Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Job 26

¹Then Job replied:

²"How you have helped the powerless! How you have saved the arm that is feeble! ³What advice you have offered to one without wisdom! And what great insight you have displayed! ⁴Who has helped you utter these words? And whose spirit spoke from your mouth?

⁵"The dead are in deep anguish, those beneath the waters and all that live in them. ⁶Death is naked before God; Destruction lies uncovered. ⁷He spreads out the northern [skies] over empty space; he suspends the earth over nothing. ⁸He wraps up the waters in his clouds, yet the clouds do not burst under their weight. ⁹He covers the face of the full moon, spreading his clouds over it. ¹⁰He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters for a boundary between light and darkness. ¹¹The pillars of the heavens quake, aghast at his rebuke. ¹²By his power he churned up the sea; by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces. ¹³By his breath the skies became fair; his hand pierced the gliding serpent. ¹⁴And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?"

Psalm 107:23–43

²³Others went out on the sea in ships; they were merchants on the mighty waters. ²⁴They saw the works of the LORD, his wonderful deeds in the deep. ²⁵For he spoke and stirred up a tempest that lifted high the waves. ²⁶They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage melted away. ²⁷They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their wits' end. ²⁸Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. ²⁹He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. ³⁰They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven. ³¹Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men. ³²Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people and praise him in the council of the elders. ³³He turned rivers into a desert, flowing springs into thirsty ground, ³⁴and fruitful land into a salt waste, because of the wickedness of those who lived there. ³⁵He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs; ³⁶there he brought the hungry to live, and they founded a city where they could settle. ³⁷They sowed fields and planted vineyards that yielded a fruitful harvest; ³⁸he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased, and he did not let their herds diminish. ³⁹Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled by oppression, calamity and sorrow; ⁴⁰he who pours contempt on nobles made them wander in a trackless waste. ⁴¹But he lifted the needy out of their affliction and increased their families like flocks. ⁴²The upright see and rejoice, but all the wicked shut their mouths. ⁴³Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD.

Luke 15:1–10

¹Now the tax collectors and "sinners" were all gathering around to hear him. ²But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

³Then Jesus told them this parable: ⁴"Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? ⁵And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders ⁶and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' ⁷I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

⁸"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? ⁹And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' ¹⁰In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."