2 Kings 25:22–30
25:22 Now King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, as governor over the people whom he allowed to remain in the land of Judah. 23All the officers of the Judahite army and their troops heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah to govern. So they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah. The officers who came were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah son of the Maacathite. 24Gedaliah took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. He said, “You don’t need to be afraid to submit to the Babylonian officials. Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you.” 25But in the seventh month Ishmael son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family, came with 10 of his men and murdered Gedaliah, as well as the Judeans and Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. 26Then all the people, from the youngest to the oldest, as well as the army officers, left for Egypt, because they were afraid of what the Babylonians might do.
27In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of King Jehoiachin of Judah, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month, King Evil Merodach of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, pardoned King Jehoiachin of Judah and released him from prison. 28He spoke kindly to him and gave him a more prestigious position than the other kings who were with him in Babylon. 29Jehoiachin took off his prison clothes and ate daily in the king’s presence for the rest of his life. 30He was given daily provisions by the king for the rest of his life until the day he died.
(NET Bible)Ps. 61
61:1 For the music director, to be played on a stringed instrument; written by David.
O God, hear my cry for help.
Pay attention to my prayer.
2From the remotest place on earth
I call out to you in my despair.
Lead me up to a rocky summit where I can be safe.
3Indeed, you are my shelter,
a strong tower that protects me from the enemy.
4I will be a permanent guest in your home;
I will find shelter in the protection of your wings. (Selah)
5For you, O God, hear my vows;
you grant me the reward that belongs to your loyal followers.
6Give the king long life.
Make his lifetime span several generations.
7May he reign forever before God.
Decree that your loyal love and faithfulness should protect him.
8Then I will sing praises to your name continually,
as I fulfill my vows day after day.
(NET Bible)Matt. 27:32–56
27:32 As they were going out, they found a man from Cyrene named Simon, whom they forced to carry his cross. 33They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “Place of the Skull”) 34and offered Jesus wine mixed with gall to drink. But after tasting it, he would not drink it. 35When they had crucified him, they divided his clothes by throwing dice. 36Then they sat down and kept guard over him there. 37Above his head they put the charge against him, which read: “This is Jesus, the king of the Jews.” 38Then two outlaws were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39Those who passed by defamed him, shaking their heads 40and saying, “You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are God’s Son, come down from the cross!” 41In the same way even the chief priests—together with the experts in the law and elders—were mocking him: 42“He saved others, but he cannot save himself! He is the king of Israel! If he comes down now from the cross, we will believe in him! 43He trusts in God—let God, if he wants to, deliver him now because he said, ‘I am God’s Son’!” 44The robbers who were crucified with him also spoke abusively to him.
45Now from noon until three, darkness came over all the land. 46At about three o’clock Jesus shouted with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. 49But the rest said, “Leave him alone! Let’s see if Elijah will come to save him.” 50Then Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and gave up his spirit. 51Just then the temple curtain was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks were split apart. 52And tombs were opened, and the bodies of many saints who had died were raised. 53(They came out of the tombs after his resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.) 54Now when the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place, they were extremely terrified and said, “Truly this one was God’s Son!” 55Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee and given him support were also there, watching from a distance. 56Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
(NET Bible)
In his exposition of the rst and the second chapters of St. John, which was written during 1537 and 1538, Luther discusses the questions as to how this account of the cleansing of the Temple is related to that given by the Synoptists. He says: “The first question is as to how the two evangelists, Matthew and John, agree with each other; for Matthew states that it happened on Palm Sunday when the Lord entered Jerusalem, while here in John it is placed some- where in the Easter [Passover] season, soon after the baptism of Christ, just as the miracle in which Christ turned water into wine took place about Easter, after which He journeyed to Capernaum. For He was baptized at Epiphany and he may easily have tarried a short time in Capernaum until Easter and began to preach and did what John here narrates about Easter. 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 suffered and died for us, it will not be a serious defect if we are not able to answer them. The evangelists do not observe the same order, and what one places first another on occasion places last, just as Mark places the account of this event on the day following Palm Sunday. It is quite possible that the Lord did this more than once, and that John describes the first time and Matthew the second. Let that be as it may, it was before or after; it happened once or twice, in no case does it detract anything from our faith.” (45–46)
–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.