Reading the Bible Together

Passage for the Day

 1 This is what the LORD says: 
       “Maintain justice 
       and do what is right, 
       for my salvation is close at hand 
       and my righteousness will soon be revealed.

    2 Blessed are those who do this— 
       who hold it fast, 
       those who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it, 
       and keep their hands from doing any evil.”

    3 Let no foreigners who have bound themselves to the LORD say, 
       “The LORD will surely exclude me from his people.” 
       And let no eunuch complain, 
       “I am only a dry tree.”

    4 For this is what the LORD says: 
       “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, 
       who choose what pleases me 
       and hold fast to my covenant—

    5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls 
       a memorial and a name 
       better than sons and daughters; 
       I will give them an everlasting name 
       that will endure forever.

    6 And foreigners who bind themselves to the LORD 
       to minister to him, 
       to love the name of the LORD, 
       and to be his servants, 
       all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it 
       and who hold fast to my covenant—

    7 these I will bring to my holy mountain 
       and give them joy in my house of prayer. 
       Their burnt offerings and sacrifices 
       will be accepted on my altar; 
       for my house will be called 
       a house of prayer for all nations.”

    8 The Sovereign LORD declares— 
       he who gathers the exiles of Israel: 
       “I will gather still others to them 
       besides those already gathered.”

Points of interest:

·         ’for my salvation is close at hand’—I think the idea here is that God’s rescue could come at any time; so people should make sure that they are ready to take advantage when the opportunity arises.

·         ‘those who keep the Sabbath’—observing the Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments.  It’s a day of complete rest from work, as a sign of dependence on God’s goodness rather than our effort.  God often used their level of attention to the Sabbath as a way of measuring how serious the Israelites were about keeping their covenant.

·          ‘The LORD will surely exclude me’—in this case, these foreigners are tempted to count themselves out, rather than being excluded by anyone else.

·         ‘let no eunuch complain’—the word  eunuch here could be referring simply to civil servants in the Assyrian and Babylonian courts or to castrated males; there was such a high coincidence between the two that the same Hebrew word is used for both.  Castrated males were commonly used as civil servants in ancient near eastern governments, because it was thought that their lack of family made them harder working and more loyal—they looked to the king’s interests instead of their family’s interests.  Isaiah tells us that even these family-less men will have a lasting heritage in the new reality God is bringing about.

·         ‘To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths’—the eunuchs, not technically members of the covenant, are acting according to its terms; therefore, they will reap its rewards.  Anyone can be a part of the covenant (or presumably opt out of it), simply based on whether they keep it or not; they don’t have to have been original signers of it to get its benefits.

·         ‘within my temple and its walls‘—under normal conditions, these eunuchs wouldn’t even be allowed in much of the temple, or even allowed in at all (castration was considered a ‘blemish’ that was prohibited on sacred ground, Deuteronomy 23:1).  The temple was a series of smaller, ever more restrictive courtyards:

o   on the very outside was the court of nations, the only place where foreigners were allowed;

o   one step further in was the court of women, where Israelite women were allowed;

o   then, there was the court of Israel, for Israelite men;

o   next was the Holy Place, where only priests could go;

o   and finally, there was the Most Holy Place, where only high priests could go.

These restrictions were established by God himself for the Tabernacle, the sacred tent that preceded the temple.  Now, God is breaking down those barriers.

·         ‘will be called  a house of prayer for all nations’—this is what Solomon prayed in his dedication of the temple.  It’s an aspiration that, as far as we can tell, hadn’t often been met yet.  God promises here that it will be, though.

·         ‘I will gather still others’—no matter how many have been gathered already, God will keep on gathering until his house is absolutely full.

Taking it home:

·         For you: Do you ever feel excluded—maybe not quite on the ‘in’ with your friends or family? Or maybe you even feel excluded by God himself or the people who represent him?  This passage tells us that God is in the business of gathering and including people.  Talk to God about any ways you feel a little excluded or ‘left out’.  Pray that he would help you today to not only feel included yourself but to be inclusive of others.

·         For your six: In this passage, God promises a legacy even to people for whom it seems impossible.   Do any of your six fear that they have no future?  Perhaps they don’t have any children, but very much wish they did.  Or maybe they have children, but are worried about their children’s future.  Maybe they’re more concerned with the impact they would like to make in academia or at their job.  Pray that God would give them a lasting impact on the world around them.

.        For America: Pray for all those in America who feel excluded from places of faith.  Pray for those who truly have faith in and a heart for God, but don’t feel at home in—or even more feel downright angry at—houses of worship.  Pray that God would make a place for them.  Pray for our church and other churches across the country, that we would in fact be ‘gathering places’ and not places of exclusion.

Many Disciples Desert Jesus

⁶⁰ On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

⁶¹ Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? ⁶² Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! ⁶³ The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. ⁶⁴ Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. ⁶⁵ He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”

⁶⁶ From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

⁶⁷ “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.

⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. ⁶⁹ We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”

⁷⁰ Then Jesus replied, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” ⁷¹ (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)

Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ

¹ What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ² By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³ Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

⁵ If we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. ⁶ For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— ⁷ because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

⁸ Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹ For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. ¹⁰ The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

¹¹ In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

The Covenant Is Broken

¹ This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: ² “Listen to the terms of this covenant and tell them to the people of Judah and to those who live in Jerusalem. ³ Tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Cursed is everyone who does not obey the terms of this covenant— ⁴ the terms I commanded your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt, out of the iron-smelting furnace.’ I said, ‘Obey me and do everything I command you, and you will be my people, and I will be your God. ⁵ Then I will fulfill the oath I swore to your ancestors, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey’—the land you possess today.”
I answered, “Amen, LORD.”

⁶ The LORD said to me, “Proclaim all these words in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: ‘Listen to the terms of this covenant and follow them. ⁷ From the time I brought your ancestors up from Egypt until today, I warned them again and again, saying, “Obey me.” ⁸ But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts. So I brought on them all the curses of the covenant I had commanded them to follow but that they did not keep.’ ”

⁹ Then the LORD said to me, “There is a conspiracy among the people of Judah and those who live in Jerusalem. ¹⁰ They have returned to the sins of their ancestors, who refused to listen to my words. They have followed other gods to serve them. Both the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken the covenant I made with their ancestors. ¹¹ Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I will bring on them a disaster they cannot escape. Although they cry out to me, I will not listen to them. ¹² The towns of Judah and the people of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to whom they burn incense, but they will not help them at all when disaster strikes. ¹³ You, Judah, have as many gods as you have towns; and the altars you have set up to burn incense to that shameful god Baal are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.’

¹⁴ “Do not pray for this people or offer any plea or petition for them, because I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their distress.

¹⁵ “What is my beloved doing in my temple
as she, with many others, works out her evil schemes?
Can consecrated meat avert your punishment?
When you engage in your wickedness,
then you rejoice.”

¹⁶ The LORD called you a thriving olive tree
with fruit beautiful in form.
But with the roar of a mighty storm
he will set it on fire,
and its branches will be broken.

¹⁷ The LORD Almighty, who planted you, has decreed disaster for you, because the house of Israel and the house of Judah have done evil and aroused my anger by burning incense to Baal.

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. A song.

¹ May God arise, may his enemies be scattered;
may his foes flee before him.

² May you blow them away like smoke—
as wax melts before the fire,
may the wicked perish before God.

³ But may the righteous be glad
and rejoice before God;
may they be happy and joyful.

⁴ Sing to God, sing in praise of his name,
extol him who rides on the clouds;
rejoice before him—his name is the LORD.

⁵ A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
is God in his holy dwelling.

⁶ God sets the lonely in families,
he leads out the prisoners with singing;
but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

⁷ When you, God, went out before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness,

⁸ the earth shook, the heavens poured down rain,
before God, the One of Sinai,
before God, the God of Israel.

⁹ You gave abundant showers, O God;
you refreshed your weary inheritance.

¹⁰ Your people settled in it,
and from your bounty, God, you provided for the poor.

¹¹ The Lord announced the word,
and great was the company of those who proclaimed it:

¹² “Kings and armies flee in haste;
every household shares in the plunder.

¹³ Even while you sleep among the sheep pens,
the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver,
its feathers with shining gold.”

¹⁴ When the Almighty scattered the kings in the land,
it was like snow fallen on Mount Zalmon.

¹⁵ Mount Bashan, majestic mountain,
Mount Bashan, rugged mountain,

¹⁶ why gaze in envy, you rugged mountain,
at the mountain where God chooses to reign,
where the LORD himself will dwell forever?

¹⁷ The chariots of God are tens of thousands
and thousands of thousands;
the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary.

¹⁸ When you ascended on high,
you took many captives;
you received gifts from people,
even from the rebellious—
that you, LORD God, might dwell there.

¹⁹ Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior,
who daily bears our burdens.

²⁰ Our God is a God who saves;
from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death.

²¹ Surely God will crush the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins.

²² The Lord says, “I will bring them from Bashan;
I will bring them from the depths of the sea,

²³ that your feet may wade in the blood of your foes,
while the tongues of your dogs have their share.”

²⁴ Your procession, God, has come into view,
the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary.

²⁵ In front are the singers, after them the musicians;
with them are the young women playing the timbrels.

²⁶ Praise God in the great congregation;
praise the LORD in the assembly of Israel.

²⁷ There is the little tribe of Benjamin, leading them,
there the great throng of Judah’s princes,
and there the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali.

²⁸ Summon your power, God;
show us your strength, our God, as you have done before.

²⁹ Because of your temple at Jerusalem
kings will bring you gifts.

³⁰ Rebuke the beast among the reeds,
the herd of bulls among the calves of the nations.
Humbled, may it bring bars of silver.
Scatter the nations who delight in war.

³¹ Envoys will come from Egypt;
Cush will submit herself to God.

³² Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth,
sing praise to the Lord,

³³ to him who rides the ancient skies above,
who thunders with mighty voice.

³⁴ Proclaim the power of God,
whose majesty is over Israel,
whose power is in the skies.

³⁵ You, God, are awesome in your sanctuary;
the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.
Praise be to God!