Daily Readings for April 24
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Deuteronomy 8

 

1.You shall observe to do all the commandment which I command you this day, that you may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which Yahweh swore to your fathers. 2.You shall remember all the way which Yahweh your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, to prove you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments, or not. 3.He humbled you, and allowed you to be hungry, and fed you with manna, which you didn't know, neither did your fathers know; that he might make you know that man does not live by bread only, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh. 4.Your clothing didn't grow old on you, neither did your foot swell, these forty years. 5.You shall consider in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so Yahweh your God chastens you. 6.You shall keep the commandments of Yahweh your God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him. 7.For Yahweh your God brings you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of springs, and underground water flowing into valleys and hills; 8.a land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig trees and pomegranates; a land of olive trees and honey; 9.a land in which you shall eat bread without scarceness, you shall not lack anything in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you may dig copper. 10.You shall eat and be full, and you shall bless Yahweh your God for the good land which he has given you. 11.Beware lest you forget Yahweh your God, in not keeping his commandments, and his ordinances, and his statutes, which I command you this day: 12.lest, when you have eaten and are full, and have built goodly houses, and lived therein; 13.and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; 14.then your heart be lifted up, and you forget Yahweh your God, who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage; 15.who led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with fiery serpents and scorpions, and thirsty ground where there was no water; who brought you forth water out of the rock of flint; 16.who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers didn't know; that he might humble you, and that he might prove you, to do you good at your latter end: 17.and lest you say in your heart, "My power and the might of my hand has gotten me this wealth." 18.But you shall remember Yahweh your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth; that he may establish his covenant which he swore to your fathers, as at this day.

19.It shall be, if you shall forget Yahweh your God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish. 20.As the nations that Yahweh makes to perish before you, so you shall perish; because you wouldn't listen to the voice of Yahweh your God.

 

Deuteronomy 9

 

1.Hear, Israel: you are to pass over the Jordan this day, to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourself, cities great and fortified up to the sky, 2.a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you have heard say, "Who can stand before the sons of Anak?" 3.Know therefore this day, that Yahweh your God is he who goes over before you as a devouring fire; he will destroy them, and he will bring them down before you: so you shall drive them out, and make them to perish quickly, as Yahweh has spoken to you.

4.Don't say in your heart, after Yahweh your God has thrust them out from before you, saying, "For my righteousness Yahweh has brought me in to possess this land;" because Yahweh drives them out before you because of the wickedness of these nations. 5.Not for your righteousness, or for the uprightness of your heart, do you go in to possess their land; but for the wickedness of these nations Yahweh your God does drive them out from before you, and that he may establish the word which Yahweh swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. 6.Know therefore, that Yahweh your God doesn't give you this good land to possess it for your righteousness; for you are a stiff-necked people. 7.Remember, don't forget, how you provoked Yahweh your God to wrath in the wilderness: from the day that you went forth out of the land of Egypt, until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against Yahweh. 8.Also in Horeb you provoked Yahweh to wrath, and Yahweh was angry with you to destroy you. 9.When I was gone up onto the mountain to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which Yahweh made with you, then I stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water. 10.Yahweh delivered to me the two tables of stone written with the finger of God; and on them were all the words which Yahweh spoke with you on the mountain out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly.

11.It came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights, that Yahweh gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant. 12.Yahweh said to me, "Arise, get down quickly from here; for your people whom you have brought out of Egypt have corrupted themselves; they have quickly turned aside out of the way which I commanded them; they have made them a molten image."

13.Furthermore Yahweh spoke to me, saying, "I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people: 14.let me alone, that I may destroy them, and blot out their name from under the sky; and I will make of you a nation mightier and greater than they."

15.So I turned and came down from the mountain, and the mountain was burning with fire: and the two tables of the covenant were in my two hands. 16.I looked, and behold, you had sinned against Yahweh your God; you had made yourselves a molten calf: you had turned aside quickly out of the way which Yahweh had commanded you. 17.I took hold of the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and broke them before your eyes. 18.I fell down before Yahweh, as at the first, forty days and forty nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water; because of all your sin which you sinned, in doing that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, to provoke him to anger. 19.For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure, with which Yahweh was angry against you to destroy you. But Yahweh listened to me that time also. 20.Yahweh was very angry with Aaron to destroy him: and I prayed for Aaron also at the same time. 21.I took your sin, the calf which you had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamped it, grinding it very small, until it was as fine as dust: and I cast its dust into the brook that descended out of the mountain. 22.At Taberah, and at Massah, and at Kibroth Hattaavah, you provoked Yahweh to wrath. 23.When Yahweh sent you from Kadesh Barnea, saying, "Go up and possess the land which I have given you;" then you rebelled against the commandment of Yahweh your God, and you didn't believe him, nor listen to his voice. 24.You have been rebellious against Yahweh from the day that I knew you. 25.So I fell down before Yahweh the forty days and forty nights that I fell down, because Yahweh had said he would destroy you. 26.I prayed to Yahweh, and said, "Lord Yahweh, don't destroy your people and your inheritance, that you have redeemed through your greatness, that you have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 27.Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; don't look to the stubbornness of this people, nor to their wickedness, nor to their sin, 28.lest the land you brought us out from say, 'Because Yahweh was not able to bring them into the land which he promised to them, and because he hated them, he has brought them out to kill them in the wilderness.' 29.Yet they are your people and your inheritance, which you brought out by your great power and by your outstretched arm."

 

Ecclesiastes 3

 

1.For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven: 2.a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3.a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4.a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5.a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6.a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7.a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8.a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.

9.What profit has he who works in that in which he labors? 10.I have seen the burden which God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with. 11.He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can't find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end. 12.I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice, and to do good as long as they live. 13.Also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy good in all his labor, is the gift of God. 14.I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it; and God has done it, that men should fear before him. 15.That which is has been long ago, and that which is to be has been long ago: and God seeks again that which is passed away.

16.Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there. 17.I said in my heart, "God will judge the righteous and the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work." 18.I said in my heart, "As for the sons of men, God tests them, so that they may see that they themselves are like animals. 19.For that which happens to the sons of men happens to animals. Even one thing happens to them. As the one dies, so the other dies. Yes, they have all one breath; and man has no advantage over the animals: for all is vanity. 20.All go to one place. All are from the dust, and all turn to dust again. 21.Who knows the spirit of man, whether it goes upward, and the spirit of the animal, whether it goes downward to the earth?"

22.Therefore I saw that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his works; for that is his portion: for who can bring him to see what will be after him?

 

John 20

 

1.Now on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene went early, while it was still dark, to the tomb, and saw the stone taken away from the tomb. 2.Therefore she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have laid him!"

3.Therefore Peter and the other disciple went out, and they went toward the tomb. 4.They both ran together. The other disciple outran Peter, and came to the tomb first. 5.Stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths lying, yet he didn't enter in. 6.Then Simon Peter came, following him, and entered into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying, 7.and the cloth that had been on his head, not lying with the linen cloths, but rolled up in a place by itself. 8.So then the other disciple who came first to the tomb also entered in, and he saw and believed. 9.For as yet they didn't know the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10.So the disciples went away again to their own homes.

11.But Mary was standing outside at the tomb weeping. So, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb, 12.and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13.They told her, "Woman, why are you weeping?"

She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I don't know where they have laid him." 14.When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, and didn't know that it was Jesus.

15.Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?"

She, supposing him to be the gardener, said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away."

16.Jesus said to her, "Mary."

She turned and said to him, "Rabboni⁶²!" which is to say, "Teacher⁶³!"

17.Jesus said to her, "Don't hold me, for I haven't yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brothers, and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"

18.Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had said these things to her. 19.When therefore it was evening, on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were locked where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be to you."

20.When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad when they saw the Lord. 21.Jesus therefore said to them again, "Peace be to you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." 22.When he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit! 23.If you forgive anyone's sins, they have been forgiven them. If you retain anyone's sins, they have been retained."

24.But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, wasn't with them when Jesus came. 25.The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the Lord!"

But he said to them, "Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

26.After eight days again his disciples were inside, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors being locked, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace be to you." 27.Then he said to Thomas, "Reach here your finger, and see my hands. Reach here your hand, and put it into my side. Don't be unbelieving, but believing."

28.Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!"

29.Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen me,[64] you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen, and have believed."

30.Therefore Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; 31.but these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.

 

John 21

 

1.After these things, Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias. He revealed himself this way. 2.Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. 3.Simon Peter said to them, "I'm going fishing."

They told him, "We are also coming with you." They immediately went out, and entered into the boat. That night, they caught nothing. 4.But when day had already come, Jesus stood on the beach, yet the disciples didn't know that it was Jesus. 5.Jesus therefore said to them, "Children, have you anything to eat?"

They answered him, "No."

6.He said to them, "Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some."

They cast it therefore, and now they weren't able to draw it in for the multitude of fish. 7.That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It's the Lord!"

So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he wrapped his coat around him (for he was naked), and threw himself into the sea. 8.But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from the land, but about two hundred cubits⁶⁵ away), dragging the net full of fish. 9.So when they got out on the land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. 10.Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish which you have just caught."

11.Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land, full of great fish, one hundred fifty-three; and even though there were so many, the net wasn't torn.

12.Jesus said to them, "Come and eat breakfast."

None of the disciples dared inquire of him, "Who are you?" knowing that it was the Lord.

13.Then Jesus came and took the bread, gave it to them, and the fish likewise. 14.This is now the third time that Jesus was revealed to his disciples, after he had risen from the dead. 15.So when they had eaten their breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?"

He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I have affection for you."

He said to him, "Feed my lambs." 16.He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?"

He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I have affection for you."

He said to him, "Tend my sheep." 17.He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you have affection for me?"

Peter was grieved because he asked him the third time, "Do you have affection for me?" He said to him, "Lord, you know everything. You know that I have affection for you."

Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep. 18.Most certainly I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself, and walked where you wanted to. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you, and carry you where you don't want to go."

19.Now he said this, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. When he had said this, he said to him, "Follow me."

20.Then Peter, turning around, saw a disciple following. This was the disciple whom Jesus sincerely loved, the one who had also leaned on Jesus' breast at the supper and asked, "Lord, who is going to betray You?" 21.Peter seeing him, said to Jesus, "Lord, what about this man?"

22.Jesus said to him, "If I desire that he stay until I come, what is that to you? You follow me." 23.This saying therefore went out among the brothers⁶⁶, that this disciple wouldn't die. Yet Jesus didn't say to him that he wouldn't die, but, "If I desire that he stay until I come, what is that to you?" 24.This is the disciple who testifies about these things, and wrote these things. We know that his witness is true. 25.There are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they would all be written, I suppose that even the world itself wouldn't have room for the books that would be written.

 

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