Wednesday, 16 Nissan 5784 / April 24, 2024
Day 480 Readings
Torah: Parshat Acharei, 4th Portion Vayikra (Leviticus) 17:1-17:7
Leviticus 17:1-7
English Standard Version
The Place of Sacrifice
17 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the people of Israel and say to them, This is the thing that the Lord has commanded. 3 If any one of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp, 4 and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people. 5 This is to the end that the people of Israel may bring their sacrifices that they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them to the Lord, to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and sacrifice them as sacrifices of peace offerings to the Lord. 6 And the priest shall throw the blood on the altar of the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting and burn the fat for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 7 So they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to goat demons, after whom they whore. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.
Bible Study Together
Proverbs 31
English Standard Version
The Words of King Lemuel
31 The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him:
2 What are you doing, my son?[a] What are you doing, son of my womb? What are you doing, son of my vows?3 Do not give your strength to women, your ways to those who destroy kings. 4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to take strong drink, 5 lest they drink and forget what has been decreed and pervert the rights of all the afflicted. 6 Give strong drink to the one who is perishing, and wine to those in bitter distress;[b]7 let them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more.8 Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute.[c]9 Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.
The Woman Who Fears the Lord
10 [d] An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.11 The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.12 She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.13 She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands.14 She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar.15 She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.16 She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.17 She dresses herself[e] with strength and makes her arms strong.18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night.19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.20 She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.21 She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.[f]22 She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple.23 Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land.24 She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant.25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.27 She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:29 “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.”30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.
1 Peter 3:1-12
English Standard Version
Wives and Husbands
3 Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they see your respectful and pure conduct. 3 Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— 4 but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. 5 For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.
7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you[a] of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
Suffering for Righteousness' Sake
8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; 11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
Dear AVI,
Blessed are YOU O LORD MY GOD who reigns over all human hearts and minds, YOU are Sovereign over me, my Great GOD and KING of the Universe! O LORD, thank YOU for YOUR WORD, how YOU are reminding me to be a noble wife of virtuous character. Thank YOU for giving me the hope that one day I will be loved by a husband so much, and I pray to be a blessing to this husband. I pray that I will no longer be too excited to be with a husband. I pray O GOD that YOU will heal me of my needs and desires and to be filled with the HOLY SPIRIT. Forgive me for drinking 2 shots of Chinese wine for my period, but I do recall YOU saying not to be drunk by wine and today YOU have spoken to me truly about not being intoxicated with wine.
Proverbs 31:4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to take strong drink, 5 lest they drink and forget what has been decreed and pervert the rights of all the afflicted.
So forgive me FATHER, my merciful GOD for over drinking, 1 should have been enough. I fell asleep nice last night but without too much REM, alcohol really does affect not just the body and the mind. So I pray make me sober O GOD, although I do feel not so much pain from loving Stephen, I feel less pain. I think that is the use of that drink, to forget the pain of being rejected and unloved. But I do not want to forget my responsibilities O GOD, please help me with closing the open cases of mom's TIN in Cebu, please O GOD send help for me. I need YOU JESUS, to help me with all my responsibilities. And I also want to endure the pain that YOU are allowing me to go through, help me to find joy in other things, because marriage can be painful if I over think or focus on having it. I want to enjoy my life please help me to live my life fully. Please O GOD, I continue to pray for Stephen, make him love YOU, deal with him according to YOUR will, call him, let him be unable to resist YOUR call upon his life, and draw him to YOU and YOUR WORD and the things of the Spirit, let him hunger and thirst for YOUR direction, for a communion with YOU, and fill him with YOUR loving Presence Please GOD, take care of my heart, Stephen and his mother whom YOU have called me to love. Let me overcome this feeling of so much hurt and pain from all that I have ever gone through in life, because YOU are the GOD of miracles who heals me and restores me and who can give more than what I asked or imagine. Nothing is too difficult for YOU. I need YOU O GOD, I need YOU. Make me easy going, sometimes I am so serious. I pray for Randy give him a wife who loves him and understands him. I pray for Julie please give us good husbands who loves us O GOD but help us not to desire it too much to the point of heartache and pain. Please O GOD, bring me back to my first love with YOU. YOU have always been my source of joy and fountain of delight, bring me back to focusing on YOU not on anything but YOU for YOU alone deserve all of me, the best of me so help me My Beloved, draw near to me once again and surround me with YOUR Shekinah Glory O GOD my KING!
Ba HaShem YESHUAH HaMalki Tzedek, Amen!
ESV Readings
Scripture
Psalm 114
English Standard Version
Tremble at the Presence of the Lord
114 When Israel went out from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,2 Judah became his sanctuary, Israel his dominion.
3 The sea looked and fled; Jordan turned back. 4 The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs.
5 What ails you, O sea, that you flee? O Jordan, that you turn back? 6 O mountains, that you skip like rams? O hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, 8 who turns the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a spring of water.
Leviticus 20
Isaiah 25
English Standard Version
God Will Swallow Up Death Forever
25 O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.2 For you have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin; the foreigners' palace is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.3 Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will fear you.4 For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall,5 like heat in a dry place. You subdue the noise of the foreigners; as heat by the shade of a cloud, so the song of the ruthless is put down.
6 On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.7 And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. 8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.9 It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”10 For the hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain, and Moab shall be trampled down in his place, as straw is trampled down in a dunghill.[a]11 And he will spread out his hands in the midst of it as a swimmer spreads his hands out to swim, but the Lord will lay low his pompous pride together with the skill[b] of his hands.12 And the high fortifications of his walls he will bring down, lay low, and cast to the ground, to the dust.
Galatians 5
English Standard Version
Christ Has Set Us Free
5 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified[a] by the law; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.
7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion is not from him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers,[b] still preach[c] circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!
13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.
Keep in Step with the Spirit
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy,[d] drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do[e] such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.