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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
September 30 - Bible-in-a-Year
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Ezra 9-10
Chapter 9
Mixed Marriages
1 Now when these things had been completed, the officials approached me, saying, "The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not (C1)separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, (C2)as to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.2 "For (C1)they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and for their sons, so that (C2)the holy (F1)line has (C3)intermingled with the peoples of the lands; indeed, the hands of the officials and the leaders have taken the lead in this unfaithfulness."3 When I heard about this matter, I (C1)tore my garment and my robe, and pulled out some of the hair from my head and my beard, and (C2)sat down (F1)appalled.4 Then (C1)everyone who was frightened by the words of the God of Israel on account of the unfaithfulness of the exiles gathered to me, and I sat (F1)appalled until (C2)the evening offering.
Prayer of Confession
5 But at the evening offering I stood up from my (F1)humiliation, even with my garment and my robe torn, and I bowed down on my knees and (C1)spread out my (F2)hands to the LORD my God;6 and I said, "My God, I am ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my God, for our wrongful deeds have (F1)risen above our heads, and our (C1)guilt has grown even to the heavens.7 "(C1)Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt, and because of our wrongful deeds we, our kings, and our priests have been handed over to the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to (F1)(C2)open shame, as it is this day.8 "But now for a brief moment grace has been shown from the LORD our God, (C1)to leave us an escaped remnant and to give us a (F1)(C2)peg in His holy place, so that our God may (C3)enlighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our bondage.9 "(C1)For we are slaves; yet in our bondage our God has not abandoned us, but (C2)has extended favor to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us reviving to erect the house of our God, to restore its ruins, and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.
10 "And now, our God, what shall we say after this? For we have abandoned Your commandments,11 which You have commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, 'The land which you are entering to possess is an unclean land with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations which have filled it from end to end, and (C1)with their impurity.12 'So now do not (C1)give your daughters to their sons nor take their daughters for your sons, and (C2)never seek their peace or their prosperity, so that you may be strong and may eat the good things of the land, and (C3)leave it as an inheritance to your sons forever.'13 "And after everything that has come upon us for our evil deeds and (C1)our great guilt, since You our God have spared us by inflicting less than our wrongdoing deserves, and have given us such (C2)an escaped remnant as this,14 (C1)shall we again break Your commandments and intermarry with the peoples (F1)who commit these abominations? (C2)Would You not be angry with us (F2)to the point of destruction, until there would be no remnant nor any who would escape?15 "LORD God of Israel, (C1)You are righteous, for we have been left an escaped remnant, as it is this day; behold, we are before You in (C2)our guilt, for (C3)no one can stand before You because of this."
Chapter 10
Reconciliation with God
1 Now (C1)while Ezra was praying and making confession, weeping and prostrating himself (C2)before the house of God, a very large assembly, men, women, and children, gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept greatly.2 Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, said to Ezra, "(C1)We have been unfaithful to our God and have (F1)married foreign women from the peoples of the land; yet now there is hope for Israel in spite of this.3 "So now (C1)let's make a covenant with our God to send away all the wives and (F1)(C2)their children, following the counsel of (F2)my lord and of (C3)those who fear the commandment of our God; and let it be done (C4)according to the Law.4 "Arise! For this matter is (F1)your responsibility, but we will be with you; (C1)be courageous and act."
5 Then Ezra stood and (C1)made the leading priests, the Levites, and all Israel take an oath that they would do according to this (F1)proposal; so they took the oath.6 Then Ezra (C1)rose from before the house of God and went into the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib. Although he went there, (C2)he did not eat bread nor drink water, because he was mourning over the unfaithfulness of the exiles.7 So they made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the exiles, that they were to assemble at Jerusalem,8 and that whoever did not come within three days, in accordance with the counsel of the leaders and the elders, all his property would be forfeited, and he himself would be excluded from the assembly of the exiles.
9 So all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled at Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month on the twentieth of the month, and all the people sat in the public square before the house of God, (C1)trembling because of this matter and the heavy rain.10 Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, "You have been unfaithful and have married foreign wives, adding to the guilt of Israel.11 "Now therefore, (C1)make confession to the LORD God of your fathers and (C2)do His will; and (C3)separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives."12 Then all the assembly replied with a loud voice, "It is (F1)our duty to do exactly as you have said!13 "However, there are many people, it is the rainy season, and we are not able to stand in the open. Nor can the task be done in one or two days, because we have done a great wrong in this matter.14 "Please let our leaders (F1)represent all the assembly and have all those in our cities who have married foreign wives come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of each city, until the (C1)fierce anger of our God on account of this matter is turned away from us."15 Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah (F1)opposed this, with Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite supporting them.
16 But the exiles did so. And (F1)Ezra the priest selected men who were the heads of fathers' households for each of their father's households, all of them by name. So they (F2)convened on the first day of the tenth month to investigate the matter.17 And they finished investigating all the men who had married foreign wives by the first day of the first month.
List of Offenders
18 Now among the sons of the priests who had married foreign wives were found of the sons of (C1)Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah.19 They (F1)pledged to send away their wives, and being guilty, (C1)they offered a ram of the flock for their guilt.20 Of the sons of Immer, there were Hanani and Zebadiah;21 and of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah;22 and of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.
23 Of the Levites there were Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (that is, Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.
24 Of the singers there was Eliashib; and of the gatekeepers: Shallum, Telem, and Uri.
25 Of Israel, of the sons of (C1)Parosh there were Ramiah, Izziah, Malchijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malchijah, and Benaiah;26 and of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Elijah;27 and of the sons of (C1)Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza;28 and of the sons of Bebai: Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai;29 and of the sons of Bani: Meshullam, Malluch and Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and Jeremoth;30 and of the sons of Pahath-moab: Adna and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh;31 and of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Isshijah, (C1)Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon,32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah;33 of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei;34 of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, Uel,35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi,36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib,37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, Jaasu,38 Bani, Binnui, Shimei,39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah,40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai,41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah,42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph.43 Of the sons of (C1)Nebo there were Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.44 All of these men had married (C1)foreign wives, and some of them had wives by whom they had children.
Psalms 95
Chapter 95
Praise to the LORD and Warning against Unbelief.
1 Come, let's (C1)sing for joy to the LORD,
Let's shout joyfully to (C2)the rock of our salvation.
2 Let's (C1)come before His presence (C2)with a song of thanksgiving,
Let's shout joyfully to Him (C3)in songs with instruments.
3 For the LORD is a (C1)great God
And a great King (C2)above all gods,
4 In whose hand are the (C1)depths of the earth,
The peaks of the mountains are also His.
5 (F1)The sea is His, for it was He (C1)who made it,
And His hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let's (C1)worship and bow down,
Let's (C2)kneel before the LORD our (C3)Maker.
7 For He is our God,
And (C1)we are the people of His (F1)(C2)pasture and the sheep of His hand.
(C3)Today, (F2)if you will hear His voice,
8 Do not harden your hearts as at (F1)(C1)Meribah,
As on the day of (F2)(C2)Massah in the wilderness,
9 "When your fathers (C1)put Me to the test,
They tested Me, though they had seen My work.
10 "For (C1)forty years I was disgusted with that generation,
And said they are a people who err in their heart,
And they do not know My ways.
11 "Therefore I (C1)swore in My anger,
They certainly shall not enter My (C2)rest."
Jude 1
Chapter 1
The Warnings of History to the Ungodly
1 (F1)(C1)Jude, a (C2)bond-servant of Jesus Christ and brother of (F2)James,
3 (C1)Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our (C2)common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you (C3)contend earnestly for (C4)the faith that was once for all time (C5)handed down to (C6)the (F1)saints.4 For certain people have (C1)crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand (F1)(C2)marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn (C3)the grace of our God into (C4)indecent behavior and (C5)deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
5 Now I want to (C1)remind you, though (C2)you know everything once and for all, that (F1)the Lord, (C3)after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, (F2)subsequently destroyed those who did not believe.6 And (C1)angels who did not keep their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling place, these He has (C2)kept in eternal restraints under darkness for the judgment of the great day,7 just as (C1)Sodom and Gomorrah and the (C2)cities around them, since they in the same way as these angels indulged in sexual perversion and (C3)went after (F1)strange flesh, are exhibited as an (F2)(C4)example in undergoing the (C5)punishment of eternal fire.
8 Yet in the same way these people also, dreaming, (C1)defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak abusively of angelic (F1)majesties.9 But (C1)Michael (C2)the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about (C3)the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him an abusive judgment, but said, "(C4)The Lord rebuke you!"10 But (C1)these people disparage all the things that they do not understand; and (C2)all the things that they know by instinct, (C1)like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed.11 Woe to them! For they have gone (C1)the way of Cain, and for pay (F1)they have given themselves up to (C2)the error of Balaam, and (C3)perished in the rebellion of Korah.12 These are the ones who are (F1)hidden reefs (C1)in your love feasts when they feast with you (C2)without fear, like shepherds caring only for themselves; (C3)clouds without water, (C4)carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, (F2)doubly dead, (C5)uprooted;13 (C1)wild waves of the sea, churning up (C2)their own shameful deeds like dirty foam; wandering stars, (C3)for whom the (F1)gloom of darkness has been reserved forever.
14 It was also about these people that (C1)Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, "(C2)Behold, the Lord has come with (F1)many thousands of His holy ones,15 (C1)to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which (C2)ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."16 These are (C1)grumblers, finding fault, (C2)following after their own lusts; (F1)they speak (C3)arrogantly, flattering people (C4)for the sake of gaining an advantage.
Keep Yourselves in the Love of God
17 But you, (C1)beloved, (C2)ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by (C3)the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ,18 that they were saying to you, "(C1)In the last time there will be mockers, (C2)following after their own ungodly lusts."19 These are the ones who cause divisions, (F1)(C1)worldly-minded, (F2)devoid of the Spirit.20 But you, (C1)beloved, (C2)building yourselves up on your most holy (C1)faith, (C3)praying in the Holy Spirit,21 keep yourselves in the love of God, (C1)looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.22 And have mercy on some, who are doubting;23 save others, (C1)snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, (C2)hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.
24 (C1)Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling, and to (C2)make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless with (C3)great joy,25 to the (C1)only (C2)God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, (C3)be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority (C4)before all time and now and (F1)forever. Amen.
Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995,2020 by The Lockman Foundation
