Day 324 of 365

Ezek 30:1–31:18

30:1 The word of the Lord came again to me, saying,

30:2 "Son of man, prophesy, and say, 'Thus says the Lord God: "Wail, 'Alas for the day!'

30:3 For the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near; it shall be a day of clouds, a time of the nations.

30:4 A sword shall come on Egypt, and anguish shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain shall fall in Egypt; and they shall take away her multitude, and her foundations shall be broken down.

30:5 Ethiopia, and Put, and Lud, and all the mixed people, and Cub, and the children of the land that is allied with them, shall fall with them by the sword."'

30:6 "Thus says the Lord: 'They also who uphold Egypt shall fall; and the pride of her power shall come down: from the tower of Seveneh shall they fall in it by the sword,' says the Lord God.

30:7 'They shall be desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate; and her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are wasted.

30:8 They shall know that I am the Lord, when I have set a fire in Egypt, and all her helpers are destroyed.

30:9 In that day shall messengers go forth from before me in ships to make the careless Ethiopians afraid; and there shall be anguish on them, as in the day of Egypt; for, behold, it comes.'

30:10 "Thus says the Lord God: 'I will also make the multitude of Egypt to cease, by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

30:11 He and his people with him, the terrible of the nations, shall be brought in to destroy the land; and they shall draw their swords against Egypt, and fill the land with the slain.

30:12 I will make the rivers dry, and will sell the land into the hand of evil men; and I will make the land desolate, and all that is therein, by the hand of strangers: I, the Lord, have spoken it.'

30:13 "Thus says the Lord God: 'I will also destroy the idols, and I will cause the images to cease from Memphis; and there shall be no more a prince from the land of Egypt: and I will put a fear in the land of Egypt.

30:14 I will make Pathros desolate, and will set a fire in Zoan, and will execute judgments on No.

30:15 I will pour my wrath on Sin, the stronghold of Egypt; and I will cut off the multitude of No.

30:16 I will set a fire in Egypt: Sin shall be in great anguish, and No shall be broken up; and Memphis shall have adversaries in the daytime.

30:17 The young men of Aven and of Pibeseth shall fall by the sword; and these cities shall go into captivity.

30:18 At Tehaphnehes also the day shall withdraw itself, when I shall break there the yokes of Egypt, and the pride of her power shall cease in her: as for her, a cloud shall cover her, and her daughters shall go into captivity.

30:19 Thus will I execute judgments on Egypt; and they shall know that I am the Lord.'"

30:20 It happened in the eleventh year, in the first month, in the seventh day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

30:21 "Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and behold, it has not been bound up, to apply healing medicines, to put a bandage to bind it, that it be strong to hold the sword.

30:22 Therefore thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will break his arms, the strong arm, and that which was broken; and I will cause the sword to fall out of his hand.

30:23 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries.

30:24 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 shall groan before him with the groanings of a deadly wounded man.

30:25 I will hold up the arms of the king of Babylon; and the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall stretch it out on the land of Egypt.

30:26 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them through the countries; and they shall know that I am the Lord.'"

31:1 It happened in the eleventh year, in the third month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

31:2 "Son of man, tell Pharaoh king of Egypt, and to his multitude: 'Whom are you like in your greatness?

31:3 Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with beautiful branches, and with a forest-like shade, and of high stature; and its top was among the thick boughs.

31:4 The waters nourished it, the deep made it to grow: its rivers ran all around its plantation; and it sent out its channels to all the trees of the field.

31:5 Therefore its stature was exalted above all the trees of the field; and its boughs were multiplied, and its branches became long by reason of many waters, when it shot them forth.

31:6 All the birds of the sky made their nests in its boughs; and under its branches all the animals of the field brought forth their young; and all great nations lived under its shadow.

31:7 Thus was it beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches; for its root was by many waters.

31:8 The cedars in the garden of God could not hide it; the fir trees were not like its boughs, and the plane trees were not as its branches; nor was any tree in the garden of God like it in its beauty.

31:9 I made it beautiful by the multitude of its branches, so that all the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied it.'

31:10 "Therefore thus said the Lord God: 'Because you are exalted in stature, and he has set his top among the thick boughs, and his heart is lifted up in his height;

31:11 I will even deliver him into the hand of the mighty one of the nations; he shall surely deal with him; I have driven him out for his wickedness.

31:12 Strangers, the terrible of the nations, have cut him off, and have left him: on the mountains and in all the valleys his branches are fallen, and his boughs are broken by all the watercourses of the land; and all the peoples of the earth are gone down from his shadow, and have left him.

31:13 On his ruin all the birds of the sky shall dwell, and all the animals of the field shall be on his branches;

31:14 to the end that none of all the trees by the waters exalt themselves in their stature, neither set their top among the thick boughs, nor that their mighty ones stand up on their height, even all who drink water: for they are all delivered to death, to the lower parts of the earth, in the midst of the children of men, with those who go down to the pit.'

31:15 "Thus says the Lord God: 'In the day when he went down to Sheol I caused a mourning: I covered the deep for him, and I restrained its rivers; and the great waters were stayed; and I caused Lebanon to mourn for him, and all the trees of the field fainted for him.

31:16 I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to Sheol with those who descend into the pit; and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, were comforted in the lower parts of the earth.

31:17 They also went down into Sheol with him to those who are slain by the sword; yes, those who were his arm, that lived under his shadow in the midst of the nations.

31:18 To whom are you thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? Yet you will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the lower parts of the earth: you shall lie in the midst of the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude,' says the Lord God."

2 Tim 4:1–22

1 I command you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his Kingdom:

2 proclaim the word; be urgent in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with all patience and teaching.

3 For the time will come when they will not listen to the sound doctrine, but, having itching ears, will heap up for themselves teachers after their own lusts;

4 and will turn away their ears from the truth, and turn aside to myths.

5 But you be sober in all things, suffer hardship, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your ministry.

6 For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure has come.

7 I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith.

8 From now on, there is stored up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day; and not to me only, but also to all those who have loved his appearing.

9 Be diligent to come to me soon,

10 for Demas left me, having loved this present world, and went to Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.

11 Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.

12 But I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.

13 Bring the cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus when you come, and the books, especially the parchments.

14 Alexander, the coppersmith, did much evil to me. The Lord will repay him according to his works,

15 of whom you also must beware; for he greatly opposed our words.

16 At my first defense, no one came to help me, but all left me. May it not be held against them.

17 But the Lord stood by me, and strengthened me, that through me the message might be fully proclaimed, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.

18 And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me for his heavenly Kingdom; to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

19 Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the house of Onesiphorus.

20 Erastus remained at Corinth, but I left Trophimus at Miletus sick.

21 Be diligent to come before winter. Eubulus salutes you, as do Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers.

22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.

Job 33:1–11

1 "However, Job, Please hear my speech, and listen to all my words.

2 See now, I have opened my mouth. My tongue has spoken in my mouth.

3 My words shall utter the uprightness of my heart. That which my lips know they shall speak sincerely.

4 The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

5 If you can, answer me. Set your words in order before me, and stand forth.

6 Behold, I am toward God even as you are. I am also formed out of the clay.

7 Behold, my terror shall not make you afraid, neither shall my pressure be heavy on you.

8 "Surely you have spoken in my hearing, I have heard the voice of your words, saying,

9 'I am clean, without disobedience. I am innocent, neither is there iniquity in me.

10 Behold, he finds occasions against me. He counts me for his enemy.

11 He puts my feet in the stocks. He marks all my paths.'