Month: December 2019

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Esther

Esther 8

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The Jews Are Told to Fight Back

1 That same day King Xerxes gave Queen Esther all the property of Haman, the enemy of the Jews. Esther told the king that Mordecai was related to her, and from then on Mordecai was allowed to enter the king’s presence.

2 The king took off his ring with his seal on it (which he had taken back from Haman) and gave it to Mordecai. Esther put Mordecai in charge of Haman’s property.

3 Then Esther spoke to the king again, throwing herself at his feet and crying. She begged him to do something to stop the evil plot that Haman, the descendant of Agag,had made against the Jews.

4 The king held out the gold scepter to her, so she stood up and said,

5 “If it please Your Majesty, and if you care about me and if it seems right to you, please issue a proclamation to keep Haman’s orders from being carried out—those orders that the son of Hammedatha the descendant of Agag gave for the destruction of all the Jews in the empire.

6 How can I endure it if this disaster comes on my people, and my own relatives are killed?”

7 King Xerxes then said to Queen Esther and Mordecai, the Jew, “Look, I have hanged Haman for his plot against the Jews, and I have given Esther his property.

8 But a proclamation issued in the king’s name and stamped with the royal seal cannot be revoked. You may, however, write to the Jews whatever you like; and you may write it in my name and stamp it with the royal seal.”

9 This happened on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. Mordecai called the king’s secretaries and dictated letters to the Jews and to the governors, administrators, and officials of all the 127 provinces from India to Ethiopia.The letters were written to each province in its own language and system of writing and to the Jews in their language and system of writing.

10 Mordecai had the letters written in the name of King Xerxes, and he stamped them with the royal seal. They were delivered by riders mounted on fast horses from the royal stables.

11 These letters explained that the king would allow the Jews in every city to organize for self-defense. If armed men of any nationality in any province attacked the Jewish men, their children, or their women, the Jews could fight back and destroy the attackers; they could slaughter them to the last man and take their possessions.

12 This decree was to take effect throughout the Persian Empire on the day set for the slaughter of the Jews, the thirteenth of Adar, the twelfth month.

13 It was to be proclaimed as law and made known to everyone in every province, so that the Jews would be ready to take revenge on their enemies when that day came.

14 At the king’s command the riders mounted royal horses and rode off at top speed. The decree was also made public in Susa, the capital city.

15 Mordecai left the palace, wearing royal robes of blue and white, a cloak of fine purple linen, and a magnificent gold crown. Then the streets of Susa rang with cheers and joyful shouts.

16 For the Jews there was joy and relief, happiness and a sense of victory.

17 In every city and province, wherever the king’s proclamation was read, the Jews held a joyful holiday with feasting and happiness. In fact, many other people became Jews, because they were afraid of them now.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/EST/8-cec1171d13ccd2660e4d7dae759d67f7.mp3?version_id=68—

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Esther

Esther 9

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The Jews Destroy Their Enemies

1 The thirteenth day of Adar came, the day on which the royal proclamation was to take effect, the day when the enemies of the Jews were hoping to get them in their power. But instead, the Jews triumphed over them.

2 In the Jewish quarter of every cityin the empire the Jews organized to attack anyone who tried to harm them. People everywhere were afraid of them, and no one could stand against them.

3 In fact, all the provincial officials—governors, administrators, and royal representatives—helped the Jews because they were all afraid of Mordecai.

4 It was well-known throughout the empire that Mordecai was now a powerful man in the palace and was growing more powerful.

5 So the Jews could do what they wanted with their enemies. They attacked them with swords and slaughtered them.

6 In Susa, the capital city itself, the Jews killed five hundred people.

7-10 Among them were the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews: Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. However, there was no looting.

11 That same day the number of people killed in Susa was reported to the king.

12 He then said to Queen Esther, “In Susa alone the Jews have killed five hundred people, including Haman’s ten sons. What must they have done out in the provinces! What do you want now? You shall have it. Tell me what else you want, and you shall have it.”

13 Esther answered, “If it please Your Majesty, let the Jews in Susa do again tomorrow what they were allowed to do today. And have the bodies of Haman’s ten sons hung from the gallows.”

14 The king ordered this to be done, and the proclamation was issued in Susa. The bodies of Haman’s ten sons were publicly displayed.

15 On the fourteenth day of Adar the Jews of Susa got together again and killed three hundred more people in the city. But again, they did no looting.

16 The Jews in the provinces also organized and defended themselves. They rid themselves of their enemies by killing seventy-five thousand people who hated them. But they did no looting.

17 This was on the thirteenth day of Adar. On the next day, the fourteenth, there was no more killing, and they made it a joyful day of feasting.

18 The Jews of Susa, however, made the fifteenth a holiday, since they had slaughtered their enemies on the thirteenth and fourteenth and then stopped on the fifteenth.

19 This is why Jews who live in small towns observe the fourteenth day of the month of Adar as a joyous holiday, a time for feasting and giving gifts of food to one another.

The Festival of Purim

20 Mordecai had these events written down and sent letters to all the Jews, near and far, throughout the Persian Empire,

21 telling them to observe the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar as holidays every year.

22 These were the days on which the Jews had rid themselves of their enemies; this was a month that had been turned from a time of grief and despair into a time of joy and happiness. They were told to observe these days with feasts and parties, giving gifts of food to one another and to the poor.

23 So the Jews followed Mordecai’s instructions, and the celebration became an annual custom.

24 Haman son of Hammedatha—the descendant of Agag and the enemy of the Jewish people—had cast lots (“purim,” they were called) to determine the day for destroying the Jews; he had planned to wipe them out.

25 But Esther went to the king, and the king issued written orders with the result that Haman suffered the fate he had planned for the Jews—he and his sons were hanged from the gallows.

26 That is why the holidays are called Purim. Because of Mordecai’s letter and because of all that had happened to them,

27 the Jews made it a rule for themselves, their descendants, and anyone who might become a Jew, that at the proper time each year these two days would be regularly observed according to Mordecai’s instructions.

28 It was resolved that every Jewish family of every future generation in every province and every city should remember and observe the days of Purim for all time to come.

29 Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai, also wrote a letter, putting her full authority behind the letter about Purim, which Mordecai had written earlier.

30 The letter was addressed to all the Jews, and copies were sent to all the 127 provinces of the Persian Empire. It wished the Jews peace and security

31 and directed them and their descendants to observe the days of Purim at the proper time, just as they had adopted rules for the observance of fasts and times of mourning. This was commanded by both Mordecai and Queen Esther.

32 Esther’s command, confirming the rules for Purim, was written down on a scroll.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/EST/9-ac0e96e35bee97e4df2ef3f57b348bd1.mp3?version_id=68—

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Esther

Esther 10

The Greatness of Xerxes and Mordecai

1 King Xerxes imposed forced labor on the people of the coastal regions of his empire as well as on those of the interior.

2 All the great and wonderful things he did, as well as the whole story of how he promoted Mordecai to high office, are recorded in the official records of the kings of Persia and Media.

3 Mordecai the Jew was second in rank only to King Xerxes himself. He was honored and well-liked by his fellow Jews. He worked for the good of his people and for the security of all their descendants.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/EST/10-71e11044c0939f55cade8bd630fdf86b.mp3?version_id=68—

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Job

Job Introduction

Introduction

The book of Job

is the story of a good man who suffers total disaster—he loses all his children and property and is afflicted with a repulsive disease. Then in three series of poetic dialogues the author shows how Job’s friends and Job himself react to these calamities. In the end, God himself, whose dealings with the human race have been a prominent part of the discussion, appears to Job.

The friends of Job explain his suffering in traditional religious terms. Since God, so they assume, always rewards good and punishes evil, the sufferings of Job can only mean that he has sinned. But for Job this is too simple; he does not deserve such cruel punishment, because he has been an unusually good and righteous man. He cannot understand how God can let so much evil happen to one like himself, and he boldly challenges God. Job does not lose his faith, but he does long to be justified before God and to regain his honor as a good man.

God does not give an answer to Job’s questions, but he does respond to Job’s faith by overwhelming him with a poetic picture of his divine power and wisdom. Job then humbly acknowledges God as wise and great, and repents of the wild and angry words he had used.

The prose conclusion records how Job is restored to his former condition, with even greater prosperity than before. God reprimands Job’s friends for failing to understand the meaning of Job’s suffering. Only Job had really sensed that God is greater than traditional religion had depicted him.

Outline of Contents

Prologue (1.1—2.13)

Job and his friends (3.1—31.40)

a. Job’s complaint (3.1-26)

b. The first dialogue (4.1—14.22)

c. The second dialogue (15.1—21.34)

d. The third dialogue (22.1—27.23)

e. In praise of wisdom (28.1-28)

f. Job’s final statement (29.1—31.40)

The speeches of Elihu (32.1—37.24)

The Lord answers Job (38.1—42.6)

Epilogue (42.7-17)

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Job

Job 1

Satan Tests Job

1 There was a man named Job, living in the land of Uz,who worshiped God and was faithful to him. He was a good man, careful not to do anything evil.

2 He had seven sons and three daughters,

3 and owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, one thousand head of cattle, and five hundred donkeys. He also had a large number of servants and was the richest man in the East.

4 Job’s sons used to take turns giving a feast, to which all the others would come, and they always invited their three sisters to join them.

5 The morning after each feast, Job would get up early and offer sacrifices for each of his children in order to purify them. He always did this because he thought that one of them might have sinned by insulting God unintentionally.

6 When the day came for the heavenly beingsto appear before theLord, Satanwas there among them.

7 TheLordasked him, “What have you been doing?”

Satan answered, “I have been walking here and there, roaming around the earth.”

8 “Did you notice my servant Job?” theLordasked. “There is no one on earth as faithful and good as he is. He worships me and is careful not to do anything evil.”

9 Satan replied, “Would Job worship you if he got nothing out of it?

10 You have always protected him and his family and everything he owns. You bless everything he does, and you have given him enough cattle to fill the whole country.

11 But now suppose you take away everything he has—he will curse you to your face!”

12 “All right,” theLordsaid to Satan, “everything he has is in your power, but you must not hurt Job himself.” So Satan left.

Job’s Children and Wealth Are Destroyed

13 One day when Job’s children were having a feast at the home of their oldest brother,

14 a messenger came running to Job. “We were plowing the fields with the oxen,” he said, “and the donkeys were in a nearby pasture.

15 Suddenly the Sabeansattacked and stole them all. They killed every one of your servants except me. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

16 Before he had finished speaking, another servant came and said, “Lightning struck the sheep and the shepherds and killed them all. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

17 Before he had finished speaking, another servant came and said, “Three bands of Chaldeanraiders attacked us, took away the camels, and killed all your servants except me. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

18 Before he had finished speaking, another servant came and said, “Your children were having a feast at the home of your oldest son,

19 when a storm swept in from the desert. It blew the house down and killed them all. I am the only one who escaped to tell you.”

20 Then Job got up and tore his clothes in grief. He shaved his head and threw himself face downward on the ground.

21 He said, “I was born with nothing, and I will die with nothing. TheLordgave, and now he has taken away. May his name be praised!”

22 In spite of everything that had happened, Job did not sin by blaming God.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JOB/1-3b34e2b84a96eddfb834da12d1f6e9fb.mp3?version_id=68—

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Job

Job 2

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Satan Tests Job Again

1 When the day came for the heavenly beings to appear before theLordagain, Satan was there among them.

2 TheLordasked him, “Where have you been?”

Satan answered, “I have been walking here and there, roaming around the earth.”

3 “Did you notice my servant Job?” theLordasked. “There is no one on earth as faithful and good as he is. He worships me and is careful not to do anything evil. You persuaded me to let you attack him for no reason at all, but Job is still as faithful as ever.”

4 Satan replied, “A person will give up everything in order to stay alive.

5 But now suppose you hurt his body—he will curse you to your face!”

6 So theLordsaid to Satan, “All right, he is in your power, but you are not to kill him.”

7 Then Satan left theLord’s presence and made sores break out all over Job’s body.

8 Job went and sat by the garbage dump and took a piece of broken pottery to scrape his sores.

9 His wife said to him, “You are still as faithful as ever, aren’t you? Why don’t you curse God and die?”

10 Job answered, “You are talking nonsense! When God sends us something good, we welcome it. How can we complain when he sends us trouble?” Even in all this suffering Job said nothing against God.

Job’s Friends Come

11 Three of Job’s friends were Eliphaz, from the city of Teman, Bildad, from the land of Shuah, and Zophar, from the land of Naamah. When they heard how much Job had been suffering, they decided to go and comfort him.

12 While they were still a long way off they saw Job, but did not recognize him. When they did, they began to weep and wail, tearing their clothes in grief and throwing dust into the air and on their heads.

13 Then they sat there on the ground with him for seven days and nights without saying a word, because they saw how much he was suffering.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JOB/2-3def2aeed3468addaa1cd33310b5dbd3.mp3?version_id=68—

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Job

Job 3

Job’s Complaint to God

1 Finally Job broke the silence and cursed the day on which he had been born.

2-3 O God, put a curse on the day I was born;

put a curse on the night when I was conceived!

4 Turn that day into darkness, God.

Never again remember that day;

never again let light shine on it.

5 Make it a day of gloom and thick darkness;

cover it with clouds, and blot out the sun.

6 Blot that night out of the year,

and never let it be counted again;

7 make it a barren, joyless night.

8 Tell the sorcerers to curse that day,

those who know how to control Leviathan.

9 Keep the morning star from shining;

give that night no hope of dawn.

10 Curse that night for letting me be born,

for exposing me to trouble and grief.

11 I wish I had died in my mother’s womb

or died the moment I was born.

12 Why did my mother hold me on her knees?

Why did she feed me at her breast?

13 If I had died then, I would be at rest now,

14 sleeping like the kings and rulers

who rebuilt ancient palaces.

15 Then I would be sleeping like princes

who filled their houses with gold and silver,

16 or sleeping like a stillborn child.

17 In the grave wicked people stop their evil,

and tired workers find rest at last.

18 Even prisoners enjoy peace,

free from shouts and harsh commands.

19 Everyone is there, the famous and the unknown,

and slaves at last are free.

20 Why let people go on living in misery?

Why give light to those in grief

21 They wait for death, but it never comes;

they prefer a grave to any treasure.

22 They are not happy till they are dead and buried;

23 God keeps their future hidden

and hems them in on every side.

24 Instead of eating, I mourn,

and I can never stop groaning.

25 Everything I fear and dread comes true.

26 I have no peace, no rest,

and my troubles never end.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JOB/3-f863debf92f68781baf7c275f97f96d9.mp3?version_id=68—

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Job

Job 4

The First Dialogue

1-2 Job, will you be annoyed if I speak?

I can’t keep quiet any longer.

3 You have taught many people

and given strength to feeble hands.

4 When someone stumbled, weak and tired,

your words encouraged him to stand.

5 Now it’s your turn to be in trouble,

and you are too stunned to face it.

6 You worshiped God, and your life was blameless;

and so you should have confidence and hope.

7 Think back now. Name a single case

where someone righteous met with disaster.

8 I have seen people plow fields of evil

and plant wickedness like seed;

now they harvest wickedness and evil.

9 Like a storm, God destroys them in his anger.

10 The wicked roar and growl like lions,

but God silences them and breaks their teeth.

11 Like lions with nothing to kill and eat,

they die, and all their children are scattered.

12 Once a message came quietly,

so quietly I could hardly hear it.

13 Like a nightmare it disturbed my sleep.

14 I trembled and shuddered;

my whole body shook with fear.

15 A light breeze touched my face,

and my skin crawled with fright.

16 I could see something standing there;

I stared, but couldn’t tell what it was.

Then I heard a voice out of the silence:

17 “Can anyone be righteous in the sight ofGod

or be pure beforehis Creator?

18 God does not trust his heavenly servants;

he finds fault even with his angels.

19 Do you think he will trust a creature of clay,

a thing of dust that can be crushed like a moth?

20 We may be alive in the morning,

but die unnoticed before evening comes.

21 All that we have is taken away;

we die, still lacking wisdom.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JOB/4-ccacbb5810f6f6c4c9d6d653c6325664.mp3?version_id=68—

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Job

Job 5

1 Call out, Job. See if anyone answers.

Is there any angel to whom you can turn?

2 To worry yourself to death with resentment

would be a foolish, senseless thing to do.

3 I have seen fools who looked secure,

but I called down a sudden curse on their homes.

4 Their children can never find safety;

no one stands up to defend them in court.

5 Hungry people will eat the fool’s crops—

even the grain growing among thorns—

and thirsty people will envy his wealth.

6 Evil does not grow in the soil,

nor does trouble grow out of the ground.

7 No indeed! We bring trouble on ourselves,

as surely as sparks fly up from a fire.

8 If I were you, I would turn to God

and present my case to him.

9 We cannot understand the great things he does,

and to his miracles there is no end.

10 He sends rain on the land

and he waters the fields.

11 Yes, it is God who raises the humble

and gives joy to all who mourn.

12-13 He upsets the plans of cunning people,

and traps the wise in their own schemes,

so that nothing they do succeeds;

14 even at noon they grope in darkness.

15 But God saves the poorfrom death;

he saves the needy from oppression.

16 He gives hope to the poor and silences the wicked.

17 Happy is the person whom God corrects!

Do not resent it when he rebukes you.

18 God bandages the wounds he makes;

his hand hurts you, and his hand heals.

19 Time after time he will save you from harm;

20 when famine comes, he will keep you alive,

and in war protect you from death.

21 God will rescue you from slander;

he will save you when destruction comes.

22 You will laugh at violence and hunger

and not be afraid of wild animals.

23 The fields you plow will be free of rocks;

wild animals will never attack you.

24 Then you will live at peace in your tent;

when you look at your sheep, you will find them safe.

25 You will have as many children

as there are blades of grass in a pasture.

26 Like wheat that ripens till harvest time,

you will live to a ripe old age.

27 Job, we have learned this by long study.

It is true, so now accept it.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JOB/5-149961726c7cc2b36f400ecb4fe1779d.mp3?version_id=68—

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Job

Job 6

1-2 If my troubles and griefs were weighed on scales,

3 they would weigh more than the sands of the sea,

so my wild words should not surprise you.

4 Almighty God has shot me with arrows,

and their poison spreads through my body.

God has lined up his terrors against me.

5 A donkey is content when eating grass,

and a cow is quiet when eating hay.

6 But who can eat flat, unsalted food?

What taste is there in the white of an egg?

7 I have no appetite for food like that,

and everything I eat makes me sick.

8 Why won’t God give me what I ask?

Why won’t he answer my prayer?

9 If only he would go ahead and kill me!

10 If I knew he would, I would leap for joy,

no matter how great my pain.

I know that God is holy;

I have never opposed what he commands.

11 What strength do I have to keep on living?

Why go on living when I have no hope?

12 Am I made of stone? Is my body bronze?

13 I have no strength left to save myself;

there is nowhere I can turn for help.

14 In troublelike this I need loyal friends—

whether I’ve forsaken God or not.

15 But you, my friends, you deceive me like streams

that go dry when no rain comes.

16 The streams are choked with snow and ice,

17 but in the heat they disappear,

and the stream beds lie bare and dry.

18 Caravans get lost looking for water;

they wander and die in the desert.

19 Caravans from Sheba and Tema search,

20 but their hope dies beside dry streams.

21 You are likethose streams to me,

you see my fate and draw back in fear.

22 Have I asked you to give me a gift

or to bribe someone on my behalf

23 or to save me from some enemy or tyrant?

24 All right, teach me; tell me my faults.

I will be quiet and listen to you.

25 Honest words are convincing,

but you are talking nonsense.

26 You think I am talking nothing but wind;

then why do you answer my words of despair?

27 You would even roll dice for orphan slaves

and make yourselves rich off your closest friends!

28 Look me in the face. I won’t lie.

29 You have gone far enough. Stop being unjust.

Don’t condemn me. I’m in the right.

30 But you think I am lying—

you think I can’t tell right from wrong.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JOB/6-86fa6061fb9db180f923c533672db54a.mp3?version_id=68—