Servant of Messiah Ministries

Preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.

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Blood Moons – Pattern Recognition or Prophecy?

September 27, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

Notes to download: Blood Moons - Pattern or Prophecy

Sunday September 27th 2015 will be a harvest moon and a blood moon and a super moon and the last of a Lunar Tetrad. NASA says this is the first time in 30 years for a super moon and an eclipse to coincide.

In discussing the sun, moon and the stars let’s be certain we are together on the definitions of astronomy and astrology. Astronomy is the science of studying the movements and positions of planets and stars. Astrology is the worship of stars, which is cultic and pagan.

The harvest moon is also special because it will rise in the east near sunset and appear full for several days in a row — making it seem as if there is more than one full moon. A “normal” harvest moon wouldn’t necessarily appear bigger and brighter than those during the rest of the year, but this one may because it’s also a super moon.

A blood moon can appear reddish in color during a lunar eclipse (which will fall on Sunday, Sept. 27 2015). That’s because the moon reflects light from the sun. According to NASA, almost all colors except red are “filtered” out, and the eclipsed moon appears reddish or even brown. This filtering effect is one of the origins of the term “blood moon.”

The Bible could also refer to blood moons. From Joel 2:31-32 (New King James Version): “The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Sept 27th 2015 moon is final moon of what’s called a “lunar tetrad,” which began in 2014. A lunar tetrad is four total lunar eclipses in succession, with no partial lunar eclipses in between, separated by six lunar months (or six full moons).

The harvest moon, blood moon, super moon and eclipse will all be visible starting Sunday night, Sept 27th 2015.

Now what makes this particular Lunar Tetrad of blood moons interesting is that they have all fallen on the Gods Holy Days (Feasts of the Lord in Leviticus 23) as defined by His Calendar. The Hebrew calendar is a lunar based calendar, so starts each month on a New Moon and so the 15th of the month is traditionally a Full moon.

It is important to realize that the bible NOWHERE mentions “lunar tetrads” or ‘blood moons” as having some special prophetic meaning. Scriptures do not say that they point to any specific prophetic outcome.

At best this whole article is merely speculative pattern recognition. We cannot draw conclusions about the timing of the Rapture or the Tribulation based on a naturally occurring “sequence of eclipses” and “blood moons.”

BUT…..Four blood moons on four Feasts of the Lord within two years is very rare and has only occurred seven (7)  times since the time of Yeshua. There are now four blood moons scheduled to appear in 2014/2015 and then there will NOT be any for the next 100 years.

The events that have followed each of these seven Tetrads have been startling…..

Continued here…Blood Moons – Prophecy or Pattern?

Filed Under: Israel, News Events, Prophecy

Stock Cycles and Shemitah Years.

September 27, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

  • 1966: Stock market collapse, Dow down 22%, Fed tightens, Vietnam War, protests
  • 1973: Oil embargo (Oct) Yom Kippur War, Stocks down 45%, recession
  • 1980: Inflation, Iran-Iraq war, Silver panic, 21% interest rates, Stocks crash, recession
  • 1987: Black Monday (Oct.) Largest single day crash ever
  • 1994: Bond collapse, DJIA bear market, Wars
  • 2001: Stock market crash, 9/11 (Sept.) Stocks lost 821 pnts (7.7%) in 3 days, recession
  • 2008/9: Stock market crash  9/29 (Sept.) Stocks lost 777 pnts (7%) Tarp Bailout, recession
  • 2015/16: ???

As a former stockbroker with Morgan Stanley I started my career just weeks after the Black Monday of October 1987.  The Seven Year Cycles in stocks caught my interest.  My career suffered a few of those cycles.

7 year cycle peaks at 2015

Jonathan Cahn a Messianic Rabbi has made the Shemitah Year a household word with his book the “Mystery of the Shemitah.” This Shemitah (Shmita) commandment was given to Israel in Leviticus 25 and was to govern their agriculture and their economics.

The Sabbath Year

In Leviticus chapter 25 v 1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying: 2 Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land that I give you, the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord. 3 For six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its fruit, 4 but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of complete rest for the land, a sabbath for the Lord. You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard. 5 That which grows by itself from your harvest you shall not reap, nor gather the grapes of your unpruned vines, for it is a year of complete rest for the land. (Lev.25:1-7).

The Year for Canceling Debts

Deuteronomy 15 v 1 – At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. 2 This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to a fellow Israelite. They shall not require payment from anyone among their own people, because the Lord’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed. 3 You may require payment from a foreigner, but you must cancel any debt your fellow Israelite owes you.

God took this land rest so seriously that He only allowed Israel to violate the command for 490 years then He came to collect on the 70 years of rest they owed the land. They were taken into captivity for 70 years to give the land an opportunity to rest.

Jeremiah 25 v 11 This whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years. …13 I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations.

2 Chronicles 36 v 19 – 22  So they burned down the house of God, tore down the wall of Jerusalem, burned down all the palaces with fire, and destroyed all the precious items. 20 Then he carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who survived the sword, and they were slaves to him and his sons until the kingdom of Persia ruled, 21 to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate, she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years.

So the question remains …. Does this apply to America?  The land rest command was only given to Israel which was a Theocracy bound to YHVH in covenant with their borders defined in scripture. God calls that particular piece of property “His land.”

The USA is a Gentile nation (melting pot of the world) which cannot assume those promises/curses as some kind of New Israel.  That is just another version of Replacement Theology. The USA is not Israel and given her moral behavior and national character….she is no longer even a “Christian nation.”

However…..Ps 24 v 1  says “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.“ He is coming back to rule it with a Universal Law. Those Shmita Laws were given by the  “God that does not change.” Would those Land Rest Laws (Shmita) not be implemented over all the earth?  He is coming to reign for 1000 years, and of His government there will be no end?

Are we in America suffering the unintended economic consequences of ignoring those economic principles? Regardless…the principle of reaping what we have sown will be judgement enough to bring about our ruin.

 

 

Filed Under: Economy, News Events, Prophecy

Preaching Christ in a Postmodern World by Dr. Tim Keller

September 24, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

Preaching Christ in a Postmodern World
by Dr. Tim Keller and Dr. Edmund Clowney

Originally taught as a Doctor of Ministry course, Dr. Keller and Dr. Clowney (1917-2005) ask, “Is Jesus made visible in every sermon or only talked about?” By analyzing and deconstructing other models of preaching that either exhort on moral levels or attempt to evoke an emotional response, Dr.’s Keller and Clowney provide a model of preaching that is Christocentric. This model of preaching focuses on three aspects to guide the listener and preacher:

  • First, how does this text tell me about Christ?
  • Second, how does this text show that the listener’s life is poor without Christ.
  • Third, how to lead the listener to worship and adore Christ.

Link to iTunes University  Reformed Theology Seminary        

Download 144page  Class Notes as pdf Preaching the Gospel in a Post Modern World v 2001

Download 188page Class Notes as pdf Preaching the Gospel in a Post Modern World v 2002

The notes are NOT available anywhere else….so I offered up both years as they were expanded.

The 36 hour class is College Level and includes 18 hours of Lectures and 18 hours of Question/Answers.

God called me late in life, ill prepared and unqualified to even consider college/seminary but with a zeal to teach. There are wonderful resources available on the internet to prepare and equip men whom God has called.

I share this class with the hope that others like me can benefit from these lessons and be more effective in sharing the Gospel. Whether you teach a small group or serve as volunteer chaplain – properly exalting Yeshua in your teaching glorifies Him.

This class has shown me ways to do that.

He said Ps 40 v 7 the volume of the book is written of me….and finding Him and lifting Him up allows Him to draw all people to Him.

Lu 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Lu 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

Filed Under: Christianity, Homiletics-Hermeneutics Tagged With: NoBooks

Christ Centered Preaching by Dr. Bryan Chapell

September 24, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

This is an excellent homiletic class that I am working my way through now.

I found this useful and recommend it for the following reasons…

The audio lectures and notes are freely available online at iTunes and at Covenant Seminary.

Link for   Covenant Seminary Class                       

Link for    iTunes University Class – Covenant Seminary

They include both lecture transcripts and class notes for each lecture.

Download Transcripts as pdf Christ Centered Preaching Class 28 Lecture Transcripts - Bryan Chapell

Download Class Notes as pdf Christ Centered Preaching Class Notes 28 Lessons - Bryan Chapell

The Text book by Dr. Bryan Chapell – “Christ Centered Preaching” is available on Amazon to complete the course experience.

The 30 hour class is College Level and well taught.

God called me late in life, ill prepared and unqualified to even consider college/seminary but with a zeal to teach. There are wonderful resources available on the internet to prepare and equip men whom God has called.

I share this class with the hope that others like me can benefit from these lessons and be more effective in sharing the Gospel. Whether you teach a small group or serve as volunteer chaplain – properly exalting Yeshua in your teaching glorifies Him.

This class has shown me ways to do that.

He said Ps 40 v 7 the volume of the book is written of me….and finding Him and lifting Him up allows Him to draw all people to Him.

Lu 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Lu 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

Yeshua set the example for proper teaching. It is my hope to follow His example. A sincere thanks to the men that went before us and passed on their experience and wisdom to the next generation.

Filed Under: Christianity, News Events

The Pope and Palestine

September 24, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

The U.N. turns 70 years old this year. The State of Israel was created by UN Resolution 181 on November 29, 1947. Called the partition plan, Israel accepted the deal, but the Arab governments rejected it and went to war against Israel. It would have created an independent Palestinian state on 52 percent of historic Palestine.

France and New Zealand has been working on draft to be presented to the UN Security Council resolution that would set out the steps for a negotiated end of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land and a solution to the nearly 70-year-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The draft would define the pre-1967 frontier as a reference point for border talks but allow room for exchanges of territory, designate Jerusalem as capital of both Israel and a Palestinian state and call for a fair solution for Palestinian refugees.

Most of the 135 nations that have recognized a state of Palestine did so in 1988, after the Palestine Liberation Organization declared it; Sweden was the last, in October. The British, French, Spanish and Irish Parliaments have in recent months passed resolutions urging their governments to follow suit.

France is also considering sharp economic measures against Israeli goods and businesses east of the Green Line. Settlements are illegal according to international law and the EU should not apply its agreements with Israel to them.  Brussels  has toughened its stance on implementing these policies following Israel’s March 17 elections. The EU, Israel’s biggest trading partner, is exploring guidelines that would require Israel to label settlement products. It already bars goods produced in settlements from receiving customs exemptions given to Israeli goods.

Vatican recognition of Palestinian State

On May 13th on the anniversary of the Palestinian catastrophe known as Nakba when 750,000 Palestinians were uprooted during the war, the Vatican, the world’s smallest country, officially recognized Palestine. Official diplomatic recognition came in the final version of an official joint statement of the Vatican and Palestine.

“The wider Arab world often thinks that it’s a Christian West against a Muslim East,” Father Khader said, “so this is an important step from the Catholic Church to show that, no, it is standing with the rights of Palestinians and with the right to a state of Palestine.”

During his visit to Palestine in May 2014, Pope Francis made an unscheduled stop in Bethlehem, the little town where Jesus was born. He placed his hand on the 30-foot high concrete structure that Palestinians refer to as the “apartheid wall.”

This pope is no stranger to diplomacy and he was effective in facilitating change in US-Cuba relations. President Obama and Raul Castro both thanked Pope Francis for urging them to reach the landmark agreement to swap prisoners and end decades of Cold War animosity.  When the Pope and Obama met at the Vatican for the first time in March 2014, the Pope lobbied the U.S. President to lift sanctions on Cuba.

The Pope visiting  the USA now and his stated position on Palestine is recognition. Would he not lobby President Obama to join the majority of the U.N. as they dictate the establishment of a Palestinian State? The USA veto alone has held back the majority decision in the UN to divide Israel.

The inevitable division of the land is certain. The French diplomatic initiative coupled with the recent Vatican and European support may be enough to cause the U.S.A. to reconsider its use of the UN Security Council Veto.

Then Israel will have its future decided by the same Babylon that gave it birth with the resolution 181 in 1947.   Joel 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

 

 

Filed Under: Middle East, News Events, Prophecy

Russia, Turkey and Palestine

September 24, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

President Vladimir Putin opened Moscow’s new grand mosque on Sept 23rd – Yom Kippur . The new mosque, which can accommodate 10,000 people, is the largest in Europe. Islam is the second largest religion in Russia after Orthodox Christianity, making up around 15 percent of the population.
Putin was joined at the ceremony by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Russia’s Kremlin-backed Council of Muftis said private donations covered the construction of the mosque, including contributions from Kazakhstan and Turkey.

For Abbas the meetings extended his early Kremlin contacts with Putin. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas had launched his “diplomatic intifada” against Israel with the exit from the Kerry peace initiative back in January. His meetings with President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev marked his breakaway from the US-led peace process with Israel. He then signaled his bid for Russian backing for a Palestinian state.

This gave Putin a chance to widen his influence on three very important Middle East issues. He is actively arming the Syrians and has boots on the ground in Syria while providing their government new fighter jets. He has concluded a $1.5 billion dollar purchase of Iranian oil and other trade deals before sanctions with Iran are officially lifted.

Putin accepted Chairman Abbas request for help and they jointly announced a $1 billion Gas project in Gaza section of the Mediterranean with Gazprom to produce 30 Billion cubic meters of natural gas. Russia’s Technoprom export engineering firm was also considering a small oil development project near the West Bank city of Ramallah, hub of the Palestinian Authority government headed by Abbas.

The Palestinian leader began his conversation with Putin by calling Russia a great power that deserved to play a more prominent role in the volatile Middle East region.

This move confronts Israel with two troubling concerns:
1. Russian interests could potentially encircle Israel’s offshore Mediterranean gas and oil sites and Russian pipelines may block Israel’s export facilities.
2. Under international law, the Palestinian Authority is not recognized as an Independent state and is therefore not empowered to establish Special Economic Zones in the Mediterranean as closed areas for prospecting for oil or gas.

By taking charge of the offshore exploration opposite Gaza, Russia is offering its Palestinian partner implicit Russian recognition of its status as an independent national entity authorized to sign international contracts. This will help the process of creeping Palestinian Statehood without any Israeli participation.

Russia’s desire to liberate the poor oppressed Palestinians and their support in the  UN for those motions have far less to do with poor Palestinians and much more to do with Oil and Gas.

A Middle East Spokesman put it bluntly – Russian tactics for Syria and Iran had proved effective, he said, and there was no reason why Moscow could not perform the same function on the Israeli­Palestinian track.  It was time to end the American monopoly on peace making. 

Soon all of the diplomatic initiatives in the Middle East will be in the hands of Israel’s enemies.

Filed Under: Israel, Middle East, News Events, Prophecy

Extinction is forever

September 22, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

You will recognize them by their large oversized nose called a proboscis which is thought to help cool the hot desert air and also heat the frozen air entering the lungs.  Saiga are listed as a critically endangered by the union for the Conservation of Nature after their numbers fell to to less than 21,000 in the 1990’s. Their odds of survival improved as their numbers grew to 257,000 with a herd in Kazikhstan and Russian and Mongolia.

All that came to an end with the shocking die off of 60,000 antelope in just 4 days this year. Within one month 134,000 of the animals lay dead wiping out two herds some 300km apart simultaneously. These deaths of one third of the worldwide population are catastrophic and a United Nations backed effort known as CMS statement confirmed that “not a single animal survived in the affected herds” Researchers are baffled as to the reason “The extent of this die-off, and the speed it had, by spreading throughout the whole calving herd and killing all the animals, this has not been observed for any other species,” said Steffen Zuther, a geoecologist and coordinator of the Atlyn Dala Conservation Initiative. “It’s really unheard of.  The question is why it developed so rapidly and why it spread to all the animals?”The few remaining antelope now still face is historic enemies – wildlife crime and poaching, so the odds of their survival look bleak.

Meanwhile back at home……the Honey Bee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has a huge impact on our food production since they pollinate most of our crops. Two thirds of crops require pollination by bees — that’s one out of every three bites of food we take. The droughts across the West are impacting their populations. A dangerous new pattern in the bee crisis is alarming researchers and advocates. For the first time ever, beekeepers are losing more bee colonies during summer months than the cold winter months. Beekeepers have reported losing more than 40 percent of their honey bee colonies over the last year, according to a recently released survey.

Nature is feeling the strain of fewer resources stretched by a larger population with growing needs of water, arable land and materials. We are consuming more and also wasting more. We have caused 322 animal extinctions over the past 500 years, with two-thirds of those occurring in the last two centuries, according to a paper by the Journal of Science.

I wonder what the Creator thinks when He looks at what we have done? Gen 1 v 31 And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good.……….Six times God reviewed every days creation and concluded….It was very good.  He then turned over the beauty of all He had made for man to keep and take care of…. Gen 2v15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden to cultivate it and keep it.
Today God listens to the groans of His Creation Is 24 v5 The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the heavens languish with the earth. 5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws….

What will we say when He calls us to account for our management of His planet?

Filed Under: Natural Disasters, News Events

Droughts lead to Fires

September 21, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

The higher temperatures in the West have led to a dwindling snowpack. This has meant that the forests have become drier and so more susceptible to fires. The drought and now fires have spread from Alaska, who moved its famous Iditarod race due to a lack of snow, through Washington and to southern California.

In the conifer forests of the western United States, earlier snow melts, longer summers and an increase in spring and summer temperatures have increased fire frequency by 400 percent and have increased the amount of land burned by 650 percent since 1970.

Active fires have burnt three times as many acres in Washington state as in California. Fires over 100,000 acres are considered a “megafire” and before 1995 there was only 1 per year in California. This year California has had 5 “megafires.” Reports said more than 5,000 fires had burned six million acres already, and there have been several fatalities.

Washington Record Fires

Tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars have already evaporated. And with no end in sight, there may still be years of suffering — and painful decisions — waiting ahead.
The U.S. Forest Service spent around $200 million a week battling wildfires across the country during the summer of 2015, breaking all-time records, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Oregon and Washington were among the hardest hit states, with hundreds of thousands of acres scorched.

Several Western states — California, Montana and Idaho — are also seeing a severe fire season with some 11,600 square miles scorched so far. Authorities have warned that smoke from these fires is creating hazardous air quality and that the choking haze could soon spread north into Canada.
About 1,250 firefighters were battling the fires, which were just 10% contained and threatened over 5,000 homes. The firefighters included about 700 Washington National Guardsmen.

Crews also arrived from New Zealand and Australia, as areas of central and eastern Washington battled 16 large wildfires covering more than 920 square miles.

We should not be ignorant of the ways in which God works. God often withholds rains upon a people who continue to sin against Him. Is the prolonged lack of rain in California just blind coincidence or is God angry with us as a people?

Drought—followed by famine—is one of the consequences for national disobedience. Our national sins do not go unnoticed by God. God makes this clear to Solomon and the same applies today since God has not changed (Malachi 3:6).

Then the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: “I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:12-13).

I wonder if we as a nation will seek His face….and more importantly will we turn from our wicked ways.
 

Filed Under: Natural Disasters, News Events, Prophecy

Tisha b’Av – 9th of Av

February 13, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

Tisha B’Av – Temple Destroyed
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Portion (parasha) for this week:
Tishah b’Av”Temple Destroyed”
Torah: Deuteronomy 4:24-40; Duet 11:8-21
Prophets: Jeremiah 8:13-9:24
Brit Hadasha: Matthew 3:11-17; Mt 23:16-23; Mt 24:1-2
“Torah Portions” are a systematic teaching schedule that includes a portion of Scripture from the Torah, Prophets, and Brit Hadasha each week. This schedule is known all over the world, and serves as a great way to facilitate discussion and learning with others in the Body of the Messiah.
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Deuteronomy 4:24-40
English Standard Version (ESV)

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24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
25 “When you father children and children’s children, and have grown old in the land, if you act corruptly by making a carved image in the form of anything, and by doing what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, so as to provoke him to anger, 26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, but will be utterly destroyed. 27 And theLORD will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the LORD will drive you. 28 And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. 29 But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.30 When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice. 31 For the LORDyour God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.
The LORD Alone Is God
32 “For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. 33 Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? 34 Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 To you it was shown, that you might know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides him. 36 Out of heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you. And on earth he let you see his great fire, and you heard his words out of the midst of the fire. 37 And because he loved your fathers and chose their offspring after them[a] and brought you out of Egyptwith his own presence, by his great power, 38 driving out before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as it is this day, 39 know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. 40 Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for all time.”
Footnotes:
a. Deuteronomy 4:37 Hebrew his offspring after him

Deuteronomy 11:8-21
English Standard Version (ESV)

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8 “You shall therefore keep the whole commandment that I command you today, that you may be strong, and go in and take possession of the land that you are going over to possess, 9 and that you may live long in the land that theLORD swore to your fathers to give to them and to their offspring, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 For the land that you are entering to take possession of it is not like the land of Egypt, from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and irrigated it,[a] like a garden of vegetables. 11 But the land that you are going over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water by the rain from heaven, 12 a land that the LORD your God cares for. The eyes of the LORD your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.
13 “And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today,to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, 14 he[b] will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil. 15 And he will give grass in your fields for your livestock, and you shall eat and be full. 16 Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside andserve other gods and worship them; 17 then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and he will shut up the heavens, so that there will be no rain, and the land will yield no fruit, and you will perish quickly off the good land that the LORD is giving you.
18 “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 19 You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 20 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 21 that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth.
Footnotes:
a. Deuteronomy 11:10 Hebrew watered it with your feet
b. Deuteronomy 11:14 Samaritan, Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew I; also verse 15

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Jeremiah 8:13-9:24
English Standard Version (ESV)

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13 When I would gather them, declares the LORD,
there are no grapes on the vine,
nor figs on the fig tree;
even the leaves are withered,
and what I gave them has passed away from them.”[a]
14 Why do we sit still?
Gather together; let us go into the fortified cities
and perish there,
for the LORD our God has doomed us to perish
and has given us poisoned water to drink,
because we have sinned against the LORD.
15 We looked for peace, but no good came;
for a time of healing, but behold, terror.
16 “The snorting of their horses is heard from Dan;
at the sound of the neighing of their stallions
the whole land quakes.
They come and devour the land and all that fills it,
the city and those who dwell in it.
17 For behold, I am sending among you serpents,
adders that cannot be charmed,
and they shall bite you,”
declares the LORD.
Jeremiah Grieves for His People
18 My joy is gone; grief is upon me;[b]
my heart is sick within me.
19 Behold, the cry of the daughter of my people
from the length and breadth of the land:
“Is the LORD not in Zion?
Is her King not in her?”
“Why have they provoked me to anger with their carved images
and with their foreign idols?”
20 “The harvest is past, the summer is ended,
and we are not saved.”
21 For the wound of the daughter of my people is my heart wounded;
I mourn, and dismay has taken hold on me.
22 Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why then has the health of the daughter of my people
not been restored?
9 [c] Oh that my head were waters,
and my eyes a fountain of tears,
that I might weep day and night
for the slain of the daughter of my people!
2 [d] Oh that I had in the desert
a travelers’ lodging place,
that I might leave my people
and go away from them!
For they are all adulterers,
a company of treacherous men.
3 They bend their tongue like a bow;
falsehood and not truth has grown strong[e] in the land;
for they proceed from evil to evil,
and they do not know me, declares the LORD.
4 Let everyone beware of his neighbor,
and put no trust in any brother,
for every brother is a deceiver,
and every neighbor goes about as a slanderer.
5 Everyone deceives his neighbor,
and no one speaks the truth;
they have taught their tongue to speak lies;
they weary themselves committing iniquity.
6 Heaping oppression upon oppression, and deceit upon deceit,
they refuse to know me, declares the LORD.
7 Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Behold, I will refine them and test them,
for what else can I do, because of my people?
8 Their tongue is a deadly arrow;
it speaks deceitfully;
with his mouth each speaks peace to his neighbor,
but in his heart he plans an ambush for him.
9 Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD,
and shall I not avenge myself
on a nation such as this?
10 “I will take up weeping and wailing for the mountains,
and a lamentation for the pastures of the wilderness,
because they are laid waste so that no one passes through,
and the lowing of cattle is not heard;
both the birds of the air and the beasts
have fled and are gone.
11 I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins,
a lair of jackals,
and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation,
without inhabitant.”
12 Who is the man so wise that he can understand this? To whom has the mouth of the LORD spoken, that he may declare it? Why is the land ruined and laid waste like a wilderness, so that no one passes through? 13 And the LORDsays: “Because they have forsaken my law that I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice or walked in accord with it, 14 but have stubbornly followed their own hearts and have gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them. 15 Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will feed this people with bitter food, and give them poisonous water to drink. 16 I will scatter them among the nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them.”
17 Thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Consider, and call for the mourning women to come;
send for the skillful women to come;
18 let them make haste and raise a wailing over us,
that our eyes may run down with tears
and our eyelids flow with water.
19 For a sound of wailing is heard from Zion:
‘How we are ruined!
We are utterly shamed,
because we have left the land,
because they have cast down our dwellings.’”
20 Hear, O women, the word of the LORD,
and let your ear receive the word of his mouth;
teach to your daughters a lament,
and each to her neighbor a dirge.
21 For death has come up into our windows;
it has entered our palaces,
cutting off the children from the streets
and the young men from the squares.
22 Speak: “Thus declares the LORD,
‘The dead bodies of men shall fall
like dung upon the open field,
like sheaves after the reaper,
and none shall gather them.’”
23 Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24 butlet him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth.For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”
Footnotes:
a. Jeremiah 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
b. Jeremiah 8:18 Compare Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
c. Jeremiah 9:1 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew
d. Jeremiah 9:2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew
e. Jeremiah 9:3 Septuagint; Hebrew and not for truth they have grown strong

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Matthew 3:11-17
English Standard Version (ESV)

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11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize youwith the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The Baptism of Jesus
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him.14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him,[a] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son,[b] with whom I am well pleased.”
Footnotes:
a. Matthew 3:16 Some manuscripts omit to him
b. Matthew 3:17 Or my Son, my (or the) Beloved

Matthew 23:16-23
English Standard Version (ESV)

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16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ 17 You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? 18 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ 19 You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. 22 And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.

Matthew 24:1-2
English Standard Version (ESV)

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Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
24 Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

Filed Under: Parasha

Shavout – Pentecost

February 13, 2015 By Richard A. Volunteer

Shavout – Pentecost
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Portion (parasha) for this week:
Shavout “Pentecost”
Torah: Exodus 19:1-20:26; Numbers 28:26-31
Prophets: Ezekiel 1:1-28, 3:12; Ruth 1:1-4:22
Brit Hadasha: John 1:32-34; Matthew 3:11-17; Acts 2:1-21, 37-41
“Torah Portions” are a systematic teaching schedule that includes a portion of Scripture from the Torah, Prophets, and Brit Hadasha each week. This schedule is known all over the world, and serves as a great way to facilitate discussion and learning with others in the Body of the Messiah.
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Exodus 19:1-20:26
English Standard Version (ESV)

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Israel at Mount Sinai
19 On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, 3 while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the LORD had commanded him. 8 All the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.” And Moses reported the words of the people to the LORD. 9 And the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”
When Moses told the words of the people to the LORD, 10 the LORD said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let themwash their garments 11 and be ready for the third day. For on the third day theLORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. 13 No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot;[a]whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14 So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people; and they washed their garments. 15 And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”
16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain.18 Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. 20 The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
21 And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the LORD to look and many of them perish. 22 Also let the priests who come near to the LORD consecrate themselves, lest the LORD break out against them.” 23 And Moses said to the LORD, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it.’” 24 And the LORD said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the LORD, lest he break out against them.” 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them.
The Ten Commandments
20 And God spoke all these words, saying,
2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before[b] me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORDyour God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands[c] of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORDblessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.[d]
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
18 Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid[e] and trembled, and they stood far off 19 and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” 20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” 21 The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.
Laws About Altars
22 And the LORD said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven. 23 You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. 24 An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.25 If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. 26 And you shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness be not exposed on it.’
Footnotes:
a. Exodus 19:13 That is, shot with an arrow
b. Exodus 20:3 Or besides
c. Exodus 20:6 Or to the thousandth generation
d. Exodus 20:13 The Hebrew word also covers causing human death through carelessness or negligence
e. Exodus 20:18 Samaritan, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Masoretic Text the people saw


Numbers 28:26-31
English Standard Version (ESV)

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Offerings at the Feast of Weeks
26 ‘Also on the day of the firstfruits, when you bring a new grain offering to theLORD at your Feast of Weeks, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work. 27 You shall present a burnt offering as a sweet aroma to theLORD: two young bulls, one ram, and seven lambs in their first year, 28 with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil: three-tenths of an ephah for each bull, two-tenths for the one ram, 29 and one-tenth for each of the seven lambs;30 also one kid of the goats, to make atonement for you. 31 Be sure they are without blemish. You shall present them with their drink offerings, besides the regular burnt offering with its grain offering.

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Ezekiel 1:1-28
English Standard Version (ESV)

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Ezekiel in Babylon
1 In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the Chebar canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.[a] 2 On the fifth day of the month (it was the fifth year ofthe exile of King Jehoiachin), 3 the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the Chebar canal, and the hand of the LORD was upon him there.
The Glory of the LORD
4 As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming metal.[b] 5 And from the midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, 6 but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings.7 Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled like burnished bronze. 8 Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. And the four had their faces and their wings thus: 9 their wings touched one another. Each one of them went straight forward, without turning as they went. 10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle.11 Such were their faces. And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which touched the wing of another, while two covered their bodies. 12 And each went straight forward. Wherever the spirit[c] would go, they went, without turning as they went. 13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches moving to and fro among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. 14 And the living creaturesdarted to and fro, like the appearance of a flash of lightning.
15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them.[d] 16 As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like the gleaming of beryl. And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. 17 When they went, they went in any of their four directions[e] without turning as they went. 18 And their rims were tall and awesome, and the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. 19 And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. 20 Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, and the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures[f] was in the wheels. 21 When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.
22 Over the heads of the living creatures there was the likeness of an expanse, shining like awe-inspiring crystal, spread out above their heads. 23 And under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight, one toward another. And each creature had two wings covering its body. 24 And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters, like the sound of theAlmighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of an army. When they stood still, they let down their wings. 25 And there came a voice from above the expanse over their heads. When they stood still, they let down their wings.
26 And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne,in appearance like sapphire;[g] and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. 27 And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him.[h] 28 Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.
Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
Footnotes:
a. Ezekiel 1:1 Or from God
b. Ezekiel 1:4 Or amber; also verse 27
c. Ezekiel 1:12 Or Spirit; also twice in verse 20 and once in verse 21
d. Ezekiel 1:15 Hebrew of their faces
e. Ezekiel 1:17 Hebrew on their four sides
f. Ezekiel 1:20 Or the spirit of life; also verse 21
g. Ezekiel 1:26 Or lapis lazuli
h. Ezekiel 1:27 Or it

Ezekiel 3:12
English Standard Version (ESV)

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Ezekiel 3:12English Standard Version (ESV)
12 Then the Spirit[a] lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice[b] of a great earthquake: “Blessed be the glory of the LORD from its place!”
Footnotes:
a. Ezekiel 3:12 Or the wind; also verse 14
b. Ezekiel 3:12 Or sound


Ruth 1-4:22
English Standard Version (ESV)

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Naomi Widowed
1 In the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. 3 But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 These took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. They lived there about ten years, 5 and both Mahlon and Chilion died, so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband.
Ruth’s Loyalty to Naomi
6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law to return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the fields of Moab that the LORD had visited his people andgiven them food. 7 So she set out from the place where she was with her two daughters-in-law, and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.8 But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. May the LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 The LORD grant that you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband!” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, “No, we will return with you to your people.”11 But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? 12 Turn back, my daughters; go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, even if I should have a husband this night and should bear sons,13 would you therefore wait till they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.” 14 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 And she said, “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the LORD do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.” 18 And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more.
Naomi and Ruth Return
19 So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. And when they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them. And the women said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi;[a] call me Mara,[b] for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went away full, and the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the LORDhas testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”
22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabite her daughter-in-law with her, who returned from the country of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest.
Ruth Meets Boaz
2 Now Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. 2 And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” 3 So she set out and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers, and she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the clan of Elimelech. 4 And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, “The LORD be with you!” And they answered, “The LORD bless you.” 5 Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?”6 And the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered, “She is the young Moabite woman, who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab.7 She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.’ So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest.”[c]
8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. 9 Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping, and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.” 10 Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” 11 But Boaz answered her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told to me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. 12 The LORD repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!” 13 Then she said, “I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.”
14 And at mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over.15 When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. 16 And also pull out some from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.”
17 So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah[d] of barley. 18 And she took it up and went into the city. Her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also brought out and gave her what food she had left over after being satisfied. 19 And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you.” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.” 20 And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by the LORD, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” Naomi also said to her, “The man is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers.” 21 And Ruth the Moabite said, “Besides, he said to me, ‘You shall keep close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’” 22 And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, lest in another field you be assaulted.” 23 So she kept close to the young women of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests. And she lived with her mother-in-law.
Ruth and Boaz at the Threshing Floor
3 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I not seekrest for you, that it may be well with you? 2 Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. 3 Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do.” 5 And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”
6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded her. 7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down. 8 At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! 9 He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings[e] over your servant, for you are a redeemer.” 10 And he said, “May you be blessed by the LORD, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. 11 And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman. 12 And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. 13 Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the LORD lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.”
14 So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” 15 And he said, “Bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out.” So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city. 16 And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you fare, my daughter?” Then she told her all that the man had done for her, 17 saying, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, ‘You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’”18 She replied, “Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today.”
Boaz Redeems Ruth
4 Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside, friend; sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down. 2 And he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down.3 Then he said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relative Elimelech.4 So I thought I would tell you of it and say, ‘Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you[f] will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you.” And he said, “I will redeem it.” 5 Then Boaz said, “The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth[g] the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance.” 6 Then the redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”
7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel. 8 So when the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal. 9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon. 10 Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day.”11 Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem, 12 and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the LORD will give you by this young woman.”
Ruth and Boaz Marry
13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and theLORD gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! 15 He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” 16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. 17 And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
The Genealogy of David
18 Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, 19 Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, 20 Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 21 Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed,22 Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.
Footnotes:
a. Ruth 1:20 Naomi means pleasant
b. Ruth 1:20 Mara means bitter
c. Ruth 2:7 Compare Septuagint, Vulgate; the meaning of the Hebrew phrase is uncertain
d. Ruth 2:17 An ephah was about 3/5 bushel or 22 liters
e. Ruth 3:9 Compare 2:12; the word for wings can also mean corners of a garment
f. Ruth 4:4 Hebrew he
g. Ruth 4:5 Masoretic Text you also buy it from Ruth

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John 1:32-34
English Standard Version (ESV)

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32 And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

Matthew 3:11-17
English Standard Version (ESV)

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11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize youwith the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
The Baptism of Jesus
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him.14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him,[a] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son,[b] with whom I am well pleased.”
Footnotes:
a. Matthew 3:16 Some manuscripts omit to him
b. Matthew 3:17 Or my Son, my (or the) Beloved
Acts 2:1-21
English Standard Version (ESV)

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The Coming of the Holy Spirit
2 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested[a] on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost
14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.[b] 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:
17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams;
18 even on my male servants[c] and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
20 the sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
Footnotes:
a. Acts 2:3 Or And tongues as of fire appeared to them, distributed among them, and rested
b. Acts 2:15 That is, 9 A.M.
c. Acts 2:18 Greek bondservants; twice in this verse

Acts 2:37-41
English Standard Version (ESV)

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37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

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