Numbers 12

• 1. While they were at Hazeroth, Miriam and Aaron criticized Moses because he had married a Cushite woman.
• 2. They said, "Has the LORD spoken only through Moses? Hasn't he spoken through us, too?" But the LORD heard them.
• 3. Now Moses was more humble than any other person on earth.
• 4. So immediately the LORD called to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam and said, "Go out to the Tabernacle, all three of you!" And the three of them went out.
• 5. Then the LORD descended in the pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the Tabernacle. "Aaron and Miriam!" he called, and they stepped forward.
• 6. And the LORD said to them, "Now listen to me! Even with prophets, I the LORD communicate by visions and dreams.
• 7. But that is not how I communicate with my servant Moses. He is entrusted with my entire house.
• 8. I speak to him face to face, directly and not in riddles! He sees the LORD as he is. Should you not be afraid to criticize him?"
• 9. The LORD was furious with them, and he departed.
• 10. As the cloud moved from above the Tabernacle, Miriam suddenly became white as snow with leprosy. When Aaron saw what had happened,
• 11. he cried out to Moses, "Oh, my lord! Please don't punish us for this sin we have so foolishly committed.
• 12. Don't let her be like a stillborn baby, already decayed at birth."
• 13. So Moses cried out to the LORD, "Heal her, O God, I beg you!"
• 14. And the LORD said to Moses, "If her father had spit in her face, wouldn't she have been defiled for seven days? Banish her from the camp for seven days, and after that she may return."
• 15. So Miriam was excluded from the camp for seven days, and the people waited until she was brought back before they traveled again.
• 16. Then they left Hazeroth and camped in the wilderness of Paran.

Numbers 13

• 1. The LORD now said to Moses,
• 2. "Send men to explore the land of Canaan, the land I am giving to Israel. Send one leader from each of the twelve ancestral tribes."
• 3. So Moses did as the LORD commanded him. He sent out twelve men, all tribal leaders of Israel, from their camp in the wilderness of Paran.
• 4. These were the tribes and the names of the leaders: Reuben............. Shammua son of Zaccur
• 5. Simeon................. Shaphat son of Hori
• 6. Judah................ Caleb son of Jephunneh
• 7. Issachar................... Igal son of Joseph
• 8. Ephraim................. Hoshea son of Nun
• 9. Benjamin................. Palti son of Raphu
• 10. Zebulun................. Gaddiel son of Sodi
• 11. Manasseh son of Joseph...... Gaddi son of Susi
• 12. Dan................. Ammiel son of Gemalli
• 13. Asher................. Sethur son of Michael
• 14. Naphtali................ Nahbi son of Vophsi
• 15. Gad..................... Geuel son of Maki
• 16. These are the names of the men Moses sent to explore the land. By this time Moses had changed Hoshea's name to Joshua.
• 17. Moses gave the men these instructions as he sent them out to explore the land: "Go northward through the Negev into the hill country.
• 18. See what the land is like and find out whether the people living there are strong or weak, few or many.
• 19. What kind of land do they live in? Is it good or bad? Do their towns have walls or are they unprotected?
• 20. How is the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there many trees? Enter the land boldly, and bring back samples of the crops you see." (It happened to be the season for harvesting the first ripe grapes.)
• 21. So they went up and explored the land from the wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, near Lebo-hamath.
• 22. Going northward, they passed first through the Negev and arrived at Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai--all descendants of Anak--lived. (The ancient town of Hebron was founded seven years before the Egyptian city of Zoan.)
• 23. When they came to what is now known as the valley of Eshcol, they cut down a cluster of grapes so large that it took two of them to carry it on a pole between them! They also took samples of the pomegranates and figs.
• 24. At that time the Israelites renamed the valley Eshcol--"cluster"--because of the cluster of grapes they had cut there.
• 25. After exploring the land for forty days, the men returned
• 26. to Moses, Aaron, and the people of Israel at Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran. They reported to the whole community what they had seen and showed them the fruit they had taken from the land.
• 27. This was their report to Moses: "We arrived in the land you sent us to see, and it is indeed a magnificent country--a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is some of its fruit as proof.
• 28. But the people living there are powerful, and their cities and towns are fortified and very large. We also saw the descendants of Anak who are living there!
• 29. The Amalekites live in the Negev, and the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country. The Canaanites live along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and along the Jordan Valley."
• 30. But Caleb tried to encourage the people as they stood before Moses. "Let's go at once to take the land," he said. "We can certainly conquer it!"
• 31. But the other men who had explored the land with him answered, "We can't go up against them! They are stronger than we are!"
• 32. So they spread discouraging reports about the land among the Israelites: "The land we explored will swallow up any who go to live there. All the people we saw were huge.
• 33. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. We felt like grasshoppers next to them, and that's what we looked like to them!"

Psalms 49

• 1. Listen to this, all you people! Pay attention, everyone in the world!
• 2. High and low, rich and poor--listen!
• 3. For my words are wise, and my thoughts are filled with insight.
• 4. I listen carefully to many proverbs and solve riddles with inspiration from a harp.
• 5. There is no need to fear when times of trouble come, when enemies are surrounding me.
• 6. They trust in their wealth and boast of great riches.
• 7. Yet they cannot redeem themselves from death by paying a ransom to God.
• 8. Redemption does not come so easily, for no one can ever pay enough
• 9. to live forever and never see the grave.
• 10. Those who are wise must finally die, just like the foolish and senseless, leaving all their wealth behind.
• 11. The grave is their eternal home, where they will stay forever. They may name their estates after themselves, but they leave their wealth to others.
• 12. They will not last long despite their riches--they will die like the animals.
• 13. This is the fate of fools, though they will be remembered as being so wise.
• 14. Like sheep, they are led to the grave, where death will be their shepherd. In the morning the godly will rule over them. Their bodies will rot in the grave, far from their grand estates.
• 15. But as for me, God will redeem my life. He will snatch me from the power of death.
• 16. So don't be dismayed when the wicked grow rich, and their homes become ever more splendid.
• 17. For when they die, they carry nothing with them. Their wealth will not follow them into the grave.
• 18. In this life they consider themselves fortunate, and the world loudly applauds their success.
• 19. But they will die like all others before them and never again see the light of day.
• 20. People who boast of their wealth don't understand that they will die like the animals.

Isaiah 2

• 1. This is another vision that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:
• 2. In the last days, the Temple of the LORD in Jerusalem will become the most important place on earth. People from all over the world will go there to worship.
• 3. Many nations will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the Temple of the God of Israel. There he will teach us his ways, so that we may obey him." For in those days the LORD's teaching and his word will go out from Jerusalem.
• 4. The LORD will settle international disputes. All the nations will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. All wars will stop, and military training will come to an end.
• 5. Come, people of Israel, let us walk in the light of the LORD!
• 6. The LORD has rejected the people of Israel because they have made alliances with foreigners from the East who practice magic and divination, just like the Philistines.
• 7. Israel has vast treasures of silver and gold and many horses and chariots.
• 8. The land is filled with idols. The people bow down and worship these things they have made.
• 9. So now everyone will be humbled and brought low. The LORD cannot simply ignore their sins!
• 10. Crawl into caves in the rocks. Hide from the terror of the LORD and the glory of his majesty.
• 11. The day is coming when your pride will be brought low and the LORD alone will be exalted.
• 12. In that day the LORD Almighty will punish the proud, bringing them down to the dust.
• 13. He will cut down the tall cedars of Lebanon and the mighty oaks of Bashan.
• 14. He will level the high mountains and hills.
• 15. He will break down every high tower and wall.
• 16. He will destroy the great trading ships and all the small boats in the harbor.
• 17. The arrogance of all people will be brought low. Their pride will lie in the dust. The LORD alone will be exalted!
• 18. Idols will be utterly abolished and destroyed.
• 19. When the LORD rises to shake the earth, his enemies will crawl with fear into holes in the ground. They will hide in caves in the rocks from the terror of the LORD and the glory of his majesty.
• 20. They will abandon their gold and silver idols to the moles and bats.
• 21. They will crawl into caverns and hide among the jagged rocks at the tops of cliffs. In this way, they will try to escape the terror of the LORD and the glory of his majesty as he rises to shake the earth.
• 22. Stop putting your trust in mere humans. They are as frail as breath. How can they be of help to anyone?

New Living Translation: 125 of 365 days.