Ephesians 1-3 - Sovereign Election and Adoption

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

Sovereign Election and Adoption

Eph 1:3-6 LSB – 

[3] Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ, 

[4] just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him in love, 

[5] by predestining us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 

[6] to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He graciously bestowed on us in the Beloved.

Redemption through Christ’s Blood

Eph 1:7-10 LSB – 

[7] In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our transgressions, according to the riches of His grace 

[8] which He caused to abound to us in all wisdom and insight, 

[9] making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Him 

[10] for an administration of the fullness of the times, [that is], the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth in Him.

The Sealing of the Holy Spirit

Eph 1:13-14 LSB – 

[13] In Him, you also, after listening to the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation--having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 

[14] who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, unto the redemption of [God's own] possession, to the praise of His glory.

Paul’s Prayer for Knowledge and Cosmic Supremacy of Christ

Eph 1:17-18 LSB – 

[17] that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you [the] Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the full knowledge of Him, 

[18] so that you--the eyes of your heart having been enlightened--will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

By Grace Through Faith

Eph 2:1 LSB – [1] And you were dead in your transgressions and sins,

Eph 2:4-7 LSB – 

[4] But God, being rich in mercy because of His great love with which He loved us, 

[5] even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- 

[6] and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus, 

[7] so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Eph 2:14-16 LSB – 

[14] For He Himself is our peace, who made both [groups] one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition 

[15] by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, the Law of commandments [contained] in ordinances, so that in Himself He might create the two into one new man, making peace, 

[16] and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, having in Himself put to death the enmity.

Eph 2:19-22 LSB – 

[19] So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, 

[20] having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner [stone], 

[21] in whom the whole building, being joined together, is growing into a holy sanctuary in the Lord, [22] in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

The Mystery of Christ Revealed

Eph 3:4-6 LSB – 

[4] About which, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 

[5] which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it was now revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit: 

[6] that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel,

Prayer for Spiritual Power

Eph 3:16-19 LSB – 

[16] that He would give you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, 

[17] so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; [and] that you, being firmly rooted and grounded in love, 

[18] may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, [19] and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

Hosea 11-14 - out of Egypt I called My son

The Beloved Son

Hos 11:1 LSB – [1] When Israel [was] a youth I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son.

Mat 2:15 LSB – [15] And he remained there until the death of Herod, in order that what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled, saying, "OUT OF EGYPT I CALLED MY SON."

Hos 11:11 LSB – [11] They will come trembling like birds from Egypt And like doves from the land of Assyria; And I will settle them in their houses, declares Yahweh.

Yahweh’s Contention with Judah

Hos 12:5-6 LSB – [5] Even Yahweh, the God of hosts, Yahweh is His [name] of remembrance. 

[6] Therefore, return to your God, Keep lovingkindness and justice, And hope in your God continually.

Ephraim’s Idolatry

Hos 13:14 LSB – 

[14] Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol? 

Shall I redeem them from death? 

O Death, where are your thorns? 

O Sheol, where is your sting? 

Compassion will be hidden from My sight.

1Co 15:54-57 LSB – 

[54] But when this corruptible puts on the incorruptible, and this mortal puts on immortality, then will come about the word that is written, "DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. 

[55] "O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?" 

[56] Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; 

[57] but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Yahweh’s Anger Turns Away from Israel

Hos 14:1 LSB – [1] Return, O Israel, to Yahweh your God, For you have stumbled in your iniquity.

Hos 14:4-5 LSB – 

[4] I will heal their turning away [from Me]; I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from them. 

[5] I will be like the dew to Israel; He will flourish like the lily, And he will take root like [the cedars of] Lebanon.

Hosea 6-10 - like Adam they have trespassed against the covenant

Israel Chastised

Hos 6:1 LSB – [1] "Come, let us return to Yahweh. For He has torn [us], but He will heal us; He has struck [us], but He will bandage us.

Hos 6:3 LSB – [3] "So let us know, let us pursue to know Yahweh. His going forth is established as the dawn; And He will come to us like the rain, Like the late rain watering the earth."

Hos 6:6 LSB – [6] For I delight in lovingkindness rather than sacrifice, And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

Hos 6:7 LSB – [7] But like Adam they have trespassed against the covenant; There they have dealt treacherously against Me.

Job 31:33 LSB – [33] "If I have covered my transgressions like Adam, By hiding my iniquity in my bosom,

Hos 7:10 LSB – [10] So the pride of Israel answers against him,
Yet they have not returned to Yahweh their God,
Nor have they sought Him, for all this.

Hos 7:16 LSB – [16] They turn, [but] not upward;
They are like a deceitful bow;
Their princes will fall by the sword
Because of the indignation of their tongue.
This [will be] their scoffing in the land of Egypt.

Israel Reaps the Whirlwind

Hos 8:1 LSB – [1] [Put] the trumpet to your mouth! Like an eagle [the enemy comes] against the house of Yahweh Because they have trespassed against My covenant And transgressed against My law.

Hos 8:13 LSB – [13] As for My sacrificial gifts, They sacrifice the flesh and eat [it], [But] Yahweh has not accepted them. Now He will remember their iniquity And punish [them] for their sins; They will return to Egypt.

Days of Punishment Have Come

Hos 9:6 LSB – [6] For behold, they will go because of destruction; Egypt will gather them up; Memphis will bury them. Weeds will possess their desirable items of silver; Thorns [will be] in their tents.

Grapes in the Wilderness

Hos 9:17 LSB – [17] My God will despise them Because they have not listened to Him; And they will be those who flee among the nations.

You Have Sinned, O Israel

Hos 10:9 LSB – [9] From the days of Gibeah you have sinned, O Israel; There they stand! Will not the battle against the sons of injustice overtake them in Gibeah?

The Trained Heifer

Hos 10:12 LSB – [12] Sow with a view to righteousness, Reap in accordance with lovingkindness; Break up your fallow ground, Indeed, it is time to seek Yahweh Until He comes and rains righteousness on you.

Hosea 1-5 - My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge

Hosea’s Wife and Children

Hos 1:6 LSB – [6] Then she conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. And Yahweh said to him, "Name her Lo-ruhamah, for I will no longer have compassion on the house of Israel, that I would ever forgive them.

Hos 1:7 LSB – [7] "But I will have compassion on the house of Judah and save them by Yahweh their God, and I will not save them by bow, sword, battle, horses, or horsemen."

Hos 1:9 LSB – [9] And Yahweh said, "Name him Lo-ammi, for you are not My people, and I am not your God."

Hos 1:10 LSB – [10] Yet the number of the sons of Israel 

Will be like the sand of the sea, 

Which cannot be measured or numbered; 

And it will be that in the place 

Where it is said to them, "You are not My people," 

It will be said to them, "[You are] the sons of the living God."

No Compassion for Children of Harlotry

Hos 2:1 LSB – [1] Say to your brothers, "Ammi," and to your sisters, "Ruhamah."

Hos 2:4 LSB – [4] "Also, I will have no compassion on her children Because they are children of harlotry.

Yahweh’s Faithful Betrothal

Hos 2:14 LSB – [14] "Therefore, behold, I will allure her And bring her into the wilderness And speak to her heart.

Hos 2:16 ESV – [16] "And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me 'My Husband,' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.'

Hos 2:19-20 LSB – [19] "And I will betroth you to Me forever; 

Indeed, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, 

In lovingkindness and in compassion, 

[20] And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. 

Then you will know Yahweh.

Hos 2:23 LSB – [23] "And I will sow her for Myself in the land. I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion, And I will say to those who were not My people, 'You are My people!' And they will say, '[You are] my God!'"

Hosea Redeems His Wife

Hos 3:1 LSB – [1] Then Yahweh said to me, "Go again, love a woman [who] is loved by [her] companion and is an adulteress, even as Yahweh loves the sons of Israel, though they turn to other gods and love raisin cakes."

Hos 3:5 ESV – [5] Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the LORD their God, and David their king, and they shall come in fear to the LORD and to his goodness in the latter days.

Yahweh’s Contention with Israel

Hos 4:6 LSB – [6] My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. 

Because you have rejected knowledge, 

I also will reject you from ministering as My priest. 

Since you have forgotten the law of your God, 

I Myself also will forget your children.

Hos 6:6 LSB – [6] For I delight in lovingkindness rather than sacrifice,

And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

2Co 4:3-6 LSB – [3] And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 

[4] in whose case the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 

[5] For we do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for the sake of Jesus. 

[6] For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

Hos 4:12 LSB – [12] My people ask their wooden idol, and their [diviner's] wand declares to them; For a spirit of harlotry has led [them] astray, And they have played the harlot, [departing] from their God.

Yahweh Withdraws from Israel

Hos 5:6 LSB – [6] They will go with their flocks and herds 

To seek Yahweh, but they will not find [Him]; He has withdrawn from them.

Hos 5:15 LSB – [15] I will go away [and] return to My place 

Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face; In their affliction they will seek Me earnestly. 

Amos 6-9 - A Famine for Hearing the Words of Yahweh

Woe to Those at Ease in Zion

Amo 6:8 LSB – [8] Lord Yahweh has sworn by Himself, Yahweh God of hosts has declared: "I abhor the lofty pride of Jacob And hate his citadels; Therefore I will deliver up [the] city as well as its fullness."

Amo 6:14 LSB – [14] "For behold, I am going to raise up a nation against you, O house of Israel," declares Yahweh God of hosts, "And they will press down on you from Lebo-hamath To the brook of the Arabah."

Yahweh Will Rise Up Against Israel

Amo 7:9 LSB – [9] "The high places of Isaac will be desolated And the sanctuaries of Israel laid waste. Then I will rise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword."

Amos Accused

Amo 7:14-15 LSB – [14] Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, "I am not a prophet, nor am I the son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a grower of sycamore figs. [15] "But Yahweh took me from following the flock, and Yahweh said to me, 'Go prophesy to My people Israel.'

A Famine for Hearing the Words of Yahweh

Amo 8:11-12 LSB – 

[11] "Behold, days are coming," declares Lord Yahweh, 

"When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, 

But rather for hearing the words of Yahweh. 

[12] "People will wander from sea to sea And from the north even to the east; 

They will go to and fro to seek the word of Yahweh, 

But they will not find [it].

Sinful Israelites Will Die by the Sword

Amo 9:2 LSB – 

[2] "Though they dig into Sheol, 

From there will My hand take them; 

And though they ascend to heaven, 

From there will I bring them down.

Psa 139:7-10 LSB – 

[7] Where can I go from Your Spirit? 

Or where can I flee from Your presence? 

[8] If I ascend to heaven, You are there; 

If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. 

[9] If I lift up the wings of the dawn, 

If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, 

[10] Even there Your hand will lead me, 

And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

 

Yahweh Will Rebuild Israel

Amo 9:11-12 LSB – 

[11] "In that day I will raise up the fallen booth of David 

And wall up its breaches; 

I will also raise up its ruins 

And rebuild it as in the ancient days, 

[12] That they may possess the remnant of Edom 

And all the nations who are called by My name," 

Declares Yahweh who does this. 

Act 15:14-20 LSB – 

[14] "Simeon has related how God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His name. 

[15] "And with this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written, 

[16] 'AFTER THESE THINGS I will return, AND I WILL REBUILD THE FALLEN BOOTH OF DAVID, AND I WILL REBUILD ITS RUINS, AND I WILL RESTORE IT, 

[17] SO THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK THE LORD, AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME,' 

[18] SAYS THE LORD, WHO MAKES THESE THINGS KNOWN FROM LONG AGO. 

[19] "Therefore I judge that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles,

[20] but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from sexual immorality and from what is strangled and from blood. 

Amos 1-5 - Seek Yahweh that you may live

Judgment on Israel’s Neighbors

Amo 1:1-2 LSB – 

[1] The words of Amos, who was among the sheepherders from Tekoa, which he beheld [in visions] concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake. 

[2] And he said, "Yahweh roars from Zion And from Jerusalem He gives forth His voice; And the shepherds' pasture grounds mourn, And the top of Carmel dries up."

Punishment of Judah and Israel

Amo 2:6 LSB – 

[6] Thus says Yahweh, "For three transgressions of Israel and for four I will not turn back its [punishment] 

Because they sell the righteous for money 

And the needy for a pair of sandals.

Amo 2:13 LSB – [13] "Behold, I am weighted down beneath you 

As a wagon is weighted down when filled with sheaves.

Israel’s Guilt and Punishment

Amo 3:7 LSB – [7] Surely Lord Yahweh does nothing 

Unless He reveals His secret counsel 

To His slaves the prophets.

Gen 18:17 LSB – [17] Now Yahweh said, "Shall I conceal from Abraham what I am about to do,

Jhn 15:15 LSB – [15] "No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.

 

Yet You Have Not Returned to Me

Amo 4:11 LSB – [11] "I overthrew you as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, 

And you were like a firebrand delivered from a blaze; 

Yet you have not returned to Me," declares Yahweh.

Amo 4:12 LSB – [12] "Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel;
Because I will do this to you,
Prepare to meet your God, O Israel."

Seek Me That You May Live

Amo 5:6 LSB – [6] "Seek Yahweh that you may live, 

Lest He come mightily like a fire, O house of Joseph, 

And it will consume with none to quench [it] for Bethel,

Amo 5:25-27 LSB – 

[25] "Did you present Me with sacrifices and grain offerings in the wilderness for forty years, O house of Israel? 

[26] "You also carried along Sikkuth your king and Kiyyun, your images, the star of your gods which you made for yourselves. 

[27] "Therefore, I will make you go into exile beyond Damascus," says Yahweh, whose name is the God of hosts.

Isaiah 64-66 - We are the clay, and You our potter;

Prayer for Mercy and Help

Isa 64:6 LSB – 

[6] For all of us have become like one who is unclean, 

And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; 

And all of us wither like a leaf, 

And our iniquities, like the wind, carry us away.

Isa 64:8 LSB – 

[8] But now, O Yahweh, You are our Father; 

We are the clay, and You our potter; 

And all of us are the work of Your hand.

Jer 18:6 LSB – [6] "Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter [does]?" declares Yahweh. "Behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.

Rom 9:21 LSB – [21] Or does not the potter have authority over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?

 

Judgment and Salvation

Isa 65:12 LSB – [12] I will destine you for the sword, 

And all of you will bow down to the slaughter, 

Because I called, but you did not answer; I spoke, but you did not hear. 

And you did what was evil in My eyes 

And chose that in which I was not pleased."

Isa 65:13 LSB – [13] Therefore, thus says Lord Yahweh, "Behold, My slaves will eat, but you will be hungry. Behold, My slaves will drink, but you will be thirsty. Behold, My slaves will be glad, but you will be put to shame.

Luk 15:17 LSB – [17] "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!

Isa 65:15-16 LSB –
[15] "You will leave your name for a curse to My chosen ones,
And Lord Yahweh will put you to death.
But My slaves will be called by another name,
[16] Because he who is blessed in the earth
Will be blessed by the God of truth,
And he who swears in the earth
Will swear by the God of truth;
Because the former distresses are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My sight!

New Heavens and a New Earth

Isa 65:17 LSB – 

[17] "For behold, I am creating a new heavens and a new earth; 

And the former things will not be remembered or come upon the heart.

Isa 65:24 LSB – [24] "And it will be that before they call, I will answer, and while they are still speaking, I will hear.

Isa 65:25 LSB – [25] "The wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox; and dust will be the serpent's food. They will do no evil nor act corruptly in all My holy mountain," says Yahweh.

Heaven Is Yahweh’s Throne

Isa 66:1-2 LSB – 

[1] Thus says Yahweh, "Heaven is My throne, and the earth is the footstool of My feet. 

Where then is a house you could build for Me? 

And where is a place that I may rest? 

[2] "For My hand made all these things, 

Thus all these things came into being," declares Yahweh. 

"But to this one I will look, 

To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.

Joy in Jerusalem’s Future

Isa 66:22-24 LSB – 

[22] "For just as the new heavens and the new earth 

Which I make will endure before Me," declares Yahweh, 

"So your seed and your name will endure. 

[23] "And it shall be from new moon to new moon 

And from sabbath to sabbath, 

All mankind will come to worship before Me," says Yahweh. 

[24] "Then they will go forth and look On the corpses of the men 

Who have transgressed against Me. 

For their worm will not die 

And their fire will not be quenched; 

And they will be an [object of] contempt to all mankind."

Isaiah 61-63 - You are our Father

Exaltation of the Afflicted

Isa 61:1 LSB – 

[1] The Spirit of Lord Yahweh is upon me 

Because Yahweh has anointed me 

To bring good news to the afflicted; 

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, 

To proclaim release to captives 

And freedom to prisoners,

Isa 61:10 LSB – 

[10] I will rejoice greatly in Yahweh; 

My soul will rejoice in my God, 

For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, 

He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, 

As a bridegroom decks himself with a headdress, 

And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Isa 61:11 LSB – 

[11] For as the earth brings forth its branches, 

And as a garden causes the things sown in it to branch out, 

So Lord Yahweh will cause righteousness and praise 

To branch out before all the nations.

Zion’s Glory and New Name

Isa 62:11-12 LSB – 

[11] Behold, Yahweh has announced to the end of the earth, 

Say to the daughter of Zion, "Behold, your salvation comes; 

Behold, His reward is with Him, and His recompense before Him." 

[12] And they will call them, 

"The holy people, 

The redeemed of Yahweh"; 

And you will be called, 

"Sought out, a city not forsaken."

Vengeance of Yahweh

Remember the Lovingkindness of Yahweh

Isa 63:7 LSB – 

[7] I shall bring to remembrance the lovingkindnesses of Yahweh, the praises of Yahweh, 

According to all [the ways] that Yahweh has dealt bountifully with us, 

And the abundant goodness toward the house of Israel, 

Which He has dealt bountifully to them according to His compassion 

And according to the abundance of His lovingkindnesses.

Isa 63:13-14 LSB – 

[13] Who led them through the depths? 

Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not stumble; 

[14] As the cattle which go down into the valley, 

The Spirit of Yahweh gave them rest. 

So You led Your people, 

To make for Yourself a glorious name.

Prayer for Mercy and Help

Isa 63:16 LSB – 

[16] For You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us 

And Israel does not recognize us. 

You, O Yahweh, are our Father, 

Our Redeemer from everlasting is Your name.