Daily Bible Verses

Heavenly Father
give us grace to be a blessing to ALL those we meet today, particularly bringing comfort where it is needed 

¹¹ I will make all my mountains a road,
    and my highways shall be exalted.
¹² Behold, these shall come from afar,
    and behold, these from the north and from the west;
    and these from the land of Sinim.” [probably China]
¹³ Sing, heavens, and be joyful, earth!
    Break out into singing,…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to trust your love even when we feel forgotten.

 ¹⁴ But Zion said, “Yahweh has forsaken me,
    and the Lord has forgotten me.”
¹⁵ “Can a woman forget her nursing child,
    that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb?
Yes, these may forget,
    yet I will not forget you!
¹⁶ Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.
    Your walls are continually…

Heavenly Father
open our eyes today so that we may see all the ways in which we are not alone by your grace, particularly when we feel alone

[A Message of Hope to God’s people who find themselves in a lonely place - in exile]

¹⁷ Your children hurry. [to return to you - because ….]
    Your destroyers and those who devastated you will leave you.
¹⁸ Lift up your eyes all around, and see:
    all these [your children] gather themselves…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to walk with you patiently today

²² The Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,
    and lift up my banner to the peoples.
They shall bring your sons in their bosom,
    and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders.
²³ Kings shall be your foster fathers,
    and their queens your nursing mothers.
They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth,
    and lick the dust of…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to live in hope, particularly when things look bleak. 

[Isaiah gives a message of hope to the Jews who had been taken into captivity by the Babylonians,
that the Persian empire would take the Babylonians into captivity and allow the Jews to return to Judea]

²⁴ Shall the plunder be taken from the mighty,
    or the lawful captives be delivered?
²⁵ But Yahweh says, “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away,
    and the plunder…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to listen to you, and the trust in your power to save

[God’s people have suffered the consequences of their rebellion]

¹ Yahweh says, “Where is the bill of your mother’s divorce, with which I have put her away?
    Or to which of my creditors have I sold you?
Behold, you were sold for your iniquities,
    and your mother was put away for your transgressions.

[But when God approached them to deliver them, no-one was listening] 

…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to listen to you so that we may be a blessing to those who are weary

⁴ The Lord Yahweh has given me the tongue of those who are taught,
    that I may know how to sustain with words him who is weary.
He awakens morning by morning,
    he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught.
⁵ The Lord Yahweh has opened my ear.
    I was not rebellious.
    I have not turned back.
…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to live today as those who are confident in the help you give us

⁶ I gave my back to those who beat me,
    and my cheeks to those who plucked off the hair.
    I didn’t hide my face from shame and spitting.
⁷ For the Lord Yahweh will help me.
    Therefore I have not been confounded.
Therefore I have set my face like a flint,
    and I know that I won’t be disappointed.
⁸ He…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to trust in you today

¹⁰ Who among you fears Yahweh
    and obeys the voice of his servant?
He who walks in darkness
    and has no light,
let him trust in Yahweh’s name,
    and rely on his God.
[the alternative is to make our own fire, our own light which leads to lying down in sorrow]

¹¹ Behold, all you who kindle a fire,
    who adorn yourselves with torches around yourselves,…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to find our joy in you today

¹ “Listen to me, you who follow after righteousness,
    you who seek Yahweh.
Look to the rock you were cut from,
    and to the quarry you were dug from.
² Look to Abraham your father,
    and to Sarah who bore you;
for when he was but one I called him,
    I blessed him,
    and made him many.
³ For Yahweh has…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to be agents of your justice today, trusting in you  

⁴ “Listen to me, my people;
    and hear me, my nation,
for a law will go out from me,
    and I will establish my justice for a light to the peoples.
⁵ My righteousness is near.
    My salvation has gone out,
    and my arms will judge the peoples.
The islands will wait for me,
    and they…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to open our hearts today to you so that we may know your righteousness and live accordingly. 

⁶ Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
    and look at the earth beneath;
for the heavens will vanish away like smoke,
    and the earth will wear out like a garment.
Its inhabitants will die in the same way,
    but my salvation will be forever,
    and my righteousness will not be abolished.

⁷ “Listen to…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to place today and tomorrow in your hands with joy, trusting in your power shown in the past. 

[the power of Yahweh existed before history and is attested to in mythical stories of monsters such as Rahab]

⁹ Awake, awake, put on strength, arm of Yahweh!
    Awake, as in the days of old,
    the generations of ancient times.
Isn’t it you who cut Rahab in pieces,
    who pierced the monster?

[the power of Yahweh was shown in history .e.g.…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to not be afraid today, but to find comfort in you. 

¹² “I, even I, am he who comforts you.
    Who are you, that you are afraid of man who shall die,
    and of the son of man who will be made as grass?
¹³ Have you forgotten Yahweh your Maker,
    who stretched out the heavens,
    and laid the foundations of the earth?
Do you live in fear continually all day because of the…

Heavenly Father
give us grace to turn to you when we have problems, particularly when we are trapped, when we face death and when our resources fail. 

¹⁴ The captive exile will speedily be freed.
    He will not die and go down into the pit.
    His bread won’t fail.
¹⁵ For I am Yahweh your God, who stirs up the sea
    so that its waves roar.
    Yahweh of Armies is his name.

 …

Heavenly Father
give us grace to live as your children so that your kingdom may come on earth as it is in heaven. 

¹⁶ I have put my words in your mouth
    and have covered you in the shadow of my hand,
that I may plant the heavens,
    and lay the foundations of the earth,
    and tell Zion, ‘You are my people.’”

Heavenly Father
give us grace to trust in your justice today

[The consequences of turning from the peaceful and righteous way of the Lord apply to all people.  
In this case this has happened to the people of Jerusalem (in the shape of desolation, destruction, famine and sword),
but it will also happen to those who have walked over and afflicted them]

¹⁷ Awake, awake!
    Stand up, Jerusalem,
    you who have drunk from Yahweh’s hand the cup of his wrath.
¹⁹ …

Heavenly Father
give us grace to know you and your justice today and have no part in oppression.

¹Awake, awake! Put on your strength, Zion.
    Put on your beautiful garments, Jerusalem, the holy city:
    for from now on the uncircumcised and the unclean will no more come into you. [and oppress you]
² Shake yourself from the dust!
    Arise, sit up, Jerusalem!
    Release yourself from the bonds of your neck, captive daughter of Zion! […

Heavenly Father
give us grace to to speak words of peace and of good news today

 ⁷ How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news,
    who publishes peace,
    who brings good news,
    who proclaims salvation,
    who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”

Heavenly Father
give us grace to abide in you today in peace

⁸ Your watchmen lift up their voice.
    Together they sing;
    for they shall see eye to eye when Yahweh returns to Zion.  [i.e. our heavenly father living in his people]
⁹ Break out into joy!
    Sing together, you waste places of Jerusalem; [parts of our lives from which we have formerly excluded our heavenly father]
    for Yahweh has comforted…