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October 7 - Straight Thru the Bible
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Zechariah 14
Chapter 14
The Lord Comes and Reigns
1 A day of the Lord (a) is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions(b) will be plundered and divided up within your very walls.
2 I will gather all the nations(c) to Jerusalem to fight against it;(d) the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped.(e) Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.(f) 3 Then the Lord will go out and fight(g) against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle.(h) 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,(i) east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split(j) in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. 5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake[a](k) in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come,(l) and all the holy ones with him.(m)
6 On that day there will be neither sunlight(n) nor cold, frosty darkness. 7 It will be a unique(o) day—a day known only to the Lord —with no distinction between day and night.(p) When evening comes, there will be light.(q)
8 On that day living water(r) will flow(s) out from Jerusalem, half of it east(t) to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter.(u)
9 The Lord will be king(v) over the whole earth.(w) On that day there will be one Lord , and his name the only name.(x)
10 The whole land, from Geba(y) to Rimmon,(z) south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah. But Jerusalem will be raised up(aa) high from the Benjamin Gate(ab) to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate,(ac) and from the Tower of Hananel(ad) to the royal winepresses, and will remain in its place.(ae) 11 It will be inhabited;(af) never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure.(ag)
12 This is the plague with which the Lord will strike(ah) all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.(ai) 13 On that day people will be stricken by the Lord with great panic.(aj) They will seize each other by the hand and attack one another.(ak) 14 Judah(al) too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected(am)—great quantities of gold and silver and clothing. 15 A similar plague(an) will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps.
16 Then the survivors(ao) from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship(ap) the King,(aq) the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.(ar) 17 If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship(as) the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain.(at) 18 If the Egyptian people do not go up and take part, they will have no rain. The Lord [b] will bring on them the plague(au) he inflicts on the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.(av) 19 This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.(aw)
20 On that day holy to the Lord (ax) will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, and the cooking pots(ay) in the Lord 's house will be like the sacred bowls(az) in front of the altar. 21 Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy(ba) to the Lord Almighty, and all who come to sacrifice will take some of the pots and cook in them. And on that day(bb) there will no longer be a Canaanite[c](bc) in the house(bd) of the Lord Almighty.(be)
Malachi 1-4
Chapter 1
1 A prophecy:(a) The word(b) of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.[a]
Israel Doubts God's Love
2 "I have loved(c) you," says the Lord .
"But you ask,(d) ‘How have you loved us?'
"Was not Esau Jacob's brother?" declares the Lord . "Yet I have loved Jacob,(e) 3 but Esau I have hated,(f) and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland(g) and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.(h)"
4 Edom(i) may say, "Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild(j) the ruins."
But this is what the Lord Almighty says: "They may build, but I will demolish.(k) They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord .(l) 5 You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great(m) is the Lord —even beyond the borders of Israel!'(n)
Breaking Covenant Through Blemished Sacrifices
6 "A son honors his father,(o) and a slave his master.(p) If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect(q) due me?" says the Lord Almighty.(r)
"It is you priests who show contempt for my name.
"But you ask,(s) ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?'
7 "By offering defiled food(t) on my altar.
"But you ask,(u) ‘How have we defiled you?'
"By saying that the Lord 's table(v) is contemptible. 8 When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals,(w) is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased(x) with you? Would he accept you?" says the Lord Almighty.(y)
9 "Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings(z) from your hands, will he accept(aa) you?"—says the Lord Almighty.
10 "Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors,(ab) so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased(ac) with you," says the Lord Almighty, "and I will accept(ad) no offering(ae) from your hands. 11 My name will be great(af) among the nations,(ag) from where the sun rises to where it sets.(ah) In every place incense(ai) and pure offerings(aj) will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations," says the Lord Almighty.
12 "But you profane it by saying, ‘The Lord's table(ak) is defiled,' and, ‘Its food(al) is contemptible.' 13 And you say, ‘What a burden!'(am) and you sniff at it contemptuously,(an)" says the Lord Almighty.
"When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices,(ao) should I accept them from your hands?"(ap) says the Lord . 14 "Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal(aq) to the Lord. For I am a great king,(ar)" says the Lord Almighty,(as) "and my name is to be feared(at) among the nations.(au)
Chapter 2
Additional Warning to the Priests
1 "And now, you priests, this warning is for you.(a) 2 If you do not listen,(b) and if you do not resolve to honor(c) my name," says the Lord Almighty, "I will send a curse(d) on you, and I will curse your blessings.(e) Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not resolved to honor me.
3 "Because of you I will rebuke your descendants[a]; I will smear on your faces the dung(f) from your festival sacrifices, and you will be carried off with it.(g) 4 And you will know that I have sent you this warning so that my covenant with Levi(h) may continue," says the Lord Almighty. 5 "My covenant was with him, a covenant(i) of life and peace,(j) and I gave them to him; this called for reverence(k) and he revered me and stood in awe of my name. 6 True instruction(l) was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked(m) with me in peace(n) and uprightness,(o) and turned many from sin.(p)
7 "For the lips of a priest(q) ought to preserve knowledge, because he is the messenger(r) of the Lord Almighty and people seek instruction from his mouth.(s) 8 But you have turned from the way(t) and by your teaching have caused many to stumble;(u) you have violated the covenant(v) with Levi,"(w) says the Lord Almighty. 9 "So I have caused you to be despised(x) and humiliated(y) before all the people, because you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality(z) in matters of the law."(aa)
Breaking Covenant Through Divorce
10 Do we not all have one Father[b]?(ab) Did not one God create us?(ac) Why do we profane the covenant(ad) of our ancestors by being unfaithful(ae) to one another?
11 Judah has been unfaithful. A detestable(af) thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves(ag) by marrying(ah) women who worship a foreign god.(ai) 12 As for the man who does this, whoever he may be, may the Lord remove(aj) him from the tents of Jacob[c](ak)—even though he brings an offering(al) to the Lord Almighty.
13 Another thing you do: You flood the Lord 's altar with tears.(am) You weep and wail(an) because he no longer looks with favor(ao) on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.(ap) 14 You ask,(aq) "Why?" It is because the Lord is the witness(ar) between you and the wife of your youth.(as) You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.(at)
15 Has not the one God made you?(au) You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.[d](av) So be on your guard,(aw) and do not be unfaithful(ax) to the wife of your youth.
16 "The man who hates and divorces his wife,(ay)" says the Lord , the God of Israel, "does violence to the one he should protect,"[e](az) says the Lord Almighty.
So be on your guard,(ba) and do not be unfaithful.
Breaking Covenant Through Injustice
17 You have wearied(bb) the Lord with your words.
"How have we wearied him?" you ask.(bc)
By saying, "All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord , and he is pleased(bd) with them" or "Where is the God of justice?(be)"
Chapter 3
1 "I will send my messenger,(a) who will prepare the way before me.(b) Then suddenly the Lord(c) you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant,(d) whom you desire,(e) will come," says the Lord Almighty.
2 But who can endure(f) the day of his coming?(g) Who can stand(h) when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire(i) or a launderer's soap.(j) 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver;(k) he will purify(l) the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.(m) Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,(n) 4 and the offerings(o) of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord , as in days gone by, as in former years.(p)
5 "So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers,(q) adulterers(r) and perjurers,(s) against those who defraud laborers of their wages,(t) who oppress the widows(u) and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners(v) among you of justice, but do not fear(w) me," says the Lord Almighty.
Breaking Covenant by Withholding Tithes
6 "I the Lord do not change.(x) So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.(y) 7 Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away(z) from my decrees and have not kept them. Return(aa) to me, and I will return to you,"(ab) says the Lord Almighty.
"But you ask,(ac) ‘How are we to return?'
8 "Will a mere mortal rob(ad) God? Yet you rob me.
"But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?'
"In tithes(ae) and offerings. 9 You are under a curse(af)—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe(ag) into the storehouse,(ah) that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates(ai) of heaven and pour out(aj) so much blessing(ak) that there will not be room enough to store it.(al) 11 I will prevent pests from devouring(am) your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,(an)" says the Lord Almighty. 12 "Then all the nations will call you blessed,(ao) for yours will be a delightful land,"(ap) says the Lord Almighty.(aq)
Israel Speaks Arrogantly Against God
13 "You have spoken arrogantly(ar) against me," says the Lord .
"Yet you ask,(as) ‘What have we said against you?'
14 "You have said, ‘It is futile(at) to serve(au) God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements(av) and going about like mourners(aw) before the Lord Almighty? 15 But now we call the arrogant(ax) blessed. Certainly evildoers(ay) prosper,(az) and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.'"
The Faithful Remnant
16 Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard.(ba) A scroll(bb) of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared(bc) the Lord and honored his name.
17 "On the day when I act," says the Lord Almighty, "they will be my(bd) treasured possession.(be) I will spare(bf) them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son(bg) who serves him. 18 And you will again see the distinction between the righteous(bh) and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.(bi)
Chapter 4
Judgment and Covenant Renewal
1 [a]"Surely the day is coming;(a) it will burn like a furnace.(b) All the arrogant(c) and every evildoer will be stubble,(d) and the day that is coming will set them on fire,(e)" says the Lord Almighty. "Not a root or a branch(f) will be left to them. 2 But for you who revere my name,(g) the sun of righteousness(h) will rise with healing(i) in its rays. And you will go out and frolic(j) like well-fed calves. 3 Then you will trample(k) on the wicked; they will be ashes(l) under the soles of your feet on the day when I act," says the Lord Almighty.
4 "Remember the law(m) of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb(n) for all Israel.(o)
5 "See, I will send the prophet Elijah(p) to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.(q) 6 He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children,(r) and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike(s) the land with total destruction."(t)
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