Day 265, September 22: Bible reading & prayer
Zechariah 8-14 (chronological); Song of Songs 4-5, 2 Corinthians 13 (OT/NT)
Today we finish Zechariah. As we’ve read so far in Ezra, the LORD fulfilled His word through His prophets by inspiring Cyrus King of Persia to issue a decree that the LORD’s people could return to Israel in order to rebuild the temple. Over 40,000 exiles returned to the land of Israel, re-established sacrifice, and laid the foundation of the temple (Day 261), but they were stopped by force of arms by their enemies in the land and a decree from King Artaxerxes. It was the words of both Haggai and Zechariah that inspired them to continue rebuilding the temple, in the second year of King Darius, even though they were still under a governmental decree against them doing just that. They were confronted by their enemies, the local authorities under the king of Persia, but God gave them favor and they did not stop them from building until they wrote a letter to King Darius and he replied. King Darius issued a decree and search was made in the archives where the treasures were stored in Babylon. They found the decree issued by King Cyrus, so King Darius replied to let the Jews rebuild the house of God, with the full cost, for materials and sacrifices, by the royal treasury. The temple was completed in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius (Day 262).
Haggai spoke on the first day of the sixth month of the second year of Darius King of Persia, and the people started rebuilding the temple on the twenty-fourth day of that month (Day 263). The LORD spoke again through him one month letter when He encouraged the people in their building and shared that the latter glory of the temple would be greater than the former.
As we read yesterday, the LORD first spoke through Zechariah one month later, in the eighth month of the second year of Darius, explaining that He had punished Israel for their failure to repent, but that they had finally repented when all that He had warned about by His prophets regarding their exile had come to pass (Day 264). The LORD spoke through Haggai one last time one month after that with a similar message, acknowledging the distress He had brought on His people for their disobedience. He then promised to bless them for their obedience and revealed that He had chosen Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, descendant of the line of King David, governor of Judah at that time, as His servant (Day 263). The LORD revealed visions to Zechariah three months later that held more promise and explanation for the future: the LORD will punish the nations He used to punish Jerusalem; He will again choose, prosper, and protect Jerusalem; He defended Joshua, the high priest at the time of Zechariah, against the accusations of Satan, saying He would forgive his iniquities, and that He will send His servant the Branch to remove the iniquity of the land in one day; Zerubbabel will finish the temple; the LORD will purge those who sin; wickedness will be enthroned in Babylon; and the LORD’s servant, the Branch, will be both priest and king (Day 264).
The LORD did not speak through Zechariah for another two years, until men from Bethel came to seek the favor of the LORD and ask if they should continue their ritual of worship. Remember that when the kingdom of Israel separated from the kingdom of Judah, their first king Jeroboam established idol worship in both Bethel and Dan, a sin from which Israel never departed. He asked them, “When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months these seventy years, was it actually for Me that you fasted? When you eat and drink, do you not eat for yourselves and do you not drink for yourselves?” He reminded them that He had scattered them because of their failure to repent from their sin, though they had the Law and He had sent His prophets to warn them. This reminder of the divided kingdoms, in the era of the kings of Judah and the kings of Israel, seems significant for the LORD’s subsequent revelations to Zechariah in today’s reading.
An overview of our yearly Bible reading plan, with all summaries so far, can be found here. My appeal for the resolution to read your Bibles is here.
September 22 chronological reading: Zechariah 8-14
Zechariah 8
v1-8 “Then the word of the LORD of hosts came, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “I am exceedingly jealous for Zion, yes, with great wrath I am jealous for her.” Thus says the LORD, ‘I will return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.” Thus says the LORD of hosts, “Old men and old women will again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each man with his staff in his hand because of age. And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing in its streets.” Thus says the LORD of hosts, “If it is too difficult in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, will it also be too difficult in My sight?” declares the LORD of hosts. Thus says the LORD of hosts, “Behold, I am going to save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the west; and I will bring them back and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God in truth and righteousness.”
v9-13 ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “Let your hands be strong, you who are listening in these days to these words from the mouth of the prophets, those who spoke in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, to the end that the temple might be built. For before those days there was no wage for man or any wage for animal; and for him who went out or came in there was no peace because of his enemies, and I set all men on against another. But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,” declares the LORD of hosts. “For there will be peace for the seed: the vine will yield its fruit, the land will yield its produce and the heavens will give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things. It will come about that just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you that you may become a blessing. Do not fear; let your hands be strong.”
v14-17 ‘For thus says the LORD of hosts, “Just as I purposed to do harm to you when your fathers provoked Me to wrath,” says the LORD of hosts, “and I have not relented, so I have again purposed in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear! These are the things which you should do: speak the truth to one another; judge with truth and judgment for peace in your gates. Also let none of you devise evil in your heart against another, and do not love perjury; for all these are what I hate,” declares the LORD.’
v18-19 “Then the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “The fast of the fourth, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth months will become joy, gladness, and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah; so love truth and peace.”
v20-23 ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “It will yet be that peoples will come, even the inhabitants of many cities. The inhabitants of one will go to another, saying, ‘Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts; I will also go.’ So many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the LORD.” Thus says the LORD of hosts, “In those days ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’”’”
Zechariah 9
v1-7 “The burden of the word of the LORD is against the land of Hadrach, with Damascus as its resting place (for the eyes of men, especially of all the tribes of Israel, are toward the LORD),
And Hamath also, which borders on it; Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise.
For Tyre built herself a fortress
And piled up silver like dust,
And gold like the mire of the streets.
Behold, the Lord will dispossess her And cast her wealth into the sea;
And she will be consumed with fire.
Ashkelon will see it and be afraid.
Gaza too will writhe in great pain;
Also Ekron, for her expectation has been confounded.
Moreover, the king will perish from Gaza,
And Ashkelon will not be inhabited.
And a mongrel race will dwell in Ashdod,
And I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.
And I will remove their blood from their mouth
And their detestable things from between their teeth.
Then they also will be a remnant for our God,
And be like a clan in Judah,
And Ekron like a Jebusite.
v8-10 “But I will camp around My house because of an army,
Because of him who passes by and returns;
And no oppressor will pass over them anymore,
For now I have seen with My eyes.
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
And the horse from Jerusalem;
And the bow of war will be cut off.
And He will speak peace to the nations;
And His dominion will be from sea to sea,
And from the River to the ends of the earth.
v11-17 “As for you also, because of the blood of My covenant with you, I have set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
Return to the stronghold, O prisoners who have the hope;
This very day I am declaring that I will restore double to you.
For I will bend Judah as My bow,
I will fill the bow with Ephraim.
And I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece;
And I will make you like a warrior’s sword.
Then the LORD will appear over them, And His arrow will go forth like lightning;
And the Lord GOD will blow the trumpet,
And will march in the storm winds of the south.
The LORD of hosts will defend them. And they will devour and trample on the sling stones;
And they will drink and be boisterous as with wine;
And they will be filled like a sacrificial basin,
Drenched like the corners of the altar.
And the LORD their God will save them in that day
As the flock of His people;
For they are as the stones of a crown,
Sparkling in His land.
For what comeliness and beauty will be theirs! Grain will make the young men flourish, and new wine the virgins.”
Zechariah 10
v1-2 “Ask rain from the LORD at the time of the spring rain— The LORD who makes the storm clouds; And He will give them showers of rain, vegetation in the field to each man.
For the teraphim speak iniquity,
And the diviners see lying visions
And tell false dreams;
They comfort in vain.
Therefore the people wander like sheep,
They are afflicted, because there is no shepherd.
v3-6 ‘My anger is kindled against the shepherds,
And I will punish the male goats;
For the LORD of hosts has visited His flock, the house of Judah,
And will make them like His majestic horse in battle.
From them will come the cornerstone,
From them the tent peg,
From them the bow of battle,
From them every ruler, all of them together.
They will be as mighty men,
Treading down the enemy in the mire of the streets in battle;
And they will fight, for the LORD will be with them; And the riders on horses will be put to shame.
I will strengthen the house of Judah,
And I will save the house of Joseph,
And I will bring them back,
Because I have had compassion on them; And they will be as though I had not rejected them, For I am the LORD their God and I will answer them.
v7-12 ‘Ephraim will be like a mighty man,
And their heart will be glad as if from wine;
Indeed, their children will see it and be glad,
Their heart will rejoice in the LORD.
I will whistle for them to gather them together, For I have redeemed them; And they will be as numerous as they were before.
When I scatter them among the peoples,
They will remember Me in far countries,
And they with their children will live and come back.
I will bring them back from the land of Egypt
And gather them from Assyria;
And I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon
Until no room can be found for them.
And they will pass through the sea of distress
And He will strike the waves in the sea,
So that all the depths of the Nile will dry up; And the pride of Assyria will be brought down
And the scepter of Egypt will depart.
And I will strengthen them in the LORD,
And in His name they will walk,’ declares the LORD.”
Zechariah 11
v1-3 “Open your doors, O Lebanon, That a fire may feed on your cedars.
Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen,
Because the glorious trees have been destroyed;
Wail, O oaks of Bashan,
For the impenetrable forest has come down.
There is a sound of the shepherds’ wail,
For their glory is ruined;
There is a sound of the young lions’ roar,
For the pride of the Jordan is ruined.
v4-6 “Thus says the LORD my God, ‘Pasture the flock doomed to slaughter. Those who buy them slay them and go unpunished, and each of those who sell them says, “Blessed be the LORD, for I have become rich!” And their own shepherds have no pity on them. For I will no longer have pity on the inhabitants of the land,’ declares the LORD; ‘but behold, I will cause the men to fall, each into another’s power and into the power of his king; and they will strike the land, and I will not deliver them from their power.’
v7-14 “So I pastured the flock doomed to slaughter, hence the afflicted of the flock. And I took for myself two staffs: the one I called Favor and the other I called Union; so I pastured the flock. Then I annihilated the three shepherds in one month, for my soul was impatient with them, and their soul also was weary of me. Then I said, ‘I will not pasture you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be annihilated, let it be annihilated; and let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.’ I took my staff Favor and cut it in pieces, to break my covenant which I had made with all the peoples. So it was broken on that day, and thus the afflicted of the flock who were watching me realized that it was the word of the LORD. I said to them, ‘If it is good in your sight, give me my wages; but if not, never mind!’ So they weighed out thirty shekels of silver as my wages. Then the LORD said to me, ‘Throw it to the potter, that magnificent price at which I was valued by them.’ So I took the thirty shekels of silver and threw them to the potter in the house of the LORD. Then I cut in pieces my second staff Union, to break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
v15-17 “The LORD said to me, ‘Take again for yourself the equipment of a foolish shepherd. For behold, I am going to raise up a shepherd in the land who will not care for the perishing, seek the scattered, heal the broken, or sustain the one standing, but will devour the flesh of the fat sheep and tear off their hoofs.
Woe to the worthless shepherd
Who leaves the flock!
A sword will be on his arm
And on his right eye!
His arm will be totally withered
And his right eye will be blind.’”
Zechariah 12
v1-5 “The burden of the word of the LORD concerning Israel. Thus declares the LORD who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him, ‘Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it. In that day,’ declares the LORD, ‘I will strike every horse with bewilderment and his rider with madness. But I will watch over the house of Judah, while I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. Then the clans of Judah will say in their hearts, “A strong support for us are the inhabitants of Jerusalem through the LORD of hosts, their God.”
v6-9 ‘In that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot among pieces of wood and a flaming torch among sheaves, so they will consume on the right hand and on the left all the surrounding peoples, while the inhabitants of Jerusalem again dwell on their own sites in Jerusalem. The LORD also will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will not be magnified above Judah. In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the one who is feeble among them in that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the LORD before them. And in that day I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
v10-14 ‘I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. In that day there will be great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, every family by itself; the family of the house of David by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself and their wives by themselves; all the families that remain, every family by itself and their wives by themselves.’”
Zechariah 13
v1 “‘In that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for impurity.
v2-6 ‘It will come about in that day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ‘that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered; and I will also remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land. And if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who gave birth to him will say to him, “You shall not live, for you have spoken falsely in the name of the LORD”; and his father and mother who gave birth to him will pierce him through when he prophesies. Also it will come about in that day that the prophets will each be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies, and they will not put on a hairy robe in order to deceive; but he will say, “I am not a prophet; I am a tiller of the ground, for a man sold me as a slave in my youth.” And one will say to him, “What are these wounds between your arms?” Then he will say, “Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.”
v7-9 ‘Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd,
And against the man, My Associate,’
Declares the LORD of hosts.
‘Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered;
And I will turn My hand against the little ones.
It will come about in all the land,’
Declares the LORD,
‘That two parts in it will be cut off and perish;
But the third will be left in it.
And I will bring the third part through the fire,
Refine them as silver is refined,
And test them as gold is tested.
They will call on My name,
And I will answer them; I will say, “They are My people,”
And they will say, “The LORD is my God.”’”
Zechariah 14
v1-5 “Behold, a day is coming for the LORD when the spoil taken from you will be divided among you. For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city. Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle. In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south. You will flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains will reach to Azel; yes, you will flee just as you fled before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD, my God, will come, and all the holy ones with Him!
v6-7 “In that day there will be no light; the luminaries will dwindle. For it will be a unique day which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but it will come about that at evening time there will be light.
v8 “And in that day living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea; it will be in summer as well as in winter.
v9 “And the LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day the LORD will be the only one, and His name the only one.
v10-11 “All the land will be changed into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; but Jerusalem will rise and remain on its site from Benjamin’s Gate as far as the place of the First Gate to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s wine presses. People will live in it, and there will no longer be a curse, for Jerusalem will dwell in security.
v12-15 “Now this will be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem; their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongue will rot in their mouth. It will come about in that day that a great panic from the LORD will fall on them; and they will seize one another’s hand, and the hand of one will be lifted against the hand of another. Judah also will fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the surrounding nations will be gathered, gold and silver and garments in great abundance. So also like this plague will be the plague on the horse, the mule, the camel, the donkey and all the cattle that will be in those camps.
v16-19 “Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths. And it will be that whichever of the families of the earth does not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain on them. If the family of Egypt does not go up or enter, then no rain will fall on them; it will be the plague with which the LORD smites the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths. This will be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths.
v20-21 “In that day there will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, ‘HOLY TO THE LORD.’ And the cooking pots in the LORD’S house will be like the bowls before the altar. Every cooking pot in Jerusalem and in Judah will be holy to the LORD of hosts; and all who sacrifice will come and take of them and boil in them. And there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts in that day.”
September 22 OT/NT readings: Song of Songs 4-5, 2 Corinthians 13
We are reading Song of Songs in the Old Testament reading plan. We read this book in its entirety on Day 153 of the chronological reading plan.
Today we finish the apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians in the New Testament reading plan. Paul went to Corinth during his second missionary journey (see timeline of the book of Acts). It was the first place he remained for any length of time (18 months) until a disturbance was formed against him and he moved on. He had met Romans Priscilla and Aquila in Corinth, and he took them with him to Ephesus and left them there while he returned to Antioch. He returned to Ephesus at the beginning of his third missionary journey, staying over 2 years. He wrote what we know as the first letter to the Corinthians from Ephesus. 1 Corinthians 5:9 refers to a previous letter that Paul wrote to the Corinthians and 1 Corinthians 7:1 refers to their writing a letter in return, containing questions he addresses in this letter.
During his time in Ephesus, when he wrote what we know as his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul resolved to travel through Macedonia and Greece to take a contribution to the saints in Jerusalem. He spoke about this collection in the last chapter of 1 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians was written during these travels at the end of his third missionary journey. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 13:1, “This is the third time I am coming to you,” so there was another visit by Paul to Corinth about which we don’t have details.
Paul wrote 1 Corinthians reprimanding them for divisions in the church, immorality, and incorrect handling of communion. He knows the reprimand of his letter caused sorrow. As I mentioned above, we get clues from his letter that he visited Corinth after he wrote it, with more reprimand causing further sorrow. He refers to the persecution he and those with him in Asia (Ephesus) endured, such that they despaired “even of life” (2 Corinthians 1:18), sealing his plan to leave Ephesus to travel through Macedonia and Greece. He had planned to go to Corinth (Greece) first, but decided not to return again and cause the Corinthians further sorrow. He is able to see a purpose in both his sorrow and theirs, declaring that the comfort we receive from God in our afflictions helps us comfort others in their afflictions. He explains the Corinthians should forgive the now repentant person who inspired his rebuke. He testifies of victory even in trying circumstances during his travels, making sure credit does not go to himself, but to the triune God. He explains that the ministry of the New Covenant, enabled by the Holy Spirit, is more glorious than the Old, and gives hope and boldness. He reminds that we can have confidence in a clear explanation of the gospel and should not veil it in any way. Those who do not understand it have had their minds blinded by the god of this world. He reminds that any power and effectiveness in ministry is due the work of the triune God in us. He reminds us to focus not on temporal affliction but eternal glory. We know by faith and not by sight, with God giving us His Spirit as a pledge, that once we are absent from the body, we will be home with the Lord, clothed in immortality. We aspire to be pleasing to Him, knowing we will all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, so that we can be recompensed for our deeds, whether good or bad. We know the fear of the Lord and we are controlled by the love of Christ, so we no longer live for ourselves but for Christ, who has committed to us the word of reconciliation. As his ambassadors, we appeal to others to be reconciled to God. Paul addresses those who, “take pride in appearance and not in heart.” Following Christ is not easy. May we not receive the grace of God in vain. May we not be bound with unbelievers. May we “cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”
Titus has visited the church in Corinth and brought a good report to Paul regarding their repentance and love for him. Paul gives them an update on the generous contribution to the saints in Jerusalem that he is receiving from the churches in Macedonia and encourages them to fulfill their commitment to this contribution. He is writing them, and sending Titus and another brother, ahead of his visit to help them prepare their contribution so that no one will be embarrassed when he arrives, especially if he has Macedonians with him to whom he has boasted about the Corinthians.
Paul then addresses the criticisms and boasting he’s obviously heard about from those outsiders who are affecting the Corinthian church and his relationship with them. Paul feels forced to compare himself to these boastful outsiders. He is concerned they are preaching another Jesus, spirit, and gospel. He speaks sarcastically about the fact that he came to them humbly, but they treat the Corinthians poorly. He asserts he has the same worldly qualifications as they do: “Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ?—I speak as if insane—I more so.” He tells of all the ways he has been persecuted and suffered as a servant of Christ.
In chapter 12 yesterday, Paul continued to feel the reluctant need to boast about his qualifications as an apostle, because of how he hd been treated by the Corinthians. “Boasting is necessary, though it is not profitable; but I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a man was caught up to the third heaven. And I know how such a man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows— was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak….Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” Paul reprimanded the Corinthians for compelling him to boast: “I have become foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been commended by you….The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles.” Paul’s defense is actually an attempt to convict the Corinthians how to live: “All this time you have been thinking that we are defending ourselves to you. Actually, it is in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ; and all for your upbuilding….For I am afraid that perhaps when I come I may find you to be not what I wish and may be found by you to be not what you wish; that perhaps there will be strife, jealousy, angry tempers, disputes, slanders, gossip, arrogance, disturbances; I am afraid that when I come again my God may humiliate me before you, and I may mourn over many of those who have sinned in the past and not repented of the impurity, immorality and sensuality which they have practiced.”
2 Corinthians 13
v1-4 “This is the third time I am coming to you. EVERY FACT IS TO BE CONFIRMED BY THE TESTIMONY OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES. I have previously said when present the second time, and though now absent I say in advance to those who have sinned in the past and to all the rest as well, that if I come again I will not spare anyone, since you are seeking for proof of the Christ who speaks in me, and who is not weak toward you, but mighty in you. For indeed He was crucified because of weakness, yet He lives because of the power of God. For we also are weak in Him, yet we will live with Him because of the power of God directed toward you.
v5-10 “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? But I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test. Now we pray to God that you do no wrong; not that we ourselves may appear approved, but that you may do what is right, even though we may appear unapproved. For we can do nothing against the truth, but only for the truth. For we rejoice when we ourselves are weak but you are strong; this we also pray for, that you be made complete. For this reason I am writing these things while absent, so that when present I need not use severity, in accordance with the authority which the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down.
v11-13 “Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.
v14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”
Dear Lord,
“‘Just as I purposed to do harm to you when your fathers provoked Me to wrath,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘and I have not relented, so I have again purposed in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear! These are the things which you should do: speak the truth to one another; judge with truth and judgment for peace in your gates. Also let none of you devise evil in your heart against another, and do not love perjury; for all these are what I hate,’ declares the LORD.”
You promise to do good! And You call us to action as a result. Help us not to fear. Help us to speak truth, and judge with truth and judgment for peace. Help us not to devise evil against one another, and not to love perjury, knowing these are things You hate.
He was crucified because of weakness, yet He lives because of the power of God. For we also are weak in Him, yet we will live with Him because of the power of God directed toward you.
this we also pray for, that you be made complete. For this reason I am writing these things while absent, so that when present I need not use severity, in accordance with the authority which the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down.
These are hard concepts. Help us understand. You can give authority for severity, but the motivation needs to be for building up and not tearing down, in order to present someone complete in You. May we examine ourselves, and may we deal with each other in love.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
"Help us understand. You can give authority for severity, but the motivation needs to be for building up and not tearing down, in order to present someone complete in You. May we examine ourselves, and may we deal with each other in love." Amen. Thank you Dr. Milhoan. Peace.