June 3
Jeremiah 14-15 & Acts 13
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Jeremiah 14-15

Chapter 14

14:1The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:
2Judah mourns;
her gates languish.
Her people are on the ground in mourning;
Jerusalem's cry rises up.
3Their nobles send their servants for water.
They go to the cisterns;
they find no water;
their containers return empty.
They are ashamed and humiliated;
they cover their heads.
4The ground is cracked
since no rain has fallen on the land.
The farmers are ashamed;
they cover their heads.
5Even the doe in the field
gives birth and abandons her fawn
since there is no grass.
6Wild donkeys stand on the barren heights
panting for air like jackals.
Their eyes fail
because there are no green plants.
7Though our guilt testifies against us,
Yahweh, act for Your name's sake.
Indeed, our rebellions are many;
we have sinned against You.
8Hope of Israel,
its Savior in time of distress,
why are You like a foreigner in the land,
like a traveler stopping only for the night?
9Why are You like a helpless man,
like a warrior unable to save?
Yet You are among us, Yahweh,
and we are called by Your name.
Don't leave us!
10This is what the Lord says concerning these people:
Truly they love to wander;
they never rest their feet.
So the Lord does not accept them.
Now He will remember their guilt
and punish their sins.
11Then the Lord said to me, "Do not pray for the well-being of these people. 12If they fast, I will not hear their cry of despair. If they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. Rather, I will finish them off by sword, famine, and plague."
13And I replied, "Oh no, Lord God! The prophets are telling them, 'You won't see sword or suffer famine. I will certainly give you true peace in this place.'"
14But the Lord said to me, "These prophets are prophesying a lie in My name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, worthless divination, the deceit of their own minds.
15"Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning the prophets who prophesy in My name, though I did not send them, and who say, 'There will never be sword or famine in this land.' By sword and famine these prophets will meet their end. 16The people they are prophesying to will be thrown into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword. There will be no one to bury them-they, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. I will pour out their own evil on them."
17You are to speak this word to them:
Let my eyes overflow with tears;
day and night may they not stop,
for the virgin daughter of my people
has been destroyed by a great disaster,
an extremely severe wound.
18If I go out to the field,
look-those slain by the sword!
If I enter the city,
look-those ill from famine!
For both prophet and priest
travel to a land they do not know.
19Have You completely rejected Judah?
Do You detest Zion?
Why do You strike us
with no hope of healing for us?
We hoped for peace,
but there was nothing good;
for a time of healing,
but there was only terror.
20We acknowledge our wickedness, Lord,
the guilt of our fathers;
indeed, we have sinned against You.
21Because of Your name, don't despise us.
Don't disdain Your glorious throne.
Remember Your covenant with us;
do not break it.
22Can any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain?
Or can the skies alone give showers?
Are You not the Lord our God?
We therefore put our hope in You,
for You have done all these things.

Chapter 15

15:1Then the Lord said to me: "Even if Moses and Samuel should stand before Me, My compassions would not reach out to these people. Send them from My presence, and let them go. 2If they ask you, 'Where will we go?' you must tell them: This is what the Lord says:
Those destined for death, to death;
those destined for the sword, to the sword.
Those destined for famine, to famine;
those destined for captivity, to captivity.
3"I will ordain four kinds of judgment for them"-this is the Lord's declaration-"the sword to kill, the dogs to drag away, and the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the land to devour and destroy. 4I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of Manasseh son of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.
5Who will have pity on you, Jerusalem?
Who will show sympathy toward you?
Who will turn aside
to ask about your welfare?
6You have left Me.

This is the Lord's declaration.
You have turned your back,
so I have stretched out My hand against you
and destroyed you.
I am tired of showing compassion.
7I scattered them with a winnowing fork
at the gates of the land.
I made them childless; I destroyed My people.
They would not turn from their ways.
8I made their widows more numerous
than the sand of the seas.
I brought a destroyer at noon
against the mother of young men.
I suddenly released on her
agitation and terrors.
9The mother of seven grew faint;
she breathed her last breath.
Her sun set while it was still day;
she was ashamed and humiliated.
The rest of them I will give over to the sword
in the presence of their enemies."

This is the Lord's declaration.
10Woe is me, my mother,
that you gave birth to me,
a man who incites dispute and conflict
in all the land.
I did not lend or borrow,
yet everyone curses me.
11The Lord said:
I will certainly set you free and care for you.
I will certainly intercede for you
in a time of trouble,
in your time of distress, with the enemy.
12Can anyone smash iron,
iron from the north, or bronze?
13I will give up your wealth
and your treasures as plunder,
without cost, for all your sins
in all your borders.
14Then I will make you serve your enemies
in a land you do not know,
for My anger will kindle a fire
that will burn against you.
15You know, Lord;
remember me and take note of me.
Avenge me against my persecutors.
In Your patience, don't take me away.
Know that I suffer disgrace for Your honor.
16Your words were found, and I ate them.
Your words became a delight to me
and the joy of my heart,
for I am called by Your name,
Yahweh God of Hosts.
17I never sat with the band of revelers,
and I did not celebrate with them.
Because Your hand was on me, I sat alone,
for You filled me with indignation.
18Why has my pain become unending,
my wound incurable,
refusing to be healed?
You truly have become like a mirage to me-
water that is not reliable.
19Therefore, this is what the Lord says:
If you return, I will restore you;
you will stand in My presence.
And if you speak noble words,
rather than worthless ones,
you will be My spokesman.
It is they who must return to you;
you must not return to them.
20Then I will make you a fortified wall of bronze
to this people.
They will fight against you
but will not overcome you,
for I am with you
to save you and deliver you.

This is the Lord's declaration.
21I will deliver you from the power of evil people
and redeem you from the control of the ruthless.

Acts 13

Chapter 13

13:1In the church that was at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen, a close friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
2As they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work I have called them to." 3Then after they had fasted, prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them off.
4Being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they came down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5Arriving in Salamis, they proclaimed God's message in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John as their assistant. 6When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came across a sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and desired to hear God's message. 8But Elymas the sorcerer (this is the meaning of his name) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
9Then Saul-also called Paul-filled with the Holy Spirit, stared straight at the sorcerer 10and said, "You son of the Devil, full of all deceit and all fraud, enemy of all righteousness! Won't you ever stop perverting the straight paths of the Lord? 11Now, look! The Lord's hand is against you. You are going to be blind, and will not see the sun for a time." Suddenly a mist and darkness fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
12Then the proconsul, seeing what happened, believed and was astonished at the teaching about the Lord.
13Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. John, however, left them and went back to Jerusalem. 14They continued their journey from Perga and reached Antioch in Pisidia. On the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down. 15After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, "Brothers, if you have any message of encouragement for the people, you can speak."
16Then Paul stood up and motioned with his hand and said: "Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen! 17The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors, exalted the people during their stay in the land of Egypt, and led them out of it with a mighty arm. 18And for about 40 years He put up with them in the wilderness; 19then after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, He gave their land to them as an inheritance. 20This all took about 450 years. After this, He gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21Then they asked for a king, so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for 40 years. 22After removing him, He raised up David as their king and testified about him: 'I have found David the son of Jesse, a man loyal to Me, who will carry out all My will.'
23"From this man's descendants, according to the promise, God brought the Savior, Jesus, to Israel. 24Before He came to public attention, John had previously proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25Then as John was completing his life's work, he said, 'Who do you think I am? I am not the One. But look! Someone is coming after me, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on His feet.'
26"Brothers, sons of Abraham's race, and those among you who fear God, the message of this salvation has been sent to us. 27For the residents of Jerusalem and their rulers, since they did not recognize Him or the voices of the prophets that are read every Sabbath, have fulfilled their words by condemning Him. 28Though they found no grounds for the death penalty, they asked Pilate to have Him killed. 29When they had fulfilled all that had been written about Him, they took Him down from the tree and put Him in a tomb. 30But God raised Him from the dead, 31and He appeared for many days to those who came with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now His witnesses to the people. 32And we ourselves proclaim to you the good news of the promise that was made to our ancestors. 33God has fulfilled this for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second Psalm:
You are My Son;
today I have become Your Father.
34Since He raised Him from the dead, never to return to decay, He has spoken in this way, I will grant you the faithful covenant blessings made to David. 35Therefore He also says in another passage, You will not allow Your Holy One to see decay. 36For David, after serving his own generation in God's plan, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and decayed. 37But the One God raised up did not decay. 38Therefore, let it be known to you, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you, 39and everyone who believes in Him is justified from everything that you could not be justified from through the law of Moses. 40So beware that what is said in the prophets does not happen to you:
41Look, you scoffers,
marvel and vanish away,
because I am doing a work in your days,
a work that you will never believe,
even if someone were to explain it to you."
42As they were leaving, the people begged that these matters be presented to them the following Sabbath. 43After the synagogue had been dismissed, many of the Jews and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who were speaking with them and persuading them to continue in the grace of God.
44The following Sabbath almost the whole town assembled to hear the message of the Lord. 45But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to oppose what Paul was saying by insulting him.
46Then Paul and Barnabas boldly said: "It was necessary that God's message be spoken to you first. But since you reject it and consider yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles! 47For this is what the Lord has commanded us:
I have made you
a light for the Gentiles
to bring salvation
to the ends of the earth."
48When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the message of the Lord, and all who had been appointed to eternal life believed. 49So the message of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50But the Jews incited the prominent women, who worshiped God, and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled them from their district. 51But they shook the dust off their feet against them and went to Iconium. 52And the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

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