September 5 - John 11.1-27, 2 Chronicles 10-11 and Psalm 75

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The Death of Lazarus

John 11 A man named Lazarus, who lived in Bethany, became sick. Bethany was the town where Mary and her sister Martha lived. ( 2This Mary was the one who poured the perfume on the Lord's feet and wiped them with her hair; it was her brother Lazarus who was sick.) 3The sisters sent Jesus a message: "Lord, your dear friend is sick."
4When Jesus heard it, he said, "The final result of this sickness will not be the death of Lazarus; this has happened in order to bring glory to God, and it will be the means by which the Son of God will receive glory."
5Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6Yet when he received the news that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was for two more days. 7Then he said to the disciples, "Let us go back to Judea."
8"Teacher," the disciples answered, "just a short time ago the people there wanted to stone you; and are you planning to go back?"
9Jesus said, "A day has twelve hours, doesn't it? So those who walk in broad daylight do not stumble, for they see the light of this world. 10But if they walk during the night they stumble, because they have no light." 11Jesus said this and then added, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I will go and wake him up."
12The disciples answered, "If he is asleep, Lord, he will get well."
13Jesus meant that Lazarus had died, but they thought he meant natural sleep. 14So Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead, 15but for your sake I am glad that I was not with him, so that you will believe. Let us go to him."
16Thomas (called the Twin) said to his fellow disciples, "Let us all go along with the Teacher, so that we may die with him!"

Jesus the Resurrection and the Life

17When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had been buried four days before. 18Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19and many Judeans had come to see Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother's death.
20When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed in the house. 21Martha said to Jesus, "If you had been here, Lord, my brother would not have died! 22But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask him for."
23"Your brother will rise to life," Jesus told her.
24"I know," she replied, "that he will rise to life on the last day."
25Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me will live, even though they die; 26and those who live and believe in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
27"Yes, Lord!" she answered. "I do believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."


The Northern Tribes Revolt
(1 Kings 12.1-20)

2 Chronicles 10 Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all the people of northern Israel had gathered to make him king. 2When Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had gone to Egypt to escape from King Solomon, heard this news, he returned home. 3The people of the northern tribes sent for him, and they all went together to Rehoboam and said to him, 4"Your father placed heavy burdens on us. If you make these burdens lighter and make life easier for us, we will be your loyal subjects."
5Rehoboam replied, "Give me three days to consider the matter. Then come back." So the people left.
6King Rehoboam consulted the older men who had served as his father Solomon's advisers. "What answer do you advise me to give these people?" he asked.
7They replied, "If you are kind to these people and try to please them by giving a considerate answer, they will always serve you loyally."
8But he ignored the advice of the older men and went instead to the young men who had grown up with him and who were now his advisers. 9"What do you advise me to do?" he asked. "What shall I say to the people who are asking me to make their burdens lighter?"
10They replied, "This is what you should tell them: 'My little finger is thicker than my father's waist.' 11Tell them, 'My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!'"
12Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to King Rehoboam, as he had instructed them. 13The king ignored the advice of the older men and spoke harshly to the people, 14as the younger men had advised. He said, "My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!" 15It was the will of the LORD God to bring about what he had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh. This is why the king did not pay any attention to the people.
16When the people saw that the king would not listen to them, they shouted, "Down with David and his family! What have they ever done for us? People of Israel, let's go home! Let Rehoboam look out for himself !"
So the people of Israel rebelled, 17leaving Rehoboam as king only of the people who lived in the territory of Judah.
18Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was in charge of the forced labor, to go to the Israelites, but they stoned him to death. At this, Rehoboam hurriedly got in his chariot and escaped to Jerusalem. 19Ever since that time the people of the northern kingdom of Israel have been in rebellion against the dynasty of David.

Shemaiah's Prophecy
(1 Kings 12.21-24)

2 Chronicles 11 When King Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he called together 180,000 of the best soldiers from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah. He intended to go to war and restore his control over the northern tribes of Israel. 2But the LORD told the prophet Shemaiah 3to give this message to King Rehoboam and to all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin: 4"Do not attack your own relatives. Go home, all of you. What has happened is my will." They obeyed the LORD's command and did not go to fight Jeroboam.

Rehoboam Fortifies the Cities

5Rehoboam remained in Jerusalem and had fortifications built for the following cities of Judah and Benjamin: 6Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, 7Bethzur, Soco, Adullam, 8Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, 9Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, 10Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron. 11He had them strongly fortified and appointed a commander for each of them, and in each one he placed supplies of food, olive oil, and wine, 12and also shields and spears. In this way he kept Judah and Benjamin under his control.

Priests and Levites Come to Judah

13From all the territory of Israel priests and Levites came south to Judah. 14The Levites abandoned their pastures and other land and moved to Judah and Jerusalem, because King Jeroboam of Israel and his successors would not let them serve as priests of the LORD. 15Jeroboam appointed priests of his own to serve at the pagan places of worship and to worship demons and the idols he made in the form of bull-calves. 16From all the tribes of Israel people who sincerely wanted to worship the LORD, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem, so that they could offer sacrifices to the LORD, the God of their ancestors. 17This strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they supported Rehoboam son of Solomon and lived as they had under the rule of King David and King Solomon.

Rehoboam's Family

18Rehoboam married Mahalath, whose father was Jerimoth son of David and whose mother was Abihail, the daughter of Eliab and granddaughter of Jesse. 19They had three sons, Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. 20Later he married Maacah, the daughter of Absalom, and they had four sons: Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. 21In all, Rehoboam had eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and he fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. Of all his wives and concubines he loved Maacah best, 22and he favored her son Abijah over all his other children, choosing him as the one to succeed him as king. 23Rehoboam wisely assigned responsibilities to his sons and stationed them throughout Judah and Benjamin in the fortified cities. He provided generously for them and also secured many wives for them.


God the Judge

Psalm 75 We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks to you!
We proclaim how great you are
and tell of the wonderful things you have done.

2"I have set a time for judgment," says God,
"and I will judge with fairness.
3Though every living creature tremble
and the earth itself be shaken,
I will keep its foundations firm.
4I tell the wicked not to be arrogant;
5I tell them to stop their boasting."

6Judgment does not come from the east or from the west,
from the north or from the south;
7it is God who is the judge,
condemning some and acquitting others.
8The LORD holds a cup in his hand,
filled with the strong wine of his anger.
He pours it out, and all the wicked drink it;
they drink it down to the last drop.

9But I will never stop speaking of the God of Jacob
or singing praises to him.
10He will break the power of the wicked,
but the power of the righteous will be increased.

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This reading is from The Holy Bible, Today's English Version, Second Edition copyright © American Bible Society, 1992;
Old Testament copyright © American Bible Society, 1976, 1992; New Testament © American Bible Society, 1966, 1971, 1976, 1992.


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