Bible Readings for July 15, 2021

Let's read the Bible together in the next year. Today our passages are 1 Chronicles 19:1–21:30; Romans 2:25–3:8; Psalm 11:1-7; and Proverbs 19:10-12. The readings are the Contemporary English Version.  

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1 Chronicles 19-21:30 (Contemporary English Version)

1 Chronicles 19

Israel Fights Ammon and Syria

(2 Samuel 10.1-19)

 ¹Some time later, King Nahash of Ammon died, and his son Hanun became king. ²David said, "Nahash was kind to me, so I will be kind to his son." He sent some officials to Ammon to tell Hanun how sorry he was that his father had died.    But when David's officials arrived at Ammon, ³the Ammonite leaders said to Hanun, "Do you really believe King David is honoring your father by sending these men to comfort you? He probably sent them to spy on our country, so he can come and destroy it."
    ⁴Hanun arrested David's officials and had their beards shaved off and their robes cut off just below the waist, and then he sent them away. ⁵They were terribly ashamed.
   When David found out what had happened to his officials, he sent a message that told them, "Stay in Jericho until your beards grow back. Then you can come home."
    ⁶The Ammonites realized they had made David furious. So they paid over thirty tons of silver to hire chariot troops from Mesopotamia and from the Syrian kingdoms of Maacah and Zobah. ⁷Thirty-two thousand troops, as well as the king of Maacah and his army, came and camped near Medeba. The Ammonite troops also left their towns and came to prepare for battle.
    ⁸David heard what was happening, and he sent out Joab with his army. ⁹The Ammonite troops marched to the entrance of the city ^[a] and prepared for battle, while the Syrian troops took their positions in the open fields. ¹⁰Joab saw that the enemy troops were lined up on both sides of him. So he picked some of the best Israelite soldiers to fight the Syrians. ¹¹Then he put his brother Abishai in command of the rest of the army and told them to fight against the Ammonites. ¹²Joab told his brother, "If the Syrians are too much for me to handle, come and help me. And if the Ammonites are too strong for you, I'll come and help you. ¹³Be brave and fight hard to protect our people and the towns of our LORD God. I pray he will do whatever pleases him."
    ¹⁴Joab and his soldiers attacked the Syrians, and the Syrians ran from them. ¹⁵When the Ammonite troops saw that the Syrians had run away, they ran from Abishai's soldiers and went back into their own city. Joab then returned to Jerusalem.
    ¹⁶As soon as the Syrians realized they had been defeated, they sent for their troops that were stationed on the other side of the Euphrates River. Shophach, the commander of Hadadezer's army, led these troops to Ammon.
    ¹⁷David found out what the Syrians were doing, and he brought Israel's entire army together. They crossed the Jordan River, and he commanded them to take their positions facing the Syrian troops.
   Soon after the fighting began, ¹⁸the Syrians ran from Israel. David killed seven thousand chariot troops and forty thousand regular soldiers. He also killed Shophach, their commander.
    ¹⁹When the kings who had been under Hadadezer's rule saw that Israel had defeated them, they made peace with David and accepted him as their new ruler. The Syrians never helped the Ammonites again.
    

1 Chronicles 20

The End of the War with Ammon

(2 Samuel 11.1; 12.26-31)

 ¹The next spring, the time when kings go to war, Joab marched out in command of the Israelite army and destroyed towns all over the country of Ammon. He attacked the capital city of Rabbah and left it in ruins. But David stayed in Jerusalem.     ²Later, David himself went to Rabbah, where he took the crown from the statue of their god Milcom. ^[b]The crown was made of seventy-five pounds of gold, and there was a valuable jewel on it. David put the jewel on his crown, ^[c] then carried off everything else of value. ³He forced the people of Rabbah to work with saws, iron picks, and axes. He also did the same thing with the people in all the other Ammonite towns. David then led Israel's army back to Jerusalem.     

The Descendants of the Rephaim

(2 Samuel 21.15-22)

 ⁴Some time later, Israel fought a battle against the Philistines at Gezer. During this battle, Sibbecai from Hushah killed Sippai, a descendant of the Rephaim, ^[d] and the Philistines were defeated. ⁵In another battle against the Philistines, Elhanan the son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath from Gath, whose spear shaft was like a weaver's beam. ^[e]⁶Another one of the Philistine soldiers who was a descendant of the Rephaim was as big as a giant and had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. During a battle at Gath, ⁷he made fun of Israel, so David's nephew Jonathan ^[f]killed him. ⁸David and his soldiers killed these three men from Gath who were descendants of the Rephaim.     

1 Chronicles 21

David Counts the People

(2 Samuel 24.1-9)

 ¹Satan decided to cause trouble for Israel by making David think it was a good idea to find out how many people there were in Israel and Judah. ²David told Joab and the army commanders, "Count everyone in Israel, from the town of Beersheba in the south all the way north to Dan. Then I will know how many people can serve in my army."     ³Joab answered, "Your Majesty, even if the LORD made your kingdom a hundred times larger, you would still rule everyone in it. Why do you need to know how many soldiers there are? Don't you think that would make the whole nation angry?"
    ⁴But David would not change his mind. And so Joab went everywhere in Israel and Judah and counted the people. He returned to Jerusalem ⁵and told David that the total number of men who could serve in the army was one million one hundred thousand in Israel and four hundred seventy thousand in Judah. ⁶Joab refused to include anyone from the tribes of Levi and Benjamin, because he still disagreed with David's orders.     

God Punishes Israel

(2 Samuel 24.10-17)

 ⁷David's order to count the people made God angry, and he punished Israel. ⁸David prayed, "I am your servant. But what I did was stupid and terribly wrong. Please forgive me."     ⁹The LORD said to Gad, one of David's prophets, ¹⁰"Tell David that I will punish him in one of three ways. But he will have to choose which one it will be."
    ¹¹Gad went to David and told him:
   You must choose how the LORD will punish you: ¹²Will there be three years when the land won't grow enough food for its people? Or will your enemies constantly defeat you for three months? Or will the LORD send a horrible disease to strike your land for three days? Think about it and decide, because I have to give your answer to God who sent me.
    ¹³David was miserable and said, "It's a terrible choice to make! But the LORD is kind, and I'd rather have him punish me than for anyone else to do it."
    ¹⁴So the LORD sent a horrible disease on Israel, and seventy thousand Israelites died. ¹⁵Then he sent an angel to destroy the city of Jerusalem. But just as the angel was about to do that, the LORD felt sorry for all the suffering he had caused the people, and he told the angel, "Stop! They have suffered enough." This happened at the threshing place that belonged to Araunah ^[g] the Jebusite. ¹⁶David saw the LORD's angel in the air, holding a sword over Jerusalem. He and the leaders of Israel, who were all wearing sackcloth, ^[h] bowed with their faces to the ground, ¹⁷and David prayed, "It's my fault! I sinned by ordering the people to be counted. They have done nothing wrong--they are innocent sheep. LORD God, please punish me and my family. Don't let the disease wipe out your people." 

David Buys Araunah's Threshing Place

(2 Samuel 24.18-25)

 ¹⁸The LORD's angel told the prophet Gad to tell David that he must go to Araunah's threshing place and build an altar in honor of the LORD. ¹⁹David followed the LORD's instructions.     ²⁰Araunah and his four sons were threshing wheat at the time, and when they saw the angel, the four sons ran to hide. ²¹Just then, David arrived, and when Araunah saw him, he stopped his work and bowed down.
    ²²David said, "Would you sell me your threshing place, so I can build an altar on it to the LORD? Then this disease will stop killing the people. I'm willing to pay whatever you say it's worth."
    ²³Araunah answered, "Take it, Your Majesty, and do whatever you want with it. I'll even give you the oxen for the sacrifice and the wheat for the grain sacrifice. And you can use the threshing-boards ^[i] for the fire. It's all yours!" ²⁴But David replied, "No! I want to pay you what they're worth. I can't just take something from you and then offer the LORD a sacrifice that cost me nothing."
    ²⁵So David paid Araunah six hundred gold coins for his threshing place. ²⁶David built an altar and offered sacrifices to please the LORD ^[j] and sacrifices to ask his blessing. ^[k] David prayed, and the LORD answered him by sending fire down on the altar. ²⁷Then the LORD commanded the angel to put the sword away. ^[l] ²⁸When David saw that the LORD had answered his prayer, he offered more sacrifices there at the threshing place, ^29-30because he was afraid of the angel's sword and did not want to go all the way to Gibeon. That's where the sacred tent that Moses had made in the desert was kept, as well as the altar where sacrifices were offered to the LORD.
    

Footnotes:

1. 1 Chronicles 19:9 the city: Probably Rabbah, the capital city of Ammon.
2. 1 Chronicles 20:2 the statue of their god Milcom: Or "their king."
3. 1 Chronicles 20:2 David put the jewel on his crown: Or "David put the crown on his head."
4. 1 Chronicles 20:4 Rephaim: This may refer to a group of people that lived in Palestine before the Israelites and who were famous for their large size.
5. 1 Chronicles 20:5 weaver's beam: When a weaver made cloth, one set of threads was tied onto a large wooden rod that was known as a weaver's beam.
6. 1 Chronicles 20:7 David's nephew Jonathan: Hebrew "Jonathan son of Shimea, David's brother."
7. 1 Chronicles 21:15 Araunah: The Hebrew text has "Ornan," another spelling of Araunah (see 2 Samuel 24.16).
8. 1 Chronicles 21:16 sackcloth: A rough, dark-colored cloth made from goat or camel hair and used to make grain sacks. It was worn in times of trouble or sorrow.
9. 1 Chronicles 21:23 threshing-boards: Heavy boards with bits of rock or metal on the bottom. They were dragged across the grain to separate the husks from the kernels.
10. 1 Chronicles 21:26 sacrifices to please the LORD: See the note at 16.1.
11. 1 Chronicles 21:26 sacrifices to ask his blessing: See the note at 16.1.
12. 1 Chronicles 21:27 the LORD commanded the angel to put the sword away: See verse 16.

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Romans 2:25-3:8 (Contemporary English Version)

²⁵Being circumcised is worthwhile, if you obey the Law. But if you don't obey the Law, you are no better off than people who are not circumcised. ²⁶In fact, if they obey the Law, they are as good as anyone who is circumcised. ²⁷So everyone who obeys the Law, but has never been circumcised, will condemn you. Even though you are circumcised and have the Law, you still don't obey its teachings.
    ²⁸Just because you live like a Jew and are circumcised doesn't make you a real Jew. ²⁹To be a real Jew you must obey the Law. True circumcision is something that happens deep in your heart, not something done to your body. And besides, you should want praise from God and not from humans.
    

Romans 3

 ¹What good is it to be a Jew? What good is it to be circumcised? ²It is good in a lot of ways! First of all, God's messages were spoken to the Jews. ³It is true that some of them did not believe the message. But does this mean that God cannot be trusted, just because they did not have faith? ⁴No, indeed! God tells the truth, even if everyone else is a liar. The Scriptures say about God,    "Your words
   will be proven true,
   and in court
   you will win your case."
    ⁵If our evil deeds show how right God is, then what can we say? Is it wrong for God to become angry and punish us? What a foolish thing to ask. ⁶But the answer is, "No." Otherwise, how could God judge the world? ⁷Since your lies bring great honor to God by showing how truthful he is, you may ask why God still says you are a sinner. ⁸You might as well say, "Let's do something evil, so that something good will come of it!" Some people even claim that we are saying this. But God is fair and will judge them as well.

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Psalm 11:1-7 (Contemporary English Version)

Psalm 11

(A psalm by David for the music leader.)

Trusting the LORD

 ¹The LORD is my fortress!    Don't say to me,
   "Escape like a bird
   to the mountains!"
    ²You tell me, "Watch out!
   Those evil people
   have put
   their arrows on their bows,
   and they are standing
   in the shadows,
   aiming at good people.
    ³What can an honest person do
   when everything crumbles?"
    ⁴The LORD is sitting
   in his sacred temple
   on his throne in heaven.
   He knows everything we do
   because he sees us all.
    ⁵The LORD tests honest people,
   but despises those
   who are cruel
   and love violence.
    ⁶He will send fiery coals ^[a] and flaming sulfur
   down on the wicked,
   and they will drink nothing
   but a scorching wind.
    ⁷The LORD always does right
   and wants justice done.
   Everyone who does right
   will see his face.
    

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 11:6 fiery coals: Or " trouble, fire."

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Proverbs 19:10-12 (Contemporary English Version)

¹⁰It isn't right for a fool
   to live in luxury
   or for a slave to rule
   in place of a king.
    ¹¹It's wise to be patient
   and show what you are like
   by forgiving others.
    ¹²An angry king roars
   like a lion,
   but when a king is pleased,
   it's like dew on the crops. 

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Thought for the Day

 

“You must stop doing anything immoral or evil. Instead be humble and accept the message that is planted in you to save you.” (James 1:21 - Contemporary English Version) Arrogance leads to immorality and evil, because arrogant people are a law to themselves. But those who are humble are able to change and grow into the men and women God created them to be.

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Quote for the Day

English classical guitarist and lutenist, Julian Bream wrote, “Ideally the performer has a special function. Which is to bring the listener to the edge of that experience and to open the doors of this perception in such a way that those who wish to enter can.”

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A Joke for Today

Information for Northerners Visiting the Southern States

If you are from the northern states and planning on visiting or moving to the south, there are a few things you should know that will help you adapt to the difference in life styles:

1. If you run your car into a ditch, don't panic. Four men in a four-wheel-drive pickup truck with a 12-pack of beer and a towchain will be along shortly. Don't try to help them, just stay out of their way. This is what they live for.

2. Don't be surprised to find movie rentals and bait in the same store. Do not buy food at this store.

3. Remember: "Y'all" is singular, "All y'all" is plural, and "All y'alls'" is plural possessive.

4. Get used to hearing "You ain't from around here, are ya?"

5. You may hear a Southerner say "Oughta!" to a dog or child. This is short for "Y'all oughta not do that!" and is the equivalent of saying "No!"

6. Don't be worried about not understanding what people are saying; they can't understand you, either.

7. The first Southern expression to creep into a transplanted Northerner's vocabulary is the adjective "big ol'," as in "big ol' truck " or "big ol' boy." Most Northerners begin their new Southern-influenced dialect this way. All of them are in denial about it.

8. The proper pronunciation you learned in school is no longer proper.

9. Be advised that "He needed killin'" is a valid defense here.

10. If you hear a Southerner exclaim "Hey, y'all, watch this," stay out of the way. These are likely to be the last words he'll ever say.

11. If there is the prediction of the slightest chance of even the smallest accumulation of snow, your presence is required at the local grocery store. It doesn't matter whether you need anything or not. You just have to go there.

12. When you come upon a person driving 15 mph down the middle of the road, remember that most folks here learn to drive on a John Deere, and that this is the proper speed and position for that vehicle.

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A Prayer Request

As Christians, we can offer specific daily prayers for our community, nation and world. Below is the need that we're laying before God today.

That our judges would value the principles reflected in the Old and New Testaments.