Daily Readings

¹ And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them.² And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance.³ And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers hath given you?⁴ Give out from among you three men for each tribe: and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them; and they shall come again to me.⁵ And they shall divide it into seven parts: Judah shall abide in their coast on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their coasts on the north.⁶ Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God.⁷ But the Levites have no part among you; for the priesthood of the LORD is their inheritance: and Gad, and Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh, have received their inheritance beyond Jordan on the east, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them.⁸ And the men arose, and went away: and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, that I may here cast lots for you before the LORD in Shiloh.⁹ And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book, and came again to Joshua to the host at Shiloh.¹⁰ And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.¹¹ And the lot of the tribe of the children of Benjamin came up according to their families: and the coast of their lot came forth between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph.¹² And their border on the north side was from Jordan; and the border went up to the side of Jericho on the north side, and went up through the mountains westward; and the goings out thereof were at the wilderness of Bethaven.¹³ And the border went over from thence toward Luz, to the side of Luz, which is Bethel, southward; and the border descended to Atarothadar, near the hill that lieth on the south side of the nether Bethhoron.¹⁴ And the border was drawn thence, and compassed the corner of the sea southward, from the hill that lieth before Bethhoron southward; and the goings out thereof were at Kirjathbaal, which is Kirjathjearim, a city of the children of Judah: this was the west quarter.¹⁵ And the south quarter was from the end of Kirjathjearim, and the border went out on the west, and went out to the well of waters of Nephtoah:¹⁶ And the border came down to the end of the mountain that lieth before the valley of the son of Hinnom, and which is in the valley of the giants on the north, and descended to the valley of Hinnom, to the side of Jebusi on the south, and descended to Enrogel,¹⁷ And was drawn from the north, and went forth to Enshemesh, and went forth toward Geliloth, which is over against the going up of Adummim, and descended to the stone of Bohan the son of Reuben,¹⁸ And passed along toward the side over against Arabah northward, and went down unto Arabah:¹⁹ And the border passed along to the side of Bethhoglah northward: and the outgoings of the border were at the north bay of the salt sea at the south end of Jordan: this was the south coast.²⁰ And Jordan was the border of it on the east side. This was the inheritance of the children of Benjamin, by the coasts thereof round about, according to their families.²¹ Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, and Bethhoglah, and the valley of Keziz,²² And Betharabah, and Zemaraim, and Bethel,²³ And Avim, and Pharah, and Ophrah,²⁴ And Chepharhaammonai, and Ophni, and Gaba; twelve cities with their villages:²⁵ Gibeon, and Ramah, and Beeroth,²⁶ And Mizpeh, and Chephirah, and Mozah,²⁷ And Rekem, and Irpeel, and Taralah,²⁸ And Zelah, Eleph, and Jebusi, which is Jerusalem, Gibeath, and Kirjath; fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families.

¹ Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.² And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him.³ The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the LORD hath spoken this word.⁴ The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world languisheth and fadeth away, the haughty people of the earth do languish.⁵ The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.⁶ Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.⁷ The new wine mourneth, the vine languisheth, all the merryhearted do sigh.⁸ The mirth of tabrets ceaseth, the noise of them that rejoice endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth.⁹ They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it.¹⁰ The city of confusion is broken down: every house is shut up, that no man may come in.¹¹ There is a crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.¹² In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction.¹³ When thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the people, there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree, and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is done.¹⁴ They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the LORD, they shall cry aloud from the sea.¹⁵ Wherefore glorify ye the LORD in the fires, even the name of the LORD God of Israel in the isles of the sea.¹⁶ From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! the treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.¹⁷ Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.¹⁸ And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.¹⁹ The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.²⁰ The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.²¹ And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.²² And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.²³ Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.

¹ Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,² Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.³ And this will we do, if God permit.⁴ For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,⁵ And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,⁶ If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.⁷ For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God:⁸ But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.⁹ But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak.¹⁰ For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.¹¹ And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:¹² That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.¹³ For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,¹⁴ Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.¹⁵ And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.¹⁶ For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.¹⁷ Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:¹⁸ That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:¹⁹ Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;²⁰ Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.

¹ For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;² To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;³ Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.⁴ Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.⁵ And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham:⁶ But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.⁷ And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better.⁸ And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth.⁹ And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham.¹⁰ For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him.¹¹ If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron?¹² For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.¹³ For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar.¹⁴ For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.¹⁵ And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest,¹⁶ Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.¹⁷ For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.¹⁸ For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof.¹⁹ For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God.²⁰ And inasmuch as not without an oath he was made priest:²¹ (For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec:)²² By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.²³ And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:²⁴ But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.²⁵ Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.²⁶ For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;²⁷ Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.²⁸ For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.