Daily Devotions with Greg Laurie – Saturday,
11 January 2014 – “Strength in Troubled Times”
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my
words will never pass away. (Matthew 24:35)
Where will you turn in a time of crisis?
When tragedy hits? When disaster strikes? Will it be your favorite magazine?
The morning newspaper? The evening news? You will need something to give you
strength and direction in your time of need — and you can't find a better
resource than the Word of God.
As one pastor said, "One gem from
that ocean is worth all the pebbles of earthly streams." Just a single
pebble from the ocean of God's Word can make all the difference when tragedy or
hardship strikes. How many in their affliction have found comfort from the
Scriptures?
Trusting in what God has said through the
Bible can sustain us and give us direction and hope and comfort when we most
need it. Inspirational platitudes or clever sayings don't help — or at least,
not for very long — but the Word of God does. It has been said that "he
who rejects the Bible has nothing to live by. Neither does he have anything to
die by."
Ideas and philosophies go in and out of
style with the passing of years, but the Word of God never goes out of style.
It never goes out of date, unlike this morning's news. The Word of God always
will be relevant.
That is why C. S. Lewis said, "All
that is not eternal is eternally out of date."
I urge you to get a good foundation in
this Book because it is only a matter of time until hardship strikes you. It
happens in every life, without exception. But if you have a good foundation in
the Word of God, then you will be ready for difficulty when it comes. Don't
wait until then to try and catch up.
Get that foundation now.
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Today's Bible Reading:
Genesis Isaac Blesses Jacob
27: When Isaac was old and his eyes were
dim so that he could not see, he called his elder son Esau and said to him, “My
son”; and he answered, “Here I am.” 2 He said, “See, I am old; I do not know
the day of my death. 3 Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow,
and go out to the field, and hunt game for me. 4 Then prepare for me savory
food, such as I like, and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you before
I die.”
5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac
spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and
bring it, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father say to your
brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me game, and prepare for me savory food to eat, that I
may bless you before the Lord before I die.’ 8 Now therefore, my son, obey my
word as I command you. 9 Go to the flock, and get me two choice kids, so that I
may prepare from them savory food for your father, such as he likes; 10 and you
shall take it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”
11 But Jacob said to his mother Rebekah, “Look, my brother Esau is a hairy man,
and I am a man of smooth skin. 12 Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall
seem to be mocking him, and bring a curse on myself and not a blessing.” 13 His
mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my word, and
go, get them for me.” 14 So he went and got them and brought them to his
mother; and his mother prepared savory food, such as his father loved. 15 Then
Rebekah took the best garments of her elder son Esau, which were with her in
the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob; 16 and she put the skins of
the kids on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 Then she handed
the savory food, and the bread that she had prepared, to her son Jacob.
18 So he went in to his father, and said,
“My father”; and he said, “Here I am; who are you, my son?” 19 Jacob said to
his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up
and eat of my game, so that you may bless me.” 20 But Isaac said to his son,
“How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the
Lord your God granted me success.” 21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near,
that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or
not.” 22 So Jacob went up to his father Isaac, who felt him and said, “The
voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 He did not
recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so
he blessed him. 24 He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.”
25 Then he said, “Bring it to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and bless
you.” So he brought it to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he
drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.”
27 So he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his garments, and
blessed him, and said,
“Ah, the smell of my son
is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed.
28 May God give you of the dew of heaven,
and of the fatness of the earth,
and plenty of grain and wine.
29 Let peoples serve you,
and nations bow down to you.
Be lord over your brothers,
and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be everyone who curses you,
and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”
Esau’s Lost Blessing
30 As soon as Isaac had finished blessing
Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of his father Isaac,
his brother Esau came in from his hunting. 31 He also prepared savory food, and
brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father sit up and
eat of his son’s game, so that you may bless me.” 32 His father Isaac said to
him, “Who are you?” He answered, “I am your firstborn son, Esau.” 33 Then Isaac
trembled violently, and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it
to me, and I ate it all[a] before you came, and I have blessed him?—yes, and
blessed he shall be!” 34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he cried out with
an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, me
also, father!” 35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken
away your blessing.” 36 Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob?[b] For he
has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright; and look, now he
has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing
for me?” 37 Isaac answered Esau, “I have already made him your lord, and I have
given him all his brothers as servants, and with grain and wine I have
sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?” 38 Esau said to his father,
“Have you only one blessing, father? Bless me, me also, father!” And Esau
lifted up his voice and wept.
39 Then his father Isaac answered him:
“See, away from[c] the fatness of the
earth shall your home be,
and away from[d] the dew of heaven on high.
40 By your sword you shall live,
and you shall serve your brother;
but when you break loose,[e]
you shall break his yoke from your neck.”
Jacob Escapes Esau’s Fury
41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the
blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The
days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother
Jacob.” 42 But the words of her elder son Esau were told to Rebekah; so she
sent and called her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Your brother Esau is
consoling himself by planning to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my
voice; flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran, 44 and stay with him a while,
until your brother’s fury turns away— 45 until your brother’s anger against you
turns away, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send, and
bring you back from there. Why should I lose both of you in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am
weary of my life because of the Hittite women. If Jacob marries one of the
Hittite women such as these, one of the women of the land, what good will my
life be to me?”
28: Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed
him, and charged him, “You shall not marry one of the Canaanite women. 2 Go at
once to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father; and take as
wife from there one of the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 3 May God
Almighty[f] bless you and make you fruitful and numerous, that you may become a
company of peoples. 4 May he give to you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to
your offspring with you, so that you may take possession of the land where you
now live as an alien—land that God gave to Abraham.” 5 Thus Isaac sent Jacob
away; and he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the
brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.
Esau Marries Ishmael’s Daughter
6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed
Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take a wife from there, and that as
he blessed him he charged him, “You shall not marry one of the Canaanite
women,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to
Paddan-aram. 8 So when Esau saw that the Canaanite women did not please his
father Isaac, 9 Esau went to Ishmael and took Mahalath daughter of Abraham’s
son Ishmael, and sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he
had.
Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10 Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward
Haran. 11 He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because
the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his
head and lay down in that place. 12 And he dreamed that there was a ladder[g]
set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God
were ascending and descending on it. 13 And the Lord stood beside him[h] and
said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the
land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring; 14 and your
offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to
the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the
families of the earth shall be blessed[i] in you and in your offspring. 15 Know
that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back
to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised
you.” 16 Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this
place—and I did not know it!” 17 And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is
this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of
heaven.”
18 So Jacob rose early in the morning,
and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar
and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel;[j] but the
name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God
will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread
to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in
peace, then the Lord shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up
for a pillar, shall be God’s house; and of all that you give me I will surely
give one-tenth to you.”
Jacob Meets Rachel
29: Then Jacob went on his journey, and
came to the land of the people of the east. 2 As he looked, he saw a well in
the field and three flocks of sheep lying there beside it; for out of that well
the flocks were watered. The stone on the well’s mouth was large, 3 and when
all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the
mouth of the well, and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on
the mouth of the well.
4 Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where
do you come from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” 5 He said to them, “Do you
know Laban son of Nahor?” They said, “We do.” 6 He said to them, “Is it well
with him?” “Yes,” they replied, “and here is his daughter Rachel, coming with
the sheep.” 7 He said, “Look, it is still broad daylight; it is not time for
the animals to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go, pasture them.” 8
But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and the
stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.”
9 While he was still speaking with them,
Rachel came with her father’s sheep; for she kept them. 10 Now when Jacob saw
Rachel, the daughter of his mother’s brother Laban, and the sheep of his
mother’s brother Laban, Jacob went up and rolled the stone from the well’s
mouth, and watered the flock of his mother’s brother Laban. 11 Then Jacob
kissed Rachel, and wept aloud. 12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her
father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son; and she ran and told her
father.
13 When Laban heard the news about his
sister’s son Jacob, he ran to meet him; he embraced him and kissed him, and
brought him to his house. Jacob[k] told Laban all these things, 14 and Laban
said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month.
Jacob Marries Laban’s Daughters
15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you
are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall
your wages be?” 16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah,
and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah’s eyes were lovely,[l] and
Rachel was graceful and beautiful. 18 Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will
serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 19 Laban said, “It is
better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man;
stay with me.” 20 So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to
him but a few days because of the love he had for her.
21 Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my
wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” 22 So Laban gathered
together all the people of the place, and made a feast. 23 But in the evening
he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. 24
(Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) 25 When
morning came, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done
to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26
Laban said, “This is not done in our country—giving the younger before the
firstborn. 27 Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other
also in return for serving me another seven years.” 28 Jacob did so, and
completed her week; then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife. 29
(Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her maid.) 30 So Jacob
went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. He served Laban[m]
for another seven years.
31 When the Lord saw that Leah was
unloved, he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. 32 Leah conceived and bore
a son, and she named him Reuben;[n] for she said, “Because the Lord has looked
on my affliction; surely now my husband will love me.” 33 She conceived again
and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard[o] that I am hated, he
has given me this son also”; and she named him Simeon. 34 Again she conceived
and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be joined[p] to me,
because I have borne him three sons”; therefore he was named Levi. 35 She
conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise[q] the
Lord”; therefore she named him Judah; then she ceased bearing.
30: When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob
no children, she envied her sister; and she said to Jacob, “Give me children,
or I shall die!” 2 Jacob became very angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the
place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she
said, “Here is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, that she may bear upon my knees
and that I too may have children through her.” 4 So she gave him her maid
Bilhah as a wife; and Jacob went in to her. 5 And Bilhah conceived and bore
Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my
voice and given me a son”; therefore she named him Dan.[r] 7 Rachel’s maid
Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “With
mighty wrestlings I have wrestled[s] with my sister, and have prevailed”; so
she named him Naphtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had ceased
bearing children, she took her maid Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Then
Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 And Leah said, “Good fortune!” so she
named him Gad.[t] 12 Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 And Leah
said, “Happy am I! For the women will call me happy”; so she named him
Asher.[u]
14 In the days of wheat harvest Reuben
went and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah.
Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15 But
she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband?
Would you take away my son’s mandrakes also?” Rachel said, “Then he may lie
with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came from the field
in the evening, Leah went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me;
for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night.
17 And God heeded Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Leah
said, “God has given me my hire[v] because I gave my maid to my husband”; so
she named him Issachar. 19 And Leah conceived again, and she bore Jacob a sixth
son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good dowry; now my husband
will honor[w] me, because I have borne him six sons”; so she named him Zebulun.
21 Afterwards she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.
22 Then God remembered Rachel, and God
heeded her and opened her womb. 23 She conceived and bore a son, and said, “God
has taken away my reproach”; 24 and she named him Joseph,[x] saying, “May the
Lord add to me another son!”
Jacob Prospers at Laban’s Expense
25 When Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob
said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own home and country. 26 Give
me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you
know very well the service I have given you.” 27 But Laban said to him, “If you
will allow me to say so, I have learned by divination that the Lord has blessed
me because of you; 28 name your wages, and I will give it.” 29 Jacob said to
him, “You yourself know how I have served you, and how your cattle have fared with
me. 30 For you had little before I came, and it has increased abundantly; and
the Lord has blessed you wherever I turned. But now when shall I provide for my
own household also?” 31 He said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob said, “You
shall not give me anything; if you will do this for me, I will again feed your
flock and keep it: 32 let me pass through all your flock today, removing from
it every speckled and spotted sheep and every black lamb, and the spotted and
speckled among the goats; and such shall be my wages. 33 So my honesty will
answer for me later, when you come to look into my wages with you. Every one
that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if
found with me, shall be counted stolen.” 34 Laban said, “Good! Let it be as you
have said.” 35 But that day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and
spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one
that had white on it, and every lamb that was black, and put them in charge of
his sons; 36 and he set a distance of three days’ journey between himself and
Jacob, while Jacob was pasturing the rest of Laban’s flock.
37 Then Jacob took fresh rods of poplar
and almond and plane, and peeled white streaks in them, exposing the white of
the rods. 38 He set the rods that he had peeled in front of the flocks in the
troughs, that is, the watering places, where the flocks came to drink. And
since they bred when they came to drink, 39 the flocks bred in front of the
rods, and so the flocks produced young that were striped, speckled, and
spotted. 40 Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward
the striped and the completely black animals in the flock of Laban; and he put
his own droves apart, and did not put them with Laban’s flock. 41 Whenever the
stronger of the flock were breeding, Jacob laid the rods in the troughs before
the eyes of the flock, that they might breed among the rods, 42 but for the
feebler of the flock he did not lay them there; so the feebler were Laban’s, and
the stronger Jacob’s. 43 Thus the man grew exceedingly rich, and had large
flocks, and male and female slaves, and camels and donkeys.
Footnotes:
a. Genesis 27:33 Cn: Heb of all
b. Genesis 27:36 That is He supplants or
He takes by the heel
c. Genesis 27:39 Or See, of
d. Genesis 27:39 Or and of
e. Genesis 27:40 Meaning of Heb uncertain
f. Genesis 28:3 Traditional rendering of
Heb El Shaddai
g. Genesis 28:12 Or stairway or ramp
h. Genesis 28:13 Or stood above it
i. Genesis 28:14 Or shall bless
themselves
j. Genesis 28:19 That is House of God
k. Genesis 29:13 Heb He
l. Genesis 29:17 Meaning of Heb uncertain
m. Genesis 29:30 Heb him
n. Genesis 29:32 That is See, a son
o. Genesis 29:33 Heb shama
p. Genesis 29:34 Heb lawah
q. Genesis 29:35 Heb hodah
r. Genesis 30:6 That is He judged
s. Genesis 30:8 Heb niphtal
t. Genesis 30:11 That is Fortune
u. Genesis 30:13 That is Happy
v. Genesis 30:18 Heb sakar
w. Genesis 30:20 Heb zabal
x. Genesis 30:24 That is He adds
Psalm 4: Confident Plea for Deliverance
from Enemies
To the leader: with stringed instruments.
A Psalm of David.
1 Answer me when I call, O God of my
right!
You gave me room when I was in distress.
Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.
2 How long, you people, shall my honor
suffer shame?
How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?Selah
3 But know that the Lord has set apart
the faithful for himself;
the Lord hears when I call to him.
4 When you are disturbed,[a] do not sin;
ponder it on your beds, and be silent.Selah
5 Offer right sacrifices,
and put your trust in the Lord.
6 There are many who say, “O that we
might see some good!
Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord!”
7 You have put gladness in my heart
more than when their grain and wine abound.
8 I will both lie down and sleep in
peace;
for you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety.
Footnotes:
a. Psalm 4:4 Or are angry
Luke The Lord’s Prayer
11: He was praying in a certain place,
and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to
pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Father,[a] hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.[b]
3
Give us each day our daily bread.[c]
4
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial.”[d]
Perseverance in Prayer
5 And he said to them, “Suppose one of
you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend
me three loaves of bread; 6 for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have
nothing to set before him.’ 7 And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me;
the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot
get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and
give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence
he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
9 “So I say to you, Ask, and it will be
given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for
you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and
for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11 Is there anyone among you
who, if your child asks for[e] a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? 12
Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are
evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly
Father give the Holy Spirit[f] to those who ask him!”
Jesus and Beelzebul
14 Now he was casting out a demon that
was mute; when the demon had gone out, the one who had been mute spoke, and the
crowds were amazed. 15 But some of them said, “He casts out demons by
Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” 16 Others, to test him, kept demanding
from him a sign from heaven. 17 But he knew what they were thinking and said to
them, “Every kingdom divided against itself becomes a desert, and house falls
on house. 18 If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom
stand? —for you say that I cast out the demons by Beelzebul. 19 Now if I cast
out the demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your exorcists[g] cast them out?
Therefore they will be your judges. 20 But if it is by the finger of God that I
cast out the demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. 21 When a strong
man, fully armed, guards his castle, his property is safe. 22 But when one
stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, he takes away his armor in
which he trusted and divides his plunder. 23 Whoever is not with me is against
me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
The Return of the Unclean Spirit
24 “When the unclean spirit has gone out
of a person, it wanders through waterless regions looking for a resting place,
but not finding any, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ 25
When it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. 26 Then it goes and brings
seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and live there; and
the last state of that person is worse than the first.”
True Blessedness
27 While he was saying this, a woman in
the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you
and the breasts that nursed you!” 28 But he said, “Blessed rather are those who
hear the word of God and obey it!”
The Sign of Jonah
29 When the crowds were increasing, he
began to say, “This generation is an evil generation; it asks for a sign, but
no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For just as Jonah
became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so the Son of Man will be to this
generation. 31 The queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people
of this generation and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the
earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and see, something greater than
Solomon is here! 32 The people of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with
this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of
Jonah, and see, something greater than Jonah is here!
The Light of the Body
33 “No one after lighting a lamp puts it
in a cellar,[h] but on the lampstand so that those who enter may see the light.
34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. If your eye is healthy, your whole body
is full of light; but if it is not healthy, your body is full of darkness. 35
Therefore consider whether the light in you is not darkness. 36 If then your
whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, it will be as full
of light as when a lamp gives you light with its rays.”
Jesus Denounces Pharisees and Lawyers
37 While he was speaking, a Pharisee
invited him to dine with him; so he went in and took his place at the table. 38
The Pharisee was amazed to see that he did not first wash before dinner. 39
Then the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and
of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. 40 You fools! Did
not the one who made the outside make the inside also? 41 So give for alms
those things that are within; and see, everything will be clean for you.
42 “But woe to you Pharisees! For you
tithe mint and rue and herbs of all kinds, and neglect justice and the love of
God; it is these you ought to have practiced, without neglecting the others. 43
Woe to you Pharisees! For you love to have the seat of honor in the synagogues
and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces. 44 Woe to you! For you are
like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without realizing it.”
45 One of the lawyers answered him,
“Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us too.” 46 And he said, “Woe
also to you lawyers! For you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you
yourselves do not lift a finger to ease them. 47 Woe to you! For you build the
tombs of the prophets whom your ancestors killed. 48 So you are witnesses and
approve of the deeds of your ancestors; for they killed them, and you build
their tombs. 49 Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them
prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ 50 so that
this generation may be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since
the foundation of the world, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of
Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you,
it will be charged against this generation. 52 Woe to you lawyers! For you have
taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered
those who were entering.”
53 When he went outside, the scribes and
the Pharisees began to be very hostile toward him and to cross-examine him
about many things, 54 lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might
say.
A Warning against Hypocrisy
12: Meanwhile, when the crowd gathered by
the thousands, so that they trampled on one another, he began to speak first to
his disciples, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, that is, their hypocrisy.
2 Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that
will not become known. 3 Therefore whatever you have said in the dark will be
heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be
proclaimed from the housetops.
Exhortation to Fearless Confession
4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear
those who kill the body, and after that can do nothing more. 5 But I will warn
you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority[i] to cast
into hell.[j] Yes, I tell you, fear him! 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two
pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. 7 But even the hairs
of your head are all counted. Do not be afraid; you are of more value than many
sparrows.
8 “And I tell you, everyone who
acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the
angels of God; 9 but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the
angels of God. 10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be
forgiven; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
11 When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities,
do not worry about how[k] you are to defend yourselves or what you are to say;
12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what you ought to say.”
The Parable of the Rich Fool
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher,
tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to
him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said
to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s
life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” 16 Then he told them a
parable: “The land of a rich man produced abundantly. 17 And he thought to
himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ 18 Then he
said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and
there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul,
Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be
merry.’ 20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being
demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So
it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward
God.”
Do Not Worry
22 He said to his disciples, “Therefore I
tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body,
what you will wear. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than
clothing. 24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither
storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you
than the birds! 25 And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your
span of life?[l] 26 If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that,
why do you worry about the rest? 27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither
toil nor spin;[m] yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed
like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is
alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe
you—you of little faith! 29 And do not keep striving for what you are to eat
and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. 30 For it is the nations
of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you
need them. 31 Instead, strive for his[n] kingdom, and these things will be
given to you as well.
32 “Do not be afraid, little flock, for
it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your
possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an
unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Watchful Slaves
35 “Be dressed for action and have your
lamps lit; 36 be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the
wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and
knocks. 37 Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes;
truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he
will come and serve them. 38 If he comes during the middle of the night, or
near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.
39 “But know this: if the owner of the
house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he[o] would not have let his
house be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming
at an unexpected hour.”
The Faithful or the Unfaithful Slave
41 Peter said, “Lord, are you telling
this parable for us or for everyone?” 42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the
faithful and prudent manager whom his master will put in charge of his slaves,
to give them their allowance of food at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that
slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. 44 Truly I tell you,
he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. 45 But if that slave
says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and if he begins to beat the
other slaves, men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk, 46 the master
of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour
that he does not know, and will cut him in pieces,[p] and put him with the
unfaithful. 47 That slave who knew what his master wanted, but did not prepare
himself or do what was wanted, will receive a severe beating. 48 But the one
who did not know and did what deserved a beating will receive a light beating.
From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the
one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.
Jesus the Cause of Division
49 “I came to bring fire to the earth,
and how I wish it were already kindled! 50 I have a baptism with which to be
baptized, and what stress I am under until it is completed! 51 Do you think
that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather
division! 52 From now on five in one household will be divided, three against
two and two against three; 53 they will be divided:
father against son
and son against father,
mother against daughter
and daughter against mother,
mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Interpreting the Time
54 He also said to the crowds, “When you
see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, ‘It is going to rain’; and
so it happens. 55 And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will
be scorching heat’; and it happens. 56 You hypocrites! You know how to
interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to
interpret the present time?
Settling with Your Opponent
57 “And why do you not judge for
yourselves what is right? 58 Thus, when you go with your accuser before a
magistrate, on the way make an effort to settle the case,[q] or you may be
dragged before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the
officer throw you in prison. 59 I tell you, you will never get out until you
have paid the very last penny.”
Footnotes:
a. Luke 11:2 Other ancient authorities
read Our Father in heaven
b. Luke 11:2 A few ancient authorities
read Your Holy Spirit come upon us and cleanse us. Other ancient authorities
add Your will be done, on earth as in heaven
c. Luke 11:3 Or our bread for tomorrow
d. Luke 11:4 Or us into temptation. Other
ancient authorities add but rescue us from the evil one (or from evil)
e. Luke 11:11 Other ancient authorities
add bread, will give a stone; or if your child asks for
f. Luke 11:13 Other ancient authorities
read the Father give the Holy Spirit from heaven
g. Luke 11:19 Gk sons
h. Luke 11:33 Other ancient authorities
add or under the bushel basket
i. Luke 12:5 Or power
j. Luke 12:5 Gk Gehenna
k. Luke 12:11 Other ancient authorities
add or what
l. Luke 12:25 Or add a cubit to your
stature
m. Luke 12:27 Other ancient authorities
read Consider the lilies; they neither spin nor weave
n. Luke 12:31 Other ancient authorities
read God’s
o. Luke 12:39 Other ancient authorities
add would have watched and
p. Luke 12:46 Or cut him off
q. Luke 12:58 Gk settle with him
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Harvest Ministries with Greg Laurie
P.O. Box 4000
Riverside, CA 92514-4000 United States
Phone: 1(800)821-3300
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