Week 2, Tuesday

Psalm 8

Psalm 8, from the Scottish Psalter.

How excellent in all the earth,
Lord, our Lord, is thy Name!
Who hast thy glory far advanc’d
above the starry frame.
From infants and from sucklings mouth
thou didest strength ordain,
For thy foes cause, that so thou might’st
th’avenging foe restrain.

When I look up unto the heavens
which thine own fingers fram’d,
Unto the moon, and to the stars,
which were by thee ordain’d;
Then say I, what is man, that he
remembered is by thee?
Or what the son of man, that thou
so kind to him should be?

For thou a little lower hast
him then the angels made,
With glory and with dignity
thou crowned hast his head.
Of thy hand-works thou mad’st him Lord;
all under’s feet didst lay:
All sheep and oxen, yea, and beasts
that in the field do stray:

Fowls of the air, fish of the sea,
all that pass through the same.
How excellent in all the earth,
Lord, our Lord, is thy Name!

Ezra 9

Ezra, chapter 9.

¹ When as these things were done, the rulers came to me, saying, The people of Israel, and the Priests, and the Levites are not separated from the people of the lands (as touching their abominations) to wit, of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.

² For they have taken their daughters to themselves, and to their sons, and they have mixed the holy seed with the people of the lands, and the hand of the princes and rulers hath been chief in this trespass.

³ But when I heard this saying, I rent my clothes and my garment, and plucked off the hair of mine head, and of my beard, and sate down astonied.

⁴ And there assembled unto me all that feared the words of the God of Israel, because of the transgression of them of the captivity. And I sate down astonied until the evening sacrifice.

⁵ And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from mine heaviness, and when I had rent my clothes and my garment, I fell upon my knees, and spread out mine hands unto Yahweh my God,

⁶ And said, O my God, I am confounded and ashamed, to lift up mine eyes unto thee my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heaven.

⁷ From the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day, and for our iniquities have we, our Kings, and our Priests been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, unto the sword, into captivity, into a spoil, and into confusion of face, as appeareth this day.

⁸ And now for a little space grace hath been showed from Yahweh our God, in causing a remnant to escape, and in giving us a nail in his holy place, that our God may light our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our servitude.

⁹ For though we were bondmen, yet our God hath not forsaken us in our bondage, but hath inclined mercy unto us in the sight of the Kings of Persia, to give us life, and to erect the house of our God, and to redress the desolate places thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem.

¹⁰ And now, our God, what shall we say after this? for we have forsaken thy commandments,

¹¹ Which thou hast commanded by thy servants the Prophets, saying, The land whereunto ye go to possess it, is an unclean land, because of the filthiness of the people of the lands, which by their abominations, and by their uncleanness have filled it from corner to corner.

¹² Now therefore shall ye not give your daughters unto their sons, neither shall ye take their daughters unto your sons, nor seek their peace nor wealth forever, that ye may be strong and eat the goodness of the land, and leave it for an inheritance to your sons forever.

¹³ And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespasses, (seeing that thou our God hast stayed us from being beneath for our iniquities, and hast given us such deliverance)

¹⁴ Should we return to break thy commandments, and join in affinity with the people of such abominations? wouldest not thou be angry toward us till thou haddest consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor any escaping?

¹⁵ O Yahweh God of Israel, thou art just, for we have been reserved to escape, as appeareth this day: behold, we are before thee in our trespass: therefore we cannot stand before thee because of it.

Acts 9

Acts, chapter 9.

¹ And Saul yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high Priest,

² And desired of him letters to Damascus to the Synagogues, that if he found any that were of that way (either men or women) he might bring them bound unto Hierusalem.

³ Now as he journeyed, it came to pass that as he was come near to Damascus, suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven.

⁴ And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice, saying to him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

⁵ And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against pricks.

⁶ He then both trembling and astonied, said, Lord, what wilt thou that I do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou shalt do.

⁷ The men also which journeyed with him, stood amazed, hearing his voice, but seeing no man.

⁸ And Saul arose from the ground, and opened his eyes, but saw no man. Then led they him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus,

⁹ Where he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

¹⁰ And there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias, and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here Lord.

¹¹ Then the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and seek in the house of Judas after one called Saul of Tarsus: for behold, he prayeth.

¹² (And he saw in a vision a man named Ananias coming in to him, and putting his hands on him, that he might receive his sight.)

¹³ Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Hierusalem.

¹⁴ Moreover here he hath authority of the high Priests, to bind all that call on thy Name.

¹⁵ Then the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my Name before the Gentiles, and Kings, and the children of Israel.

¹⁶ For I will show him, how many things he must suffer for my Names sake.

¹⁷ Then Ananias went his way, and entered into that house, and put his hands on him, and said, Brother Saul, the Lord hath sent me (even Jesus that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest) that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the holy Ghost.

¹⁸ And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales, and suddenly he received sight, and arose, and was baptized,

¹⁹ And received meat, and was strengthened. So was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus.

²⁰ And straightway he preached Christ in the Synagogues, that he was that Son of God,

²¹ So that all that heard him, were amazed, and said, Is not this he, that made havoc of them which called on this Name in Hierusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he should bring them bound unto the high Priests?

²² But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, confirming, that this was that Christ.

²³ And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel together, to kill him,

²⁴ But their laying await was known of Saul: now they watched the gates day and night, that they might kill him.

²⁵ Then the disciples took him by night, and put him through the wall, and let him down by a rope in a basket.

²⁶ And when Saul was come to Hierusalem, he assayed to join himself with the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple.

²⁷ But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the Apostles, and declared to them, how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken unto him, and how he had spoken boldly at Damascus in the Name of Jesus.

²⁸ And he was conversant with them at Hierusalem,

²⁹ And spake boldly in the Name of the Lord Jesus, and spake and disputed against the Grecians: but they went about to slay him.

³⁰ But when the brethren knew it, they brought him to Cesarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.

³¹ Then had the Churches rest through all Judea, and Galile, and Samaria, and were edified and walked in the fear of the Lord, and were multiplied by the comfort of the holy Ghost.

³² And it came to pass, as Peter walked throughout all quarters, he came also to the saints which dwelt at Lydda.

³³ And there he found a certain man named Aeneas, which had kept his couch eight years, and was sick of the palsy.

³⁴ Then said Peter unto him, Aeneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole: arise and truss thy couch together. And he arose immediately.

³⁵ And all that dwelt at Lydda and Saron, saw him, and turned to the Lord.

³⁶ There was also at Joppa a certain woman, a disciple named Tabitha (which by interpretation is called Dorcas) she was full of good works and alms which she did.

³⁷ And it came to pass in those days, that she was sick and died: and when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper chamber.

³⁸ Now forasmuch as Lydda was near to Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent unto him two men, desiring that he would not delay to come unto them.

³⁹ Then Peter arose and came with them: and when he was come, they brought him into the upper chamber, where all the widows stood by him weeping, and showing the coats and garments, which Dorcas made, while she was with them.

⁴⁰ But Peter put them all forth, and kneeled down, and prayed, and turned him to the body, and said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, sate up.

⁴¹ Then he gave her the hand and lift her up, and called the Saints and widows, and restored her alive.

⁴² And it was known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.

⁴³ And it came to pass that he tarried many days in Joppa with one Simon a Tanner.

The Heidelberg Catechism

The Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 2.

Question 3. How do you know your misery?

Out of the Law of God.

Question 4. What does the Law of God require of us?

This Christ teaches us in sum, Matt. 22: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength. This is the first and great commandment; and the second is like unto it: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.—On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

Question 5. Can you keep all this perfectly?

No; for I am by nature prone to hate God and my neighbor.

Of Domestical Duties

From William Gouge, Of Domestical Duties, 1622.

5. Children are most properly Gods: borne to God: he is the most proper parent of them: in comparison of God, fathers and mothers of the flesh are but nurses. They must therefore nurture them in the admonition of the Lord.

6. Piety is that, which of all other things, will make the child most obedient, and grateful to his parents: for thus there is a double bond to bind him: 1. his birth. 2. his new birth: especially when the cause of the one hath been also the cause of the other.

7. Nothing can more settle the heart of a wise parent on his death-bed concerning his children, then assurance that piety is planted in them: for then may he with stronger confidence commend them to Gods providence, and with greater assurance expect his blessing upon them after he is dead.

8. Parents, by teaching their children piety, are an especial means of propagating true religion from age to age, and from generation to generation. No better means can be thought of. For if all parents were careful of their duty in this kind, as there is a succession of children, and thereby a preservation of mankind, so there would be a succession of those that fear God, and thereby a preservation of true religion. My children that are taught by me, may be fathers of children, and so teach that to their children, which they have learned of me: yea after them may grandchildren prove fathers of other children, and they teach their children the same, and so from age to age others after them. This is the means on our part: and in our time we must do our part: and for those who come after us, leave the issue to God.

Let us pray.

Let us pray. A prayer of John Calvin.

Grant, Almighty God, that, since thou hast hitherto so kindly invited us to thyself, and daily invitest us, and often interposest also thy threatenings to rouse our inattention, and since we have been inattentive to thy reproofs, as well as to thy paternal kindness,—O grant, that we may not, to the last, proceed in this our wickedness, and thus provoke the vengeance thou here denouncest on men past recovery; but that we may anticipate thy wrath by true repentance, and be humbled under thy hand, yea, by thy word, that thou mayest receive us into favor, and nourish us in thy paternal bosom, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Tonight at your table

Tonight at your table, read Genesis 9, Genesis 10 and Matthew 9 with your household.

This week’s question for your table. How do you know your misery?