March 23: Psalm 82; Exodus 27:1–19; Nehemiah 8; 1 Corinthians 1:1–17 - a podcast by Crossway

Psalm 82(Listen)

Rescue the Weak and Needy

A Psalm of Asaph.

82   God has taken his place in the divine council;
    in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
2   “How long will you judge unjustly
    and show partiality to the wicked?Selah
3   Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
    maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
4   Rescue the weak and the needy;
    deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
5   They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
    they walk about in darkness;
    all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6   I said, “You are gods,
    sons of the Most High, all of you;
7   nevertheless, like men you shall die,
    and fall like any prince.”¹
8   Arise, O God, judge the earth;
    for you shall inherit all the nations!

(ESV)

Exodus 27:1–19(Listen)

The Bronze Altar

27 “You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits¹long and five cubits broad. The altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits.2 And you shall make horns for it on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze.3 You shall make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and fire pans. You shall make all its utensils of bronze.4 You shall also make for it a grating, a network of bronze, and on the net you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners.5 And you shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that the net extends halfway down the altar.6 And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze.7 And the poles shall be put through the rings, so that the poles are on the two sides of the altar when it is carried.8 You shall make it hollow, with boards. As it has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made.

The Court of the Tabernacle

9 “You shall make the court of the tabernacle. On the south side the court shall have hangings of fine twined linen a hundred cubits long for one side.10 Its twenty pillars and their twenty bases shall be of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver.11 And likewise for its length on the north side there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, its pillars twenty and their bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver.12 And for the breadth of the court on the west side there shall be hangings for fifty cubits, with ten pillars and ten bases.13 The breadth of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits.14 The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases.15 On the other side the hangings shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases.16 For the gate of the court there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, embroidered with needlework. It shall have four pillars and with them four bases.17 All the pillars around the court shall be filleted with silver. Their hooks shall be of silver, and their bases of bronze.18 The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty, and the height five cubits, with hangings of fine twined linen and bases of bronze.19 All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, and all its pegs and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.

(ESV)

Nehemiah 8(Listen)

Ezra Reads the Law

8 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the LORD had commanded Israel.2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month.3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand, and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left hand.5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood.6 And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites,¹helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places.8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly,²and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

This Day Is Holy

9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law.10 Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”11 So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.”12 And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.

Feast of Booths Celebrated

13 On the second day the heads of fathers’ houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the Law.14 And they found it written in the Law that the LORD had commanded by Moses that the people of Israel should dwell in booths³during the feast of the seventh month,15 and that they should proclaim it and publish it in all their towns and in Jerusalem, “Go out to the hills and bring branches of olive, wild olive, myrtle, palm, and other leafy trees to make booths, as it is written.”16 So the people went out and brought them and made booths for themselves, each on his roof, and in their courts and in the courts of the house of God, and in the square at the Water Gate and in the square at the Gate of Ephraim.17 And all the assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and lived in the booths, for from the days of Jeshua the son of Nun to that day the people of Israel had not done so. And there was very great rejoicing.18 And day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read from the Book of the Law of God. They kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day there was a solemn assembly, according to the rule.

(ESV)

1 Corinthians 1:1–17(Listen)

Greeting

1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,

2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving

4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus,5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge—6 even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you—7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ,8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Divisions in the Church

10 I appeal to you, brothers,¹by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers.12 What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.”13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,15 so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name.16 (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.)17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

(ESV)