Ecclesiastes 1-3 - Vanity under the Sun

All Is Vanity

Ecc 1:2 LSB - [2] "Vanity of vanities," says the Preacher, "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity."

Ecc 1:9 LSB - [9] That which has been is that which will be, And that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun.

Ecc 1:11 LSB - [11] There is no remembrance of earlier things; And also of the later things which will be, There will be for them no remembrance Among those who will come later [still].

The Vanity of Wisdom

Ecc 1:13 LSB - [13] And I gave my heart to seek and explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven. [It] is a grievous endeavor [which] God has given to the sons of men with which to occupy [themselves].

Ecc 1:14 LSB - [14] I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind.

Ecc 1:18 LSB - [18] Because in much wisdom there is much vexation, and [whoever] increases knowledge increases pain.

The Vanity of Pleasure and Possessions

Ecc 2:1 ESV - [1] I said in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy yourself." But behold, this also was vanity.

Ecc 2:11 LSB - [11] Thus I turned to all my works which my hands had done and the labor which I had labored to do, and behold, all was vanity and striving after wind, and there was no advantage under the sun.

The Vanity of Living Wisely

Ecc 2:15 LSB - [15] Then I said in my heart, "As is the fate of the fool, so will my fate be also. Why then have I been extremely wise?" So I said in my heart, "This too is vanity."

Ecc 2:16-17 LSB - [16] For there is no remembrance of the wise man along with the fool forever, inasmuch as [in] the coming days all will be forgotten. And how the wise man dies with the fool! [17] So I hated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was grievous to me; because everything is vanity and striving after wind.

The Vanity of Labor

Ecc 2:18 LSB - [18] Thus I hated all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

Ecc 2:24-25 LSB - [24] There is nothing better for a man [than] to eat and drink and have his soul see good in his labor. This also I have seen that it is from the hand of God. [25] For who can eat and who can have enjoyment outside of Him?

Ecc 2:26 LSB - [26] For to a man who is good before Him, He has given wisdom and knowledge and gladness, while to the sinner He has given the endeavor of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good before God. This too is vanity and striving after wind.

A Time for Everything

Ecc 3:1-2 LSB - 

[1] There is an appointed time for everything. 

And there is a time for every matter under heaven-- 

[2] A time to give birth and a time to die; 

A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.

God Set Eternity in the Heart of Man

Ecc 3:11 LSB - [11] He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.

Ecc 3:12-13 LSB - [12] I know that there is nothing better for them than to be glad and to do good in one's lifetime; [13] moreover, that every man who eats and drinks and sees good in all his labor--it is the gift of God.

Ecc 3:19-20 LSB - [19] For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same fate for [each of] them. As one dies so dies the other, and they all have the same breath. So there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is vanity. [20] All go to the same place. All came from the dust, and all return to the dust.

Ecc 3:21 LSB - [21] Who knows that the breath of man ascends upward and the breath of the beast descends downward to the earth?

Psalm 88-89 - What man can live and not see death?

Incline Your Ear to My Cry

Psa 88:1 LSB - [1] A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the choir director. According to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite. 

O Yahweh, the God of my salvation, 

I have cried out by day and throughout the night before You.

Psa 88:2 LSB - [2] Let my prayer come before You; 

Incline Your ear to my cry of lamentation!

Psa 88:13 LSB - [13] But as for me, O Yahweh, I have cried out to You for help, 

And in the morning my prayer comes before You.

Sing of the Lovingkindness of Yahweh Forever

Psa 89:1 LSB - [1] A Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite. 

I will sing of the lovingkindnesses of Yahweh forever; 

From generation to generation I will make known Your faithfulness with my mouth.

Psa 89:14 ESV - [14] Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.

Psa 89:47-48 LSB - [47] Remember what my span of life is; 

For what vanity You have created all the sons of men! 

[48] What man can live and not see death? 

Can he provide his soul escape from the power of Sheol? Selah.

Psalm 84-87 - To You, O Lord, I Lift Up My Soul

Blessed Is the Man Who Trusts in You

Psa 84:1 LSB - [1] For the choir director. According to the Gittith. Of the sons of Korah. A Psalm. 

How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Yahweh of hosts!

Psa 84:10 LSB - 

[10] For better is a day in Your courts than a thousand [elsewhere]. 

I would choose to stand at the threshold of the house of my God 

Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

Turn Us Back, O God

Psa 85:4 ESV - [4] Restore us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us!

Psa 85:9 LSB - [9] Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, That glory may dwell in our land.

To You, O Lord, I Lift Up My Soul

Psa 86:9 LSB - 

[9] All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord, 

And they shall glorify Your name.

Psa 86:11 LSB - 

[11] Teach me Your way, O Yahweh; 

I will walk in Your truth; 

Unite my heart to fear Your name.

Glorious Things of You Are Spoken

Psa 87:2 LSB - 

[2] Yahweh loves the gates of Zion 

More than all the dwelling places of Jacob.

Psa 87:3 LSB - 

[3] Glorious things are spoken of you, 

O city of God. Selah.

Psa 87:4-6 LSB - 

[4] "I shall mention Rahab and Babylon among those who know Me; 

Behold, Philistia and Tyre with Ethiopia: 'This one was born there.'" 

[5] But of Zion it shall be said, 

"This one and that one were born in her"; 

And the Most High Himself will establish her. 

[6] Yahweh will count when He registers the peoples, 

"This one was born there." Selah.

Psalm 80-83

O God, Restore Us

Psa 80:1 LSB - [1] For the choir director. El Shoshannim. Eduth. Of Asaph. A Psalm. 

O Shepherd of Israel, give ear, 

You who guide Joseph like a flock; 

You who are enthroned [above] the cherubim, shine forth!

Psa 80:3 LSB - [3] O God, restore us And cause Your face to shine [upon us], that we would be saved.

Oh That My People Would Listen to Me

Psa 81:5 LSB - [5] He established it for a testimony in Joseph When he went forth over the land of Egypt. I heard a language that I did not know:

Psa 81:8-10 LSB - [8] "Hear, O My people, and I will testify against you; O Israel, if you would listen to Me! [9] "Let there be no strange god among you; And you shall not worship a foreign god. [10] "I am Yahweh your God, Who brought you up from the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.

Psa 81:13 LSB - [13] "Oh that My people would listen to Me, That Israel would walk in My ways!

God Stands in Judgment

Psa 82:1 LSB - [1] A Psalm of Asaph. 

God takes His stand in the congregation of God; 

He judges in the midst of gods.

Psa 82:6-7 LSB - 

[6] I said, "You are gods, 

And all of you are sons of the Most High. 

[7] "Nevertheless you will die like men 

And you will fall like [any] one of the princes."

Jhn 10:34-36 LSB - 

[34] Jesus answered them, "Has it not been written in your Law, 'I SAID, YOU ARE GODS'? 

[35] "If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 

[36] do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?

 

O God, Do Not Be Quiet

Psa 83:1 LSB - [1] A Song. A Psalm of Asaph. 

O God, do not remain at rest; 

Do not be silent and, O God, do not be quiet.

Psa 83:18 LSB - 

[18] That they may know that You alone--Your name is Yahweh-- 

Are the Most High over all the earth.

 

Psalm 77-79 - The Lord chose the tribe of Judah

In My Distress I Sought the Lord

Psa 77:4 LSB - [4] You have held my eyelids [open]; I am so troubled that I cannot speak.

Psa 77:9-10 LSB - [9] Has God forgotten to be gracious, Or has He in anger shut up His compassion? Selah. [10] Then I said, "It is my grief, That the right hand of the Most High has changed."

Psa 77:11-12 LSB - [11] I shall remember the deeds of Yah; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. [12] I will meditate on all Your work And muse on Your deeds.

That the Generation to Come Might Know

Psa 78:5-8 LSB - 

[5] For He established a testimony in Jacob And set a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers That they should teach them to their children, 

[6] That the generation to come might know, [even] the children [yet] to be born, [That] they may arise and recount [them] to their children, 

[7] That they should set their confidence in God And not forget the deeds of God, But observe His commandments,

[8] And not be like their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, A generation that did not prepare its heart And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

Psa 78:65-68 LSB - 

[65] Then the Lord awoke as [if from] sleep, As [if He were a] warrior overcome by wine. 

[66] He struck His adversaries backward; He put on them an everlasting reproach. 

[67] He also rejected the tent of Joseph, And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, 

[68] But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved.

How Long, O Yahweh?

Psa 79:4-5 LSB - [4] We have become a reproach to our neighbors, A mockery and derision to those around us. [5] How long, O Yahweh? Will You be angry forever? Will Your jealousy burn like fire?

Psa 79:12-13 LSB - [12] And return to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom The reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord. [13] But as for us, as Your people and the sheep of Your pasture, We will give thanks to You forever; From generation to generation we will recount Your praise.

Psalm 73-76 - Your name is near

God Is My Strength and Portion Forever

Psa 73:1 LSB - [1] A Psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, To those who are pure in heart!

Rom 2:28-29 LSB - [28] For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. [29] But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.

Psa 73:28 LSB - [28] But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have set Lord Yahweh as my refuge, That I may recount all Your works.

Arise, O God, Defend Your Cause

Psa 74:1 LSB - [1] A Maskil of Asaph. 

Why, O God? 

Have You rejected [us] forever? 

Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture?

Psa 74:22 LSB - [22] Arise, O God, [and] plead Your own cause; Remember how the wicked fool reproaches You all day long.

God Judges with Equity

Psa 75:1 LSB - [1] For the choir director. Al-tashheth. A Psalm of Asaph. A Song. 

We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks, 

For Your name is near; 

Men recount Your wondrous deeds.

God’s Name Is Great in Israel

Psa 76:1 LSB - [1] For the choir director. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph. A Song. 

God is known in Judah; 

His name is great in Israel.

Philemon 1 - Every Good Thing Which Is in You

Philemon’s Love and Faith

Phm 1:4-7 LSB - 

[4] I thank my God, always making mention of you in my prayers, 

[5] because I hear of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints; 

[6] [and I pray] that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the full knowledge of every good thing which is in you for the sake of Christ. 

[7] For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.

Phm 1:6 ESV - [6] and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.

Five Ways to Refresh the Saints in Your Life

Plea for Onesimus

Phm 1:12-14 LSB - [12] I have sent him back to you in person, that is, my very heart, [13] whom I intended to keep with me, so that on your behalf he might minister to me in my chains for the gospel, [14] but without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your goodness would not be, in effect, by compulsion but voluntary.

Philemon Hynm