Daily Devotions · January 4
Reading for January 4
Read the whole Bible in a year, a few chapters a day.
Genesis 9–11 · Luke 4
Genesis 9–11 · Luke 4, Berean Standard Bible
Genesis 9
And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 2 The fear and dread of you will fall on every living creature on the earth, every bird of the air, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are delivered into your hand. 3 Everything that lives and moves will be food for you; just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you all things. 4 But you must not eat meat with its lifeblood still in it. 5 And surely I will require the life of any man or beast by whose hand your lifeblood is shed. I will demand an accounting from anyone who takes the life of his fellow man: 6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind. 7 But as for you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out across the earth and multiply upon it.” 8 Then God said to Noah and his sons with him, 9 “Behold, I now establish My covenant with you and your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth—every living thing that came out of the ark. 11 And I establish My covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between Me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14 Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember My covenant between Me and you and every living creature of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 And whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of every kind that is on the earth.” 17 So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between Me and every creature on the earth.” 18 The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And Ham was the father of Canaan. 19 These three were the sons of Noah, and from them the whole earth was populated. 20 Now Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. 21 But when he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and uncovered himself inside his tent. 22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside. 23 Then Shem and Japheth took a garment and placed it across their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away so that they did not see their father’s nakedness. 24 When Noah awoke from his drunkenness and learned what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said, “Cursed be Canaan! A servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.” 26 He also declared: “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the servant of Shem. 27 May God expand the territory of Japheth; may he dwell in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his servant.” 28 After the flood, Noah lived 350 years. 29 So Noah lived a total of 950 years, and then he died.
Genesis 10
This is the account of Noah’s sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, who also had sons after the flood. 2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3 The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 And the sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites, and the Rodanites. 5 From these, the maritime peoples separated into their territories, according to their languages, by clans within their nations. 6 The sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Put, and Canaan. 7 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. And the sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 8 Cush was the father of Nimrod, who began to be a mighty one on the earth. 9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; so it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” 10 His kingdom began in Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. 11 From that land he went forth into Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, 12 and Resen, which is between Nineveh and the great city of Calah. 13 Mizraim was the father of the Ludites, the Anamites, the Lehabites, the Naphtuhites, 14 the Pathrusites, the Casluhites (from whom the Philistines came), and the Caphtorites. 15 And Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, 16 the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, 17 the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, 18 the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. Later the Canaanite clans were scattered, 19 and the borders of Canaan extended from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. 20 These are the sons of Ham according to their clans, languages, lands, and nations. 21 And sons were also born to Shem, the older brother of Japheth; Shem was the forefather of all the sons of Eber. 22 The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram. 23 The sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. 24 Arphaxad was the father of Shelah, and Shelah was the father of Eber. 25 Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided, and his brother was named Joktan. 26 And Joktan was the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan. 30 Their territory extended from Mesha to Sephar, in the eastern hill country. 31 These are the sons of Shem, according to their clans, languages, lands, and nations. 32 All these are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their generations and nations. From these the nations of the earth spread out after the flood.
Genesis 11
Now the whole world had one language and a common form of speech. 2 And as people journeyed eastward, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3 And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar. 4 “Come,” they said, “let us build for ourselves a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens, that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of all the earth.” 5 Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building. 6 And the LORD said, “If they have begun to do this as one people speaking the same language, then nothing they devise will be beyond them. 7 Come, let Us go down and confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” 8 So the LORD scattered them from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it is called Babel, for there the LORD confused the language of the whole world, and from that place the LORD scattered them over the face of all the earth. 10 This is the account of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad. 11 And after he had become the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters. 12 When Arphaxad was 35 years old, he became the father of Shelah. 13 And after he had become the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters. 14 When Shelah was 30 years old, he became the father of Eber. 15 And after he had become the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters. 16 When Eber was 34 years old, he became the father of Peleg. 17 And after he had become the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters. 18 When Peleg was 30 years old, he became the father of Reu. 19 And after he had become the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters. 20 When Reu was 32 years old, he became the father of Serug. 21 And after he had become the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters. 22 When Serug was 30 years old, he became the father of Nahor. 23 And after he had become the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters. 24 When Nahor was 29 years old, he became the father of Terah. 25 And after he had become the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters. 26 When Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27 This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. 28 During his father Terah’s lifetime, Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. Abram’s wife was named Sarai, and Nahor’s wife was named Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of both Milcah and Iscah. 30 But Sarai was barren; she had no children. 31 And Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai the wife of Abram, and they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans for the land of Canaan. But when they arrived in Haran, they settled there. 32 Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran.
Luke 4
Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 where for forty days He was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He was hungry. 3 The devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” 4 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’” 5 Then the devil led Him up to a high place and showed Him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 “I will give You authority over all these kingdoms and all their glory,” he said. “For it has been relinquished to me, and I can give it to anyone I wish. 7 So if You worship me, it will all be Yours.” 8 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’” 9 Then the devil led Him to Jerusalem and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple. “If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down from here. 10 For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You to guard You carefully, 11 and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’” 12 But Jesus answered, “It also says, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 13 When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. 14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and the news about Him spread throughout the surrounding region. 15 He taught in their synagogues and was glorified by everyone. 16 Then Jesus came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. As was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath. And when He stood up to read, 17 the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. Unrolling it, He found the place where it was written: 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 20 Then He rolled up the scroll, returned it to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on Him, 21 and He began by saying, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 All spoke well of Him and marveled at the gracious words that came from His lips. “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” they asked. 23 Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to Me: ‘Physician, heal yourself! Do here in Your hometown what we have heard that You did in Capernaum.’” 24 Then He added, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in his hometown. 25 But I tell you truthfully that there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and great famine swept over all the land. 26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to the widow of Zarephath in Sidon. 27 And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet. Yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.” 28 On hearing this, all the people in the synagogue were enraged. 29 They got up, drove Him out of the town, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw Him over the cliff. 30 But Jesus passed through the crowd and went on His way. 31 Then He went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath He began to teach the people. 32 They were astonished at His teaching, because His message had authority. 33 In the synagogue there was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon. He cried out in a loud voice, 34 “Ha! What do You want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 35 But Jesus rebuked the demon. “Be silent!” He said. “Come out of him!” At this, the demon threw the man down before them all and came out without harming him. 36 All the people were overcome with amazement and asked one another, “What is this message? With authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!” 37 And the news about Jesus spread throughout the surrounding region. 38 After Jesus had left the synagogue, He went to the home of Simon, whose mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever. So they appealed to Jesus on her behalf, 39 and He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And she got up at once and began to serve them. 40 At sunset, all who were ill with various diseases were brought to Jesus, and laying His hands on each one, He healed them. 41 Demons also came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But He rebuked the demons and would not allow them to speak, because they knew He was the Christ. 42 At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place, and the crowds were looking for Him. They came to Him and tried to keep Him from leaving. 43 But Jesus told them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well, because that is why I was sent.” 44 And He continued to preach in the synagogues of Judea.
Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), dedicated to the public domain.
How to SOAP
Grab a journal and a pen. Read the chapters above and watch for the verse that stops you. Then take it through four steps.
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Scripture
Write out the verse that stood out to you.
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Observation
What is it saying? Who is speaking, and to whom?
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Application
What does it mean for your life today? Be specific.
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Prayer
Talk to God about it. Ask Him to help you live it.
Your SOAP journal
Write your SOAP here. Tap any verse in the reading to add it to Scripture. Your journal saves on this device only, so no one else sees it.
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Why daily devotions?
Devotions are time set aside each day to read God's Word and let Him speak. The point isn't checking off chapters. It's meeting with Him.
Ten or fifteen minutes is enough to start. Pick a time and a place and keep the appointment. Mornings work well for a lot of us, before the phone and the day start talking.
Missed a day? Don't start over. Read today's chapters and keep going.