17-Cheshvan 5994 / 1 November 2023

Day 305 Readings

Torah: Vayeira, 4th Portion Bereshit (Genesis) 19:21-21:4

Genesis 19

21 And he said to him, “Behold, I grant you this [a]request also, not to overthrow the town of which you have spoken. 22 Hurry, escape there, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” Therefore the town was named [b]Zoar.

23 The sun had risen over the earth when Lot came to Zoar. 24 Then the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah from the Lord out of heaven, 25 and He overthrew those cities, and all the surrounding area, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. 26 But [c]Lot’s wife, from behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

Genesis 20

Now Abraham journeyed from there toward the land of the [l]Negev, and [m]settled between Kadesh and Shur; then he lived for a time in Gerar. 2 And Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar sent men and took Sarah. 3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is [n]married.” 4 Now Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, will You kill a nation, even though [o]blameless? 5 Did he himself not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my [p]hands I have done this.” 6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also [q]kept you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. 7 Now then, return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, know that you will certainly die, you and all who are yours.”

Genesis 21

Isaac Is Born

21 Then the Lord took note of Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had [ab]promised. 2 So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time of which God had spoken to him. 3 Abraham named his son who was born to him, the son whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac. 4 Then Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.

Bible Study Together

Judges 21

1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying, “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin [a]in marriage.” 2 So the people came to Bethel and sat there before God until evening, and raised their voices and wept [b]profusely. 3 And they said, “Why, Lord, God of Israel, has this happened in Israel, that one tribe is missing today from Israel?” 4 And it came about the next day that the people got up early and built an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

5 Then the sons of Israel said, “Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who did not go up to the Lord in the assembly?” For [c]they had taken a solemn oath concerning anyone who did not go up to the Lord at Mizpah, saying, “He shall certainly be put to death.” 6 And the sons of Israel were sorry for their brother Benjamin, and said, “Today one tribe is cut off from Israel! 7 What are we to do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn by the Lord not to give them any of our daughters as wives?”

16 Then the elders of the congregation said, “What are we to do for wives for those who are left, since the women have been eliminated from Benjamin?” 17 And they said, “There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe will not be wiped out from Israel. 18 But we cannot give them wives from our daughters.” For the sons of Israel had sworn, saying, “Cursed is he who gives a wife to Benjamin!”

19 So they said, “Behold, there is a feast of the Lord from year to year in Shiloh, which is on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the road that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south side of Lebonah.” 20 And they commanded the sons of Benjamin, saying, “Go and lie in wait in the vineyards, 21 and watch; and behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to [i]take part in the dances, then you shall come out of the vineyards, and each of you shall seize his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 22 And when their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, we shall say to them, ‘[j]Give them to us voluntarily, because we did not take for each man of Benjamin [k]a wife in battle, [l]nor did you give them to them, [m]otherwise you would now be guilty.’”

Dear AVI,

Baruch Ata Adonai Melek HaOlam! Blessed are YOU My GOD and King of the Universe! HOLY ONE of Israel! I cry reading this word about Israel fighting against Benjamin who have truly hurt his brothers the Israelites when they chose to side with evil and slaugthered 30,000 Warriors from the Tribes of Israel. I cry because in this chapter, Israel was not happy to win the war but they cried out to YOU asking why this has happened to their Nation, Israel, a family of 12 brothers. Because they loved their brother Benjamin and after they have lost reconciled with them and now they have to make Benjamins problem their problem and even sought solutions for their brother to continue being a tribe by finding wives for the survivors. I could relate to Israel because I am Israel. AM Israel Chai. So AVI Almighty toda for letting me cry, for healing me because YOU know how hurt I am from my family because no one is perfect. No one! Help me to keep forgiving everyone O GOD. Help me to overcome my fear of being hurt again, help me to let them hurt me if they have to, so that I will be more like YOU. But where I am right now is the most difficult thing for me, where YOU put me right now is the most difficult thing for me. So help me GOD help me to be courageous enough to fight the things that I need to fight, to work with YOU in all things... Please do YOUR miraculous work in Stephen LY's life and his mother, please encounter them and reveal YOURSELF to them like only YOU can. Please let him dream of dreams and see visions O GOD, please let my family love and accept him right away if this is the man YOU have chosen. O GOD, please make it easy for me and him. I am expecting YOU to do miraculous things because YOU are faithful and true, YOU are good to me and YOU love me so much, YOU favor me in all that I do and so I wait on YOU O GOD. Toda Raba for hearing my every prayer and for understanding me always. Please help me to be pleasing to YOU.

Ba HaShem YESHUA HaMashiach, Amen!

Ruth 1:1-5

Naomi Widowed

1 Now it came about in the days when the judges [a]governed, that there was a famine in the land. And a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to reside in the land of Moab [b]with his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. So they entered the land of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. 4 And they took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other, Ruth. And they lived there about ten years. 5 Then [c]both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was left without her two sons and her husband.

Luke 10:38-11:13

Luke 10

New American Standard Bible

Martha and Mary

38 Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who was also seated at the Lord’s feet, and was listening to His word. 40 But Martha was distracted with [a]all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do the serving [b]by myself? Then tell her to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; 42 but only one thing is necessary; for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Luke 11

Instruction about Prayer

1 It happened that while [c]Jesus was praying in a certain place, when He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples.” 2 And He said to them, “When you pray, say:

‘[d]Father, [e]hallowed be Your name.[f]Your kingdom come.3 Give us each day our [g]daily bread.4 And forgive us our sins,For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.And do not lead us into temptation.’”

5 And He said to them, “[h]Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 because a friend of mine has come to me from a journey and I have nothing to serve him’; 7 and from inside he answers and says, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children [i]and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even if he will not get up and give him anything just because he is his friend, yet because of his [j]shamelessness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

9 “So I say to you, [k]ask, and it will be given to you; [l]seek, and you will find; [m]knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, it will be opened. 11 Now [n]which one of you fathers will his son ask for a [o]fish, and instead of a fish, he will give him a snake? 12 Or he will even ask for an egg, and his father will give him a scorpion? 13 So if you, despite being [p]evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will [q]your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

365 Daily Kingdom Living

God Is Speaking - Hear And Respond

God delivered the Israelites from Egypt through powerful signs and miracles, and in the wilderness of Sinai, he spoke to them and gave them his law. And even in their journey through the wilderness, God’s presence was there for all to see, in the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. But the Israelites hardened their hearts and were not obedient so in the end, except for Joshua and Caleb, none of the generation of Israelites who left Egypt entered the Promised Land and they died in the wilderness. What about us? How do we respond to the voice of God when he speaks to us? Do we just listen and then live the way we want to or are we obedient to his voice? Let us not be rebellious as the Israelites were.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we want to be obedient to your voice. Give us the strength to put to death our self-centredness. Let us be quick to hear and obey all that you tell us to do. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Scripture

Ezekiel 1

1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the River Chebar, that the heavens were opened and I saw visions[a] of God. 2 On the fifth day of the month, which was in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, 3 the word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the [b]Chaldeans by the River Chebar; and the hand of the Lord was upon him there.

4 Then I looked, and behold, a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. 5 Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. 6 Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings. 7 Their [c]legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves’ feet. They sparkled like the color of burnished bronze. 8 The hands of a man were under their wings on their four sides; and each of the four had faces and wings. 9 Their wings touched one another. The creatures did not turn when they went, but each one went straight forward.

10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man; each of the four had the face of a lion on the right side, each of the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and each of the four had the face of an eagle. 11 Thus were their faces. Their wings stretched upward; two wings of each one touched one another, and two covered their bodies. 12 And each one went straight forward; they went wherever the spirit wanted to go, and they did not turn when they went.

13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches going back and forth among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and out of the fire went lightning. 14 And the living creatures ran back and forth, in appearance like a flash of lightning.

15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, behold, a wheel was on the earth beside each living creature with its four faces. 16 The appearance of the wheels and their workings was like the color of beryl, and all four had the same likeness. The appearance of their workings was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel. 17 When they moved, they went toward any one of four directions; they did not turn aside when they went. 18 As for their rims, they were so high they were awesome; and their rims were full of eyes, all around the four of them. 19 When the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. 20 Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, because there the spirit went; and the wheels were lifted together with them, for the spirit of the [d]living creatures was in the wheels. 21 When those went, these went; when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up together with them, for the spirit of the [e]living creatures was in the wheels.

22 The likeness of the [f]firmament above the heads of the [g]living creatures was like the color of an awesome crystal, stretched out over their heads. 23 And under the firmament their wings spread out straight, one toward another. Each one had two which covered one side, and each one had two which covered the other side of the body. 24 When they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of many waters, like the voice of the Almighty, a tumult like the noise of an army; and when they stood still, they let down their wings. 25 A voice came from above the firmament that was over their heads; whenever they stood, they let down their wings.

26 And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. 27 Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.

Ezekiel Sent to Rebellious Israel

Ezekiel 2

And He said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to you.” 2 Then the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard Him who spoke to me. 3 And He said to me: “Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. 4 For they are [h]impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ 5 As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse—for they are a rebellious house—yet they will know that a prophet has been among them.

6 “And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though they are a rebellious house. 7 You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. 8 But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.”

9 Now when I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me; and behold, a scroll of a book was in it. 10 Then He spread it before me; and there was writing on the inside and on the outside, and written on it were lamentations and mourning and woe.

Ezekiel 3

The Responsibility of the Prophet

1 Moreover He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” 2 So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll.

3 And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.” So I ate, and it was in my mouth like honey in sweetness.

4 Then He said to me: “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. 5 For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, 6 not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. 7 But the house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me; for all the house of Israel are [i]impudent and hard-hearted. 8 Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your forehead strong against their foreheads. 9 Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead; do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.”

10 Moreover He said to me: “Son of man, receive into your heart all My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears. 11 And go, get to the captives, to the children of your people, and speak to them and tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord God,’ whether they hear, or whether they refuse.”

12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a great thunderous voice: “Blessed is the glory of the Lord from His place!” 13 I also heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, and a great thunderous noise. 14 So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the [j]heat of my spirit; but the hand of the Lord was strong upon me. 15 Then I came to the captives at Tel Abib, who dwelt by the River Chebar; and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.

Ezekiel Is a Watchman

16 Now it came to pass at the end of seven days that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me: 18 When I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.

20 “Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand. 21 Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took warning; also you will have delivered your soul.”

22 Then the hand of the Lord was upon me there, and He said to me, “Arise, go out into the plain, and there I shall talk with you.”

23 So I arose and went out into the plain, and behold, the glory of the Lord stood there, like the glory which I saw by the River Chebar; and I fell on my face. 24 Then the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and spoke with me and said to me: “Go, shut yourself inside your house. 25 And you, O son of man, surely they will put ropes on you and bind you with them, so that you cannot go out among them. 26 I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and not be [k]one to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious house. 27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ He who hears, let him hear; and he who refuses, let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.

Hebrews 3

New American Standard Bible

Jesus Our High Priest

1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession: Jesus; 2 [a]He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house. 3 For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house. 4 For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. 5 Now Moses was faithful in all [b]God’s house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken later; 6 but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold firmly to our confidence and the boast of our [c]hope.

7 Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says,

“Today if you hear His voice,8 Do not harden your hearts as [d]when they provoked Me,As on the day of trial in the wilderness,9 Where your fathers put Me to the test,And saw My works for forty years.10 Therefore I was angry with this generation,And said, ‘They always go astray in their heart,And they did not know My ways’;11 As I swore in My anger,‘They certainly shall not enter My rest.’”

The Danger of Unbelief

12 Take care, brothers and sisters, that there will not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart [e]that falls away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another every day, as long as it is still called “today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we keep the beginning of our [f]commitment firm until the end, 15 while it is said,

“Today if you hear His voice,Do not harden your hearts, as [g]when they provoked Me.”

16 For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19 And so we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.

Psalms 103:11-22

New King James Version

11 For as the heavens are high above the earth,So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; 12 As far as the east is from the west,So far has He removed our transgressions from us. 13 As a father pities his children,So the Lord pities those who fear Him. 14 For He [a]knows our frame;He remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;As a flower of the field, so he flourishes. 16 For the wind passes over it, and it is [b]gone,And its place remembers it no more. 17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting On those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children, 18 To such as keep His covenant, And to those who remember His commandments to do them.

19 The Lord has established His throne in heaven,And His kingdom rules over all.

20 Bless the Lord, you His angels,Who excel in strength, who do His word,Heeding the voice of His word. 21 Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You [c]ministers of His, who do His pleasure. 22 Bless the Lord, all His works,In all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Proverbs 26:24-26