Wednesday, September 29, 2021

 

Ezekiel 27

¹The word of the LORD came to me: ²"Son of man, take up a lament concerning Tyre. ³Say to Tyre, situated at the gateway to the sea, merchant of peoples on many coasts, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says:

" 'You say, O Tyre, "I am perfect in beauty." ⁴Your domain was on the high seas; your builders brought your beauty to perfection. ⁵They made all your timbers of pine trees from Senir; they took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you. ⁶Of oaks from Bashan they made your oars; of cypress wood from the coasts of Cyprus they made your deck, inlaid with ivory. ⁷Fine embroidered linen from Egypt was your sail and served as your banner; your awnings were of blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah. ⁸Men of Sidon and Arvad were your oarsmen; your skilled men, O Tyre, were aboard as your seamen. ⁹Veteran craftsmen of Gebal were on board as shipwrights to caulk your seams. All the ships of the sea and their sailors came alongside to trade for your wares.

¹⁰" 'Men of Persia, Lydia and Put served as soldiers in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls, bringing you splendor. ¹¹Men of Arvad and Helech manned your walls on every side; men of Gammad were in your towers. They hung their shields around your walls; they brought your beauty to perfection.

¹²" 'Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin and lead for your merchandise.

¹³" 'Greece, Tubal and Meshech traded with you; they exchanged slaves and articles of bronze for your wares.

¹⁴" 'Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged work horses, war horses and mules for your merchandise.

¹⁵" 'The men of Rhodes traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony.

¹⁶" 'Aram did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral and rubies for your merchandise.

¹⁷" 'Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections, honey, oil and balm for your wares.

¹⁸" 'Damascus, because of your many products and great wealth of goods, did business with you in wine from Helbon and wool from Zahar.

¹⁹" 'Danites and Greeks from Uzal bought your merchandise; they exchanged wrought iron, cassia and calamus for your wares.

²⁰" 'Dedan traded in saddle blankets with you.

²¹" 'Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams and goats.

²²" 'The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold.

²³" 'Haran, Canneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Asshur and Kilmad traded with you. ²⁴In your marketplace they traded with you beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered work and multicolored rugs with cords twisted and tightly knotted.

²⁵" 'The ships of Tarshish serve as carriers for your wares. You are filled with heavy cargo in the heart of the sea. ²⁶Your oarsmen take you out to the high seas. But the east wind will break you to pieces in the heart of the sea. ²⁷Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, seamen and shipwrights, your merchants and all your soldiers, and everyone else on board will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck. ²⁸The shorelands will quake when your seamen cry out. ²⁹All who handle the oars will abandon their ships; the mariners and all the seamen will stand on the shore. ³⁰They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes. ³¹They will shave their heads because of you and will put on sackcloth. They will weep over you with anguish of soul and with bitter mourning. ³²As they wail and mourn over you, they will take up a lament concerning you: "Who was ever silenced like Tyre, surrounded by the sea?" ³³When your merchandise went out on the seas, you satisfied many nations; with your great wealth and your wares you enriched the kings of the earth. ³⁴Now you are shattered by the sea in the depths of the waters; your wares and all your company have gone down with you. ³⁵All who live in the coastlands are appalled at you; their kings shudder with horror and their faces are distorted with fear. ³⁶The merchants among the nations hiss at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.' "

 

 

Psalm 88

¹A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah. For the director of music. According to [mahalath leannoth.] A [maskil] of Heman the Ezrahite. O LORD, the God who saves me, day and night I cry out before you. ²May my prayer come before you; turn your ear to my cry. ³For my soul is full of trouble and my life draws near the grave. ⁴I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like a man without strength. ⁵I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom you remember no more, who are cut off from your care. ⁶You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. ⁷Your wrath lies heavily upon me; you have overwhelmed me with all your waves. [Selah] ⁸You have taken from me my closest friends and have made me repulsive to them. I am confined and cannot escape; ⁹my eyes are dim with grief. I call to you, O LORD, every day; I spread out my hands to you. ¹⁰Do you show your wonders to the dead? Do those who are dead rise up and praise you? [Selah] ¹¹Is your love declared in the grave, your faithfulness in Destruction? ¹²Are your wonders known in the place of darkness, or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion? ¹³But I cry to you for help, O LORD; in the morning my prayer comes before you. ¹⁴Why, O LORD, do you reject me and hide your face from me? ¹⁵From my youth I have been afflicted and close to death; I have suffered your terrors and am in despair. ¹⁶Your wrath has swept over me; your terrors have destroyed me. ¹⁷All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me. ¹⁸You have taken my companions and loved ones from me; the darkness is my closest friend.

 

 

Hebrews 2:10–18

¹⁰In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. ¹¹Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers. ¹²He says,

"I will declare your name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises."

¹³And again,

"I will put my trust in him."

And again he says,

"Here am I, and the children God has given me."

¹⁴Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil-- ¹⁵and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. ¹⁶For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. ¹⁷For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. ¹⁸Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.