Heavenly Father
give us grace to listen to your voice today, and grace to rely on you as citizens of the kingdom of heaven, in truth and righteousness1 “Hear this, house of Jacob,
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you who are called by the name of Israel,
and have come out of the waters of Judah.
You swear by Yahweh’s name,
and make mention of the God of Israel,
but not in truth, nor in righteousness—
2 …Heavenly Father
give us grace to be guided by you today, whether the guidance is from of old, or whether it is from today.[God revealing things in advance]
4 Because I knew that you are obstinate;
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5 therefore I have declared it to you from of old;
before it came to pass I showed it to you;
lest you should say, ‘My idol has done them.
My engraved image and my molten image has commanded them.’
6 You have heard it.
…Heavenly Father
give us grace to be merciful today, particularly in difficult circumstances9 For my name’s sake, I will defer my anger,
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and for my praise, I hold it back for you
so that I don’t cut you off.
10 Behold, I have refined you,
but not as silver.
I have chosen you in the furnace of affliction.
11 For my own sake,
for my own sake, I will do…Heavenly Father
give us grace to hear your eternal voice today.12 “Listen to me, O Jacob,
and Israel my called:
I am he.
I am the first.
I am also the last.
13 Yes, my hand has laid the foundation of the earth,
and my right hand has spread out the heavens.
when I call to them, they stand up together.Heavenly Father
give us grace to trust that your purposes are being worked out in our world (just as they were when the Chaldeans in Babylon who had taken Israel into exile were defeated by Cyrus who then permitted Israel to return from exile)14 “Assemble yourselves, all of you, and hear!
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Who among them has declared these things?
He whom Yahweh loves will do what he likes to Babylon,
and his arm will be against the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken.
…Heavenly Father
give us grace to be obedient to you today so that we may live in peace and righteousness17 Yahweh,
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your Redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel says:
“I am Yahweh your God,
who teaches you to profit,
who leads you by the way that you should go.
18 Oh that you had listened to my commandments!
Then your peace would have been like a river
and your…Heavenly Father
give us grace to open our hearts to you today so that we may live in peace20 Leave Babylon! [The place where Israel went into exile]
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Flee from the Chaldeans! [The new power who will return Israel to their own land]
With a voice of singing announce this,
tell it even to the end of the earth:
say, “Yahweh has redeemed his servant Jacob!”
21 They didn’t thirst when he led them through the deserts. [Remembering back to when…Heavenly Father
give us grace to live in the knowledge that our pasts, our presents and our futures are in you.1 Listen, islands, to me.
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Listen, you peoples, from afar:
Yahweh has called me from the womb;
from the inside of my mother, he has mentioned my name.
2 He has made my mouth like a sharp sword.
He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.
He has made me a polished shaft.
He has kept me close in his…Heavenly Father
give us grace to live as Jesus did- finding strength in you and being a blessing to others5 Now Yahweh, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,
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says to bring Jacob again to him,
and to gather Israel to him,
for I am honourable in Yahweh’s eyes,
and my God has become my strength.
6 Indeed, he says, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob,
…Heavenly Father
give us grace to trust your guidance today, particularly when we are out of our comfort zone8 Yahweh says, “I have answered you in an acceptable time.
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I have helped you in a day of salvation.
I will preserve you and give you for a covenant of the people,
to raise up the land, to make them inherit the desolate heritage,
9 saying to those who are bound, ‘Come out!’;
to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves!’
“They…Heavenly Father
give us grace to be a blessing to ALL those we meet today, particularly bringing comfort where it is needed11 I will make all my mountains a road,
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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,
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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 ….]
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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 today22 The Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations,
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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,
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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]
…
moreHeavenly Father
give us grace to listen to you so that we may be a blessing to those who are weary4 The Lord Yahweh has given me the tongue of those who are taught,
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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 us6 I gave my back to those who beat me,
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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,
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who adorn yourselves with torches around yourselves,…Heavenly Father
give us grace to find our joy in you today
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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…
Daily Bible Verses
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