Amos 3:12–4:5
3:12 This is what the Lord says:
“Just as a shepherd salvages from the lion’s mouth a couple of leg bones or a piece of an ear,
so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be salvaged.
They will be left with just a corner of a bed,
and a part of a couch.
13Listen and warn the family of Jacob!”
The Sovereign Lord, the God who commands armies, is speaking!
14“Certainly when I punish Israel for their covenant transgressions,
I will destroy Bethel’s altars.
The horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground.
15I will destroy both the winter and summer houses.
The houses filled with ivory will be ruined;
the great houses will be swept away.”
The Lord is speaking!
4:1 Listen to this message, you cows of Bashan who live on Mount Samaria!
You oppress the poor;
you crush the needy.
You say to your husbands,
“Bring us more to drink!”
2The Sovereign Lord confirms this oath by his own holy character:
“Certainly the time is approaching
when you will be carried away in baskets,
every last one of you in fishermen’s pots.
3Each of you will go straight through the gaps in the walls;
you will be thrown out toward Harmon.”
The Lord is speaking.
4“Go to Bethel and rebel!
At Gilgal rebel some more!
Bring your sacrifices in the morning,
your tithes on the third day!
5Burn a thank offering of bread made with yeast!
Make a public display of your voluntary offerings!
For you love to do this, you Israelites.”
The Sovereign Lord is speaking.
(NET Bible)Ps. 91
91:1 As for you, the one who lives in the shelter of the Most High,
and resides in the protective shadow of the Sovereign One—
2I say this about the Lord, my shelter and my stronghold,
my God in whom I trust—
3he will certainly rescue you from the snare of the hunter
and from the destructive plague.
4He will shelter you with his wings;
you will find safety under his wings.
His faithfulness is like a shield or a protective wall.
5You need not fear the terrors of the night,
the arrow that flies by day,
6the plague that stalks in the darkness,
or the disease that ravages at noon.
7Though a thousand may fall beside you,
and a multitude on your right side,
it will not reach you.
8Certainly you will see it with your very own eyes—
you will see the wicked paid back.
9For you have taken refuge in the Lord,
my shelter, the Most High.
10No harm will overtake you;
no illness will come near your home.
11For he will order his angels
to protect you in all you do.
12They will lift you up in their hands,
so you will not slip and fall on a stone.
13You will subdue a lion and a snake;
you will trample underfoot a young lion and a serpent.
14The Lord says,
“Because he is devoted to me, I will deliver him;
I will protect him because he is loyal to me.
15When he calls out to me, I will answer him.
I will be with him when he is in trouble;
I will rescue him and bring him honor.
16I will satisfy him with long life
and will let him see my salvation.”
(NET Bible)Mark 1:16–34
1:16 As he went along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother, casting a net into the sea (for they were fishermen). 17Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will turn you into fishers of people!” 18They left their nets immediately and followed him. 19Going on a little farther, he saw James, the son of Zebedee, and John his brother in their boat mending nets. 20Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
21Then they went to Capernaum. When the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22The people there were amazed by his teaching because he taught them like one who had authority, not like the experts in the law. 23Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, 24“Leave us alone, Jesus the Nazarene! Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” 25But Jesus rebuked him: “Silence! Come out of him!” 26After throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him. 27They were all amazed so that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He even commands the unclean spirits and they obey him.” 28So the news about him spread quickly throughout all the region around Galilee.
29Now as soon as they left the synagogue, they entered Simon and Andrew’s house, with James and John. 30Simon’s mother-in-law was lying down, sick with a fever, so they spoke to Jesus at once about her. 31He came and raised her up by gently taking her hand. Then the fever left her and she began to serve them. 32When it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were sick and demon-possessed. 33The whole town gathered by the door. 34So he healed many who were sick with various diseases and drove out many demons. But he would not permit the demons to speak because they knew him.
(NET Bible)
In the passage cited above, that is taken from the Exposition of the First and Second Chapter of John, 1537 and 1538, there is the statement: “But these are questions that remain questions which I will not solve and that do not give me much concern, only there are people so sly and keen that they raise all kinds of questions for which they want to have answers. If one, however, has a correct understanding of Scripture and possesses the true statement of our faith that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has su ered and died for us, it will not be a serious defect if we are not able to answer them.” And following this: “When discrepancies occur in Holy Scripture (namely concerning such chronological questions as these: how many years Jesus taught openly, how the account of the Temple cleansing in John agrees with Matthew, and similar questions) and we cannot harmonize them, let it pass, it does not endanger the article of the Christian faith.” In these statements Luther does not say that it is a matter of indi erence to him whether they contain errors or not but only that his faith would not be endangered, if, in spite of his best efforts, he would be unable to solve the apparent contradictions or to prove the inconsequence of all skeptical questions. He dismisses the matter if he cannot prove it conclusively, but his inability to do so neither commits him to the opinion that these passages really contain error, nor is his faith in salvation thereby imperiled. (49–50)
–Johann Michael Reu, Luther on the Scriptures
This daily Bible reading guide, Reading the Word of God, was conceived and prepared as a result of the ongoing discussions between representatives of three church bodies: Lutheran Church—Canada (LCC), The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) and the North American Lutheran Church (NALC). The following individuals have represented their church bodies and approved this introduction and the reading guide: LCC: President Robert Bugbee; NALC: Bishop John Bradosky, Revs. Mark Chavez, James Nestingen, and David Wendel; LCMS: Revs. Albert Collver, Joel Lehenbauer, John Pless, and Larry Vogel.