Ezekiel 24
Parable of the Cooking Pot
1 Again the word of the Lord came to me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, saying,†
2 “Son of man, record for yourself daily, from this day, the day on which the king of Babylon laid siege against Jerusalem.
3 Speak a parable to the house which provokes, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Stand over a basin and pour water into it.
4 Put pieces of meat in it, every good piece, the thigh and shoulder full of meat,
5 taken from the choice cattle. Also pile fuel-bones under it, make it boil well, and let the cuts simmer.”
6 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord: “O bloody city, the basin in which there is scum, and the scum has not gone out of it. She brought forth the cuts, piece by piece, but no portion was selected.
7 For her blood is in her midst; I set it upon a smooth rock; I did not pour it on the ground, that the dirt may cover it,
8 that My wrath may come forth and take vengeance. I set her blood upon a smooth rock, so as not to cover it.”
9 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord: “I will also make a great display of fire.
10 I shall heap the wood on and kindle the fire, to consume the meat and boil away the sauce.
11 I will set the basin on the coals, so its copper may become thoroughly heated and melted in the midst of her uncleanness, so her scum may be consumed,
12 and her abundant scum may not come forth from her.
13 Her scum shall be shameful, because you defiled yourself, and what if you will not be cleansed any more, until I have satisfied my wrath?
14 I, the Lord, have spoken it, and it will come to pass; and I shall do it. I will not hold back nor show mercy. According to your ways and your inventions, I shall judge you,” says the Lord. “Therefore I shall judge you according to your bloodshed and inventions, you unclean, notorious, and provoking one.” ’ ”
Death of Ezekiel’s Wife
15 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying,†
16 “Son of man, behold, I will take away your inventions before your eyes in the line of battle, but you shall neither mourn nor weep.
17 There shall be groaning over bloodshed and mourning on bended knee. There shall be no braided hair on your head or sandals on your feet. You shall not be comforted by their lips, nor shall you eat the bread of men.”
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning in the manner He commanded me, and that evening my wife died. The next morning I did as He commanded me.
19 Then the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things mean that you are doing?”
20 So I answered them, “The word of the Lord came to me, saying,
21 ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I shall desecrate My sanctuary, the boast of your strength, the object of your desire, over which your souls spare nothing; and your sons and daughters whom you left will fall by the sword.
22 You will do as I have done. You will not be comforted by their mouth, nor eat the bread of men.
23 Your hair will be on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will neither mourn nor weep. You will sink deep in your wrongdoings, and each of you will comfort one another.
24 Thus Ezekiel shall be a sign to you; according to all he does, you will do. When these things come, you will know that I am the Lord.’ ”
25 ‘As for you, son of man, it shall not be as in the day when I take their strength from them, the arrogance of their boasting, the objects of their desire, and the arrogance of their souls, their sons and their daughters.
26 In that day, he who is rescued will come to you, so you will hear of it with your own ears.
27 In that day, your mouth will open before him who is rescued. You will speak and no longer be silent. Thus you will be a sign to them, and they shall know that I am the Lord.’ ”
Psalms 118
145 I cry out with my whole heart; hear me, O Lord; I shall search Your ordinances.
146 I cry out to You; save me, And I shall keep Your testimonies.
147 I arose at midnight and cried out; I hoped in Your words.
148 My eyes awoke before dawn That I might meditate on Your teachings.
149 Hear my voice, O Lord, according to Your mercy; Give me life according to Your judgment.
150 Those who persecute me in lawlessness drew near; They are far removed from Your law.
151 You are near, O Lord; All Your commandments are truth.
152 From the beginning I knew Your testimonies, That You established them forever.
153 Behold my humiliation and deliver me, For I have not forgotten Your law.
154 Plead my cause and redeem me; Give me life because of Your word.
155 Salvation is far from sinners, For they have not searched Your ordinances.
156 Your compassions are many, O Lord; Give me life according to Your judgment.
157 Many are those who pursue and afflict me, But I did not turn away from Your testimonies.
158 I saw those acting foolishly, and I yearned for You; For they did not keep Your teachings.
159 Behold, I love Your commandments; O Lord, in Your mercy, give me life.
160 The beginning of Your words is truth, And all the judgments of Your righteousness are forever.
Proverbs of Solomon 27
Wisdom for Today
1 Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what the next day will bring forth.†
2 Let your neighbor praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips.†
3 A stone is heavy, and sand is cumbersome; But the wrath of a man without discernment is heavier than both.†
4 Wrath is merciless and anger passionate, But jealousy supports nothing.
5 Open reproofs are better than hidden love.
2 Peter 3
Where Is His Coming?
1 Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder),
2 that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior,
3 knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts,
4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”†
5 For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water,
6 by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.
7 But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.†
Purified by Waiting
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.†
11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.†
The Truth of Apostolic Teaching
14 Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;
15 and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,†
16 as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.†
17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;†
18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.