Contemplative Bible Reading

Zechariah 8:23 (New Living Translation) 23 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: In those days ten men from different nations and languages of the world will clutch at the sleeve of one Jew. And they will say, ‘Please let us walk with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’” […]

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Amos 6:12 (New Living Translation) 12 Can horses gallop over boulders?Can oxen be used to plow them?But that’s how foolish you are when you turn justice into poisonand the sweet fruit of righteousness into bitterness. God is speaking to the people through the prophet Amos. And the topic, once again, is justice and righteousness. This […]

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Amos 5:23-24 (New Living Translation) 23 Away with your noisy hymns of praise!I will not listen to the music of your harps.24 Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice,an endless river of righteous living. God is speaking to the people through the prophet Amos. Once again, God wants justice and righteousness. God […]

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Hosea 7:11-12 (New Living Translation) 11 The people of Israel have become like silly, witless doves,first calling to Egypt, then flying to Assyria for help.12 But as they fly about,I will throw my net over themand bring them down like a bird from the sky.I will punish them for all the evil they do. This […]

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Hosea 6:6 (New Living Translation) 6 I want you to show love,not offer sacrifices.I want you to know memore than I want burnt offerings. God is speaking to the people through the prophet Hosea. The people are “going through the motions” or “checking off the boxes” or some cliche that means, “Hey God, look, we […]

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Ezekiel 33:30-31 (New Living Translation) 30 “Son of man, your people talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors. They say to each other, ‘Come on, let’s go hear the prophet tell us what the Lord is saying!’ 31 So my people come pretending to be sincere and sit before […]

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Isaiah 1:8 (New Living Translation) 8 Beautiful Jerusalem stands abandonedlike a watchman’s shelter in a vineyard,like a lean-to in a cucumber field after the harvest,like a helpless city under siege. God is talking to the people through the prophet Isaiah. This is bad news—this is very bad news. Because of generations of rebellion, the people […]

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1 Chronicles 26:13 (New Living Translation) 13 They were assigned by families for guard duty at the various gates, without regard to age or training, for it was all decided by means of sacred lots. This writing is about how people were assigned guard duty at the various gates of the city. Without regard to […]

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Ecclesiastes 1:9 (New Living Translation) 9 History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. Nowadays, I read of “the end of history” and “being on the right side of history.” The Old Testament old book of Ecclesiastes, however, provides a different history of history. Under the […]

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Proverbs 29:25 (New Living Translation) 25 Fearing people is a dangerous trap,but trusting the Lord means safety. This is a wise saying written a few thousand years ago. Lots of “wise sayings” were written a few thousand years ago. This one is from God and concerns mankind and God. Let’s pay more attention to this […]

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