One Year Bible.

A Tent for the Ark

¹So they brought the ark of God and placed it inside the tent that David had pitched for it. And they presented burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. ²When David had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD. ³Then he distributed to every man and woman of Israel a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.

⁴David appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to celebrate, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel. ⁵Asaph was the chief, Zechariah was second, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel. They were to play the harps and lyres, while Asaph sounded the cymbals ⁶and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel blew the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God.

David’s Psalm of Thanksgiving

⁷On that day David first committed to Asaph and his associates this song of thanksgiving to the LORD:

⁸“Give thanks to the LORD; call upon His name;

make known His deeds among the nations.

⁹Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;

tell of all His wonders.

¹⁰Glory in His holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

¹¹Seek out the LORD and His strength;

seek His face always.

¹²Remember the wonders He has done,

His marvels, and the judgments He has pronounced,

¹³O offspring of His servant Israel,

O sons of Jacob, His chosen ones.

¹⁴He is the LORD our God;

His judgments carry throughout the earth.

¹⁵Remember His covenant forever,

the word He ordained for a thousand generations—

¹⁶the covenant He made with Abraham,

and the oath He swore to Isaac.

¹⁷He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,

to Israel as an everlasting covenant:

¹⁸‘I will give you the land of Canaan

as the portion of your inheritance.’

¹⁹When they were few in number,

few indeed, and strangers in the land,

²⁰they wandered from nation to nation,

from one kingdom to another.

²¹He let no man oppress them;

He rebuked kings on their behalf:

²²‘Do not touch My anointed ones!

Do no harm to My prophets!’

Sing to the LORD, All the Earth

²³Sing to the LORD, all the earth.

Proclaim His salvation day after day.

²⁴Declare His glory among the nations,

His wonders among all peoples.

²⁵For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;

He is to be feared above all gods.

²⁶For all the gods of the nations are idols,

but it is the LORD who made the heavens.

²⁷Splendor and majesty are before Him;

strength and joy fill His dwelling.

²⁸Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the nations,

ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

²⁹Ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name;

bring an offering and come before Him.

Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness;

³⁰tremble before Him, all the earth.

The world is firmly established;

it cannot be moved.

³¹Let the heavens be glad,

and the earth rejoice.

Let them say among the nations,

‘The LORD reigns!’

³²Let the sea resound,

and all that fills it;

let the fields exult,

and all that is in them.

³³Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the LORD,

for He is coming to judge the earth.

³⁴Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;

His loving devotion endures forever.

³⁵Then cry out: ‘Save us, O God of our salvation;

gather and deliver us from the nations,

that we may give thanks to Your holy name,

that we may glory in Your praise.’

³⁶Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting.”

Then all the people said, “Amen!” and “Praise the LORD!”

Worship before the Ark

³⁷So David left Asaph and his associates there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to minister there regularly according to the daily requirements, ³⁸along with Obed-edom and his sixty-eight relatives. Obed-edom son of Jeduthun, and also Hosah, were to be gatekeepers.

³⁹And David left Zadok the priest and his fellow priests before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place in Gibeon ⁴⁰to regularly present burnt offerings to the LORD on the altar of burnt offerings, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the Law of the LORD, which He had commanded Israel to keep. ⁴¹With them were Heman, Jeduthun, and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the LORD, for “His loving devotion endures forever.”

⁴²Heman and Jeduthun had with them trumpets and cymbals for the music and instruments for the songs of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were stationed at the gate.

⁴³Then all the people departed for their homes, and David returned home to bless his household.

Elihu Confirms God’s Justice

¹Then Elihu continued:

²“Hear my words, O wise men;

give ear to me, O men of learning.

³For the ear tests words

as the mouth tastes food.

⁴Let us choose for ourselves what is right;

let us learn together what is good.

⁵For Job has declared, ‘I am righteous,

yet God has deprived me of justice.

⁶Would I lie about my case?

My wound is incurable,

though I am without transgression.’

⁷What man is like Job,

who drinks up derision like water?

⁸He keeps company with evildoers

and walks with wicked men.

⁹For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing

that he should delight in God.’

¹⁰Therefore listen to me,

O men of understanding.

Far be it from God to do wrong,

and from the Almighty to act unjustly.

¹¹For according to a man’s deeds He repays him;

according to a man’s ways He brings consequences.

¹²Indeed, it is true that God does not act wickedly,

and the Almighty does not pervert justice.

¹³Who gave Him charge over the earth?

Who appointed Him over the whole world?

¹⁴If He were to set His heart to it

and withdraw His Spirit and breath,

¹⁵all flesh would perish together

and mankind would return to the dust.

¹⁶If you have understanding, hear this;

listen to my words.

¹⁷Could one who hates justice govern?

Will you condemn the just and mighty One,

¹⁸who says to kings, ‘You are worthless!’

and to nobles, ‘You are wicked,’

¹⁹who is not partial to princes

and does not favor rich over poor?

For they are all the work of His hands.

²⁰They die in an instant,

in the middle of the night.

The people convulse and pass away;

the mighty are removed without human hand.

²¹For His eyes are on the ways of a man,

and He sees his every step.

²²There is no darkness or deep shadow

where the workers of iniquity can hide.

²³For God need not examine a man further

or have him approach for judgment.

²⁴He shatters the mighty without inquiry

and sets up others in their place.

²⁵Therefore, He recognizes their deeds;

He overthrows them in the night and they are crushed.

²⁶He strikes them for their wickedness

in full view,

²⁷because they turned aside from Him

and had no regard for any of His ways.

²⁸They caused the cry of the poor to come before Him,

and He heard the outcry of the afflicted.

²⁹But when He remains silent, who can condemn Him?

When He hides His face, who can see Him?

Yet He watches over both man and nation,

³⁰that godless men should not rule

or lay snares for the people.

³¹Suppose someone says to God,

‘I have endured my punishment; I will offend no more.

³²Teach me what I cannot see;

if I have done wrong, I will not do it again.’

³³Should God repay you on your own terms

when you have disavowed Him?

You must choose, not I;

so tell me what you know.

³⁴Men of understanding will declare to me,

and the wise men who hear me will say:

³⁵‘Job speaks without knowledge;

his words lack insight.’

³⁶If only Job were tried to the utmost

for answering like a wicked man.

³⁷For he adds rebellion to his sin;

he claps his hands among us

and multiplies his words against God.”

Servants of Christ

¹So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. ²Now it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.

³I care very little, however, if I am judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. ⁴My conscience is clear, but that does not vindicate me. It is the Lord who judges me.

⁵Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

⁶Brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us not to go beyond what is written. Then you will not take pride in one man over another. ⁷For who makes you so superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?

⁸Already you have all you want. Already you have become rich. Without us, you have become kings. How I wish you really were kings, so that we might be kings with you! ⁹For it seems to me that God has displayed us apostles at the end of the procession, like prisoners appointed for death. We have become a spectacle to the whole world, to angels as well as to men.

¹⁰We are fools for Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are honored, but we are dishonored. ¹¹To this very hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. ¹²We work hard with our own hands. When we are vilified, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; ¹³when we are slandered, we answer gently. Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world.

Paul’s Fatherly Warning

¹⁴I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children. ¹⁵Even if you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. ¹⁶Therefore I urge you to imitate me. ¹⁷That is why I have sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which is exactly what I teach everywhere in every church.

¹⁸Some of you have become arrogant, as if I were not coming to you. ¹⁹But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only what these arrogant people are saying, but what power they have. ²⁰For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. ²¹Which do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and with a gentle spirit?