Mark 10:1-16
[1]
And he left there and went to the region of Judea and beyond the
Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again. And again, as was his custom,
he taught them.
[2]
And Pharisees came up and in order to test him asked, “Is it lawful for
a man to divorce his wife?” [3] He answered them, “What did Moses
command you?” [4] They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate
of divorce and to send her away.” [5] And Jesus said to them, “Because
of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. [6] But from
the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ [7]
‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his
wife, [8] and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two
but one flesh. [9] What therefore God has joined together, let not man
separate.”
[10]
And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. [11]
And he said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her, [12] and if she divorces her husband and
marries another, she commits adultery.”
[13]
And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and
the disciples rebuked them. [14] But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant
and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for
to such belongs the kingdom of God. [15] Truly, I say to you, whoever
does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”
[16] And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on
them.
2 Corinthians 1:12-24
[12]
For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved
in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom
but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. [13] For we are
not writing to you anything other than what you read and understand and I
hope you will fully understand—[14] just as you did partially
understand us—that on the day of our Lord Jesus you will boast of us as
we will boast of you.
[15]
Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you
might have a second experience of grace. [16] I wanted to visit you on
my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you
send me on my way to Judea. [17] Was I vacillating when I wanted to do
this? Do I make my plans according to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes”
and “No, no” at the same time? [18] As surely as God is faithful, our
word to you has not been Yes and No. [19] For the Son of God, Jesus
Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was
not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. [20] For all the promises
of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we
utter our Amen to God for his glory. [21] And it is God who establishes
us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, [22] and who has also put
his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
[23]
But I call God to witness against me—it was to spare you that I
refrained from coming again to Corinth. [24] Not that we lord it over
your faith, but we work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in
your faith.
Psalm 96
[1] Oh sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the earth!
[2] Sing to the LORD, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.
[3] Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!
[4] For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;
he is to be feared above all gods.
[5] For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,
but the LORD made the heavens.
[6] Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
[7] Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength!
[8] Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come into his courts!
[9] Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth!
[10] Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns!
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.”
[11] Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
[12] let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
[13] before the LORD, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
and the peoples in his faithfulness.
1 Samuel 3
[1]
Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD in the presence of Eli.
And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent
vision.
[2]
At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could
not see, was lying down in his own place. [3] The lamp of God had not
yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where
the ark of God was.
[4]
Then the LORD called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!” [5] and ran to
Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not
call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down.
[6]
And the LORD called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel arose and went to Eli
and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call,
my son; lie down again.” [7] Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and
the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.
[8]
And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went
to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that
the LORD was calling the boy. [9] Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go,
lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your
servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
[10]
And the LORD came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel!
Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.” [11] Then the
LORD said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at
which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. [12] On that
day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his
house, from beginning to end. [13] And I declare to him that I am about
to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his
sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. [14] Therefore I
swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be
atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
[15]
Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the
LORD. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. [16] But Eli
called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” [17]
And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me.
May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all
that he told you.” [18] So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing
from him. And he said, “It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to
him.”
[19]
And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words
fall to the ground. [20] And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that
Samuel was established as a prophet of the LORD. [21] And the LORD
appeared again at Shiloh, for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel at
Shiloh by the word of the LORD.
1 Samuel 4
[1] And the word of Samuel came to all Israel.
Now
Israel went out to battle against the Philistines. They encamped at
Ebenezer, and the Philistines encamped at Aphek. [2] The Philistines
drew up in line against Israel, and when the battle spread, Israel was
defeated before the Philistines, who killed about four thousand men on
the field of battle. [3] And when the people came to the camp, the
elders of Israel said, “Why has the LORD defeated us today before the
Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD here from
Shiloh, that it may come among us and save us from the power of our
enemies.” [4] So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there the
ark of the covenant of the LORD of hosts, who is enthroned on the
cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with
the ark of the covenant of God.
[5]
As soon as the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all
Israel gave a mighty shout, so that the earth resounded. [6] And when
the Philistines heard the noise of the shouting, they said, “What does
this great shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” And when they
learned that the ark of the LORD had come to the camp, [7] the
Philistines were afraid, for they said, “A god has come into the camp.”
And they said, “Woe to us! For nothing like this has happened before.
[8] Woe to us! Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods?
These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with every sort of plague in
the wilderness. [9] Take courage, and be men, O Philistines, lest you
become slaves to the Hebrews as they have been to you; be men and
fight.”
[10]
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled,
every man to his home. And there was a very great slaughter, for thirty
thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell. [11] And the ark of God was
captured, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.
[12]
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same
day, with his clothes torn and with dirt on his head. [13] When he
arrived, Eli was sitting on his seat by the road watching, for his heart
trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city and
told the news, all the city cried out. [14] When Eli heard the sound of
the outcry, he said, “What is this uproar?” Then the man hurried and
came and told Eli. [15] Now Eli was ninety-eight years old and his eyes
were set so that he could not see. [16] And the man said to Eli, “I am
he who has come from the battle; I fled from the battle today.” And he
said, “How did it go, my son?” [17] He who brought the news answered and
said, “Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has also been a
great defeat among the people. Your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas,
are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.” [18] As soon as he
mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell over backward from his seat by the
side of the gate, and his neck was broken and he died, for the man was
old and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years.
[19]
Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant, about to
give birth. And when she heard the news that the ark of God was
captured, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she
bowed and gave birth, for her pains came upon her. [20] And about the
time of her death the women attending her said to her, “Do not be
afraid, for you have borne a son.” But she did not answer or pay
attention. [21] And she named the child Ichabod, saying, “The glory has
departed from Israel!” because the ark of God had been captured and
because of her father-in-law and her husband. [22] And she said, “The
glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured.”
1 Samuel 5
[1]
When the Philistines captured the ark of God, they brought it from
Ebenezer to Ashdod. [2] Then the Philistines took the ark of God and
brought it into the house of Dagon and set it up beside Dagon. [3] And
when the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, behold, Dagon had
fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the LORD. So they
took Dagon and put him back in his place. [4] But when they rose early
on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the
ground before the ark of the LORD, and the head of Dagon and both his
hands were lying cut off on the threshold. Only the trunk of Dagon was
left to him. [5] This is why the priests of Dagon and all who enter the
house of Dagon do not tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this
day.
[6]
The hand of the LORD was heavy against the people of Ashdod, and he
terrified and afflicted them with tumors, both Ashdod and its territory.
[7] And when the men of Ashdod saw how things were, they said, “The ark
of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for his hand is hard
against us and against Dagon our god.” [8] So they sent and gathered
together all the lords of the Philistines and said, “What shall we do
with the ark of the God of Israel?” They answered, “Let the ark of the
God of Israel be brought around to Gath.” So they brought the ark of the
God of Israel there. [9] But after they had brought it around, the hand
of the LORD was against the city, causing a very great panic, and he
afflicted the men of the city, both young and old, so that tumors broke
out on them. [10] So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. But as soon as
the ark of God came to Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, “They have
brought around to us the ark of the God of Israel to kill us and our
people.” [11] They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of
the Philistines and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and
let it return to its own place, that it may not kill us and our people.”
For there was a deathly panic throughout the whole city. The hand of
God was very heavy there. [12] The men who did not die were struck with
tumors, and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
