June 28: Ecclesiastes 1:1–3; Deuteronomy 30:11–20; Micah 7:1–13; Matthew 7:13–29 - a podcast by Crossway

Ecclesiastes 1:1–3 (Listen)

All Is Vanity

1 The words of the Preacher,¹ the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

2   Vanity² of vanities, says the Preacher,
    vanity of vanities! All is vanity.
3   What does man gain by all the toil
    at which he toils under the sun?

(ESV)

Deuteronomy 30:11–20 (Listen)

The Choice of Life and Death

11 “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 14 But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.

15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God¹ that I command you today, by loving the LORD your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules,² then you shall live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. 19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, 20 loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”

(ESV)

Micah 7:1–13 (Listen)

Wait for the God of Salvation

7   Woe is me! For I have become
    as when the summer fruit has been gathered,
    as when the grapes have been gleaned:
  there is no cluster to eat,
    no first-ripe fig that my soul desires.
2   The godly has perished from the earth,
    and there is no one upright among mankind;
  they all lie in wait for blood,
    and each hunts the other with a net.
3   Their hands are on what is evil, to do it well;
    the prince and the judge ask for a bribe,
  and the great man utters the evil desire of his soul;
    thus they weave it together.
4   The best of them is like a brier,
    the most upright of them a thorn hedge.
  The day of your watchmen, of your punishment, has come;
    now their confusion is at hand.
5   Put no trust in a neighbor;
    have no confidence in a friend;
  guard the doors of your mouth
    from her who lies in your arms;¹
6   for the son treats the father with contempt,
    the daughter rises up against her mother,
  the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
    a man’s enemies are the men of his own house.
7   But as for me, I will look to the LORD;
    I will wait for the God of my salvation;
    my God will hear me.


8   Rejoice not over me, O my enemy;
    when I fall, I shall rise;
  when I sit in darkness,
    the LORD will be a light to me.
9   I will bear the indignation of the LORD
    because I have sinned against him,
  until he pleads my cause
    and executes judgment for me.
  He will bring me out to the light;
    I shall look upon his vindication.
10   Then my enemy will see,
    and shame will cover her who said to me,
    “Where is the LORD your God?”
  My eyes will look upon her;
    now she will be trampled down
    like the mire of the streets.


11   A day for the building of your walls!
    In that day the boundary shall be far extended.
12   In that day they² will come to you,
    from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,
  and from Egypt to the River,³
    from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.
13   But the earth will be desolate
    because of its inhabitants,
    for the fruit of their deeds.

(ESV)

Matthew 7:13–29 (Listen)

13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy¹ that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

A Tree and Its Fruit

15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

I Never Knew You

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Build Your House on the Rock

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

The Authority of Jesus

28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

(ESV)