Daily Devotions · October 18
Reading for October 18
Read the whole Bible in a year, a few chapters a day.
Job 3–4 · Acts 8–9
Job 3–4 · Acts 8–9, Berean Standard Bible
Job 3
After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. 2 And this is what he said: 3 “May the day of my birth perish, and the night it was said, ‘A boy is conceived.’ 4 If only that day had turned to darkness! May God above disregard it; may no light shine upon it. 5 May darkness and gloom reclaim it, and a cloud settle over it; may the blackness of the day overwhelm it. 6 If only darkness had taken that night away! May it not appear among the days of the year; may it never be entered in any of the months. 7 Behold, may that night be barren; may no joyful voice come into it. 8 May it be cursed by those who curse the day—those prepared to rouse Leviathan. 9 May its morning stars grow dark; may it wait in vain for daylight; may it not see the breaking of dawn. 10 For that night did not shut the doors of the womb to hide the sorrow from my eyes. 11 Why did I not perish at birth; why did I not die as I came from the womb? 12 Why were there knees to receive me, and breasts that I should be nursed? 13 For now I would be lying down in peace; I would be asleep and at rest 14 with kings and counselors of the earth, who built for themselves cities now in ruins, 15 or with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver. 16 Or why was I not hidden like a stillborn child, like an infant who never sees daylight? 17 There the wicked cease from raging, and there the weary find rest. 18 The captives enjoy their ease; they do not hear the voice of the oppressor. 19 Both small and great are there, and the slave is freed from his master. 20 Why is light given to the miserable, and life to the bitter of soul, 21 who long for death that does not come, and search for it like hidden treasure, 22 who rejoice and greatly exult when they reach the grave? 23 Why is life given to a man whose way is hidden, whom God has hedged in? 24 I sigh when food is put before me, and my groans pour out like water. 25 For the thing I feared has overtaken me, and what I dreaded has befallen me. 26 I am not at ease or quiet; I have no rest, for trouble has come.”
Job 4
Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied: 2 “If one ventures a word with you, will you be wearied? Yet who can keep from speaking? 3 Surely you have instructed many, and have strengthened their feeble hands. 4 Your words have steadied those who stumbled; you have braced the knees that were buckling. 5 But now trouble has come upon you, and you are weary. It strikes you, and you are dismayed. 6 Is your reverence not your confidence, and the uprightness of your ways your hope? 7 Consider now, I plead: Who, being innocent, has ever perished? Or where have the upright been destroyed? 8 As I have observed, those who plow iniquity and those who sow trouble reap the same. 9 By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of His anger they are consumed. 10 The lion may roar, and the fierce lion may growl, yet the teeth of the young lions are broken. 11 The old lion perishes for lack of prey, and the cubs of the lioness are scattered. 12 Now a word came to me secretly; my ears caught a whisper of it. 13 In disquieting visions in the night, when deep sleep falls on men, 14 fear and trembling came over me and made all my bones shudder. 15 Then a spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body bristled. 16 It stood still, but I could not discern its appearance; a form loomed before my eyes, and I heard a whispering voice: 17 ‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God, or a man more pure than his Maker? 18 If God puts no trust in His servants, and He charges His angels with error, 19 how much more those who dwell in houses of clay, whose foundations are in the dust, who can be crushed like a moth! 20 They are smashed to pieces from dawn to dusk; unnoticed, they perish forever. 21 Are not their tent cords pulled up, so that they die without wisdom?’
Acts 8
And Saul was there, giving approval to Stephen’s death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 God-fearing men buried Stephen and mourned deeply over him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. 4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. 6 The crowds all paid close attention to Philip’s message and to the signs they saw him perform. 7 With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city. 9 Prior to that time, a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and astounded the people of Samaria. He claimed to be someone great, 10 and all the people, from the least to the greatest, heeded his words and said, “This man is the divine power called the Great Power.” 11 They paid close attention to him because he had astounded them for a long time with his sorcery. 12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the gospel of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Even Simon himself believed and was baptized. He followed Philip closely and was astounded by the great signs and miracles he observed. 14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. 15 On their arrival, they prayed for them to receive the Holy Spirit. 16 For the Holy Spirit had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. 18 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money. 19 “Give me this power as well,” he said, “so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter replied, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or share in our ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent, therefore, of your wickedness, and pray to the Lord. Perhaps He will forgive you for the intent of your heart. 23 For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and captive to iniquity.” 24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me, so that nothing you have said may happen to me.” 25 And after Peter and John had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many of the Samaritan villages. 26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get up and go south to the desert road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official in charge of the entire treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. He had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his return was sitting in his chariot reading Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Spirit said to Philip, “Go over to that chariot and stay by it.” 30 So Philip ran up and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. 31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so He did not open His mouth. 33 In His humiliation He was deprived of justice. Who can recount His descendants? For His life was removed from the earth.” 34 “Tell me,” said the eunuch, “who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” 35 Then Philip began with this very Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they traveled along the road and came to some water, the eunuch said, “Look, here is water! What is there to prevent me from being baptized?” 37 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, but went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip appeared at Azotus and traveled through that region, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.
Acts 9
Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord. He approached the high priest 2 and requested letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women belonging to the Way, he could bring them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As Saul drew near to Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?” 5 “Who are You, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” He replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless. They heard the voice but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could not see a thing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was without sight, and he did not eat or drink anything. 10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, “Ananias!” “Here I am, Lord,” he answered. 11 “Get up!” the Lord told him. “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” 13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, many people have told me about this man and all the harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. 14 And now he is here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.” 15 “Go!” said the Lord. “This man is My chosen instrument to carry My name before the Gentiles and their kings, and before the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.” 17 So Ananias went to the house, and when he arrived, he placed his hands on Saul. “Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 At that instant, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and his sight was restored. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. And he spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 Saul promptly began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, declaring, “He is the Son of God.” 21 All who heard him were astounded and asked, “Isn’t this the man who wreaked havoc in Jerusalem on those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22 But Saul was empowered all the more, and he confounded the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ. 23 After many days had passed, the Jews conspired to kill him, 24 but Saul learned of their plot. Day and night they watched the city gates in order to kill him. 25 One night, however, his disciples took him and lowered him in a basket through a window in the wall. 26 When Saul arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. 27 Then Barnabas brought him to the apostles and described how Saul had seen the Lord, who had spoken to him on the road to Damascus, and how Saul had spoken boldly in that city in the name of Jesus. 28 So Saul stayed with them, moving about freely in Jerusalem and speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. 29 He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews, but they tried to kill him. 30 When the brothers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. 31 Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria experienced a time of peace. It grew in strength and numbers, living in the fear of the Lord and the encouragement of the Holy Spirit. 32 As Peter traveled throughout the area, he went to visit the saints in Lydda. 33 There he found a man named Aeneas who had been paralyzed and bedridden for eight years. 34 “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you! Get up and put away your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up, 35 and all who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. 36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which is translated as Dorcas), who was always occupied with works of kindness and charity. 37 At that time, however, she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upper room. 38 Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to urge him, “Come to us without delay.” 39 So Peter got up and went with them. On his arrival, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood around him, weeping and showing him the tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them. 40 Then Peter sent them all out of the room. He knelt down and prayed, and turning toward her body, he said, “Tabitha, get up!” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. 41 Peter took her by the hand and helped her up. Then he called the saints and widows and presented her to them alive. 42 This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. 43 And Peter stayed for several days in Joppa with a tanner named Simon.
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.
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.