Joel 3
The Promise of the Holy Spirit
bookmarked1 “After this it shall come to pass that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; your sons and daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.†
2 And in those days I shall pour out My Spirit on My servants and on My handmaids.
3 And I shall give wonders in the heavens and upon the earth, blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
4 The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes to pass.
5 And it shall be that whoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord Himself said, and there shall be proclamation of the good news to those whom the Lord Himself called.†
Joel 4
The Coming Day of Judgment
1 “For behold, in those days and at that time, when I bring back the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,†
2 I shall also gather all the nations together and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, and there I will enter into judgment against them on account of My people and My inheritance Israel, who were dispersed among the nations—against those who divided My land,†
3 and who cast lots over My people, and traded boys for prostitutes, and sold girls for the wine they drank.
4 Indeed, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the coast of Philistia, what have you to do with Me? Are you paying Me back for a grudge you hold against Me? If so, I shall return your retaliation swiftly and immediately upon your own head,†
5 because you have taken My silver and My gold and taken My precious possessions into your temples,
6 and because you sold the sons of Judah and Jerusalem to the sons of the Greeks in order to exile them far from their borders.†
7 Behold, I shall raise them up from the place where you sold them, and I shall return your retribution upon your own head.
8 I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hands of the sons of Judah, and they will sell them into captivity to a far distant nation, for the Lord has spoken.”
9 Proclaim these things among the nations: “Prepare for war; arouse the warriors; draw near and go up, all you men of war.†
10 Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’†
11 Assemble together and join in, all you nations round about. And in that place, gather yourselves together; let the gentle be warlike.
12 Let all the nations rouse themselves and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I shall sit to judge all the nations round about.
13 “Bring out the sickles, for the harvest is ripe. Come in and tread the grapes, for the winepress is full, the wine vats overflow; for their wickedness is multiplied.†
14 The news resounded in the valley of judgment, for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of judgment.
15 The sun and moon shall become dark, and the stars shall withdraw their light.†
16 And the Lord shall cry out from Zion, and He shall utter His voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and earth will quake, but the Lord shall keep His people safe and shall strengthen the sons of Israel.†
17 So you shall know that I am the Lord your God, the one dwelling in Zion on My holy mountain. Then Jerusalem shall be a holy city, and no more will strangers pass through her.
The Final Restoration of God’s Own
18 “And it will come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drip sweetness, and milk shall flow from the hills, and all the brooks of Judah shall flow with water. And a fountain shall flow out from the house of the Lord, and it will supply water to the Valley of Acacias.
19 Egypt shall become a desolation and Edom a wilderness because of the wrongdoings against the people of Judah, because of the innocent blood shed in their land.†
20 But Judah shall be inhabited forever and Jerusalem unto generations of generations.
21 And I shall avenge their blood and shall not let it go unpunished. The Lord shall dwell in Zion.Ӡ
Psalms 52
1 For the End; for Mahaleth; concerning understanding; by David. †
2 The fool said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt and abominable in lawlessness; There is none who does good.
3 God looked from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there were any who understood or sought God.
4 All turned aside; they were all together rendered useless; There is none who does good, not even one.
5 Do all the workers of lawlessness not know? They eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon God.
6 They were in great fear where no fear was, For God scattered the bones of men-pleasers; They were put to shame, because God scorned them.
7 Who will bring the salvation of Israel out of Zion? When God brings back the captivity of His people, Jacob will greatly rejoice, and Israel will be glad.
Psalms 53
1 For the End; in hymns; concerning understanding; by David; †
2 when the Ziphites came and said to Saul, “Is not David hiding with us?”
3 Save me, O God, in Your name, And judge me in Your power.
4 O God, hear my prayer; Give ear to the words of my mouth.
5 For strangers rise up against me, And the powerful seek after my soul; They have not set God before them. (Pause)
6 For behold, God is my helper; The Lord is the protector of my soul.
7 He will return evils to my enemies; Utterly destroy them in Your truth.
8 I will sacrifice to You voluntarily; I will give thanks to Your name, O Lord, for it is good.
9 You delivered me from all my afflictions, And my eye looked upon my enemies.
Proverbs of Solomon 11
6 When a righteous man dies, his hope does not perish, But the boast of the ungodly perishes.†
7 A righteous man escapes from a snare, But the ungodly man is handed over in his place.
8 There is a snare for citizens in the mouth of the ungodly, But the perception of the righteous is prosperous.†
9 A city stays upright in the good things of the righteous, But it is razed to the ground by the mouths of the ungodly.
10 A man in need of discernment treats citizens with contempt, But a man of discernment keeps quiet.†
1 Corinthians 10
Worship Is Sacramental
14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.
15 I speak as to wise men; judge for yourselves what I say.
16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?† The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
17 For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.
18 Observe Israel after the flesh: Are not those who eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?†
19 What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything?†
20 Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons.
21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons.
22 Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?
Offend No Man, Glorify God
23 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify.†
24 Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being.
25 Eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no questions for conscience’ sake;†
26 for “the earth is the LORD’S, and all its fullness.”
27 If any of those who do not believe invites you to dinner, and you desire to go, eat whatever is set before you, asking no question for conscience’ sake.
28 But if anyone says to you, “This was offered to idols,” do not eat it for the sake of the one who told you, and for conscience’ sake; for “the earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness.”
29 “Conscience,” I say, not your own, but that of the other. For why is my liberty judged by another man’s conscience?
30 But if I partake with thanks, why am I evil spoken of for the food over which I give thanks?
31 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
32 Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God,
33 just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.
1 Corinthians 11
1 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.