the Third Week after Easter
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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
September 14 - Bible-in-a-Year
niv
2 Chronicles 24
Chapter 24
Joash Repairs the Temple(a)(b)
1 Joash was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother's name was Zibiah; she was from Beersheba. 2 Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord (c) all the years of Jehoiada the priest. 3 Jehoiada chose two wives for him, and he had sons and daughters.
4 Some time later Joash decided to restore the temple of the Lord . 5 He called together the priests and Levites and said to them, "Go to the towns of Judah and collect the money(d) due annually from all Israel,(e) to repair the temple of your God. Do it now." But the Levites(f) did not act at once.
6 Therefore the king summoned Jehoiada the chief priest and said to him, "Why haven't you required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax imposed by Moses the servant of the Lord and by the assembly of Israel for the tent of the covenant law?"(g)
7 Now the sons of that wicked woman Athaliah had broken into the temple of God and had used even its sacred objects for the Baals.
8 At the king's command, a chest was made and placed outside, at the gate of the temple of the Lord . 9 A proclamation was then issued in Judah and Jerusalem that they should bring to the Lord the tax that Moses the servant of God had required of Israel in the wilderness. 10 All the officials and all the people brought their contributions gladly,(h) dropping them into the chest until it was full. 11 Whenever the chest was brought in by the Levites to the king's officials and they saw that there was a large amount of money, the royal secretary and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest and carry it back to its place. They did this regularly and collected a great amount of money. 12 The king and Jehoiada gave it to those who carried out the work required for the temple of the Lord . They hired(i) masons and carpenters to restore the Lord 's temple, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the temple.
13 The men in charge of the work were diligent, and the repairs progressed under them. They rebuilt the temple of God according to its original design and reinforced it. 14 When they had finished, they brought the rest of the money to the king and Jehoiada, and with it were made articles for the Lord 's temple: articles for the service and for the burnt offerings, and also dishes and other objects of gold and silver. As long as Jehoiada lived, burnt offerings were presented continually in the temple of the Lord .
15 Now Jehoiada was old and full of years, and he died at the age of a hundred and thirty. 16 He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and his temple.
The Wickedness of Joash
17 After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. 18 They abandoned(j) the temple of the Lord , the God of their ancestors, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols.(k) Because of their guilt, God's anger(l) came on Judah and Jerusalem. 19 Although the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.(m)
20 Then the Spirit(n) of God came on Zechariah(o) son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, "This is what God says: ‘Why do you disobey the Lord 's commands? You will not prosper.(p) Because you have forsaken the Lord , he has forsaken(q) you.'"
21 But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned(r) him to death(s) in the courtyard of the Lord 's temple.(t) 22 King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah's father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, "May the Lord see this and call you to account."(u)
23 At the turn of the year,[a] the army of Aram marched against Joash; it invaded Judah and Jerusalem and killed all the leaders of the people.(v) They sent all the plunder to their king in Damascus. 24 Although the Aramean army had come with only a few men,(w) the Lord delivered into their hands a much larger army.(x) Because Judah had forsaken the Lord , the God of their ancestors, judgment was executed on Joash. 25 When the Arameans withdrew, they left Joash severely wounded. His officials conspired against him for murdering the son of Jehoiada the priest, and they killed him in his bed. So he died and was buried(y) in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.
26 Those who conspired against him were Zabad,[b] son of Shimeath an Ammonite woman, and Jehozabad, son of Shimrith[c](z) a Moabite woman.(aa) 27 The account of his sons, the many prophecies about him, and the record of the restoration of the temple of God are written in the annotations on the book of the kings. And Amaziah his son succeeded him as king.
Psalms 81
Chapter 81
Psalm 81[a]
For the director of music. According to gittith.[b] Of Asaph.
1 Sing for joy to God our strength;
shout aloud to the God of Jacob!(a)
2 Begin the music, strike the timbrel,(b)
play the melodious harp(c) and lyre.(d)
3 Sound the ram's horn(e) at the New Moon,(f)
and when the moon is full, on the day of our festival;
4 this is a decree for Israel,
an ordinance of the God of Jacob.(g)
5 When God went out against Egypt,(h)
he established it as a statute for Joseph.
I heard an unknown voice say:(i)
6 "I removed the burden(j) from their shoulders;(k)
their hands were set free from the basket.
7 In your distress you called(l) and I rescued you,
I answered(m) you out of a thundercloud;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah.[c](n)
8 Hear me, my people,(o) and I will warn you—
if you would only listen to me, Israel!
9 You shall have no foreign god(p) among you;
you shall not worship any god other than me.
10 I am the
Lord
your God,
who brought you up out of Egypt.(q)
Open(r) wide your mouth and I will fill(s) it.
11 "But my people would not listen to me;
Israel would not submit to me.(t)
12 So I gave them over(u) to their stubborn hearts
to follow their own devices.
13 "If my people would only listen to me,(v)
if Israel would only follow my ways,
14 how quickly I would subdue(w) their enemies
and turn my hand against(x) their foes!
15 Those who hate the
Lord
would cringe(y) before him,
and their punishment would last forever.
16 But you would be fed with the finest of wheat;(z)
with honey from the rock I would satisfy you."
John 16:4-33
Chapter 16
4 I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember(f) that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you,(g) 5 but now I am going to him who sent me.(h) None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?'(i) 6 Rather, you are filled with grief(j) because I have said these things. 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate(k) will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.(l) 8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin,(m) because people do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness,(n) because I am going to the Father,(o) where you can see me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world(p) now stands condemned.
12 "I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.(q) 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth,(r) comes, he will guide you into all the truth.(s) He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine.(t) That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you."
The Disciples' Grief Will Turn to Joy
16 Jesus went on to say, "In a little while(u) you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me."(v)
17 At this, some of his disciples said to one another, "What does he mean by saying, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,'(w) and ‘Because I am going to the Father' ?"(x) 18 They kept asking, "What does he mean by ‘a little while' ? We don't understand what he is saying."
19 Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, "Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me'? 20 Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn(y) while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.(z) 21 A woman giving birth to a child has pain(aa) because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. 22 So with you: Now is your time of grief,(ab) but I will see you again(ac) and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.(ad) 23 In that day(ae) you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.(af) 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive,(ag) and your joy will be complete.(ah)
25 "Though I have been speaking figuratively,(ai) a time is coming(aj) when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father. 26 In that day you will ask in my name.(ak) I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. 27 No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me(al) and have believed that I came from God.(am) 28 I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father."(an)
29 Then Jesus' disciples said, "Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech.(ao) 30 Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe(ap) that you came from God."(aq)
31 "Do you now believe?" Jesus replied. 32 "A time is coming(ar) and in fact has come when you will be scattered,(as) each to your own home. You will leave me all alone.(at) Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.(au)
33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.(av) In this world you will have trouble.(aw) But take heart! I have overcome(ax) the world."
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