Today’s Reading : Habakkuk 2 – 3; Zephaniah 1 – 2 and Mark 4 (KJV)
Habakkuk 2
Hab 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon
the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall
answer when I am reproved.
Hab 2:2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the
vision, and make it plain upon tables,
that he may run that readeth it.
Hab 2:3 For the vision is
yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though
it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
Hab 2:4 Behold, his soul which
is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Hab 2:5 Yea also, because he transgresseth
by wine, he is
a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth
unto him all people:
Hab 2:6 Shall not all these take up a parable against
him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is
not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself
with thick clay!
Hab 2:7 Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall
bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt
be for booties unto them?
Hab 2:8 Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all
the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men's blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of
all that dwell therein.
Hab 2:9 Woe to him that coveteth
an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he
may be delivered from the power of evil!
Hab 2:10 Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by
cutting off many people, and hast sinned against
thy soul.
Hab 2:11 For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and
the beam out of the timber shall answer it.
Hab 2:12 Woe to him that buildeth
a town with blood, and establisheth a city by
iniquity!
Hab 2:13 Behold, is
it not of the LORD of hosts that the
people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for
very vanity?
Hab 2:14 For the earth shall be filled with the
knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
Hab 2:15 Woe unto him that giveth
his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest
look on their nakedness!
Hab 2:16 Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink
thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the LORD's right hand
shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall
be on thy glory.
Hab 2:17 For the violence of Lebanon shall cover thee,
and the spoil of beasts, which made them
afraid, because of men's blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city,
and of all that dwell therein.
Hab 2:18 What profiteth the
graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a
teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth
therein, to make dumb idols?
Hab 2:19 Woe unto him that saith
to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is
no breath at all in the midst of it.
Hab 2:20 But the LORD is
in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.
Habakkuk 3
Hab 3:1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet upon Shigionoth.
Hab 3:2 O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the
midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember
mercy.
Hab 3:3 God came from Teman,
and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory
covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise.
Hab 3:4 And his
brightness was as the light; he had horns coming
out of his hand: and there was the
hiding of his power.
Hab 3:5 Before him went the pestilence, and burning
coals went forth at his feet.
Hab 3:6 He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld,
and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered,
the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are
everlasting.
Hab 3:7 I saw the tents of Cushan
in affliction: and the curtains of the
land of Midian did tremble.
Hab 3:8 Was the LORD displeased against the rivers? was thine anger against
the rivers? was thy wrath against the
sea, that thou didst ride upon thine horses and thy chariots of salvation?
Hab 3:9 Thy bow was made quite naked, according to the oaths of the tribes, even thy
word. Selah. Thou didst cleave the earth with rivers.
Hab 3:10 The mountains saw thee, and they trembled: the overflowing of the water
passed by: the deep uttered his voice, and
lifted up his hands on high.
Hab 3:11 The sun and
moon stood still in their habitation: at the light of thine
arrows they went, and at the shining of
thy glittering spear.
Hab 3:12 Thou didst march through the land in
indignation, thou didst thresh the heathen in anger.
Hab 3:13 Thou wentest forth
for the salvation of thy people, even
for salvation with thine anointed; thou woundedst the head out of the house of the wicked, by
discovering the foundation unto the neck. Selah.
Hab 3:14 Thou didst strike through with his staves the
head of his villages: they came out as a whirlwind to scatter me: their
rejoicing was as to devour the poor
secretly.
Hab 3:15 Thou didst walk through the sea with thine horses, through
the heap of great waters.
Hab 3:16 When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips
quivered at the voice: rottenness entered into my bones, and I trembled in
myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble: when he cometh up unto the
people, he will invade them with his troops.
Hab 3:17 Although the fig tree shall not blossom,
neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall
fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the
fold, and there shall be
no herd in the stalls:
Hab 3:18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in
the God of my salvation.
Hab 3:19 The LORD God is
my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet,
and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my
stringed instruments.
Zephaniah
1
Zep 1:1 The word of the LORD which came unto
Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the
son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
Zep 1:2 I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith
the LORD.
Zep 1:3 I will consume man and beast; I will consume
the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks
with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith
the LORD.
Zep 1:4 I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah,
and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of
Baal from this place, and the name of
the Chemarims with the priests;
Zep 1:5 And them that worship the host of heaven upon
the housetops; and them that worship and
that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham;
Zep 1:6 And them that are turned back from the LORD;
and those that have not sought the LORD,
nor inquired for him.
Zep 1:7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord
GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand:
for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests.
Zep 1:8 And it shall come to pass in the day of the
LORD's sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and
all such as are clothed with strange apparel.
Zep 1:9 In the same day also will I punish all those that
leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and
deceit.
Zep 1:10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that
there shall
be the noise of a cry from the fish
gate, and a howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills.
Zep 1:11 Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh,
for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut
off.
Zep 1:12 And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and
punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The
LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil.
Zep 1:13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty,
and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not
drink the wine thereof.
Zep 1:14 The great day of the LORD is near, it
is near, and hasteth
greatly, even the voice of the day of
the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.
Zep 1:15 That day is
a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness
and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick
darkness,
Zep 1:16 A day of the trumpet and alarm against the
fenced cities, and against the high towers.
Zep 1:17 And I will bring distress upon men, that they
shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their
blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.
Zep 1:18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be
able to deliver them in the day of the LORD's wrath; but the whole land shall
be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy
riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
Zephaniah
2
Zep 2:1 Gather yourselves together, yea, gather
together, O nation not desired;
Zep 2:2 Before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the
fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD's anger come
upon you.
Zep 2:3 Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth,
which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be
ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD's anger.
Zep 2:4 For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a
desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up.
Zep 2:5 Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast,
the nation of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the
Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.
Zep 2:6 And the sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks.
Zep 2:7 And the coast shall be for the remnant of the
house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they
lie down in the evening: for the LORD their God shall visit them, and turn away
their captivity.
Zep 2:8 I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the revilings of the children of Ammon,
whereby they have reproached my people, and magnified themselves against their border.
Zep 2:9 Therefore as
I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon
as Gomorrah, even the breeding of
nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation:
the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall
possess them.
Zep 2:10 This shall they have for their pride, because
they have reproached and magnified themselves
against the people of the LORD of hosts.
Zep 2:11 The LORD will
be terrible unto them: for he will
famish all the gods of the earth; and men
shall worship him, every one from his place, even
all the isles of the heathen.
Zep 2:12 Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be
slain by my sword.
Zep 2:13 And he will stretch out his hand against the
north, and destroy Assyria; and will make Nineveh a desolation, and dry like a wilderness.
Zep 2:14 And flocks shall lie down in the midst of
her, all the beasts of the nations: both the cormorant and the bittern shall
lodge in the upper lintels of it; their
voice shall sing in the windows; desolation shall
be in the thresholds: for he shall
uncover the cedar work.
Zep 2:15 This is
the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there
is none beside me: how is she become a
desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth by her shall hiss, and
wag his hand.
Mark 4
Mar
4:1 And he began again to teach by the sea side:
and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a
ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land.
Mar 4:2 And he taught them many things by parables,
and said unto them in his doctrine,
Mar 4:3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:
Mar 4:4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.
Mar 4:5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
Mar 4:6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
Mar 4:7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.
Mar 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some a hundred.
Mar 4:9 And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Mar 4:10 And when he was alone, they that were about
him with the twelve asked of him the parable.
Mar 4:11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:
Mar 4:12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time
they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
Mar 4:13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?
Mar 4:14 The sower soweth the word.
Mar 4:15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.
Mar 4:16 And these are they likewise which are sown on
stony ground; who,
when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
Mar 4:17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time:
afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.
Mar 4:18 And these are they which are sown among
thorns; such as hear
the word,
Mar 4:19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in,
choke the word, and it becometh
unfruitful.
Mar 4:20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some
thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.
Mar 4:21 And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick?
Mar 4:22 For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret,
but that it should come abroad.
Mar 4:23 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
Mar 4:24 And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given.
Mar 4:25 For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath.
Mar 4:26 And he said, So
is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground;
Mar 4:27 And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth
not how.
Mar 4:28 For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.
Mar 4:29 But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately
he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.
Mar 4:30 And he said, Whereunto
shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it?
Mar 4:31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth:
Mar 4:32 But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.
Mar 4:33 And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it.
Mar 4:34 But without a parable spake
he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his
disciples.
Mar 4:35 And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side.
Mar 4:36 And when they had sent away the multitude,
they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other
little ships.
Mar 4:37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and
the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
Mar 4:38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship,
asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
Mar 4:39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said
unto the sea, Peace, be
still. And the wind ceased, and there was a
great calm.
Mar 4:40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
Mar 4:41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to
another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?