1 Chronicles 15

• 1. David now built several buildings for himself in the City of David. He also prepared a place for the Ark of God and set up a special tent there to shelter it.
• 2. Then he issued these instructions: "When we transport the Ark of God this time, no one except the Levites may carry it. The LORD has chosen them to carry the Ark of the LORD and to minister before him forever."
• 3. Then David summoned all the Israelites to Jerusalem to bring the Ark of the LORD to the place he had prepared for it.
• 4. These are the priests and Levites who were called together:
• 5. There were 120 from the clan of Kohath, with Uriel as their leader.
• 6. There were 220 from the clan of Merari, with Asaiah as their leader.
• 7. There were 130 from the clan of Gershon, with Joel as their leader.
• 8. There were 200 descendants of Elizaphan, with Shemaiah as their leader.
• 9. There were 80 descendants of Hebron, with Eliel as their leader.
• 10. There were 112 descendants of Uzziel, with Amminadab as their leader.
• 11. Then David summoned the priests, Zadok and Abiathar, and these Levite leaders: Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab.
• 12. He said to them, "You are the leaders of the Levite families. You must purify yourselves and all your fellow Levites, so you can bring the Ark of the LORD, the God of Israel, to the place I have prepared for it.
• 13. Because you Levites did not carry the Ark the first time, the anger of the LORD our God burst out against us. We failed to ask God how to move it in the proper way."
• 14. So the priests and the Levites purified themselves in order to bring the Ark of the LORD, the God of Israel, to Jerusalem.
• 15. Then the Levites carried the Ark of God on their shoulders with its carrying poles, just as the LORD had instructed Moses.
• 16. David also ordered the Levite leaders to appoint a choir of Levites who were singers and musicians to sing joyful songs to the accompaniment of lyres, harps, and cymbals.
• 17. So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel, Asaph son of Berekiah, and Ethan son of Kushaiah from the clan of Merari to direct the musicians.
• 18. The following men were chosen as their assistants: Zechariah, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, and the gatekeepers, Obed-edom and Jeiel.
• 19. Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were chosen to sound the bronze cymbals.
• 20. Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were chosen to play the lyres.
• 21. Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were chosen to play the harps.
• 22. Kenaniah, the head Levite, was chosen as the choir leader because of his skill.
• 23. Berekiah and Elkanah were chosen to guard the Ark.
• 24. Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer--all of whom were priests--were chosen to blow the trumpets as they marched in front of the Ark of God. Obed-edom and Jehiah were chosen to guard the Ark.
• 25. Then David and the leaders of Israel and the generals of the army went to the home of Obed-edom to bring the Ark of the LORD's covenant up to Jerusalem with a great celebration.
• 26. And because God was clearly helping the Levites as they carried the Ark of the LORD's covenant, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven lambs.
• 27. David was dressed in a robe of fine linen, as were the Levites who carried the Ark, the singers, and Kenaniah the song leader. David was also wearing a priestly tunic.
• 28. So all Israel brought up the Ark of the LORD's covenant to Jerusalem with shouts of joy, the blowing of horns and trumpets, the crashing of cymbals, and loud playing on harps and lyres.
• 29. But as the Ark of the LORD's covenant entered the City of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, looked down from her window. When she saw King David dancing and leaping for joy, she was filled with contempt for him.

James 2

• 1. My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim that you have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people more than others?
• 2. For instance, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in shabby clothes.
• 3. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, "You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor"--well,
• 4. doesn't this discrimination show that you are guided by wrong motives?
• 5. Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn't God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren't they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him?
• 6. And yet, you insult the poor man! Isn't it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?
• 7. Aren't they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?
• 8. Yes indeed, it is good when you truly obey our Lord's royal command found in the Scriptures: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
• 9. But if you pay special attention to the rich, you are committing a sin, for you are guilty of breaking that law.
• 10. And the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as the person who has broken all of God's laws.
• 11. For the same God who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." So if you murder someone, you have broken the entire law, even if you do not commit adultery.
• 12. So whenever you speak, or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law of love, the law that set you free.
• 13. For there will be no mercy for you if you have not been merciful to others. But if you have been merciful, then God's mercy toward you will win out over his judgment against you.
• 14. Dear brothers and sisters, what's the use of saying you have faith if you don't prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can't save anyone.
• 15. Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing,
• 16. and you say, "Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well"--but then you don't give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
• 17. So you see, it isn't enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn't show itself by good deeds is no faith at all--it is dead and useless.
• 18. Now someone may argue, "Some people have faith; others have good deeds." I say, "I can't see your faith if you don't have good deeds, but I will show you my faith through my good deeds."
• 19. Do you still think it's enough just to believe that there is one God? Well, even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror!
• 20. Fool! When will you ever learn that faith that does not result in good deeds is useless?
• 21. Don't you remember that our ancestor Abraham was declared right with God because of what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?
• 22. You see, he was trusting God so much that he was willing to do whatever God told him to do. His faith was made complete by what he did--by his actions.
• 23. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: "Abraham believed God, so God declared him to be righteous." He was even called "the friend of God."
• 24. So you see, we are made right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.
• 25. Rahab the prostitute is another example of this. She was made right with God by her actions--when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road.
• 26. Just as the body is dead without a spirit, so also faith is dead without good deeds.

Amos 9

• 1. Then I saw a vision of the Lord standing beside the altar. He said, "Strike the tops of the Temple columns so hard that the foundation will shake. Smash the columns so the roof will crash down on the people below. Then those who survive will be slaughtered in battle. No one will escape!
• 2. "Even if they dig down to the place of the dead, I will reach down and pull them up. Even if they climb up into the heavens, I will bring them down.
• 3. Even if they hide at the very top of Mount Carmel, I will search them out and capture them. Even if they hide at the bottom of the ocean, I will send the great sea serpent after them to bite and destroy them.
• 4. Even if they are driven into exile, I will command the sword to kill them there. I am determined to bring disaster upon them and not to help them."
• 5. The Lord, the LORD Almighty, touches the land and it melts, and all its people mourn. The ground rises like the Nile River at floodtime, and then it sinks again.
• 6. The upper stories of the LORD's home are in the heavens, while its foundation is on the earth. He draws up water from the oceans and pours it down as rain on the land. The LORD is his name!
• 7. "Do you Israelites think you are more important to me than the Ethiopians?" asks the LORD. "I brought you out of Egypt, but have I not done as much for other nations, too? I brought the Philistines from Crete and led the Arameans out of Kir.
• 8. "I, the Sovereign LORD, am watching this sinful nation of Israel, and I will uproot it and scatter its people across the earth. Yet I have promised that I will never completely destroy the family of Israel, "says the LORD.
• 9. "For I have commanded that Israel be persecuted by the other nations as grain is sifted in a sieve, yet not one true kernel will be lost.
• 10. But all the sinners will die by the sword--all those who say, `Nothing bad will happen to us.'
• 11. "In that day I will restore the fallen kingdom of David. It is now like a house in ruins, but I will rebuild its walls and restore its former glory.
• 12. And Israel will possess what is left of Edom and all the nations I have called to be mine. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do these things.
• 13. "The time will come," says the LORD, "when the grain and grapes will grow faster than they can be harvested. Then the terraced vineyards on the hills of Israel will drip with sweet wine!
• 14. I will bring my exiled people of Israel back from distant lands, and they will rebuild their ruined cities and live in them again. They will plant vineyards and gardens; they will eat their crops and drink their wine.
• 15. I will firmly plant them there in the land I have given them," says the LORD your God. "Then they will never be uprooted again."

New Living Translation: 324 of 365 days.