August 24: Psalms 5–6; Psalms 10–11; 1 Kings 1:38–2:4; Acts 26:24–27:8; Mark 13:28–37 - a podcast by Crossway

Psalms 5–6 (Listen)

Lead Me in Your Righteousness

To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David.

5   Give ear to my words, O LORD;
    consider my groaning.
2   Give attention to the sound of my cry,
    my King and my God,
    for to you do I pray.
3   O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
    in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you¹ and watch.


4   For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
    evil may not dwell with you.
5   The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
    you hate all evildoers.
6   You destroy those who speak lies;
    the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.


7   But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
    will enter your house.
  I will bow down toward your holy temple
    in the fear of you.
8   Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
    because of my enemies;
    make your way straight before me.


9   For there is no truth in their mouth;
    their inmost self is destruction;
  their throat is an open grave;
    they flatter with their tongue.
10   Make them bear their guilt, O God;
    let them fall by their own counsels;
  because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
    for they have rebelled against you.


11   But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
    let them ever sing for joy,
  and spread your protection over them,
    that those who love your name may exult in you.
12   For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
    you cover him with favor as with a shield.

O Lord, Deliver My Life

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith.² A Psalm of David.

6   O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
    nor discipline me in your wrath.
2   Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;
    heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.
3   My soul also is greatly troubled.
    But you, O LORD—how long?


4   Turn, O LORD, deliver my life;
    save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5   For in death there is no remembrance of you;
    in Sheol who will give you praise?


6   I am weary with my moaning;
    every night I flood my bed with tears;
    I drench my couch with my weeping.
7   My eye wastes away because of grief;
    it grows weak because of all my foes.


8   Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
    for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
9   The LORD has heard my plea;
    the LORD accepts my prayer.
10   All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
    they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment.

(ESV)

Psalms 10–11 (Listen)

Why Do You Hide Yourself?

10   Why, O LORD, do you stand far away?
    Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?


2   In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;
    let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised.
3   For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,
    and the one greedy for gain curses¹ and renounces the LORD.
4   In the pride of his face² the wicked does not seek him;³
    all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”
5   His ways prosper at all times;
    your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
    as for all his foes, he puffs at them.
6   He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
    throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”
7   His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
    under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.
8   He sits in ambush in the villages;
    in hiding places he murders the innocent.
  His eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
9     he lurks in ambush like a lion in his thicket;
  he lurks that he may seize the poor;
    he seizes the poor when he draws him into his net.
10   The helpless are crushed, sink down,
    and fall by his might.
11   He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,
    he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”


12   Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand;
    forget not the afflicted.
13   Why does the wicked renounce God
    and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?
14   But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation,
    that you may take it into your hands;
  to you the helpless commits himself;
    you have been the helper of the fatherless.
15   Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
    call his wickedness to account till you find none.


16   The LORD is king forever and ever;
    the nations perish from his land.
17   O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
    you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear
18   to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,
    so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.

The Lord Is in His Holy Temple

To the choirmaster. Of David.

11   In the LORD I take refuge;
  how can you say to my soul,
    “Flee like a bird to your mountain,
2   for behold, the wicked bend the bow;
    they have fitted their arrow to the string
    to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart;
3   if the foundations are destroyed,
    what can the righteous do?”⁴


4   The LORD is in his holy temple;
    the LORD’s throne is in heaven;
    his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man.
5   The LORD tests the righteous,
    but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.
6   Let him rain coals on the wicked;
    fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7   For the LORD is righteous;
  he loves righteous deeds;
    the upright shall behold his face.

(ESV)

1 Kings 1:38–2:4 (Listen)

38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule and brought him to Gihon. 39 There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!” 40 And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise.

41 Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?” 42 While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. And Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.” 43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king, 44 and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And they had him ride on the king’s mule. 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon, and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. 46 Solomon sits on the royal throne. 47 Moreover, the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself on the bed. 48 And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who has granted someone¹ to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’”

49 Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled and rose, and each went his own way. 50 And Adonijah feared Solomon. So he arose and went and took hold of the horns of the altar. 51 Then it was told Solomon, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon, for behold, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’” 52 And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53 So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”

David’s Instructions to Solomon

2 When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying, 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, 3 and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 that the LORD may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack² a man on the throne of Israel.’

(ESV)

Acts 26:24–27:8 (Listen)

24 And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” 25 But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking true and rational words. 26 For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.” 28 And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?”¹ 29 And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains.”

30 Then the king rose, and the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them. 31 And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, “This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” 32 And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

Paul Sails for Rome

27 And when it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort named Julius. 2 And embarking in a ship of Adramyttium, which was about to sail to the ports along the coast of Asia, we put to sea, accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica. 3 The next day we put in at Sidon. And Julius treated Paul kindly and gave him leave to go to his friends and be cared for. 4 And putting out to sea from there we sailed under the lee of Cyprus, because the winds were against us. 5 And when we had sailed across the open sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra in Lycia. 6 There the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing for Italy and put us on board. 7 We sailed slowly for a number of days and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus, and as the wind did not allow us to go farther, we sailed under the lee of Crete off Salmone. 8 Coasting along it with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.

(ESV)

Mark 13:28–37 (Listen)

The Lesson of the Fig Tree

28 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 30 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

No One Knows That Day or Hour

32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard, keep awake.¹ For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants² in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows,³ or in the morning—36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”

(ESV)