Bible Reading March 21 (World English Bible)
Exodus
36, 37
Exo
36:1 "Bezalel and Oholiab shall work with every wise-hearted
man, in whom Yahweh has put wisdom and understanding to know how to
work all the work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all
that Yahweh has commanded."
Exo
36:2 Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab, and every wise-hearted man,
in whose heart Yahweh had put wisdom, even everyone whose heart
stirred him up to come to the work to do it:
Exo
36:3 and they received from Moses all the offering which the
children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of the
sanctuary, with which to make it. They brought yet to him freewill
offerings every morning.
Exo
36:4 All the wise men, who performed all the work of the sanctuary,
each came from his work which they did.
Exo
36:5 They spoke to Moses, saying, "The people bring much more
than enough for the service of the work which Yahweh commanded to
make."
Exo
36:6 Moses gave commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed
throughout the camp, saying, "Let neither man nor woman make
anything else for the offering for the sanctuary." So the people
were restrained from bringing.
Exo
36:7 For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make
it, and too much.
Exo
36:8 All the wise-hearted men among those who did the work made the
tabernacle with ten curtains; of fine twined linen, blue, purple, and
scarlet, with cherubim, the work of the skillful workman, they made
them.
Exo
36:9 The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits, and the
breadth of each curtain four cubits. All the curtains had one
measure.
Exo
36:10 He coupled five curtains to one another, and the other five
curtains he coupled one to another.
Exo
36:11 He made loops of blue on the edge of the one curtain from the
edge in the coupling. Likewise he made in the edge of the curtain
that was outmost in the second coupling.
Exo
36:12 He made fifty loops in the one curtain, and he made fifty
loops in the edge of the curtain that was in the second coupling. The
loops were opposite one to another.
Exo
36:13 He made fifty clasps of gold, and coupled the curtains one to
another with the clasps: so the tabernacle was a unit.
Exo
36:14 He made curtains of goats' hair for a covering over the
tabernacle. He made them eleven curtains.
Exo
36:15 The length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and four cubits
the breadth of each curtain. The eleven curtains had one measure.
Exo
36:16 He coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by
themselves.
Exo
36:17 He made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was
outmost in the coupling, and he made fifty loops on the edge of the
curtain which was outmost in the second coupling.
Exo
36:18 He made fifty clasps of brass to couple the tent together,
that it might be a unit.
Exo
36:19 He made a covering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red, and a
covering of sea cow hides above.
Exo
36:20 He made the boards for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing
up.
Exo
36:21 Ten cubits was the length of a board, and a cubit and a half
the breadth of each board.
Exo
36:22 Each board had two tenons, joined one to another. He made all
the boards of the tabernacle this way.
Exo
36:23 He made the boards for the tabernacle: twenty boards for the
south side southward.
Exo
36:24 He made forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards; two
sockets under one board for its two tenons, and two sockets under
another board for its two tenons.
Exo
36:25 For the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, he
made twenty boards,
Exo
36:26 and their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one
board, and two sockets under another board.
Exo
36:27 For the far part of the tabernacle westward he made six
boards.
Exo
36:28 He made two boards for the corners of the tabernacle in the
far part.
Exo
36:29 They were double beneath, and in like manner they were all the
way to its top to one ring. He did thus to both of them in the two
corners.
Exo
36:30 There were eight boards, and their sockets of silver, sixteen
sockets; under every board two sockets.
Exo
36:31 He made bars of acacia wood; five for the boards of the one
side of the tabernacle,
Exo
36:32 and five bars for the boards of the other side of the
tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle for the
hinder part westward.
Exo
36:33 He made the middle bar to pass through in the midst of the
boards from the one end to the other.
Exo
36:34 He overlaid the boards with gold, and made their rings of gold
for places for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.
Exo
36:35 He made the veil of blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twined
linen: with cherubim. He made it the work of a skillful workman.
Exo
36:36 He made four pillars of acacia for it, and overlaid them with
gold. Their hooks were of gold. He cast four sockets of silver for
them.
Exo
36:37 He made a screen for the door of the tent, of blue, purple,
scarlet, and fine twined linen, the work of an embroiderer;
Exo
36:38 and the five pillars of it with their hooks. He overlaid their
capitals and their fillets with gold, and their five sockets were of
brass.
Exo
37:1 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood. Its length was two and a
half cubits, and its breadth a cubit and a half, and a cubit and a
half its height.
Exo
37:2 He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a
molding of gold for it around it.
Exo
37:3 He cast four rings of gold for it, in its four feet; even two
rings on its one side, and two rings on its other side.
Exo
37:4 He made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold.
Exo
37:5 He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to
bear the ark.
Exo
37:6 He made a mercy seat of pure gold. Its length was two and a
half cubits, and a cubit and a half its breadth.
Exo
37:7 He made two cherubim of gold. He made them of beaten work, at
the two ends of the mercy seat;
Exo
37:8 one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end. He
made the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat at its two ends.
Exo
37:9 The cherubim spread out their wings on high, covering the mercy
seat with their wings, with their faces toward one another. The faces
of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat.
Exo
37:10 He made the table of acacia wood. Its length was two cubits,
and its breadth was a cubit, and its height was a cubit and a half.
Exo
37:11 He overlaid it with pure gold, and made a gold molding around
it.
Exo
37:12 He made a border of a handbreadth around it, and made a golden
molding on its border around it.
Exo
37:13 He cast four rings of gold for it, and put the rings in the
four corners that were on its four feet.
Exo
37:14 The rings were close by the border, the places for the poles
to carry the table.
Exo
37:15 He made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold,
to carry the table.
Exo
37:16 He made the vessels which were on the table, its dishes, its
spoons, its bowls, and its pitchers with which to pour out, of pure
gold.
Exo
37:17 He made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of
beaten work. Its base, its shaft, its cups, its buds, and its flowers
were of one piece with it.
Exo
37:18 There were six branches going out of its sides: three branches
of the lampstand out of its one side, and three branches of the
lampstand out of its other side:
Exo
37:19 three cups made like almond blossoms in one branch, a bud and
a flower, and three cups made like almond blossoms in the other
branch, a bud and a flower: so for the six branches going out of the
lampstand.
Exo
37:20 In the lampstand were four cups made like almond blossoms, its
buds and its flowers;
Exo
37:21 and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud
under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches
of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of it.
Exo
37:22 Their buds and their branches were of one piece with it. The
whole thing was one beaten work of pure gold.
Exo
37:23 He made its seven lamps, and its snuffers, and its snuff
dishes, of pure gold.
Exo
37:24 He made it of a talent of pure gold, with all its vessels.
Exo
37:25 He made the altar of incense of acacia wood. It was square:
its length was a cubit, and its breadth a cubit. Its height was two
cubits. Its horns were of one piece with it.
Exo
37:26 He overlaid it with pure gold, its top, its sides around it,
and its horns. He made a gold molding around it.
Exo
37:27 He made two golden rings for it under its molding crown, on
its two ribs, on its two sides, for places for poles with which to
carry it.
Exo
37:28 He made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold.
Exo
37:29 He made the holy anointing oil and the pure incense of sweet
spices, after the art of the perfumer.
Mark 13
Mar 13:1
As he went out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him,
"Teacher, see what kind of stones and what kind of buildings!"
Mar 13:2
Jesus said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? There will
not be left here one stone on another, which will not be thrown
down."
Mar 13:3
As he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James,
John, and Andrew asked him privately,
Mar 13:4
"Tell us, when will these things be? What is the sign that these
things are all about to be fulfilled?"
Mar 13:5
Jesus, answering, began to tell them, "Be careful that no one
leads you astray.
Mar 13:6
For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he!' and will lead many
astray.
Mar 13:7
"When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, don't be troubled.
For those must happen, but the end is not yet.
Mar 13:8
For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be earthquakes in various places. There will be famines
and troubles. These things are the beginning of birth pains.
Mar 13:9
But watch yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils. You
will be beaten in synagogues. You will stand before rulers and kings
for my sake, for a testimony to them.
Mar 13:10
The Good News must first be preached to all the nations.
Mar 13:11
When they lead you away and deliver you up, don't be anxious
beforehand, or premeditate what you will say, but say whatever will
be given you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Holy
Spirit.
Mar 13:12
"Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his
child. Children will rise up against parents, and cause them to be
put to death.
Mar 13:13
You will be hated by all men for my name's sake, but he who endures
to the end, the same will be saved.
Mar 13:14
But when you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel
the prophet, standing where it ought not (let the reader understand),
then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains,
Mar 13:15
and let him who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter in, to take
anything out of his house.
Mar 13:16
Let him who is in the field not return back to take his cloak.
Mar 13:17
But woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babies in
those days!
Mar 13:18
Pray that your flight won't be in the winter.
Mar 13:19
For in those days there will be oppression, such as there has not
been the like from the beginning of the creation which God created
until now, and never will be.
Mar 13:20
Unless the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh would have been
saved; but for the sake of the chosen ones, whom he picked out, he
shortened the days.
Mar 13:21
Then if anyone tells you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'Look,
there!' don't believe it.
Mar 13:22
For there will arise false christs and false prophets, and will show
signs and wonders, that they may lead astray, if possible, even the
chosen ones.
Mar 13:23
But you watch. "Behold, I have told you all things beforehand.
Mar 13:24
But in those days, after that oppression, the sun will be darkened,
the moon will not give its light,
Mar 13:25
the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers that are in
the heavens will be shaken.
Mar 13:26
Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power
and glory.
Mar 13:27
Then he will send out his angels, and will gather together his chosen
ones from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of
the sky.
Mar 13:28
"Now from the fig tree, learn this parable. When the branch has
now become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that the
summer is near;
Mar 13:29
even so you also, when you see these things coming to pass, know that
it is near, at the doors.
Mar 13:30
Most certainly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until
all these things happen.
Mar 13:31
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Mar 13:32
But of that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in
heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
Mar 13:33
Watch, keep alert, and pray; for you don't know when the time is.
Mar 13:34
"It is like a man, traveling to another country, having left his
house, and given authority to his servants, and to each one his work,
and also commanded the doorkeeper to keep watch.
Mar 13:35
Watch therefore, for you don't know when the lord of the house is
coming, whether at evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster
crows, or in the morning;
Mar 13:36
lest coming suddenly he might find you sleeping.
Mar 13:37
What I tell you, I tell all: Watch."
If
Adam and Eve were the only human beings that God miraculously created,
where did all of the people come from who were of great concern to Cain?
After God sentenced the murderous Cain to be “a fugitive and a
vagabond” on the Earth (Genesis 4:12), recall that Cain said to the
Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear” (4:13). Cain then said:
“Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; I
shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on
the earth, and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me” (4:14, emp. added). God then responded to Cain, saying, “Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him seven-fold.” So, “the Lord set a mark on Cain, lest anyone
finding him should kill him” (4:15, emp. added). Do the references to
“anyone” and “whoever” in these verses suggest that God specially
created others besides Adam and Eve?
A
significant misconception that has prevailed through the centuries
within Christendom has been the idea that Jesus went to hell after His
crucifixion, prior to His resurrection. The creedal statements of
historic Christianity are largely responsible for generating this
notion. For example, the Apostles’ Creed affirmed belief in Jesus on the
following terms: “Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the
Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and
buried; He descended into hell, the third day He rose again from
the dead” (emp. added). The Athanasian Creed states: “He suffered death
for our salvation. He descended into hell and rose again from the
dead” (emp. added). “Church Fathers” and Reformers toyed with this
viewpoint. John Calvin, in his voluminous Institutes of the Christian Religion,
treated the subject at length (1599, II.16.8-12). Calvin cited earlier
theologians who agreed with him, including Hilary in his On the Trinity (IV.xlii; III.xv). The renowned medieval Catholic theologian, Thomas Aquinas, held a similar view (Summa Theol.
III. 52. 5). The apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus, which dates from the
fifth century A.D., claims that Jesus descended into hell and retrieved
all the Old Testament saints, including Adam, David, Habakkuk, and
Isaiah (see James, 1924, pp. 125ff.).