December 31, 2011

Amos 8.9 ->

On that day, says the Lord God

I will make the sun go down at noon
and darken the earth in broad daylight.
I will turn your feasts into mourning
and all your songs into lamentation.

I will bring sackcloth upon all loins
and baldness on every head;
I will make it like the mourning for an only son
and the end of it like a bitter day.

Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord God
when I will send a famine on the land--
not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water
but of hearing the words of the Lord.

They shall wander from sea to sea
and from north to east;
they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the Lord
but they shall not find it.

In that day the fair virgins and the young men
shall faint for thirst.

Those who swear by Ashimah of Samaria
and say, "As thy god lives, oh Dan,"
and "As the way of Beersheba lives,"

they shall fall, and never rise again.

December 30, 2011

Luke 12.10

"Anyone who speaks a word against this son of Adam will be forgiven; but for he who slanders the Holy Spirit there will be no forgiveness."

December 29, 2011

Amos 8.1-8

Thus the Lord God showed me: Behold, a basket of summer fruit.

And He said, "Amos, what do you see?"

And I said, "A basket of summer fruit."

Then the Lord said to me:

The end has come upon my people Israel;
I shall never again pass by them.

The songs of the Temple shall become wailings
in that day, says the Lord God.
The dead bodies shall be many;
in every place they shall be
cast out in silence.

Hear this, you who trample upon the needy
and bring the poor of the land to an end--

saying "When will the new moon be over
that we may sell grain;
and the Sabbath,
that we may offer wheat for sale?

"That we may make the ephah small
and the shekel great
and deal deceitfully with false balances?

"That we may buy the poor for silver
and the needy for a pair of sandals,
and sell the refuse of the wheat?"

The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
"Surely I will never forget any of their deeds!"

Shall not the land tremble on that account,
and everyone mourn who dwells in it,
and all of it rise like the Nile,
and be tossed about, and sink again
like the Nile of Egypt?

December 28, 2011

Luke 12.8-9

"I tell you this: everyone who acknowledges me before men, this son of Adam will acknowledge before the angels of God. But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God."

December 26, 2011

Amos 7.10->

Then Amaziah, the Priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam King of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said, ''Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel must go into exile away from his land.' "

And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go! Flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophecy there. But never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the King's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom!"

Then Amos answered Amaziah, "I am no prophet, nor a prophet's son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees. And the Lord took me from following the flock; and the Lord said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel!'

"Now therefore hear the word of the Lord:

You say, 'Do not prophesy against Israel
and do not preach against the house of Isaac,'

Therefore thus says the Lord:
'Your wife shall be a harlot in the city
and your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword
and your land shall be parceled out by line.
You yourself shall die in an unclean land
and Israel shall surely go into exile away from its land.' "

December 25, 2011

Luke 10.6-7

"Are not sparrows five for twopence? And yet not one of them is overlooked by God. More than that: Even the hairs of your head have all been counted!

"Have no fear; you are worth more than any number of sparrows."

December 24, 2011

Amos 7.1-9

Thus the Lord God showed me:

Behold, He was forming locusts in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth;
and lo, it was the latter growth after the King's mowings.

When they had finished eating the grass of the land, I said:

"Oh Lord God! Forgive, I beseech Thee!
How can Jacob stand?
He is so small!"

The Lord repented, concerning this.
"It shall not be," said the Lord.

Thus the Lord God showed me:

Behold, the Lord God was calling for a judgment by fire;
and it devoured the great deep and was eating up the land.

Then I said:
"Oh Lord God! Cease, I beseech Thee!
How can Jacob stand?
He is so small!

The Lord repented concerning this.
"This also shall not be," said the Lord God.

He showed me:
Behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line,
with a plumb line in his hand.

And the Lord said to me, "Amos, what do you see?"

And I said, "A plumb line."

Then the Lord said:

Behold, I am setting a plumb line
in the midst of my people Israel;
I will never again pass by them.

The high places of Isaac shall be made desolate
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste
and I will rise against the house of Jereboam with the sword.

December 23, 2011

Luke 12.4-5

"To you who are my friends, I say, "Do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing they can do. I will warn you whom to fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into Hell. Believe me, He is the one to respect!"

December 21, 2011

Amos 6.4-

Woe to those who lie upon beds of ivory,
and stretch themselves upon their couches,
and eat lambs from the flock,
and calves from the midst of the stall;

who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp
and like David, invent for themselves instruments of music--
who drink wine in bowls
and anoint themselves with the finest oils,
but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.

Therefore they shall now be the first of those to go into exile;
and the revelry of those who stretch themselves shall pass away.

The Lord God has sworn by Himself
(says the Lord, the God of Hosts):

I abhor the pride of Jacob,
and hate his strongholds;
I will deliver up the city
and all that is in it.

And if ten men remain in the city, they shall die. And when a man's kinsman, who makes a pyre for him, shall take him up to bring his bones out of the house, and says to someone in the innermost parts of the house, "Is there anyone still with you?"-- He shall be answered, "No!" and told: "Hush! We must not mention the name of the Lord!"

For behold, the Lord commands:
and the great House shall be smitten into fragments,
the little house into bits.

Do horses run upon rocks?
Does one plow the sea with oxen?
But you have turned justice into poison
and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood--

You who rejoice in worthless things,
who say, "Have we not by our own strength
taken Karnaim for ourselves?"

For "Behold, I shall raise up against you a nation,
oh house of Israel," says the Lord, the God of Hosts,
"And they shall oppress you from the entrance of Hamath
to the Brook of the Arabah."

December 19, 2011

Luke 12.1-3

Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered, packed so close that they were treading on one another, he began to speak first to his disciples: "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees-- I mean their hypocrisy.

"There is nothing covered up that will not be uncovered, nothing hidden that will not be made known. You may take it, then, that everything you have said in the dark will be heard in broad daylight; and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the house-tops."

December 15, 2011

Amos 6.1-3

Woe to those who are at ease in Zion
and to those who feel secure in the mountain of Samaria,

the notable men of the first of the nations
to whom the descendants of Israel come--

Pass over to Calneh, and see;
and thence go to Hamath the Great;
then go down to Gath of the Philistines.

Are they better than these kingdoms?
Or is your territory greater than their territory?

Oh you, who put far away the evil day,
and bring near the seat of violence!

December 14, 2011

Luke 11.45 ->

One of the lawyers answered him, "Teacher, in saying this you reproach us also."

And he said, "Woe to you lawyers also! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

"Woe to you, for you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. So you admit and consent to the deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs.

"Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they shall kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation-- from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be required of this generation.

"Woe to you lawyers, for you have taken away the key to knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering."

As he went away from there, the scribes and Pharisees began to press him hard, and to provoke him to speak of many things, lying in wait for him, to catch at something he might say.

December 13, 2011

Amos 5.21->

I hate, I despise your feasts,
and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and cereal offerings
I will not accept them
and the peace offerings of your fatted beasts
I will not look upon.

Take away from me the noise of your songs;
to the melody of your harps I will not listen--
But let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Did you bring to Me sacrifices and offerings
the forty years in the wilderness, oh House of Israel?

You shall take up Sakkuth, your King,
and Kaiwan your star-god,
your images which you made for yourselves.
Therefore I will take you into exile
beyond Damascus,
says the Lord.
whose name is The God of Hosts.

December 12, 2011

Luke 11.42-44

"But alas for you Pharisees!-- for you tithe mint and rue and every herb, but neglect justice and the Reign of God. You could have practiced those, without neglecting the other things.

"Alas for you! For you love the best seats in synagogues, and salutations in the market places.

"Woe! For you are like hidden graves; men walk over you [and become unclean] without knowing it."

December 10, 2011

Amos 5.16-20

Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Hosts, the Lord:

In all the squares there shall be wailing,
and in all the streets they shall say, "Alas! Alas!"

They shall call the farmers to mourning,
and to wailing, those who are skilled in lamentation,
and in all vineyards there shall be wailing,
for I will pass through the midst of you,
says the Lord.

Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord!
Why would you have the day of the Lord?
It is darkness, and not light!

As if a man fled from a lion
and a bear met him,
or went into a house and leaned
with his hand against a wall
and a snake bit him!

Is not the day of the Lord darkness,
and gloom with no brightness in it?

December 09, 2011

Luke 11.37-41

When he had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to dinner.

He came in and sat down. The Pharisee noticed with surprise that he had not begun by washing before the meal.

But [Jesus] said to him, "You Pharisees! You clean the outside of the cup and plate; but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You fools!-- Did not He would made the outside make the inside too? But let what is in the cup be given in charity, and all is clean."

December 08, 2011

Amos 5.1-15

Hear this word which I take up over you in lamentation, oh House of Israel:

Fallen, no more to rise
is the virgin Israel;
forsaken on her land
with none to raise her up.

For thus says the Lord God:

The city that went forth a thousand
shall have a hundred left,
and that which sent forth a hundred
shall have ten left
to the House of Irael.

For thus says the Lord to the House of Israel:

Seek me and live!
But do not seek Bethel
and do not enter into Gilgal
or cross over into Beersheba;
for Gilgal shall surely go into exile,
and Bethel shall come to nought.

Seek the Lord, and live,
lest He break out like fire in the House of Joseph
and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel.

Oh! You who turn justice to wormwood
and cast down righteousness to the dirt!

He who made the Pleiades and Orion
and turns deep darkness into the morning,
and darkens the day into night,
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out upon the surface of the Earth,
'The Lord' is His name,
who makes destruction flash forth against the strong,
so that destruction comes against the fortress!

They hate him who reproves in the gate
and they abhor him who speaks the truth.
Therefore because you trample upon the poor
and take from him exactions of wheat

you have built houses of hewn stone,
but you shall not dwell in them.
You have planted pleasant vineyards
but you shall not drink their wine.

For I know how many are your transgressions
and how great are your sins:
you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe
and turn aside the needy at the gate.

Therefore he who is prudent
will keep silent in such a time;
for it is an evil time.

Seek good, and not evil,
that you might live;
and so, the Lord, the God of Hosts, will be with you!
As you have said, hate evil and love good
and establish justice in the gate;
it may be that the Lord, the God of Hosts
will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph!

December 04, 2011

Luke 11.34-36

"The lamp of your body is the eye. When your eyes are sound, you have light for your whole body; but when the eyes are bad, you are in darkness.

"See to it, then, that the light you have is not darkness. If you have light for your whole body with no trace of darkness, it will all be as bright as when a lamp flashes its rays upon you."

December 02, 2011

Amos 4

Hear this word, you cows of Bashan
who are in the mountain of Samaria,

who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,
who say to their husbands, "Bring, that we may drink!"

The Lord God has sworn by his holiness
that behold, the days are coming upon you
when they shall take you away with hooks,
even the last of you with fishhooks.

And you shall go out through the breaches
every on straight before her
and you shall be cast forth into Harmon,
says the Lord.

Come to Bethel, and transgress;
to Gilgal, and multiply transgression.
Bring your sacrifices every morning,
your tithes every three days.

Offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving
of that which has been leavened
and proclaim freewill offerings,
publish them-- For so you love to do
Oh People of Israel, says the Lord God.

I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities
and lack of bread in all your places
yet you did not return to me, says the Lord God.

And I also withheld the rain from you
when there were yet three months to the harvest;
I would send rain upon one city
and send no rain upon another city.
One field would be rained upon
and the field on which it did not rain withered;

so two or three cities wandered to one city
to drink water, and were not satisfied--
Yet you did not return to me, says the Lord.

I smote you with blight and mildew;
I laid waste your gardens and your vineyards.
Your fig trees and your olive trees
the locust devoured,
yet you did not return to me, says the Lord.

I sent among you a pestilence
after the manner of Egypt;
I slew your young men with the sword;
I carried away your horses
and made the stench of your camp
go up into your nostrils.
Yet you did not return to me, says the Lord.

I overthrew some of you,
as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah
and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning
yet you did not return to me, says the Lord.

Therefore thus I will do to you, oh Israel;
because I will do this to you,
prepare to meet your God, oh Israel!

For lo, He who forms the mountains
and creates the wind,
and declares to man, what is his thought,
who makes the morning darkness
and treads on the heights of the Earth--
the Lord, the God of Hosts, is His name.

December 01, 2011

Luke 11.33

"No one lights a lamp and puts it in a cellar, but rather on a lamp stand, so those who enter may see the light."