the Fourth Week after Easter
Click to donate today!
Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
June 30 - Bible-in-a-Year
niv
2 Samuel 24
Chapter 24
David Enrolls the Fighting Men(a)
1 Again(b) the anger of the Lord burned against Israel,(c) and he incited David against them, saying, "Go and take a census of(d) Israel and Judah."
2 So the king said to Joab(e) and the army commanders[a] with him, "Go throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba(f) and enroll(g) the fighting men, so that I may know how many there are."
3 But Joab(h) replied to the king, "May the Lord your God multiply the troops a hundred times over,(i) and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king want to do such a thing?"
4 The king's word, however, overruled Joab and the army commanders; so they left the presence of the king to enroll the fighting men of Israel.
5 After crossing the Jordan, they camped near Aroer,(j) south of the town in the gorge, and then went through Gad and on to Jazer.(k) 6 They went to Gilead and the region of Tahtim Hodshi, and on to Dan Jaan and around toward Sidon.(l) 7 Then they went toward the fortress of Tyre(m) and all the towns of the Hivites(n) and Canaanites. Finally, they went on to Beersheba(o) in the Negev(p) of Judah.
8 After they had gone through the entire land, they came back to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.
9 Joab reported the number of the fighting men to the king: In Israel there were eight hundred thousand able-bodied men who could handle a sword, and in Judah five hundred thousand.(q)
10 David was conscience-stricken(r) after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the Lord , "I have sinned(s) greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord , I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.(t)"
11 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad(u) the prophet, David's seer:(v) 12 "Go and tell David, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options. Choose one of them for me to carry out against you.'"
13 So Gad went to David and said to him, "Shall there come on you three[b] years of famine(w) in your land? Or three months of fleeing from your enemies while they pursue you? Or three days of plague(x) in your land? Now then, think it over and decide how I should answer the one who sent me."
14 David said to Gad, "I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord , for his mercy(y) is great; but do not let me fall into human hands."
15 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.(z) 16 When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented(aa) concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand." The angel of the Lord (ab) was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
17 When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord , "I have sinned; I, the shepherd,[c] have done wrong. These are but sheep.(ac) What have they done?(ad) Let your hand fall on me and my family."(ae)
David Builds an Altar(af)
18 On that day Gad went to David and said to him, "Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah(ag) the Jebusite." 19 So David went up, as the Lord had commanded through Gad. 20 When Araunah looked and saw the king and his officials coming toward him, he went out and bowed down before the king with his face to the ground.
21 Araunah said, "Why has my lord the king come to his servant?"
"To buy your threshing floor," David answered, "so I can build an altar to the Lord , that the plague on the people may be stopped."(ah)
22 Araunah said to David, "Let my lord the king take whatever he wishes and offer it up. Here are oxen(ai) for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood. 23 Your Majesty, Araunah[d] gives(aj) all this to the king." Araunah also said to him, "May the Lord your God accept you."
24 But the king replied to Araunah, "No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing."(ak)
So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels[e](al) of silver for them. 25 David built an altar(am) to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then the Lord answered his prayer(an) in behalf of the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.
Hosea 4:1-11
Chapter 4
The Charge Against Israel
1 Hear the word of the
Lord
, you Israelites,
because the
Lord
has a charge(a) to bring
against you who live in the land:(b)
"There is no faithfulness,(c) no love,
no acknowledgment(d) of God in the land.(e)
2 There is only cursing,[a] lying(f) and murder,(g)
stealing(h) and adultery;(i)
they break all bounds,
and bloodshed follows bloodshed.(j)
3 Because of this the land dries up,(k)
and all who live in it waste away;(l)
the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky
and the fish in the sea are swept away.(m)
4 "But let no one bring a charge,
let no one accuse another,
for your people are like those
who bring charges against a priest.(n)
5 You stumble(o) day and night,
and the prophets stumble with you.
So I will destroy your mother(p)—
6
my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.(q)
"Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also reject you as my priests;
because you have ignored the law(r) of your God,
I also will ignore your children.
7 The more priests there were,
the more they sinned against me;
they exchanged their glorious God[b](s) for something disgraceful.(t)
8 They feed on the sins of my people
and relish their wickedness.(u)
9 And it will be: Like people, like priests.(v)
I will punish both of them for their ways
and repay them for their deeds.(w)
10 "They will eat but not have enough;(x)
they will engage in prostitution(y) but not flourish,
because they have deserted(z) the
Lord
to give themselves
11 to prostitution;(aa)
old wine(ab) and new wine
take away their understanding.(ac)
<
Mark 10:32-52
Chapter 10
32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve(af) aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33 "We are going up to Jerusalem,"(ag) he said, "and the Son of Man(ah) will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law.(ai) They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, 34 who will mock him and spit on him, flog him(aj) and kill him.(ak) Three days later(al) he will rise."(am)
The Request of James and John(an)
35 Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to him. "Teacher," they said, "we want you to do for us whatever we ask."
36 "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked.
37 They replied, "Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory."(ao)
38 "You don't know what you are asking,"(ap) Jesus said. "Can you drink the cup(aq) I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?"(ar)
39 "We can," they answered.
Jesus said to them, "You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with,(as) 40 but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared."
41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42 Jesus called them together and said, "You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,(at) 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve,(au) and to give his life as a ransom for many."(av)
Blind Bartimaeus Receives His Sight(aw)
46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means "son of Timaeus"), was sitting by the roadside begging. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth,(ax) he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David,(ay) have mercy on me!"
48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"
49 Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."
So they called to the blind man, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." 50 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.
51 "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him.
The blind man said, "Rabbi,(az) I want to see."
52 "Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you."(ba) Immediately he received his sight and followed(bb) Jesus along the road.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
