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Psalm 143

1  Hear my prayer, O Lord,
      and in your faithfulness give ear to my supplications; ♦︎
   answer me in your righteousness.
2  Enter not into judgement with your servant, ♦︎
   for in your sight shall no one living be justified.
3  For the enemy has pursued me,
      crushing my life to the ground, ♦︎
   making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4  My spirit faints within me; ♦︎
   my heart within me is desolate.
5  I remember the time past; I muse upon all your deeds; ♦︎
   I consider the works of your hands.
6  I stretch out my hands to you; ♦︎
   my soul gasps for you like a thirsty land.
7  O Lord, make haste to answer me; my spirit fails me; ♦︎
   hide not your face from me
      lest I be like those who go down to the Pit.
8  Let me hear of your loving-kindness in the morning,
      for in you I put my trust; ♦︎
   show me the way I should walk in,
      for I lift up my soul to you.
9  Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies, ♦︎
   for I flee to you for refuge.
10  Teach me to do what pleases you, for you are my God; ♦︎
   let your kindly spirit lead me on a level path.
11  Revive me, O Lord, for your name’s sake; ♦︎
   for your righteousness’ sake, bring me out of trouble.
12  In your faithfulness, slay my enemies,
      and destroy all the adversaries of my soul, ♦︎
   for truly I am your servant.

The Fiery Furnace

19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was so filled with rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face was distorted. He ordered the furnace to be heated up seven times more than was customary, ²⁰and ordered some of the strongest guards in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. ²¹So the men were bound, still wearing their tunics,^* their trousers,^* their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire. ²²Because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace was so overheated, the raging flames killed the men who lifted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. ²³But the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down, bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.

24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up quickly. He said to his counsellors, ‘Was it not three men that we threw bound into the fire?’ They answered the king, ‘True, O king.’ ²⁵He replied, ‘But I see four men unbound, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the fourth has the appearance of a god.’^{* 26}Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and said, ‘Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!’ So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. ²⁷And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counsellors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men; the hair of their heads was not singed, their tunics^* were not harmed, and not even the smell of fire came from them. ²⁸Nebuchadnezzar said, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king’s command and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. ²⁹Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that utters blasphemy against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins; for there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way.’ ³⁰Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

The Message to Laodicea

14 ‘And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the origin^* of God’s creation:

15 ‘I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. ¹⁶So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷For you say, “I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.” You do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. ¹⁸Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire so that you may be rich; and white robes to clothe you and to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen; and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. ¹⁹I reprove and discipline those whom I love. Be earnest, therefore, and repent. ²⁰Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me. ²¹To the one who conquers I will give a place with me on my throne, just as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²²Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.’