Monday, September 8

10Now Jacob went out from the Well of Oath and went toward Haran.

11So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. Then he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.

12Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

13So behold, the Lord stood above it and said, 'I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. Do not fear, the land on which you lie I will give to you and your seed.

14Also, your seed shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the tribes of the earth shall be blessed.

15Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.'

16Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, 'The Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.'

17So he was afraid and said, 'How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.'

27It will be when these days are over, on the eighth day, the priests shall offer your whole burnt offerings and your peace offerings on the altar, and I shall accept you,' says the Lord.'

1Then He brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary that faces toward the east, but it was shut.

2So the Lord said to me, 'This gate shall be shut. It shall not be opened, and no man shall pass through it, because the Lord God of Israel will enter by it; therefore, it shall be shut.

3As for the prince, he will sit in it to eat bread before the Lord. He will go in by way of the gate chamber and go out the same way.'

4Then He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple, and I looked, and behold, the house of the Lord was full of glory; and I fell on my face.

1Wisdom built her house, And she supported it with seven pillars.

2She offered her sacrifices; She mixed her wine in a bowl And prepared her table.

3She sent her servants, Inviting people to the bowl with a lofty proclamation, saying,

4"He who is without discernment, Let him turn aside to me"; And to those in need of discernment, she says,

5"Come, eat my bread And drink the wine I mixed for you;

6Forsake lack of discernment, and you shall live; Seek discernment so you may live, And keep straight your understanding with knowledge."

7He who chastises evil men shall receive dishonor to himself, And he who reproves the ungodly man shall be blamed himself.

8Do not reprove evil men, so they may not hate you; Reprove a wise man, and he will love you.

9Give the opportunity to a wise man, and he will be wiser; Instruct a righteous man, and he shall continue to receive it.

10The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the counsel of saints is understanding; For to know the law is characteristic of a good mind.

11For in this manner you will live a long time, And the years of your life shall be increased.

39Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah,

40and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.

41And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

42Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

43But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

44For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

45Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.'

46'My soul magnifies the Lord,

47And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

48For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.

49For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name.

50And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation.

51He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

52He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly.

53He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty.

54He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy,

55As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.'

56And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.

5Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,

6who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,

7but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.

8And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

9Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,

10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,

11and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

10Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

11I have become a fool in boasting; you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you; for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles, though I am nothing.

12Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds.

13For what is it in which you were inferior to other churches, except that I myself was not burdensome to you? Forgive me this wrong!

14Now for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be burdensome to you; for I do not seek yours, but you. For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.

15And I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I am loved.

16But be that as it may, I did not burden you. Nevertheless, being crafty, I caught you by cunning!

17Did I take advantage of you by any of those whom I sent to you?

18I urged Titus, and sent our brother with him. Did Titus take advantage of you? Did we not walk in the same spirit? Did we not walk in the same steps?

19Again, do you think that we excuse ourselves to you? We speak before God in Christ. But we do all things, beloved, for your edification.

38Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.

39And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.

40But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, 'Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.'

41And Jesus answered and said to her, 'Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.

42But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.'

1Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, 'Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.'

2So He said to them, 'When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.

3Give us day by day our daily bread.

4And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.'

5And He said to them, 'Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves;

6for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him';

7and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'?

8I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.

9'So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

10For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

11If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?

12Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

13If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!'

14And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute. So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; and the multitudes marveled.

15But some of them said, 'He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.'

16Others, testing Him, sought from Him a sign from heaven.

17But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them: 'Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.

18If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.

19And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges.

20But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.

21When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.

22But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.

23He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

24'When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'

25And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.

26Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.'

27And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, 'Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!'

28But He said, 'More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!'

10But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.

11And He said to them, 'To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables,

12so that 'Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.' '

13And He said to them, 'Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?

14The sower sows the word.

15And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.

16These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness;

17and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.

18Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word,

19and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

20But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.'

21Also He said to them, 'Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand?

22For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.

23If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.'