November 11

1 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt;

3 speak, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, 'My Nile is my own; I made it for myself.' 

4 I will put hooks in your jaws, and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales; and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams, with all the fish of your streams that stick to your scales. 

5 And I will cast you out into the wilderness, you and all the fish of your streams; you shall fall on the open field, and not be brought together or gathered. To the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the heavens I give you as food. 

6 Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the LORD. "Because you have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel, 

7 when they grasped you with the hand, you broke and tore all their shoulders; and when they leaned on you, you broke and made all their loins to shake.

8 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring a sword upon you, and will cut off from you man and beast,

9 and the land of Egypt shall be a desolation and a waste. Then they will know that I am the LORD. "Because you said, 'The Nile is mine, and I made it,' 

10 therefore, behold, I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt an utter waste and desolation, from Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Cush.

11 No foot of man shall pass through it, and no foot of beast shall pass through it; it shall be uninhabited forty years.

12 And I will make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries, and her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them through the countries.

13 "For thus says the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered,

14 and I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin, and there they shall be a lowly kingdom.

15 It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations. And I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations.

16 And it shall never again be the reliance of the house of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD."

17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

18 "Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre. Every head was made bald, and every shoulder was rubbed bare, yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against her.

19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army.

20 I have given him the land of Egypt as his payment for which he labored, because they worked for me, declares the Lord GOD.

21 "On that day I will cause a horn to spring up for the house of Israel, and I will open your lips among them. Then they will know that I am the LORD." - Ezekiel 29

1 The word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Wail, 'Alas for the day!' 

3 For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near; it will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations. 

4 A sword shall come upon Egypt, and anguish shall be in Cush, when the slain fall in Egypt, and her wealth is carried away, and her foundations are torn down. 

5 Cush, and Put, and Lud, and all Arabia, and Libya, and the people of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword.

6 "Thus says the LORD: Those who support Egypt shall fall, and her proud might shall come down; from Migdol to Syene they shall fall within her by the sword, declares the Lord GOD. 

7 And they shall be desolated in the midst of desolated countries, and their cities shall be in the midst of cities that are laid waste. 

8 Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have set fire to Egypt, and all her helpers are broken. 

9 "On that day messengers shall go out from me in ships to terrify the unsuspecting people of Cush, and anguish shall come upon them on the day of Egypt's doom; for, behold, it comes!

10 "Thus says the Lord GOD: "I will put an end to the wealth of Egypt, by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 

11 He and his people with him, the most ruthless of nations, shall be brought in to destroy the land, and they shall draw their swords against Egypt and fill the land with the slain. 

12 And I will dry up the Nile and will sell the land into the hand of evildoers; I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it, by the hand of foreigners; I am the LORD; I have spoken. 

13 "Thus says the Lord GOD: "I will destroy the idols and put an end to the images in Memphis; there shall no longer be a prince from the land of Egypt; so I will put fear in the land of Egypt. 

14 I will make Pathros a desolation and will set fire to Zoan and will execute judgments on Thebes. 

15 And I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium, the stronghold of Egypt, and cut off the multitude of Thebes. 

16 And I will set fire to Egypt; Pelusium shall be in great agony; Thebes shall be breached, and Memphis shall face enemies by day. 

17 The young men of On and of Pi-beseth shall fall by the sword, and the women shall go into captivity. 

18 At Tehaphnehes the day shall be dark, when I break there the yoke bars of Egypt, and her proud might shall come to an end in her; she shall be covered by a cloud, and her daughters shall go into captivity. 

19 Thus I will execute judgments on Egypt. Then they will know that I am the LORD." 

20 In the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

21 "Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and behold, it has not been bound up, to heal it by binding it with a bandage, so that it may become strong to wield the sword.

22 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt and will break his arms, both the strong arm and the one that was broken, and I will make the sword fall from his hand.

23 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them through the countries.

24 And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan before him like a man mortally wounded.

25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh shall fall. Then they shall know that I am the LORD, when I put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he stretches it out against the land of Egypt.

26 And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the countries. Then they will know that I am the LORD." - Ezekiel 30

1 Then Job answered and said:

2 "No doubt you are the people, and wisdom will die with you. 

3 But I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you. Who does not know such things as these? 

4 I am a laughingstock to my friends; I, who called to God and he answered me, a just and blameless man, am a laughingstock. 

5 In the thought of one who is at ease there is contempt for misfortune; it is ready for those whose feet slip. 

6 The tents of robbers are at peace, and those who provoke God are secure, who bring their god in their hand. 

7 "But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; 

8 or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. 

9 Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? 

10 In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind. 

11 Does not the ear test words as the palate tastes food? 

12 Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days. 

13 "With God are wisdom and might; he has counsel and understanding. 

14 If he tears down, none can rebuild; if he shuts a man in, none can open. 

15 If he withholds the waters, they dry up; if he sends them out, they overwhelm the land. 

16 With him are strength and sound wisdom; the deceived and the deceiver are his. 

17 He leads counselors away stripped, and judges he makes fools. 

18 He looses the bonds of kings and binds a waistcloth on their hips. 

19 He leads priests away stripped and overthrows the mighty. 

20 He deprives of speech those who are trusted and takes away the discernment of the elders. 

21 He pours contempt on princes and loosens the belt of the strong. 

22 He uncovers the deeps out of darkness and brings deep darkness to light. 

23 He makes nations great, and he destroys them; he enlarges nations, and leads them away. 

24 He takes away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth and makes them wander in a trackless waste. 

25 They grope in the dark without light, and he makes them stagger like a drunken man.  - Job 12

12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake. 

13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. 

14 I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

16 For all that is in the world-the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life-is not from the Father but is from the world.

17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. - 1 John 2:12-17

1 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.

2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."

6 This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

7 So Jesus again said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.

9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. - John 10:1-10

What Was the Government Intended to Do?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.” 1 Peter 2:15-16

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

What is liberty? Liberty is responsibility assumed, not just “do your thing.” Can it thrive in a degenerate society? No, it cannot last for long. We cannot have self-government without self-control.

As character degenerates, the government must grow to cope with that societal decay. As government grows, people begin to equate security with dependence on government. So, the government begins to give to the people, and the people like it. But they fail to understand that the government cannot give them anything it doesn’t first take away. As the government begins to take, then “give it back,” we’re regulated, then controlled more and more.

Dear friend, the government is a watchdog to be fed, not a cow to be milked. Our Founding Fathers understood that. Wisely, they wrote into the Preamble to our U.S. Constitution what our government is actually for: to protect life and property. We can’t go out as individuals and raise an army to protect our land or be vigilantes carrying out street justice. We need the government for that. Government is to provide for the common defense and promote the general welfare. It did not say provide the general welfare or sustain it.

ACTION POINT

Benjamin Franklin said, “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom.” John Adams wrote, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Our Republic is by a people of character, for a people of character, and only a people of character can keep it. Are you living in a way that strengthens our nation as “people of character”? Are you living according to 1 Peter 2:15-16?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Wipe Your Fears Away

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. (Psalm 56:3)

One possible response to the truth that our anxiety is rooted in unbelief goes like this: “I have to deal with feelings of anxiety almost every day; and so I feel like my faith in God’s grace must be totally inadequate. So I wonder if I can have any assurance of being saved at all.”

My response to this concern is: Suppose you are in a car race and your enemy, who doesn’t want you to finish the race, throws mud on your windshield. The fact that you temporarily lose sight of your goal and start to swerve does not mean that you are going to quit the race.

And it certainly doesn’t mean that you are on the wrong racetrack. Otherwise, your competitor — your adversary — wouldn’t bother you at all. What it means is that you should turn on your windshield wipers.

When anxiety strikes and blurs our vision of God’s glory and the greatness of the future that he plans for us, this does not mean that we are faithless, or that we will not make it to heaven. It means our faith is being attacked.

At first blow, our belief in God’s promises may sputter and swerve. But whether we stay on track and make it to the finish line depends on whether, by grace, we set in motion a process of resistance — whether we fight back against the unbelief of anxiety. Will we turn on the windshield wipers?

Psalm 56:3 says, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”

Notice: it does not say, “I never struggle with fear.” Fear strikes, and the battle begins. So the Bible does not assume that true believers will have no anxieties. Instead, the Bible tells us how to fight when they strike. It tells us how to turn on the windshield wipers.

John Piper 

November 10

1 The word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Now you, son of man, raise a lamentation over Tyre,

3 and say to Tyre, who dwells at the entrances to the sea, merchant of the peoples to many coastlands, thus says the Lord GOD: "O Tyre, you have said, 'I am perfect in beauty.' 

4 Your borders are in the heart of the seas; your builders made perfect your beauty. 

5 They made all your planks of fir trees from Senir; they took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you. 

6 Of oaks of Bashan they made your oars; they made your deck of pines from the coasts of Cyprus, inlaid with ivory. 

7 Of fine embroidered linen from Egypt was your sail, serving as your banner; blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah was your awning. 

8 The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were your rowers; your skilled men, O Tyre, were in you; they were your pilots. 

9 The elders of Gebal and her skilled men were in you, caulking your seams; all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in you to barter for your wares. 

10 "Persia and Lud and Put were in your army as your men of war. They hung the shield and helmet in you; they gave you splendor.

11 Men of Arvad and Helech were on your walls all around, and men of Gamad were in your towers. They hung their shields on your walls all around; they made perfect your beauty.

12 "Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of every kind; silver, iron, tin, and lead they exchanged for your wares.

13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech traded with you; they exchanged human beings and vessels of bronze for your merchandise.

14 From Beth-togarmah they exchanged horses, war horses, and mules for your wares.

15 The men of Dedan traded with you. Many coastlands were your own special markets; they brought you in payment ivory tusks and ebony.

16 Syria did business with you because of your abundant goods; they exchanged for your wares emeralds, purple, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and ruby.

17 Judah and the land of Israel traded with you; they exchanged for your merchandise wheat of Minnith, meal, honey, oil, and balm.

18 Damascus did business with you for your abundant goods, because of your great wealth of every kind; wine of Helbon and wool of Sahar

19 and casks of wine from Uzal they exchanged for your wares; wrought iron, cassia, and calamus were bartered for your merchandise.

20 Dedan traded with you in saddlecloths for riding.

21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your favored dealers in lambs, rams, and goats; in these they did business with you.

22 The traders of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; they exchanged for your wares the best of all kinds of spices and all precious stones and gold.

23 Haran, Canneh, Eden, traders of Sheba, Asshur, and Chilmad traded with you.

24 In your market these traded with you in choice garments, in clothes of blue and embroidered work, and in carpets of colored material, bound with cords and made secure.

25 The ships of Tarshish traveled for you with your merchandise. So you were filled and heavily laden in the heart of the seas.

26 "Your rowers have brought you out into the high seas. The east wind has wrecked you in the heart of the seas. 

27 Your riches, your wares, your merchandise, your mariners and your pilots, your caulkers, your dealers in merchandise, and all your men of war who are in you, with all your crew that is in your midst, sink into the heart of the seas on the day of your fall. 

28 At the sound of the cry of your pilots the countryside shakes, 

29 and down from their ships come all who handle the oar. The mariners and all the pilots of the sea stand on the land 

30 and shout aloud over you and cry out bitterly. They cast dust on their heads and wallow in ashes; 

31 they make themselves bald for you and put sackcloth on their waist, and they weep over you in bitterness of soul, with bitter mourning. 

32 In their wailing they raise a lamentation for you and lament over you: 'Who is like Tyre, like one destroyed in the midst of the sea? 

33 When your wares came from the seas, you satisfied many peoples; with your abundant wealth and merchandise you enriched the kings of the earth. 

34 Now you are wrecked by the seas, in the depths of the waters; your merchandise and all your crew in your midst have sunk with you. 

35 All the inhabitants of the coastlands are appalled at you, and the hair of their kings bristles with horror; their faces are convulsed. 

36 The merchants among the peoples hiss at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever.'"  - Ezekiel 27

1 The word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Because your heart is proud, and you have said, 'I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,' yet you are but a man, and no god, though you make your heart like the heart of a god- 

3 you are indeed wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you; 

4 by your wisdom and your understanding you have made wealth for yourself, and have gathered gold and silver into your treasuries; 

5 by your great wisdom in your trade you have increased your wealth, and your heart has become proud in your wealth- 

6 therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because you make your heart like the heart of a god, 

7 therefore, behold, I will bring foreigners upon you, the most ruthless of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and defile your splendor. 

8 They shall thrust you down into the pit, and you shall die the death of the slain in the heart of the seas. 

9 Will you still say, 'I am a god,' in the presence of those who kill you, though you are but a man, and no god, in the hands of those who slay you? 

10 You shall die the death of the uncircumcised by the hand of foreigners; for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD." 

11 Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me:

12 "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 

13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared. 

14 You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. 

15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. 

16 In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. 

17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you. 

18 By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. 

19 All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever." 

20 The word of the LORD came to me:

21 "Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, and prophesy against her

22 and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I am against you, O Sidon, and I will manifest my glory in your midst. And they shall know that I am the LORD when I execute judgments in her and manifest my holiness in her; 

23 for I will send pestilence into her, and blood into her streets; and the slain shall fall in her midst, by the sword that is against her on every side. Then they will know that I am the LORD. 

24 "And for the house of Israel there shall be no more a brier to prick or a thorn to hurt them among all their neighbors who have treated them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD.

25 "Thus says the Lord GOD: When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and manifest my holiness in them in the sight of the nations, then they shall dwell in their own land that I gave to my servant Jacob.

26 And they shall dwell securely in it, and they shall build houses and plant vineyards. They shall dwell securely, when I execute judgments upon all their neighbors who have treated them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God." - Ezekiel 28

21 I am blameless; I regard not myself; I loathe my life. 

22 It is all one; therefore I say, 'He destroys both the blameless and the wicked.' 

23 When disaster brings sudden death, he mocks at the calamity of the innocent. 

24 The earth is given into the hand of the wicked; he covers the faces of its judges- if it is not he, who then is it? 

25 "My days are swifter than a runner; they flee away; they see no good. 

26 They go by like skiffs of reed, like an eagle swooping on the prey. 

27 If I say, 'I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face, and be of good cheer,' 

28 I become afraid of all my suffering, for I know you will not hold me innocent. 

29 I shall be condemned; why then do I labor in vain? 

30 If I wash myself with snow and cleanse my hands with lye, 

31 yet you will plunge me into a pit, and my own clothes will abhor me. 

32 For he is not a man, as I am, that I might answer him, that we should come to trial together. 

33 There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both. 

34 Let him take his rod away from me, and let not dread of him terrify me. 

35 Then I would speak without fear of him, for I am not so in myself.  - Job 9:21-35

1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.

4 Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,

5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:

6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard.

8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.

9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.

10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.

11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. - 1 John 2:1-11

26 They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"

27 He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?"

28 And they reviled him, saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.

29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from."

30 The man answered, "Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes.

31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.

32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind.

33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."

34 They answered him, "You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?" And they cast him out.

35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

36 He answered, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"

37 Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you."

38 He said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him.

39 Jesus said, "For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind."

40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, "Are we also blind?"

41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, 'We see,' your guilt remains. - John 9:26-41

What Are You Sowing?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“Behold, I say to you, ‘Lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!’” John 4:35

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Whatever we sow, we’re going to reap (Galatians 6:7), and if you hope to reap at all, you must get out there and sow. There will be no reaping without planting. Here in America, we are reaping blessing upon blessing because our forefathers planted.

I copied this down because I thought the writer said it well:

Did we bring the Bible to these shores or did it not, rather, bring us? The breath of the ancient prophets was in the sails that drove the tiny Mayflower. The hope and faith of ancient poets, kings, and lawgivers were in the hearts of those who first sang the Lord’s song in this strange land. From those beginnings until now, the Bible has been a teacher to our best men, a rebuke to our worst men, and a noble companion to us all.

The reason America is such a great nation is not that Americans are smarter, not because the sun shines on us more, not because it rains here more, not because our soil is richer, but because our forefathers planted certain things in American soil. I’m not talking about crops and seeds; I’m talking about faith and truth and hope and charity and justice. And because of that, we are reaping a harvest.

ACTION POINT

In the principle of sowing and reaping, whatever you sow, you’re going to reap. If you want to reap, first you must plant! Begin today to plant God’s precepts and principles into the minds and hearts of your children, your family, your co-workers, that will yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness (Hebrews 12:11).

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Marveling at the End of History

[God will] grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed. (2 Thessalonians 1:7–10)

When Jesus returns to this earth, which he has promised to do, those who have not believed the gospel, Paul says, “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.” This is a terrible prospect that should terrify all unbelievers who hear this truth.

And oh, how it should sober us who do believe and fill us with seriousness about what is at stake in this world. Oh, how it should cause compassion to rise in our hearts for those who do not believe, or do not even know, the gospel.

But to sustain us in all our afflictions here Paul gives us two amazing words of encouragement and hope. “[God will] grant relief to you who are afflicted.” If we experience a terrible intensification of affliction near the end of history, God’s word is: Hold fast: relief is on the way. Your afflictions will not have the last word. And your seemingly powerful adversaries will regret the day they touched the Lord’s people.

But then comes the best word of encouragement and hope. Not only will we get relief when the Lord comes, but we will get the greatest experience that we were created for in the first place: We will see his glory, and marvel at it in such a way that he will be glorified in us for all the world to see.

Verse 10: “He comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed.” We were made to marvel. Nothing and no one is more marvelous than the crucified, risen, returning King of glory, Jesus Christ. He will attain the destiny of his glory, and we will attain the destiny of our joy as we begin the perfect, sinless, never-ending marveling at the greatest marvel.

John Piper 

November 9

1 In the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Son of man, write down the name of this day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.

3 And utter a parable to the rebellious house and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Set on the pot, set it on; pour in water also; 

4 put in it the pieces of meat, all the good pieces, the thigh and the shoulder; fill it with choice bones. 

5 Take the choicest one of the flock; pile the logs under it; boil it well; seethe also its bones in it. 

6 "Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose corrosion is in it, and whose corrosion has not gone out of it! Take out of it piece after piece, without making any choice.

7 For the blood she has shed is in her midst; she put it on the bare rock; she did not pour it out on the ground to cover it with dust.

8 To rouse my wrath, to take vengeance, I have set on the bare rock the blood she has shed, that it may not be covered.

9 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city! I also will make the pile great.

10 Heap on the logs, kindle the fire, boil the meat well, mix in the spices, and let the bones be burned up.

11 Then set it empty upon the coals, that it may become hot, and its copper may burn, that its uncleanness may be melted in it, its corrosion consumed.

12 She has wearied herself with toil; its abundant corrosion does not go out of it. Into the fire with its corrosion!

13 On account of your unclean lewdness, because I would have cleansed you and you were not cleansed from your uncleanness, you shall not be cleansed anymore till I have satisfied my fury upon you.

14 I am the LORD. I have spoken; it shall come to pass; I will do it. I will not go back; I will not spare; I will not relent; according to your ways and your deeds you will be judged, declares the Lord GOD."

15 The word of the LORD came to me:

16 "Son of man, behold, I am about to take the delight of your eyes away from you at a stroke; yet you shall not mourn or weep, nor shall your tears run down.

17 Sigh, but not aloud; make no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban, and put your shoes on your feet; do not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men."

18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died. And on the next morning I did as I was commanded.

19 And the people said to me, "Will you not tell us what these things mean for us, that you are acting thus?"

20 Then I said to them, "The word of the LORD came to me:

21 'Say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the yearning of your soul, and your sons and your daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword.

22 And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.

23 Your turbans shall be on your heads and your shoes on your feet; you shall not mourn or weep, but you shall rot away in your iniquities and groan to one another.

24 Thus shall Ezekiel be to you a sign; according to all that he has done you shall do. When this comes, then you will know that I am the Lord GOD.'

25 "As for you, son of man, surely on the day when I take from them their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes and their soul's desire, and also their sons and daughters,

26 on that day a fugitive will come to you to report to you the news.

27 On that day your mouth will be opened to the fugitive, and you shall speak and be no longer mute. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD." - Ezekiel 24

1 The word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Son of man, set your face toward the Ammonites and prophesy against them.

3 Say to the Ammonites, Hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus says the Lord GOD, Because you said, 'Aha!' over my sanctuary when it was profaned, and over the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and over the house of Judah when they went into exile,

4 therefore behold, I am handing you over to the people of the East for a possession, and they shall set their encampments among you and make their dwellings in your midst. They shall eat your fruit, and they shall drink your milk.

5 I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels and Ammon a fold for flocks. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

6 For thus says the Lord GOD: Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the malice within your soul against the land of Israel,

7 therefore, behold, I have stretched out my hand against you, and will hand you over as plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and will make you perish out of the countries; I will destroy you. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

8 "Thus says the Lord GOD: Because Moab and Seir said, 'Behold, the house of Judah is like all the other nations,'

9 therefore I will lay open the flank of Moab from the cities, from its cities on its frontier, the glory of the country, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim.

10 I will give it along with the Ammonites to the people of the East as a possession, that the Ammonites may be remembered no more among the nations,

11 and I will execute judgments upon Moab. Then they will know that I am the LORD.

12 "Thus says the Lord GOD: Because Edom acted revengefully against the house of Judah and has grievously offended in taking vengeance on them,

13 therefore thus says the Lord GOD, I will stretch out my hand against Edom and cut off from it man and beast. And I will make it desolate; from Teman even to Dedan they shall fall by the sword.

14 And I will lay my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they shall do in Edom according to my anger and according to my wrath, and they shall know my vengeance, declares the Lord GOD.

15 "Thus says the Lord GOD: Because the Philistines acted revengefully and took vengeance with malice of soul to destroy in never-ending enmity,

16 therefore thus says the Lord GOD, Behold, I will stretch out my hand against the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites and destroy the rest of the seacoast.

17 I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I lay my vengeance upon them." - Ezekiel 25

1 In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

2 "Son of man, because Tyre said concerning Jerusalem, 'Aha, the gate of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I shall be replenished, now that she is laid waste,'

3 therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.

4 They shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers, and I will scrape her soil from her and make her a bare rock.

5 She shall be in the midst of the sea a place for the spreading of nets, for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD. And she shall become plunder for the nations,

6 and her daughters on the mainland shall be killed by the sword. Then they will know that I am the LORD.

7 "For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, and with horsemen and a host of many soldiers.

8 He will kill with the sword your daughters on the mainland. He will set up a siege wall against you and throw up a mound against you, and raise a roof of shields against you.

9 He will direct the shock of his battering rams against your walls, and with his axes he will break down your towers.

10 His horses will be so many that their dust will cover you. Your walls will shake at the noise of the horsemen and wagons and chariots, when he enters your gates as men enter a city that has been breached.

11 With the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people with the sword, and your mighty pillars will fall to the ground.

12 They will plunder your riches and loot your merchandise. They will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses. Your stones and timber and soil they will cast into the midst of the waters.

13 And I will stop the music of your songs, and the sound of your lyres shall be heard no more.

14 I will make you a bare rock. You shall be a place for the spreading of nets. You shall never be rebuilt, for I am the LORD; I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.

15 "Thus says the Lord GOD to Tyre: Will not the coastlands shake at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan, when slaughter is made in your midst?

16 Then all the princes of the sea will step down from their thrones and remove their robes and strip off their embroidered garments. They will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground and tremble every moment and be appalled at you.

17 And they will raise a lamentation over you and say to you, "'How you have perished, you who were inhabited from the seas, O city renowned, who was mighty on the sea; she and her inhabitants imposed their terror on all her inhabitants! 

18 Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your fall, and the coastlands that are on the sea are dismayed at your passing.' 

19 "For thus says the Lord GOD: When I make you a city laid waste, like the cities that are not inhabited, when I bring up the deep over you, and the great waters cover you,

20 then I will make you go down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of old, and I will make you to dwell in the world below, among ruins from of old, with those who go down to the pit, so that you will not be inhabited; but I will set beauty in the land of the living.

21 I will bring you to a dreadful end, and you shall be no more. Though you be sought for, you will never be found again, declares the Lord GOD." - Ezekiel 26

1 Then Job answered and said:

2 "Truly I know that it is so: But how can a man be in the right before God? 

3 If one wished to contend with him, one could not answer him once in a thousand times. 

4 He is wise in heart and mighty in strength -who has hardened himself against him, and succeeded?- 

5 he who removes mountains, and they know it not, when he overturns them in his anger, 

6 who shakes the earth out of its place, and its pillars tremble; 

7 who commands the sun, and it does not rise; who seals up the stars; 

8 who alone stretched out the heavens and trampled the waves of the sea; 

9 who made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the chambers of the south; 

10 who does great things beyond searching out, and marvelous things beyond number. 

11 Behold, he passes by me, and I see him not; he moves on, but I do not perceive him. 

12 Behold, he snatches away; who can turn him back? Who will say to him, 'What are you doing?' 

13 "God will not turn back his anger; beneath him bowed the helpers of Rahab. 

14 How then can I answer him, choosing my words with him? 

15 Though I am in the right, I cannot answer him; I must appeal for mercy to my accuser. 

16 If I summoned him and he answered me, I would not believe that he was listening to my voice. 

17 For he crushes me with a tempest and multiplies my wounds without cause; 

18 he will not let me get my breath, but fills me with bitterness. 

19 If it is a contest of strength, behold, he is mighty! If it is a matter of justice, who can summon him? 

20 Though I am in the right, my own mouth would condemn me; though I am blameless, he would prove me perverse.  - Job 9:1-20

5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. - 1 John 1:5-10

13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.

14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.

15 So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, "He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."

16 Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them.

17 So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."

18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight

19 and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?"

20 His parents answered, "We know that this is our son and that he was born blind.

21 But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself."

22 (His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.)

23 Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."

24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, "Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner."

25 He answered, "Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see." - John 9:13-25