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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
December 18 - Bible-in-a-Year
niv
Ezekiel 25-26
Chapter 25
A Prophecy Against Ammon
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 "Son of man, set your face against(a) the Ammonites(b) and prophesy against them.(c) 3 Say to them, ‘Hear the word of the Sovereign Lord . This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you said "Aha!(d)" over my sanctuary when it was desecrated(e) and over the land of Israel when it was laid waste and over the people of Judah when they went into exile,(f) 4 therefore I am going to give you to the people of the East(g) as a possession. They will set up their camps(h) and pitch their tents among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk.(i) 5 I will turn Rabbah(j) into a pasture for camels and Ammon into a resting place for sheep.(k) Then you will know that I am the Lord . 6 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you have clapped your hands(l) and stamped your feet, rejoicing with all the malice of your heart against the land of Israel,(m) 7 therefore I will stretch out my hand(n) against you and give you as plunder(o) to the nations. I will wipe you out from among the nations and exterminate you from the countries. I will destroy(p) you, and you will know that I am the Lord .(q)'"
A Prophecy Against Moab
8 "This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because Moab(r) and Seir(s) said, "Look, Judah has become like all the other nations," 9 therefore I will expose the flank of Moab, beginning at its frontier towns—Beth Jeshimoth(t), Baal Meon(u) and Kiriathaim(v)—the glory of that land. 10 I will give Moab along with the Ammonites to the people of the East as a possession, so that the Ammonites will not be remembered(w) among the nations; 11 and I will inflict punishment on Moab. Then they will know that I am the Lord .'"(x)
A Prophecy Against Edom
12 "This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because Edom(y) took revenge on Judah and became very guilty by doing so, 13 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stretch out my hand(z) against Edom and kill both man and beast.(aa) I will lay it waste, and from Teman(ab) to Dedan(ac) they will fall by the sword.(ad) 14 I will take vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they will deal with Edom in accordance with my anger(ae) and my wrath; they will know my vengeance, declares the Sovereign Lord .'"(af)
A Prophecy Against Philistia
15 "This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because the Philistines(ag) acted in vengeance and took revenge with malice(ah) in their hearts, and with ancient hostility sought to destroy Judah, 16 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to stretch out my hand against the Philistines,(ai) and I will wipe out the Kerethites(aj) and destroy those remaining along the coast.(ak) 17 I will carry out great vengeance(al) on them and punish(am) them in my wrath. Then they will know that I am the Lord ,(an) when I take vengeance on them.(ao)'"
Chapter 26
A Prophecy Against Tyre
1 In the eleventh month of the twelfth[a] year, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me:(a) 2 "Son of man, because Tyre(b) has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha!(c) The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper,' 3 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea(d) casting up its waves. 4 They will destroy(e) the walls of Tyre(f) and pull down her towers; I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock. 5 Out in the sea(g) she will become a place to spread fishnets,(h) for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord . She will become plunder(i) for the nations,(j) 6 and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord .
7 "For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: From the north I am going to bring against Tyre Nebuchadnezzar[b](k) king of Babylon, king of kings,(l) with horses and chariots,(m) with horsemen and a great army. 8 He will ravage your settlements on the mainland with the sword; he will set up siege works(n) against you, build a ramp(o) up to your walls and raise his shields against you. 9 He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and demolish your towers with his weapons.(p) 10 His horses will be so many that they will cover you with dust. Your walls will tremble at the noise of the warhorses, wagons and chariots(q) when he enters your gates as men enter a city whose walls have been broken through. 11 The hooves(r) of his horses will trample all your streets; he will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars(s) will fall to the ground.(t) 12 They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea.(u) 13 I will put an end(v) to your noisy songs,(w) and the music of your harps(x) will be heard no more.(y) 14 I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt,(z) for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord .
15 "This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Will not the coastlands(aa) tremble(ab) at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan(ac) and the slaughter takes place in you? 16 Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered(ad) garments. Clothed(ae) with terror, they will sit on the ground,(af) trembling(ag) every moment, appalled(ah) at you. 17 Then they will take up a lament(ai) concerning you and say to you:
"‘How you are destroyed, city of renown,
peopled by men of the sea!
You were a power on the seas,
you and your citizens;
you put your terror
on all who lived there.(aj)
18 Now the coastlands tremble(ak)
on the day of your fall;
the islands in the sea
are terrified at your collapse.'(al)
19 "This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths(am) over you and its vast waters cover you,(an) 20 then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit,(ao) to the people of long ago. I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place[c] in the land of the living.(ap) 21 I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more.(aq) You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord ."(ar)
Isaiah 53
Chapter 53
1 Who has believed our message(a)
and to whom has the arm(b) of the
Lord
been revealed?(c)
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,(d)
and like a root(e) out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance(f) that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering,(g) and familiar with pain.(h)
Like one from whom people hide(i) their faces
he was despised,(j) and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,(k)
yet we considered him punished by God,(l)
stricken by him, and afflicted.(m)
5 But he was pierced(n) for our transgressions,(o)
he was crushed(p) for our iniquities;
the punishment(q) that brought us peace(r) was on him,
and by his wounds(s) we are healed.(t)
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,(u)
each of us has turned to our own way;(v)
and the
Lord
has laid on him
the iniquity(w) of us all.
7 He was oppressed(x) and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;(y)
he was led like a lamb(z) to the slaughter,(aa)
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression[a] and judgment(ab) he was taken away.
Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;(ac)
for the transgression(ad) of my people he was punished.[b]
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,(ae)
and with the rich(af) in his death,
though he had done no violence,(ag)
nor was any deceit in his mouth.(ah)
10 Yet it was the
Lord
's will(ai) to crush(aj) him and cause him to suffer,(ak)
and though the
Lord
makes[c] his life an offering for sin,(al)
he will see his offspring(am) and prolong his days,
and the will of the
Lord
will prosper(an) in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,(ao)
he will see the light(ap) of life[d] and be satisfied[e];
by his knowledge[f] my righteous servant(aq) will justify(ar) many,
and he will bear their iniquities.(as)
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[g](at)
and he will divide the spoils(au) with the strong,[h]
because he poured out his life unto death,(av)
and was numbered with the transgressors.(aw)
For he bore(ax) the sin of many,(ay)
and made intercession(az) for the transgressors.
Colossians 1:1-23
Chapter 1
1 Paul, an apostle(a) of Christ Jesus by the will of God,(b) and Timothy(c) our brother,
2 To God's holy people in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters[a] in Christ:
Grace(d) and peace to you from God our Father.[b](e)
Thanksgiving and Prayer
3 We always thank God,(f) the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love(g) you have for all God's people(h)— 5 the faith and love that spring from the hope(i) stored up for you in heaven(j) and about which you have already heard in the true message(k) of the gospel 6 that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit(l) and growing throughout the whole world(m)—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God's grace. 7 You learned it from Epaphras,(n) our dear fellow servant,[c] who is a faithful minister(o) of Christ on our[d] behalf, 8 and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.(p)
9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you,(q) we have not stopped praying for you.(r) We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will(s) through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,[e](t) 10 so that you may live a life worthy(u) of the Lord and please him(v) in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,(w) 11 being strengthened with all power(x) according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,(y) 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father,(z) who has qualified you[f] to share in the inheritance(aa) of his holy people in the kingdom of light.(ab) 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness(ac) and brought us into the kingdom(ad) of the Son he loves,(ae) 14 in whom we have redemption,(af) the forgiveness of sins.(ag)
The Supremacy of the Son of God
15 The Son is the image(ah) of the invisible God,(ai) the firstborn(aj) over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created:(ak) things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities;(al) all things have been created through him and for him.(am) 17 He is before all things,(an) and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head(ao) of the body, the church;(ap) he is the beginning and the firstborn(aq) from among the dead,(ar) so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased(as) to have all his fullness(at) dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile(au) to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven,(av) by making peace(aw) through his blood,(ax) shed on the cross.
21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies(ay) in your minds(az) because of[g] your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled(ba) you by Christ's physical body(bb) through death to present you(bc) holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation(bd)— 23 if you continue(be) in your faith, established(bf) and firm, and do not move from the hope(bg) held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven,(bh) and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.(bi)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
