Daily Devotions · September 23
Reading for September 23
Read the whole Bible in a year, a few chapters a day.
Daniel 11–12 · Luke 6
Daniel 11–12 · Luke 6, Berean Standard Bible
Daniel 11
“And I, in the first year of Darius the Mede, stood up to strengthen and protect him. 2 Now then, I will tell you the truth: Three more kings will arise in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. By the power of his wealth, he will stir up everyone against the kingdom of Greece. 3 Then a mighty king will arise, who will rule with great authority and do as he pleases. 4 But as soon as he is established, his kingdom will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the authority with which he ruled, because his kingdom will be uprooted and given to others. 5 The king of the South will grow strong, but one of his commanders will grow even stronger and will rule his own kingdom with great authority. 6 After some years they will form an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the South will go to the king of the North to seal the agreement. But his daughter will not retain her position of power, nor will his strength endure. At that time she will be given up, along with her royal escort and her father and the one who supported her. 7 But one from her family line will rise up in his place, come against the army of the king of the North, and enter his fortress, fighting and prevailing. 8 He will take even their gods captive to Egypt, with their metal images and their precious vessels of silver and gold. For some years he will stay away from the king of the North, 9 who will invade the realm of the king of the South and then return to his own land. 10 But his sons will stir up strife and assemble a great army, which will advance forcefully, sweeping through like a flood, and will again carry the battle as far as his fortress. 11 In a rage, the king of the South will march out to fight the king of the North, who will raise a large army, but it will be delivered into the hand of his enemy. 12 When the army is carried off, the king of the South will be proud in heart and will cast down tens of thousands, but he will not triumph. 13 For the king of the North will raise another army, larger than the first, and after some years he will advance with a great army and many supplies. 14 In those times many will rise up against the king of the South. Violent ones among your own people will exalt themselves in fulfillment of the vision, but they will fail. 15 Then the king of the North will come, build up a siege ramp, and capture a fortified city. The forces of the South will not stand; even their best troops will not be able to resist. 16 The invader will do as he pleases, and no one will stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land, with destruction in his hand. 17 He will resolve to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and will reach an agreement with the king of the South. He will give him a daughter in marriage in order to overthrow the kingdom, but his plan will not succeed or help him. 18 Then he will turn his face to the coastlands and capture many of them. But a commander will put an end to his reproach and will turn it back upon him. 19 After this, he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own land, but he will stumble and fall and be no more. 20 In his place one will arise who will send out a tax collector for the glory of the kingdom; but within a few days he will be destroyed, though not in anger or in battle. 21 In his place a despicable person will arise; royal honors will not be given to him, but he will come in a time of peace and seize the kingdom by intrigue. 22 Then a flood of forces will be swept away before him and destroyed, along with a prince of the covenant. 23 After an alliance is made with him, he will act deceitfully; for he will rise to power with only a few people. 24 In a time of peace, he will invade the richest provinces and do what his fathers and forefathers never did. He will lavish plunder, loot, and wealth on his followers, and he will plot against the strongholds—but only for a time. 25 And with a large army he will stir up his power and his courage against the king of the South, who will mobilize a very large and powerful army but will not withstand the plots devised against him. 26 Those who eat from his provisions will seek to destroy him; his army will be swept away, and many will fall slain. 27 And the two kings, with their hearts bent on evil, will speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for still the end will come at the appointed time. 28 The king of the North will return to his land with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant; so he will do damage and return to his own land. 29 At the appointed time he will invade the South again, but this time will not be like the first. 30 Ships of Kittim will come against him, and he will lose heart. Then he will turn back and rage against the holy covenant and do damage. So he will return and show favor to those who forsake the holy covenant. 31 His forces will rise up and desecrate the temple fortress. They will abolish the daily sacrifice and set up the abomination of desolation. 32 With flattery he will corrupt those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him. 33 Those with insight will instruct many, though for a time they will fall by sword or flame, or be captured or plundered. 34 Now when they fall, they will be granted a little help, but many will join them insincerely. 35 Some of the wise will fall so that they may be refined, purified, and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time. 36 Then the king will do as he pleases and will exalt and magnify himself above every god, and he will speak monstrous things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must be accomplished. 37 He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers, nor for the one desired by women, nor for any other god, because he will magnify himself above them all. 38 And in their place, he will honor a god of fortresses—a god his fathers did not know—with gold, silver, precious stones, and riches. 39 He will attack the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god and will greatly honor those who acknowledge him, making them rulers over many and distributing the land for a price. 40 At the time of the end, the king of the South will engage him in battle, but the king of the North will storm out against him with chariots, horsemen, and many ships, invading many countries and sweeping through them like a flood. 41 He will also invade the Beautiful Land, and many countries will fall. But these will be delivered from his hand: Edom, Moab, and the leaders of the Ammonites. 42 He will extend his power over many countries, and not even the land of Egypt will escape. 43 He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and over all the riches of Egypt, and the Libyans and Cushites will also submit to him. 44 But news from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will go out with great fury to destroy many and devote them to destruction. 45 He will pitch his royal tents between the sea and the beautiful holy mountain, but he will meet his end with no one to help him.
Daniel 12
“At that time Michael, the great prince who stands watch over your people, will rise up. There will be a time of distress, the likes of which will not have occurred from the beginning of nations until that time. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered. 2 And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Then the wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, shut up these words and seal the book until the time of the end. Many will roam to and fro, and knowledge will increase.” 5 Then I, Daniel, looked and saw two others standing there, one on this bank of the river and one on the opposite bank. 6 One of them said to the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long until the fulfillment of these wonders?” 7 And the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by Him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, and times, and half a time. When the power of the holy people has finally been shattered, all these things will be completed.” 8 I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these things?” 9 “Go on your way, Daniel,” he replied, “for the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end. 10 Many will be purified, made spotless, and refined, but the wicked will continue to act wickedly. None of the wicked will understand, but the wise will understand. 11 And from the time the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination of desolation set up, there will be 1,290 days. 12 Blessed is he who waits and reaches the end of the 1,335 days. 13 But as for you, go on your way until the end. You will rest, and then you will arise to your inheritance at the end of the days.”
Luke 6
One Sabbath Jesus was passing through the grainfields, and His disciples began to pick the heads of grain, rub them in their hands, and eat them. 2 But some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 3 Jesus replied, “Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He entered the house of God, took the consecrated bread and gave it to his companions, and ate what is lawful only for the priests to eat.” 5 Then Jesus declared, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” 6 On another Sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, the scribes and Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He would heal on the Sabbath. 8 But Jesus knew their thoughts and said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and stand among us.” So he got up and stood there. 9 Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 And after looking around at all of them, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and it was restored. 11 But the scribes and Pharisees were filled with rage and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus. 12 In those days Jesus went out to the mountain to pray, and He spent the night in prayer to God. 13 When daylight came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also designated as apostles: 14 Simon, whom He named Peter, and his brother Andrew; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; 15 Matthew and Thomas; James son of Alphaeus and Simon called the Zealot; 16 Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. 17 Then Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of His disciples was there, along with a great number of people from all over Judea, Jerusalem, and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon. 18 They had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases, and those troubled by unclean spirits were healed. 19 The entire crowd was trying to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all. 20 Looking up at His disciples, Jesus said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man. 23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For their fathers treated the prophets in the same way. 24 But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. 25 Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers treated the false prophets in the same way. 27 But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone takes your cloak, do not withhold your tunic as well. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what is yours, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. 32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. 37 Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” 39 Jesus also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. 41 Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye but fail to notice the beam in your own eye? 42 How can you say, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while you yourself fail to see the beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. 43 No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 For each tree is known by its own fruit. Indeed, figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor grapes from brambles. 45 The good man brings good things out of the good treasure of his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil treasure of his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. 46 Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ but do not do what I say? 47 I will show you what he is like who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them: 48 He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid his foundation on the rock. When the flood came, the torrent crashed against that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears My words and does not act on them is like a man who built his house on ground without a foundation. The torrent crashed against that house, and immediately it fell—and great was its destruction!”
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.
Added to your journal. Go to journal
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.