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Daily Readings for December 1
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Esther 9
1.Now in the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, on the thirteenth day of the month, when the king's commandment and his decree drew near to be put in execution, on the day that the enemies of the Jews hoped to conquer them, (but it was turned out the opposite happened, that the Jews conquered those who hated them), 2.the Jews gathered themselves together in their cities throughout all the provinces of the King Ahasuerus, to lay hands on those who wanted to harm them. No one could withstand them, because the fear of them had fallen on all the people. 3.All the princes of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and those who did the king's business helped the Jews, because the fear of Mordecai had fallen on them. 4.For Mordecai was great in the king's house, and his fame went out throughout all the provinces; for the man Mordecai grew greater and greater. 5.The Jews struck all their enemies with the stroke of the sword, and with slaughter and destruction, and did what they wanted to those who hated them. 6.In the citadel of Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men. 7.They killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8.Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9.Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha, 10.the ten sons of Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Jew's enemy, but they didn't lay their hand on the plunder. 11.On that day, the number of those who were slain in the citadel of Susa was brought before the king. 12.The king said to Esther the queen, "The Jews have slain and destroyed five hundred men in the citadel of Susa, including the ten sons of Haman; what then have they done in the rest of the king's provinces! Now what is your petition? It shall be granted you. What is your further request? It shall be done."
13.Then Esther said, "If it pleases the king, let it be granted to the Jews who are in Shushan to do tomorrow also according to this day's decree, and let Haman's ten sons be hanged on the gallows."
14.The king commanded this to be done. A decree was given out in Shushan; and they hanged Haman's ten sons. 15.The Jews who were in Shushan gathered themselves together on the fourteenth day also of the month Adar, and killed three hundred men in Shushan; but they didn't lay their hand on the spoil. 16.The other Jews who were in the king's provinces gathered themselves together, defended their lives, had rest from their enemies, and killed seventy-five thousand of those who hated them; but they didn't lay their hand on the plunder. 17.This was done on the thirteenth day of the month Adar; and on the fourteenth day of that month they rested and made it a day of feasting and gladness. 18.But the Jews who were in Shushan assembled together on the thirteenth and on the fourteenth days of the month; and on the fifteenth day of that month, they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. 19.Therefore the Jews of the villages, who live in the unwalled towns, make the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of gladness and feasting, a good day, and a day of sending presents of food to one another. 20.Mordecai wrote these things, and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, both near and far, 21.to enjoin them that they should keep the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month Adar yearly, 22.as the days in which the Jews had rest from their enemies, and the month which was turned to them from sorrow to gladness, and from mourning into a good day; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, and of sending presents of food to one another, and gifts to the needy. 23.The Jews accepted the custom that they had begun, as Mordecai had written to them; 24.because Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast "Pur," that is the lot, to consume them, and to destroy them; 25.but when this became known to the king, he commanded by letters that his wicked device, which he had devised against the Jews, should return on his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. 26.Therefore they called these days "Purim,1" from the word "Pur." Therefore because of all the words of this letter, and of that which they had seen concerning this matter, and that which had come to them, 27.the Jews established, and imposed on themselves, and on their descendants, and on all those who joined themselves to them, so that it should not fail, that they would keep these two days according to what was written, and according to its appointed time, every year; 28.and that these days should be remembered and kept throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city; and that these days of Purim should not fail from among the Jews, nor their memory perish from their seed.
29.Then Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew, wrote with all authority to confirm this second letter of Purim. 30.He sent letters to all the Jews, to the hundred twenty-seven provinces of the kingdom of Ahasuerus, with words of peace and truth, 31.to confirm these days of Purim in their appointed times, as Mordecai the Jew and Esther the queen had decreed, and as they had imposed upon themselves and their descendants, in the matter of the fastings and their cry. 32.The commandment of Esther confirmed these matters of Purim; and it was written in the book.
Esther 10
1.King Ahasuerus laid a tribute on the land, and on the islands of the sea. 2.All the acts of his power and of his might, and the full account of the greatness of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? 3.For Mordecai the Jew was next to King Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted by the multitude of his brothers, seeking the good of his people, and speaking peace to all his descendants.
Jonah 1
1.Now the word of Yahweh1 came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2."Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach against it, for their wickedness has come up before me."
3.But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid its fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh. 4.But Yahweh sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty storm on the sea, so that the ship was likely to break up. 5.Then the mariners were afraid, and every man cried to his god. They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone down into the innermost parts of the ship, and he was laying down, and was fast asleep. 6.So the shipmaster came to him, and said to him, "What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God2! Maybe your God3 will notice us, so that we won't perish."
7.They all said to each other, "Come, let us cast lots, that we may know who is responsible for this evil that is on us." So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8.Then they asked him, "Tell us, please, for whose cause this evil is on us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? Of what people are you?"
9.He said to them, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear Yahweh, the God4 of heaven, who has made the sea and the dry land."
10.Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said to him, "What is this that you have done?" For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of Yahweh, because he had told them. 11.Then they said to him, "What shall we do to you, that the sea may be calm to us?" For the sea grew more and more stormy. 12.He said to them, "Take me up, and throw me into the sea. Then the sea will be calm for you; for I know that because of me this great storm is on you."
13.Nevertheless the men rowed hard to get them back to the land; but they could not, for the sea grew more and more stormy against them. 14.Therefore they cried to Yahweh, and said, "We beg you, Yahweh, we beg you, don't let us die for this man's life, and don't lay on us innocent blood; for you, Yahweh, have done as it pleased you." 15.So they took up Jonah, and threw him into the sea; and the sea ceased its raging. 16.Then the men feared Yahweh exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice to Yahweh, and made vows.
17.Yahweh prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Hebrews 6
1.Therefore leaving the teaching of the first principles of Christ, let us press on to perfection--not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, of faith toward God, 2.of the teaching of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3.This will we do, if God permits. 4.For concerning those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5.and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come, 6.and then fell away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance; seeing they crucify the Son of God for themselves again, and put him to open shame. 7.For the land which has drunk the rain that comes often on it, and brings forth a crop suitable for them for whose sake it is also tilled, receives blessing from God; 8.but if it bears thorns and thistles, it is rejected and near being cursed, whose end is to be burned.
9.But, beloved, we are persuaded of better things for you, and things that accompany salvation, even though we speak like this. 10.For God is not unrighteous, so as to forget your work and the labor of love which you showed toward his name, in that you served the saints, and still do serve them. 11.We desire that each one of you may show the same diligence to the fullness of hope even to the end, 12.that you won't be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherited the promises. 13.For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he could swear by none greater, he swore by himself, 14.saying, "Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you."21 15.Thus, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16.For men indeed swear by a greater one, and in every dispute of theirs the oath is final for confirmation. 17.In this way God, being determined to show more abundantly to the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, interposed with an oath; 18.that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to take hold of the hope set before us. 19.This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and entering into that which is within the veil; 20.where as a forerunner Jesus entered for us, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
Hebrews 7
1.For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2.to whom also Abraham divided a tenth part of all (being first, by interpretation, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace; 3.without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God), remains a priest continually. 4.Now consider how great this man was, to whom even Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth out of the best spoils. 5.They indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest's office have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brothers, though these have come out of the body of Abraham, 6.but he whose genealogy is not counted from them has accepted tithes from Abraham, and has blessed him who has the promises. 7.But without any dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater. 8.Here people who die receive tithes, but there one receives tithes of whom it is testified that he lives. 9.We can say that through Abraham even Levi, who receives tithes, has paid tithes, 10.for he was yet in the body of his father when Melchizedek met him. 11.Now if there were perfection through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people have received the law), what further need was there for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, and not be called after the order of Aaron? 12.For the priesthood being changed, there is of necessity a change made also in the law. 13.For he of whom these things are said belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar. 14.For it is evident that our Lord has sprung out of Judah, about which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood. 15.This is yet more abundantly evident, if after the likeness of Melchizedek there arises another priest, 16.who has been made, not after the law of a fleshly commandment, but after the power of an endless life: 17.for it is testified, "You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek."22
18.For there is an annulling of a foregoing commandment because of its weakness and uselessness 19.(for the law made nothing perfect), and a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. 20.Inasmuch as he was not made priest without the taking of an oath 21.(for they indeed have been made priests without an oath), but he with an oath by him that says of him, "The Lord swore and will not change his mind, 'You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.'"23
22.By so much, Jesus has become the collateral of a better covenant. 23.Many, indeed, have been made priests, because they are hindered from continuing by death. 24.But he, because he lives forever, has his priesthood unchangeable. 25.Therefore he is also able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, seeing that he lives forever to make intercession for them.
26.For such a high priest was fitting for us: holy, guiltless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; 27.who doesn't need, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices daily, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. For he did this once for all, when he offered up himself. 28.For the law appoints men as high priests who have weakness, but the word of the oath which came after the law appoints a Son forever who has been perfected.