John tells us that the people were in
awe of Jesus’ teachings, but not because they necessarily agreed with what he
said… but because they thought he was a “nobody” who somehow became a skilled
orator. They loved his miracles, too. But not all of them truly loved him for
who he really was. Are you in awe of Jesus for who he really is? Think about
that as you read these passages.
From
the Torah: Exodus 33:12-23
From
the Former Prophets: 1 Kings 19:1-18
From
the Latter Prophets: Ezekiel 1:1-3:15
From
the Books of Wisdom and Poetry: Job 40:1-41:11
From
the Late Books: Daniel 7:1-14
From
the Gospels: John 7:1-24
From
the Epistles/Revelation: Revelation 11:15-19
From the Torah
Moses said to the Lord,
“You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know
whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found
favor with me.’ If you are pleased
with me, teach me your ways so I may know you
and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”
The Lord replied, “My
Presence will go with you, and I will give
you rest.”
Then Moses said to him, “If your
Presence does not go with us, do not send us
up from here. How will anyone
know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will
distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the
earth?”
And the Lord said to Moses, “I
will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know
you by name.”
Then Moses said, “Now show me your
glory.”
And the Lord said, “I will cause
all my goodness to pass in front of you,
and I will proclaim my name, the Lord,
in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have
compassion on whom I will have compassion. But,” he said, “you
cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
Then the Lord said, “There is a
place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory
passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with
my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove
my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”
Exodus 33:12-23
From the Former
Prophets
Now
Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the
prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say,
“May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time
tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”
Elijah
was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in
Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey
into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed
that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,”
he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he
lay down under the bush and fell asleep.
All
at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” He looked
around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of
water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
The
angel of the Lord came
back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey
is too much for you.” So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that
food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the
mountain of God. There he went into a cave and spent the night.
And
the word of the Lord came
to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He
replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your
covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with
the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me
too.”
The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the
mountain in the presence of the Lord,
for the Lord is about to
pass by.”
Then
a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks
before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the
wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was
not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after
the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak
over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then
a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He
replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God
Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars,
and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and
now they are trying to kill me too.”
The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you
came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king
over Aram. Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and
anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as
prophet. Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and
Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. Yet I reserve seven
thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths
have not kissed him.”
1 Kings 19:1-18
From the Latter
Prophets
In my thirtieth
year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were
opened and I saw visions of God.
On the fifth of the month—it was the
fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin— the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son
of Buzi, by the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. There the hand of
the Lord was on him.
I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the
north—an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant
light. The center of the fire looked like glowing metal, and in the fire was
what looked like four living creatures. In appearance their
form was human, but each of them
had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight;
their feet were like those of a calf and gleamed like burnished bronze. Under their wings
on their four sides they had human hands. All four of them
had faces and wings, and the wings of
one touched the wings of another. Each one went straight ahead; they did not
turn as they moved.
Their faces looked like this: Each
of the four had the face of a human being, and on the right side each had the
face of a lion, and on the left the face of an ox; each also had the face of an
eagle. Such were their faces. They each had
two wings spreading out
upward, each wing touching that of the creature on either side; and each had
two other wings covering its body. Each one went
straight ahead. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as
they went. The appearance of
the living creatures was like burning coals of fire or like
torches. Fire moved back and forth among the creatures; it was bright, and
lightning flashed out of it. The creatures sped
back and forth like flashes of lightning.
As I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the ground
beside each creature with its four faces. This was the
appearance and structure of the wheels: They sparkled like topaz, and all four looked
alike. Each appeared to be made like a wheel intersecting a wheel. As they moved, they
would go in any one of the four directions the creatures faced; the wheels did
not change direction as the creatures
went. Their rims were high and awesome,
and all four rims were full of eyes all around.
When the living creatures moved, the
wheels beside them moved; and when the living creatures rose from the ground,
the wheels also rose. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, and the wheels
would rise along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in
the wheels. When the creatures
moved, they also moved; when the creatures stood still, they also stood still;
and when the creatures rose from the ground, the wheels rose along with them,
because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.
Spread out above the heads of the
living creatures was what looked something like a vault, sparkling like
crystal, and awesome. Under the vault
their wings were stretched out one toward the other, and each had two wings
covering its body. When the creatures
moved, I heard the sound of their wings, like the roar of rushing waters, like the
voice of the Almighty, like the tumult of
an army. When they stood still, they lowered
their wings.
Then there came a voice from above
the vault over their heads as they stood with lowered wings. Above the vault
over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on
the throne was a figure like that of a man. I saw that from
what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of
fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light
surrounded him. Like the appearance
of a rainbow in the clouds on a
rainy day, so was the radiance around him.
This was the appearance of the
likeness of the glory of the Lord.
When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the
voice of one speaking.
He said to me, “Son
of man, stand up on your feet and
I will speak to you.” As he spoke, the
Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I
heard him speaking to me.
He said: “Son of man, I am sending
you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me;
they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day. The people to whom
I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This
is what the
Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they
listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a
prophet has been among them. And you, son of
man, do not be afraid of them or their
words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you
and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified
by them, though they are a rebellious people. You must speak my words to them,
whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of
man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that
rebellious people; open your mouth and
eat what I give you.”
Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to
me. In it was a scroll, which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were
written words of lament and mourning and woe.
And he said to me,
“Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the
people of Israel.” So I opened my
mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.
Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat
this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted
as sweet as honey in my mouth.
He then said to me: “Son of man, go
now to the people of Israel and speak my words to them. You are not being
sent to a people of obscure speech and strange language, but to the people
of Israel— not to many peoples
of obscure speech and strange language, whose words you cannot understand.
Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the people of
Israel are not willing to listen to you because they
are not willing to listen to me, for all the Israelites are hardened and
obstinate. But I will make you
as unyielding and hardened as they are. I will make your
forehead like the hardest stone, harder than
flint. Do not be afraid of them or
terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.”
And he said to me, “Son of man,
listen carefully and take to heart all the words I
speak to you. Go now to your people
in exile and speak to them. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says,’ whether they listen
or fail to listen.”
Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind
me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the Lord rose from the place
where it was standing. It was the sound of
the wings of the living creatures brushing against each
other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound. The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away,
and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of
the Lord on me. I came to the
exiles who lived at Tel Aviv near the Kebar River. And there, where
they were living, I sat among them for seven days—deeply distressed.
Ezekiel 1:1-3:15
From the Books of
Wisdom and Poetry
The Lord said to Job:
“Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct
him?
Let him who accuses God answer him!”
Then Job answered
the Lord:
“I am unworthy—how can I reply to you?
I put my hand over my mouth.
I spoke once, but I have no answer—
twice, but I will say no more.”
Then the Lord spoke to Job out of
the storm:
“Brace yourself like a man;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.
“Would you discredit my justice?
Would you condemn me to justify yourself?
Do you have an arm like God’s,
and can your voice thunder like his?
Then adorn yourself with glory and splendor,
and clothe yourself in honor and majesty.
Unleash the fury of your wrath,
look at all who are proud and bring them low,
look at all who are proud and humble them,
crush the wicked where they stand.
Bury them all in the dust together;
shroud their faces in the grave.
Then I myself will admit to you
that your own right hand can save you.
“Look at Behemoth,
which I made along with you
and which feeds on grass like an ox.
What strength it has in its loins,
what power in the muscles of its belly!
Its tail sways like a cedar;
the sinews of its thighs are close-knit.
Its bones are tubes of bronze,
its limbs like rods of iron.
It ranks first among the works of God,
yet its Maker can approach it with his sword.
The hills bring it their produce,
and all the wild animals play nearby.
Under the lotus plants it lies,
hidden among the reeds in
the marsh.
The lotuses conceal it in their shadow;
the poplars by the stream surround
it.
A raging river does not alarm it;
it is secure, though the Jordan should
surge against its mouth.
Can anyone capture it by the eyes,
or trap it and pierce its nose?
“Can
you pull in Leviathan with
a fishhook
or
tie down its tongue with a rope?
Can you put a cord through its
nose
or
pierce its jaw with a hook?
Will it keep begging you for
mercy?
Will
it speak to you with gentle words?
Will it make an agreement with
you
for
you to take it as your slave for life?
Can you make a pet of it like a
bird
or
put it on a leash for the young women in your house?
Will traders barter for it?
Will
they divide it up among the merchants?
Can you fill its hide with
harpoons
or
its head with fishing spears?
If you lay a hand on it,
you
will remember the struggle and never do it again!
Any hope of subduing it is
false;
the
mere sight of it is overpowering.
No one is fierce enough to
rouse it.
Who
then is able to stand against me?
Who has a claim against me that
I must pay?
Everything
under heaven belongs to me.
Job 40:1-41:11
From the Late Books
In the first year
of Belshazzar king of Babylon,
Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his
mind as he was lying in bed. He wrote down the substance
of his dream.
Daniel said: “In my vision at night
I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the
great sea. Four great beasts, each
different from the others, came up out of the sea.
“The first was like a lion, and it had the
wings of an eagle. I watched until its
wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two
feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.
“And there before me was a second
beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it
had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat
your fill of flesh!’
“After that, I looked, and there
before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had
four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given
authority to rule.
“After that, in my vision at night I looked,
and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very
powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed
and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever
was left. It was different
from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
“While I was thinking about the
horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up
among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had
eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that
spoke boastfully.
“As I looked,
“thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took
his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
“Then I continued
to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking
until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing
fire. (The other beasts had been stripped
of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
“In my vision at night I looked, and
there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of
heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days
and was led into his presence. He was given
authority, glory and sovereign
power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an
everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will
never be destroyed.
Daniel 7:1-14
From the Gospels
After this, Jesus
went around in Galilee. He did not want to go about in
Judea because the Jewish leaders there were looking
for a way to kill him. But when the Jewish
Festival of Tabernacles was near, Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave
Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. No one who wants to
become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show
yourself to the world.” For even his own
brothers did not believe in him.
Therefore Jesus told them, “My time is not yet here; for
you any time will do. The world cannot hate you, but it
hates me because I testify that its works are
evil. You go to the festival. I am not going up to this
festival, because my time has not yet fully come.” After he had said
this, he stayed in Galilee.
However, after his brothers had left
for the festival, he went also, not publicly, but in secret. Now at the festival
the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus and asking, “Where
is he?”
Among the crowds there was
widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.”
Others replied, “No, he deceives the
people.” But no one would say anything
publicly about him for fear of the leaders.
Not until halfway through the festival
did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. The Jews there were amazed
and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having been
taught?”
Jesus answered, “My teaching is not
my own. It comes from the one who sent me. Anyone who chooses
to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or
whether I speak on my own. Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal
glory, but he who seeks the glory of the
one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. Has not Moses given
you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law.
Why are you trying to kill me?”
“You are demon-possessed,” the crowd answered.
“Who is trying to kill you?”
Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all
amazed. Yet, because Moses gave you
circumcision (though actually it did not come
from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a boy
on the Sabbath. Now if a boy can be circumcised on
the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with
me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? Stop judging by mere
appearances, but instead judge correctly.”
John
7:1-24
From the
Epistles/Revelation
The seventh angel sounded his
trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which
said:
“The kingdom of the world has become
the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah,
and he will reign for ever and ever.”
And
the twenty-four elders, who were seated on
their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying:
“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
the One who is and who was,
because
you have taken your great power
and have begun to reign.
The nations were angry,
and your wrath has come.
The
time has come for judging the dead,
and for rewarding your servants the prophets
and
your people who revere your name,
both great and small—
and
for destroying those who destroy the earth.”
Then
God’s temple in heaven was
opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came
flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a
severe hailstorm.
Revelation
11:15-19
