Deuteronomy 16, Psalm 103, Isaiah 43, Revelation 13

Deuteronomy 16,

1 Observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover of the LORD your God, because in the month of Abib he brought you out of Egypt by night.
 
2 Sacrifice as the Passover to the LORD your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for his Name.
 
3 Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left Egypt in haste-so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt.
 
4 Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening of the first day remain until morning.
 
5 You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the LORD your God gives you
 
6 except in the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of your departure from Egypt.
 
7 Roast it and eat it at the place the LORD your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents.
 
8 For six days eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day hold an assembly to the LORD your God and do no work.
 
9 Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.
 
10 Then celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the LORD your God has given you.
 
11 And rejoice before the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name-you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, the Levites in your towns, and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows living among you.
 
12 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and follow carefully these decrees.
 
13 Celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress.
 
14 Be joyful at your Feast-you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levites, the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns.
 
15 For seven days celebrate the Feast to the LORD your God at the place the LORD will choose. For the LORD your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete.
 
16 Three times a year all your men must appear before the LORD your God at the place he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Tabernacles. No man should appear before the LORD empty-handed:
 
17 Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the LORD your God has blessed you.
 
18 Appoint judges and officials for each of your tribes in every town the LORD your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly.
 
19 Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.
 
20 Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD your God is giving you.
 
21 Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole beside the altar you build to the LORD your God,
 
22 and do not erect a sacred stone, for these the LORD your God hates.

Psalm 103,

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
 
2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-
 
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
 
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
 
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
 
6 The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
 
7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:
 
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
 
9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;
 
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
 
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
 
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
 
13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
 
14 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.
 
15 As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field;
 
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.
 
17 But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children-
 
18 with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.
 
19 The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
 
20 Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.
 
21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.
 
22 Praise the LORD, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the LORD, O my soul.

Isaiah 43,

1 But now, this is what the LORD says-he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
 
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
 
3 For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
 
4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life.
 
5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.
 
6 I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth-
 
7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made."
 
8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf.
 
9 All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of them foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, "It is true."
 
10 "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.
 
11 I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior.
 
12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed-I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "that I am God.
 
13 Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?"
 
14 This is what the LORD says-your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride.
 
15 I am the LORD, your Holy One, Israel's Creator, your King."
 
16 This is what the LORD says-he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters,
 
17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
 
18 "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.
 
19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
 
20 The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen,
 
21 the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.
 
22 "Yet you have not called upon me, O Jacob, you have not wearied yourselves for me, O Israel.
 
23 You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings, nor honored me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with grain offerings nor wearied you with demands for incense.
 
24 You have not bought any fragrant calamus for me, or lavished on me the fat of your sacrifices. But you have burdened me with your sins and wearied me with your offenses.
 
25 "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.
 
26 Review the past for me, let us argue the matter together; state the case for your innocence.
 
27 Your first father sinned; your spokesmen rebelled against me.
 
28 So I will disgrace the dignitaries of your temple, and I will consign Jacob to destruction and Israel to scorn.

Revelation 13

1 And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name.
 
2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.
 
3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast.
 
4 Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, "Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?"
 
5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months.
 
6 He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven.
 
7 He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.
 
8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast-all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.
 
9 He who has an ear, let him hear.
 
10 If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.
 
11 Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon.
 
12 He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.
 
13 And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of men.
 
14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived.
 
15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
 
16 He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead,
 
17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.
 
18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666.