JOB 17

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Job Continues: Where Then Is My Hope?17:1

“My spirit is broken; my days are extinct;

the graveyard is ready for me. 2

Surely there are mockers about me,

and my eye dwells on their provocation.
3

“Lay down a pledge for me with you;

who is there who will put up security for me? 4

Since you have closed their hearts to understanding,

therefore you will not let them triumph. 5

He who informs against his friends to get a share of their property—

the eyes of his children will fail.
6

“He has made me a byword of the peoples,

and I am one before whom men spit. 7

My eye has grown dim from vexation,

and all my members are like a shadow. 8

The upright are appalled at this,

and the innocent stirs himself up against the godless. 9

Yet the righteous holds to his way,

and he who has clean hands grows stronger and stronger. 10

But you, come on again, all of you,

and I shall not find a wise man among you. 11

My days are past; my plans are broken off,

the desires of my heart. 12

They make night into day:

‘The light,’ they say, ‘is near to the darkness.’ 13

If I hope for Sheol as my house,

if I make my bed in darkness, 14

if I say to the pit, ‘You are my father,’

and to the worm, ‘My mother,’ or ‘My sister,’ 15

where then is my hope?

Who will see my hope? 16

Will it go down to the bars of Sheol?

Shall we descend together into the dust?”

JOB 18

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Bildad Speaks: God Punishes the Wicked  18:1 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:
2

“How long will you hunt for words?

Consider, and then we will speak. 3

Why are we counted as cattle?

Why are we stupid in your sight? 4

You who tear yourself in your anger,

shall the earth be forsaken for you,

or the rock be removed out of its place?
5

“Indeed, the light of the wicked is put out,

and the flame of his fire does not shine. 6

The light is dark in his tent,

and his lamp above him is put out. 7

His strong steps are shortened,

and his own schemes throw him down. 8

For he is cast into a net by his own feet,

and he walks on its mesh. 9

A trap seizes him by the heel;

a snare lays hold of him. 10

A rope is hidden for him in the ground,

a trap for him in the path. 11

Terrors frighten him on every side,

and chase him at his heels. 12

His strength is famished,

and calamity is ready for his stumbling. 13

It consumes the parts of his skin;

the firstborn of death consumes his limbs. 14

He is torn from the tent in which he trusted

and is brought to the king of terrors. 15

In his tent dwells that which is none of his;

sulfur is scattered over his habitation. 16

His roots dry up beneath,

and his branches wither above. 17

His memory perishes from the earth,

and he has no name in the street. 18

He is thrust from light into darkness,

and driven out of the world. 19

He has no posterity or progeny among his people,

and no survivor where he used to live. 20

They of the west are appalled at his day,

and horror seizes them of the east. 21

Surely such are the dwellings of the unrighteous,

such is the place of him who knows not God.”

PROVERBS 14

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14:1

The wisest of women builds her house,

but folly with her own hands tears it down. 2

Whoever walks in uprightness fears the Lord,

but he who is devious in his ways despises him. 3

By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back,

but the lips of the wise will preserve them. 4

Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean,

but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. 5

A faithful witness does not lie,

but a false witness breathes out lies. 6

A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,

but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding. 7

Leave the presence of a fool,

for there you do not meet words of knowledge. 8

The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way,

but the folly of fools is deceiving. 9

Fools mock at the guilt offering,

but the upright enjoy acceptance. 10

The heart knows its own bitterness,

and no stranger shares its joy. 11

The house of the wicked will be destroyed,

but the tent of the upright will flourish. 12

There is a way that seems right to a man,

but its end is the way to death. 13

Even in laughter the heart may ache,

and the end of joy may be grief. 14

The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways,

and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways. 15

The simple believes everything,

but the prudent gives thought to his steps. 16

One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil,

but a fool is reckless and careless. 17

A man of quick temper acts foolishly,

and a man of evil devices is hated. 18

The simple inherit folly,

but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. 19

The evil bow down before the good,

the wicked at the gates of the righteous. 20

The poor is disliked even by his neighbor,

but the rich has many friends. 21

Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner,

but blessed is he who is generous to the poor. 22

Do they not go astray who devise evil?

Those who devise good meet steadfast love and faithfulness. 23

In all toil there is profit,

but mere talk tends only to poverty. 24

The crown of the wise is their wealth,

but the folly of fools brings folly. 25

A truthful witness saves lives,

but one who breathes out lies is deceitful. 26

In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,

and his children will have a refuge. 27

The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,

that one may turn away from the snares of death. 28

In a multitude of people is the glory of a king,

but without people a prince is ruined. 29

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding,

but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. 30

A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh,

but envy makes the bones rot. 31

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker,

but he who is generous to the needy honors him. 32

The wicked is overthrown through his evildoing,

but the righteous finds refuge in his death. 33

Wisdom rests in the heart of a man of understanding,

but it makes itself known even in the midst of fools. 34

Righteousness exalts a nation,

but sin is a reproach to any people. 35

A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor,

but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

LUKE 17

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Temptations to Sin  17:1 And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, 4 and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” Increase Our Faith5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6 And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. Unworthy Servants7 “Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at table’? 8 Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? 10 So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’” Jesus Cleanses Ten Lepers11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance 13 and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” 14 When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. 15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16 and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.” The Coming of the Kingdom20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
    22 And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. 24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. 25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. 26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” 37 And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”