Monday, 19 August

1.   Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and went and said to Jonathan, "What have I done? What is my iniquity, and what is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?" 2.   So Jonathan said to him, "By no means! You shall not die! Indeed, my father will do nothing either great or small without first telling me. And why should my father hide this thing from me? It is not so !" 3.   Then David took an oath again, and said, "Your father certainly knows that I have found favor in your eyes, and he has said, ‘Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved.’ But truly, as the LORD lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death." 4.   So Jonathan said to David, "Whatever you yourself desire, I will do it for you." 5.   And David said to Jonathan, "Indeed tomorrow is the New Moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king to eat. But let me go, that I may hide in the field until the third day at evening. 6.   "If your father misses me at all, then say, ‘David earnestly asked permission of me that he might run over to Bethlehem, his city, for there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.’ 7.   "If he says thus: ‘ It is well,’ your servant will be safe. But if he is very angry, then be sure that evil is determined by him. 8.   "Therefore you shall deal kindly with your servant, for you have brought your servant into a covenant of the LORD with you. Nevertheless, if there is iniquity in me, kill me yourself, for why should you bring me to your father?" 9.   But Jonathan said, "Far be it from you! For if I knew certainly that evil was determined by my father to come upon you, then would I not tell you?" 10.   Then David said to Jonathan, "Who will tell me, or what if your father answers you roughly?" 11.   And Jonathan said to David, "Come, and let us go out into the field." So both of them went out into the field. 12.   Then Jonathan said to David: "The LORD God of Israel is witness ! When I have sounded out my father sometime tomorrow, or the third day , and indeed there is good toward David, and I do not send to you and tell you, 13.   "may the LORD do so and much more to Jonathan. But if it pleases my father to do you evil, then I will report it to you and send you away, that you may go in safety. And the LORD be with you as He has been with my father. 14.   "And you shall not only show me the kindness of the LORD while I still live, that I may not die; 15.   "but you shall not cut off your kindness from my house forever, no, not when the LORD has cut off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth." 16.   So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying , "Let the LORD require it at the hand of David’s enemies." 17.   Now Jonathan again caused David to vow, because he loved him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul. 18.   Then Jonathan said to David, "Tomorrow is the New Moon; and you will be missed, because your seat will be empty. 19.   "And when you have stayed three days, go down quickly and come to the place where you hid on the day of the deed; and remain by the stone Ezel. 20.   "Then I will shoot three arrows to the side, as though I shot at a target; 21.   "and there I will send a lad, saying , ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I expressly say to him, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; get them and come’ ––then, as the LORD lives, there is safety for you and no harm. 22.   "But if I say thus to the young man, ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you’ ––go your way, for the LORD has sent you away. 23.   "And as for the matter which you and I have spoken of, indeed the LORD be between you and me forever." 24.   Then David hid in the field. And when the New Moon had come, the king sat down to eat the feast. 25.   Now the king sat on his seat, as at other times, on a seat by the wall. And Jonathan arose, and Abner sat by Saul’s side, but David’s place was empty. 26.   Nevertheless Saul did not say anything that day, for he thought, "Something has happened to him; he is unclean, surely he is unclean." 27.   And it happened the next day, the second day of the month, that David’s place was empty. And Saul said to Jonathan his son, "Why has the son of Jesse not come to eat, either yesterday or today?" 28.   So Jonathan answered Saul, "David earnestly asked permission of me to go to Bethlehem. 29.   "And he said, ‘Please let me go, for our family has a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to be there . And now, if I have found favor in your eyes, please let me get away and see my brothers.’ Therefore he has not come to the king’s table." 30.   Then Saul’s anger was aroused against Jonathan, and he said to him, "You son of a perverse, rebellious woman ! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness? 31.   "For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, you shall not be established, nor your kingdom. Now therefore, send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die." 32.   And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, "Why should he be killed? What has he done?" 33.   Then Saul cast a spear at him to kill him, by which Jonathan knew that it was determined by his father to kill David. 34.   So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and ate no food the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David, because his father had treated him shamefully. 35.   And so it was, in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad was with him. 36.   Then he said to his lad, "Now run, find the arrows which I shoot." As the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. 37.   When the lad had come to the place where the arrow was which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried out after the lad and said, " Is not the arrow beyond you?" 38.   And Jonathan cried out after the lad, "Make haste, hurry, do not delay!" So Jonathan’s lad gathered up the arrows and came back to his master. 39.   But the lad did not know anything. Only Jonathan and David knew of the matter. 40.   Then Jonathan gave his weapons to his lad, and said to him, "Go, carry them to the city." 41.   As soon as the lad had gone, David arose from a place toward the south, fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down three times. And they kissed one another; and they wept together, but David more so. 42.   Then Jonathan said to David, "Go in peace, since we have both sworn in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘May the LORD be between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants, forever.’" So he arose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city.

1.   Thus says the LORD: "Go and get a potter’s earthen flask, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the elders of the priests. 2.   "And go out to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the Potsherd Gate; and proclaim there the words that I will tell you, 3.   "and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: "Behold, I will bring such a catastrophe on this place, that whoever hears of it, his ears will tingle. 4.   "Because they have forsaken Me and made this an alien place, because they have burned incense in it to other gods whom neither they, their fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known, and have filled this place with the blood of the innocents 5.   "(they have also built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or speak, nor did it come into My mind), 6.   "therefore behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "that this place shall no more be called Tophet or the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter. 7.   "And I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place, and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies and by the hands of those who seek their lives; their corpses I will give as meat for the birds of the heaven and for the beasts of the earth. 8.   "I will make this city desolate and a hissing; everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss because of all its plagues. 9.   "And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and everyone shall eat the flesh of his friend in the siege and in the desperation with which their enemies and those who seek their lives shall drive them to despair."’ 10.   "Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with you, 11.   "and say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Even so I will break this people and this city, as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot be made whole again; and they shall bury them in Tophet till there is no place to bury. 12.   "Thus I will do to this place," says the LORD, "and to its inhabitants, and make this city like Tophet. 13.   "And the houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah shall be defiled like the place of Tophet, because of all the houses on whose roofs they have burned incense to all the host of heaven, and poured out drink offerings to other gods."’" 14.   Then Jeremiah came from Tophet, where the LORD had sent him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of the Lord’s house and said to all the people, 15.   "Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will bring on this city and on all her towns all the doom that I have pronounced against it, because they have stiffened their necks that they might not hear My words.’"

1.   Now when He concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum. 2.   And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die. 3.   So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant. 4.   And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, 5.   "for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue." 6.   Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. 7.   "Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8.   "For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it ." 9.   When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!" 10.   And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick. 11.   Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd. 12.   And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. 13.   When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep." 14.   Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise." 15.   So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother. 16.   Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen up among us"; and, "God has visited His people." 17.   And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region. 18.   Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things. 19.   And John, calling two of his disciples to him , sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?" 20.   When the men had come to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’" 21.   And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight. 22.   Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. 23.   "And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." 24.   When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the multitudes concerning John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25.   "But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. 26.   "But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. 27.   "This is he of whom it is written: ‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.’ 28.   "For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." 29.   And when all the people heard Him , even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John. 30.   But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.