NL-Day287 Ezekiel 6-7; Song of Solomon 4; Matthew 25:1-30
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
Release Date: 10/14/2024
NL-Day257 Hosea 11-12; Proverbs 25:1-14; Matthew 6:19-34
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
HOSEA 11-12:In yesterday’s reading, as the Lord was pleading with Israel and using agricultural metaphors, He said, Hos. 10:12-13 NLT … ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.’ 13 “But you have cultivated wickedness and harvested a thriving crop of sins. You have eaten the fruit of lies— trusting in your military might, believing that great armies could make your nation safe. PROVERBS 25a:Today’s highlighted...
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NL-Day256 Hosea 9-10; Proverbs 24:17-34; Matthew 6:1-18
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
HOSEA 9-10:I like how the GNT translates the first paragraph of chapter 6 as being the words of the people of Israel. Hosea 6:1-4 GNT:1 The people say, “Let's return to the LORD! He has hurt us, but he will be sure to heal us; he has wounded us, but he will bandage our wounds, won't he?2 In two or three days he will revive us, and we will live in his presence.3 Let us try to know the LORD. He will come to us as surely as the day dawns, as surely as the spring rains fall upon the earth.” 4 But the LORD says, “Israel and Judah, what am I going to do with you? Your love for me disappears as...
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NL-Day255 Hosea 6-7; Proverbs 24:1-18; Matthew 5:27-48
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
HOSEA 6-8:In yesterday’s reading, Hosea bought back his wife from prostitution. And the Lord drew analogies in his speech to Israel. PROVERBS 24a:Favorite verses: Pro. 24:5 NLT The wise are mightier than the strong, and those with knowledge grow stronger and stronger. 6 So don’t go to war without wise guidance; victory depends on having many advisers. MATTHEW 5b:Yesterday we read the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, including the famous and memorizable Beatitudes. We also heard the first instance of “You have heard it said… but I say …” NLT Translation notes:Pro. 24:15 Don’t...
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NL-Day254 Hosea 3-5; Proverbs 23:17-35; Matthew 5:1-26
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
HOSEA 3-5:Beautifully interwoven word plays or metaphors were constructed using the names of Hosea’s three children. And verses of yesterday’s reading, are quoted in Romans 9 and 1Peter 2. The last verse ended: Hos. 2:23 NLT “I will show loveto those I called ‘Not loved.’And to those I called ‘Not my people,’I will say, ‘Now you are my people.’And they will reply, ‘You are our God!’” PROVERBS 23b:As you may have noticed yesterday, this chapter is much more thematic than chapters 10 through 22. The second half of chapter 23 is the words of a father to his son. This...
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NL-Day253 Hosea 1-2; Proverbs 23:1-18; Matthew 4
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
HOSEA 1-2:We have already heard that God considers the sin of idolatry to be parallel and just as offensive as a wife being unfaithful to her husband. Hosea is told by God to actually live out this situation. He is told to marry Gomer, a prostitute. Through Hosea, God shows just how ready He is to restore and be reconciled with His wayward people. Hosea prophesied to the Northern kingdom during the same time that Amos, Isaiah, and Micah were prophesying in the Southern kingdom. This was during the reign of Jeroboam the 2nd. Hosea was not a professional prophet trained in a school for prophets,...
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NL-Day252 1 Chronicles 29; Proverbs 22:14-29; Matthew 3
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
1CHRONICLES 29:Yesterday we heard of the military commanders and officials under David, and the leaders of 13 tribes. Then we heard David’s instructions to Solomon. And it is always amazing to me the detail with which David planned for the temple, and also his generosity. PROVERBS 22b:Halfway through this chapter we begin a section where more of the proverbs are arranged in short paragraphs. That section begins at verse 17, just three verses after we begin today’s reading. Verse 20 introduces 30 sayings that follow MATTHEW 3:Yesterday we heard of the coming of the learned men from...
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NL-Day251 1 Chronicles 27-28; Proverbs 22:1-15; Matthew 2
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
1CHRONICLES 27-28:Yesterday we heard of the assignments of Levites as musicians, judges, and temple gate keepers. PROVERBS 22a:Our highlighted verse for today: 14 The mouth of an immoral woman is a dangerous trap;those who make the LORD angry will fall into it. (NLT) MATTHEW 2:For today’s intro to Matthew 2, I have a correction from what I said in this episode 251 before 2022. For this information, I am relying on Leon Morris’ commentary. How come the genealogies of Matthew and Luke are different? I have often heard it said that Matthew gives the genealogy of Joseph (the legal father) and...
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NL-Day250 1 Chronicles 25-26; Proverbs 21:15-31; Matthew 1
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
1CHRONICLES 25-26:There was a rather important shift in Israel’s religious life that happened with David and his plans for temple worship rather than the older pattern of worship at the Tabernacle: It was that the priests and Levites were re-organized into groups appropriate to the new state of affairs, introducing divisions on top of the old system which was based on family lines. This reordering was still in effect at the beginning of the New Testament, where we read that Zechariah was a member of the priestly division of Abijah. So we have precedent for not always ‘doing it’ the way...
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NL-Day249 1 Chronicles 23-24; Proverbs 21:1-16; Titus 3
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
1CHRONICLES 23-24:Yesterday we heard a rather odd story about how “Satan rose up against Israel and caused David to take a census.” But in 2Samuel 24:1 we read that “Again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, ‘Go and take a census of Israel and Judah.’” So who was it— Satan or the Lord? And if the problem was caused by someone else, why was David and all Israel punished?! I think, in a place like this, we have to go back to what we learned in Job. God brought up a topic to Satan, Satan responds predictably, and God gives...
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NL-Day248 1 Chronicles 21-22; Proverbs 20:16-30; Titus 2
Daily Bible Reading Phil Fields
1CHRONICLES 21-22:Yesterday we heard the part where the writer of Chronicles skated over where David had his affair with Bathsheba. But we heard of the military victories and especially the misunderstanding that became the reason for the war with the Ammonites. PROVERBS 20b:Our highlighted verse for today: Pro. 20:24 NLT The Lord directs our steps,so why try to understand everything along the way? Another proverb with deep significance is: 27 The Lord’s light penetrates the human spirit,exposing every hidden motive. TITUS 2:A major theme of this book is literally ‘healthy faith’ and...
info_outlineEZEKIEL 6-7:
In yesterday’s reading Ezekiel portrayed the punishment of Israel and the siege on Jerusalem for a total of 430 days. Then he took a razor and cut his hair and divided it into three parts with a little left over. This was used as a demonstration that a third of the people would die in the city from disease and famine. The distress will be so severe that parents will eat their children. A third will be killed by the enemy outside the city, and the last third will be scattered by the sword. A small remnant will be saved.
SONG OF SOLOMON 4:
Yesterday the woman had an extended speech. Today it is the man’s turn.
MATTHEW 25a:
Yesterday was Jesus’ extended teaching about the end times and His own return, and the parables about our Being READY to receive our Master. And at the beginning of this chapter, we have one of my favorite parables.
NLT Translation notes:
Mat. 25:14 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted [them to do business with//0] his money [0//to them] while he was gone.
21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. [Come! Celebrate together with me!//Let’s celebrate together!]’
23 ending same as at the end of 21
25 I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it [a hole in the ground//in the earth]. Look, here is your money back.’
40 “And [I, as the King,//the King] will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters,f you were doing it to me!’
41 “Then [I, as the King,//the King] will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.
45 “And [I/he] will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.