To finish the Bible in one year, Read Psalms 61 to 66 and 2nd Corinthians 11 : 16-33
Old Testament Reading for today – Listen or read it for yourself:
Reflection for Today.
Also read the verses, if you like.
Psalm 61
1 [For the choirmaster For strings Of David] God, hear my cry, listen to my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth I call to you with fainting heart. Lead me to the high rock that stands far out of my reach.
3 For you are my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me stay in your tent for ever, taking refuge in the shelter of your wings!
5 For you, God, accept my vows, you grant me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6 Let the king live on and on, let his years continue age after age.
7 May his throne be always in God’s presence, your faithful love and constancy watch over him.
8 Then I shall always sing to your name, day after day fulfilling my vows.
Psalm 62
1 [For the choirmaster . . . Jeduthun Psalm Of David] In God alone there is rest for my soul, from him comes my safety;
2 he alone is my rock, my safety, my stronghold so that I stand unshaken.
3 How much longer will you set on a victim, all together, intent on murder, like a rampart already leaning over, a wall already damaged?
4 Trickery is their only plan, deception their only pleasure, with lies on their lips they pronounce a blessing, with a curse in their hearts.
5 Rest in God alone, my soul! He is the source of my hope.
6 He alone is my rock, my safety, my stronghold, so that I stand unwavering.
7 In God is my safety and my glory, the rock of my strength. In God is my refuge;
8 trust in him, you people, at all times. Pour out your hearts to him, God is a refuge for us.
9 Ordinary people are a mere puff of wind, important people a delusion; set both on the scales together, and they are lighter than a puff of wind.
10 Put no trust in extortion, no empty hopes in robbery; however much wealth may multiply, do not set your heart on it.
11 Once God has spoken, twice have I heard this: Strength belongs to God,
12 to you, Lord, faithful love; and you repay everyone as their deeds deserve.
Psalm 63
1 [Psalm Of David When he was in the desert of Judah] God, you are my God, I pine for you; my heart thirsts for you, my body longs for you, as a land parched, dreary and waterless.
2 Thus I have gazed on you in the sanctuary, seeing your power and your glory.
3 Better your faithful love than life itself; my lips will praise you.
4 Thus I will bless you all my life, in your name lift up my hands.
5 All my longings fulfilled as with fat and rich foods, a song of joy on my lips and praise in my mouth.
6 On my bed when I think of you, I muse on you in the watches of the night,
7 for you have always been my help; in the shadow of your wings I rejoice;
8 my heart clings to you, your right hand supports me.
9 May those who are hounding me to death go down to the depths of the earth,
10 given over to the blade of the sword, and left as food for jackals.
11 Then the king shall rejoice in God, all who swear by him shall gain recognition, for the mouths of liars shall be silenced.
Psalm 64
1 [For the choirmaster Psalm Of David] Listen, God, to my voice as I plead, protect my life from fear of the enemy;
2 hide me from the league of the wicked, from the gang of evil-doers.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a sword, aim their arrows of poisonous abuse,
4 shoot at the innocent from cover, shoot suddenly, with nothing to fear.
5 They support each other in their evil designs, they discuss how to lay their snares. ‘Who will see us?’ they say,
6 ‘or will penetrate our secrets?’ He will do that, he who penetrates human nature to its depths, the depths of the heart.
7 God has shot them with his arrow, sudden were their wounds.
8 He brings them down because of their tongue, and all who see them shake their heads.
9 Everyone will be awestruck, proclaim what God has done, and understand why he has done it.
10 The upright will rejoice in Yahweh, will take refuge in him, and all the honest will praise him.
Psalm 65
1 [For the choirmaster Psalm Of David Song] Praise is rightfully yours, God, in Zion. Vows to you shall be fulfilled,
2 for you answer prayer. All humanity must come to you
3 with its sinful deeds. Our faults overwhelm us, but you blot them out.
4 How blessed those whom you choose and invite to dwell in your courts. We shall be filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.
5 You respond to us with the marvels of your saving justice, God our Saviour, hope of the whole wide world, even the distant islands.
6 By your strength you hold the mountains steady, being clothed in power,
7 you calm the turmoil of the seas, the turmoil of their waves. The nations are in uproar, in panic those who live at the ends of the earth;
8 your miracles bring shouts of joy to the gateways of morning and evening.
9 You visit the earth and make it fruitful, you fill it with riches; the river of God brims over with water, you provide the grain. To that end
10 you water its furrows abundantly, level its ridges, soften it with showers and bless its shoots.
11 You crown the year with your generosity, richness seeps from your tracks,
12 the pastures of the desert grow moist, the hillsides are wrapped in joy,
13 the meadows are covered with flocks, the valleys clothed with wheat; they shout and sing for joy.
Psalm 66
1 [For the choirmaster Song Psalm] Acclaim God, all the earth,
2 sing psalms to the glory of his name, glorify him with your praises,
3 say to God, ‘How awesome you are! ‘Your achievements are the measure of your power, your enemies woo your favour,
4 all the earth bows down before you, sings psalms to you, sings psalms to your name.
5 Come and see the marvels of God, his awesome deeds for the children of Adam:
6 he changed the sea into dry land, they crossed the river on foot. So let us rejoice in him,
7 who rules for ever by his power; his eyes keep watch on the nations to forestall rebellion against him.
8 Nations, bless our God, let the sound of his praise be heard;
9 he brings us to life and keeps our feet from stumbling.
10 God, you have put us to the test, refined us like silver,
11 let us fall into the net; you have put a heavy strain on our backs,
12 let men ride over our heads; but now the ordeal by fire and water is over, you have led us out to breathe again.
13 I bring burnt offerings to your house, I fulfil to you my vows,
14 the vows that rose to my lips, that I pronounced when I was in trouble.
15 I will offer you rich burnt offerings, with the smoke of burning rams. I will sacrifice to you bullocks and goats.
16 Come and listen, all who fear God, while I tell what he has done for me.
17 To him I cried aloud, high praise was on my tongue.
18 Had I been aware of guilt in my heart, the Lord would not have listened,
19 but in fact God did listen, attentive to the sound of my prayer.
20 Blessed be God who has not turned away my prayer, nor his own faithful love from me.
2nd Corinthians 11 : 16-33
16 To repeat: let no one take me for a fool, but if you do, then treat me as a fool, so that I, too, can do a little boasting.
17 I shall not be following the Lord’s way in what I say now, but will be speaking out of foolishness in the conviction that I have something to boast about.
18 So many people boast on merely human grounds that I shall too.
19 I know how happy you are to put up with fools, being so wise yourselves;
20 and how you will still go on putting up with a man who enslaves you, eats up all you possess, keeps you under his orders and sets himself above you, or even slaps you in the face.
21 I say it to your shame; perhaps we have been too weak. Whatever bold claims anyone makes — now I am talking as a fool — I can make them too.
22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I.
23 Are they servants of Christ? I speak in utter folly — I am too, and more than they are: I have done more work, I have been in prison more, I have been flogged more severely, many times exposed to death.
24 Five times I have been given the thirty-nine lashes by the Jews;
25 three times I have been beaten with sticks; once I was stoned; three times I have been shipwrecked, and once I have been in the open sea for a night and a day;
26 continually travelling, I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from brigands, in danger from my own people and in danger from the gentiles, in danger in the towns and in danger in the open country, in danger at sea and in danger from people masquerading as brothers;
27 I have worked with unsparing energy, for many nights without sleep; I have been hungry and thirsty, and often altogether without food or drink; I have been cold and lacked clothing.
28 And, besides all the external things, there is, day in day out, the pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.
29 If anyone weakens, I am weakened as well; and when anyone is made to fall, I burn in agony myself.
30 If I have to boast, I will boast of all the ways in which I am weak.
31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus — who is for ever to be blessed — knows that I am not lying.
32 When I was in Damascus, the governor who was under King Aretas put guards round Damascus city to catch me,
33 and I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and that was how I escaped from his hands.
Sermons by different people regarding the verses for today.
Catholic Daily Readings and Reflections
Reading 1, Isaiah 10:5-7, 13-16
5 Woe to Assyria, rod of my anger, the club in their hands is my fury!
6 I was sending him against a godless nation, commissioning him against the people who enraged me, to pillage and plunder at will and trample on them like the mud in the streets.
7 But this was not his intention nor did his heart plan it so, for he dreamed of putting an end to them, of liquidating nations without number!
13 For he thinks: ‘By the strength of my own arm I have done this and by my own wisdom: how intelligent I have been! I have abolished the frontiers between peoples, I have plundered their treasures, like a hero, I have subjugated their inhabitants.
14 My hand has found, as though a bird’s nest, the riches of the peoples. Like someone collecting deserted eggs, I have collected the whole world while no one has fluttered a wing or opened a beak to squawk.’
15 Does the axe claim more credit than the man who wields it, or the saw more strength than the man who handles it? As though a staff controlled those who raise it, or the club could raise what is not made of wood!
16 That is why Yahweh Sabaoth is going to inflict leanness on his stout men, and beneath his glory kindle a fever burning like a fire.
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 94:5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 14-15
5 They crush your people, Yahweh, they oppress your heritage,
6 they murder the widow and the stranger, bring the orphan to a violent death.
7 They say, ‘Yahweh is not looking, the God of Jacob is taking no notice.’
8 Take notice yourselves, you coarsest of people! Fools, when will you learn some sense?
9 Shall he who implanted the ear not hear, he who fashioned the eye not see?
10 Shall he who instructs nations not punish? Yahweh, the teacher of all people,
14 Yahweh will not abandon his people, he will not desert his heritage;
15 for judgement will again become saving justice, and in its wake all upright hearts will follow.
Gospel, Matthew 11:25-27
25 At that time Jesus exclaimed, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children.
26 Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do.
27 Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
Previous Daily Bible Study Blogs
Book of Psalms, Outline Summary, Outline Book of 2 Corinthians (we are studying these books presently)
Audio Drama: Old Testament New Testament Each book is read in its entirety. You can listen to the bible, one book at a time in contemporary English.
Dr. Myles Munroe
I am including a video by Dr. Myles Munroe, I’ve listened to him back in the nineties, and rediscovered him recently. Now his perspective seems to be a good way to also look at scripture. In Pursuit of Purpose – Book Highlights
Sermons Rosary Prayers Catholic Answers
Did Mary have other children? No, Listen here
Called to Communion
Pray the Rosary
Rosary Mysteries
The following 4 videos are the 4 Mysteries that we pray on certain days of the week. I like these videos, because I can pray it alone, with only the images, or go along with the sound. The images help me to focus on the particular mystery that I am contemplating as I say the Hail Mary on each bead.
Joyful Mysteries
Luminous Mysteries
Sorrowful Mysteries
Glorious Mysteries
Prayers of the Rosary
Links to “How to pray the rosary” Popular Catholic Prayers
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord;
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried,
He descended into hell; the third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty, from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Glory be to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
(this prayer is optional and may be said after all Glory Be to the Fathers…..)
O my Jesus, forgive us our sins. Save us from the fires of hell.
Lead all souls to heaven, especially those who are in most need of thy mercy.
Console the souls in Purgatory, particularly those most abandoned. Amen
Hail Mary,
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
The Hail, Holy Queen
Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life our sweetness and our hope.
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve;
To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us and after this our exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
That we maybe made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Closing Prayer
O God, whose only begotten Son, by His life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal salvation.
Grant, we beseech Thee, that while meditating on these mysteries of the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
that we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
(The Fatima Prayer:)
Most Holy Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – I adore thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference’s whereby He is offended. And through the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners.
Prayer to St. Michael
Saint Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do you, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who wander through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.
Thurzo Gizella Bible Study 
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