New International Version

Annual Bible reading: 206 of 365 days

• Judges 8
• 1. Now the Ephraimites asked Gideon, "Why have you treated us like this? Why didn't you call us when you went to fight Midian?" And they criticized him sharply.
• 2. But he answered them, "What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren't the gleanings of Ephraim's grapes better than the full grape harvest of Abiezer?
• 3. God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?" At this, their resentment against him subsided.
• 4. Gideon and his three hundred men, exhausted yet keeping up the pursuit, came to the Jordan and crossed it.
• 5. He said to the men of Succoth, "Give my troops some bread; they are worn out, and I am still pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian."
• 6. But the officials of Succoth said, "Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your troops?"
• 7. Then Gideon replied, "Just for that, when the LORD has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will tear your flesh with desert thorns and briers."
• 8. From there he went up to Peniel and made the same request of them, but they answered as the men of Succoth had.
• 9. So he said to the men of Peniel, "When I return in triumph, I will tear down this tower."
• 10. Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with a force of about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of the armies of the eastern peoples; a hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen had fallen.
• 11. Gideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah and Jogbehah and fell upon the unsuspecting army.
• 12. Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of Midian, fled, but he pursued them and captured them, routing their entire army.
• 13. Gideon son of Joash then returned from the battle by the Pass of Heres.
• 14. He caught a young man of Succoth and questioned him, and the young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven officials of Succoth, the elders of the town.
• 15. Then Gideon came and said to the men of Succoth, "Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me by saying, 'Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your exhausted men?'"
• 16. He took the elders of the town and taught the men of Succoth a lesson by punishing them with desert thorns and briers.
• 17. He also pulled down the tower of Peniel and killed the men of the town.
• 18. Then he asked Zebah and Zalmunna, "What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?Men like you," they answered, "each one with the bearing of a prince."
• 19. Gideon replied, "Those were my brothers, the sons of my own mother. As surely as the LORD lives, if you had spared their lives, I would not kill you."
• 20. Turning to Jether, his oldest son, he said, "Kill them!" But Jether did not draw his sword, because he was only a boy and was afraid.
• 21. Zebah and Zalmunna said, "Come, do it yourself. 'As is the man, so is his strength.'" So Gideon stepped forward and killed them, and took the ornaments off their camels' necks.
• 22. The Israelites said to Gideon, "Rule over us-you, your son and your grandson-because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian."
• 23. But Gideon told them, "I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The LORD will rule over you."
• 24. And he said, "I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder." (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.)
• 25. They answered, "We'll be glad to give them." So they spread out a garment, and each man threw a ring from his plunder onto it.
• 26. The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels, not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels' necks.
• 27. Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family.
• 28. Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon's lifetime, the land enjoyed peace forty years.
• 29. Jerub-Baal son of Joash went back home to live.
• 30. He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives.
• 31. His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelech.
• 32. Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
• 33. No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god and
• 34. did not remember the LORD their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side.
• 35. They also failed to show kindness to the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) for all the good things he had done for them.
• Acts 12
• 1. It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them.
• 2. He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
• 3. When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
• 4. After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.
• 5. So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.
• 6. The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance.
• 7. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists.
• 8. Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him.
• 9. Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.
• 10. They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.
• 11. Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating."
• 12. When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.
• 13. Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door.
• 14. When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!"
• 15. "You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel."
• 16. But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.
• 17. Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. "Tell James and the brothers about this," he said, and then he left for another place.
• 18. In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter.
• 19. After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.
• 20. Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there a while. He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon; they now joined together and sought an audience with him. Having secured the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king's country for their food supply.
• 21. On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people.
• 22. They shouted, "This is the voice of a god, not of a man."
• 23. Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.
• 24. But the word of God continued to increase and spread.
• 25. When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.
• Jeremiah 21
• 1. The word came to Jeremiah from the LORD when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah. They said:
• 2. "Inquire now of the LORD for us because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is attacking us. Perhaps the LORD will perform wonders for us as in times past so that he will withdraw from us."
• 3. But Jeremiah answered them, "Tell Zedekiah,
• 4. 'This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians who are outside the wall besieging you. And I will gather them inside this city.
• 5. I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm in anger and fury and great wrath.
• 6. I will strike down those who live in this city-both men and animals-and they will die of a terrible plague.
• 7. After that, declares the LORD, I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague, sword and famine, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who seek their lives. He will put them to the sword; he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion.'
• 8. "Furthermore, tell the people, 'This is what the LORD says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death.
• 9. Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; he will escape with his life.
• 10. I have determined to do this city harm and not good, declares the LORD. It will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire.'
• 11. "Moreover, say to the royal house of Judah, 'Hear the word of the LORD;
• 12. O house of David, this is what the LORD says: "'Administer justice every morning; rescue from the hand of his oppressor the one who has been robbed, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done- burn with no one to quench it.
• 13. I am against you, Jerusalem, you who live above this valley on the rocky plateau, declares the LORD - you who say, "Who can come against us? Who can enter our refuge?"
• 14. I will punish you as your deeds deserve, declares the LORD. I will kindle a fire in your forests that will consume everything around you.'"

New International Version