Day 142 of 365

1 Sam 12:1–13:23

12:1 Samuel said to all Israel, "Behold, I have listened to your voice in all that you said to me, and have made a king over you.

12:2 Now, behold, the king walks before you; and I am old and gray-headed; and behold, my sons are with you: and I have walked before you from my youth to this day.

12:3 Here I am. Witness against me before the Lord, and before his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Of whose hand have I taken a ransom to blind my eyes therewith? I will restore it to you."

12:4 They said, "You have not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither have you taken anything of any man's hand."

12:5 He said to them, "The Lord is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand." They said, "He is witness."

12:6 Samuel said to the people, "It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.

12:7 Now therefore stand still, that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous acts of the Lord, which he did to you and to your fathers.

12:8 "When Jacob had come into Egypt, and your fathers cried to the Lord, then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your fathers out of Egypt, and made them to dwell in this place.

12:9 "But they forgot the Lord their God; and he sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the army of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab; and they fought against them.

12:10 They cried to the Lord, and said, 'We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord, and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth: but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.'

12:11 The Lord sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side; and you lived in safety.

12:12 "When you saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, you said to me, 'No, but a king shall reign over us;' when the Lord your God was your king.

12:13 Now therefore see the king whom you have chosen, and whom you have asked for: and behold, the Lord has set a king over you.

12:14 If you will fear the Lord, and serve him, and listen to his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and also the king who reigns over you are followers of the Lord your God.

12:15 But if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then will the hand of the Lord be against you, as it was against your fathers.

12:16 "Now therefore stand still and see this great thing, which the Lord will do before your eyes.

12:17 Isn't it wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord, that he may send thunder and rain; and you shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking for a king."

12:18 So Samuel called to the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

12:19 All the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we not die; for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask us a king."

12:20 Samuel said to the people, "Do not be afraid. You have indeed done all this evil; yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart.

12:21 Do not turn aside to go after vain things which can't profit nor deliver, for they are vain.

12:22 For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people to himself.

12:23 Moreover as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will instruct you in the good and the right way.

12:24 Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart; for consider how great things he has done for you.

12:25 But if you shall still do wickedly, you shall be consumed, both you and your king."

13:1 Saul reigned a year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

13:2 Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel, of which two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in the Mount of Bethel, and one thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin: and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent.

13:3 Jonathan struck the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba: and the Philistines heard of it. Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, "Let the Hebrews hear!"

13:4 All Israel heard that Saul had struck the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel was had in abomination with the Philistines. The people were gathered together after Saul to Gilgal.

13:5 The Philistines assembled themselves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude: and they came up, and encamped in Michmash, eastward of Beth Aven.

13:6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait (for the people were distressed), then the people hid themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in coverts, and in pits.

13:7 Now some of the Hebrews had gone over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead; but as for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

13:8 He stayed seven days, according to the time set by Samuel: but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.

13:9 Saul said, "Bring here the burnt offering to me, and the peace offerings." He offered the burnt offering.

13:10 It came to pass that as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him.

13:11 Samuel said, "What have you done?" Saul said, "Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines assembled themselves together at Michmash;

13:12 therefore I said, 'Now the Philistines will come down on me to Gilgal, and I haven't entreated the favor of the Lord.' I forced myself therefore, and offered the burnt offering."

13:13 Samuel said to Saul, "You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which he commanded you; for now the Lord would have established your kingdom on Israel forever.

13:14 But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for himself a man after his own heart, and the Lord has appointed him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept that which the Lord commanded you."

13:15 Samuel arose, and went from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. Saul numbered the people who were present with him, about six hundred men.

13:16 Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people who were present with them, stayed in Geba of Benjamin: but the Philistines encamped in Michmash.

13:17 The spoilers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies: one company turned to the way that leads to Ophrah, to the land of Shual;

13:18 and another company turned the way to Beth Horon; and another company turned the way of the border that looks down on the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.

13:19 Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel; for the Philistines said, "Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears";

13:20 but all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his plowshare, mattock, axe, and sickle;

13:21 yet they had a file for the mattocks, and for the plowshares, and for the forks, and for the axes, and to set the goads.

13:22 So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found.

13:23 The garrison of the Philistines went out to the pass of Michmash.

John 7:39–8:11

7:39 But he said this about the Spirit, which those believing in him were to receive. For the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

7:40 Some of the multitude therefore, when they heard these words, said, "This is truly the Prophet."

7:41 Others said, "This is the Messiah." But some said, "What, does the Messiah come out of Galilee?

7:42 Hasn't the Scripture said that the Messiah comes of the seed of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?"

7:43 So there arose a division in the multitude because of him.

7:44 Some of them would have arrested him, but no one laid hands on him.

7:45 The officers therefore came to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said to them, "Why did you not bring him?"

7:46 The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this man!"

7:47 The Pharisees therefore answered them, "You are not also led astray, are you?

7:48 Have any of the rulers believed in him, or of the Pharisees?

7:49 But this multitude that does not know the Law is accursed."

7:50 Nicodemus (he who came to him before, being one of them) said to them,

7:51 "Does our Law judge a man, unless it first hears from him personally and knows what he does?"

7:52 They answered him, "Are you also from Galilee? Search, and see that no prophet has arisen out of Galilee."

7:53 Everyone went to his own house,

8:1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

8:2 Now very early in the morning, he came again into the temple, and all the people came to him. He sat down, and taught them.

8:3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman taken in adultery. Having set her in the midst,

8:4 they told him, "Teacher, we found this woman in adultery, in the very act.

8:5 Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such. What then do you say about her?"

8:6 They said this testing him, that they might have something to accuse him of. But Jesus stooped down, and wrote on the ground with his finger.

8:7 But when they continued asking him, he looked up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw the first stone at her."

8:8 Again he stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground.

8:9 They, when they heard it, went out one by one, beginning from the oldest, even to the last. Jesus was left alone with the woman where she was, in the middle.

8:10 Jesus, standing up, said to her, "Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?"

8:11 She said, "No one, Lord." Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way. From now on, sin no more."

Eccl 1:7–18

7 All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full. To the place where the rivers flow, there they flow again.

8 All things are full of weariness beyond uttering. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.

9 That which has been is that which shall be; and that which has been done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

10 Is there a thing of which it may be said, "Behold, this is new?" It has been long ago, in the ages which were before us.

11 There is no memory of the former; neither shall there be any memory of the latter that are to come, among those that shall come after.

12 I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

13 I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a heavy burden that God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.

14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and behold, all is vanity and a chasing after wind.

15 That which is crooked can't be made straight; and that which is lacking can't be counted.

16 I said to myself, "Behold, I have obtained for myself great wisdom above all who were before me in Jerusalem. Yes, my heart has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge."

17 I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also was a chasing after wind.

18 For in much wisdom is much grief; and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.