Home > Reading > Daily Reading – October 7, 2020

Ezek. 35

35:1 The Lord’s message came to me: 2“Son of man, turn toward Mount Seir and prophesy against it. 3Say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘Look, I am against you, Mount Seir;

I will stretch out my hand against you

and turn you into a desolate ruin.

4I will lay waste your cities,

and you will become desolate.

Then you will know that I am the Lord!

5“‘You have shown unrelenting hostility and poured the people of Israel onto the blades of a sword at the time of their calamity, at the time of their final punishment. 6Therefore, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will subject you to bloodshed, and bloodshed will pursue you. Since you did not hate bloodshed, bloodshed will pursue you. 7I will turn Mount Seir into a desolate ruin; I will cut off from it the one who passes through or returns. 8I will fill its mountains with its dead; on your hills and in your valleys and in all your ravines, those killed by the sword will fall. 9I will turn you into a perpetual desolation, and your cities will not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

10“‘You said, “These two nations, these two lands will be mine, and we will possess them,” (although the Lord was there); 11therefore, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will deal with you according to your anger and your envy, by which you acted spitefully against them. I will reveal myself to them when I judge you. 12Then you will know that I, the Lord, have heard all the insults you spoke against the mountains of Israel, saying, “They are desolate; they have been given to us for food.” 13You exalted yourselves against me with your speech and hurled many insults against me—I have heard them all! 14This is what the Sovereign Lord says: While the whole earth rejoices, I will turn you into a desolation. 15As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so will I deal with you—you will be desolate, Mount Seir, and all Edom—all of it! Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”

(NET Bible)

Ps. 96

96:1 Sing to the Lord a new song.

Sing to the Lord, all the earth.

2Sing to the Lord. Praise his name.

Announce every day how he delivers.

3Tell the nations about his splendor.

Tell all the nations about his amazing deeds.

4For the Lord is great and certainly worthy of praise;

he is more awesome than all gods.

5For all the gods of the nations are worthless,

but the Lord made the sky.

6Majestic splendor emanates from him;

his sanctuary is firmly established and beautiful.

7Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the nations,

ascribe to the Lord splendor and strength.

8Ascribe to the Lord the splendor he deserves.

Bring an offering and enter his courts.

9Worship the Lord in holy attire.

Tremble before him, all the earth.

10Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!

The world is established; it cannot be moved.

He judges the nations fairly.”

11Let the sky rejoice, and the earth be happy.

Let the sea and everything in it shout.

12Let the fields and everything in them celebrate.

Then let the trees of the forest shout with joy

13before the Lord, for he comes.

For he comes to judge the earth.

He judges the world fairly

and the nations in accordance with his justice.

(NET Bible)

Heb. 7:11–28

7:11 So if perfection had in fact been possible through the Levitical priesthood—for on that basis the people received the law—what further need would there have been for another priest to arise, said to be in the order of Melchizedek and not in Aaron’s order? 12For when the priesthood changes, a change in the law must come as well. 13Yet the one these things are spoken about belongs to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever officiated at the altar. 14For it is clear that our Lord is descended from Judah, yet Moses said nothing about priests in connection with that tribe. 15And this is even clearer if another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, 16who has become a priest not by a legal regulation about physical descent but by the power of an indestructible life. 17For here is the testimony about him: “You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.” 18On the one hand a former command is set aside because it is weak and useless, 19for the law made nothing perfect. On the other hand a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. 20And since this was not done without a sworn affirmation—for the others have become priests without a sworn affirmation, 21but Jesus did so with a sworn affirmation by the one who said to him, “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever’”— 22accordingly Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant. 23And the others who became priests were numerous because death prevented them from continuing in office, 24but he holds his priesthood permanently since he lives forever. 25So he is able to save completely those who come to God through him because he always lives to intercede for them. 26For it is indeed fitting for us to have such a high priest: holy, innocent, undefiled, separate from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. 27He has no need to do every day what those priests do, to offer sacrifices first for their own sins and then for the sins of the people, since he did this in offering himself once for all. 28For the law appoints as high priests men subject to weakness, but the word of solemn affirmation that came after the law appoints a son made perfect forever.

(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.

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