon came out and lined up for battle at the entrance of the [m]city, while the Arameans of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were stationed by themselves in the field.
9 Now when Joab saw that [n]the battle was set against him at the front and at the rear, he selected warriors from all the choice men in Israel, and lined them up against the Arameans. 10 But the remainder of the people he placed [o]under the command of his brother Abishai, and he lined them up against the sons of Ammon. 11 And he said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the sons of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come to help you. 12 Be strong, and let’s show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people and the cities of our God; and may the Lord do what is good in His sight.” 13 So Joab and the people who were with him advanced to the battle against the Arameans, and they fled from him. 14 When the sons of Ammon saw that the Arameans had fled, they also fled from Abishai and entered the city. Then Joab returned from fighting against the sons of Ammon and came to Jerusalem.
15 When the Arameans saw that they had been [p]defeated by Israel, they assembled together. 16 And Hadadezer sent word and brought out the Arameans who were beyond the Euphrates River, and they came to Helam; and Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer [q]led them. 17 Now when it was reported to David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Arameans lined up against David and fought him. 18 But the Arameans fled from Israel, and David killed seven hundred charioteers of the Arameans and forty thousand horsemen, and struck Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there. 19 When all the kings, servants of Hadadezer, saw that they had been [r]defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Arameans were afraid to help the sons of Ammon anymore.
Matthew 20:17-19
New American Standard Bible
Death, Resurrection Foretold
17 As Jesus was about to go up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and on the road He said to them, 18 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be [a]handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death, 19 and they will hand Him over to the Gentiles to mock and flog and crucify, and on the third day He will be raised up.”
Mark 10:32-34
New American Standard Bible
Jesus’ Sufferings Foretold
32 Now they were on the road going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking on ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed were fearful. And again He took the twelve aside and began to tell them what was going to happen to Him, 33 saying, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be [a]handed over to the chief priests and the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and will [b]hand Him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock Him and spit on Him, and flog Him and kill Him; and three days later He will rise from the dead.”
Luke 18:31-34
New American Standard Bible
31 Now He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that have been written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. 32 For He will be [a]handed over to the Gentiles, and will be ridiculed, and abused, and spit upon, 33 and after they have flogged Him, they will kill Him; and on the third day He will rise.” 34 [b]The disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said.
365 Daily Kingdom Living:
Cleansing Fountain
A weary traveller knows the joy of coming to a fountain. Likewise, we are delighted to have Christ in our life. He is the fountain of life and out of it living water flows. Let us draw near to Him so we may be cleansed from life’s atrocities and from our sins.
Prayer: Lord, Please come into my life and take charge of it. Thank you that You are the fountain of water in whom I will be cleansed and refreshed. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Scripture
Zechariah 12
New American Standard Bible
Jerusalem to Be Attacked
1 The pronouncement of the word of the Lord concerning Israel:
The Lord who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of a person within him, declares: 2 “Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup [a]that causes staggering to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. 3 It will come about on that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will injure themselves severely. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it. 4 On that day,” declares the Lord, “I will strike every horse with confusion and its rider with insanity. But I will [b]watch over the house of Judah, while I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. 5 Then the [c]clans of Judah will say in their hearts, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem are a [d]strong support for us through the Lord of armies, their God.’
6 “On that day I will make the [e]clans of Judah like a firepot among pieces of wood and a flaming torch among sheaves, so they will consume on the right and on the left all the surrounding peoples, while [f]the inhabitants of Jerusalem again live on their own sites in Jerusalem. 7 The Lord also will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will not be greater than Judah. 8 On that day the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the one who [g]is feeble among them on that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord before them. 9 And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem [h]the Spirit of grace and of pleading, so that they will look at Me whom they pierced; and they will mourn for Him, like one mourning for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. 11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be great, like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the [i]plain of [j]Megiddo. 12 The land will mourn, every family by itself; the family of the house of David by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself and their wives by themselves; 13 the family of the house of Levi by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself and their wives by themselves; 14 all the families that are left, every family by itself, and their wives by themselves.
Zechariah 13
New American Standard Bible
False Prophets Ashamed
1 “On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for defilement.
2 “And it will come about on that day,” declares the Lord of armies, “that I will eliminate the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered; and I will also remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land. 3 And if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who gave birth to him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, because you have spoken falsely in the name of the Lord’; and his father and mother who gave birth to him shall pierce him through when he prophesies. 4 Also it will come about on that day that the prophets will each be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies, and they will not put on a hairy robe in order to deceive; 5 but he will say, ‘I am not a prophet; I am a cultivator of the ground, because a man [a]sold me as a slave in my youth.’ 6 And someone will say to him, ‘What are these wounds between your [b]arms?’ Then he will say, ‘Those with which I was wounded at the house of [c]my friends.’
7 “Awake, sword, against My Shepherd,And against the Man, My Associate,”Declares the Lord of armies. “Strike the Shepherd and the sheep will be scattered;And I will turn My hand [d]against the little ones. 8 And it will come about in all the land, ”Declares the Lord,“ That two parts in it will be cut off and perish; But the third will be left in it. 9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, Refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested.They will call on My name,And I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are My people,’ And they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”
Revelation 19
New American Standard Bible
The Fourfold Hallelujah
19 After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,
“Hallelujah! Salvation, glory, and power belong to our God, 2 because His judgments are true and righteous; for He has judged the great prostitute who was corrupting the earth with her sexual immorality, and He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants [a]on her.” 3 And a second time they said, “Hallelujah! Her smoke rises forever and ever.” 4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” 5 And a voice came from the throne, saying,
“Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.” 6 Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters, and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
Marriage of the Lamb
7 Let’s rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, because the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His [b]bride has prepared herself.” 8 It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the [c]saints.
9 Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.’” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” 10 Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he *said to me, “[d]Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brothers and sisters who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
The Coming of Christ
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many crowns; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. 15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will [e]rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the [f]wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
17 Then I saw [g]an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in midheaven, “Come, assemble for the great feast of God, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, both free and slaves, and small and great.”
19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, assembled to make war against Him who sat on the horse, and against His army.
Doom of the Beast and False Prophet
20 And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs [h]in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire, which burns with [i]brimstone. 21 And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.
Psalm 147
New American Standard Bible
Praise for Jerusalem’s Restoration and Prosperity.
1 [a]Praise [b]the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God; For [c]it is pleasant and praise is [d]beautiful. 2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the outcasts of Israel. 3 He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their [e]wounds. 4 He counts the number of the stars; He [f]gives names to all of them. 5 Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is [g]infinite. 6 The Lord [h]supports the afflicted; He brings the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; Sing praises to our God on the lyre; 8 It is He who covers the heavens with clouds, Who provides rain for the earth, Who makes grass sprout on the mountains. 9 It is He who gives an animal its food, And feeds young ravens that cry. 10 He does not delight in [i]the strength of the horse; He does not take pleasure in the [j]legs of a man. 11 The Lord favors those who fear Him, Those who wait for His [k]faithfulness.
12 Praise the Lord, Jerusalem! Praise your God, Zion! 13 For He has strengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your sons among you.14 He makes [l]peace in your borders; He satisfies you with the [m]finest of the wheat. 15 He sends His command to the earth; His word runs very swiftly. 16 He [n]showers snow like wool; He scatters the frost like ashes. 17 He hurls His ice as fragments; Who can stand before His cold? 18 He sends His word and makes them melt; He makes His wind blow, and the waters flow. 19 He declares His words to Jacob, His statutes and His judgments to Israel. 20 He has not dealt this way with any other nation; And as for His judgments, [o]they have not known them.[p]Praise [q]the Lord!
Proverbs 31:1-7
New American Standard Bible
The Words of Lemuel
1 The words of King Lemuel, the pronouncement which his mother taught him:
2 What, my son? And what, son of my womb? And what, son of my vows? 3 Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings. 4 It is not for kings, Lemuel,It is not for kings to drink wine, Or for rulers to desire intoxicating drink, 5 Otherwise they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the [a]rights of all the [b]needy. 6 Give intoxicating drink to one who is perishing, And wine to one [c]whose life is bitter. 7 Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his trouble no more.