Category: Matthew

February 19: Read through the Holy Bible in a year.

In Matthew 10 Jesus named his 12 disciples and sent them out to preach “the Kingdom of Heaven is near” They did the same miracles as Jesus and also met resistance. Jesus promised there will be opposition and division because of the message. A most interesting chapter.

 Leviticus 19 is a continuation of moral and ceremonial laws, one of the lesser known is that tattoos are forbidden, and

Leviticus 20 outlines the penalties for breaking the law. They are many and severe.

Leviticus 21 begins listing the regulations for priests.

February 18: Read through the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 9:18-38. Jesus healed a woman with a bleeding issue, brought back a girl to life and healed the blind and mute. Then he looked at all the people, seeing they were sheep without a shepherd and said “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few”.

Leviticus 16 is the apex of Leviticus and tells of all the things Aaron must do on the day of Atonement to atone for his own sins and for the sins of the people during the year that was past. It also explains “the scapegoat”.

Leviticus 17 deals with the sanctity of blood and why eating of blood is forbidden in the Mosaic Law.

Leviticus 18 defines the laws of sexual morality, and especially to stay away from Molech,  a Pagan god who enticed the people through sexual orgies, made them pass through the fire and offer child sacrifices (the result of those sexual orgies.)

February 17: Read through the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 9:1-17.  Jesus continued his healing ministry, he healed a paralytic, but the real story is; Jesus forgave him his sins, a blasphemy unless Jesus is who he said he is. Then he called Matthew the tax collector and explained why his disciples did not fast while Jesus was with them.

Leviticus 14 continues to deal with leprosy and mildew and what to do with both. Things like that are that complicated.

Leviticus 15 deals with bodily discharges. (Hang in there, next chapter deals with the Atonement!)

February 16: Read through the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 8:18-34 tells of Jesus continuing his healing ministry. . He healed many , including the strange encounter with the demon possessed men from east of Lake Genesareth. Many wanted to follow him, but Jesus warned them off by telling the price of following him. It also tells of how Jesus calmed the storm.

Leviticus 11 deals with clean (kosher) and unclean food and clean and unclean animals. (Locusts and grasshoppers are o.k.)

Leviticus 12 is a short chapter and deals with purification after childbirth.

Leviticus 13 deals with leprosy and mildew and what to do with both. Things like that are complicated

February 15: Read through the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 8:1-17 tells of Jesus continuing his healing ministry. He healed a man with leprosy and a Roman centurion displayed his faith in Jesus, so Jesus healed his servant because of the great faith of the roman. He healed many that same to him.

Leviticus 8 goes into some length on how  the ordination of Aaron and his sons was performed.

In Leviticus 9 the priestly ministry begins.

In Leviticus 10 two of Aaron’s sons were killed by fire for violating the command of God. But Aaron’s uncle had two sons and together with two other sons of Aaron they became the new priests and the rest of the chapter deals with how they should behave.

February 12, reading the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthw 6:19-34 continues the telling of the sermon on the mount. Jesus spoke of  storing up eternal, spiritual treasures, not physical riches, for you cannot serve two masters, you serve either God or money. Then Jesus continued by telling how foolish it is to worry about the future, concentrate on what is important, seek first the Kingdom of God, and God will take care of all the other things.

Ecclesiastes 3. There is a time for everything. The gift of God is that He has set eternity in our hearts, yet injustice seems to prevail.

Ecclesiastes 4. There is oppression but no comforter, there is vanity of selfish toil. There is value in having friends “a cord of three strands is not quickly broken,” yet, popularity passes away.

With all the double speak today, Psalm 12 is especially valid. The Lord has something to say about that.

Psalm 13 has only 6 verses; here is a moving Anglican Chant. Enjoy.

February 9, reading the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 5:1-20 retells the Beatitudes, which form the beginning of the Sermon on the  Mount. Then Jesus added the spiritual dimension to the Mosaic Law. He had not come to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it.

In Exodus 33 God told the Israelites to leave the place they were staying, take off all the ornaments they were wearing and go to the promised land. Moses established the tent of meeting, and there he asked to see God. God promised Moses he would see His back while hiding “In the cleft of the rock”

After breaking the two stone tablets, Moses in Exodus 34 had to go back up the mountain and write the words of God on two new stone tablets. Then God repeated much of what was said in previous chapters, even reiterating the Covenant, but the chapter ends with the radiant face of Moses because Moses had spoken with God.

February 8, reading the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 4:12-25. After Jesus was baptized and was led into the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights he began his ministry and called his first disciples.

Exodus 30 describes the  altar of incense, mentions rules for the poll tax and the basin for washing, anointing oil and rules for sacred incense.

Exodus 31 is short; it tells of two named craftsmen to be leaders of performing the artistic aspect of all the work to build the tabernacle. Then there are rules of how to observe the Sabbath, and with that, God finished His message to Moses by giving him the two tablets of stone containing the ten commandments written by the finger of God.

In Exodus 32 Moses had come down from the mountain and what did he find? He found the Golden Calf and the people singing and dancing in orgies. Moses became so angry that he threw down the two tablets with God’s commandments, and they broke in pieces. Then he pleaded with God not to destroy His people.

February 7, reading the Holy Bible in a year.

Matthew 4:1-11 tells of Jesus as He was led into the wilderness to be tempted of Satan after he fasted for 40 days and 40 nights. Jesus combated Satan with scripture, but Satan could quote scripture too. In the end Satan left him “for a season”.

Exodus 27 tells how the altar of burnt offering was to be constructed and how to construct the courtyard around the tabernacle. It also specifies there must always be oil for the lampstand.

In Exodus 28 the priestly garments are specified, in detail, with the breastplate, down to the urim and thummim, and the plate “HOLINESS TO THE LORD”. Even the undergarments are specified.

Exodus 29 specifies how the consecration of priests was to be performed.

February 6, reading the Holy Bible in a year.

In Matthew 3:11-17 Jesus came to be baptized by John the Baptist. Afterwards the holy Spirit descended like a dove on Jesus and a voice from heaven said: “This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased”.

Exodus 23 continues with the writing down laws about justice and mercy, how you are to help even someone who hates you. God instituted the Sabbath laws; in six years you may harvest your fields, but the seventh year you will let it go fallow. (In my childhood Sweden this seven year planting cycle was still practiced by many farmers.) The seventh day rest was to be practiced by all and applied to work animals as well. Moses also defined the three annual feasts, the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of harvest and the feast of in-gathering. Finally God warned of worshiping other Gods.

In Exodus 24 God confirmed His covenant with the people, and Moses went up to Mount Sinai and stayed there 40 days and 40 nights, a long time for the people to be without a leader.

In Exodus 25 Moses told the people make an offering, and out of this offering was made three furnishings for the tabernacle, the ark, the table and the lampstand.

Exodus 26. God described to Moses how the tabernacle was to be built.