Day 134 of 365

Judg 21:1–25

1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying, "There shall not any of us give his daughter to Benjamin as wife."

2 The people came to Bethel, and sat there until evening before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept severely.

3 They said, "Lord God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?"

4 It happened on the next day that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

5 The children of Israel said, "Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who did not come up in the assembly to the Lord?" For they had made a great oath concerning anyone who did not come up to the Lord to Mizpah, saying, "He shall surely be put to death."

6 The children of Israel grieved for Benjamin their brother, and said, "There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day.

7 How shall we do for wives for those who remain, seeing we have sworn by the Lord that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?"

8 They said, "What one is there of the tribes of Israel who did not come up to the Lord to Mizpah?" Behold, no one came to the camp from Jabesh Gilead to the assembly.

9 For when the people were numbered, behold, there were none of the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead there.

10 The congregation sent there twelve thousand men of the most valiant, and commanded them, saying, "Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the little ones.

11 This is the thing that you shall do: you shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman who has slept with a man."

12 They found among the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead four hundred young virgins who had never slept with a man; and they brought them to the camp to Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

13 The whole congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin who were in the rock of Rimmon, and proclaimed peace to them.

14 Benjamin returned at that time; and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh Gilead: and yet so they weren't enough for them.

15 The people grieved for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a gap in the tribes of Israel.

16 Then the elders of the congregation said, "How shall we provide wives for those who remain, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?"

17 They said, "There must be an inheritance for those who are escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe not be blotted out from Israel.

18 However we may not give them wives of our daughters, for the children of Israel had sworn, saying, 'Cursed is he who gives a wife to Benjamin.'"

19 They said, "Behold, there is a feast of the Lord from year to year in Shiloh, which is on the north of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah."

20 They commanded the children of Benjamin, saying, "Go and lie in wait in the vineyards,

21 and watch. If the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then come out of the vineyards, and each man catch his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin.

22 It shall be, when their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, that we will say to them, 'Grant them graciously to us, because we didn't take wives for each man in battle, neither did you give them to them, otherwise you would now be guilty.'"

23 The children of Benjamin did so, and took them wives, according to their number, of those who danced, whom they carried off. They went and returned to their inheritance, built the cities, and lived in them.

24 The children of Israel departed there at that time, every man to his tribe and to his family, and they went out from there every man to his inheritance.

25 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

Ruth 1:1–22

1 It happened in the days when the judges judged, that there was a famine in the land. A certain man of Bethlehem Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.

2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem Judah. They came into the country of Moab, and continued there.

3 Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons.

4 And they took for themselves wives from the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they lived there about ten years.

5 Mahlon and Chilion died both of them; and the woman was left of her two children and of her husband.

6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of Moab how that the Lord had visited his people in giving them bread.

7 She went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.

8 Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go, return each of you to her mother's house: the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead, and with me.

9 The Lord grant you that you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband." Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voice, and wept.

10 They said to her, "No, but we will return with you to your people."

11 Naomi said, "Go back, my daughters. Why do you want to go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?

12 Go back, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say, 'I have hope,' if I should even have a husband tonight, and should also bear sons;

13 would you then wait until they were grown? Would you then refrain from having husbands? No, my daughters, for it grieves me much for your sakes, for the hand of the Lord has gone out against me."

14 They lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth joined with her.

15 She said, "Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people, and to her god. Follow your sister-in-law.

16 Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you, and to return from following after you, for where you go, I will go; and where you stay, I will stay; your people shall be my people, and your God my God;

17 where you die, will I die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death part you and me."

18 When she saw that she was steadfastly minded to go with her, she left off speaking to her.

19 So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. It happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was moved about them, and they asked, "Is this Naomi?"

20 She said to them, "Do not call me Naomi. Call me Marah; for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.

21 I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?"

22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her, who returned out of the country of Moab: and they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest.

John 4:22–54

22 You worship that which you do not know. We worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews.

23 But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to be his worshippers.

24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

25 The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah comes," (he who is called Christ). "When he has come, he will declare to us all things."

26 Jesus said to her, "I am he, the one who speaks to you."

27 At this, his disciples came. They marveled that he was speaking with a woman; yet no one said, "What are you looking for?" or, "Why do you speak with her?"

28 So the woman left her water pot, and went away into the city, and said to the people,

29 "Come, see a man who told me everything that I did. Can this be the Messiah?"

30 They went out of the city, and were coming to him.

31 In the meanwhile, the disciples urged him, saying, "Rabbi, eat."

32 But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about."

33 The disciples therefore said one to another, "Has anyone brought him something to eat?"

34 Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work.

35 Do you not say, 'There are yet four months until the harvest?' Behold, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and look at the fields, that they are white for harvest already.

36 He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit to eternal life; that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.

37 For in this the saying is true, 'One sows, and another reaps.'

38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."

39 From that city many of the Samaritans believed in him because of the word of the woman, who testified, "He told me everything that I did."

40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they begged him to stay with them. He stayed there two days.

41 Many more believed because of his word.

42 They said to the woman, "Now we believe, not because of your speaking; for we have heard for ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Savior of the world."

43 After the two days he went out from there and went into Galilee.

44 For Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country.

45 So when he came into Galilee, the Galileans received him, having seen all the things that he did in Jerusalem at the feast, for they also went to the feast.

46 Jesus came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water into wine. There was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.

47 When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to him, and begged him that he would come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.

48 Jesus therefore said to him, "Unless you see signs and wonders, you will in no way believe."

49 The nobleman said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

50 Jesus said to him, "Go your way. Your son lives." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way.

51 As he was now going down, his servants met him, saying that his son was alive.

52 So he inquired of them the hour when he began to get better. They said therefore to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour, the fever left him."

53 So the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives." He believed, as did his whole house.

54 This is again the second sign that Jesus did, having come out of Judea into Galilee.

Ps 58:1–11

1 Do you indeed speak righteousness, silent ones? Do you judge blamelessly, you sons of men?

2 No, in your heart you plot injustice. You measure out the violence of your hands in the earth.

3 The wicked go astray from the womb. They are wayward as soon as they are born, speaking lies.

4 Their poison is like the poison of a snake; like a deaf cobra that stops its ear,

5 which doesn't listen to the voice of charmers, no matter how skillful the charmer may be.

6 Break their teeth, God, in their mouth. Break out the great teeth of the young lions, Lord.

7 Let them vanish as water that flows away. When they draw the bow, let their arrows be made blunt.

8 Let them be like a snail which melts and passes away, like the stillborn child, who has not seen the sun.

9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns, he will sweep away the green and the burning alike.

10 The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance. He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked;

11 so that men shall say, "Most certainly there is a reward for the righteous. Most certainly there is a God who judges the earth."