Old/New Testament
5 Call out! Is there anyone there to answer you? To which of the holy ones will you turn?
2 It’s true, the fool is killed by resentment,
and the gullible are put to death by jealousy.
3 I myself have seen a fool putting down roots,
but immediately I pronounced a curse on his home.[a]
4 His children are far from safety.
They are crushed at the city gate without a defender.
5 His harvest is eaten by the hungry,
who snatch it away, even from among the thorns,
and the thirsty[b] swallow his children’s wealth.
6 Disaster does not just spring up from the dust,
nor does trouble sprout from the soil.
7 No, mankind is born for[c] trouble as surely as flames fly upward.
8 But I want to appeal to God.
I want to present my case to him.[d]
9 He does great things that are beyond investigation,
and miracles that are too many to be counted.
10 He provides rain for the earth.
He waters the fields in the countryside.
11 He raises the lowly to the heights,
and he lifts those who mourn to safety.
12 He foils the plots of clever schemers,
so that their hands achieve no success.
13 He traps the wise in their schemes,
and the plans of the devious come to a swift end.
14 By day they encounter darkness,
and at noon they grope around as if it were night.
15 He saves the poor from mouths that cut like a sword
and from the hand of the strong.
16 He does this so that the helpless will have hope,
and injustice will shut its mouth.
17 Consider this:
How blessed is the man whom God corrects!
Do not reject the discipline of the Almighty!
18 For though he may inflict wounds, he also bandages them.
Though he may strike, his hands also heal.
19 From six calamities he will rescue you.
In seven no harm will touch you.
20 In famine he will redeem you from death,
and in battle he will redeem you from the power of the sword.
21 You will be hidden from the lash of the tongue,
and you will not be afraid of devastation when it comes.
22 You will laugh at devastation and hunger.
You will not be afraid of the wild animals of the countryside,
23 because there will be a covenant between you and the stones in the field,
and the wild animals will be at peace with you.
24 You will know that your tent is secure,
and when you inspect your property, you will find nothing missing.
25 You will know that your offspring will be many,
and your descendants will be like grass from the earth.
26 You will come to the grave at a ripe old age,
like a stack of sheaves that is gathered in season.
27 Consider this:
We have investigated this carefully, and it is true!
Pay close attention and apply it to yourself!
Round One: Job’s Second Speech
6 Then Job responded:
2 If only my grief could be weighed,
and my devastation placed on the scales with it!
3 They would certainly weigh more than the sand of the sea!
No wonder my words have been rash.[e]
4 The arrows of the Almighty stick in me.
My spirit drinks in their poison.
The terrors of God are lined up against me.
5 Does the wild donkey bray when it has green grass?
Does the ox bellow when it is near its fodder?
6 Is tasteless food eaten without salt?
Is there flavor in the white of an egg?[f]
7 I absolutely refuse to touch it.
It is no better than sickening food.
8 If only my request would be granted.
If only God would grant me what I hope for:
9 that God would decide to crush me,
that he would unleash his hand and cut me off.
10 For then I would still have this comfort:
Even as I writhe in relentless pain,[g]
I have not denied the words of the Holy One.
11 What strength do I have to wait hopefully?
What end awaits me that would make me want to prolong my life?
12 Is my strength like stone,
or is my flesh bronze?
13 Certainly I have no power to help myself,
since the hope that I can recover has been driven far away from me.
14 A despairing person should receive loyalty[h] from his friends,
even if he forsakes the fear of the Almighty.
15 But my brothers are as undependable as gullies that dry up,
undependable as seasonal streams which overflow
16 when they are darkened by ice and swollen with melting snow,
17 but as quickly as they flood, they dry up in the scorching winds.[i]
When it gets hot, they vanish from their channels.
18 Caravans turn aside from their routes.
They go off into the empty wasteland and perish.
19 The caravans of Tema search for these streams.
The travelers of Sheba hope to find them,
20 but despite being confident, they are disappointed.
They arrive there only to be frustrated.
21 Now that is what you are like!
You have seen something dreadful and you panic.
22 Have I said, “Give me something,
or offer a payment on my behalf from your wealth”?
23 Have I said, “Save me from the hand of my enemy,
or redeem me from the hand of the ruthless”?
24 Teach me and I will be silent.
Help me understand what I have done wrong.
25 How painful honest words are!
But what does your rebuke prove?
26 Do you intend to attack me for mere words
by treating things said by a despairing man like wind?[j]
27 No doubt you would even cast lots for a fatherless child
and barter away your friend!
28 But now, please look at me.
I would not lie to your face!
29 Turn to me,[k] and get rid of injustice.
Turn to me. My righteousness is still intact.[l]
30 Is there any injustice on my tongue?
Wouldn’t my mouth detect it if I were speaking destructive words?[m]
7 Isn’t man’s time on earth like being compelled to serve in the army? Aren’t his days like those of a hired man?
2 Like a slave, he longs for shade,
or like a day laborer, he waits for his pay.
3 In the same way, I have been allotted months of futility,
and nights of agony have been assigned to me.
4 When I lie down, I think, “How long before I get up?”
But the night drags on,
and I am filled with restlessness until dawn.
5 My flesh is clothed with maggots and caked with dirt.
My skin scabs over and then oozes again.
6 My days pass by more swiftly than the shuttle of a weaver’s loom.
They come to an end without hope.
Job Addresses God
7 Remember that my life is just a breath.[n]
My eyes will never again see good fortune.
8 The eyes that see me now will no longer watch me.
Your eyes will look for me, but I will not be there.
9 As a cloud vanishes and is gone,
so does the one who goes down to the grave.[o]
He does not come back up again.
10 He never again returns to his home,
and his place will no longer know him.
11 That is why I will not restrain my mouth.
I will speak out in the anguish of my spirit.
I will lament in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I the sea or a great creature of the deep
that you need to put me under guard?
13 When I say that my bed will comfort me,
and my couch will help me with my lament,
14 then you frighten me with dreams
and terrify me with visions,
15 so I would prefer to be strangled,
and I prefer death more than my current existence.[p]
16 I reject my life. I do not want to live forever.
Leave me alone, for my days are just a vanishing vapor.
17 What is man that you make so much of him,
that you pay so much attention to him,
18 that you inspect[q] him every morning
and test him every minute?
19 Why do you never stop watching me?
Why don’t you leave me alone long enough for me to swallow my spit?
20 If I have sinned, what harm has it done to you,
you who keep watch on mankind?
Why have you set me up as your target?
How have I become a burden to you?[r]
21 Why do you not forgive my rebellion?
Why do you not take away my guilt?
Soon I will lie down in the dust.
You will search for me, but I will not be there.
8 Saul agreed with putting Stephen to death.
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen, and they mourned deeply for him.
3 But Saul was trying to destroy the church by going into one house after another, dragging off both men and women, and putting them in prison.
The Word of God Spreads in Samaria
4 So those believers who were scattered went around proclaiming the gospel message. 5 Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began preaching the Christ to them. 6 With one mind, the crowds paid close attention to what was being said by Philip when they heard him and saw the miraculous signs he was doing. 7 Unclean spirits, crying out with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed, and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.
9 Now there was a man by the name of Simon, who had been practicing magic arts[a] in the city. He amazed the people of Samaria while claiming that he was someone great. 10 They all paid attention to him, from the least of them to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called ‘Great.’” 11 They paid attention to him, because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic arts. 12 But when they believed Philip, as he preached the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13 Then even Simon himself believed. After he was baptized, he stayed close to Philip. As he observed the signs and great miracles that were taking place, he was amazed.
The Apostles Send Peter and John to Samaria
14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. 15 When Peter and John arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 for he had not yet come upon any of them. They had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 When Simon saw that the Holy[b] Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 19 and said, “Give me this power too, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or share in this matter, because your heart is not right in God’s sight. 22 So repent of this wickedness of yours and pray to the Lord. Perhaps the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are filled with bitter poison and chained by wickedness.”
24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”
25 After Peter and John had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.