Daily Devotions · October 29
Reading for October 29
Read the whole Bible in a year, a few chapters a day.
Job 20 · Mark 3–4
Job 20 · Mark 3–4, Berean Standard Bible
Job 20
Then Zophar the Naamathite replied: 2 “So my anxious thoughts compel me to answer, because of the turmoil within me. 3 I have heard a rebuke that insults me, and my understanding prompts a reply. 4 Do you not know that from antiquity, since man was placed on the earth, 5 the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary? 6 Though his arrogance reaches the heavens, and his head touches the clouds, 7 he will perish forever, like his own dung; those who had seen him will ask, ‘Where is he?’ 8 He will fly away like a dream, never to be found; he will be chased away like a vision in the night. 9 The eye that saw him will see him no more, and his place will no longer behold him. 10 His sons will seek the favor of the poor, for his own hands must return his wealth. 11 The youthful vigor that fills his bones will lie down with him in the dust. 12 Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue, 13 though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth, 14 yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him. 15 He swallows wealth but vomits it out; God will force it from his stomach. 16 He will suck the poison of cobras; the fangs of a viper will kill him. 17 He will not enjoy the streams, the rivers flowing with honey and cream. 18 He must return the fruit of his labor without consuming it; he cannot enjoy the profits of his trading. 19 For he has oppressed and forsaken the poor; he has seized houses he did not build. 20 Because his appetite is never satisfied, he cannot escape with his treasure. 21 Nothing is left for him to consume; thus his prosperity will not endure. 22 In the midst of his plenty, he will be distressed; the full force of misery will come upon him. 23 When he has filled his stomach, God will vent His fury upon him, raining it down on him as he eats. 24 Though he flees from an iron weapon, a bronze-tipped arrow will pierce him. 25 It is drawn out of his back, the gleaming point from his liver. Terrors come over him. 26 Total darkness is reserved for his treasures. A fire unfanned will consume him and devour what is left in his tent. 27 The heavens will expose his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him. 28 The possessions of his house will be removed, flowing away on the day of God’s wrath. 29 This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the inheritance God has appointed him.”
Mark 3
Once again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man with a withered hand was there. 2 In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see if He would heal on the Sabbath. 3 Then Jesus said to the man with the withered hand, “Stand up among us.” 4 And He asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?” But they were silent. 5 Jesus looked around at them with anger and sorrow at their hardness of heart. Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and it was restored. 6 At this, the Pharisees went out and began plotting with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. 7 So Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea, accompanied by a large crowd from Galilee, Judea, 8 Jerusalem, Idumea, the region beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon. The large crowd came to Him when they heard what great things He was doing. 9 Jesus asked His disciples to have a boat ready for Him so that the crowd would not crush Him. 10 For He had healed so many that all who had diseases were pressing forward to touch Him. 11 And when the unclean spirits saw Him, they fell down before Him and cried out, “You are the Son of God!” 12 But He warned them sternly not to make Him known. 13 Then Jesus went up on the mountain and called for those He wanted, and they came to Him. 14 He appointed twelve of them, whom He designated as apostles, to accompany Him, to be sent out to preach, 15 and to have authority to drive out demons. 16 These are the twelve He appointed: Simon (whom He named Peter), 17 James son of Zebedee and his brother John (whom He named Boanerges, meaning “Sons of Thunder”), 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus. 20 Then Jesus went home, and once again a crowd gathered, so that He and His disciples could not even eat. 21 When His family heard about this, they went out to take custody of Him, saying, “He is out of His mind.” 22 And the scribes who had come down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and, “By the prince of the demons He drives out demons.” 23 So Jesus called them together and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, it cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, it cannot stand. 26 And if Satan is divided and rises against himself, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 Indeed, no one can enter a strong man’s house to steal his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house. 28 Truly I tell you, the sons of men will be forgiven all sins and blasphemies, as many as they utter. 29 But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of eternal sin.” 30 Jesus made this statement because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.” 31 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers came and stood outside. They sent someone in to summon Him, 32 and a crowd was sitting around Him. “Look,” He was told, “Your mother and brothers are outside, asking for You.” 33 But Jesus replied, “Who are My mother and My brothers?” 34 Looking at those seated in a circle around Him, He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.”
Mark 4
Once again Jesus began to teach beside the sea, and such a large crowd gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people crowded along the shore. 2 And He taught them many things in parables, and in His teaching He said, 3 “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 And as he was sowing, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun rose, the seedlings were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the seedlings, and they yielded no crop. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it sprouted, grew up, and produced a crop—one bearing thirtyfold, another sixtyfold, and another a hundredfold.” 9 Then Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” 10 As soon as Jesus was alone with the Twelve and those around Him, they asked Him about the parable. 11 He replied, “The mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to those on the outside everything is expressed in parables, 12 so that, ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven.’” 13 Then Jesus said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand any of the parables? 14 The farmer sows the word. 15 Some are like the seeds along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 Some are like the seeds sown on rocky ground. They hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 But they themselves have no root, and they remain for only a season. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18 Others are like the seeds sown among the thorns. They hear the word, 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 Still others are like the seeds sown on good soil. They hear the word, receive it, and produce a crop—thirtyfold, sixtyfold, or a hundredfold.” 21 Jesus also said to them, “Does anyone bring in a lamp to put it under a basket or under a bed? Doesn’t he set it on a stand? 22 For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be brought to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” 24 He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you hear. With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and even more will be added to you. 25 For whoever has will be given more. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.” 26 Jesus also said, “The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day he sleeps and wakes, and the seed sprouts and grows, though he knows not how. 28 All by itself the earth produces a crop—first the stalk, then the head, then grain that ripens within. 29 And as soon as the grain is ripe, he swings the sickle, because the harvest has come.” 30 Then He asked, “To what can we compare the kingdom of God? With what parable shall we present it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds sown upon the earth. 32 But after it is planted, it grows to be the largest of all garden plants and puts forth great branches, so that the birds of the air nest in its shade.” 33 With many such parables Jesus spoke the word to them, to the extent that they could understand. 34 He did not tell them anything without using a parable. But privately He explained everything to His own disciples. 35 When that evening came, He said to His disciples, “Let us cross to the other side.” 36 After they had dismissed the crowd, they took Jesus with them, since He was already in the boat. And there were other boats with Him. 37 Soon a violent windstorm came up, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was being swamped. 38 But Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke Him and said, “Teacher, don’t You care that we are perishing?” 39 Then Jesus got up and rebuked the wind and the sea. “Silence!” He commanded. “Be still!” And the wind died down, and it was perfectly calm. 40 “Why are you so afraid?” He asked. “Do you still have no faith?” 41 Overwhelmed with fear, they asked one another, “Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
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.