August 7

1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him.

2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, "This man receives sinners and eats with them."

3 So he told them this parable:

4 "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?

5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.'

7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

8 "Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it?

9 And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.'

10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents." - Luke 15:1-10

1 Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers,

2 older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, in all purity.

3 Honor widows who are truly widows.

4 But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God.

5 She who is truly a widow, left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day,

6 but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives.

7 Command these things as well, so that they may be without reproach.

8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

9 Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having been the wife of one husband,

10 and having a reputation for good works: if she has brought up children, has shown hospitality, has washed the feet of the saints, has cared for the afflicted, and has devoted herself to every good work.

11 But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when their passions draw them away from Christ, they desire to marry

12 and so incur condemnation for having abandoned their former faith.

13 Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not.

14 So I would have younger widows marry, bear children, manage their households, and give the adversary no occasion for slander.

15 For some have already strayed after Satan. - 1 Timothy 5:1-15

1 My son, keep my words and treasure up my commandments with you; 

2 keep my commandments and live; keep my teaching as the apple of your eye; 

3 bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart. 

4 Say to wisdom, "You are my sister," and call insight your intimate friend, 

5 to keep you from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words. 

6 For at the window of my house I have looked out through my lattice, 

7 and I have seen among the simple, I have perceived among the youths, a young man lacking sense, 

8 passing along the street near her corner, taking the road to her house 

9 in the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness. 

10 And behold, the woman meets him, dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart. 

11 She is loud and wayward; her feet do not stay at home; 

12 now in the street, now in the market, and at every corner she lies in wait. 

13 She seizes him and kisses him, and with bold face she says to him, 

14 "I had to offer sacrifices, and today I have paid my vows; 

15 so now I have come out to meet you, to seek you eagerly, and I have found you. 

16 I have spread my couch with coverings, colored linens from Egyptian linen; 

17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. 

18 Come, let us take our fill of love till morning; let us delight ourselves with love. 

19 For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey; 

20 he took a bag of money with him; at full moon he will come home." 

21 With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him. 

22 All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast 

23 till an arrow pierces its liver; as a bird rushes into a snare; he does not know that it will cost him his life. 

24 And now, O sons, listen to me, and be attentive to the words of my mouth. 

25 Let not your heart turn aside to her ways; do not stray into her paths, 

26 for many a victim has she laid low, and all her slain are a mighty throng. 

27 Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the chambers of death.  - Proverbs 7

1 After these things had been done, the officials approached me and said, "The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations, from the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.

2 For they have taken some of their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands. And in this faithlessness the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost."

3 As soon as I heard this, I tore my garment and my cloak and pulled hair from my head and beard and sat appalled.

4 Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the faithlessness of the returned exiles, gathered around me while I sat appalled until the evening sacrifice.

5 And at the evening sacrifice I rose from my fasting, with my garment and my cloak torn, and fell upon my knees and spread out my hands to the LORD my God,

6 saying: "O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens. 

7 From the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt. And for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plundering, and to utter shame, as it is today.

8 But now for a brief moment favor has been shown by the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant and to give us a secure hold within his holy place, that our God may brighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our slavery.

9 For we are slaves. Yet our God has not forsaken us in our slavery, but has extended to us his steadfast love before the kings of Persia, to grant us some reviving to set up the house of our God, to repair its ruins, and to give us protection in Judea and Jerusalem.

10 "And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments,

11 which you commanded by your servants the prophets, saying, 'The land that you are entering, to take possession of it, is a land impure with the impurity of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations that have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness.

12 Therefore do not give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters for your sons, and never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever.'

13 And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, seeing that you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserved and have given us such a remnant as this,

14 shall we break your commandments again and intermarry with the peoples who practice these abominations? Would you not be angry with us until you consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor any to escape?

15 O LORD, the God of Israel, you are just, for we are left a remnant that has escaped, as it is today. Behold, we are before you in our guilt, for none can stand before you because of this." - Ezra 9

What Are You Holding on to?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“…and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:26

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

I’ve heard it told that in the South Sea islands, they catch monkeys by taking a coconut, making a hole in the top, and putting a handful of rice in. A monkey will reach his paw in, take the rice; but then his fist is bigger than the hole, and he can’t withdraw it. Now, when the captor comes, the monkey will scream and plead; but he’ll never let go of the rice.

You say, “Foolish monkey!” Yet are you a foolish person who will not relinquish the sin you’re clinging to, that you might have the blessings of God? Foolish person, taken captive by Satan, who will not have power with God because of some handful of rice—some sin, some habit, some grudge—that you hold onto.

ACTION POINT

What sin is holding you captive? Let go of it. Relinquish the sin you’re clinging to.

 

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Jesus Bought Your Endurance

“This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” (Luke 22:20)

What that means is that the new covenant, promised most explicitly in Jeremiah 31 and 32, was secured and sealed by the blood of Jesus. The new covenant comes true for God’s people who trust the Messiah, Jesus, because Jesus died to establish it.

And what does the new covenant secure for all who belong to Christ? Perseverance in faith to the end.

Listen to Jeremiah 32:40,

“I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.”

The everlasting covenant — the new covenant — includes the unbreakable promise, “I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.” They may not. They will not. Christ sealed this covenant with his blood. He purchased your perseverance if you are in Jesus Christ through faith.

If you are persevering in faith today, you owe it to the blood of Jesus. The Holy Spirit, who is working in you to preserve your faith, is honoring the purchase of Jesus. God the Spirit works in us what God the Son obtained for us. The Father planned it. Jesus bought it. The Spirit applies it — all of them infallibly.

God is totally committed to the perseverance and eternal security of his blood-bought children.

John Piper 

August 6

25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them,

26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?

29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,

30 saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'

31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?

32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.

33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

34 "Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored?

35 It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear." - Luke 14:25-35

1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,

2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared,

3 who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.

4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,

5 for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.

6 If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed.

7 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;

8 for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

9 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance.

10 For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

11 Command and teach these things.

12 Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.

14 Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you.

15 Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.

16 Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers. - 1 Timothy 4

1 My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor, have given your pledge for a stranger, 

2 if you are snared in the words of your mouth, caught in the words of your mouth, 

3 then do this, my son, and save yourself, for you have come into the hand of your neighbor: go, hasten, and plead urgently with your neighbor. 

4 Give your eyes no sleep and your eyelids no slumber; 

5 save yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the hand of the fowler. 

6 Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. 

7 Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, 

8 she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. 

9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? 

10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, 

11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. 

12 A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech, 

13 winks with his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his finger, 

14 with perverted heart devises evil, continually sowing discord; 

15 therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly; in a moment he will be broken beyond healing. 

16 There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: 

17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 

18 a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, 

19 a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. 

20 My son, keep your father's commandment, and forsake not your mother's teaching. 

21 Bind them on your heart always; tie them around your neck. 

22 When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk with you. 

23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life, 

24 to preserve you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress. 

25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart, and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes; 

26 for the price of a prostitute is only a loaf of bread, but a married woman hunts down a precious life. 

27 Can a man carry fire next to his chest and his clothes not be burned? 

28 Or can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? 

29 So is he who goes in to his neighbor's wife; none who touches her will go unpunished. 

30 People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry, 

31 but if he is caught, he will pay sevenfold; he will give all the goods of his house. 

32 He who commits adultery lacks sense; he who does it destroys himself. 

33 He will get wounds and dishonor, and his disgrace will not be wiped away. 

34 For jealousy makes a man furious, and he will not spare when he takes revenge. 

35 He will accept no compensation; he will refuse though you multiply gifts.  - Proverbs 6

1 These are the heads of their fathers' houses, and this is the genealogy of those who went up with me from Babylonia, in the reign of Artaxerxes the king:

2 Of the sons of Phinehas, Gershom. Of the sons of Ithamar, Daniel. Of the sons of David, Hattush.

3 Of the sons of Shecaniah, who was of the sons of Parosh, Zechariah, with whom were registered 150 men.

4 Of the sons of Pahath-moab, Eliehoenai the son of Zerahiah, and with him 200 men.

5 Of the sons of Zattu, Shecaniah the son of Jahaziel, and with him 300 men.

6 Of the sons of Adin, Ebed the son of Jonathan, and with him 50 men.

7 Of the sons of Elam, Jeshaiah the son of Athaliah, and with him 70 men.

8 Of the sons of Shephatiah, Zebadiah the son of Michael, and with him 80 men.

9 Of the sons of Joab, Obadiah the son of Jehiel, and with him 218 men.

10 Of the sons of Bani, Shelomith the son of Josiphiah, and with him 160 men.

11 Of the sons of Bebai, Zechariah, the son of Bebai, and with him 28 men.

12 Of the sons of Azgad, Johanan the son of Hakkatan, and with him 110 men.

13 Of the sons of Adonikam, those who came later, their names being Eliphelet, Jeuel, and Shemaiah, and with them 60 men.

14 Of the sons of Bigvai, Uthai and Zaccur, and with them 70 men.

15 I gathered them to the river that runs to Ahava, and there we camped three days. As I reviewed the people and the priests, I found there none of the sons of Levi.

16 Then I sent for Eliezer, Ariel, Shemaiah, Elnathan, Jarib, Elnathan, Nathan, Zechariah, and Meshullam, leading men, and for Joiarib and Elnathan, who were men of insight,

17 and sent them to Iddo, the leading man at the place Casiphia, telling them what to say to Iddo and his brothers and the temple servants at the place Casiphia, namely, to send us ministers for the house of our God.

18 And by the good hand of our God on us, they brought us a man of discretion, of the sons of Mahli the son of Levi, son of Israel, namely Sherebiah with his sons and kinsmen, 18;

19 also Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah of the sons of Merari, with his kinsmen and their sons, 20;

20 besides 220 of the temple servants, whom David and his officials had set apart to attend the Levites. These were all mentioned by name.

21 Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods.

22 For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, "The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him."

23 So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty.

24 Then I set apart twelve of the leading priests: Sherebiah, Hashabiah, and ten of their kinsmen with them.

25 And I weighed out to them the silver and the gold and the vessels, the offering for the house of our God that the king and his counselors and his lords and all Israel there present had offered.

26 I weighed out into their hand 650 talents of silver, and silver vessels worth 200 talents, and 100 talents of gold,

27 20 bowls of gold worth 1,000 darics, and two vessels of fine bright bronze as precious as gold.

28 And I said to them, "You are holy to the LORD, and the vessels are holy, and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the LORD, the God of your fathers.

29 Guard them and keep them until you weigh them before the chief priests and the Levites and the heads of fathers' houses in Israel at Jerusalem, within the chambers of the house of the LORD."

30 So the priests and the Levites took over the weight of the silver and the gold and the vessels, to bring them to Jerusalem, to the house of our God.

31 Then we departed from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way.

32 We came to Jerusalem, and there we remained three days.

33 On the fourth day, within the house of our God, the silver and the gold and the vessels were weighed into the hands of Meremoth the priest, son of Uriah, and with him was Eleazar the son of Phinehas, and with them were the Levites, Jozabad the son of Jeshua and Noadiah the son of Binnui.

34 The whole was counted and weighed, and the weight of everything was recorded.

35 At that time those who had come from captivity, the returned exiles, offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel, twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and as a sin offering twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the LORD.

36 They also delivered the king's commissions to the king's satraps and to the governors of the province Beyond the River, and they aided the people and the house of God. - Ezra 8

Are Some People Predestined to Go to Hell?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Some people believe there is a set number of certain persons who are going to be saved and that number has been fore-ordained—already settled, nothing we can do about it. They believe God has predestined some for Heaven and some for Hell. Don't get the idea that God created a little baby and said, “You, child, are going to go to Hell, and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it.” I don't believe that for one second!

I believe God wants everybody to be saved. Read today’s verse—black print on white paper. Listen, God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

ACTION POINT

It’s one thing to believe this. It’s another to get out there and start sharing the Gospel with people. What are you doing to present them with the opportunity to be saved? Are you sharing the Lord Jesus Christ?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

10 Things “Yahweh” Means

God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.” (Exodus 3:15)

God’s name is almost always translated LORD (all caps) in the English Bible. But the Hebrew would be pronounced something like “Yahweh,” and is built on the word for “I am.”

So every time we hear the word Yahweh, or every time you see LORD in the English Bible, you should think: this is a proper name (like Peter or John) built out of the word for “I am” and reminding us each time that God absolutely is.

There are at least 10 things the name Yahweh, “I AM,” says about God:

1. He never had a beginning. Every child asks, “Who made God?” And every wise parent says, “Nobody made God. God simply is. And always was. No beginning.”

2. God will never end. If he did not come into being he cannot go out of being, because he is being.

3. God is absolute reality. There is no reality before him. There is no reality outside of him unless he wills it and makes it. He is all that was eternally. No space, no universe, no emptiness. Only God.

4. God is utterly independent. He depends on nothing to bring him into being or support him or counsel him or make him what he is.

5. Everything that is not God depends totally on God. The entire universe is utterly secondary. It came into being by God and stays in being moment by moment on God’s decision to keep it in being.

6. All the universe is by comparison to God as nothing. Contingent, dependent reality is to absolute, independent reality as a shadow to substance. As an echo to a thunderclap. All that we are amazed by in the world and in the galaxies is, compared to God, as nothing.

7. God is constant. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He cannot be improved. He is not becoming anything. He is who he is.

8. God is the absolute standard of truth and goodness and beauty. There is no law-book to which he looks to know what is right. No almanac to establish facts. No guild to determine what is excellent or beautiful. He himself is the standard of what is right, what is true, what is beautiful.

9. God does whatever he pleases and it is always right and always beautiful and always in accord with truth. All reality that is outside of him he created and designed and governs as the absolute reality. So he is utterly free from any constraints that don’t originate from the counsel of his own will.

10. God is the most important and most valuable reality and person in the universe. He is more worthy of interest and attention and admiration and enjoyment than all other realities, including the entire universe.

John Piper 

August 5

15 When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, "Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!"

16 But he said to him, "A man once gave a great banquet and invited many.

17 And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.'

18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.'

19 And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.'

20 And another said, 'I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.'

21 So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, 'Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.'

22 And the servant said, 'Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.'

23 And the master said to the servant, 'Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.

24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.'" - Luke 14:15-24

11 Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.

12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well.

13 For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that,

15 if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.

16 Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.  - 1 Timothy 3:11-16

1 My son, be attentive to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding, 

2 that you may keep discretion, and your lips may guard knowledge. 

3 For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, 

4 but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. 

5 Her feet go down to death; her steps follow the path to Sheol; 

6 she does not ponder the path of life; her ways wander, and she does not know it. 

7 And now, O sons, listen to me, and do not depart from the words of my mouth. 

8 Keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house, 

9 lest you give your honor to others and your years to the merciless, 

10 lest strangers take their fill of your strength, and your labors go to the house of a foreigner, 

11 and at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed, 

12 and you say, "How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof! 

13 I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors. 

14 I am at the brink of utter ruin in the assembled congregation." 

15 Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well. 

16 Should your springs be scattered abroad, streams of water in the streets? 

17 Let them be for yourself alone, and not for strangers with you. 

18 Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, 

19 a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight; be intoxicated always in her love. 

20 Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman and embrace the bosom of an adulteress? 

21 For a man's ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and he ponders all his paths. 

22 The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin. 

23 He dies for lack of discipline, and because of his great folly he is led astray.  - Proverbs 5

1 Now after this, in the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra the son of Seraiah, son of Azariah, son of Hilkiah,

2 son of Shallum, son of Zadok, son of Ahitub,

3 son of Amariah, son of Azariah, son of Meraioth,

4 son of Zerahiah, son of Uzzi, son of Bukki,

5 son of Abishua, son of Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the chief priest-

6 this Ezra went up from Babylonia. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses that the LORD, the God of Israel, had given, and the king granted him all that he asked, for the hand of the LORD his God was on him.

7 And there went up also to Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the king, some of the people of Israel, and some of the priests and Levites, the singers and gatekeepers, and the temple servants.

8 And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king.

9 For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him.

10 For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.

11 This is a copy of the letter that King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe, a man learned in matters of the commandments of the LORD and his statutes for Israel:

12 "Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven. Peace. And now

13 I make a decree that anyone of the people of Israel or their priests or Levites in my kingdom, who freely offers to go to Jerusalem, may go with you.

14 For you are sent by the king and his seven counselors to make inquiries about Judah and Jerusalem according to the Law of your God, which is in your hand,

15 and also to carry the silver and gold that the king and his counselors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose dwelling is in Jerusalem,

16 with all the silver and gold that you shall find in the whole province of Babylonia, and with the freewill offerings of the people and the priests, vowed willingly for the house of their God that is in Jerusalem.

17 With this money, then, you shall with all diligence buy bulls, rams, and lambs, with their grain offerings and their drink offerings, and you shall offer them on the altar of the house of your God that is in Jerusalem.

18 Whatever seems good to you and your brothers to do with the rest of the silver and gold, you may do, according to the will of your God.

19 The vessels that have been given you for the service of the house of your God, you shall deliver before the God of Jerusalem.

20 And whatever else is required for the house of your God, which it falls to you to provide, you may provide it out of the king's treasury.

21 "And I, Artaxerxes the king, make a decree to all the treasurers in the province Beyond the River: Whatever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heaven, requires of you, let it be done with all diligence,

22 up to 100 talents of silver, 100 cors of wheat, 100 baths of wine, 100 baths of oil, and salt without prescribing how much.

23 Whatever is decreed by the God of heaven, let it be done in full for the house of the God of heaven, lest his wrath be against the realm of the king and his sons.

24 We also notify you that it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, custom, or toll on anyone of the priests, the Levites, the singers, the doorkeepers, the temple servants, or other servants of this house of God.

25 "And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province Beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God. And those who do not know them, you shall teach.

26 Whoever will not obey the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be strictly executed on him, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of his goods or for imprisonment."

27 Blessed be the LORD, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king, to beautify the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem,

28 and who extended to me his steadfast love before the king and his counselors, and before all the king's mighty officers. I took courage, for the hand of the LORD my God was on me, and I gathered leading men from Israel to go up with me. - Ezra 7