Reading for Today:
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Deuteronomy 15:1
Chapter 15 1 At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release.
–16:22
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Psalms 37:30-36
30 The mouth of the righteous talketh of wisdom, And his tongue speaketh justice. 31 The law of his God is in his heart; None of his steps shall slide. 32 The wicked watcheth the righteous, And seeketh to slay him. 33 Jehovah will not leave him in his hand, Nor condemn him when he is judged. 34 Wait for Jehovah, and keep his way, And he will exalt thee to inherit the land: When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it. 35 I have seen the wicked in great power, And spreading himself like a green tree in its native soil. 36 But one passed by, and, lo, he was not: Yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
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Proverbs 12:17-19
17 He that uttereth truth showeth forth righteousness; But a false witness, deceit. 18 There is that speaketh rashly like the piercings of a sword; But the tongue of the wise is health. 19 The lip of truth shall be established for ever; But a lying tongue is but for a moment.
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Luke 3:1-38
Chapter 3 1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 in the highpriesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. 3 And he came into all the region round about the Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance unto remission of sins; 4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye ready the way of the Lord, Make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, And every mountain and hill shall be brought low; And the crooked shall become straight, And the rough ways smooth; 6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. 7 He said therefore to the multitudes that went out to be baptized of him, Ye offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. 9 And even now the axe also lieth at the root of the trees: every tree therefore that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 10 And the multitudes asked him, saying, What then must we do? 11 And he answered and said unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath food, let him do likewise. 12 And there came also publicans to be baptized, and they said unto him, Teacher, what must we do? 13 And he said unto them, Extort no more than that which is appointed you. 14 And soldiers also asked him, saying, And we, what must we do? And he said unto them, Extort from no man by violence, neither accuse `any one' wrongfully; and be content with your wages. 15 And as the people were in expectation, and all men reasoned in their hearts concerning John, whether haply he were the Christ; 16 John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but there cometh he that is mightier than I, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit and `in' fire: 17 whose fan is in his hand, thoroughly to cleanse his threshing-floor, and to gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire. 18 With many other exhortations therefore preached he good tidings unto the people; 19 but Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him for Herodias his brother's wife, and for all the evil things which Herod had done, 20 added this also to them all, that he shut up John in prison. 21 Now it came to pass, when all the people were baptized, that, Jesus also having been baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form, as a dove, upon him, and a voice came out of heaven, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased. 23 And Jesus himself, when he began `to teach', was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the `son' of Heli, 24 the `son' of Matthat, the `son' of Levi, the `son' of Melchi, the `son' of Jannai, the `son' of Joseph, 25 the `son' of Mattathias, the `son' of Amos, the `son' of Nahum, the `son' of Esli, the `son' of Naggai, 26 the `son' of Maath, the `son' of Mattathias, the `son' of Semein, the `son' of Josech, the `son' of Joda, 27 the `son' of Joanan, the `son' of Rhesa, the `son' of Zerubbabel, the `son' of Shealtiel, the `son' of Neri, 28 the `son' of Melchi, the `son' of Addi, the `son' of Cosam, the `son' of Elmadam, the `son' of Er, 29 the `son' of Jesus, the `son' of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the `son' of Matthat, the `son' of Levi, 30 the `son' of Symeon, the `son' of Judas, the `son' of Joseph, the `son' of Jonam, the `son' of Eliakim, 31 the `son' of Melea, the `son' of Menna, the `son' of Mattatha, the `son' of Nathan, the `son' of David, 32 the `son' of Jesse, the `son' of Obed, the `son' of Boaz, the `son' of Salmon, the `son' of Nahshon, 33 the `son' of Amminadab, the `son' of Arni, the `son' of Hezron, the `son' of Perez, the `son' of Judah, 34 the `son' of Jacob, the `son' of Isaac, the `son' of Abraham, the `son' of Terah, the `son' of Nahor, 35 the `son' of Serug, the `son' of Reu, the `son' of Peleg, the `son' of Eber, the `son' of Shelah, 36 the `son' of Cainan, the `son' of Arphaxad, the `son' of Shem, the `son' of Noah, the `son' of Lamech, 37 the `son' of Methuselah, the `son' of Enoch, the `son' of Jared, the `son' of Mahalaleel, the `son' of Cainan, 38 the `son' of Enos, the `son' of Seth, the `son' of Adam, the `son' of God.
Notes:
Deuteronomy 16:21, 22 wooden image…sacred pillar. A reference to the wooden poles, images, or trees that represented the Canaanite goddess Asherah. A stone pillar symbolic of male fertility was also prevalent in the Canaanite religion. These were forbidden by the first two commandments (Ex. 20:3–6; Deut. 5:7–10).
Proverbs 12:18 speaks…piercings. The contrast here is between cutting words that are blurted out (Ps. 106:33) and thoughtful words that bring health (Eph. 4:29, 30).
Luke 3:2 Annas and Caiaphas were high priests. According to Josephus, Annas served as high priest A.D. 6–15, when he was deposed by Roman officials. He nonetheless retained de facto power, as seen in the fact that his successors included 5 of his sons and Caiaphas, a son-in-law (Matt. 26:3).Caiaphas was the actual high priest during the time Luke describes, but Annas still controlled the office. This is seen clearly in the fact that Christ was taken to Annas first after His arrest, then to Caiaphas (Matt. 26:57).
Luke 3:4 Make His paths straight. Quoted from
Isaiah 40:3
3 The voice of one that crieth, Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of Jehovah; make level in the desert a highway for our God.
–5.A monarch traveling in wilderness regions would have a crew of workmen go ahead to make sure the road was clear of debris, obstructions, potholes, and other hazards that made the journey difficult. In a spiritual sense, John was calling the people of Israel to prepare their hearts for the coming of their Messiah.
DAY 27: How were God’s people to treat the poor?
As the Israelites prepared to enter the Promised Land,
Deuteronomy 15:4
4 Howbeit there shall be no poor with thee; (for Jehovah will surely bless thee in the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to possess it;)
has an interesting statement “except when there may be no poor.” Idealistically, there was the possibility that poverty would be eradicated in the land “for the LORD will greatly bless you in the land.” The fullness of that blessing, however, would be contingent on the completeness of Israel’s obedience. Thus, vv. 4–6 were an encouragement to strive for a reduction of poverty while at the same time they stressed the abundance of the provision God would make in the Promised Land.
God specifically warns them about hardening their hearts against the poor, but to “open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need” (v. 8). The attitude of the Israelites toward the poor in their community was to be one of warmth and generosity. The poor were given whatever was necessary to meet their needs, even with the realization that such “loans” would never need to be paid back.
“For the poor will never cease from the land,” Moses adds (v. 11). Realistically (in contrast to v. 4), the disobedience toward the Lord on Israel’s part meant that there would always be poor people in the land of Israel. Jesus repeated this truism in
Matthew 26:11
11 For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.
. Even if a Hebrew was sold into a period of servitude for his debts, his master “shall not let him go away empty-handed” (Deut. 15:13). When a slave had completed his time of service, his former owner was to make ample provision for him so that he would not begin his state of new freedom in destitution.
From The MacArthur Daily Bible Copyright © 2003. Used by permission of Thomas Nelson Bibles, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc, Nashville, TN 37214, www.thomasnelson.com.
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