1 Chronicles 28

• 1. David summoned all his officials to Jerusalem--the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of the twelve army divisions, the other generals and captains, the overseers of the royal property and livestock, the palace officials, the mighty men, and all the other warriors in the kingdom.
• 2. David rose and stood before them and addressed them as follows: "My brothers and my people! It was my desire to build a temple where the Ark of the LORD's covenant, God's footstool, could rest permanently. I made the necessary preparations for building it,
• 3. but God said to me, `You must not build a temple to honor my name, for you are a warrior and have shed much blood.'
• 4. "Yet the LORD, the God of Israel, has chosen me from among all my father's family to be king over Israel forever. For he has chosen the tribe of Judah to rule, and from among the families of Judah, he chose my father's family. And from among my father's sons, the LORD was pleased to make me king over all Israel.
• 5. And from among my sons--for the LORD has given me many children--he chose Solomon to succeed me on the throne of his kingdom of Israel.
• 6. He said to me, `Your son Solomon will build my Temple and its courtyards, for I have chosen him as my son, and I will be his father.
• 7. And if he continues to obey my commands and regulations as he does now, I will make his kingdom last forever.'
• 8. So now, with God as our witness, I give you this charge for all Israel, the LORD's assembly: Be careful to obey all the commands of the LORD your God, so that you may possess this good land and leave it to your children as a permanent inheritance.
• 9. "And Solomon, my son, get to know the God of your ancestors. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and with a willing mind. For the LORD sees every heart and understands and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.
• 10. So take this seriously. The LORD has chosen you to build a Temple as his sanctuary. Be strong, and do the work."
• 11. Then David gave Solomon the plans for the Temple and its surroundings, including the treasuries, the upstairs rooms, the inner rooms, and the inner sanctuary where the Ark's cover--the place of atonement--would be kept.
• 12. David also gave Solomon all the plans he had in mind for the courtyards of the LORD's Temple, the outside rooms, the treasuries of God's Temple, and the rooms for the dedicated gifts.
• 13. The king also gave Solomon the instructions concerning the work of the various divisions of priests and Levites in the Temple of the LORD. And he gave specifications for the items in the LORD's Temple which were to be used for worship and sacrifice.
• 14. David gave instructions regarding how much gold and silver should be used to make the necessary items.
• 15. He told Solomon the amount of gold needed for the gold lampstands and lamps, and the amount of silver for the silver lampstands and lamps, depending on how each would be used.
• 16. He designated the amount of gold for the table on which the Bread of the Presence would be placed and the amount of silver for other tables.
• 17. David also designated the amount of gold for the solid gold meat hooks used to handle the sacrificial meat and for the basins, pitchers, and dishes, as well as the amount of silver for every dish.
• 18. Finally, he designated the amount of refined gold for the altar of incense and for the gold cherubim, whose wings were stretched out over the Ark of the LORD's covenant.
• 19. "Every part of this plan," David told Solomon, "was given to me in writing from the hand of the LORD. "
• 20. Then David continued, "Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don't be afraid or discouraged by the size of the task, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. He will see to it that all the work related to the Temple of the LORD is finished correctly.
• 21. The various divisions of priests and Levites will serve in the Temple of God. Others with skills of every kind will volunteer, and the leaders and the entire nation are at your command."

2 Peter 2

• 1. But there were also false prophets in Israel, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will cleverly teach their destructive heresies about God and even turn against their Master who bought them. Theirs will be a swift and terrible end.
• 2. Many will follow their evil teaching and shameful immorality. And because of them, Christ and his true way will be slandered.
• 3. In their greed they will make up clever lies to get hold of your money. But God condemned them long ago, and their destruction is on the way.
• 4. For God did not spare even the angels when they sinned; he threw them into hell, in gloomy caves and darkness until the judgment day.
• 5. And God did not spare the ancient world--except for Noah and his family of seven. Noah warned the world of God's righteous judgment. Then God destroyed the whole world of ungodly people with a vast flood.
• 6. Later, he turned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into heaps of ashes and swept them off the face of the earth. He made them an example of what will happen to ungodly people.
• 7. But at the same time, God rescued Lot out of Sodom because he was a good man who was sick of all the immorality and wickedness around him.
• 8. Yes, he was a righteous man who was distressed by the wickedness he saw and heard day after day.
• 9. So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while punishing the wicked right up until the day of judgment.
• 10. He is especially hard on those who follow their own evil, lustful desires and who despise authority. These people are proud and arrogant, daring even to scoff at the glorious ones without so much as trembling.
• 11. But the angels, even though they are far greater in power and strength than these false teachers, never speak out disrespectfully against the glorious ones.
• 12. These false teachers are like unthinking animals, creatures of instinct, who are born to be caught and killed. They laugh at the terrifying powers they know so little about, and they will be destroyed along with them.
• 13. Their destruction is their reward for the harm they have done. They love to indulge in evil pleasures in broad daylight. They are a disgrace and a stain among you. They revel in deceitfulness while they feast with you.
• 14. They commit adultery with their eyes, and their lust is never satisfied. They make a game of luring unstable people into sin. They train themselves to be greedy; they are doomed and cursed.
• 15. They have wandered off the right road and followed the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved to earn money by doing wrong.
• 16. But Balaam was stopped from his mad course when his donkey rebuked him with a human voice.
• 17. These people are as useless as dried-up springs of water or as clouds blown away by the wind--promising much and delivering nothing. They are doomed to blackest darkness.
• 18. They brag about themselves with empty, foolish boasting. With lustful desire as their bait, they lure back into sin those who have just escaped from such wicked living.
• 19. They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves to sin and corruption. For you are a slave to whatever controls you.
• 20. And when people escape from the wicked ways of the world by learning about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up with sin and become its slave again, they are worse off than before.
• 21. It would be better if they had never known the right way to live than to know it and then reject the holy commandments that were given to them.
• 22. They make these proverbs come true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and "A washed pig returns to the mud."

Micah 5

• 1. Mobilize! Marshal your troops! The enemy is laying siege to Jerusalem. With a rod they will strike the leader of Israel in the face.
• 2. But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village in Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.
• 3. The people of Israel will be abandoned to their enemies until the time when the woman in labor gives birth to her son. Then at last his fellow countrymen will return from exile to their own land.
• 4. And he will stand to lead his flock with the LORD's strength, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. Then his people will live there undisturbed, for he will be highly honored all around the world.
• 5. And he will be the source of our peace. When the Assyrians invade our land and break through our defenses, we will appoint seven rulers to watch over us, eight princes to lead us.
• 6. They will rule Assyria with drawn swords and enter the gates of the land of Nimrod. They will rescue us from the Assyrians when they pour over the borders to invade our land.
• 7. Then the few left in Israel will go out among the nations. They will be like dew sent by the LORD or like rain falling on the grass, which no one can hold back.
• 8. The remnant of Israel will go out among the nations and be as strong as a lion. And the other nations will be like helpless sheep, with no one to rescue them.
• 9. The people of Israel will stand up to their foes, and all their enemies will be wiped out.
• 10. "At that same time," says the LORD, "I will destroy all your weapons--your horses and chariots.
• 11. I will tear down your walls and demolish the defenses of your cities.
• 12. I will put an end to all witchcraft; there will be no more fortune-tellers to consult.
• 13. I will destroy all your idols and sacred pillars, so you will never again worship the work of your own hands.
• 14. I will abolish your pagan shrines with their Asherah poles and destroy the cities where your idol temples stand.
• 15. I will pour out my vengeance on all the nations that refuse to obey me."

New Living Translation: 334 of 365 days.