October 1 / Nehemiah 13; Psalm 92

Nehemiah 13:1-22; Psalm 92; Nehemiah 13:23-31

Today we come to the end of the Book of Nehemiah, which marks the end of the historical narratives in the Old Testament. Nehemiah acts as governor of Judah for several years, but he is called back to Persia in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes (i.e. 433 BC – Neh. 13:6), and so is away from Jerusalem for some time. In Nehemiah’s absence, the people again become lax in their devotion to the LORD, so upon Nehemiah’s return to Jerusalem, he discovers serious problems and must confront them head-on.

Nehemiah is absolutely correct in zealously guarding against both corruption and apathy. He has learned the lesson of the Exile and knows that a right relationship with the LORD is essential and requires vigilance. Other leaders, like Eliashib the priest, seduced by greed, seem not to have learned that lesson, and compromise with the world around them…

Although I believe Nehemiah is rightly motivated here and although he appears to win the day, at least for the time being, with a push toward purity and holiness, he cannot change hearts. He can force only outward conformity with the Law, and in so doing (it seems to me) Nehemiah unwittingly sows the seeds of what would become the pharisaism that Jesus so strongly opposes a few centuries later.

We may not be in Nehemiah’s shoes, but we still face similar challenges. We too are called to holiness. We too must vigilantly guard our faith and practice. But all too often our pursuit of holiness morphs into deadly legalism. Not wishing to become legalistic, do we then simply abandon the pursuit of holiness? Is that our choice, legalism or license?

Take, for example, one issue facing Nehemiah: Observance of the Sabbath. That is an issue that still faces us today. As the Fourth of the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:8-11), we should (presumably) take the commandment to keep the Sabbath Day holy just as seriously as we take the commandments against murder, theft, and adultery. But do we? Really? (A quick look around would suggest that we think that the LORD abolished the Fourth Commandment long ago…) If we take this commandment seriously, then how do we observe the Sabbath without becoming hypocritical Pharisees? And how many of us right now are thinking that observing the Sabbath sounds horribly restrictive and dour, rather than joyful and liberating?

So I challenge us all: Apart from just going to church Sunday morning, what about the Sabbath looks particularly different from any other day? Does anything need to change for you? Most importantly, are you now just thinking about some new rules, or do you need (spiritual) heart surgery?

See also: August 17 (2022) / Psalm 92

October 2023 Readings

DateReading(s)Verses
01-OctNehemiah 13:1-22; Psalm 92; Nehemiah 13:23-3146
02-OctJoel 1-373
03-OctIsaiah 56-5968
04-OctIsaiah 60-6476
05-OctIsaiah 65-6649
06-OctZechariah 9-1490
07-OctDaniel 7-982
08-OctDaniel 10-1279
09-OctJohn 1:1-18; Luke 1; Matthew 1:1-17115
10-OctMatthew 1:18-25; Luke 2:1-38; Matthew 2:1-2167
11-OctMatthew 2:22-23; Luke 2:39-52;
Matthew 3:1-12; Mark 1:1-8; Luke 3:1-18; John 1:19-28
64
12-OctMatthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11;
Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34;
Luke 3:23-38;
Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13
58
13-OctJohn 1:35-3:3678
14-OctJohn 4:1-45;
Matthew 4:12-22; Mark 1:14-20; Luke 4:14-30
80
15-OctMark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37;
Matthew 8:14-17; Mark 1:29-34; Luke 4:38-41;
Matthew 4:23-25; Mark 1:35-39; Luke 4:42-5:11;
Matthew 8:1-4; Mark 1:40-45; Luke 5:12-16
66
16-OctMatthew 9:1-17; Mark 2:1-22; Luke 5:17-39;
Matthew 12:1-14; Mark 2:23-3:6; Luke 6:1-11
99
17-OctMatthew 12:15-21; Mark 3:7-19; Luke 6:12-19;
Matthew 5:1-48; Luke 6:20-36
93
18-OctMatthew 6; Luke 11:1-4; 12:22-34;
Matthew 7; Luke 6:37-49; 11:5-13
102
19-OctMatthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-17; John 4:46-54;
Matthew 11:2-19; Luke 7:18-50
86
20-OctMatthew 12:22-50; Mark 3:20-35;
Luke 11:14-36; 8:19-21
71
21-OctMatthew 13:1-52; Mark 4:1-34;
Luke 8:1-18; 13:18-21
108
22-OctMatthew 8:23-34; Mark 4:35-5:20; Luke 8:22-39;
Matthew 9:18-34; Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56
114
23-OctMatthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6; John 559
24-OctMatthew 9:35-11:1; Mark 6:7-13; Luke 9:1-6;
Matthew 14:1-12; Mark 6:14-29; Luke 3:19-20; 9:7-9
93
25-OctMatthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44;
Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15;
Matthew 14:22-33; Mark 6:45-52; John 6:16-21
73
26-OctMatthew 14:34-36; Mark 6:53-56; John 6:22-7157
27-OctMatthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23;
Matthew 15:21-31; Mark 7:24-37;
Matthew 15:32-39; Mark 8:1-10
86
28-OctMatthew 16:1-12; Mark 8:11-26;
Matthew 16:13-28; Mark 8:27-9:1; Luke 9:18-27;
Matthew 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36
105
29-OctMatthew 17:14-23; Mark 9:14-32; Luke 9:37-45;
Matthew 17:24-18:9; Mark 9:33-50; Luke 9:46-50
74
30-OctJohn 7-8112
31-OctJohn 9:1-10:21; Matthew 8:18-22; Luke 9:51-6279

September 26 / Psalms 125-134; Nehemiah 12:31-47

Psalms 125-134; Nehemiah 12:31-47

Today we get a more complete description of the arrangements for the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem. We also get more than a few psalms, so I suggest breaking these up into multiple short readings over the course of the day so as to have a chance to let each psalm soak in a bit.

See:

September 25 / Nehemiah 11:1-12:30; Psalms 120-124

Nehemiah 11:1-12:30; Psalms 120-124

And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres.

Nehemiah 12:27

God’s people rightly celebrate the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem. In our own culture, with our supposed “wall of separation between church and state,” we might view this event as a purely secular activity, but that is not the case. In fact, there is no such thing as a “purely secular activity”! (Think about it. Is there any part of your life that is outside God’s purview? Is there anything in your life that does not affect everything else in one way or another? I think not…) So it is entirely fitting that Nehemiah and Ezra bring in the worship leaders, the Levites, to assist in the dedication of the wall with singing and musical instruments, offering thanksgivings to the LORD for His faithfulness and blessing. We cannot know the songs sung at this dedication, but the psalms designated as “Songs of Ascents” probably give us a good idea.

See also:

September 23 / Psalms 1, 91, 119:1-80

Psalms 1, 91, 119:1-80

Today we jump back into the Psalms, reading those that were likely written during the “postexilic” period. We might notice that — on the surface — some of these psalms may seem somewhat contrary to the message of Job, sounding a bit like Job’s friends with the “good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people” world view. Psalm 1, for instance says that the one who delights in the law of the LORD is blessed and like a tree planted by streams of water (Ps. 1:3) while the wicked are like chaff that the wind blows away. (Ps. 1:4) Similarly, Psalm 91 makes it sound like the righteous is invulnerable to all dangers and troubles. As we read these psalms, we need to look deeper than what they might say on the surface and read them in the context of the rest of Scripture. We need to remember Job and his suffering. We need to remember the ill treatment of righteous Jeremiah. We need to remember the Exile that is the experience of these psalmists. And we would also do well to remember that Satan quotes Psalm 91:11-12 to tempt Jesus (Mt. 4:6; Lk. 4:10-11), which just goes to say that if we interpret these words the same way Satan does, then maybe we’re off track…

See: