Luke 8:26–39; Colossians 3:1–14; Psalm 129; 1 Chronicles 12–14

red bookmark icon blue bookmark icon gold bookmark icon
Luke 8:26–39

Jesus Heals a Man with a Demon

26 bThen they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes,1 which is opposite Galilee. 27 When Jesus2 had stepped out on land, there met him a man from the city who had demons. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house cbut among the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he dcried out and fell down before him and said dwith a loud voice, What have you to do with me, Jesus, eSon of fthe Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me. 29 For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many a time it had seized him. He was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon ginto the desert.) 30 Jesus then asked him, What is your name? And he said, hLegion, for many demons had entered him. 31 And they begged him not to command them to depart into ithe abyss. 32 Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into jthe lake and drowned.

34 When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. 35 Then people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting kat the feet of Jesus, lclothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. 36 And those who had seen it told them how the demon-possessed3 man had been healed. 37 Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes masked him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. 38 The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 Return to your home, and ndeclare how much God has done for you. And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.


Colossians 3:1–14

Put On the New Self

bIf then you have been raised with Christ, seek cthe things that are above, where Christ is, dseated at the right hand of God. eSet your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For fyou have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ gwho is your1 life happears, then you also will appear with him iin glory.

jPut to death therefore kwhat is earthly in you:2 lsexual immorality, impurity, mpassion, evil desire, and covetousness, nwhich is idolatry. oOn account of these the wrath of God is coming.3 pIn these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now qyou must put them all away: ranger, wrath, malice, sslander, and obscene talk from your mouth. tDo not lie to one another, seeing that uyou have put off vthe old self4 with its practices 10 and whave put on xthe new self, ywhich is being renewed in knowledge zafter the image of aits creator. 11 bHere there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave,5 free; but Christ is call, and in all.

12 dPut on then, as eGod’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, fcompassionate hearts, gkindness, hhumility, meekness, and patience, 13 hbearing with one another and, iif one has a complaint against another, gforgiving each other; gas the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on jlove, which kbinds everything together in lperfect harmony.


Psalm 129

They Have Afflicted Me from My Youth

A Song of mAscents.

Greatly1 have they pafflicted me qfrom my youth

rlet Israel now say

Greatly have they pafflicted me qfrom my youth,

syet they have not prevailed against me.

tThe plowers plowed uupon my back;

they made long their furrows.

The Lord is righteous;

he has cut vthe cords of the wicked.

May all who hate Zion

be wput to shame and turned backward!

Let them be like xthe grass on the housetops,

which ywithers before it grows up,

with which the reaper does not fill his hand

nor the binder of sheaves his arms,

nor do those who pass by say,

aThe blessing of the Lord be upon you!

We bbless you in the name of the Lord!


1 Chronicles 12–14

The Mighty Men Join David

xNow these are the men who came to David at Ziklag, while he could not move about freely because of Saul the son of Kish. And they were among the mighty men who helped him in war. They ywere bowmen and could shoot arrows and sling stones with either the right or the zleft hand; they were Benjaminites, aSaul’s kinsmen. The chief was Ahiezer, then Joash, both sons of Shemaah of bGibeah; also Jeziel and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth; Beracah, Jehu of cAnathoth, Ishmaiah of dGibeon, a mighty man among the thirty and a leader over the thirty; Jeremiah,1 Jahaziel, Johanan, Jozabad of Gederah, Eluzai,2 Jerimoth, Bealiah, Shemariah, Shephatiah the Haruphite; Elkanah, Isshiah, Azarel, Joezer, and Jashobeam, the eKorahites; And Joelah and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham of Gedor.

From the Gadites there went over to David at the stronghold in the wilderness mighty and experienced warriors, expert with shield and spear, whose faces were like the faces of lions and who were fswift as gazelles upon the mountains: Ezer the chief, Obadiah second, Eliab third, 10 Mishmannah fourth, Jeremiah fifth, 11 Attai sixth, Eliel seventh, 12 Johanan eighth, Elzabad ninth, 13 Jeremiah tenth, Machbannai eleventh. 14 These Gadites were officers of the army; the least was a gmatch for a hundred men and the greatest for a thousand. 15 These are the men who crossed the Jordan in the first month, when it was hoverflowing all its banks, and put to flight all those in the valleys, to the east and to the west.

16 And some of the men of Benjamin and Judah came to the stronghold to David. 17 David went out to meet them and said to them, If you have come to me in friendship to help me, my heart will be joined to you; but if to betray me to my adversaries, although there is no wrong in my hands, then may the God of our fathers see and rebuke you. 18 Then ithe Spirit clothed jAmasai, chief of the thirty, and he said,

We are yours, O David,

and with you, O son of Jesse!

kPeace, peace to you,

and peace to your helpers!

For your God helps you.

Then David received them and made them officers of his troops.

19 Some of the men of Manasseh deserted to David lwhen he came with the Philistines for the battle against Saul. (Yet he did not help them, for the rulers of the Philistines took counsel and sent him away, saying, mAt peril to our heads he will desert to his master Saul.) 20 As he went to Ziklag, these men of Manasseh deserted to him: Adnah, Jozabad, Jediael, Michael, Jozabad, Elihu, and Zillethai, chiefs of thousands in Manasseh. 21 They helped David against nthe band of raiders, for they were all mighty men of valor and were commanders in the army. 22 For from day to day men came to David to help him, until there was a great army, like an army of God.

23 These are the numbers of the divisions of the armed troops owho came to David in Hebron pto turn the kingdom of Saul over to him, qaccording to the word of the Lord. 24 The men of Judah bearing shield and spear were 6,800 armed troops. 25 Of the Simeonites, mighty men of valor for war, 7,100. 26 Of the Levites 4,600. 27 The prince Jehoiada, of the house of Aaron, and with him 3,700. 28 rZadok, a young man mighty in valor, and twenty-two commanders from his own fathers’ house. 29 Of the Benjaminites, sthe kinsmen of Saul, 3,000, of whom the tmajority had to that point kept their allegiance to the house of Saul. 30 Of the Ephraimites 20,800, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers’ houses. 31 Of the half-tribe of Manasseh 18,000, who were uexpressly named to come and make David king. 32 Of Issachar, men who vhad understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, 200 chiefs, and all their kinsmen under their command. 33 Of Zebulun 50,000 seasoned troops, wequipped for battle with all the weapons of war, to help David3 with xsingleness of purpose. 34 Of Naphtali 1,000 commanders with whom were 37,000 men armed with shield and spear. 35 Of the Danites 28,600 men equipped for battle. 36 Of yAsher 40,000 zseasoned troops zready for battle. 37 Of the Reubenites and Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh from beyond the Jordan, 120,000 men armed with all the weapons of war.

38 All these, men of war, arrayed in battle order, came to Hebron with aa whole heart to make David king over all Israel. Likewise, all the rest of Israel were of a bsingle mind to make David king. 39 And they were there with David for three days, eating and drinking, for their brothers had made preparation for them. 40 And also their relatives, from as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, came bringing food on donkeys and on camels and on mules and on oxen, abundant provisions of flour, ccakes of figs, clusters of raisins, and wine and oil, oxen and sheep, for there was joy in Israel.

The Ark Brought from Kiriath-Jearim

David consulted with the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with every leader. And David said to all the assembly of Israel, If it seems good to you and from the Lord our God, let us send abroad to our brothers dwho remain in all the lands of Israel, as well as to the priests and Levites in the cities that have pasturelands, that they may be gathered to us. Then let us bring again the ark of our God to us, efor we did not seek it4 in the days of Saul. All the assembly agreed to do so, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people.

Uzzah and the Ark

fSo David assembled all Israel gfrom the hNile5 of Egypt to Lebo-hamath, to bring the ark of God ifrom Kiriath-jearim. jAnd David and all Israel went up to kBaalah, that is, to Kiriath-jearim that belongs to Judah, to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the Lord who lsits enthroned above the cherubim. And they carried the ark of God on a new cart, from the house of mAbinadab, and Uzzah and Ahio6 were driving the cart. And David and all Israel were celebrating before God with all their might, with song and nlyres and harps and tambourines and cymbals and trumpets.

And when they came to the threshing floor of oChidon, Uzzah put out his hand to take hold of the ark, for the oxen stumbled. 10 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and he struck him down pbecause he put out his hand to the ark, and qhe died there before God. 11 And David was angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. And that place is called Perez-uzza7 to this day. 12 And David was afraid of God that day, and he said, How can I bring the ark of God home to me? 13 So David did not take the ark home into the city of David, but took it aside to the house rof Obed-edom the Gittite. 14 And the ark of God remained with the household of Obed-edom in his house three months. sAnd the Lord blessed the household of Obed-edom and all that he had.

David’s Wives and Children

tAnd Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, also masons and carpenters to build a house for him. And David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, and that his kingdom was highly exalted for the sake of his people Israel.

And David took more wives in Jerusalem, and David fathered more sons and daughters. uThese are the names of the children born to him in Jerusalem: vShammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Elpelet, Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, wBeeliada and xEliphelet.

Philistines Defeated

When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. But David heard of it and went out against them. Now the Philistines had come and ymade a raid in the zValley of Rephaim. 10 And David inquired of God, Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand? And the Lord said to him, Go up, and I will give them into your hand. 11 And he went up to Baal-perazim, and David struck them down there. And David said, God has broken through8 my enemies by my hand, like a bursting flood. Therefore the name of that place is called Baal-perazim. 12 And they left their gods there, and David gave command, and they were burned.

13 And the Philistines yet again amade a raid in the valley. 14 And when David again inquired of God, bGod said to him, You shall not go up after them; go around and come against them opposite the balsam trees. 15 And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines. 16 And David did as God commanded him, and they struck down the Philistine army from Gibeon to Gezer. 17 And the fame of David went out into all lands, and the Lord brought the cfear of him upon all nations.