Day 240 reading

Wisdom·Psalm 132:1–8

¹O LORD, remember on behalf of David all the hardships he endured, ²how he swore an oath to the LORD, and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob: ³“I will not enter my house or get into my bed, ⁴I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, ⁵until I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.” ⁶We heard that the ark was in Ephrathah; we found it in the fields of Jaar. ⁷Let us go to His dwelling place; let us worship at His footstool. ⁸Arise, O LORD, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength.

New Testament·1 Corinthians 1:1–18

¹Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, ²To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours: ³Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ⁴I always thank my God for you because of the grace He has given you in Christ Jesus. ⁵For in Him you have been enriched in every way, in all speech and all knowledge, ⁶because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. ⁷Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁸He will sustain you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful. ¹⁰I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree together, so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be united in mind and conviction. ¹¹My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. ¹²What I mean is this: Individuals among you are saying, “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” ¹³Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? ¹⁴I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. ¹⁶Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that I do not remember if I baptized anyone else. ¹⁷For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with words of wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. ¹⁸For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Old Testament·Job 5–6

¹“Call out if you please, but who will answer? To which of the holy ones will you turn? ²For resentment kills a fool, and envy slays the simple. ³I have seen a fool taking root, but suddenly his house was cursed. ⁴His sons are far from safety, crushed in court without a defender. ⁵The hungry consume his harvest, taking it even from the thorns, and the thirsty pant after his wealth. ⁶For distress does not spring from the dust, and trouble does not sprout from the ground. ⁷Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward. ⁸However, if I were you, I would appeal to God and lay my cause before Him— ⁹the One who does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number. ¹⁰He gives rain to the earth and sends water upon the fields. ¹¹He sets the lowly on high, so that mourners are lifted to safety. ¹²He thwarts the schemes of the crafty, so that their hands find no success. ¹³He catches the wise in their craftiness, and sweeps away the plans of the cunning. ¹⁴They encounter darkness by day and grope at noon as in the night. ¹⁵He saves the needy from the sword in their mouth and from the clutches of the powerful. ¹⁶So the poor have hope, and injustice shuts its mouth. ¹⁷Blessed indeed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. ¹⁸For He wounds, but He also binds; He strikes, but His hands also heal. ¹⁹He will rescue you from six calamities; no harm will touch you in seven. ²⁰In famine He will redeem you from death, and in battle from the stroke of the sword. ²¹You will be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and will not fear havoc when it comes. ²²You will laugh at destruction and famine, and need not fear the beasts of the earth. ²³For you will have a covenant with the stones of the field, and the wild animals will be at peace with you. ²⁴You will know that your tent is secure, and find nothing amiss when inspecting your home. ²⁵You will know that your offspring will be many, your descendants like the grass of the earth. ²⁶You will come to the grave in full vigor, like a sheaf of grain gathered in season. ²⁷Indeed, we have investigated, and it is true! So hear it and know for yourself.”

6Then Job replied: ²“If only my grief could be weighed and placed with my calamity on the scales. ³For then it would outweigh the sand of the seas— no wonder my words have been rash. ⁴For the arrows of the Almighty have pierced me; my spirit drinks in their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me. ⁵Does a wild donkey bray over fresh grass, or an ox low over its fodder? ⁶Is tasteless food eaten without salt, or is there flavor in the white of an egg? ⁷My soul refuses to touch them; they are loathsome food to me. ⁸If only my request were granted and God would fulfill my hope: ⁹that God would be willing to crush me, to unleash His hand and cut me off! ¹⁰It still brings me comfort, and joy through unrelenting pain, that I have not denied the words of the Holy One. ¹¹What strength do I have, that I should still hope? What is my future, that I should be patient? ¹²Is my strength like that of stone, or my flesh made of bronze? ¹³Is there any help within me now that success is driven from me? ¹⁴A despairing man should have the kindness of his friend, even if he forsakes the fear of the Almighty. ¹⁵But my brothers are as faithless as wadis, as seasonal streams that overflow, ¹⁶darkened because of the ice and the inflow of melting snow, ¹⁷but ceasing in the dry season and vanishing from their channels in the heat. ¹⁸Caravans turn aside from their routes; they go into the wasteland and perish. ¹⁹The caravans of Tema look for water; the travelers of Sheba hope to find it. ²⁰They are confounded because they had hoped; their arrival brings disappointment. ²¹For now you are of no help; you see terror, and you are afraid. ²²Have I ever said, ‘Give me something; offer me a bribe from your wealth; ²³deliver me from the hand of the enemy; redeem me from the grasp of the ruthless’? ²⁴Teach me, and I will be silent. Help me understand how I have erred. ²⁵How painful are honest words! But what does your argument prove? ²⁶Do you intend to correct my words, and treat as wind my cry of despair? ²⁷You would even cast lots for an orphan and barter away your friend. ²⁸But now, please look at me. Would I lie to your face? ²⁹Reconsider; do not be unjust. Reconsider, for my righteousness is at stake. ³⁰Is there iniquity on my tongue? Can my mouth not discern malice?