Deuteronomy 17

• 1. "Never sacrifice a sick or defective ox or sheep to the LORD your God, for he detests such gifts.
• 2. "Suppose a man or woman among you, in one of your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, has done evil in the sight of the LORD your God and has violated the covenant
• 3. by serving other gods or by worshiping the sun, the moon, or any of the forces of heaven, which I have strictly forbidden.
• 4. When you hear about it, investigate the matter thoroughly. If it is true that this detestable thing has been done in Israel,
• 5. then that man or woman must be taken to the gates of the town and stoned to death.
• 6. But never put a person to death on the testimony of only one witness. There must always be at least two or three witnesses.
• 7. The witnesses must throw the first stones, and then all the people will join in. In this way, you will purge all evil from among you.
• 8. "Suppose a case arises in a local court that is too hard for you to decide--for instance, whether someone is guilty of murder or only of manslaughter, or a difficult lawsuit, or a case involving different kinds of assault. Take such cases to the place the LORD your God will choose,
• 9. where the Levitical priests and the judge on duty will hear the case and decide what to do.
• 10. The decision they make at the place the LORD chooses will always stand. You must do exactly what they say.
• 11. After they have interpreted the law and reached a verdict, the sentence they impose must be fully executed; do not modify it in any way.
• 12. Anyone arrogant enough to reject the verdict of the judge or of the priest who represents the LORD your God must be put to death. Such evil must be purged from Israel.
• 13. Then everyone will hear about it and be afraid to act so arrogantly.
• 14. "You will soon arrive in the land the LORD your God is giving you, and you will conquer it and settle there. Then you may begin to think, `We ought to have a king like the other nations around us.'
• 15. If this happens, be sure that you select as king the man the LORD your God chooses. You must appoint a fellow Israelite, not a foreigner.
• 16. The king must not build up a large stable of horses for himself, and he must never send his people to Egypt to buy horses there, for the LORD has told you, `You must never return to Egypt.'
• 17. The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will lead him away from the LORD. And he must not accumulate vast amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself.
• 18. "When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy these laws on a scroll for himself in the presence of the Levitical priests.
• 19. He must always keep this copy of the law with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the LORD his God by obeying all the terms of this law.
• 20. This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way. This will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.

Psalms 104

• 1. Praise the LORD, I tell myself; O LORD my God, how great you are! You are robed with honor and with majesty;
• 2. you are dressed in a robe of light. You stretch out the starry curtain of the heavens;
• 3. you lay out the rafters of your home in the rain clouds. You make the clouds your chariots; you ride upon the wings of the wind.
• 4. The winds are your messengers; flames of fire are your servants.
• 5. You placed the world on its foundation so it would never be moved.
• 6. You clothed the earth with floods of water, water that covered even the mountains.
• 7. At the sound of your rebuke, the water fled; at the sound of your thunder, it fled away.
• 8. Mountains rose and valleys sank to the levels you decreed.
• 9. Then you set a firm boundary for the seas, so they would never again cover the earth.
• 10. You make the springs pour water into ravines, so streams gush down from the mountains.
• 11. They provide water for all the animals, and the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
• 12. The birds nest beside the streams and sing among the branches of the trees.
• 13. You send rain on the mountains from your heavenly home, and you fill the earth with the fruit of your labor.
• 14. You cause grass to grow for the cattle. You cause plants to grow for people to use. You allow them to produce food from the earth--
• 15. wine to make them glad, olive oil as lotion for their skin, and bread to give them strength.
• 16. The trees of the LORD are well cared for--the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
• 17. There the birds make their nests, and the storks make their homes in the firs.
• 18. High in the mountains are pastures for the wild goats, and the rocks form a refuge for rock badgers.
• 19. You made the moon to mark the seasons and the sun that knows when to set.
• 20. You send the darkness, and it becomes night, when all the forest animals prowl about.
• 21. Then the young lions roar for their food, but they are dependent on God.
• 22. At dawn they slink back into their dens to rest.
• 23. Then people go off to their work; they labor until the evening shadows fall again.
• 24. O LORD, what a variety of things you have made! In wisdom you have made them all. The earth is full of your creatures.
• 25. Here is the ocean, vast and wide, teeming with life of every kind, both great and small.
• 26. See the ships sailing along, and Leviathan, which you made to play in the sea.
• 27. Every one of these depends on you to give them their food as they need it.
• 28. When you supply it, they gather it. You open your hand to feed them, and they are satisfied.
• 29. But if you turn away from them, they panic. When you take away their breath, they die and turn again to dust.
• 30. When you send your Spirit, new life is born to replenish all the living of the earth.
• 31. May the glory of the LORD last forever! The LORD rejoices in all he has made!
• 32. The earth trembles at his glance; the mountains burst into flame at his touch.
• 33. I will sing to the LORD as long as I live. I will praise my God to my last breath!
• 34. May he be pleased by all these thoughts about him, for I rejoice in the LORD.
• 35. Let all sinners vanish from the face of the earth; let the wicked disappear forever. As for me--I will praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!

Isaiah 44

• 1. "But now, listen to me, Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one.
• 2. The LORD who made you and helps you says: O Jacob, my servant, do not be afraid. O Israel, my chosen one, do not fear.
• 3. For I will give you abundant water to quench your thirst and to moisten your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit and my blessings on your children.
• 4. They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank.
• 5. Some will proudly claim, `I belong to the LORD.' Others will say, `I am a descendant of Jacob.' Some will write the LORD's name on their hands and will take the honored name of Israel as their own.
• 6. "This is what the LORD, Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty, says: I am the First and the Last; there is no other God.
• 7. Who else can tell you what is going to happen in the days ahead? Let them tell you if they can and thus prove their power. Let them do as I have done since ancient times.
• 8. Do not tremble; do not be afraid. Have I not proclaimed from ages past what my purposes are for you? You are my witnesses--is there any other God? No! There is no other Rock--not one!"
• 9. How foolish are those who manufacture idols to be their gods. These highly valued objects are really worthless. They themselves are witnesses that this is so, for their idols neither see nor know. No wonder those who worship them are put to shame.
• 10. Who but a fool would make his own god--an idol that cannot help him one bit!
• 11. All who worship idols will stand before the LORD in shame, along with all these craftsmen--mere humans--who claim they can make a god. Together they will stand in terror and shame.
• 12. The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool, pounding and shaping it with all his might. His work makes him hungry and thirsty, weak and faint.
• 13. Then the wood-carver measures and marks out a block of wood, takes the tool, and carves the figure of a man. Now he has a wonderful idol that cannot even move from where it is placed!
• 14. He cuts down cedars; he selects the cypress and the oak; he plants the cedar in the forest to be nourished by the rain.
• 15. And after his care, he uses part of the wood to make a fire to warm himself and bake his bread. Then--yes, it's true--he takes the rest of it and makes himself a god for people to worship! He makes an idol and bows down and praises it!
• 16. He burns part of the tree to roast his meat and to keep himself warm.
• 17. Then he takes what's left and makes his god: a carved idol! He falls down in front of it, worshiping and praying to it. "Rescue me!" he says. "You are my god!"
• 18. Such stupidity and ignorance! Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see. Their minds are shut, and they cannot think.
• 19. The person who made the idol never stops to reflect, "Why, it's just a block of wood! I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I bow down to worship a chunk of wood?"
• 20. The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He is trusting something that can give him no help at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, "Is this thing, this idol that I'm holding in my hand, a lie?"
• 21. "Pay attention, O Israel, for you are my servant. I, the LORD, made you, and I will not forget to help you.
• 22. I have swept away your sins like the morning mists. I have scattered your offenses like the clouds. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free."
• 23. Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done this wondrous thing. Shout, O earth! Break forth into song, O mountains and forests and every tree! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob and is glorified in Israel.
• 24. The LORD, your Redeemer and Creator, says: "I am the LORD, who made all things. I alone stretched out the heavens. By myself I made the earth and everything in it.
• 25. I am the one who exposes the false prophets as liars by causing events to happen that are contrary to their predictions. I cause wise people to give bad advice, thus proving them to be fools.
• 26. But I carry out the predictions of my prophets! When they say Jerusalem will be saved and the towns of Judah will be lived in once again, it will be done!
• 27. When I speak to the rivers and say, `Be dry!' they will be dry.
• 28. When I say of Cyrus, `He is my shepherd,' he will certainly do as I say. He will command that Jerusalem be rebuilt and that the Temple be restored."

New Living Translation: 163 of 365 days.