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Friday, April 17, 2015
Romans 9
Romans 9 (New International Version, ©2010)
Romans 9
Paul's Anguish Over Israel
1 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit— 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, 4 the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised![a] Amen.
God's Sovereign Choice
6 It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. 7 Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned."[b] 8 In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring. 9 For this was how the promise was stated: "At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son."[c]
10 Not only that, but Rebekah's children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac. 11 Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God's purpose in election might stand: 12 not by works but by him who calls—she was told, "The older will serve the younger."[d] 13 Just as it is written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."[e]
14 What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15 For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."[f]
16 It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy. 17 For Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."[g] 18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.
19 One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?" 20 But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'"[h] 21 Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?
22 What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23 What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24 even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25 As he says in Hosea: "I will call them 'my people' who are not my people; and I will call her 'my loved one' who is not my loved one,"[i]
26 and, "In the very place where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,' there they will be called 'children of the living God.'"[j]
27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only the remnant will be saved.
28 For the Lord will carry out his sentence on earth with speed and finality."[k]
29 It is just as Isaiah said previously: "Unless the Lord Almighty had left us descendants,
we would have become like Sodom, we would have been like Gomorrah."[l]
Israel's Unbelief
30 What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31 but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. 32 Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:
"See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame."
Romans 9
Paul's Anguish Over Israel
1 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit— 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, 4 the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised![a] Amen.
God's Sovereign Choice
6 It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. 7 Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned."[b] 8 In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring. 9 For this was how the promise was stated: "At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son."[c]
10 Not only that, but Rebekah's children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac. 11 Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God's purpose in election might stand: 12 not by works but by him who calls—she was told, "The older will serve the younger."[d] 13 Just as it is written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."[e]
14 What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15 For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."[f]
16 It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy. 17 For Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."[g] 18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.
19 One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?" 20 But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'"[h] 21 Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?
22 What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23 What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24 even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25 As he says in Hosea: "I will call them 'my people' who are not my people; and I will call her 'my loved one' who is not my loved one,"[i]
26 and, "In the very place where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,' there they will be called 'children of the living God.'"[j]
27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only the remnant will be saved.
28 For the Lord will carry out his sentence on earth with speed and finality."[k]
29 It is just as Isaiah said previously: "Unless the Lord Almighty had left us descendants,
we would have become like Sodom, we would have been like Gomorrah."[l]
Israel's Unbelief
30 What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31 but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. 32 Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone. 33 As it is written:
"See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame."
Chronological New Testament Study Day 86
2 Peter 1; 2 Peter 2;
2 Peter 3; Jude 1
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To
those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have
received a faith as precious as ours: 2 Grace and peace be
yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 3 His
divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our
knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through
these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through
them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the
world caused by evil desires. 5 For this very reason, make
every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and
to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to
perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, brotherly
kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you
possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being
ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But
if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten
that he has been cleansed from his past sins. 10 Therefore, my
brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if
you do these things, you will never fall, 11 and you will
receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. 12 So I will always remind you of these things, even
though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. 13 I
think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this
body, 14 because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our
Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 15 And I will make
every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember
these things. 16 We did not follow cleverly invented stories
when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we
were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received honor and
glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory,
saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." 18 We
ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the
sacred mountain. 19 And we have the word of the prophets made
more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light
shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your
hearts. 20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of
Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. 21 For
prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as
they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
1 But there were also false prophets among the people, just
as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce
destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing
swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their
shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In
their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up.
Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has
not been sleeping.4 For if God did not spare angels when they
sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for
judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he
brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of
righteousness, and seven others; 6 if he condemned the cities
of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of
what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued
Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8 (for
that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his
righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)-- 9 if
this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold
the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. 10 This
is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature
and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander
celestial beings; 11 yet even angels, although they are
stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous accusations against such
beings in the presence of the Lord. 12 But these men blaspheme
in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of
instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will
perish. 13 They will be paid back with harm for the harm they
have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are
blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you. 14 With
eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they
are experts in greed--an accursed brood! 15 They have left the
straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who
loved the wages of wickedness. 16 But he was rebuked for his
wrongdoing by a donkey--a beast without speech--who spoke with a man's voice
and restrained the prophet's madness. 17 These men are springs
without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for
them. 18 For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by
appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who
are just escaping from those who live in error. 19 They
promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity--for a man
is a slave to whatever has mastered him. 20If they have escaped the
corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are
again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they
were at the beginning. 21 It would have been better for them
not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to
turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. 22 Of
them the proverbs are true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and,
"A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud."
1 Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have
written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. 2 I
want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the
command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles. 3 First
of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing
and following their own evil desires. 4They will say, "Where
is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on
as it has since the beginning of creation." 5 But they
deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the
earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters
also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By
the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept
for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. 8 But
do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a
thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The
Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is
patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to
repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.
The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire,
and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 11 Since
everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?
You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward
to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the
destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But
in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new
earth, the home of righteousness. 14 So then, dear friends,
since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless,
blameless and at peace with him. 15 Bear in mind that our
Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you
with the wisdom that God gave him. 16 He writes the same way
in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some
things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort,
as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 Therefore,
dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not
be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. 18 But
grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be
glory both now and forever! Amen.
1 Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James, To
those who have been called, who are loved by God the Father and kept by Jesus
Christ: 2 Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance. 3Dear
friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we
share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was
once for all entrusted to the saints. 4 For certain men whose
condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you.
They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for
immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. 5 Though
you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his
people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And
the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their
own home--these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for
judgment on the great Day. 7 In a similar way, Sodom and
Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and
perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of
eternal fire. 8 In the very same way, these dreamers pollute
their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings. 9 But
even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body
of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said,
"The Lord rebuke you!" 10 Yet these men speak
abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do
understand by instinct, like unreasoning animals--these are the very things
that destroy them. 11 Woe to them! They have taken the way of
Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed
in Korah's rebellion. 12 These men are blemishes at your love
feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm--shepherds who feed only
themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn
trees, without fruit and uprooted--twice dead. 13 They are
wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom
blackest darkness has been reserved forever. 14 Enoch, the
seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming
with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge
everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done
in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken
against him." 16 These men are grumblers and
faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves
and flatter others for their own advantage. 17 But, dear
friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. 18 They
said to you, "In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow
their own ungodly desires." 19 These are the men who
divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. 20 But
you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the
Holy Spirit. 21 Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for
the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. 22 Be
merciful to those who doubt; 23 snatch others from the fire
and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear--hating even the clothing
stained by corrupted flesh. 24 To him who is able to keep you
from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and
with great joy-- 25 to the only God our Savior be glory,
majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages,
now and forevermore! Amen.
Revelation 13
Revelation 13 (New International Version, ©2010)
Revelation 13
The Beast out of the Sea
1 The dragon[a] stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. 4 People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, "Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?"
5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 It was given power to wage war against God's holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. 8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb's book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.[b]
9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.
10 "If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity they will go.
If anyone is to be killed[c] with the sword, with the sword they will be killed."[d] This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God's people.
The Beast out of the Earth
11 Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. 16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man.[e] That number is 666.
Revelation 13
The Beast out of the Sea
1 The dragon[a] stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast. 4 People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, "Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?"
5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 It was given power to wage war against God's holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. 8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb's book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.[b]
9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.
10 "If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity they will go.
If anyone is to be killed[c] with the sword, with the sword they will be killed."[d] This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God's people.
The Beast out of the Earth
11 Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed. 16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man.[e] That number is 666.
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