Thursday, September 23, 2027

^1:1Paul, an apostle—not from men, nor through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— ²and all the brothers who are with me, to the assemblies of Galatia: ³Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father— ⁵to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. ⁶I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”, ⁷but there isn’t another “good news.” Only there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the Good News of Christ. ⁸But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed. ⁹As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any “good news” other than that which you received, let him be cursed. ¹⁰For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ. ²⁰Now about the things which I write to you, behold, before God, I’m not lying. ²¹Then I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia. ²²I was still unknown by face to the assemblies of Judea which were in Christ, ²³but they only heard, “He who once persecuted us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy.” ²⁴So they glorified God in me. ^2:1Then after a period of fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus also with me. ²I went up by revelation, and I laid before them the Good News which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately before those who were respected, for fear that I might be running, or had run, in vain. ³But not even Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. ⁴This was because of the false brothers secretly brought in, who stole in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage, ⁵to whom we gave no place in the way of subjection, not for an hour, that the truth of the Good News might continue with you.

WEB, public domain

^4:22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the servant, and one by the free woman. ²³However, the son by the servant was born according to the flesh, but the son by the free woman was born through promise. ²⁴These things contain an allegory, for these are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children to bondage, which is Hagar. ²⁵For this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and answers to the Jerusalem that exists now, for she is in bondage with her children. ²⁶But the Jerusalem that is above is free, which is the mother of us all. ²⁷For it is written, “Rejoice, you barren who don’t bear. Break out and shout, you who don’t travail. For the desolate women have more children than her who has a husband.” ²⁸Now we, brothers, as Isaac was, are children of promise. ²⁹But as then, he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so also it is now. ³⁰However, what does the Scripture say? “Throw out the servant and her son, for the son of the servant will not inherit with the son of the free woman.” ³¹So then, brothers, we are not children of a servant, but of the free woman.

WEB, public domain

^4:16He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. ¹⁷The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. He opened the book, and found the place where it was written, ¹⁸“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the broken hearted, to proclaim release to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to deliver those who are crushed, ¹⁹and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” ²⁰He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him. ²¹He began to tell them, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” ²²All testified about him and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth; and they said, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”

WEB, public domain

^1:5There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the priestly division of Abijah. He had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. ⁶They were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. ⁷But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were well advanced in years. ⁸Now while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his division ⁹according to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to enter into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰The whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. ¹¹An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. ¹²Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. ¹³But the angel said to him, “Don’t be afraid, Zacharias, because your request has been heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. ¹⁴You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. ¹⁵For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he will drink no wine nor strong drink. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. ¹⁶He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. ¹⁷He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to prepare a people prepared for the Lord.” ¹⁸Zacharias said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.” ¹⁹The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God. I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. ²⁰Behold, you will be silent and not able to speak until the day that these things will happen, because you didn’t believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.” ²¹The people were waiting for Zacharias, and they marveled that he delayed in the temple. ²²When he came out, he could not speak to them. They perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple. He continued making signs to them, and remained mute. ²³When the days of his service were fulfilled, he departed to his house. ²⁴After these days Elizabeth his wife conceived, and she hid herself five months, saying, ²⁵“Thus has the Lord done to me in the days in which he looked at me, to take away my reproach among men.”

WEB, public domain

^1:1Paul, an apostle—not from men, nor through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— ²and all the brothers who are with me, to the assemblies of Galatia: ³Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father— ⁵to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. ⁶I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”, ⁷but there isn’t another “good news.” Only there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the Good News of Christ. ⁸But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any “good news” other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed. ⁹As we have said before, so I now say again: if any man preaches to you any “good news” other than that which you received, let him be cursed. ¹⁰For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ. ²⁰Now about the things which I write to you, behold, before God, I’m not lying. ²¹Then I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia. ²²I was still unknown by face to the assemblies of Judea which were in Christ, ²³but they only heard, “He who once persecuted us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy.” ²⁴So they glorified God in me. ^2:1Then after a period of fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus also with me. ²I went up by revelation, and I laid before them the Good News which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately before those who were respected, for fear that I might be running, or had run, in vain. ³But not even Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. ⁴This was because of the false brothers secretly brought in, who stole in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage, ⁵to whom we gave no place in the way of subjection, not for an hour, that the truth of the Good News might continue with you.

WEB, public domain

^5:1They came to the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. ²When he had come out of the boat, immediately a man with an unclean spirit met him out of the tombs. ³He lived in the tombs. Nobody could bind him any more, not even with chains, ⁴because he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him, and the fetters broken in pieces. Nobody had the strength to tame him. ⁵Always, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out, and cutting himself with stones. ⁶When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and bowed down to him, ⁷and crying out with a loud voice, he said, “What have I to do with you, Jesus, you Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, don’t torment me.” ⁸For he said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!” ⁹He asked him, “What is your name?” He said to him, “My name is Legion, for we are many.” ¹⁰He begged him much that he would not send them away out of the country. ¹¹Now on the mountainside there was a great herd of pigs feeding. ¹²All the demons begged him, saying, “Send us into the pigs, that we may enter into them.” ¹³At once Jesus gave them permission. The unclean spirits came out and entered into the pigs. The herd of about two thousand rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and they were drowned in the sea. ¹⁴Those who fed the pigs fled, and told it in the city and in the country. The people came to see what it was that had happened. ¹⁵They came to Jesus, and saw him who had been possessed by demons sitting, clothed, and in his right mind, even him who had the legion; and they were afraid. ¹⁶Those who saw it declared to them what happened to him who was possessed by demons, and about the pigs. ¹⁷They began to beg him to depart from their region. ¹⁸As he was entering into the boat, he who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. ¹⁹He didn’t allow him, but said to him, “Go to your house, to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you and how he had mercy on you.” ²⁰He went his way, and began to proclaim in Decapolis how Jesus had done great things for him, and everyone marveled.

WEB, public domain