LEVITICUS 22

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Sundry Rules for Priests  22:1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Tell Aaron and his sons to be careful with the holy gifts of the sons of Israel, which they dedicate to Me, so as not to profane My holy name; I am the LORD. 3 Say to them, ‘If any man among all your descendants throughout your generations approaches the holy gifts which the sons of Israel dedicate to the LORD, while he has an uncleanness, that person shall be cut off from before Me; I am the LORD. 4 No man of the descendants of Aaron, who is a leper or who has a discharge, may eat of the holy gifts until he is clean. And if one touches anything made unclean by a corpse or if a man has a seminal emission, 5 or if a man touches any teeming things by which he is made unclean, or any man by whom he is made unclean, whatever his uncleanness; 6 a person who touches any such shall be unclean until evening, and shall not eat of the holy gifts unless he has bathed his body in water. 7 But when the sun sets, he will be clean, and afterward he shall eat of the holy gifts, for it is his food. 8 He shall not eat an animal which dies or is torn by beasts, becoming unclean by it; I am the LORD. 9 They shall therefore keep My charge, so that they will not bear sin because of it and die thereby because they profane it; I am the LORD who sanctifies them.
    10 ‘No layman, however, is to eat the holy gift; a sojourner with the priest or a hired man shall not eat of the holy gift. 11 But if a priest buys a slave as his property with his money, that one may eat of it, and those who are born in his house may eat of his food. 12 If a priest’s daughter is married to a layman, she shall not eat of the offering of the gifts. 13 But if a priest’s daughter becomes a widow or divorced, and has no child and returns to her father’s house as in her youth, she shall eat of her father’s food; but no layman shall eat of it. 14 But if a man eats a holy gift unintentionally, then he shall add to it a fifth of it and shall give the holy gift to the priest. 15 They shall not profane the holy gifts of the sons of Israel which they offer to the LORD, 16 and so cause them to bear punishment for guilt by eating their holy gifts; for I am the LORD who sanctifies them.’”
Flawless Animals for Sacrifice    17 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “Speak to Aaron and to his sons and to all the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘Any man of the house of Israel or of the aliens in Israel who presents his offering, whether it is any of their votive or any of their freewill offerings, which they present to the LORD for a burnt offering-- 19 for you to be accepted--it must be a male without defect from the cattle, the sheep, or the goats. 20 Whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it will not be accepted for you. 21 When a man offers a sacrifice of peace offerings to the LORD to fulfill a special vow or for a freewill offering, of the herd or of the flock, it must be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no defect in it. 22 Those that are blind or fractured or maimed or having a running sore or eczema or scabs, you shall not offer to the LORD, nor make of them an offering by fire on the altar to the LORD. 23 In respect to an ox or a lamb which has an overgrown or stunted member, you may present it for a freewill offering, but for a vow it will not be accepted. 24 Also anything with its testicles bruised or crushed or torn or cut, you shall not offer to the LORD, or sacrifice in your land, 25 nor shall you accept any such from the hand of a foreigner for offering as the food of your God; for their corruption is in them, they have a defect, they shall not be accepted for you.’”
    26 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 27 “When an ox or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall remain seven days with its mother, and from the eighth day on it shall be accepted as a sacrifice of an offering by fire to the LORD. 28 But, whether it is an ox or a sheep, you shall not kill both it and its young in one day. 29 When you sacrifice a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the LORD, you shall sacrifice it so that you may be accepted. 30 It shall be eaten on the same day, you shall leave none of it until morning; I am the LORD. 31 So you shall keep My commandments, and do them; I am the LORD.
    32 “You shall not profane My holy name, but I will be sanctified among the sons of Israel; I am the LORD who sanctifies you, 33 who brought you out from the land of Egypt, to be your God; I am the LORD.”

PSALM 47

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God the King of the Earth.For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
47:1 O clap your hands, all peoples;

Shout to God with the voice of joy.

2 For the LORD Most High is to be feared,

A great King over all the earth.

3 He subdues peoples under us

And nations under our feet.

4 He chooses our inheritance for us,

The glory of Jacob whom He loves. Selah.

5 God has ascended with a shout,

The LORD, with the sound of a trumpet.

6 Sing praises to God, sing praises;

Sing praises to our King, sing praises.

7 For God is the King of all the earth;

Sing praises with a skillful psalm.

8 God reigns over the nations,

God sits on His holy throne.

9 The princes of the people have assembled themselves as the people of the God of Abraham,

For the shields of the earth belong to God;

He is highly exalted.

PSALM 48

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The Beauty and Glory of Zion.A Song; a Psalm of the sons of Korah.
48:1 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised,

In the city of our God, His holy mountain.

2 Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth,

Is Mount Zion in the far north,

The city of the great King.

3 God, in her palaces,

Has made Himself known as a stronghold.

4 For, lo, the kings assembled themselves,

They passed by together.

5 They saw it, then they were amazed;

They were terrified, they fled in alarm.

6 Panic seized them there,

Anguish, as of a woman in childbirth.

7 With the east wind

You break the ships of Tarshish.

8 As we have heard, so have we seen

In the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God;

God will establish her forever. Selah.

9 We have thought on Your lovingkindness, O God,

In the midst of Your temple.

10 As is Your name, O God,

So is Your praise to the ends of the earth;

Your right hand is full of righteousness.

11 Let Mount Zion be glad,

Let the daughters of Judah rejoice

Because of Your judgments.

12 Walk about Zion and go around her;

Count her towers;

13 Consider her ramparts;

Go through her palaces,

That you may tell it to the next generation.

14 For such is God,

Our God forever and ever;

He will guide us until death.

PROVERBS 24

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Precepts and Warnings24:1 Do not be envious of evil men,

Nor desire to be with them;

2 For their minds devise violence,

And their lips talk of trouble.

3 By wisdom a house is built,

And by understanding it is established;

4 And by knowledge the rooms are filled

With all precious and pleasant riches.

5 A wise man is strong,

And a man of knowledge increases power.

6 For by wise guidance you will wage war,

And in abundance of counselors there is victory.

7 Wisdom is too exalted for a fool,

He does not open his mouth in the gate.

8 One who plans to do evil,

Men will call a schemer.

9 The devising of folly is sin,

And the scoffer is an abomination to men.

10 If you are slack in the day of distress,

Your strength is limited.

11 Deliver those who are being taken away to death,

And those who are staggering to slaughter, Oh hold them back.

12 If you say, “See, we did not know this,”

Does He not consider it who weighs the hearts?

And does He not know it who keeps your soul?

And will He not render to man according to his work?

13 My son, eat honey, for it is good,

Yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste;

14 Know that wisdom is thus for your soul;

If you find it, then there will be a future,

And your hope will not be cut off.

15 Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous;

Do not destroy his resting place;

16 For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again,

But the wicked stumble in time of calamity.

17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,

And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles;

18 Or the LORD will see it and be displeased,

And turn His anger away from him.

19 Do not fret because of evildoers

Or be envious of the wicked;

20 For there will be no future for the evil man;

The lamp of the wicked will be put out.

21 My son, fear the LORD and the king;

Do not associate with those who are given to change,

22 For their calamity will rise suddenly,

And who knows the ruin that comes from both of them?

23 These also are sayings of the wise.

To show partiality in judgment is not good.

24 He who says to the wicked, “You are righteous,”

Peoples will curse him, nations will abhor him;

25 But to those who rebuke the wicked will be delight,

And a good blessing will come upon them.

26 He kisses the lips

Who gives a right answer.

27 Prepare your work outside

And make it ready for yourself in the field;

Afterwards, then, build your house.

28 Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause,

And do not deceive with your lips.

29 Do not say, “Thus I shall do to him as he has done to me;

I will render to the man according to his work.”

30 I passed by the field of the sluggard

And by the vineyard of the man lacking sense,

31 And behold, it was completely overgrown with thistles;

Its surface was covered with nettles,

And its stone wall was broken down.

32 When I saw, I reflected upon it;

I looked, and received instruction.

33 “A little sleep, a little slumber,

A little folding of the hands to rest,”

34 Then your poverty will come as a robber

And your want like an armed man.