JOB 29

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Job’s Past Was Glorious  29:1 And Job again took up his discourse and said,

2 “Oh that I were as in months gone by,

As in the days when God watched over me;

3 When His lamp shone over my head,

And by His light I walked through darkness;

4 As I was in the prime of my days,

When the friendship of God was over my tent;

5 When the Almighty was yet with me,

And my children were around me;

6 When my steps were bathed in butter,

And the rock poured out for me streams of oil!

7 “When I went out to the gate of the city,

When I took my seat in the square,

8 The young men saw me and hid themselves,

And the old men arose and stood.

9 “The princes stopped talking

And put their hands on their mouths;

10 The voice of the nobles was hushed,

And their tongue stuck to their palate.

11 “For when the ear heard, it called me blessed,

And when the eye saw, it gave witness of me,

12 Because I delivered the poor who cried for help,

And the orphan who had no helper.

13 “The blessing of the one ready to perish came upon me,

And I made the widow’s heart sing for joy.

14 “I put on righteousness, and it clothed me;

My justice was like a robe and a turban.

15 “I was eyes to the blind

And feet to the lame.

16 “I was a father to the needy,

And I investigated the case which I did not know.

17 “I broke the jaws of the wicked

And snatched the prey from his teeth.

18 “Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my nest,

And I shall multiply my days as the sand.

19 ‘My root is spread out to the waters,

And dew lies all night on my branch.

20 ‘My glory is ever new with me,

And my bow is renewed in my hand.’

21 “To me they listened and waited,

And kept silent for my counsel.

22 “After my words they did not speak again,

And my speech dropped on them.

23 “They waited for me as for the rain,

And opened their mouth as for the spring rain.

24 “I smiled on them when they did not believe,

And the light of my face they did not cast down.

25 “I chose a way for them and sat as chief,

And dwelt as a king among the troops,

As one who comforted the mourners.

JOB 30

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Job’s Present State Is Humiliating30:1 “But now those younger than I mock me,

Whose fathers I disdained to put with the dogs of my flock.

2 “Indeed, what good was the strength of their hands to me?

Vigor had perished from them.

3 “From want and famine they are gaunt

Who gnaw the dry ground by night in waste and desolation,

4 Who pluck mallow by the bushes,

And whose food is the root of the broom shrub.

5 “They are driven from the community;

They shout against them as against a thief,

6 So that they dwell in dreadful valleys,

In holes of the earth and of the rocks.

7 “Among the bushes they cry out;

Under the nettles they are gathered together.

8 “Fools, even those without a name,

They were scourged from the land.

9 “And now I have become their taunt,

I have even become a byword to them.

10 “They abhor me and stand aloof from me,

And they do not refrain from spitting at my face.

11 “Because He has loosed His bowstring and afflicted me,

They have cast off the bridle before me.

12 “On the right hand their brood arises;

They thrust aside my feet and build up against me their ways of destruction.

13 “They break up my path,

They profit from my destruction;

No one restrains them.

14 “As through a wide breach they come,

Amid the tempest they roll on.

15 “Terrors are turned against me;

They pursue my honor as the wind,

And my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.

16 “And now my soul is poured out within me;

Days of affliction have seized me.

17 “At night it pierces my bones within me,

And my gnawing pains take no rest.

18 “By a great force my garment is distorted;

It binds me about as the collar of my coat.

19 “He has cast me into the mire,

And I have become like dust and ashes.

20 “I cry out to You for help, but You do not answer me;

I stand up, and You turn Your attention against me.

21 “You have become cruel to me;

With the might of Your hand You persecute me.

22 “You lift me up to the wind and cause me to ride;

And You dissolve me in a storm.

23 “For I know that You will bring me to death

And to the house of meeting for all living.

24 “Yet does not one in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand,

Or in his disaster therefore cry out for help?

25 “Have I not wept for the one whose life is hard?

Was not my soul grieved for the needy?

26 “When I expected good, then evil came;

When I waited for light, then darkness came.

27 “I am seething within and cannot relax;

Days of affliction confront me.

28 “I go about mourning without comfort;

I stand up in the assembly and cry out for help.

29 “I have become a brother to jackals

And a companion of ostriches.

30 “My skin turns black on me,

And my bones burn with fever.

31 “Therefore my harp is turned to mourning,

And my flute to the sound of those who weep.

PROVERBS 16

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Contrast the Upright and the Wicked16:1 The plans of the heart belong to man,

But the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.

2 All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight,

But the LORD weighs the motives.

3 Commit your works to the LORD

And your plans will be established.

4 The LORD has made everything for its own purpose,

Even the wicked for the day of evil.

5 Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD;

Assuredly, he will not be unpunished.

6 By lovingkindness and truth iniquity is atoned for,

And by the fear of the LORD one keeps away from evil.

7 When a man’s ways are pleasing to the LORD,

He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

8 Better is a little with righteousness

Than great income with injustice.

9 The mind of man plans his way,

But the LORD directs his steps.

10 A divine decision is in the lips of the king;

His mouth should not err in judgment.

11 A just balance and scales belong to the LORD;

All the weights of the bag are His concern.

12 It is an abomination for kings to commit wicked acts,

For a throne is established on righteousness.

13 Righteous lips are the delight of kings,

And he who speaks right is loved.

14 The fury of a king is like messengers of death,

But a wise man will appease it.

15 In the light of a king’s face is life,

And his favor is like a cloud with the spring rain.

16 How much better it is to get wisdom than gold!

And to get understanding is to be chosen above silver.

17 The highway of the upright is to depart from evil;

He who watches his way preserves his life.

18 Pride goes before destruction,

And a haughty spirit before stumbling.

19 It is better to be humble in spirit with the lowly

Than to divide the spoil with the proud.

20 He who gives attention to the word will find good,

And blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.

21 The wise in heart will be called understanding,

And sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.

22 Understanding is a fountain of life to one who has it,

But the discipline of fools is folly.

23 The heart of the wise instructs his mouth

And adds persuasiveness to his lips.

24 Pleasant words are a honeycomb,

Sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

25 There is a way which seems right to a man,

But its end is the way of death.

26 A worker’s appetite works for him,

For his hunger urges him on.

27 A worthless man digs up evil,

While his words are like scorching fire.

28 A perverse man spreads strife,

And a slanderer separates intimate friends.

29 A man of violence entices his neighbor

And leads him in a way that is not good.

30 He who winks his eyes does so to devise perverse things;

He who compresses his lips brings evil to pass.

31 A gray head is a crown of glory;

It is found in the way of righteousness.

32 He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,

And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.

33 The lot is cast into the lap,

But its every decision is from the LORD.

LUKE 21

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The Widow’s Gift  21:1 And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. 2 And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins. 3 And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; 4 for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on.”
    5 And while some were talking about the temple, that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive gifts, He said, 6 “As for these things which you are looking at, the days will come in which there will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down.”
    7 They questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, when therefore will these things happen? And what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” 8 And He said, “See to it that you are not misled; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not go after them. 9 When you hear of wars and disturbances, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end does not follow immediately.”
Things to Come    10 Then He continued by saying to them, “Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, 11 and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.
    12 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. 13 It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. 14 So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; 15 for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute. 16 But you will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death, 17 and you will be hated by all because of My name. 18 Yet not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By your endurance you will gain your lives.
    20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near. 21 Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are in the midst of the city must leave, and those who are in the country must not enter the city; 22 because these are days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled. 23 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land and wrath to this people; 24 and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The Return of Christ    25 “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 Then they will see THE SON OF MAN COMING IN A CLOUD with power and great glory. 28 But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
    29 Then He told them a parable: “Behold the fig tree and all the trees; 30 as soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is now near. 31 So you also, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
    34 “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap; 35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth. 36 But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
    37 Now during the day He was teaching in the temple, but at evening He would go out and spend the night on the mount that is called Olivet. 38 And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.