Day 110, April 20: Bible reading & prayer

Psalms 121, 123-125, 128-130 (chronological); 1 Samuel 30-31, Luke 17:20-37 (OT/NT)

Happy Easter! He is risen. He is risen indeed.

We finished the book of 1 Samuel in the chronological reading yesterday, and finish it in the Old Testament reading today. Easter seems like a very good day to read Psalms. We’ve read nineteen Psalms chronologically so far, including Psalm 18 from yesterday, which “David the servant of the LORD…spoke to the LORD…in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.” Today we read seven more Psalms of David, written after he was delivered from Saul.

David had spared Saul’s life twice, but was still afraid he would be killed by the hand of Saul, so he had fled to Achish, king of Gath, in the land of the Philistines. Achish thought David conducted raids in the land of Israel (although he conducted them against enemies of Israel), so assumed, “He has surely made himself odious among his people Israel; therefore he will become my servant forever.” In our reading yesterday, the Philistines “gathered their armed camps for war, to fight against Israel,” and Achish told David he and his men would fight with him, and that David would be his bodyguard. But the lords of the Philistines did not trust David to fight with them, so Achish sent him back to the land of the Philistines.

Then it happened when David and his men came to Ziklag [the place King Achish had given him to live] on the third day, that the Amalekites had made a raid on the Negev and on Ziklag, and had overthrown Ziklag and burned it with fire; and they took captive the women and all who were in it, both small and great, without killing anyone, and carried them off and went their way. When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives and their sons and their daughters had been taken captive….Moreover David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.

Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Please bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I pursue this band? Shall I overtake them?” And He said to him, “Pursue, for you will surely overtake them, and you will surely rescue all.”…David pursued, he and four hundred men, for two hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor remained behind.

David slaughtered them from the twilight until the evening of the next day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. So David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and rescued his two wives. But nothing of theirs was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that they had taken for themselves; David brought it all back.

Regarding sharing the spoils of war with those who remained behind, David declared, “‘as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the baggage; they shall share alike.’ So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.”

“Now when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, ‘Behold, a gift for you from the spoil of the enemies of the LORD’…to all the places where David himself and his men were accustomed to go.”

Meanwhile, when “Saul saw the camp of the Philistines, he was afraid and his heart trembled greatly. When Saul inquired of the LORD, the LORD did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by prophets. Then Saul said to his servants, ‘Seek for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.’” He had this woman bring up the deceased Samuel to him, and “Samuel said to Saul,

‘Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?’ And Saul answered, ‘I am greatly distressed; for the Philistines are waging war against me, and God has departed from me and no longer answers me, either through prophets or by dreams; therefore I have called you, that you may make known to me what I should do.’ Samuel said, ‘Why then do you ask me, since the LORD has departed from you and has become your adversary? The LORD has done accordingly as He spoke through me; for the LORD has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, to David. As you did not obey the LORD and did not execute His fierce wrath on Amalek, so the LORD has done this thing to you this day. Moreover the LORD will also give over Israel along with you into the hands of the Philistines, therefore tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. Indeed the LORD will give over the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines!’”

Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons; and the Philistines killed Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua the sons of Saul….Thus Saul died with his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men on that day together.

It came about on the next day when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. They cut off his head and stripped off his weapons, and sent them throughout the land of the Philistines, to carry the good news to the house of their idols and to the people. They put his weapons in the temple of Ashtaroth, and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan. Now when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men rose and walked all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they came to Jabesh and burned them there. They took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.

An outline for 1 Samuel is available. I changed my method at this time in 2023 and began creating only one document per book (as opposed to an outline and a “what I learned,” unless I had something special to highlight that I felt compelled to write about).

I include housekeeping details daily for those who have newly joined this study. I usually try to schedule the timing of each day’s post so there is consistency, but sometimes I fail due to my own schedule. If you are looking for the day’s reading earlier than the post is available, you can always search for the same day’s reading from last year.

An overview of our yearly Bible reading plan, with all edited summaries so far, can be found here. My appeal for the resolution to read your Bibles is here. My challenge for us to read in wonder, recognizing the Bible is true and has consequence for our lives is here.

I use blueletterBible.org (NASB95) as my Bible study tool.

I do find typos in my writing after the fact. I schedule these posts early, but always re-read and edit them on the morning they’re posted. So, if you notice a lot of typos in an email version, just check back on Substack for an edited version (you can tell the timing of my editing by when I post the day’s reading and prayer on X: @KDMilhoanMD. If you found this study this way, praise God, and…welcome!)

April 20 chronological reading: Psalms 121, 123-125, 128-130

Psalm 121

A Song of Ascents.

v1-8 “I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade on your right hand.
The sun will not smite you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
The LORD will protect you from all evil;
He will keep your soul.
The LORD will guard your going out and your coming in
From this time forth and forever.”

Psalm 123

A Song of Ascents.

v1-4 “To You I lift up my eyes,
O You who are enthroned in the heavens!
Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master,
As the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
So our eyes look to the LORD our God,
Until He is gracious to us.
Be gracious to us, O LORD, be gracious to us,
For we are greatly filled with contempt.
Our soul is greatly filled
With the scoffing of those who are at ease,
And with the contempt of the proud.”

Psalm 124

A Song of Ascents, of David.

v1-8 “‘Had it not been the LORD who was on our side,’
Let Israel now say,
‘Had it not been the LORD who was on our side
When men rose up against us,
Then they would have swallowed us alive,
When their anger was kindled against us;
Then the waters would have engulfed us,
The stream would have swept over our soul;
Then the raging waters would have swept over our soul.’
Blessed be the LORD,
Who has not given us to be torn by their teeth.
Our soul has escaped as a bird out of the snare of the trapper;
The snare is broken and we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.”

Psalm 125

A Song of Ascents.

v1-5 “Those who trust in the LORD
Are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
So the LORD surrounds His people
From this time forth and forever.
For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest upon the land of the righteous,
So that the righteous will not put forth their hands to do wrong.
Do good, O LORD, to those who are good
And to those who are upright in their hearts.
But as for those who turn aside to their crooked ways,
The LORD will lead them away with the doers of iniquity.
Peace be upon Israel.”

Psalm 128

A Song of Ascents.

v1-6 “How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
Who walks in His ways.
When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands,
You will be happy and it will be well with you.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
Within your house,
Your children like olive plants
Around your table.
Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion,
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
Indeed, may you see your children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel!”

Psalm 129

A Song of Ascents.

v1-8 “‘Many times they have persecuted me from my youth up,’
Let Israel now say,
‘Many times they have persecuted me from my youth up;
Yet they have not prevailed against me.
The plowers plowed upon my back;
They lengthened their furrows.’
The LORD is righteous;
He has cut in two the cords of the wicked.
May all who hate Zion
Be put to shame and turned backward;
Let them be like grass upon the housetops,
Which withers before it grows up;
With which the reaper does not fill his hand,
Or the binder of sheaves his bosom;
Nor do those who pass by say,
‘The blessing of the LORD be upon you;
We bless you in the name of the LORD.’”

Psalm 130

A Song of Ascents.

v1-8 “Out of the depths I have cried to You, O LORD.
Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
To the voice of my supplications.
If You, LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with You,
That You may be feared.
I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait,
And in His word do I hope.
My soul waits for the Lord
More than the watchmen for the morning;
Indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the LORD;
For with the LORD there is lovingkindness,
And with Him is abundant redemption.
And He will redeem Israel
From all his iniquities.”

April 20 OT/NT readings: 1 Samuel 30-31, Luke 17:20-37

We read 1 Samuel 30-31 yesterday in the chronological reading plan.

We are reading the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament plan. Luke, who also wrote Acts, was a traveling companion of the apostle Paul. Luke says these accounts “were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word” (Luke 1:2), and he “investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order…so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught” (Luke 1:3-4).

When the Pharisees scoffed at Jesus’ teaching about being generous with money, recognizing God has given it and it can be used to serve others, He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” Then He implied they were “forcing” their way into the kingdom of God by not listening to “The Law and the Prophets” which “were proclaimed until John” and “since that time the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached.” After this rebuke of the Pharisees, in our reading yesterday, Jesus said of those who lead others astray in their faith, as the Pharisees did, “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.”

Jesus then said something that may be too easy for us: “If your brother sins, rebuke him” (we need to prayerfully consider whether someone has truly done something sinful rather than something we simply don’t like). But then He said something that is difficult for us: “and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.’” We like justice for others, but our Lord calls us to be merciful.

The apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith, so He said, “If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would obey you,” but He followed this with an admonishment about a slave not being thanked “because he did the things which were commanded.” We are to obey. Jesus’ linking miraculous faith with obedience seems significant. I read a perspective on Jesus teaching us to pray, “Your will be done,” in Andrew Murray’s book, “With Christ in the School of Prayer.” Murray believes our heart in praying that is a heart that is willing to obey God.

Our reading yesterday ended with the story of the ten lepers who were all healed by Jesus, but only one of them, a Samaritan, thanked Him for His mercy. May we not fail to give glory to God for what He has done for us.

There is so much that teaches and convicts as we read the Gospels. I resist commenting on everything in our daily readings. “What I Learned,” an introduction to Luke, was informed by my simultaneous reading of Eugenia Constantinou’s highly recommended book, “The Crucifixion of the King of Glory.” I also wrote “What I Learned as I Read,” sharing personal insight and conviction. If you are interested in that content, it’s probably more helpful to look at it as we go along, making it less cumbersome to digest.

If you desire to read the four Gospel accounts chronologically, with more commentary than these daily readings/prayers (generated by my leadership of my church’s women’s Bible study), you can subscribe for that content here.

Luke 17

v20-21 “Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, “Look, here it is!” or, “There it is!” For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.’

v22-37 “And He said to the disciples, ‘The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. They will say to you, “Look there! Look here!” Do not go away, and do not run after them. For just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left. [Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.’] And answering they said to Him, ‘Where, Lord?’ And He said to them, ‘Where the body is, there also the vultures will be gathered.’”

Dear Lord,

“the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

Help us understand this. When You sent out the seventy with power and authority, You said, “heal those…who are sick, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you’” (Luke 10:9). When You explained what the kingdom of God was like, You compared it to a mustard seed that grew into a tree, or leaven in flour (Luke 13:18-21). We can’t see it, but we can see its power. Your Holy Spirit dwells in those who believe in You. May what people can’t see be so evident in us that they are drawn to Your kingdom.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.