Daily Reader's Bible - Flipbook - Page 31
council together. “What are
we going to do?” they asked
each other. “This man certainly
performs many miraculous
signs. If we allow him to go on
like this, soon everyone will
believe in him. Then the Roman
army will come and destroy both
our Temple and our nation.”
Caiaphas, who was high
priest at that time, said, “You
don’t know what you’re
talking about! You don’t
realize that it’s better for you
that one man should die for
the people than for the whole
nation to be destroyed.”
He did not say this on his
own; as high priest at that time
he was led to prophesy that
Jesus would die for the entire
nation. And not only for that
nation, but to bring together
and unite all the children of God
scattered around the world.
So from that time on, the
Jewish leaders began to plot
Jesus’ death. As a result, Jesus
stopped his public ministry
among the people and left
Jerusalem. He went to a place
near the wilderness, to the
village of Ephraim, and stayed
there with his disciples.
THEY WILL SAY, THE LORD IS OUR GOD
“On that day a fountain will be opened for the
dynasty of David and for the people of Jerusalem, a fountain to cleanse them from all their
sins and impurity.
“And on that day,” says the LORD of Heaven’s
Armies, “I will erase idol worship throughout
the land, so that even the names of the idols
will be forgotten. I will remove from the land
both the false prophets and the spirit of impurity that came with them. If anyone continues
to prophesy, his own father and mother will
tell him, ‘You must die, for you have prophesied lies in the name of the LORD.’ And as he
prophesies, his own father and mother will
stab him.
“On that day people will be ashamed to
claim the prophetic gift. No one will pretend to
be a prophet by wearing prophet’s clothes. He
will say, ‘I’m no prophet; I’m a farmer. I began
working for a farmer as a boy.’ And if someone asks, ‘Then what about those wounds on
your chest?’ he will say, ‘I was wounded at my
friends’ house!’
[ZECHARIAH 13:1–14:21]
They will call on my name,
and I will answer them.
I will say, ‘These are my people,’
and they will say, ‘The LORD
is our God.’”
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“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd,
the man who is my partner,”
says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
“Strike down the shepherd,
and the sheep will be scattered,
and I will turn against the lambs.
Two-thirds of the people in the land
will be cut off and die,” says the LORD.
“But one-third will be left in the land.
I will bring that group through the fire
and make them pure.
I will refine them like silver
and purify them like gold.
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It was now almost time for
the Jewish Passover celebration,
and many people from all over
the country arrived in Jerusalem
several days early so they could
go through the purification
ceremony before Passover
began. They kept looking for
Jesus, but as they stood around
in the Temple, they said to each
other, “What do you think? He
won’t come for Passover, will
he?” Meanwhile, the leading
priests and Pharisees had publicly ordered that anyone seeing
Jesus must report it immediately
so they could arrest him.
Watch, for the day of the LORD is coming when
your possessions will be plundered right in
front of you! I will gather all the nations to fight
against Jerusalem. The city will be taken, the
houses looted, and the women raped. Half the
population will be taken into captivity, and the
rest will be left among the ruins of the city.
Then the LORD will go out to fight against
those nations, as he has fought in times past. On
that day his feet will stand on the Mount of
Olives, east of Jerusalem. And the Mount of
Olives will split apart, making a wide valley
running from east to west. Half the mountain
will move toward the north and half toward
the south. You will flee through this valley, for
it will reach across to Azal. Yes, you will flee
as you did from the earthquake in the days of
King Uzziah of Judah. Then the LORD my God
will come, and all his holy ones with him.
On that day the sources of light will no
longer shine, yet there will be continuous day!
Only the LORD knows how this could happen.
There will be no normal day and night, for at
evening time it will still be light.
On that day life-giving waters will flow out
from Jerusalem, half toward the Dead Sea and
half toward the Mediterranean, flowing continuously in both summer and winter.
And the LORD will be king over all the earth.
On that day there will be one LORD—his name
alone will be worshiped.
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