Home > Reading > Daily Reading – February 24, 2020

Is. 63:1–14

63:1 Who is this who comes from Edom,

dressed in bright red, coming from Bozrah?

Who is this one wearing royal attire,

who marches confidently because of his great strength?

“It is I, the one who announces vindication,

and who is able to deliver!”

2Why are your clothes red?

Why do you look like someone who has stomped on grapes in a vat?

3“I have stomped grapes in the winepress all by myself;

no one from the nations joined me.

I stomped on them in my anger;

I trampled them down in my rage.

Their juice splashed on my garments

and stained all my clothes.

4For I looked forward to the day of vengeance,

and then payback time arrived.

5I looked, but there was no one to help;

I was shocked because there was no one offering support.

So my right arm accomplished deliverance;

my raging anger drove me on.

6I trampled nations in my anger;

I made them drunk in my rage;

I splashed their blood on the ground.”

7I will tell of the faithful acts of the Lord,

of the Lord’s praiseworthy deeds.

I will tell about all the Lord did for us,

the many good things he did for the family of Israel,

because of his compassion and great faithfulness.

8He said, “Certainly they will be my people,

children who are not disloyal.”

He became their deliverer.

9Through all that they suffered, he suffered too.

The messenger sent from his very presence delivered them.

In his love and mercy he protected them;

he lifted them up and carried them throughout ancient times.

10But they rebelled and offended his Holy Spirit,

so he turned into an enemy

and fought against them.

11His people remembered the ancient times.

Where is the one who brought them up out of the sea,

along with the shepherd of his flock?

Where is the one who placed his Holy Spirit among them,

12the one who made his majestic power available to Moses,

who divided the water before them,

gaining for himself a lasting reputation,

13who led them through the deep water?

Like a horse running through the wilderness they did not stumble.

14As an animal that goes down into a valley to graze,

so the Spirit of the Lord granted them rest.

In this way you guided your people,

gaining for yourself an honored reputation.

(NET Bible)

Ps. 51

51:1 For the music director, a psalm of David, written when Nathan the prophet confronted him after David’s affair with Bathsheba.

Have mercy on me, O God, because of your loyal love.

Because of your great compassion, wipe away my rebellious acts.

2Wash away my wrongdoing.

Cleanse me of my sin.

3For I am aware of my rebellious acts;

I am forever conscious of my sin.

4Against you—you above all—I have sinned;

I have done what is evil in your sight.

So you are just when you confront me;

you are right when you condemn me.

5Look, I was guilty of sin from birth,

a sinner the moment my mother conceived me.

6Look, you desire integrity in the inner man;

you want me to possess wisdom.

7Cleanse me with hyssop and I will be pure;

wash me and I will be whiter than snow.

8Grant me the ultimate joy of being forgiven.

May the bones you crushed rejoice.

9Hide your face from my sins.

Wipe away all my guilt.

10Create for me a pure heart, O God.

Renew a resolute spirit within me.

11Do not reject me.

Do not take your Holy Spirit away from me.

12Let me again experience the joy of your deliverance.

Sustain me by giving me the desire to obey.

13Then I will teach rebels your merciful ways,

and sinners will turn to you.

14Rescue me from the guilt of murder, O God, the God who delivers me.

Then my tongue will shout for joy because of your righteousness.

15O Lord, give me the words.

Then my mouth will praise you.

16Certainly you do not want a sacrifice, or else I would offer it;

you do not desire a burnt sacrifice.

17The sacrifice God desires is a humble spirit—

O God, a humble and repentant heart you will not reject.

18Because you favor Zion, do what is good for her.

Fortify the walls of Jerusalem.

19Then you will accept the proper sacrifices, burnt sacrifices and whole offerings;

then bulls will be sacrificed on your altar.

(NET Bible)

Gal. 3:10–29

3:10 For all who rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the book of the law.” 11Now it is clear no one is justified before God by the law because the righteous one will live by faith. 12But the law is not based on faith, but the one who does the works of the law will live by them. 13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”) 14in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.

15Brothers and sisters, I offer an example from everyday life: When a covenant has been ratified, even though it is only a human contract, no one can set it aside or add anything to it. 16Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. Scripture does not say, “and to the descendants,” referring to many, but “and to your descendant,” referring to one, who is Christ. 17What I am saying is this: The law that came 430 years later does not cancel a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to invalidate the promise. 18For if the inheritance is based on the law, it is no longer based on the promise, but God graciously gave it to Abraham through the promise.

19Why then was the law given? It was added because of transgressions, until the arrival of the descendant to whom the promise had been made. It was administered through angels by an intermediary. 20Now an intermediary is not for one party alone, but God is one. 21Is the law therefore opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 22But the scripture imprisoned everything under sin so that the promise could be given—because of the faithfulness of Jesus Christ—to those who believe.

23Now before faith came we were held in custody under the law, being kept as prisoners until the coming faith would be revealed. 24Thus the law had become our guardian until Christ, so that we could be declared righteous by faith. 25But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. 26For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith. 27For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female—for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. 29And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise.

(NET Bible)

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016.

The disputation with Eck, 1519, especially led Luther even farther on this course. Now he also divorced himself from the authority of the Councils. When he denied their infallibility he advanced from their fallibility to the infallible Scripture as the sole decisive norm for everything that wanted to be accepted as divine truth, and thereby without more ado he identified Scripture and the Word of God. Thus in his Disputatio J. Eckii et Mart. Lutheri he applied the admonition of Paul, “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good,” to the decrees of Popes and Councils and expressly said of them that they have erred, but that Holy Scripture is the inerrant Word of God (verbum Dei infallibile). (16)

–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.

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